ROY ASHTON MAKE UP ARTIST REMEMBERED

REMEMBERING Master Make Up Artist, Roy Ashton, who was born today 17th April 1909! There is so much you could say about Roy, but his work kind of says it all! So many amazing creations in what was the golden era of Hammer films, Amicus and Tyburn too! I was very humbled to spend time with him at his home and while he was working, and during these times saw at first hand what a true gentleman he was and quite the perfectionist, with a lovely dry wit and friendly character. Roy sadly left us in 1995, but left behind for us, a wonderful and original body of work, that still entertains and frightens us today! Personally, his letters I still treasure, his work I still very much am in awe of, for sure

OVER AT THE FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE I have asked everyone to tell us and share their favourite 'Ashton Creation' in the comments below. BELOW is an impressive filmography of Roy's work. A #HappyBirthday, Roy Ashton a true magician and creator of things of nightmares and dreams too 

The Curse of Frankenstein (1957)
The Horror Dracula (1958)
The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958)
The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)
The Man Who Could Cheat Death (1959)
The Mummy (1959)
The Stranglers of Bombay (1959)
The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll (1960)
The Curse of the Werewolf (1960)
The Terror of the Tongs (1961)
These Are the Damned (1962)
The Phantom of the Opera (1962)
Night Creatures (1962) Captain Clegg
The Pirates of Blood River (1962)
 

ABOVE: A WHILE AGO in one of our weekly PCASUK TUESDAY TOUGHY questions, we celebrated ROY ASHTON'S work with PETER CUSHING in 'Tales from the Crypt' (1972)

Paranoiac (1963)
The Old Dark House (1963)
The Crimson Blade (1963)
Nightmare (1964)
The Evil of Frankenstein (1964)
The Kiss of the Vampire (1964)
The Gorgon (1964)
 

Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors (1964)
The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb (1964)
The Devil-Ship Pirates (1964)
The Skull (1965)
She (1965)
The Plague of the Zombies (1966)
The Reptile (1966)
The Devil Rides Out (1968)
The House That Dripped Blood (1970)
Hands of the Ripper (1971)
The Devils (1971)
Tales from the Crypt (1972)
The Creeping Flesh (1972)
Asylum (1972)
The Vault of Horror (1973)
The Ghoul (1975)

SEE OUR POSTS every day at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE HERE! and the EXPANDED version here!! EXTRA IMAGES and FEATURES every day here at our WEBSITE!

'#WATCHWITHCUSHING!' POISON DARTS PEARLS AND MURDER! LOCK-DOWN ENTERTAINMENT

#WATCHWITHCUSHING! IT'S GREAT TO SEE the sharing of #PeterCushing's #SherlockHolmes episodes have been so popular in our PCASUK 'Watch With Cushing Parties' 😊Those you messaging and requesting other episodes from the series, just need to dip into our post from the last three weeks. You will find them there😉 Meanwhile, here we have 'The Sign Of Four' my personal favourite from this Cushing BBC television series, though many see this episode as the weakest!?

OF THE SIX #surviving episodes, from the BBC's 'trashing and wiping tapes fiasco' The Sign of Four' I certainly find it more entertaining and interesting... Peter complained there was too little time for preparation, and some consider the direction of William Sterling, to be without map or steering device! I find these pressures to have enhanced the experience in my viewing. Cushing has to think, react and perform much more quickly. Recorded live, I am sure everyone was flying by the seat of their pants.. . 

NIGEL STOCK AGAIN proves to be a solid and dependable Watson and Cushing's Sherlock at times, leaves his tired and tested performance... all interesting stuff. Supporting actor honours go to John Stratton, another familiar face in the Cushing universe (he would go on to play the comically blustering asylum director in #Hammerfilms / Cushing's 'Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell', 1972), who gives a good account of himself as the clueless and supercilious Inspector Jones. Howard Goorney, a busy character actor whose credits include 'The Evil of Frankenstein' (1964), '#BloodonSatan’sClaw' (1970) and 'The Offence' (1972), also shows up in a small role. I hope this entertains, that you and yours are safe. Take care of yourself and each other, my friends

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STRIPPING, POETRY AND POE : WITCHFINDER VINCENT PRICE ENTERTAINS!

#WATCHWITHCUSHING! FOLLOWING SOME REQUESTS I have received for suggestions of posts that you would like to see shared here.. This one is for Shelia P, Dale J, Michelle J and Matt K 😃They have requested this interview with Peter Cushing's good friend and twice screen buddy, #VincentPrice, having seen it on the PCASUK YouTube Channel 😉My pleasure. It's a fine and VERY amusing interview, where Vincent certainly entertains 😄

#WATCHWITHCUSHING! AND SO... our last clip of the day at the Facebook PCASUK Fan Page and a suggestion from Stuart H, Audrey K, Rob Sadler, Barbara C, Emma Teile, M Aldrich and Tori F . . if you are ready to sleep, what better way than a sweet lullaby from Vincent Price from the end credit sequence of the 1974 'Madhouse' starring Vincent, Peter Cushing, Robert Quarry, Adrienne Corri and Linda Hayden. Despite the gnashing of teeth it got from the critics and even some fans who today, see it as a waste of the talents of Price and Cushing,  it still stands as one of my personal favs. YOU can hear this clip at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE! HERE! This one is for you too, #JimMorrow 😉 Sweet dreams, sleep tight, sleep well, stay safe 😉 - Marcus 😴😴 💤💤

RAW FOOTAGE TV INTERVIEW AND SURPRISE PARTY!

#WATCHWITHCUSHING! There are some clips of #PeterCushing, which I really enjoy and make me smile. Here are two of them. The first is a raw UK TV studio interview. Here PC is very much 'Johnny On The Spot' Charming and relaxed. Quite the gent, wit style and having fun. The second, is a clip of more raw footage, that some of you may have seen here before. It's Peter Cushing's Surprise 80th Birthday Party! Here of course he is older, but still able to have a lot of fun and is quite genuinely surprised and happy to see everyone. This always make me smile. I hope you smile and enjoy this too! Stay safe everyone and look after yourselves 😊 You'll find the clip at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE HERE!!

NOT THAT LONG AGO IN A GALAXY NOT THAT FAR AWAY : NOTHING IS ORIGINAL

IF YOU WRITE, BE IT FOR a blog, facebook page or even for your own amusement, do you ever feel like all the great ideas have already been taken by the ‘real’ writers out there?  Do you ever think that maybe you’re not capable of an original idea? Me? I fight with it daily! Pablo Picasso once said, 'Nothing is truly original; we all build on the work, knowledge, wisdom and accomplishments of others'. In the inspiring book, 'Steal Like an Artist, 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative - by Austin Kleon, he states, 'Nobody is born with a style or a voice. We don’t come out of the womb knowing who we are. In the beginning, we learn by pretending to be our heroes.  We learn by copying' and 'We’re talking about practice here, not plagiarism – plagiarism is trying to pass someone else’s work off as your own.  Copying is about reverse engineering.  It’s like a mechanic taking apart a car to see how it works!' With these gems of wisdom already in mind, I recently came across a quite startling feature, that has appeared at the tvandmovienews.com site. 

ABOVE : Even without the photograph of Peter Cushing provided on the right. I think most film buffs would identify the illustration on the left to have more than a shadow of a resemblance to Cushing's appearance as Grand Moff Tarkin in 'Star Wars' (1977)? When you find that the character is also of ranking and an Ambassador in the 1975 Valérian volume 'Ambassador of the Shadows', it clicks?

ABOVE : In the 1971's Empire of a Thousand Planets, the figure on the left appears as a member of a strange group known as the 'Enlightened'. When he is unmasked, he reveals a  face that is damaged, scarred and burned, similarly to Darth Vader's on the right in the 1983 'The Return of the Jedi'

THE FEATURE and writing appears uncredited and explores a story that seems to have been quite common knowledge in the 'Star Wars' community for quite sometime, but for me, not being a reader of comic sci fi fiction, it's all news! It's such a startling theory and reveal, that I had to go look it up further. As it's base is grounded on the idea of plagiarism and theft, I was somewhat taken aback to see WHOLE slabs of this feature, reproduced typo errors and all, on other websites and blogs! Ironic or what? So, in presenting and writing my own take on this story.. I have to tread carefully. 😉😀 All the comic frames, are indeed not mine, I have 'borrowed them' from www.core77.com and http://www.tvandmovienews.com. Here goes . . 

ABOVE : The Millennium Falcon maybe one of the most loved and respected space craft in sci fi cinema history. Can we say after all the work, the multiple design stages and planning that the Millennium Falcon went through, that this was also a lift from the 1971's The Empire of a Thousand Planets comic? I am not sure . .

IF YOU WERE one of the fortunates, who is old enough to remember when the FIRST 'Star Wars' movie was released back in May 25th 1977... just one day before Peter Cushing's 64th birthday, two days before Christopher Lee's and Vincent Price's birthdays... then undoubtedly you'll also remember leaving the cinema with total glee and wonder at the whole amazing package, you had just witnessed! For many, myself included I was stunned by the scale of the special effects, the sounds, the music, the 'other universe' creatures, the whole emotional ride and the fact my favourite actor, Peter Cushing who up until this film, had been taking a bit of a back-seat as far as 'amazing movies' were concerned was now also on that big screen and part of this mind blowing, fresh, new and exciting film! As far as movie experiences were concerned, as a teenager I seriously asked myself how could I ever be THIS excited over a new movie ever again!

ABOVE : The two outfits here do bear a striking similarity to each other, although Industrial Light & Magic costume designer Aggie Rodgers, cited the work of fantasy artist Frank Frazetta as her main inspiration. The Empire Strikes Back, Leia Organa is enslaved by a morbidly obese ruler (Jabba the Hutt), and forced to wear a revealing slave-girl outfit. Believe it or not, almost the exact same thing happens to Laureline in the 1972 Valérian volume World Without Stars; although, in this case, the overweight monarch is Emperor Alzafar, who rules the city of Valsennar and has pioneered a system where women are basically responsible for everything, including fighting in wars.

ABOVE : In the 1971 'Valérian and Laureline' compilation 'Empire of a Thousand Planets', Valérian is frozen is a substance that bears an uncanny resemblance to Carbonite, the substance Han Solo was frozen in nearly a decade later in 1980's 'The Empire Strikes Back'. As pointed out, by The Film Theorists, Valérian's memory loss while frozen matches up a known symptom of Carbonite sickness.

MY NEXT QUESTION WAS, who was responsible for all this? What super gifted writer, put together such a thrilling concept, impressive script and very likeable and fascinating characters? The answer was quickly discovered, by me on the TV news that evening, a quite shy, quietly spoken bearded guy, from the US called George Lucas, who had been nursing the whole concept for years. It was his baby, his creation that he had been touting around the studios for quite some time. Wow! What I would have given to have just a few grains of his imaginative brain cells back then!

ABOVE : The 'Moss Eisley Cantina' is one of the Star Wars universe's key locations, as well as one of its most popular. While its overall layout was most likely based on real-life cantinas, there's no denying the fact that an 'alien bar' with a certain semblance of sameness appears on the pages of Valérian.

NOW? I AM NOT SOOOO SURE 😲😗😃 This weekend, reaching my fifth week of self isolation, during this very weird and frightening time, as well as weighing up the pros and cons of IF I should start decorating the hall and  living room, I have been chewing over, the starling evidence of WHERE did George source those Star Wars characters, concepts and ideas? Taking into account of ol Pablo's point, I am not sure what I think or where Lucas lies in the whole scheme of things. Certainly, illustrator and artist, Jean-Claude Mezieres knows EXACTLY where his thoughts lie. It seems that George, for all three original Star Wars films had 'borrowed' quite liberally from the 'ideas and concepts' pantry of a French comic series called 'Valerian and Laureline' and had done so, without making reference or credit to its creators. This very popular sci fi comic was amazingly illustrated by one Jean- Claude Mezieres and written by Pierre Christin.

AT THE TIME, of the release of 'Star Wars' and the following two other movies, Mezieres was said to be, quite understandably, incensed. Now with both gentlemen in late seventies, they have simmered a little helped by their work finally getting some well deserved credit and influencing the 2017 film, 'Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets', directed by a major fan, Luc Beeson! 

IF YOU WOULD LIKE to share your thoughts on this feature, it is also being posted and shared on the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE TODAY! Your comments and input would be most welcome! 

IS IT BAD TO LOVE THE ROGUE ONE? THE RESURRECTION OF CGI TARKIN TWEAKED

#WATCHWITHCUSHING! 'Is it wrong to love THE Rogue One? Well, here's a confession, I am very fond of this film and have a lot of respect for what Industrial Light and Magic and Guy Henry achieved in the finished film. We've posted a feature about this today at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE . .. For those not up to speed with what happened four years ago...here we go! In the 2016 anthology film '#RogueOne', archive footage and a digital scan of Cushing's life mask made for the 1984 film Top Secret! were used to create a 3D CGI mask which was augmented and mapped to actor Guy Henry's face. Henry had studied Cushing's mannerisms many years previously for the lead role in British TV show 'Young Sherlock', but insisted on a screen test as he was not comfortable that his vocal imitation was accurate, stating he sounded more like "Peter O'Toole than #PeterCushing". 

THE ILM team searched through hours of footage to find suitable material of Cushing to build from, footage from 'A New Hope' was lit very differently to the lighting used in 'Rogue One' and had to be digitally changed. The more they manipulated the lighting to match the other actors in the scenes the less like Cushing the character model looked, which meant creating a balancing act between "a digital figure" and "one who looked precisely like Cushing". The owners of Cushing's estate were heavily involved with the creation and had input right down to "small, subtle adjustments".

ABOVE: THE PCASUK STORY ON APRIL FOOL'S DAY!

THE RESULT, which has been called "one of the most complex and costly CGI re-creations ever", received a mixed response. Recently, Derpfakes who is quite the dab hand at creating some quite stunning CGI creations and sharing them for critiques on YouTube. Here for your analysis, is his tweaking and nudging, of the ILM job on Tarkin's appearance in 'Rogue One' (2016) ... There are some interesting chances... for some I am sure, there will be little difference. Later, if you like me have always thought the ideas and concepts of 'Star Wars' were very original and new, join us later 😉 - Marcus

THE BOSCOMBE VALLEY MYSTERY TODAYS WATCH WITH CUSHING!

BEFORE we begin a BIG shout out to . . Romina Bond, Kornelis Kalsbeek, Scott Brookman, John Bramwell, Marcia Loisel, Jeffery Kubitz, Jim Morrow, Michelle Lynn Brooks and Lyn Barnes .. . who I hope are going to very much enjoy another Peter Cushing #SherlockHolmes episode this evening.. and I hope you do too! 😃The Boscombe Valley Mystery is one of my favourites from the 1968 BBC television series and it's today's FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE Cushing seems to have much more fun making this episode and their is some amusing bits of business with him and Nigel Stock's #DrWatson too. Director Viktors Ritelis seems to have the right touch for Cushing's style as he directed this and two other episodes of the series, 'The Musgrave Ritual' and 'The Solitary Cyclist'.

SADLY, BOTH EPISODES were victims of the 'BBC great '#junking, wipe and reuse' exercise of the 60's, 70's and 80's. Although the practice was once very common, wiping is now practised much less frequently and since the establishing of an 'archival policy' for television began in 1978, BBC archivists and others have over the years used various contacts in the UK and abroad to try to track down missing programmes. It is hoped maybe one day, the missing #PeterCushing Sherlock Holmes episodes will be found . .and we can enjoy them all! Meanwhile, I trust you are all safe and well and your holiday weekend, finds you and yours in good spirits 😀Please stay in, stay well and safe 😀 - Marcus

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THE 1960'S DR WHO TARDIS IS A 'WRITE' OFF IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE!!

BACK IN THE MID 1960'S Peter Cushing appeared and starred in not one but TWO feature films, as Dr Who. 'Dr Who and the Daleks' (1965) and 'Daleks Invasion Earth 2150 AD. When I say, Dr Who please do not for all is sacred, mistake THIS Dr Who for the BBC Doctor Who that has been gracing our television screens for the past ?? years, also that Doctor and tv show, well... originally ran from 1963 to 1989. There was an unsuccessful attempt to revive regular production in 1996 with a backdoor pilot, in the form of a television film titled Doctor Who. The programme was relaunched in 2005, and since then has been produced in-house by BBC Wales in Cardiff. Also as dedicated viewers of said tv show and Doctor Who often tell me, 'The first film 'Dr Who and the Daleks' features a much different Doctor from the one we currently know, on tv. 

TO START WITH, he is entirely human. Barbara Wright from the tv show is no longer his granddaughter's teacher, but another granddaughter of The Doctor himself. Still with me? William Hartnell, tv Doctor Who was quite  annoyed at being passed over for the role of Dr Who and that Peter Cushing was cast in the role. The reason? Cushing was seen as a better known face to the cinematic world and therefore more capable of launching Dr Who to a wider audience, in was a children's film and family entertainment. Cushing does actually play the part with more warmth and childish humour than the famously grumpy Hartnell, and is for all intents and purposes a fantastic Doctor. So yup Cushing's Dr Who certainly IS NOT canon. Cushing himself always maintained that his Doctor was a proper Doctor, though not necessarily the First One, that he was so clearly based on. 

BUT CUSHING'S Dr Who did have a pretty neat TARDIS! It looked the same as the one in the tv series, but this one in TWO films and BIG SCREEN was ..IN COLOUR! Like the Tardis, all the DALEKS were in colour for the first time too! What a blast and . . what a COUP! 😉 Not THE Doctor, but full colour TARDIS and stars of both shows and films, the DALEKS as well.. for the first time!

THE INFLUENCE of the colour DALEKS did I am sure, go some way to what would soon become an international hobby... making YOUR OWN DALEK! Even though the TV series promoted some spin off full colour covered annual books for the kids at Christmas, it was only when the films displayed to the public and fans, DALEKS in FULL COLOUR and presented on a BIG SCREEN, that anyone had the opportunity to see them up close, moving in FULL TECHNICOLOUR, for the first time. . . and THE TOPS OPENED, to reveal a scaly thing on the floor ! Magic! 😀😊😉

THE DALEKS LOOKED AMAZING, but as a five year old boy, the thing that interested me the most, was THAT TARDIS! Looking at it now, as an adult, it does look uncannily like someone has thrown the contents of a dodgy self employed cowboy electrician's van onto a film set, to me at that time it was MAGICAL both INSIDE and OUT. After the films were wrapped, so was the interior of the time machine. But the exterior, of course survived! 

IT SEEMS THE TARDIS had survived and was finally purchased by a 'wood-turning-and-machine-company' who... 'can supply everything for the woodworker from machinery, hand and power tools to hundreds of accessories and of course the one thing that all woodworkers require – Timber' .... in Somerset, England! Well, sadly wood-turning, screw drivers, any chisels or DIY and all things that go buzz are all very uncharted lands to me. I know as much about any of these things, as I do brain surgery. Though, I have watched Cushing's 'head-work surgery' in 'Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed' quite a few times! On finding this company and trying to figure what their connection was to Cushing's olde Tardis, it still took me a quite while to fathom out what it actually was they were selling! Unlike their vast variety of tools on offer, sadly I am not that sharp!

THEN THE PENNY DROPPED . . PENS! Or indeed, Pen Blanks: 'Pen blanks are little pieces of wood common to the pen turning industry. Many other wood workers find these pieces of wood to be perfect for their niche, they are  easy to turn and finish and are very tactile when fashioned into a writing instrument'. So, these are strips of wood, pieces of the tardis, that can be turned on a machine and used for the barrel of a pen! YOU WRITE with it! Hmm an interesting hobby, if that floats your boat or flies your Tardis!

SO HOW DID THIS COMPANY, come up with this idea, it's weird choice to arrive at when in fact they have a WHOLE piece of movie Doctor Who sorry... Dr Who . . movie history in their possession? Then came the bad news in the product description: 

'Doctor Who Tardis Plywood pen blanks. This is the very first Mk1 Tardis that was created for Peter Cushing for the film 'Dr Who and the Daleks' and was originally constructed in 1965'.  

'Can we just point out that this Tardis was in terrible condition, the sill fell off in transit and when we moved it on its own wheels the actual door fell off. Sadly it's been left outside and as it's a 54-year-old film prop it wasn't designed for the outdoor English weather, we've managed to salvage what we can and these are the first blanks available from what must be one of the most iconic and well known film-related prop.'

'These plywood blanks we would only recommend for the more experienced turner, I've made a dozen or so now and I found you cannot put any pressure when turning, so takes time plus you must have sharp tools.The blanks measure 5 inches x 20mm x 20mm and come complete with a certificate.'

MY GOODNESS! 😕  How depressing reading was that? 😔😑 So THAT is what has happened to the Cushing's Dr Who Tardis! Cut up into 5 inch pieces!!? Blimey! Well, I guess 'tis better than what happened to so many painted glass matts, props and goodies during Hammer films move from Bray studios in the 1960's. That was a lot to do with SKIPS, and I am not referring to the dance or gym rope kind! At least, there is something I can have and hold, the TARDIS in the body of something useful and to keep in my pocket.. to eventually leak in my jacket pocket! Can I STILL write? Do I have £44.99 in my piggy bank savings? Never mind, all is good! Now where do I buy a wood lathe and a sharp chisel? - Marcus Brooks

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