#HAMMERSATURDAY : BEACHAM'S BOULDERS AND HAYDEN'S SPADE

#HAMMERFILMSATURDAY: Despite having looked at, edited, posted and actually cleaned this rare transparency from behind the scenes on #DRACULA AD 1972. It has that typical workman like attitude, that many associate with plumbers, bricklayers and carpenters in the UK, a little 'heavy handed'. How-else can you justify the dropping of two great dirty rocks onto a silk design dress, to make it stay in place for a photograph??

#HAMMERFILMSSATURDAY:  Linda Hayden really puts her all, into this rare contact sheet shot from 'Taste the Blood of Dracula' with Geoffrey Keen . . . I really do hope that WAS a rubber spade!

#FRANKENSTEINFRIDAY: CONCEPT ART MONSTER FROM HELL AND GOLDEN VAMPIRES

#FRANKENSTEINFRIDAY : An unused rough (sketch) for Hammer films’ Frankenstein and the Monster From Hell' cinema poster by Vic Fair, 1973. The final British poster cinema poster was painted and designed artist by Bill Wiggins (below).

HERE ARE A FEW WORDS from VIC FAIR himself, about his time working for Hammer films.  Fair designed two iconic cinema posters for the company, Vampire Circus and  Countess Dracula.

Did you enjoy working on posters for Hammer?
'Yeah, I really did.  Other artists and designers often frowned upon horror poster work but I really enjoyed it, especially since I was almost always given complete freedom to come up with my own ideas. Hammer were good at giving us the initial brief and then trusting us to come up with our own take on it. I remember I actually went too far with a few of the concepts and the studio would often request for them to be toned down quite a bit so they’d get past the Advertising Standards Committee'.

Can you recall working on the quad for Countess Dracula?
'Yes, I might have got a bit carried away with the two-faced thing but I think it worked quite well overall. I was lucky with that one in a way as it was one of the others where they just printed my first rough. I guess they must have liked the style of my sketch'.

ABOVE: The original concept rough (sketch) for Hammer films’ Vampire Circus by Vic Fair, 1972. You’ll notice that the rough is surrounded by pencil annotations and one to the bottom left simply reads ‘More tit’, indicating that the client, or someone in the agency, suggested they could get away with showing more of the lady on the bottom left.

 

'I enjoyed working on the quad I designed for Vampire Circus. I’d wanted to design something that might have been used to advertise an actual circus. The animals on there were pretty much copied directly from a children’s book, as I really didn’t have that much time to work on it. I thought they looked quite amusing, since they’re not exactly anatomically correct portraits of tigers and lions! I also had fun sneaking in the hidden male members, which was really just meant as a bit of a tease towards certain people behind the scenes. I can’t believe I got away with it really.'

 

ABOVE: A concept rough (sketch) for the British poster for Hammer’s The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires by Vic Fair, 1974. The final quad was illustrated by the Italian artist Arnaldo Putzu. This rough has yellowed with age somewhat but the concept is very clear.

 

#FRANKENSTEINFRIDAY: A FISTFUL OF GIFS!

A FABULOUS SELECTION OF #FRANKENSTEINFRIDAY GIFS from Peter Cushing SECOND #FRANKENSTEIN film for #Hammerfilms, 'THE REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN'. For me personally, this is the one Hammer/Frankenstein that looks so handsome. Set design and art direction is once again is taken care of by Bernard Robinson, the man who along with Scott MacGregor, made that 'Hammer Look'. Most of the interiors seen in 'Revenge' are recycled props and sets used in Hammer's 1958 'Dracula' / 'Horror of Dracula'. It all has that stamp of quality, and Jack Asher's cinematography frames it all so well. Hammer had a crew of craftsmen, many of whom were never credited, or even graced that credit role during the films closing titles...SO with an eye to just some of the people, who were responsible for that special Hammer style in 'Revenge', that we now enjoy in these GIFS, here are those UNCREDITED technicians :  ART DEPARTMENT: Arthur Banks : Master Plasterer. Charles Davis : Master Carpenter. Eric Hillier : Props Buyer. Mick Lyons : Construction Manager. Don Mingaye : Assistant Art Direction. Tom Money : Property Master. Lawrence Wren : Master Painter. SOUND DEPARTMENT: Alex Carver-Hill: Assistant Boom Operator. Alfred Cox : Sound Editor. Jim Perry : Boom Operator. CAMERA and ELECTRICAL DEPARTMENT: Albert Cowlar : Camera Grip. Jack Curtis : Chief Electrician. Tom Edwards : Still Photographer. Harry Oakes : Focus Puller. Anthony Powell : Clapper Loader.

Thank YOU!

"Come unto Me and rest; Lay down, thou weary one, lay down, Thy head upon My breast."! Here's one of the good doctor's more needy clients, who manages to get his attention with a false 'pitter-patter' of her 'be still my beating heart'! ..is that enough quotes for ya?? Peter Cushing and actress Anna Walmsley as Vera Barscynska in a gif requested by Moonloo (??) from 'The Revenge of Frankenstein' a classic from Hammer films...

 FULL FEATURE WITH VINTAGE PHOTOGRAPHS FOLLOW THIS HERE

 

 

 

 

#TBT: HELEN AND PETER CUSHING STUDY THE DEADLINES!

#THROWBACKTHURSDAY: It seems these days, almost every other day, television announces some kind of 'event' . . the trailer voice-overs tells us so! Back in 1954, the BBC's live broadcast of Orwell's '1984' certainly rattled the viewing public, forbidden love, Big Brother, rats and Cushing's Winston Smith's melt-down . . neither British television or Peter Cushing would ever be the same again . . .

 

JOIN US TOMORROW : #FRANKENSTEINFRIDAY : EVERY FRIDAY

#THROWBACKTHURSDAY: LEGEND OF HAMMER DOCUMENTARY

#THROWBACKTHURSDAY: HERE'S A #TBT TREAT! A REPOST of one of the great documentaries on #HAMMERFILMS, Donald Fearney's 'LEGEND OF HAMMER', this was his first in the series, and deals with Hammer's #VAMPIRE classics! Here is whole documentary in THREE parts, which has also been uploaded at our PCASUK YOUTUBE CHANNEL where you'll find a whole archive of rare and vintage material!

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: TERRIFYING PUSSIES DE SADE AND 3D!

#GIMMEGIFWEDNESDAY: Wilbur Gray, must have been an exhausting role for Peter Cushing to play. Reacting full of fright to fang furry felines, every few takes, must take it out of you! 'The Uncanny' had all the trappings of what we would expect from a Milton Subostky portmanteau film, the concept and model he and Max Rosenberg had successfully produced during the 19760's and 70's under the banner of their, Amicus films company. With funding and film production drying up in the UK during this time, Milton had to base the film in Canada... though with a largely British cast, you'd never know it. Amicus films always had that 'Meanwhile, somewhere..' look about them, pretty much like the US comic's strips that provided the plots and titles for the film.

THE UNCANNY was released by the UK distributor Rank and was given an X certificate . ..  some of the mutilations and pussy-left-overs, were quite graphic and unsettling. Mangled-bloodied-clawed and chewed leftovers of classical actress Joan Greenwood, anyone?? And that cast, like many of Subotsky's  productions, is unexpected, top drawer and inspired!

WHAT IS THE 1948 'ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN' CONNECTION TO THIS FILM??

FEATURE AND GALLERY : THE UNCANNY

NEVER HAS one persons head had so much screen time! Peter Cushing in the Amicus film THE SKULL 

In real life the Marquis de Sade's body was exhumed from its grave in the grounds of the lunatic asylum at Charenton, where he died in 1814, and his skull was removed for phrenological analysis. It was subsequently lost, and its fate remains unknown...

 

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: For Maria Wilson , Seattle. I am sure it would have looked very effective in 3D...but Amicus films I, MONSTER sure does look at a little weird at times... shots that were intended to be in the '3D process' now have that 'coming at you...sort of' flat feel about them. A good example of this, is this shot that Maria has requested here, of Christopher Lee, and his bunsen burner. A kind of... 'Can I LIGHT that cigar, for you?....!'

 

PETER CUSHING and CHRISTOPHER LEE'S performances in 'I MONSTER' are covered in THIS FEATURE at this website!

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#MONSTERMONDAY: VAMPIRE GIRLS AND BOARD GAMES

#MONSTERMONDAY:ANOTHER WEEK, another Monday, another #MONSTERMONDAY! We've noticed that FEMALE vampires appear to be very popular with visitors to this website. So, this week, we have plumbed for the beautiful CAROL MARSH and her portrayal of LUCY HOLMWOOD in Hammer films, 'DRACULA ' (1958) such a subtle, wicked performance. Over at the FACEBOOK FAN PAGE, we are asking . . .  is she a MONSTER or is she a VICTIM??..Or BOTH?

#MONSTERMONDAY: With a wink to todays last, 'Cushing Factoid' and Cushing's love of board games, I wonder what he would have made of this?? The 'Forbidden Terrortory' interactive board game from Britannia Games (2006) seems a lot of fun. Looking around the net, this product seems to have been repackaged and picked up by several other companies over the years. The MONSTER figures look interesting, as does the Peter Cushing Van Helsing one! Every comment I have read from the 'harder core' Hammer fan, has been a bit sniffy about the game..But, I have one down on my Christmas Wish List! Looks fun. ..Anyone already own one???

FORBIDDEN TERRORTORY : Players try and rescue a Victim whilst trying to destroy Dracula before he gets uber strong. Players need to collect protection to avoid the ghouls dotted around the Count's lair. Players get five days to complete this task. But beware one bite from a vampire makes you a vampire too!

GAME BITS:
3 Decks of cards all showing clips of the famous Hammer Films
12 Hand painted replica figurines of the classic Hammer Monsters
1 Game Board
3 Special Dice
1 DVD Over an hour of Sound and Movie clips that interacts with the game.

#MONSTERMONDAY: Before we roll out this week's MONSTER or VICTIM dilemma...Vampires from the films of Peter Cushing here are a few and one extra from Kiss Of The Vampire ... who gets YOUR vote as the one with the most 'YIKES' appeal??

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