PARK LIFE: WHILE WALKING IN THE PARK ONE DAY . . .

Candid Cushing: PARK LIFE: I think if you were taking a leisurely walk in your local park, and you happened to see this figure strolling along, even from a distance...you could see this no ordinary gentleman. Hat at a cheeky angle, umbrella swinging in time with his gait, there is no one else this COULD be. Peter Cushing takes a stroll in the park, circa 1986.

A colour shot, taken the same day, minus the hat! These photographs were part of a photo-session for the Mail on Sunday newspaper. The shot above, I believe was also used for one of the many reprints of Peter's autobiography in paper back in the USA.

The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society UK, was founded back in 1956, and is the original Fan Club. It's now on the net at it's own facebook fan page, has tumblr, twitter, instagram accounts and it's home website the petercushingappreciationsociety.com, now with over 21,000 followers world wide. Now you can access vintage hi res publicity photographs, promotional material, features, interviews both in text and on video with the actors, directors and friends who knew the man, the artist and friend, Peter Cushing.

It's a great way keep up to date with on the news of remastered blu rays, dvds and streaming of films from Cushing's extensive career on both the big screen, tv and radio. Hear and see vintage Cushing interviews from our extensive library, many being seen and heard for the first time. Access our huge library of reviews and rare galleries of stills, lobby cards, many collectors items available as transparencies and contact sheets from Cushing's Hammer Horrors, his famous portrayals of Baron Frankenstein, The Vampire Hunter : Van Helsing, Christopher Lee's Count Dracula nemesis , the famous Baker Street detective, Sherlock Holmes and Dr Who on the big screen...and lets not forget forget his 22 films with the Prince of Terror, Christopher Lee. They both had a talent to terrify, and left audiences screaming for more over three decades.

There's also our BIG competitions and BIG prizes, blu ray box sets and prizes that money can't buy from the Peter Cushing Appreciation Society Memorabilia Collection. Autographed rare stills and one off original Cushing movie props. It's all here, it's all accessible and free at the click of your mouse, the world of Peter Cushing and ONLY at the Peter Cushing Appreciation Society UK. We are now available world wide and to everyone, anywhere, old fans and new...updated daily, EVERY day. So, come celebrate the life and career of Peter Cushing OBE...join us, keeping the memory alive....

WHO IS THAT AND WHERE ARE THEY?

Over at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE it's #whoisthat?wednesday / whereisthat?wednesday and we're having some fun with this mystery pic. Feel free to come on over if you know the answer...and if you don't I'll be posting the identity of the lady on the right and where her and Vincent Price are located in a few hours. The answer will be added to this post shortly after the reveal on the facebook book fan page.

From the PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE:

‪#‎whoisthat‬?wednesday ‪#‎whereisthat‬?wednesday Here's Vincent Price, being charming with a flower...! What a cad! The question is, who is that with him? AND are they standing at a Garden Centre?? This is a fun photograph, when we reveal the location...you'll never believe it! Answer in a few hours,unless, you crack it before!

THE ANSWER!

EARLIER today we asked you who is that girl posing with VINCENT PRICE and WHERE are they??? Most of you identified the girl as actress UTA LEVKA, she played the nurse in Amicus films, Scream and Scream Again (1970) She also turned up in some pics we shared with you two weeks ago, of Vincent and Christopher Lee at Madame Tussauds in London, doing some Halloween publicity for the same film!

The location, believe it or not, was the headquarters of Amicus films at Shepperton studios. Amicus never actually owned a studio, they just rented out studio space, when they were in production with a new film. So, everything..meetings, writing, plotting..happened at Shepperton, but in the sheds!! 

Weird when you look at the offices of Hammer films, at HAMMER HOUSE in the heart of the industry on Wardour Street, London. Hammer did eventually move out . but Milton remained in his shed-offices from the beginning of the inception of Amicus in the early 60's until it all wrapped in the late 70's. To be fair, Milton did work a lot from his office at home, and we were lucky enough to interview him there, but when Milton said, he could cut costs, and put the money on the screen... we now know how he did that!! wink emoticon Well done all who got this one correct
 

TRAILER: THE DOCUMENTARY THAT EVERY AMICUS FAN SHOULD OWN

Once in a while a book or documentary arrives that sets a new bench mark. This can easily be said about Donald Fearney's latest release, AMICUS : THE VAULT OF HORROR dvd. In recent years, we have seen two Amicus documentaries, both fell at the post, either through pretty poor production values or more than a little sparse in their materials. With a duration of 146 minutes, Fearney uses every minute of this time, to tell the full story of the only real competition to the prolific Hammer films, during their reign of terror, from the early 1960's until the late 70's. It would have been all too easy to have covered the main stream and more popular titles, the portmanteau films, the two Dr Who films and even the buzzingly awful 'The Deadly Bees' from 1966  or the cash strapped, 'The Terrornauts' (1967). But, Fearney really set himself a task in covering EVERY film. From 'The Birthday Party' until the parting if the ways with 'At The Earth's Core' in 1976.

Celebrating the legendary partnership of Milton Subotsky and Max J. Rosenberg and their production company, ‪#‎amicusproductions‬, who along with ‪#‎Hammerfilms‬ dominated the horror film genre between the 1960's and 1970's.

Prominent for producing many portmanteau films such as, ‪#‎drterrorshouseofhorrors‬ ‪#‎talesfromthecrypt‬ and ‪#‎frombeyondthegrave‬ , Subotsky and Rosenberg also produced two ‪#‎doctorwho‬ film, a couple of low budget sci-fi movies, the psychological thriller ‪#‎thepsychopath‬ and three movies based on the ‪#‎edgarriceburroughs‬ stories.

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#‎amicus‬ like #hammerfilms were appealing to top actors, writers, producers and directors who gave the films a seal of quality. The films also featured actors like ‪#‎petercushing‬ ‪#‎christopherlee‬ ‪#‎davidwarner‬ ‪#‎vincentprice‬ and many other established names and faces from the world of film and television. Narrated by ‪#‎royhudd‬ and featuring new interviews, rare footage and packed with rare production stills and publicity materials, this is a ‪#‎horrorfilm‬ enthusiast dream ticket! So, sit down, turn down the lights and prepare to witness, Amicus : Vault of Horrors.

DVD Running time : 146 minutes
Region Free / 0

DVD includes never before seen interview footage of producer Milton Subotsky, from the ‪#‎petercushingappreciationsociety‬ archive.

FGS Productions presents AMICUS VAULT OF HORRORS Narrated by Roy Hudd : Milton Subostky : David Warner Linda Hayden : Edward de Suza : John Carson : Paul Stockwell : Simon Greetham : Simon Flynn John Hamilton : Amy Hamilton : Music Scott Benzie : Cameraman David Read : Editor Jim Groom Narration Script John Hamilton : Produced and Directed by Donald Fearney.

DIRECTOR EDITOR JIM CLARK DIES AT 84

We are just getting some very sad news, that has been announced in official obituary notice, that director Jim Clark died on February 25th. His obituary has been released today.

Jim Clark worked with Peter and Vincent Price on Amicus films, Madhouse in 1974. A film loved by many, but gets the rough end from critics who say, it could have been so much more...! Me? I'll take it as it is. It's a fun film, clever and enjoys leading it's audience up a very winding path of red herrings, and pays off with a fabulous black comedy twist, with Peter...or is that Vincent??

Clark had some interesting credentials, as a film editor he started working in 1956, right through to 2008. He won a Oscar for Best film editing for The Killing Fields (1984) and was nominated again in 1986 for 'The Mission' starring Robert De Nero, was editor on the 1999 Bond film, The World Is Not Enough' and more recently was nominated for a BAFTA for Vera Drake (2004)

Clark’s memoir “Dream Repairman: Adventures in Film Editing” was published in 2011.

He is survived by his wife, fellow editor Laurence Méry-Clark, and three children.

BOBBING ZOMBIES AND KUNG FU VAMPIRES: ITS MONSTERMONDAY

MONDAY here at PCAS means one thing... ‪#‎monstermonday‬, our weekly spot where we celebrate the scary, sinister and down right terrifying Monsters and all things that creep, that have been featured in Peter Cushing's film and tv work.. TODAY here on the website and at our facebook page, we take a close look...not TOO close, at those fanged kung fu frighteners from Peter Cushing's 'The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires'.

One of the great things about Cushing's 'THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES' is the 'double-monster' value. Not only do you get the Seven Deadly Kung Fu Vampires but also, The Zombies!

At first sight, the hoping bobbing skipping undead seem a very strange sight.. it's only after you see them on mass, doing their odd bob...like all things asian-horror, it starts to look more than a little slightly warped and psycho-twisted. A great idea, an interesting angle on Vampires, Dracula AND Kung Fu...and Peter Cushing as the all fighting, fearless, Van Helsing vampire hunter!

Here Hammer's Kung Fu Undead echo another famous 'zombie scene' from ten years before in 'THE PLAGUE OF THE ZOMBIES'. Again, the dead are awake and walking...this time in China and Van Helsing and Dracula are along for the ride too!

RARE DENBERG CUSHING PHOTOGRAPH HELPING TO HERALD 60TH ANNIVERSARY

TWO new banners to help mark our 60th Anniversary at our OFFICIAL PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE. We have some little pockets of joy, planned for later this year. Meanwhile, here is Peter Cushing in a  very popular photograph used in the Telegraph newspaper to accompany an interview about Helen. And a rare colour transparency, of Peter Cushing's Baron Frankenstein, showing off his latest creation in the shape of WOMAN... the fabulously sensitive actor Susan Denberg, in Frankenstein Created Woman (Hammer films 1967)

ERIC AND ERNIE AND PETER : THE SHOWS LONGEST RUNNING JOKE

CATCH OUR GALLERY OF CLIPS OF PETER CUSHING'S APPEARANCES ON THE MORECAMBE AND WISE SHOWS OVER A TWENTY YEAR SPAN AT OUR YOUTUBE PETER CUSHING APPRECIATION SOCIETY CHANNEL: HERE

THE YOUNG PETER CUSHING AND THE 49TH PARALLEL

A little bit of fun this morning on the our Peter Cushing Appreciation Society Facebook Fan Page concerning Peter Cushing's time in Canada during 1940 and staying at the YMCA while trying to find work.

Cushing Connections: The film the 49th Parallel staring Leslie Howard, Laurence Olivier who can tell us the PETER CUSHING connection with this film??? And how he nearly got himself arrested?? 

ANSWER

Our PCAS YOUTUBE CHANNEL IS : HERE

DONALD FEARNEY'S AMICUS AND HAMMER DOCUMENTARY PRIZES ON THEIR WAY!

Nothing gives me more pleasure than giving away prizes in our competitions! Especially when they are DOUBLE prizes. ALL SIX winners of our VALENTINE'S DAY I LOVE HORROR FILMS COMPETITION can look forward to a PAIR of darn good double bills of Cushing/ Hammer/ Amicus documentaries arriving in the post in the next few days. Donald Fearney's MILTON SUBOTSKY'S AND MAX J ROSENBERG'S AMICUS: VAULT OF HORRORS and LEGEND OF HAMMER VAMPIRES documentaries are being shipped today... and with the Amicus doc alone being almost three hours long... I think there will be enough in this double bill to entertain, until the NEXT PCAS competition! If you would like to purchase a copy of either documentary, please contact me by facebook message, and I will happily provide you with the details. Stocks of both titles are now down to double figures. BOTH discs are REGION FREE.

Here at PCAS, I take pride in offering PRIZES that count! I scout out the best of Peter Cushing goodies out there, and then find companies and distributors to sponsor our competitions. I cover the expense of post and packaging,  all our competitions are free, no catch, no passing of emails and mailing lists. Dvd's, blu rays, box sets, books, magazines, lobby cards, t-shirts, hoodies, mugs, posters, bespoke artwork, autographs, rare movie props...even dinner with a Cushing Film Director!! But, not everything out there makes it to selection for inclusion in our competitions. Being a life long fan, I only select what I would love to have as an addition in my collection too!

 

Whatever the PCAS competition, whatever the prize, you can always guarantee a very good response. Everyone has fun and enters into the spirit, and after announcing the winners, it's not unusual to read a long thread of messages of congratulations, to the lucky winners. As I always say, I only wish I had more prizes to give away!