REMEMBERING DIRECTOR ROY WARD BAKER

REMEMBERING TODAY.. the birthday of director Roy Ward Baker, whose work with Peter Cushing includes 'Asylum', 'And Now, The Screaming Starts!'. 'The Vampire Lovers' with Amicus films. 'The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires for Hammer films and 'The Masks of Death' with Peter Cushing for Tyburn films. Starting as a tea boy at the Gainsborough Studios in London in 1934, raising to the role of assistant director with Alfred Hitchcock on 'The Lady Vanishes' by 1939, then onto a career as director in Hollywood, working with Marilyn Munroe...Ward Baker had a very full career that covered just about every genre! Today we remember his birthday and the contribution to not only Peter Cushing's career, but the the world of cinema...

REMEMBER! IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  .

MOMENTS OF TERROR MONDAY: GUSTAV ON THE MARCH AND FACE TO FACE WITH THE COUNT : TWO CLIPS AND GIFS!

#MOMENTSOFTERRORMONDAY! After, 'You may fire, when ready!' and 'Attack the Daleks!' 'The Devil has sent me, Twins of Evil!' is probably one of the most quoted Peter Cushing lines of dialogue. And with good reason. Peter Cushing here playing the tyrannical, Gustav Weil...see what they did there?... squeezes every drop of fear out of that line. If you've seen Hammer films 'Twins of Evil' (1971) you would have witness, one of the tightest performances, after his turn as Baron Frankenstein in Hammer's 'Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed' (1969), Cushing ever committed to film.

TWINS OF EVIL was the first film that Cushing appeared in, after traumatic passing of his wife, Helen. He spent just three months away from work, the man who returned was a great deal leaner, withdrawn and now sadly broken. What we see on the screen is raw. Which makes the viewing of his playing of Weil, all the more sadder and yet, compulsive . .

SPOILER! If there was ever a on the edge of your seat moment in a Hammer film, featuring Peter Cushing, THIS would probably be it. Count Karnstein and Gustav Weil go face to face, in the final moments of Hammer films, 'Twins of Evil' (1971)

REMEMBER! IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  .

CUSHING SCRIPT WITH ANNOTATIONS

YOU OFTEN READ and hear about Cushing's attention to detail, not only in performance, but also with his costume and schedule. It was reassuring to directors, that Cushing came prepared, knew his lines...and everyone else's too! thigh it drove some to distraction, Hammer's Antony Hinds called Cushing a, "fuss pot!' One of the director's of the BBC Sherlock Holmes series, actually had a show down with Cushing just hours away from the live broadcast, over a line of dialogue. The only recorded instance of Cushing unraveling on set.

HERE ARE FOUR PAGES from Cushing's personal script for 'Trail by Combat' (1976) which he made for Kevin Francis, Tyburn Productions. Feel free to copy the images, to see the annotations clearly because there is MUCH to see. Notes to himself and his performance, 'Don't look down, don't mumble. No toupee required when wearing the hat. Provide my own clothes for this scene. Make sure two hundred pounds for car transport, in cash!'

YOU MAY ALSO SPOT, all the contact details for John Redway his agent, the press office, and a note of where to acquire stills from the film. Many of these he would send onto PCAS pres at the time, Gladys Fletcher. These amazing annotations are proof of a man who knew his trade, very well indeed, and didn't believe in leaving these to chance

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  .

WHAT KATY DID AFTER HER EVIL STINT AND VERY GRIM FIGURE IN FRANKENSTEIN AND ITS NOT FROM THE LAB!

#GETTHECUSHIONSUNDAY! Here's pretty neat, large hi res photograph, taken by the publicity stills camera man. This would have been cropped out by the magazine or newspaper editor. But if you look carefully, as well as the lovely Katy Wild in this shot on the back lot set of Cushing's 'The Evil of Frankenstein' at Bray studios, the Baron appears to live quite close to a 1960's railway line... and the large 1964 Bedford truck top right, maybe keeping the engine running, to give the Baron, his goods and chattels a quick get away maybe?

A QUESTION on the PCASUK FACEBOOK FAN PAGE TODAY promoted the banner above, after posting the Katy Wild behind the scenes photograph, from 'THE EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN'

EDWARD MORLEY asks: 
'Wasn't she an actress from 'The Horror of Frankenstein' and later moved to Australia? I am sure she was in a mini series called 'Spy Force'. A really lovely actress'.

WE ANSWERED:
'You are right, Edward. Katy appeared in Spy Force as Lieutenant French! The series, as you say was Australian and ran for two series. Actress Kate O'Mara appeared in 'The Horror of Frankenstein' (1970) with Ralph Bates and Veronica Carlson, sadly no Katy though. I've posted some items from the series and two pics of her, in a banner for you above....

EDWARD REPLIED: 
'Oh Wow! Thank you so very much for the update and info. Just so many wonderful actresses and hopefully still with us. 

AND FINALLY, a post that prompted much laughter at the PCASUK FACEBOOK FAN PAGE yesterday . . .The next time you are watching Peter Cushing's second installment in the Hammer films Frankenstein series, 'The Revenge of Frankenstein' . .. take a look at the REAL monster sitting in the corner of the room, during the meeting of the medical committee. Those who say the film didn't really have a monster, need to feast their eyes on THAT lump of plaster, that I think is trying to allude to the Greek Venus de Milo by one, Alexandros of Antioch . . . I have a feeling this one was created in ten minutes at the Hammer carpentry and plaster shop by the great 'Bert of Cheswick', after a liquid lunch at the local hostelry just outside Bray studios! I almost feel like shouting 'Behind YOU!' to Cushing! BLIMEY! . . .N.B Many of you also mentioned that this 'statue' also appears almost five years later, in Hammer films, THE GORGON (1964), in the foyer entrance of Castle Borksky!

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  .

AT THE CHAMBER OF HORRORS : VINNIE TALKS BIRTHDAYS AND MR LEE!

IN AN INTERVIEW with TERRY WOGAN on BBC tv in 1983, VINCENT PRICE, remembered and chatted about this photoshoot and birthday cake. He also mentioned that Peter Cushing was there too. Despite many hours of digging and research, nothing has turned up to prove he was there. No pics, no mention in autobiography! You can watch Vincent's interview below and at our PCASUK YOUTUBE CHANNEL where you'll find a whole play list of other rare Vincent Price clips!

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  .

#FEMMEFATALE! YVONNE MONLAUR REMEMBERED : A HAPPY BIRTHDAY WITH LOVE!

#CUSHINGSFEMMEFATALESFRIDAY! It's been my personal opinion, for as long as I can remember, but I consider this young lady, to have been THE most beautiful and talented of all the actresses that Peter Cushing worked with.... Earlier today we asked our friends at the PCASUK FACEBOOK FAN PAGE if they could name her. name her? It wasn't too difficult, because even at this young age, she was already displaying that, radiance that lit up the big screen, when ever she appeared on it. Yvonne Monlaur would have been celebrating her 78th birthday today. How I wish she was here to do that.  As it's #FEMMEFATALEFRIDAY today, I thought, it was an opportunity too good too miss, that we should celebrate her birthday, but also mark it with a feature here at the website. So, later today we'll  be publishing a whole FEMMEFATLE feature on Yvonne, lots of rare stills, gifs and much more, not only as a tribute but also a thank you to one very unique actress and beautiful lady . . . .Ahhh, 'be still my beating heart' . .sigh . . .

Yvonne Monlaur starred in the 1958 Italian film Three Strangers in Rome which was amongst Claudia Cardinale's earliest films and in 1960 in the horror film 'Circus of Horrors' alongside prominent actors in British film such as Anton Diffring and Donald Pleasence. In 1960, she also starred in the Hammer horror film 'The Brides of Dracula'  alongside other noted British actors of the day Peter Cushing and Freda Jackson and in 'The Terror of the Tongs' (1961) with Christopher Lee.

FULL FEATURE WITH GALLERY HERE! 

FULL FEATURE WITH VINTAGE STILLS GALLERY: HERE! 

Monlaur screen tested for the role of Domino Derval in the 1965 James Bond film Thunderball. The role eventually went to another French actress, Claudine Auger. After a string of German and Italian films, Monlaur left films to return to Paris. She continued to live the there until her passing in April 18, 2017, aged 77

FULL FEATURE WITH RARE VINTAGE STILLS CAN BE FOUND HERE! 

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  .