Thursday 19 January 2017

REMEMBERING OLIVER BABE HARDY TODAY


REMEMBERING Oliver Norvell Babe Hardy (Oliver Hardy) I guess, very few people have ever made me laugh as hard and long..as these two guys, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Today we mark the birthday of Olly. Many would know and remember their films, but maybe few would probably know of their Peter Cushing connection? Cushing appeared in their feature, A Chump at Oxford, directed in 1939 by Alfred J. Goulding and released in 1940 by United Artists, and was the penultimate Laurel and Hardy film made at the Hal Roach studios. 


Peter Cushing , front row first on left... with Stan and Olly in 'A Chump At Oxford' (1940)

Peter played a rather plummy student, who with his friends to play tricks on Stan! He had quite a bit of screen time, played some of the scenes with a very odd disguise of a bushy tash! But what a duo, a team and partnership..you couldn't have one without the other. But, just for today..we remember Olly and wish him a happy birthday!


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Wednesday 18 January 2017

HAVING A BLAST WITH NICK DIGILLIO ON WGN RADIO TODAY!


IF YOU MISSED IT today...here it is. We had our third live interview on the Nick Digillio Show on WGN radio in Chicago today! Lots of talk about Peter Cushing, Rogue One : A Star Wars Story and that CGI Tarkin.... Nick is a true friend of the society, a HUGE Peter Cushing fan, really bangs the drum for us and very generously gives us the opportunity to spread the word about Peter Cushing and the society. It's always fun, a real geek fest. Many thanks to Nick, Dan and the team for giving us the chance to reach such a HUGE audience! Just press the link... - Marcus



'I know what you're thinking...it's Gru from 'Despicable Me'! I should do conventions and birthday parties..'

CAN YOU SPOT YOUNG CUSHING??


#TOOCOOLTUESDAY: Here is a VERY rare front of house card from the 1939 film, 'The Man In The Iron Mask' ..Peter Cushing's FIRST feature film! Can you spot him in the swash-buckling line up???? ANSWER TOMORROW!


Sunday 15 January 2017

FINAL CUT HAMMER COLLECTION BLU RAY COMPETITION NOW LIVE!

 
CERTAINLY WORTH adding to your collection! Here's the spec...and GOOD LUCK!

FINAL CUT'S 'HAMMER COLLECTION : THE UNIVERSAL YEARS : SPECIAL EDITION is a FIVE 5 Disc Blu Ray Box Set featuring four classic Hammer films plus a disc of extras. The titles are as follows: 

Brides of Dracula, Kiss of the Vampire, Captain Clegg, Curse of the Werewolf. Each film has its own set of extras : 


OUR REVIEW OF BRIDES WITH STILLS GALLERY HERE

THE BRIDES OF DRACULA has The Making of Narrated by Edward de Souza and featuring interviews with Yvonne Monlaur, Jimmy Sangster, Hugh Harlow, Pauline Harlow, Don Mingaye, Margaret Robinson and Tony Hinds, Stills Gallery and trailer.


OUR REVIEW OF CAPTAIN CLEGG WITH STILLS GALLERY HERE

CAPTAIN CLEGG has The Making of --Narrated by John Carson, The Mossman Legacy documentary short on the George Mossman's Carriage Collection, many of which were used in Hammer films, plus gallery and subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing. 


OUR REVIEW WITH RARE STILLS GALLERY AT OUR SUPPLEMENT SITE

THE CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF has The Making of documentary with interviews from Catherine Feller, Yvonne Romain, Mike Hill, Don Mingaye, Margaret Robinson Jimmy Sangster. A doc on Lycanthropy : The Beast in All of Us. plus Censoring the Werewolf A new 13-minute documentary directed by Hammer Films historian Marcus Hearn and stills gallery. 


OUR REVIEW OF KISS OF THE VAMPIRE WITH RARE STILLS GALLERY HERE

KISS OF THE VAMPIRE has Commentary with Edward De Souza & Jennifer Daniel - Moderated by Peter Irving, Original USA Trailer, Stills Gallery, Subtitles for the hard of hearing. 

FINALLY, there is a whole fifth disc with the following, Past Masters: The Hammer-Universal Classics A new 50-minute documentary examining Hammer's relationship with distributor Universal. Directed by Hammer Films historian Marcus Hearn and featuring Alan Barnes, John J Johnston, Kevin Lyons and Jonathan Rigby. Plus stills gallery posters and other promotional items from the Universal Years! A great release me thinks?

YOU CAN ORDER YOUR COPY OF FINAL CUT'S 'HAMMER COLLECTION: THE UNIVERSAL YEARS' HERE THE BLU RAY IS RELEASED ON JANUARY 20TH 2017! 



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Friday 13 January 2017

HORRORS! ANOTHER BUMPER COMPETITION THIS WEEKEND!


PLEASE DO JOIN US FOR ANOTHER BUMPER PCAS COMPETITION 
THIS WEEKEND! 

HERE AT OUR WEBSITE AND OUR OFFICIAL
PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE HERE

THE PROFESSOR ISSUE THREE OUT NOW!




Vi abbiamo presentato sovente molti progetti inerenti la figura di Peter Cushing ma, uno dei migliori è sicuramente il fumetto creato da Andrea Corbetta #theprofessor. Troverete molti accenni nel personaggio che sembra essere una via di mezzo tra Van Helsing, Sherlock Holmes e il Barone Victor dei film Hammer, fin dalla prima pagina. Curato in ogni dettaglio e illustrato con grande attenzione al racconto, si rimane incollati fino all'ultima vignetta. Anche le copertine sono superbe oltre alle tavole interne. Potete trovarlo in edicola ogni due mesi.

2016 PRESENTED US with quite a few interesting developments around the career of Peter Cushing, and one of the better ones was Andrea Corbetta's excellent comic, #THEPROFESSOR. With more than just a little nod to a central character who looks and behaves like a cross between Van Helsing, Sherlock Holmes and The Baron, The Professor drips in that atmosphere of gothic dread, that lovers of Hammer films will recognize right away from the turn of the first page. Beautifully detailed and illustrated, with a great twist in the tale, you never know what is coming next. Many of the panels would not look out of place, at the risk of mutilating your issue, cut out and frame on your den wall! The full-colour covers are quite superb!



The first issues of THE PROFESSOR ZERO AND ISSUE ONE are available now to buy and order. ISSUE THREE IS ON THE NEWSSTANDS NOW! Just follow THIS link: HERE!


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Thursday 12 January 2017

CUSHING AND LEE SEASON OF CLASSIC HAMMER FILMS IN WHITSTABLE!


#THROWBACKTHURSDAY: The Playhouse Theatre in Peter Cushing's home town of Whitstable is playing host to a season of exception Classic Cushing Chillers from yesteryears Hammer films... Peter's Hound Of The Baskervilles, kicks off the season that also takes in The Mummy and the mighty, Dracula! All three films also feature Christopher Lee too, and I'll be booking my ticket and traveling down to Whitstable, Kent for Dracula screening on the 17th! Maybe I might see you there??  

There's a special offer of £12 for the booking of all three films Details are on the poster I have shared above / below. Peter Cushing on a big screen...I am looking forward to it !

TARKIN: MAYBE CUSHING WOULD HAVE LIKED THE CGI AFTER ALL!



#TOOCOOLTUESDAY After the initial wave of interest and wonder at the results of Peter Cushing's CGI Tarkin appearance in #ROGUEONE, there was a subtle turn of opinion in the press and tabloids, about the question of what Peter Cushing would have made of it all. This quote doesn't provide the answer, but it does shed some light onto his desire to have appeared in another appearance in the #STARWARS saga. What do you think? — with Peter Cushing, Grand Moff Tarkin, Rogue One and Star Wars.
 
 
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HIGHLIGHTS FROM OUR FACEBOOK LAST WEEK


LAST WEEK, PETER WAS TREDING FOR QUITE A WHILE! #TRENDING and Mask! TWO great things making me smile today. Tarkin trending..who would have ever thought it? And discovering the plaster cast that Peter had made of his face for the make up in 'Top Secret' with Val Kilmer, was instrumental in bringing the #Tarkin effects to #RogueOne! It's a #happyfriday


THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER LAST WEEK :


No performance from 2016 was met with quite the fascination of Guy Henry's turn in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story — and he wasn't even one of the few actors not involved in the film's worldwide media blitz.
 
The British actor was tasked with playing Grand Moff Tarkin, with his performance capture work and visual effects wizardry helping resurrect the character played by the late Peter Cushing in 1977's Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope. Rather than recasting the role, Industrial Light & Magic recreated Cushing's actual likeness for a performance not quite like any in film history. 
Reached by phone in Great Britain Friday, Henry spoke about the unprecedented responsibility he felt to honor Cushing ("It was genuinely frightening"), his offer to let director Gareth Edwards recast him ("I won't be offended") and speculation that the story of Carrie Fisher's Leia might continue through such technology. ("He declined to comment on Fisher, but did offer this of the technology: "I think and hope it won't be a commonplace thing.")

During the 18 months you kept this a secret, did your family know what you were doing?
The very, very closest of my family and friends — I graciously allowed them into the secret, because I think I would have gone mad otherwise. My name began to be associated with it occasionally. People would ask. At work, [the team behind the BBC One series] Holby City had to know I was doing something in it, but even my agent, when I was asked to meet Gareth Edwards, she didn't really know why. They didn't tell her. It was quite a responsibility really, and I'm glad it was kept secret right up until the very last moment.

How did Gareth Edwards and Industrial Light & Magic's John Knoll convince you this would all work out?
 
I felt I couldn't feel too responsible in the sense of the way that it looked. I had to trust John Knoll and Gareth and the team, who were convinced they could make it work. Vocally, I'm not a mimic. I'm genuinely not an impressionist. I'd be doing my very best to do my Tarkin, the rolled "r" and the voice as best I could, and Gareth would say, "OK relax on that. Just be a bit more Guy now." I had to trust that they saw something in the reel of my work that convinced them it could be the tribute to Cushing everyone wanted it to be. It was very, very frightening, in all seriousness.

Did the reshoots affect you much?

Because the story was changing all the time, I kept thinking I had finished. "The responsibility has lapsed. Thank God, I can lie down." Then they'd say, "Actually, can you come in next week and do half a line here and half a line there?" It was genuinely frightening, because I didn't want to let down a huge movie, and equally, I didn't want to let down Peter Cushing.

Do you remember much about what changed and when you finally ended your work?

It was quite difficult to remember what the last bit was. I would literally be called back to do half a line a bit differently. Half a line that had a bit more stress to it because something else had altered slightly what had happened to a different character. It was immensely detailed. It's something of a blur.

Did you have doubts this would work?

Normally as an actor, you are you pretending to be another person. Here, I was me pretending to be Peter Cushing pretending to be Tarkin. I said at one point, "I won't be offended if you feel the voice isn't good enough or isn't right or is too young." There is a famous impersonator here called Rory Bremner. I said, "I won't be offended if you want to get him. I just want it to be good. Don't worry if you have to ditch my voice." They stuck with me gamely.

When did you finally see what it would look like?

They snuck me in to show me [early]. I thought, "We might be all right here." It was only after the London premiere I knew for sure it worked. I'd had several glasses of white wine. I wasn't able to eat, I was so frightened. "If I haven't done good enough here, it's going to be so sad. That would be very bad." I don't mean bad career-wise. I had not done any interviews. "Don't bother about my name." I'd be referred to as a stand-in and a voice double who was a disaster, and I could go on. But I didn't want to let Peter Cushing down.

Have you heard from the Cushing estate? One of its executors has praised your performance.

I haven't first hand. If that is the case, which I gather it is, I'm so delighted. The reason for doing it was honorable. When people were talking about the ethics of bringing someone back who was long dead, I could see that if it was done for the wrong reason or something a bit seedy or just for the sake of it, that would have been wrong. When John Knoll pitched the film, obviously Tarkin is such a big part of the original. Not to have Tarkin in it would be just a shame, and I think they have done it very honorably.

Before Carrie Fisher's death, Lucasfilm said Tarkin was a special case and it likely wouldn't be done again. Do you think this will become more prevalent in other Hollywood films?




MORE ON TARKIN: Some of the more eagle eyed of you out there spotted this quick shot in the video feature we posted a few days ago about the technology behind the creating of Cushing's Tarkin for Rogue one. In the background of one shot, we see a set up of Guy Henry, as Tarkin.... and the back of Princess Leia! A shot obviously not featured in the film, Rogue One. Weird? Odd? What do we make of that??


FREDDIE JONES' Professor Richter is a masterclass in pathos and madness. In 1969 Richter was Cushing's Frankstein's latest creation off the slab . . and it was Richter was reigned down the ultimate in revenge on his creator, Frankenstein. Does this make him our Monster this week ...or just another victim of the Baron's quest to create life…!


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Thursday 5 January 2017

NEW! HOW ILM BROUGHT TARKIN AND PETER CUSHING BACK TO THE SCREEN: SPOILERS!


NEW! SPOILERS! AN AMAZING short of just how INDUSTRIAL LIGHT AND MAGIC brought Peter Cushing's Grand Moff Tarkin back to the big screen in #STARWARS #ROGUEONE !







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