CHRISTOPHER LEE SATURDAY! ON THE SET OF RISEN AND REMEMBERING WALTERS ON HIS 105TH BIRTHDAY!

#CHRISTOPHERLEESATURDAY! Here is a rare and neat photograph taken during the making of Hammer films, 'Dracula Has Risen From The Grave' . .. with co stars Veronica Carlson and Barbara Ewing. Often when shooting, Lee was known not to hang around on set during the Hammer Dracula films... similar to Peter Cushing. So that makes this pic all the more interesting . . and NOT in costume either!

YOU CAN FIND PART ONE OF THAT ABOVE FEATURE : HERE!

SOMEONE WHO HAD quite a few connections with CHRISTOPHER LEE and would have been 105th TODAY is actor THORLEY WALTERS. THORLEY was known for often playing eccentric characters in a variety of different films, and a fair share with both PETER CUSHING and CHRISTOPHER LEE!

DIRECTOR TERENCE FISHER WITH CUSHING AND THORLEY WALTERS HAVING A CHILL AND A GIGGLE WHILE MAKING 'FRANKENSTEIN CREATED WOMAN FOR HAMMER FILMS AT BRAY STUDIOS

HE MADE A NUMBER of appearances in Hammer films, The Phantom of the Opera (1962), Dracula, Prince of Darkness (1966), with Christopher Lee, Frankenstein Created Woman (1967), Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed (1969) with Peter Cushing and Vampire Circus (1972).

ABOVE: THORLEY WALTERS AS MR PRINCE IN LITTLE GEM OF A CUSHING FILM CALLED 'SUSPECT' OR 'THE RISK'  . . .

AND OUR FEATURE ON THE FILM :CLICK HERE! 

THORLEY ALSO PLAYED Dr Watson to Christopher Lee's Holmes in Sherlock Holmes and the Deadly Necklace (1962) and co starred with Peter Cushing in a non hammer film Suspect (1960)

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NEWS ON HAMMER FILMS BRAY STUDIOS AND TWO SPECIAL BIRTHDAYS!

NEWS! THE CAMERAS are ROLLING ONCE AGAIN at the ICONIC BRAY FILM STUDIOS . . FOUR years after it's last tenant moved out!

A NEW PROJECT is already underway at the former home of Hammer Horror, with an Elton John biopic called Rocketman currently being filmed.The studio will be opened on a temporary basis, expected to be around nine months. Council leader Simon Dudley (Con, Riverside), said: “It’s incredibly exciting, there are a number of projects that are being filmed. They are really exciting projects and there’s a possibility that there will be some investment.”

ROCKETMAN will star Taron Egerton, who stars in the Kingsman films, as Elton John.Cllr Dudley said the reopening of the studios makes the borough stand out even more. He said: “I think it’s something where the Royal Borough now has a real unique selling point. It’s very exciting because there are a lot of people here who are involved in the arts, media and entertainment.” Bray Film Studios is of course, as we know most famous for the work done there in the 1950s and 1960s. The original Hammer Horror films, The Curse of Frankenstein, Dracula and the Mummy. with Peter and Christopher Lee were all filmed in Bray in the 1950s. 

THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW was filmed there in the 1970s, as well as parts of Ridley Scott’s Alien. The fate of the studios have hung in the balance after it was purchased by developer Farmglade Limited in 2013, which made plans to convert the site and surrounding areas into housing. According to Cllr David Coppinger (Con, Bray), the developer decided to reopen the site due to the high demand. In a video on the Maidenhead Conservatives website, he said: “The demand for filming, mainly because of companies like Netflix, is increasing and there is not enough studio capacity, so the owner of the land has reinstated the studio. We will see yet again Hollywood film stars in Bray which has to be good for our local economy.”

TERRY ADLAM, who worked on the Gerry Anderson production Terrahawks, filmed at the studios in the 1980s, said: “It’s brilliant news, I’m really pleased. “It’s a huge part of the history of British films, and to have an iconic studio opening in Bray is great. It’s great for the new generations of filmmakers, who will now have this to enjoy.” Ian Pankhurst, of Farmglade, said: “The studio is opening for a particular production and we are allowing them to film here. There is planning consent that is currently shelved because of the housing market not supporting it.”

WE ALSO ARE WISHING YVONNE FURNEAUX a happy birthday today, she was born 11th May 1928. As you would have read in the above piece on BRAY, Yvonne starred with Peter in THE MUMMY which was shot at the studio. 'VERY mixed and elective' is probably the best qualificative that defines the career of Yvonne Furneaux, even though she always gave believable and superb performances, her name and magical presence on screen, has sadly never earned her a more memorable place in the public memory.

YVONNE was born in Roubaix, in the North of France in 1928. She was immediately placed under the sign of bilingualism, her father being English and her mother French. As a result, once this alluring brunette had become an actress, she could as easily play in an English or a French film, which did not prevent her from being a regular in Italy and in West Germany, with a foray into Spain.

FURNEAUX has appeared in films noirs.... (Enough Rope (1963), The Champagne Murders (1967), sword & sandal movies (Slave Queen of Babylon (1963), The Lion of Thebes (1964) comedies (Temptation in the Summer Wind (1972) to chillers (Repulsion (1965)). The quality of her films, ranging from bombs (Frankenstein's Great Aunt Tillie (1984), mediocre run-of-the mill products (The Death Ray of Dr. Mabuse (1964) . . . and has sadly always read as an actor, who in every sense of the word was 'a working actor, an actor for hire.....but a very adaptable one! 

 

MY NAME IS DOUG MCCLURE... and you may now me from films like....' TODAY we also celebrate the birthday of McClure, born and educated in Los Angeles, had small parts in the local film industry, starting with a submarine drama, The Enemy Below (1957) Soon, television stardom beckoned in The Overland Trail, as William Bendix's sidekick, and in a private eye series, Checkmate, and John Huston made him Burt Lancaster's younger brother in his western The Unforgiven (1960). He was a natural man of the West, enlivening The Virginian, the first television western series to have 90-minute episodes. In The Virginian, which ran from 1962 to 1970, McClure played Trampas, friend of the ranch foreman of the title, played by James Drury.

IN 1975 McClure came to Britain to star in The Land That Time Forgot, based on Edgar Rice Burroughs' 1918 science fiction novel. It was strictly double-bill fare, and he appeared in three follow-ups: At the Earth's Core (1976) with Peter Cushing as Abner Perry, The People That Time Forgot (1977) and Warlords of Atlantis (1978).

AMICUS PRODUCTIONS did the producing duties, with co-operation on the last two from American International Pictures, temporarily deserting teenagers on motor-bikes. Fighting dinosaurs and such, McClure was energetic, especially as he looked as if he had had a heavy night. Later movie appearances included Cannonball Run II (1983) and Omega Syndrome (1986). McClure has been regularly parodied as Troy McClure, an ageing star of the 1950s, in the television series The Simpsons. David Shipman Doug McClure, actor: born Glendale, California 11 May 1934; married three times; died Los Angeles 5 February 1995. Remembered and Missed.....

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 reach all lovers of Peter Cushing's work AND Help Keep The Memory Alive!

CALLUM MCKELVIE: PART ONE OF DOUBLE FEATURE ON SCI FI AND HORROR : ISLANDS OF TERROR AND HEAT!

WHEN ONE THINKS OF PETER CUSHING'S  Science Fiction output, what usually springs to mind? Star Wars and the two Dr Who movies are the most obvious candidates. Aside from that the choices are somewhat limited. Horror Express (1973) and Biggles (1986) contain ostensibly science fiction elements (the monster being an alien in Express and the time travel plot in Biggles) but their feet are firmly rooted in other genres. Scream and Scream Again (1969) is another obvious candidate but sadly it has to be the film in which Cushing is the MOST wasted, barely appearing at all. 

THAT LEAVE JUST The Abominable Snowman (1957) and the films involved in this two-part feature; Island of Terror and Night of the Big Heat. This last pair are not only a sample of Cushing’s relatively small science-fiction output, their also two of famed Hammer Director, Terrence Fisher's four contributions to the genre (along with Four Sided Triangle (1953) and The Earth Dies Screaming (1964).

BOTH FILMS WERE MADE by the short-lived ‘Planet Films’ and share many of the same cast and crew. Both also belong to that curious, somewhat forgotten form of British sci-fi, pioneered by the likes of John Wyndham and Nigel Kneale. Namely, they feature small isolated intrinsically ‘British’ communities menaced by mysterious creatures. Night in particular sees much of its action take place in the local pub, a well-worn trend in British Science-Fiction films. However they’ll be more on that film next week, this time I’m tackling it’s predecessor- Island of Terror.

THE PLOT INVOLVES a cancer research establishment off the coast of Ireland where the locals are turning up dead. With the local Doctor having very little idea as to what is causing the mysterious deaths, enter Dr Brian Stanley (Peter Cushing), Dr David West (Edward Judd) and the wealthy jet-setter Toni Maerill (Carole Gray). The Scientists soon discover that creatures they dub ‘Silicates’ are loose on the island, created accidentally by the experiments. Bone sucking creatures, they multiply at an alarming rate and soon endanger the entirety of the Islands population…

OF COURSE THERE IS ONE MAJOR difference between the two films. Namely Cushing’s role. In Island of Terror, he’s an integral part of the film and one of the three main characters. Not only that but his character is given some genuinely interesting moments, for example a hero loosing his hand (or receiving any other sort of lasting damage) isn’t something we really see in a Cushing film. However, it defiantly works here and manages to ramp the tension up significantly, after all if one of our three leads can have his hand chopped off, why can’t one (or all of them) die? It’s an interesting tactic and Fisher doesn’t shy away from showing the whole thing. The effect might be a little cheesy, but the intent is there and it still works as a shocking moment. 

IN HEAT, CUSHING is given a substantially smaller role and essentially plays a victim- an interesting position to see him in at this point in his career. His character is friendly and affable, but that’s all. Cushing lays on the charm HARD and it certainly works when he reaches his demise, a scene which is easily the highlight of the film and one that is thick with tension throughout. However it’s clear which role is superior and it’s a shame the Planet Films team didn’t consider a direct follow up, re-using the character of Dr Stanley.

 

THE SILICATES THEMSELVES ARE . . . oddly effective. For the first portion of the film Fisher decides, wisely, to keep them off the screen. This builds the feeling of a menace that can be anywhere and strike at any time. Wonderfully, this isn’t just atmosphere for atmosphere’s sake and is actually used to provide genuine shocks (for example the aforementioned sequence involving Cushing's hand) when one appears out of nowhere. 

WHEN THEY ARE EVENTUALLY REVEALED When they are eventually revealed, the design is one that despite it’s cheapness, works wonderfully to compliment the films visual style and has a unique charm about it. One has to give the team credit as well for avoiding the tired cliché of a man in a suit and attempting something that’s a little more unusual, resulting in a striking (if admittedly not always convincing) design. 

THE CREATURE'S SLOWNESS doesn’t make them any less threatening and indeed helps in the slow menace that makes the film so effective. One rather spectacular sequence with the creatures features one on a glass skylight, as it smashes through and drops onto a hapless victim below.
 

ONE TRULY WONDERFUL SEQUENCE, occurs in the films climax (spoilers ahead be warned) in which, trapped with the creatures advancing, Edward Judd prepares to shoot Toni in order to save her from death by silicate. It’s a surprisingly dark moment for a film of this nature, all the more so given the nature of her character and how she came to be on the island. For a character that’s so innocent and outgoing, this fate seems incredibly troubling.

TO SHOOT TERI OR NOT???

INDEED ONE OF the enduring appeals of Island of Terror, is that what starts as an enjoyable 60’s sci-fi adventure- becomes progressively darker. The opening sequences in which we meet our characters, then see them journey to the island are far lighter in the tone, than the latter half of the film. Fisher allows his audience to let their guard down and then strikes when their at their most vulnerable.

ISLAND OF TERROR, really is something of a gem in Cushing’s output and for my money stands as his best Sci-Fi feature alongside The Abominable Snowman. This film may not have the intelligence of that earlier classic, but it has genuinely shocking moments and an atmosphere that oozes dread and menace. The question is, does Night of the Big Heat match it’s predecessor?

 

I’ll be finding out next week, so PLEASE JOIN US!
If you have any comments, suggestions or feedback about this or ANY of my features here at PCAS you can contact me HERE at spookycallum58@gmail.com

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

CASH ON DEMAND WRAPPED 57 YEARS AGO TODAY!

FIFTY SEVEN YEARS today Peter Cushing just wrapped with shooting one of his least expected, successes with Hammer films. A neat, tight and dramatic bank robbing saga, that started life as a BBC tv play just twelve months previously called, 'The Gold Inside'. Cushing plays a bank manager called Harry Fordyce, Andre Morell who had played Cushing's Watson just two years before, plays a foxy confidence trickster, called Colonel Gore-Hepburn. 

'CASH ON DEMAND' (1961) is quite a marvel really. With an almost penny-halfpenny budget, it holds the suspense and drama, through out it's 90min duration . . . which is real pay-off, when the plot, the nuts and bolts of the crime are revealed. It's a credit to Hammer films, who sometimes did not do as well, with their non horror movies. Cushing and Morell are superb. I know it's a favorite here, and this little GIF just about shows you, the spins and traps that Cushing's up-tight manager is put through. . . Recommended, wouldn't you say?

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