Way back in July of 2020, we posted about FAB Press announcement that they would be publishing Tony Dalton’s authorized biography of the incredibly underrated director Terence Fisher, best known for the work he did for Hammer Films. Well now it is at the printers and should be released next month. But you still have time to pre-order it and get a signed edition! The price is £29.99 (which right now is about $42), but we all know the beautiful work that FAB puts into their books, so it will be worth every penny. Not only that, but this hardcover edition is over 500 pages, almost that many illustrations, and is the first authorized biography of the man who helped start Hammer in their reign of terror that lasted over three decades.
Starting in the business as an editor in the mid-30s, he started directing in 1948 with A Song for Tomorrow. But in 1952, he started his association with Hammer Films, directing the crime drama Man Bait. He would dabble in science fiction with titles like Four Sided Triangle and Spaceways (both 1953), but it was in 1957 when he directed Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee in The Curse of Frankenstein that made the world take notice.
I can’t wait to dig into this book and if you’re a serious fan of Hammer Films, this really is a must. To get your pre-order in, just click HERE to get to FAB Press’ website.
The first one is Global Horror Cinema Today by Jon Towlson, which according to the cover, it represents 28 films from 17 different countries, with each chapter focusing on a particular country, looking into what frightens the native people there, and how it can cross over to an international audience. Some of the films covered are It Follows (2014), Grave aka Raw (2016), Busanhaeng aka Train to Busan (2016), and Get Out (2016), as well as discussing another 100 titles.
If you have any of the amazing volumes put out by Peveril Publishing, then you know how simply amazing they are. Yes, they are a bit pricy, especially when you’re getting them shipped over here to the US, but they are worth every single penny. So start saving those now because (hopefully) this summer, they will be unleashing the Hammer Vampire Scrapbook!
If you’re looking for a gift for someone that is an avid book lover that also loves the horror genre, there are so many titles out there to choose from. And they just seem to keep coming out too! In fact, it’s really hard for me NOT to buy them for myself! Yes, having a library of horror reference books is not as cheap as it once was, but I’m not complaining. To be fair, I do not have copies of any of these yet. Key word… YET! But I know at some point, I’m going to have to kick my son out of the house so my library can take over his room!
For years, some horror fans have concluded that even though Bela Lugosi’s performance is highly memorable, that the original 1931 version of Dracula itself doesn’t hold up well today. Honestly, I would have to agree with that. Which makes me even more excited to read this new book that has recently come out from Hemlock Books and author Matthew Coniam, entitled Dracula AD 1931.
Some of you that have been following the Krypt for a while might have heard me speak of my love of Texas filmmaker Larry Buchanan, who made films with a budget that would make even Roger Corman shudder. So when I came across this new book entitled Texas Schlock: B-movie Sci-Fi and Horror from the Lone Star State. It even has a chapter on Mr. Buchanan, I knew I had to have a copy for the Kryptic Library. And once it comes and I get to it, you can bet there will be a review posted here.
Regulars to the Krypt know my love of soundtracks, especially in the horror genre. Back in 2016, J. Blake Fichera put out a book of interviews with different composers that had worked in horror genre, entitled Scored to Death. This was an amazing read because we got to hear from the people behind these incredible scores that we’ve enjoyed while watching the films, sometimes not even aware of the effect it was having on us! Composers tend not to get the attention that actors, directors, or even special effects people get, but Fichera wanted to change that and he did.
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