Tag Archives: Hammer Studios

Terror Tuesdays Returns to Sulzer Regional Library!

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Dr. AC (aka Aaron Christensen) and I will once again make it to the Sulzer Regional Library in Chicago for this year’s lecture series, where the library has been gracious enough to have us back each year to talk about the horror genre! Each Tuesday of October, we’ll be discussing a different topic dealing with the genre. In the past, we’ve covered different directors, women in horror, horror through the decades, and more. This time out, the subject is Houses of Horror: The Studios That Made the Screams! We’re going to delve into some of the studios behind the films we love, and what made them different or unique. Stop on by for the lecture and join in the discussion afterwards!

Starting on October. 6th, and going every Tuesday of the month, from 6:30pm to 7:45pm, there is a different lecture each week. Here’s a breakdown of what we’re covering each week.

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The Hammer Story: Revised and Expanded Edition

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Time to update the library! A new version of The Hammer Story is set to be published on September 15th, adding over 30 pagers of new material. It was originally published in 1997 and then revised in 2007. And now, almost two decades later, we’re getting a new edition with more content, updating the volume to add all that has been going on with Hammer Films, now that it really has risen from the grave and continues to bring the history of the famous “studio that dripped blood” back to life, to a whole new generation of film fans. While making us older fans giddy with excitement with all the new re-mastered and polished releases that have been coming out.

This version has gone from the past editions with 192 pages to 224 pages, delving into Hammer’s restoration programs, which includes the remastering of the studios classics films, as well as some other British titles, in the gorgeous looking 4K prints.

Released by Titan Books and priced at only $39.95 for this new hardcover edition, I would say without seeing it, that it is probably going to worth getting it, even if own the previous edition, even if this amazing new cover with both Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing on it. Written by Marcus Hearn and Alan Barnes, these guys definitely know their Hammer history. And if by chance you never owned one of the previous editions, then now is the perfect chance to correct that error!

If you’re not sure if you own a previous edition, below are the last two covers.

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Horror of Dracula in 4K and UNCUT!

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We kind of figured that a 4K release of Hammer’s Horror of Dracula (1958) would be coming out at some point, after the huge release of The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), not to mention several other titles. But what most fans didn’t expect was that it would contain footage never seen before, thought to lost for over six decades! I know when the Blu-ray came out a few years ago, which had a few seconds of long thought lost footage, of the Count’s demise, everyone was pretty excited about that. Those were some extra seconds, but now they are talking about 3 minutes of footage that is being restored into the film.

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House that Hammer Built

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Back in the late 90s, there was a magazine put out by Wayne Kinsey called The House That Hammer Built, with each issue devoted to all things Hammer Films. Because these were put out in England, they were not the cheapest or easiest to find. But now that Kinsey is one of the guys behind Peveril Publishing, starting in 2022, he has been taking all the info from those magazines, plus plenty more gathered in the years since then, and is putting them out in a series of books, appropriately titled The House That Hammer Built. Peveril has already published the first 3 volumes, covering the studio’s work from 1934 to 1958, but have now released the cover of Volume 4, which will cover from 1959 to 1962, and will be released hopefully this year.

I know I’ve posted before about these, and yes, they are not cheap, especially if you’re in the US, shipping from the UK is not cheap. But each volume is incredible, filled with some amazing photos, both black and white and in blazing color, and filled with so much information about the famous Studio that Dripped Blood, that if you are a serious fan of movie reference books, this on-going set are a must. Even if you don’t get the Scrapbooks they put out, I would consider this series as essential. Thankfully, all volumes are still currently available, but I wouldn’t hold out if you have any inclination of getting them. Each one has a run of only 750 copies, so that is not a lot. You can get all the information by heading over to Peveril’s site HERE.

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Hammer in Production Hell

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I know most of us out there love Hammer films, from their Frankenstein films, all the Dracula and vampire titles, to the black and white thrillers, and plenty of their sci-fi/horror titles as well. The more you read up on the history of the studio, you realize some titles took years to finally make it to the big screen, sometimes in a very form or version it was originally written as.

But what about the titles and ideas that never it through the process, that lingered for too long to the point there weren’t of interests anymore, or they just couldn’t agree on a final script, or maybe casting, or countless other reasons. Titles like When the Earth Cracked Open, Nessie, or even Zepplin vs Pterodactyls?

But fear no more because author Glen Davies has now given us this new book dedicated to all of those titles in this book Hammer in Production Hell: In Search of Unfilmed Hammer. It’s 222 pages all dedicated to films that were in varies stages of planning but never made it to the big screen. It’s always interesting to read about what almost happened, especially for fans of this studio.

Available in both hardcover ($48) and paperback ($25) version through Amazon. I know you can never have too many horror reference books, and that includes ones on Hammer Films! Trust me, I know all too well!

John Gore Studios Acquire Tyburn

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After hearing many, many times that someone had acquired the Hammer Studios name and was going to bring it back from the dead, it was so nice to finally see it happen, when John Gore finally started to do it. More than just ideas and plans, since Gore has taken the reigns, we’ve seen some amazing restorations of some of Hammer’s classic titles, as well as some of their lesser-known ones. Looking at John Gore Studios website and their mission statement, it really does sound like they are doing great things there and for the right reasons. As posted on their site, not only do they “believe in the power of compelling storytelling to ignite imagination and celebrate the enduring legacy of British film, television, and theatre”, but that they have a mission to “the acquisition, restoration, and distribution of historic film catalogues, ensuring these cultural touchstones remain vibrant and accessible.” Not only through acquiring the film rights, but also by using Silver Salt Restorations, another company owned by Gore, they can make them look as even better than when they first premiered. Just love to see that they understand and agree with the cultural relevance of these film titles, specifically the ones in the horror genre!

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DtH Episode 109 – Hammer Frankenstein Films Pt.2

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Frankenstein Created Woman (1967), Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed (1969), Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell (1974)

Continuing our quest to get through the rest of Hammer’s Frankenstein films which starred Peter Cushing, we cover the last three titles that Hammer made. Cushing loved to play this character, and he’s done it like no one ever had, or ever has. Along with the screenwriters, Cushing made this character his own and really made him the real monster in this series.

While these films might be well covered by others, sometimes we forget just how good some of these are, as well as what we might be missing the first time or two that we watched it. And as we’ve mentioned many times before, watching them in sequence in a relatively short time, more things can come to light.

Films mention in this episode:

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DtH Podcast Episode 108 – Hammer’s Frankenstein Part 1

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The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958), and The Evil of Frankenstein (1964)

What can you say about the Hammer Frankenstein films that hasn’t been said before?

Well, a lot, actually!

In 1957, a relatively small, mostly unknown studio made a film that would forever change horror and kick off a cycle of sensual, bloody, and atmospheric fright flicks that would dominate the genre for around twenty years. To say that The Curse of Frankenstein is a classic is almost like saying that water is wet, but it is also a film that lives up to its reputation. It and its sequels are films that not only deserve regular revisits, but they also belong in more modern conversations about horror. While nearly all the films shard crewmembers and all but one were directed by Terence Fisher, one constant defined the series: Peter Cushing’s mesmerizing take on Victor Frankenstein, equal parts gentleman and ghoul.

On this episode we look at the first three films in the Cushing Frankenstein cycle, and in a very real way, make a pilgrimage to one of horror’s holy places. We love these films, and we hope that either you do too, or that you will by the time you are done listening.

Films mentioned in this episode:

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The House that Hammer Built: Vol. 3

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Soon to be released by Peveril Publishing will be the 3rd volume in their series of The House that Hammer Built – The Complete Hinds/Carreras Years (1934-79), with this volume covering 1955 to 1958. Years ago, Wayne Kinsey put out a magazine called The House that Hammer Built, so these massive volumes really are like historical documents, giving fans their own Hammer History books to be used for years to come, keeping all that history and information, facts, stories, and plenty of photos, alive and well for fans that grew up with them, to the new ones that discover the famous Studio that Dripped Blood!

This volume covers the years when it got really interesting for Hammer, and started their rise to fame and fortune, so to speak. With the release of The Quatermass Xperiement and moving into The Curse of Frankenstein, there seemed to be no stopping them!

If you go to Peveril’s website (just click HERE) and sign up for their newsletter, you’ll be notified when the book goes on sale. The cover price is £40, which is about $53 here in the states, and not including the postage, which I can assume isn’t going to be cheap. But having bought most of Peveril’s books over the years, I will say they are worth every penny or pound! Gorgeously laid out, with tons of amazing photos and jammed packed up of information, they truly are beautiful pieces of work, and a must for seriously collectors of horror reference books. But they are an investment, so be warned.

Episode 106: Hammer’s Quatermass Films

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The Quatermass Xperiment (1955), Quatermass 2 (1957), Quatermass and the Pit (1967)

Everyone knows the name Hammer Films (at least, we hope they do!) but most people associate it with gothic horror, particularly their reimagining of the Universal classic Frankenstein in The Curse of Frankenstein (1957). Yet Hammer had been around long before Peter Cushing breathed life into that first stitched-together corpse. Founded in the 1930s as a distribution company, the studio gradually moved into producing films, often adapted from popular TV and radio series.

In 1953, the BBC aired a six-part serial, The Quatermass Experiment. Hammer quickly recognized its potential, adapted it into a feature film, and in doing so set itself firmly on the path toward becoming “the studio that dripped blood.” In this episode, we cover all three Quatermass films. While they lean more toward science fiction than Hammer’s later gothic output, they are steeped in horror… and we think they’re well worth your time.

Films mentioned in this episode:

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