Dr. Terrors House of Horrors:

1965's Dr. Terrors House of Horrors; what a film!  

Possibly only pipped to the post by Tales from the Crypt, Dr.Terrors has it all: great script, great sets, fabulous actors and lots of Gothic charm.

An Amicus portmanteau of real calibre, hosted on a trundling train by a tarot-reading Peter Cushing, it has so many great and memorable tales. 

The starter is set in a Scottish country house, that requires some work. The Architect hired is in fact the previous owner. On his return he uncovers much macabre goings on including a coffin in the cellar bearing the family name, something he lives to regret! 

Another tale deals with the arrival of the young new doctor in town - one uber-cool Donald Sutherland, the old one showing him the ropes. Sutherland's young wife begins to settle in whilst some locals fall inexplicably sick. It takes the old doctor to sort things out once and for all! 

The story of the suburban garden is yet another tale, this time starring the suave and hip DJ Alan Fluff Freeman. The Ministry are brought in to ID some unusual flora but flora is having none of it!

The remaining two tales are the best in my opinion: the art critic and top of the pile, the voodoo tune.

Christopher Lee plays the famous art critic, a fabulously pompous and conceited oaf, who, after tearing apart an elderly artist's entire ouvre, is publicly humiliated by a painting chimp. This sets off a chain of increasingly tragic and ultimately lethal events. Pomposity certainly doesn't pay!

Last but not least, my favourite story of all, the voodoo song. The bubbly Roy Castle is just wonderful as jazzman Biff Bailey, who lands a gig in the West Indies with his excited band. Whilst there, Biff witnesses a voodoo chant, writes down the catchy tune and thereby seals his fate! I won't spoil it, it really is a marvellously created short film, completely self-contained and a world unto itself. There's a charming moment where Roy stands in front of a poster for the very film he's in! Kenny Lynch is great too.

Do you like Dr. Terrors House of Horrors readers? Have you a favourite story?

The Ghoul: Tyburn's Terrifier

 I caught The Ghoul the other night.

Made by Tyburn [not to be confused with the much more successful Tigon] it was one of only three films the company released.

The Ghoul [not a word you hear now really] is essentially a slasher film spiced up with Indian Zitars and a large country house. Set in the Charleston age, the protagonists are two young couples from the English elite in a car race to Land's End. Two of them break down, the woman ending up at the hands of John Hurt's mad gamekeeper and then in the clutches of the Peter Cushing's even madder country gent and his Indian housekeeper. There's more madder things yet but I won't spoil it.

John Hurt's cruel gamekeeper is a great performance, as are the two beleaguered ladies. Cushing's performance as the tormented gent is OK, as is his housekeeper, but for me the most interesting character is the posh Army Officer.

Despite being in his civvies he displays all the spit and polish of his class and positively out-poshes everyone on his way to the truth. When pitted against John Hurt's fabulously deranged yokel on the treacherous bog we have the best bit of the film.

Not one of the best horrors you'll ever see but still Tyburn did a decent job, biting at the ankles of the mighty Hammer. I watch the Ghoul at least every other year.

Have you seen the Ghoul?

DR. PHIBES: ROSE AGAIN BUT SANK WITHOUT A TRACE

I caught Phibes last night. Dr. Phibes that is, when he's gone and risen.

Staring Gothmeister himself Vincenzo Price, I do like a Phibes film. I saw them both many years ago and fancied a non-anthology last night. And there it was on You Tube free of charge!

Personally I think the first Phibes, the Abominable one, is better than this sandy re-birth, but it does hold its own. The setting in Egypt is fabulous and the sets are worthy of Howard Hughes! Pyramids, rivers, gates of eternity, sarcophagi, deserts, statues and more!

The despatching of his enemies is once again a gory affair - this is 1972 after all - and we are 'treated' to all manner of horrendous ends inserted between the lavish organ playing and the puppet orchestra.

The dead Missus Phibes, one Victoria - 'played' by an uncredited Caroline Munro no less - gets lots of mentions but its the swirling chiffoned maid Vulnavia that steals the show. There is something very unsettling about Vulnavia and the care she takes looking after her mad master. And she never says a single word - no lines to forget for Vulnavia then!

Valli Kemp played the role, an Australian model who was involved with pop impresario Jonathan King [since disgraced]. She got a ten-year contract with Dr. Phibes, as the studio expected the character to just keep on rising. Kemp appeared in Rollerball before going back to Australia, where she teaches art in Newcastle, Sydney.

I've read that a different actress played this role in the first film, Virginia Northup, erstwhile Baroness of Hull. The Abominable Dr. Phibes was her final film role.

I can't help comparing the whole Phibes-Vulnavia-Avenging Nutcase-scenario to that of Theatre of Blood a year later, to my mind a much more accomplished and enjoyable romp into posthumous wrath and theatrics.  Price is ably assisted by Diana Rigg in this and its a genius combination, as she's such a good actress and fabulous speaker [and so well known from the Avengers!]. Even the police slapstickery is better with Eric Sykes and Milo O'Shea pulling it off beautifully. Ian Hendry adds some 1970's class and off we go. And who can forget Robert Morley's poodled demise!

There is another similar Vincent Price vehicle, Madhouse, where he plays Paul Toombs. I even have the novelization of this but can't recall much detail at all.

Needless to say, I enjoyed watching Dr. Phibes and all the 'priceless' memories it brought back!

Do you Phibes treaders?

THE VAULT OF HORROR AND A HOT LEMON PLEASE

 I caught the Vault of Horror the other sleepless night.

Another Amicus anthology and possibly less well known than Tales from the Crypt.

There are some stand-out performances by really great actors here. My favourite segments, three of the five, are:

Midnight Mess: the one where the brother murders the sister but falls foul of the 'locals' in the restaurant that night. I wont spoil it, suffice to say, the the final scene of the protagonist upside down was one I saw pictured as a young monster nut in my copies of Dennis Gifford's and Alan Frank's horror film guides, an image that's stayed with me my whole life! I understand that that scene was deleted from certain showings, with a still of it shown instead!

The restaurant in this section was in Richmond, London and the site Reel Streets depicts this and other locations in the film then and now, which is fascinating and I appreciate how much work it must have taken.

https://www.reelstreets.com/films/vault-of-horror-the/#:~:text=The%20Vineyard.&text=When%20his%20sister%20doesn't,The%20Vineyard%2C%20Richmond.

The Neat Job; Glynis Johns and Terry-Thomas do such a 'neat job' of this section too, its a fabulously compact and complete world in itself and revolves around, yes, obsessive neatness. 

The house used is once more a portal into my Parents' home in the early 1970's and I love to notice the ornaments and artefacts: the big lamps, the magazine rack, the enormous flower clock, the thick impasto paintings and the records - I think we even had the classical one Glynis Johns returns to its sleeve. Its a startlingly good section and the domestic tension rises to fever pitch before ... bam! I adore the crazed woman's insane wide-eyed stair and the mad cackle at the end. 

This Trick' ll Kill Ya: my final fave segment of this Amicus pick 'n' mix stars Curt Jürgens and Dawn Addams as a married magic act searching for a new trick in India, a trick they are prepared to use extreme prejudice to get. 

The most alarming scene, certainly when I was a nipper first seeing it, was the sudden disappearance of the wife near the ceiling and the resultant slowly- slicking blood patch. Yuk!

The remaining two sections are fine, just less memorable for me, although the appearance of two young stars from TV's Doctor in the House is a plus. I so remember that series and similar young shows like Man about the House, The Lovers, Please Sir and the Fenn Street Gang. Do you? Happy days!

Do you like Vault of Horror? Have you a favourite bit?

TALES FROM THE CRYPT AND TWO PARACETOMOL PLEASE!

With my circadian clock clogged with up snot I'm not sleeping when I should. Hence I was up late last night nursing my cold, drinking more hot tea and watching more old films, horror films; Amicus anthologies to be exact, those Seventies-set competitors to Hammer's more gothic output.

The first I watched, Tales from the Crypt, is one I associate totally with my older brothers when they were teenagers in the early 1970's. Advertised in the newspaper at the time, along with all the other films on, they saw it at one of the three cinemas in Preston town centre at the time: ABC, Odeon or Ritz. I was a mere boy of 10 when Amicus released Tales from the Crypt in 1971, a classic 'X' for 18's only. 

An earlier American generation, nearly twenty years earlier, would have enjoyed the original EC comic it was based on but I don't think I knew about EC then. Creepy and Eerie were the US imports of note at the time. Maybe my older brothers had heard of EC, I don't know. Nowadays, I'm pleased to say I have a few EC reprints keeping my Warren's company.

Amicus's Tales from the Crypt is that wonderful thing and perfect Christmas fayre; a selection box with something for everyone: Joan Collin's raving Santa, the monkey's paw-styled Death on a motorcycle,  Ian Hendry's late crash victim, the amazing Blind Institute story and of course Grimsdyke the binman's story is simply fabulous and so well made.

But my personal favourite is And All Through the House, the first story and the one set on Christmas Eve. I adore this nostalgic tale starring Joan Collins and the ubiquitous Chloe Franks. The contemporary 1970's set reminds me so much of my parents' house; the Xmas tree, the cards, the decorations and the Seventies décor such as the big radio playing carols, the huge chunky nail-art style pictures and of course the massive transparent cigarette lighter that needed two hands! Its so evocative I can almost touch my past and step right into it, which is indeed a storyline in another portmanteau!

I won't spoil it, although I imagine everyone reading MC will have seen Tales from the Crypt. Needless to say, as in the original EC comics, cardinal sinners, especially the greedy ones, are punished ruthlessly and their just desserts dished out with a very large hammer indeed ... or a spade ... or a sword!

I will say that watching And All Through the House was the start of this year's Christmas for me last night, such is its nostalgic power every year.

I  couldn't locate Crypt's Amicus stablemate Vault of Horror immediately but eventually found it for free on You Tube, but therein lies another tale ..., five!

Do you like Tales from the Crypt? What's your favourite segment? Do you have any EC comics?

I'm Seeing More Things

Back when we were in Germany I saw these strange bubble candle blocks. They brought back memories of Dr.Who interiors and Sci Fi locations. What do you think?

Similarly these hand candles - handles! - stirred my id of monsters therein.

Those being the dreadful Hand of Glory in the film, The Wicker Man, placed menacingly by the bedside of the young doomed constable played brilliantly by Edward Woodward.

These small LED-lit Christmas houses, especially the one on the right, though quaint for sure, made me think of less festive dwellings ....

..... namely the iconic Bates house in Hitchcock's seminal Psycho. His Mother's in the window too! 

And equally, though less so, the Marston House in the terrific 1979 Stephen King mini-Series, Salem's Lot. Would you go in it? 

LUSTIGE GESPENSTER PARADE: GERMAN HORROR STICKERS

 I recently saw this sticker set online.

Horror Parade and Lustige Gespenster Parade.

By Americana of Munich.

The albums look great!

Fantastically detailed cards and pages.

They came in 10 pfennig packets. You got three sticker pictures.

Well over a hundred!

The art looks original and not lifted.

What do you think?

Anyone got a set?

The Dry Grimoire

Whenever I stay away from home for any length of time I write a short horror story.

Returning from the Continent on a long ferry voyage I wrote The Dry Grimoire.

It's quite a grisly tale so be warned if you do choose to indulge.

https://thegargoylesdispleasure.blogspot.com/2024/10/the-dry-grimoire.html?m=1

The Ghastly Ones - A Very Strange CD

I found this music video on You Tube, an instrumental, by a group called The Ghastly Ones (there was a movie called The Ghastly Ones, directed by Andy Milligan - which was banned in Britain, where it was classed as a Video Nasty).

The interesting part is that the video features a make believe Aurora box top of a grave digger - or a grave robber.

Apparently, this is the cover for their 2005 CD All Plastic Assembly Kit. Some photos of the cover show the Aurora name spelt as Augora.

Very weird.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GbXQvUArdE

Here is some information on the group and the CD.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghastly_Ones

https://www.discogs.com/release/2700700-The-Ghastly-Ones-All-Plastic-Assembly-Kit

Paul Adams from New Zealand

PENNY DREADFUL: GOTHIC SUPER-TEAM-UP

 Along with my older brother, I recently re-watched episodes 1 and 2 of Penny Dreadful, a TV horror series from 2014.

Rated 18, its quite gory, hence the age limit.

Its the story and in particular the characters that have me intrigued. Its like a Universal Studio monster reunion!

There's Mina, a werewolf, vampires, Frankenstein and his monster and a baronial fellow rather like Van Helsing. There's a sharpshooter too.

Set in foggy 19th Century London, the monster action takes place whilst Jack the Ripper is about and a demonical quest is afoot with Eva Green's sensational Mina and one-time James Bond Timothy Dalton's superb aristocrat at the helm. Josh Hartnet is the gunslinger and Billy Piper the tavern moll. Dorian Gray adds further weirdness.

The séance scene alone was astonishing.

This literary mashup reminds me greatly of the 2003 adventure movie The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. 

Described as a steampunk rendition of a well-known comic series, League was largely panned at the time I for one enjoyed it, largely because it brought together a ragtag of monsters and famous characters. Alan Quartermain, played by James Bond himself, Sean Connery, Tom Sawyer - a Secret Service agent, Captain Nemo, Dr, Jekyll, Dorian Gray and Mina.

These last two characters above all connect this flick to Penny Dreadful. Both are in the public domain as may well be other characters in both.

Many of the characters have literary lives elsewhere. Tom Sawyer featured as a detective in one of Twain's novels in 1897 and Alan Quartermain is the leading man in both King Solomons Mines, 1887, and The Lost City of Gold among others by H. Rider Haggard.

Its worth noting that the Granddaddy of Horror itself, Dracula by Bram Stoker [1897] contained a sort of super league and perhaps the very first one. Besides Count Dracula, theres Jonathan Harker the solicitor, Mina Murray his fiancée, Jack Seward the doctor, Quincey Morris the Texan gunslinger, Arthur Holmwood or Lord Godalming and of course, Professor Abraham Van Helsing, the Dutch vampire-hunter.

Here's the male cast from the 1992 Bram Stoker's Dracula.

With all this extraordinariness in mind, I'm looking forward to the rest of Season 1 of Penny Dreadful.

Have you seen it readers?

LOOEY'S PROPS: GREYSTANES SUPER DRENCHERS!

Enough of the monster stuff! I know you Moonbasers are really only here to see the water pistols I made for Greystanes, the Tik Tok Horror series!

https://www.tiktok.com/@greystanesseries/video/7376509993274592530

The story is set in the 1990's and our young heroine arms herself with a brace of water pistols containing the only substance that can overpower Il Hadiela's Maltese folkloric evil!

Ryan found some contemporary water blasters that looked a bit like period props

 and I modified them to (break copyright) and painted them in retro colours.

For good measure, I took the boxes they came in and covered them in $3 wrapping paper ( did I mention this was a low budget production?) then designed and printed out some period style graphics using my colour laser printer!

To my delight, the boxes feature quite prominently in the establishing shot. so all that Art Department storytelling was put to good use!

I had a great time working on the series, mostly because I got to design and build the Boss Monster!

...and make packaging for water pistols!

Looey

Oz Base

LOOEY'S PROPS: GREYSTANES HORSE SKULL MASK

So, I know this bloke called Ryan Cauchi... He's another Fanboy made good who has produced a number of short Horror films that have had success on the International Film Festival circuit.

I'd previously got a screen credit for providing a prop German helmet for use in the film Golem, that featured a stop motion clay monster putting paid to the Nazis!

Anyway, Ryan contacted me about his new project, a TikTok horror mini series featuring creatures from Maltese folklore and the 1990's period adventure of characters from the Maltese? Australian diaspora.

The main villain is a character called Il Hadiela, who is a vengeful Grandmother, a little like the John Carpenter Halloween villain.

Il Hadiela wears a self-made Horse's skull mask. After a lot of discussion, I suggested that as she is an undead old lady, maybe she's dressed in Victorian style lace clothing and her mask is made from scraps of these clothes.

After some plasticene concept models sculpted over Barbie dolls, I began building the full sized mask using EVA foam sheet cut into strips to mimic basketwork.

As I needed two camera identical outfits, I built them both at the same time, matching every scrap of lace!

This was me out of retirement and into a refreshing return to the low budget collaborations, that I loved so much back on the Ozsploitation Cowboy days of the 80's!

Looey

Oz Base

A Quiet Place

Me and the Missus watched A Quiet Place tonight in our holiday shack.

It's been around years but it's just never appealed. Last night we drew the short straw and watched a terrible Sandra Bullock movie called the Lost City. Tonight we went blockbuster in the hope it turned out well.

It did. The premise is interesting and having to maintain silence makes for a lot of tension. 

The monsters are well executed too. All flappy ear holes and long legs. They remind me of small Cloverfields and I enjoyed the nods to War of the Worlds with the alien in the basement.

I see there's a Quiet Place II and just out, A Quiet Place Day One, the tricky prequel.

Have you seen a Quiet Place?

MY MYSTERY MONSTER MASK

 One of the many mystery items I've bought this last twelve months was this small plastic horror mask. It remain unidentified, if you have any ideas readers.

Its a sort of blue, squidgy, gooey monster face

The mouth is open and drooling.

Inside the mask is a small plastic brace or fastener of some kind. Did it fasten onto something?

Any clue?

Roger Corman RIP

I'm sad to see the news that cult director Roger Corman has died. He was 98.

A hugely important figure in the world of sci-fi and horror films, his output was prolific.

My undying memory will be seeing his Edgar Allen Poe movies for the first time when I was a kid on the family TV. 

Of all of them, The Pit and the Pendulum, stands head and shoulders above them all and for me it's Roger Corman's masterpiece and helped spark a lifelong passion for horror films.

Rest in peace Roger.

F O R M I C

 Speaking of ants, I'm getting worried about the number of ,Phase 4' diets I'm seeing.

Makes me think of ants and much chomping in the formulary of phase IV.

I've seen a lot of Ant movies and read a few Novels.

I've never seen Food of the Gods though - maybe that's rats film? It used to be advertised as a cine film for home viewing at the back of Warrens Creepy and Eerie comics.

I bought this softback of Creepy reprints this morning at the Bonner Comic Laden.

 Although Food of the Gods isn't advertised in it, some classic monotone monster cine films are, pictured above. The VHS of it's day! 

Have you seen it? Read any ant books? Did you or do you like Creepy and Eerie comics Readers?

🐜

Ant-dendum

In a sleepy Rhine village we're visiting is, yes, of all things, an ant controller! 

Americom Curse of Frankenstein 8mm Home Movie

 This was a neat birthday gift from the Missus this Christmas just gone.

Right up my cobwebbed alley, it's a 1965 Americom cinefilm reel and record of the Curse of Frankenstein, an early Hammer horror from 1957.

Americom specialized in these reel and record sets - there's a list of titles they released in the 1960's on 

the back of the sleeve.

 The concept was simple. The record provided the sound as both record and film played at the same speed. Very clever.

As is often the case, one or the other is missing. I have the film reel but the record is AWOL.

I have tidied up the sleeve a little and stiffened the film 'box'.

A lovely thing all round.

You can get a feel for how it looked and sounded on You Tube here:

https://youtu.be/_uBrGmfepoo?feature=shared

A mint one would look like this factory fresh example on Worthpoint.

Another example has the instructions, which were presumably tucked in somewhere. I don't have these either.

Americom released lots of titles in this format. I love the artwork.

A favourite is this Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea set. What an illustration!

Have you got any Americom or did you?

Sunday Whirl

 Despite inclement weather we braved the boot sale and whizzed round the charities in Wetherby this morning.

This bat-like dragon intrigued me. No makers mark. Any ideas?

Always an eye out for Interesting LPs fairy tales must be one of the earliest coloured vinyl I've seen. It was green. Have you any coloured vinyl?

I used to collect horror records, so seeing Mia Farrow is always a thrill. The lead in Rosemary's Baby, she's an all-time fave. Still, sat with Andre and kids was too non-horror for me to worry my wallet.

This baby was vintage. A Palitoy toy from 1970. Anyone know it?

The Missus bought Baby Annabelle stuff for MoonBase Miss and I snaffled these bargain bangers.

At the front are three 1980's Hot Wheels. The back three are Superfast, Lesneys and Husky respectively. I picked up the three plastic bits too but I've no idea what they're off. Die-casts?

Dr. Dreadful's Gross Toys

I have said this a million times before: some of the sickest minds on the planet work in the toy industry. This You Tube video proves that beyond all shadow of a doubt.

It is a collection of old TV commercials for Dr Dreadful, a range of toys that make various 'gross things' (really gross things), that you are actually expected to eat.

Not my cup of tea. Maybe yours?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gU5bCS1rEI

Paul Adams from New Zealand

DAVID SOUL RIP

David Soul died on the 4th January. I was really really sad. I loved David Soul back in the day as I'm sure a few of you did as well.

My childhood divides neatly into the 1960's and the 70's. In the latter half of the 70's a few TV shows defined the decade and Starsky and Hutch was one of them. The two handsome and super-cool Californian detectives burst onto our screens in the UK on Saturday April 23rd, 1976  [Kojak aired in the UK two years earlier in 1974].

Yep, what a year! first Starsky and Hutch and then that long hot Indian summer. For a while it seemed like Califiornia itself here in drab old Britain!

David Soul became an overnight star in 1976. In the same year he had a number 1 single too, Don't Give Up On Us. This guy could sing as well as jump across cars! I remember mates and me singing Don't Put Your Foot on the Baby for some daft reason at the time. Soul was a talent and with his buddy Mike Glazer they were suddenly pinned up high on bedroom walls allover the country, if not the world!

I think I was too old for pop star posters in '76, turning 17 that Christmas [I had a huge black and white poster of Karloff's Frankenstein over my bed!] but I really appreciated the pazzaz and sunshine of Starsky and Hutch: the street talk, Huggy Bear, the loud action, the cool homes, the rough precincts and above all the leather jacket, cardigan coat and the polo necks and yes, those massive cars [remember the die-casts!] constantly turning on a sixpence and screeching after bad guys. Like Kojak before it, Starsky and Hutch was pure seductive Stateside fun and a real bright moment in our swirling and sometimes drab Seventies adolescence.

In 1979 David Soul starred in what is for me his best work, Salem's Lot. A two-part TV mini-series, often shown as a single movie, it was a milestone in vampire telly. 

Tobe Hooper, who directed the seminal Texas Chainsaw Massacre, made Salem's Lot and did something special. Its still incredibly popular today. Soul plays Ben Mears, a successful author, who comes home to Salem's Lot, where fell deeds are taking place in this small American town. Yep, its a Stephen King story.

Who can forget the many great moments in the series! When Soul aka Ben first sees the creepy looming Marsten House again, the Glick Brothers rapping on a bedroom window, the Petrie boy's Dad cross and confused about his son's love of Aurora monsters [that rang a bell!], Straker - the loathsome familiar played so well by James Mason and finally, the hideous Mr. Barlow himself, the hissing Nosferatuesque vampire at the bloody heart of Salem's Lot's malaise. 

It was and is a triumph of TV horror and along with Starsky and Hutch before it, a true jewel in David's long and illustrious career.

He shall be sadly missed.

What are your memories of David readers?

*

David Soul, 1943-2024. Rest in Peace.