Horror Movie Poster art – Postcard Collection- Part I

Horror Movie Poster Art – post cards (and Sci-fi, too!)

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Let me explain,
I collected about a dozen classic horror movie posters including, Bride of Frankenstein, King Kong, Creature From the Black Lagoon, and The Curse of the Werewolf. They range in size from 11 x 17″ to 24 x 28.” However, I soon discovered I will never have enough room to display them.

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That was when I discovered post-card sized replications of all the famous classic film movie posters. I keep them in a book in plastic sleeves. Along with the Universal Monsters Stamps and post cards from various museums and historical sites, plus Art, Americana, and movie stars, I have over 200 post cards in my collection.

I’d like to share some of these post cards with you.

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Creature Features and early horror films:

Here’s my book. It’s a loose-leaf binder with photo sleeves. It holds 4 cards per page (2 front, 2 back).

 

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Universal and Classics:

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 1950’s Sci Fi and horror:

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US Postal Service Universal Monsters Commemorative Stamps and Post Cards:

 

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More to come…

 

 

Creature Features revisited – Ghosts and Angry Spirits

Creature Features revisited

A look back at the golden age of sci-fi and horror, the 1950‘s/60‘s. Our subject today…

Ghosts and Angry Spirits

The Screaming Skull (1958)
The Haunting (1963)
House on Haunted Hill (1959)
13 Ghosts (1960)

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The Screaming Skull (1958)

The film starts with a dire warning from the film studio. Taking a page from William Castle they offer to pay for funeral expenses to anyone who dies of heart failure do to fright from watching the film, The Screaming Skull. Then music starts, a familiar composition to horror fans, Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique which can more recently be heard in the intro to The Shining. It sets a somber tone and mood for the film. A recently married couple move into the estate mansion that the husband shared with his first wife. She had died unexpectedly a few years ago. But the shadow of the fist wife looms as the new wife hears screams in the middle of the night and is haunted by the vision of a skull. The film gets off to a slow start and the pacing doesn’t improve much until the last 20 minutes. The film tries to provide thrills, but never rises to a level above nostalgic. I imagine in the 1950s the image of a skull might be shocking, the skull image had not yet permeated the culture and was still viewed as a bad omen. Needless to say, after watching the film my wife had no reason to put in a claim for my funerary expenses.

 

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The Haunting (1963)

This film begins with a narrative describing the decades of tragedy that has befallen the Hill House. A professor investigating the paranormal invites several people to stay a week at the home. This includes Eleanor, a woman who has lived a sheltered, closed-in life and welcomes a reason to leave her old life behind, even if it’s just for a week. The rest of the film we can hear Eleanor’s thoughts as she talks herself through creepy incidents happening throughout the house. This is the film that provides ghostly chills by never actually showing a visual ghost or spirit. There’s loud banging on the walls, twisting of doorknobs, and wails, screams, and groans, all unnerving to Eleanor and the other guests at Hill House. Many of these simple techniques are used to great success in modern films, The Conjuring and Insidious. The acting in this film is top notch providing a degree of respect to the genre at the time. Despite the slow start and older style, this is still one of my favorite haunted house movies and a textbook example of building psychological suspense in horror.

 

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House on Haunted Hill (1959)

The film starts with narration explaining the party thrown by millionaire, Frederick Loren. Although it is a no-no by today’s standards, this offers an hospitable charm, as if you’re being invited into the fold of knowledge, and welcomed into the house. It doesn’t take long for the action to begin as doors slam by themselves, and a swinging chandelier crashes to the ground. Frederick and his wife, Annabelle, speak to each other with cordial contempt. One or both will be dead before morning’s light. The film contains one of the creepiest old ladies you will ever see in film. The story is interesting and fast paced and if you like old films this can easily hold your attention today with the many plot twists and wonderful performances. It’s a pleasure to watch Vincent Price in anything he does. In classic William Castle style, there’s a scene where a full skeleton rushes the screen. At the time of the films theatrical run, theater’s were rigged with a full sized skeleton prop on wires that would continue the journey from the screen, right into the theater and zoom overhead down the center aisle. The screams this must’ve caused in theater houses in 1959!

 

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13 Ghosts (1960)

The marvelous intro, a count off of ghostly images representing the spirits we will see in the film, is a real attention grabber. But that’s not all William Castle has in store. How would you like a film that you can’t see the ghosts unless you put on the special ghost detecting glasses. Now, not only can you see them clearly, but they are in 3D. The Zorba family inherits a home from their distant uncle. The uncle has been known to dabble in the occult and is rumored to have even collected ghosts. The family confirms this early in their stay when a few questions on an Ouja board ends with the spirits attempting to harm the children. Margaret Hamilton plays a grumpy house maid. The children refer to her as ‘the witch’ (with a secret eye wink to the audience.) It’s a very active haunted house film and I imagine the effects were quite creepy at the time of its release. It’s nostalgia to watch today but a decent story makes it enjoyable. stars, Charles Herbert, Jo Morrow, Rosemary DeCamp, Martin Milner, Donald Woods. 

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The Screaming Skull

The Haunting

House on Haunted Hill

13 Ghosts

The Monster Club (1980) – movie review

The Monster Club (1980) 

Directed by Roy Ward Baker
Produced by Milton Subotsky
Starring
Vincent Price
Donald Pleasence
John Carradine
Stuart Whitman
Britt Ekland
Patrick Magee
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This is often considered the last Amicus Film, however Amicus was dismantled shortly before working on this film. This is also the last film that Milton Subotsky worked on in his career. It is based on short stories by British horror author R. Chetwynd-Hayes who is also a main character in the film. Vincent Price plays Eramus, a vampire who attacks the author, R.Chetwynd-Hayes, played by John Carradine. When he realizes he has attacked his favorite author, he offers Chetwynd-Hayes access to a place that will give him ideas for his next book. He brings him to a club where all the ghouls and creatures of the night gather. At a small table in the corner three stories are revealed. The first story concerns a Shadmock described as a lesser monster who’s only power is his demonic whistle. The Shadmock, Raven, puts out an ad to hire a personal assistant. A young man convinces his girl to take the job just so they can later rob the rich old estate owner blind. At first the young woman is fearful of Raven’s strange, deathly look. But soon it seems the Shadmock and the assistant may be falling in love. As his trust in her grows he reveals the hidden safe showing the riches of the centuries. But will the young woman steal his valuables or stay on as his assistant and let their budding love flourish? Raven puckers his lips but is it for a kiss or to whistle? The second story tells the tale of a young family who lives in a big scary house and the husband/father who ‘works nights’. A few detectives in a van start flowing the young boy and asking him questions. What does your father actually do for a living? Why does he sleep all day in the cellar? etc. The detectives finally convince little Jimmy to let them In and lead them to the cellar. They are modern day vampire hunters with wooden stakes and garlic cloves. Can Jimmy’s dad somehow survive a daytime attack? In the final story an impatient movie director, Sam, goes location hunting for his next film and finds a small town inhabited by the Humgoo (ghouls). The ghouls won’t let him leave the town, they want him to stay for dinner. They paw and grab at him like zombies, trying sluggishly to bite him. He takes sanctuary in an abandoned church where they seem reluctant to enter. There he learns the strange history of the town. All the stories are campy entertainment and there isn’t a moment of anything remotely scary in the whole film. The film is amusing and entertaining, but I wouldn‘t consider it much more than a novelty. Between the story segments there are full 1980’s MTV video style songs played by bands at the club with mixed results. There’s also an interesting stripper dance where the woman takes off more than her clothes. The wrap around story concludes with a social message. The undead creatures make R.Chetwynd-Hayes, an honorary member of the Monster Club, after describing what man does to his fellow man (to a montage of news clips and video) and concluding that man is the biggest monster of all.

Be sure to view all the Amicus films I have reviewed on Parlor of Horror at this master page: Amicus Films Overview 

My Top 5 Gothic Vincent Price Movies

Check out my guest post at Vic’s Movie Den,

My Top 5 Gothic Vincent Price Movies

In the 1960’s, Vincent Price was the master of gothic horror suspense. With the help of Roger Corman, AIP, and writer’s like Richard Matheson, Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne, the gothic horror film was in it’s prime. Check out my top VP picks for the era.

Also Thanks to Vic’s Movie Den for the guest post spot. While you’re there check out some of Vic’s other awesome movie posts.

 

Mad House (1974) – Amicus Films – movie review

Mad House (1974) – Amicus Films – movie review

Directed by Jim Clark
(Amicus in association with AIP)

Vincent Price
Peter Cushing
Robert Quarry
Linda Hayden

Vincent Price plays Paul Toombes, a veteran actor celebrating his career in the horror film genre and his most popular character, Dr. Death. At the party, they run a reel of horror films as an homage, and it plays like a tribute to Vincent Price himself, showing scenes from The Haunted Palace, Pit and the Pendulum, Tales of Terror and The House of Usher. Toombes graciously accepts the accolades with his new (very young) wife to be for both him and the co-creator of the Dr. Death character, Herbert Flay (Peter Cushing). But before the night is over his fiancé is murdered. Toombes falls apart and enters an asylum even though the police remain suspicious of him.

Upon being released from rehabilitation, Toombes is called upon to resurrect his Dr. Death character in a TV series. He is hesitant but is convinced by his friend Herbert to play the part. When they begin filming, mysterious murders of the crew are carried out by a man in a black cloak with a skull face. Toombes is unsure of his innocence as his mental instabilities revive and lead him into trippy visual scenes and strange encounters with his neighbor, the spider lady.

Mad House is an amusing who-dun-it tale for its time. It’s not terribly suspenseful or scary, but it’s a well-told story of murder, mayhem and mystery. I love the make-up on the Dr. Death character which I had first seen on the cover of Famous Monsters magazine, several years before I saw the film. In the music over the last scene and closing credits, its actually Vincent Price singing the song.

Price and Cushing give the film a certain charm to the movie and that’s enough to make it worth watching for horror fans of the older films genre. It is the last film for Vincent Price that would be released through AIP (American International Pictures) making the homage to his character’s (and his own) career even more poignant. It’s a fitting epitaph to an era of gothic horror films as new, higher budgeted, more aggressive and special effects heavy films like, The Exorcist, Halloween, Jaws, and Alien would take over the horror market.

Check out more Amicus film reviews at my master page: Amicus Overview

 

*Halloween $ Dollar $ Bin Movie Deals*

*Halloween $ Dollar $ Bin Horror Movie Deals*

It seems like every Halloween season there is a generous supply of one-dollar and sale DVDs at your local discount store and in the end of the aisle racks at your local supermarket. While most of these cheap, no-frills movies seem like unwatchable garbage, within these sale bins can be found some surprising hidden gems at a real bargain price. From old classics to forgotten cult favorites – I wanted to relay some of the great deals I’ve found in the past. Prices ranged from one-dollar to two dollars and ninety-nine cents. (Prices will vary depending on stores.)

White Zombie/ The Invisible Ghost – double feature – $1.
Two classic Bela Lugosi classic movies for a buck, you can’t beat it!

The Last Man on Earth / The Last Woman on Earth – double feature – $1.99
The Last Man on Earth is the classic Vincent Price, sci-fi horror that was later remade as The Omega Man (1970’s) and most recently as  I Am Legend with Will Smith. Last Woman is more on the drama side but a decent enough story.

House on Haunted Hill / Horror Hotel – double feature – $1.99
Another classic Vincent Price horror movie in the infamous House on Haunted Hill. Horror Hotel is an early Christopher Lee movie about a witches coven in Massachusetts. Both are very good movies!

The Screaming Skull / Tormented – double feature – $1
The Screaming Skull is a good movie with suspense, good acting, and an impressive soundtrack. A new bride is haunted by the screaming skull in the deep hours of the night but no one will believe what she tells them. Tormented was not very good at all but Screaming Skull made the DVD worth the price.
 

Vampire Bat / The Devil Bat – double feature – $1
These two early horror movies are very dated but Vampire Bat features Fay Wray and The Devil Bat features Bela Lugosi. I purchased the DVD just to have these two Iconic actors of yesteryear in my video library starring in lesser known roles. It serves as a point of interest.

Night of the Living Dead – $2.99
In recent years they have digitally mastered NotLD and digitally re-mastered the music of this classic zombie movie a number of times for re-release DVDs and Blu-Ray. My favorite version is this no-frills, sale bin DVD. Music is a bit warble-y and warped, picture fades slightly from light to dark, everything is a bit fuzzy – that is the experience I remember when first seeing this ground breaking film! I’m surprised they haven’t tried to colorize it already and try to sell us on that.

The Giant Gila Monster / Creature from The Haunted Sea – double feature – $1
I enjoyed the 50’s/60’s hot-rod and rock-and-bop feel of The Giant Gila Monster. Typical plot of 1950’s sci-fi without the budget of better known films of the era. The Haunted Sea I didn’t care for at all.

If you’ve found any good deals on old horror films worth checking out, let me know in the comments 🙂

Love & Horror – My Top 5 Love Stories in Horror/Sci-fi

Love & Horror
My Top 5 Love Stories in Horror and Sci-fi

Valentine’s Day is here so I thought it would be fun to name the top love stories in Horror and Sci-fi films. I came up with these 5 picks but I need your help. Give me some more ideas for Love in Horror Films (not horror in love stories).
 

5) Frankenstein and his Bride – The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
There are few heartbreaking scenes in horror as poignant as the one where the Frankenstein Monster is rejected by his newly reanimated bride. Love is supposed to heal all, but even from his own kind there is no love in this world for the monster. Despite all the face make-up you can see the humility and dejection in the monster‘s actions and movements; praise to Karloff for his ability to act through this creature design. His bottom lip quivers; one tear falls from his eye as he pulls the lever that explodes the castle.
 
 

4) Verden Fell and Lady Ligeia – The Tomb of Ligeia (1964)
“Man need not kneel before the angels, nor lie in death for all eternity, save only for the weakness of his feeble will…” E.A. Poe
These are the last words spoken by Verden Fell’s wife, Ligeia before she dies. Verden visits Ligeia’s graveside often and speaks of her returning from the tomb. To his new wife’s dismay, Verden’s behavior becomes even stranger when they move into his Abbey after their honeymoon. Rowena begins to believe that Ligeia has already returned in the deep hours of night, stalking the halls and towers of their home, perhaps hiding by day in the body of a mysterious black cat. This fine Poe adaptation is a remarkably underrated film and one of Price’s classic character portrayals. Love can never die, but it can kill.
 
 

3) Seth Brundle & Veronica Quaife
Aka: Veronica and BrundleFly – The Fly (1986)
It tugs at your heart, every time Veronica goes to see her love, scientist Seth Brundle, and finds he has become more fly-like than human. To her horror, Veronica finds out she is pregnant. Seth kidnaps her with plans to enter the telepod and become the ultimate family unit – man, wife and baby, sharing one body. Now that is true love and true love can certainly transform a person into something… better. Donuts, anyone?
 
 

2) Count Dracula and Mina – Bram Stokers Dracula (1992)
Love never dies, it just comes back to bite you in the… neck. Dracula could have easily mesmerized her and taken control, to gain what he wanted. But Count Dracula wanted Mina to fall in love with him again and discover her past life without his supernatural influence. He risks life and limb for this love to flourish, and it does in the end, just in time for him to die his final death. The film leaned heavy on the romance between Dracula and Mina, more so than in the book.
 
 

1) King Kong and Ann Darrow – King Kong (1933)
He took her to the ends of the earth and to the top of the world, but still, this love was not acceptable in a modern world. He risked it all for his love, and lost it all. This is your basic Beauty and the Beast story, reinvented for the 19th century. If Kong could only speak… “What’s with all the screaming? Come on, you like me, You’re just playin’ hard to get. Look, I’ll beat up this pteradactyl. How you like me now?”
 
 
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So tell me, what are your favorite love stories in this genre?
Let me know and I will add  films to the list.

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Honorable Mentions/ Readers choices:

***Curt and Julie – Return of the Living Dead 3 (1993)
  
Great suggestion from Creature With the Atomic Brain

***Oskar and Eli – Let the Right One In (2008)
  
Another great suggestion from Porkchop

***Francesco and ‘the woman’ – Cemetery Man (1994)
aka: Dellamorte, DellAmore
OK, this should probably be in my Top-5. It also contains one of the most bizarre sex scenes (in a graveyard) I’ve ever seen in a horror film.
 
 
Thanks, Rob!

***David and Nurse Alex – An American Werewolf in London (1981)

 
 
Great choice offered by Brian, Hard Ticket to Home Video

***May and Adam – May (2002)
(& Polly & Petey & whatever that thing is at the end)

Never seen this but read the synopsis and seems like a good choice.
 
 

I am definitely going to have to see this. Recommended by The IPC

***Yu & Hai’er  – from the ‘Going Home’ segment of ‘3 Extremes II’ (2002)
 
Never saw this one either. Recommended by GaryLee

***Mark and Anna – Possession (1981) Gotta’ see this one again!
  
And in my ‘got a clue’ moment of the year, I’ve just realized that Sam Neill has been in a lot of horror and sci-fi movies! Recommended by Jeff

***Eban and Stella – 30 Days of Night (2007)
 
 
Okay, late entry, but had to get this one in. Recommended by my tech-challenged RLF, Tommy.

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Thanks to everyone that contributed to this list and for making it one of my most veiwed posts at Parlor of Horror. I have to check out a few of these that I have not seen and ya’ll should do the same. Unless there are any late entries, this list is done, and I am moving on. Happy Valentine’s Day – 2-14-2013

Horror Art – Famous Monsters – cover art

Famous Monsters of Filmland Magazine –  cover art

Famous Monsters of Filmland, created by Forest Ackerman, often featured painted portraits or painted scenes from films for their cover art. Sometimes they were the films poster art but often they were contracted for FM specifically. Most were painted by artist, Basil Gogas. Many of these paintings later became the vhs box or dvd/blu-ray cover art for the films themselves. This magazine was my introduction to horror movies. Many issues had the behind-the-scenes look at horror films and their special effects. But it was the vibrant covers that first caught my eye.

  
  

  
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Monsters of the Movies soon followed in FMs footprints but would never reach the popularity of Forest Ackerman’s publication and only lasted for 8 issues.
  
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I currently own the following issues in my collection:

  
The King Kong and Godzilla issues of FM are my fave. I purchased them when they came out and had saved them for many years, but they got damaged. So I repurchased them within the last 10 years from another collector. Now they are in plastic and out on a magazine display rack I have in my work room.
  
The Mummy art on Monsters of the Movies is awesome. Click pic to see a larger view.

I have a few more on my list to purchase, I’ll do an update in the future.