Robert Tayman – Rest In Peace

Robert Tayman was an actor that didn’t appear in too many horror films, but a few that are worth mentioning. He appeared in Pete Walker’s House of Whipcord (1974), and even Hammer’s strange Sci-Fi / Western Moon Zero Two (1969). But it really his performance as the vampire Count Mitterhaus in Hammer’s Vampire Circus (1972) that most Hammer and horror fans remember him by. While we haven’t seen anything official announced, I’ve seen a couple of posts from reliable sources that Mr. Tayman has recently passed away, at the age of 80 years old.

His performance as Mitterhaus is a bit over-the-top, but that is one of the reasons I’ve always enjoyed it, as well as the film itself. It’s a style that I’m not sure we’ll see anytime soon, but as a young horror fan, I thought the film, and the vampires throughout the story were just so damn slick and cool.

Our thoughts go out to his friends and family in this difficult time, but know that because of his performance in Vampire Circus, along with Count Mitterhaus, his life will go on for us fan.

House that Hammer Built Coming Soon!

That’s right folks, start gathering those pennies because the latest book coming from Peveril Publishing is coming soon! And as a fan of Hammer Studios, this is one you’re going to want for your library. The House that Hammer Built: The Complete Hinds/Carreras Years (1934-1979) Vol. 1: 1934-1949 will “hopefully” be on sale late November, according to Peveril boss Wayne Kinsey. The best way to be notified when it is ready is to subscribe to their website (just click HERE). But beware, these are not cheap and sell out fast. But every single edition I’ve bought from them has been well worth it. Not only are they incredibly well made and designed, but they are also filled to the brim with facts about one of our favorite film studios.

This series of books, which will be in 3 volumes, is Kinsey’s “definitive work on Hammer”. On the Peveril site, he states that he’ll be “taking a chronological look at all Hammer’s films (in production order) including all the early Exclusive pictures for the first time as well as Hammer’s many un-filmed projects. I’ll be amalgamating all my research from previous books with all new research and return to the oral history approach, so we can hear many of the stories from the mouths of those who worked at Hammer, many sadly no longer with us.”

If you love historical information about Hammer Studios and their films, this series is going to be a must for your library.

Discover the Horror Episode 17: Hammer (Is It) Horror

Never Take Candy from a Stranger (1960), The Damned (1963), Plague of the Zombies (1966). These are the three titles covered in this episode, as well as a little discussing on what can be considered “horror” when talking about the famous Studio that Dripped Blood. While some of these titles don’t immediately come to mind when you think of Hammer Horror, digging a little deeper, you might discover it to be there after all. After all, isn’t the whole point of being a horror fan is to go beyond the borders? You never know what you might find and even might be surprised.

These are the titles mentioned in the episode:

Cross of the Devil (1975), The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), The Damned (1963), The Ghost Breakers (1940), Horror of Dracula (1958), I Walked with a Zombie (1943), Never Take Candy from a Stranger (1960), Night of the Living Dead (1968), Plague of the Zombies (1966), Paranoiac (1963), The People Who Own the Dark (1976), The Quatermass Xperiment (1955), The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988), To the Devil a Daughter (1976), White Zombie (1932)

Denis Meikle – Rest in Peace

Meikle’s book A History of Horrors: The Rise and Fall of the House of Hammer was a very important step in my early days when I was digging deeper into the history of the famous studio. I can still remember first getting a copy in my hands and diving into it. It is one that I even still go back to when doing any kind of research on Hammer, or the countless people involved there. But the books didn’t stop there, with titles covering Vincent Price, the Jack Ripper films, and even Tod Slaughter with Mr. Murder: The Life and Times of Tod Slaughter, which I was thrilled to hear he did this since there isn’t a lot written about this early horror icon.

So it is with great sadness that I am reporting that Mr. Meikle has passed away. His contributions to the horror genre journalism were not only amazing, but very impactful to a lot of us fans. Longtime friend and collaborator, Dick Klemensen, posted the below comment on his Facebook page, and I think it really sums up Meikle perfectly.

“Denis was a scholar. Fans would get irritated if he didn’t seem to like the films as much as they did.
But if that is the worst thing he ever did…he always made one think.”

As a journalist, making someone think about a film, whether you agree or not, does make it possible to see something you might have missed otherwise. Not always, but you have to be open to new ideas and opinions. That is how we learn more about what we love.

Thank you, Mr. Meikle, for those very important lessons in film and being a better fan. Our thoughts go out to his friends and family during this difficult time.

New Book on British AIP Films

While there have been a few books that have covered the productions from American International Pictures, or AIP as they are better known as, but during their reign at the box office and drive-ins, there were 29 titles that were made in the UK, from making deals with Hammer Films, Tigon, and a few other production companies, to release the films over here in the states. Titles like Cat Girl (1957), Horrors of the Black Musuem (1959), Witchfinder General (1968), and The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971), plus many others. Now, being published through Little Shoppe of Horrors, author John Hamilton has spent over 20 years working on this volume that will cover 29 film titles, each with in-depth coverage, including over 700 images!

No real date set for this volume, but I know I will definitely be adding it to my library. The films that AIP presented to audiences during that era were some of the ones I grew up on, especially in the days of the VHS boom when so many titles were hitting that new market. When we get more details, we’ll post them here. In the meantime, if you’re interested, fire off an email to Little Shoppe of Horrors main man Richard Klemenson (klemdia@msn.com) to let him know you’re interested.

Mary Collinson – Rest in Peace

Being a huge fan of Hammer films, I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to meet quite a few stars, directors, and others that worked for the famous studio. But there are still countless more than I haven’t. And with each year, we lose another face that brought us thrills, chills, and smiles to our faces. The Collinson twins from Twins of Evil (1971) were two that I had always hoped I would have the chance to meet. Madeleine Collinson had passed away in 2014, and now we’ve learned that her sister Mary has passed away today, at age of 69.

Double Dipping with The Vampire Lovers

Trust me, folks, I am probably not the happiest person when it comes to having to double dip on newer versions of the movies we love that keep coming out. New features, new 4K scan, and the rest of that stuff that tries to squeeze a little money from our wallets. Some titles are advertised with a bunch of new features but then you find out one of those “features” is a 4-minute interview. And don’t even get me started on this whole fascination with slip covers. Seriously … since when did a silly cardboard cover become more valuable than the actual movie?

With all that aside, when Shout Factory announced their new updated version of The Vampire Lovers, I quickly ordered it. I know. Pretty sad. But it all came down to that amazing 18×24 poster by Mark Maddox that was offered in the special deal. I have several prints from Maddox and just love his work, and with The Vampire Lovers being one of my favorites, I wasn’t going to pass up adding that poster to my collection. I believe I have all the posters that he did for Shout Factory that were offered. You have to figure that those prints are $25-$40 if you were to buy them at a show, so technically you’re getting the Blu-ray for free!

More Hammer Figures from Mego

Just when I was content with not getting into collecting a lot of these horror action figures or collectible figures, I hear about some of these Hammer figures that Mego is now putting out. These are all 8″ figures that pre-orders are being taken now. The two they announced last week were for The Gorgon and The Mummy. Which, while they were not bad looking and only priced at $20 each, it didn’t make me change my mind on having to collect them.

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Little Shoppe of Horrors Salutes The Gorgon

The latest issue of the long running (and best magazine devoted to all things Hammer) is now out and available to order. This issue tackles Hammer’s 1964 film The Gorgon, starring Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, and Barbara Shelley, with the article Reflections of Fear: The Making of The Gorgon by Joshua Kennedy.

Within the pages, you’ll also find the article Cut Me a Robe from Toe to Lobe … Give Me a Skin for Dancing In: The Making of The Witches by Bruce G. Hallenbeck, as well as an article on the star of that film, Joan Fontaine. There is also an article on Don Houghton, the screenwriter of the modern day Dracula films Hammer made in the early to mid ’70s, by David Gee.

Like with any issue of Little Shoppe of Horrors, every page is a delight and filled with great stuff. Head over to their website HERE to order your copy now. And if you want to know more about Hammer, just pick up some of their back issues that are readily available.

Sideshow Hammer Figures

I have quite a few famous horror figures in my collection that I’ve picked up over the years. Some are model kits, many of which I actually painted myself. Others are statues I’ve purchased that came painted already. Granted some of these were a bit pricy, but never more than a 2-3 hundred at the most. Granted, the full size bust of the poster zombie from Zombie or Dr. Hill’s decapitated head in a pan were a bit higher than that, but for a figure, I try to shy away from the real expensive stuff, mainly because I personally just can’t invest that much money into something like that.

But now Sideshow Toys has announced a couple figures that are $530 EACH and I’m trying to convince my brain that I DO need to invest in these!