*** The Dreaming of a Dream ~ Hammer Horror and more Horror ***

The night was dark, cold, and wet; interrupted from my dream, rain besieged my quite sleep.
Bleary eyed I peered into the darkness... what a perfect stage for watching some very chilling horrifying tales ; preferably the ones I used to watch back when I was a child...the Hammer Horror kind of Dream.
********************************************



Hammer Horror Films, the studio out of England that produced all the Vampire and Dracula movies from the early 50’s to the 70’s was something I discovered early in my childhood and two of my very much loved actors of that period who made these films memorable were Peter Cushing and Sir Christopher Lee who together starred in over twenty titles such as “Dracula”, "The Mummy", "Tales from the Crypt", "The Creeping Flesh" "The Skull", "The House that Dripped Blood", and " The Beast Must Die" among many other magic terrors.



Dracula










It was the chemistry and friendship of these two beloved English actors that part of my passion and fascination with England grew! I absolutely adore these two charming actors!
And then there were the settings Hammer Studios created as backdrops accompanied by gorgeous beautiful eerie music, beautiful women and handsome Vampires and Dracula’s. It was forever imprinted in my brain and their magic potion was undeniably one of the best combined in delivering gothic horror at its best.

Peter Cushing and Sir Christopher Lee were brilliant at their craft and I never tried, even to this day I look forward to whenever I can to view some of their unforgettable performances and leave this world for an evening of travel to some strange and beautiful land; that’s what great cinema is to me and Hammer, Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee for all time transported me to these surreal places.

The two charming gentlemen became not only a great pair on screen but embraced a friendship that would last a life time until Peter Cushing’s death. Sir Christopher Lee on several occasions was quoted as saying this about his dear friend…
"I don`t want to sound gloomy, but, at some point of your lives, every one of you will notice that you have in your life one person, one friend whom you love and care for very much. That person is so close to you that you are able to share some things only with him. For example, you can call that friend, and from the very first maniacal laugh or some other joke you will know who is at the other end of that line. We used to do that with him so often. And then when that person is gone, there will be nothing like that in your life ever again”.
“He really was the most gentle and generous of men. I have often said he died because he was too good for this world.”






And a fine friend he must have been for many a time after watching a actor in many of their films, one gets to know their mannerisms well and a little glimpse of their true nature filters thru, like seeing a visible ghost, something in the actor that a viewer like myself can relate to on a personal level be it the smallest peculiarity the actor exposes.

Of course there is also the little things I learned about him that made all the more sense why I loved this dear fellow so. He loved painting water colors of his beloved England; he pressed flowers in his journals, adored nature and watching birds and more endearing was the fact of his strong love for his wife Helen.; I can relate well to these humanly traits.

When his dear wife Helen passed on he was quoted saying “When Helen passed on six years ago I lost the only joy in life that I ever wanted. She was my whole life and without her there is no meaning. I am simply killing time, so to speak, until that wonderful day when we are together again.”

“Since Helen passed on I can’t find anything; the heart, quite simply, has gone out of everything. Time is interminable, the loneliness is almost unbearable and the only thing that keeps me going is the knowledge that my dear Helen and I will be united again some day. To join Helen is my only ambition. You have my permission to publish that... really, you know dear boy, it’s all just killing time. Please say that. - Radio Times 1972 Peter Cushing

Yes, Peter Cushing had that magic aura about him I could individually identify with, it made him real, a real person, not just a character on a roll of film. His magic and twinkle in his eyes spoke of a kind and gentle man unpretentious in any way; a pleasant thoughtful fellow one would adore meeting. Unfortunately I never did get my chance in meeting him as I had wished when I was small but I do have the memories of his work left behind to enjoy his kindly presence and keep the beautiful quotes Sir Christopher Lee said of his dear, dear friend.


Sir Christopher Lee to this day I believe still prefers in being dubbed an actor of the “The theatre of the fantastique" rather than of “Horror” a word much disliked by him as well as other famous Horror actors such as Boris Karloff and Lon Chaney but as for myself I prefer the word for it describes the name of the studio I fell in love with many years ago and the actors who starred in its gothic tales.

Although Sir Christopher Lee disliked the word “Horror” he made it very clear his gratitude for “ Hammer Studios; “ I`ve always acknowledged my debt to Hammer. I`ve always said I`m very grateful to them. They gave me this great opportunity, made me a well-known face all over the world for which I am profoundly grateful.”

It's the power of these two men and an English Studio that throughout their repertoire you'll find Gothic Horror Tales that will take you away from wherever you happen to be and place you in “The Theatre of the Fantastique”!!!The Dreaming of a Dream Begins****




>^..^< FOUR OF THE MOST WONDERFUL HAUNTING FELLOWS ONE WILL EVER MEET >^..^<
***** The House Of Long Shadows *****

On Vincent Price and Peter Cushing *** "They were both grand masters, of their art but more importantly as human beings...wonderful people, wonderful actors and I miss them very very much"....Christopher Lee

John Carradine,Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Vincent Price










“Hammer Horror” a brilliant song written by another astounding, innovative and highly creative artist Kate Bush( British of course)who through her music paints visionary dreams.The plot is about an understudy who kills a play's main protagonist to steal the part from her or him, the name “Hammer Horror” of course points to the English Studio “Hammer Films” and doubly to the theme of the song I would imagine… the horror of the actor’s present circumstance.



*** Places to Haunt ***
http://www.petercushing.co.uk/
http://www.petercushing.co.uk/zealandpc.htm
http://christopherleeweb.com/
davidlrattigan.com