Despite assurances that the audience could decide the fate of our dastardly protagonist, no matter what rumor you’ve heard that out there, somewhere, an audience let Mr. Sardonicus off the hook, there is no evidence of an alternate, happy ending ever being shot let alone shown — except for that dramatic re-enactment on Wiseguy in what was perhaps the strangest TV season of episodic TV ever. Does anyone else remember that?
Also, somewhat coincidentally, as far as Mr. Sardonicus’ excellent co-feature is concerned, Jimmy Sangster might have been shooting for the same fearful beats as Alfred Hitchcock and Henri-Georges Clouzot, but, Scream of Fear (and Nightmare, and The Snorkel, and Maniac), I think, hews a helluva lot closer to the five-car contrivance twist-pile-ups of William Castle. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, mind you. Just giving credit where credit is due.
This post is part of Goregirl’s Dungeon and The Last Drive-In’s The William Castle Blogathan, a week long tribute to the King of Schlock. Follow the linkage, Boils & Ghouls. It’s gonna be a great week. And stick around, as we’ll be showcasing Castle’s film career from its fairly normal beginnings through it psychotronic glory days. Stay tuned!
Mr. Sardonicus (1961) William Castle Productions :: Columbia Pictures / P: William Castle / AP: Dona Holloway / D: William Castle / W: Ray Russell / C: Burnett Guffey / E: Edwin H. Bryant / M: Von Dexter / S: Ronald Lewis, Audrey Dalton, Guy Rolfe, Oskar Homolka, Erika Peters, Lorna Hanson
Scream of Fear (1961) Hammer Film Productions :: Columbia Pictures / EP: Michael Carreras / P: Jimmy Sangster / D: Seth Holt / W: Jimmy Sangster / E: Eric Boyd-Perkins / M: Clifton Parker / S: Susan Strasberg, Ronald Lewis, Ann Todd, Christopher Lee, John Serret
Vampire Circus (1972) Hammer Films :: The Rank Organization :: 20th Century Fox / EP: Michael Carreras / P: Wilbur Stark / D: Robert Young / W: Judson Kinberg / C: Moray Grant E: Peter Musgrave / M: David Whitaker / S: Adrienne Corri, Thorley Walters, Anthony Higgins, John Moulder-Brown, Laurence Payne
Countess Dracula (1971) Hammer Films :: The Rank Organization :: 20th Century Fox / P: Alexander Paal / D: Peter Sasdy / W: Jeremy Paul / C: Ken Talbot / E: Henry Richardson / M: Harry Robertson / S: Ingrid Pitt, Nigel Green, Sandor Elès, Lesley-Anne Down
Other Points of Interest:
Poster campaign for Curse of the Demon at the Brewery.
The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958) Hammer Film Productions :: Columbia Pictures / EP: Michael Carreras / P: Anthony Hinds / AP: Anthony Nelson Keys / D: Terence Fisher / W: Jimmy Sangster / C: Jack Asher / E: Alfred Cox / M: Leonard Salzedo / S: Peter Cushing, Francis Matthews, Eunice Gayson, Michael Gwynn, John Welsh
Curse of the Demon (1957) Sabre Film Production :: Columbia Pictures / EP: Hal E. Chester / P: Frank Bevis / D: Jacques Tourneur / W: Charles Bennett, Hal E. Chester, M.R. James (novel) / C: Edward Scaife / E: Michael Gordon / M: Clifton Parker / S: Dana Andrews, Peggy Cummins, Niall MacGinnis, Maurice Denham, Athene Seyler
The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971) American International / EP: James H. Nicholson, Samuel Z. Arkoff / P: Ronald Dunas, Louis Heyward / D: Robert Fuest / W: James Whiton, William Goldstein / C: Norman Warwick / E: Tristam Cones / S: Vincent Price, Joseph Cotten, Virginia North, Hugh Griffith, Peter Jeffrey, Norman Jones
Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed (1969) Hammer Film Productions :: Warner Bros. / P: Anthony Nelson Keys / D: Terence Fisher / W: Anthony Nelson Keys, Bert Batt / C: Arthur Grant / E: Gordon Hales / M: James Bernard / S: Peter Cushing, Veronica Carlson, Freddie Jones, Simon Ward, Thorley Walters, Maxine Audley
Naked Under Leather a/k/a The Girl on a Motorcycle (1968) Mid-Atlantic Film :: Ares Productions :: Warner Bros. / EP: Ronan O’Rahilly / P: William Sassoon / AP: Sacha Kamenka / D: Jack Cardiff / W: Jack Cardiff, Ronald Duncan / C: Jack Cardiff / E: Peter Musgrave / M: Les Reed / S: Marianne Faithfull, Alain Delon, Roger Mutton, Marius Goring, Catherine Jourdan
Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed (1969) Hammer Film Productions :: Warner Bros. / P: Anthony Nelson Keys / D: Terence Fisher / W: Anthony Nelson Keys, Bert Batt / C: Arthur Grant / E: Gordon Hales / M: James Bernard / S: Peter Cushing, Veronica Carlson, Freddie Jones, Simon Ward, Thorley Walters, Maxine Audley,
Other Points of Interest:
Poster campaign for The Mummy at the Archive.
Poster campaign for Curse of the Undead at the Archive.
The Mummy (1959) Hammer Film Productions :: Universal Pictures / P: Michael Carreras / AP: Anthony Nelson Keys / D: Terence Fisher / W: Jimmy Sangster / C: Jack Asher / E: Alfred Cox, James Needs / M: Franz Reizenstein / S: Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Yvonne Furneaux, Eddie Byrne, Felix Aylmer, George Pastell
Curse of the Undead (1959) Universal International Pictures / P: Joseph Gershenson / D: Edward Dein / W: Edward Dein, Mildred Dein / C: Ellis W. Carter / E: George Gittens / M: Irving Gertz / S: Eric Fleming, Michael Pate, Kathleen Crowley, John Hoyt, Bruce Gordon, Helen Kleeb
From the Halls of Montezuma to the Shock Masters Who Shatter Your Senses (June, 1971)
Posted in 1970-1979, Movie Ads with tags 20th Century Fox, Andrew Keir, Barbara Shelley, Christopher Lee, Creature Feature, Darren McGavin, Dracula Prince of Darkness, Frankenstein Created a Woman, Hammer, Hammer Dracula, Hammer Frankenstein, Hammer Horror, Jan-Michael Vincent, Mad Science, Peter Cushing, Social Commentary, Tribes, Triple-Feature on December 11, 2015 by WB KelsoLeave a comment »