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Doomwatch (film)
''Doomwatch'' is a 1972 British science fiction film directed by Peter Sasdy and starring Ian Bannen, Judy Geeson and John Paul. Described as both a thriller and a horror film, it is based on the BBC's science fiction television series '' Doomwatch'' which ran between 1970 and 1972. The screenplay was written by Clive Exton. In the United States it was released by Embassy Pictures with the alternative title ''Island of the Ghouls''. In the film, the waters surrounding an island become contaminated by chemical dumping, and people who eat fish caught in those waters become deformed and violent. Plot An outsider visits a remote isolated village that has seemingly shunned the modern life. Doctor Del Shaw, an investigator from the British ecological watchdog group nicknamed Doomwatch, is sent to the island of Balfe, to file a report on the effects of a recent oil tanker spill. He becomes fascinated with the mysterious behavioural disorders of the locals who display rudeness an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peter Sasdy
Peter Sasdy (born 27 May 1935 in Budapest, Hungary) is a British film and television director. In addition to his numerous TV credits, notable among which is the Nigel Kneale-scripted ''The Stone Tape'' (1972), he directed several horror films for Hammer, including ''Taste the Blood of Dracula'' (1969), ''Countess Dracula'' (1971) and '' Hands of the Ripper'' (1971). Pirie, David, "New Blood", in ''Sight & Sound'', volume 40, issue 2 (Spring 1971): 73. Sasdy directed the 1960s TV series ''Wuthering Heights'', ''The Tenant of Wildfell Hall'' and '' The Spoils of Poynton'' for BBC TV. He also directed several early episodes of the hit TV series ''Minder'', and earned a Razzie Award for his direction of the 1983 film ''The Lonely Lady''. He directed three different adaptations of Sherlock Holmes stories: ''The Illustrious Client'', the first episode of the 1965 BBC series starring Douglas Wilmer as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Stock as Dr. Watson; one episode (''The Case of the B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thriller Film
Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. Tension is created by delaying what the audience sees as inevitable, and is built through situations that are menacing or where escape seems impossible. The cover-up of important information from the viewer, and fight and chase scenes are common methods. Life is typically threatened in a thriller film, such as when the protagonist does not realize that they are entering a dangerous situation. Thriller films' characters conflict with each other or with an outside force, which can sometimes be abstract. The protagonist is usually set against a problem, such as an escape, a mission, or a mystery. Screenwriter and scholar Eric R. Williams identifies thriller films as one of eleven super-genres in his screenwriters' taxonomy, claiming tha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Norman Bird
John George Norman Bird (30 October 1924 – 22 April 2005) was an English character actor. Early life Bird was born in Coalville, Leicestershire, England. A RADA graduate, he made his West End debut in Peter Brook's production of ''The Winter's Tale'' at the Phoenix Theatre in 1951. He was also a member of the BBC's Radio Drama Company."Radio and audio book companies", in Lloyd Trott, ed., ''Actors and Performers Yearbook 2016'', pp. 353-354 His first film appearance was as the foreman in ''An Inspector Calls'' (1954). Film career He was a familiar face to British cinema audiences of the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in nearly 50 films such as ''The Angry Silence'' (1960), ''The League of Gentlemen'' (1960), '' Whistle Down the Wind'' (1961), '' Victim'' (1961) and '' Term of Trial'' (1962) with Laurence Olivier and The Hill with Sean Connery (1965). Television appearances He had over 200 television appearances, notably as Mr Braithwaite in '' Worzel Gummidge'' (1979–81) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joseph O'Conor
Joseph O'Conor (14 February 1916 – 21 January 2001) was an Irish actor and playwright. Early years O'Conor was born in DublinAlan Strachan ''The Independent'', 2 February 2001Stephen GilbertObituary ''The Guardian'', 25 January 2001 on 14 February 1916, the son of Frances (née Call) and Daniel O'Conor. His family moved to London, where he attended the Cardinal Vaughan Memorial School, the University of London and RADA. He made his professional stage debut in 1939 playing Flavius, Trebonius, and Titinius in a modern-dress production of ''Julius Caesar'' at the Embassy Theatre, and subsequently at His Majesty's Theatre. Also in 1939 he married Naita Moore; they had two children. After the war Returning to the stage in 1946, he played a wide variety of roles in London, but with an emphasis on Shakespeare. He spent a season under Donald Wolfit at the Bedford, Camden Town, alternating Iago and Othello with him in ''Othello'' (1949) and taking the title role in ''Hamlet'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geoffrey Keen
Geoffrey Keen (21 August 1916 – 3 November 2005) was an English actor who appeared in supporting roles in many films. He is well known for playing British Defence Minister Sir Frederick Gray in the ''James Bond'' films. Biography Early life Keen was born in Wallingford, Berkshire, England, the son of stage actor Malcolm Keen. He was educated at Bristol Grammar School. He then joined the Little Repertory Theatre in Bristol for whom he made his stage debut in 1932. After a year in repertory he stayed for a year in Cannes before being accepted for a place at the London School of Economics. In a last-minute change of mind, he entered the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, where he won the Bancroft Gold Medal after only one year. He had just joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1939 when the war started. Keen enlisted in the Royal Army Medical Corps, though also managed to appear in an Army instructional film for Carol Reed. Career Keen made his full film debut in 1946 in ''Ri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shelagh Fraser
Sheila Mary Fraser (25 November 1920 – 29 August 2000) was an English actress. She is best known for her roles in the television serial '' A Family at War'' (1970–1971) and as Luke Skywalker's aunt Beru in '' Star Wars'' (1977). Early life Shelagh Fraser was born in Purley, Surrey, on 25 November 1920. Her parents were John Newton Mappin Fraser and Vera Eleanor (née Beardshaw). Her father was a director of the jewelry company Mappin & Webb, and the family was sent to Australia to establish a branch of the family business there. They returned to the United Kingdom in 1924. As a child, Shelagh suffered from spinal tuberculosis, but overcame the debilitating effects of the illness. She was educated at St Christopher's School in Kingswood and won a scholarship to train as an actor at Croydon Repertory Theatre Drama School. It was there that Fraser made her first stage appearance in 1938. Career Fraser had a wide range of roles on the stage. She made her West End theatre d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Percy Herbert (actor)
Percy Herbert (31 July 1920 – 6 December 1992) was an English actor. He worked predominantly from the 1950s into the 1970s and became one of the most recognisable faces in post-war British cinema. Biography He served in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps during the Second World War and spent four years in the Japanese prisoner of war camp Changi. After the war, he was helped by Dame Sybil Thorndike to secure an interview with the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art where he won a scholarship. His acting career began in the theatre, which included working at John Gielgud's Old Vic Company. Beginning in 1954, he went on to make nearly seventy films, often playing soldiers, most notably in ''The Cockleshell Heroes'', '' The Bridge on the River Kwai'' (for which he also worked as consultant as well as suggesting the use of the well-known "Colonel Bogey March" which the prisoners whistled in the film), ''Sea of Sand'', '' Tunes of Glory'', '' The Guns of Navarone'', ''Guns at Batasi'', ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Sanders
George Henry Sanders (3 July 1906 – 25 April 1972) was a British actor and singer whose career spanned over 40 years. His heavy, upper-class English accent and smooth, bass voice often led him to be cast as sophisticated but villainous characters. He is remembered for his roles as Jack Favell in ''Rebecca'' (1940), Scott ffolliott in ''Foreign Correspondent'' (1940, a rare heroic part), The Saran of Gaza in ''Samson and Delilah'' (1949), the most popular film of the year, Addison DeWitt in ''All About Eve'' (1950, for which he won an Oscar), Sir Brian De Bois-Guilbert in ''Ivanhoe'' (1952), King Richard the Lionheart in ''King Richard and the Crusaders'' (1954), Mr. Freeze in a two-parter episode of ''Batman'' (1966), and the voice of Shere Khan in Disney's ''The Jungle Book'' (1967). Fans of detective stories know Sanders as Simon Templar, ''The Saint'', (1939–41), and the suave crimefighter The Falcon (1941–42). Early life Sanders was born on 3 July 1906 in Saint P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Acromegaly
Acromegaly is a disorder that results from excess growth hormone (GH) after the growth plates have closed. The initial symptom is typically enlargement of the hands and feet. There may also be an enlargement of the forehead, jaw, and nose. Other symptoms may include joint pain, thicker skin, deepening of the voice, headaches, and problems with vision. Complications of the disease may include type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, and high blood pressure. Acromegaly is usually caused by the pituitary gland producing excess growth hormone. In more than 95% of cases the excess production is due to a benign tumor, known as a pituitary adenoma. The condition is not inherited from a person's parents. Acromegaly is rarely due to a tumor in another part of the body. Diagnosis is by measuring growth hormone after a person has consumed a glucose solution, or by measuring insulin-like growth factor I in the blood. After diagnosis, medical imaging of the pituitary is carried out to determi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Personality Disorder
Personality disorders (PD) are a class of mental disorders characterized by enduring maladaptive patterns of behavior, cognition, and inner experience, exhibited across many contexts and deviating from those accepted by the individual's culture. These patterns develop early, are inflexible, and are associated with significant distress or disability. The definitions vary by source and remain a matter of controversy. Official criteria for diagnosing personality disorders are listed in the sixth chapter of the ''International Classification of Diseases'' (ICD) and in the American Psychiatric Association's '' Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders'' (DSM). Personality, defined psychologically, is the set of enduring behavioral and mental traits that distinguish individual humans. Hence, personality disorders are defined by experiences and behaviors that deviate from social norms and expectations. Those diagnosed with a personality disorder may experience difficulties ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Behavioural
Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions and mannerisms made by individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as well as the inanimate physical environment. It is the computed response of the system or organism to various stimuli or inputs, whether internal or external, conscious or subconscious, overt or covert, and voluntary or involuntary. Taking a behavior informatics perspective, a behavior consists of actor, operation, interactions, and their properties. This can be represented as a behavior vector. Models Biology Although disagreement exists as to how to precisely define behavior in a biological context, one common interpretation based on a meta-analysis of scientific literature states that "behavior is the internally coordinated responses (actions or inactions) of whole living organisms (individuals or groups) to internal and/or external ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
AVCO Embassy Pictures
Embassy Pictures Corporation (also and later known as Avco Embassy Pictures as well as Embassy Films Associates) was an American independent film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution studio responsible for such films as ''The Graduate'', ''The Producers (1967 film), The Producers'', ''The Fog'', ''The Howling (film), The Howling'', ''Escape from New York'', and ''This Is Spinal Tap''. History Founding The company was formed in 1942 by Joseph E. Levine, initially to distribute foreign films in the United States. The company entered film production in 1945, co-producing with Maxwell Finn the documentary ''Gaslight Follies'', a compilation of silent film clips narrated by Ben Grauer. Success Embassy found success in 1956 bringing the Japanese film ''Godzilla (1954 film), Godzilla'' to the American general public (in a re-edited version), acquiring the rights for $12,000 and spending $400,000 promoting it under the title ''Godzilla, King of the Monst ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
