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Torture Garden (film)
''Torture Garden'' is a 1967 British anthology horror film directed by Freddie Francis and starring Burgess Meredith, Jack Palance, Michael Ripper, Beverly Adams, Peter Cushing, Maurice Denham, Ursula Howells, Michael Bryant (actor), Michael Bryant and Barbara Ewing. The score was a collaboration between Hammer Studios, Hammer horror regulars James Bernard (composer), James Bernard and Don Banks. Made by Amicus Productions, it is one of producer Milton Subotsky's trademark "portmanteau" films, an omnibus of short stories (in this case all by ''Psycho (novel), Psycho'' author Robert Bloch, who adapted his own work for the screenplay) linked by a single narrative. Plot Prologue Five people visit a Traveling carnival, fairground sideshow run by showman Dr. Diabolo (Burgess Meredith). Having shown them a handful of Haunted attraction (simulated), haunted house-style attractions, he promises them a genuinely scary experience if they will pay extra. Their curiosity gets the better of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freddie Francis
Frederick William Francis (22 December 1917 – 17 March 2007) was an English cinematographer and film director. He achieved his greatest successes as a cinematographer. He started his career with British films such as Jack Cardiff's ''Sons and Lovers'' (1960), Jack Clayton's drama '' Room at the Top'' (1959) and psychological horror film '' The Innocents'' (1961). He became known for his collaborations with David Lynch with ''The Elephant Man'' (1980), ''Dune'' (1984), and ''The Straight Story'' (1999). He also earned acclaim for his work on ''The French Lieutenant's Woman'' (1981) starring Meryl Streep, and Martin Scorsese's '' Cape Fear'' (1991). As a director, he was associated with the British production companies Amicus and Hammer in the 1960s and 1970s. Over his career he earned many accolades including two Academy Awards for ''Sons and Lovers'' (1960) and '' Glory'' (1989). He also earned five British Academy Film Award nominations, as well as an international achievement ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ursula Howells
Ursula Howells (17 September 1922 – 16 October 2005) was an English actress whose elegant presence kept her much in demand for roles in film and television. Life and career Howells was born in London, the daughter of composer Herbert Howells, and was educated at St Paul's Girls' School, where her father worked as Director of Music. She made her first stage appearance at Dundee in 1939, in John Drinkwater's ''Bird in Hand'', then moved to Oxford in 1942 and three years later made her London debut at the Embassy Theatre, Swiss Cottage. In 1947, she appeared in the comedy ''Jane'' at the Aldwych Theatre The Aldwych Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Aldwych in the City of Westminster, central London. It was listed Grade II on 20 July 1971. Its seating capacity is 1,200 on three levels. History Origins The theatre was constructed in th .... After several years in the West End theatre, West End, and a brief stint on Broadway theatre, Broadway where she appeared in '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fourth Wall
The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th century onward, the rise of illusionism in staging practices, which culminated in the realism and naturalism of the theatre of the 19th century, led to the development of the fourth wall concept. The metaphor suggests a relationship to the mise-en-scène behind a proscenium arch. When a scene is set indoors and three of the walls of its room are presented onstage, in what is known as a box set, the fourth of them would run along the line (technically called the proscenium) dividing the room from the auditorium. The ''fourth wall'', though, is a theatrical convention, rather than of set design. The actors ignore the audience, focus their attention exclusively on the dramatic world, and remain absorbed in its fiction, in a state that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is widely regarded as a central figure of Romanticism in the United States, and of American literature. Poe was one of the country's earliest practitioners of the short story, and considered to be the inventor of the detective fiction genre, as well as a significant contributor to the emerging genre of science fiction. Poe is the first well-known American writer to earn a living through writing alone, resulting in a financially difficult life and career. Poe was born in Boston, the second child of actors David and Elizabeth "Eliza" Poe. His father abandoned the family in 1810, and when his mother died the following year, Poe was taken in by John and Frances Allan of Richmond, Virginia. They never formally adopted him, but he was with them well ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Standing
Sir John Ronald Leon, 4th Baronet (born 16 August 1934) is an English actor and baronet who is known as John Standing. He is the stepson of John Clements. Early life Standing was born in London, the son of Kay Hammond (née Dorothy Katherine Standing), an actress, and Sir Ronald George Leon, 3rd Baronet; a stockbroker descended from Sir Herbert Leon, the builder of Bletchley Park. He succeeded his father as the 4th baronet in 1964, but does not use the title. The Leon family were, until 1937, owners of Bletchley Park, the country house in Buckinghamshire used in the Second World War as a code-breaking centre. He was educated at Eton College and Millfield School, Somerset, later serving in the King's Royal Rifle Corps as a second lieutenant, before going to study at the Byam Shaw School of Art in London. Career He began his career in Peter Brook's 1955 production of ''Titus Andronicus'' starring Laurence Olivier and wife Vivien Leigh and later played leading parts in Osca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euterpe
Euterpe (; el, Εὐτέρπη, lit=rejoicing well' or 'delight , from grc, εὖ, eû, well + el, τέρπειν, térpein, to please) was one of the Muses in Greek mythology, presiding over music. In late Classical times, she was named muse of lyric poetry. She has been called "Giver of delight" by ancient poets. Mythology Euterpe was born as one of the daughters of Mnemosyne, Titan goddess of memory, and fathered by Zeus, god of the gods. Her sisters include Calliope (muse of epic poetry), Clio (muse of history), Melpomene (muse of tragedy), Terpsichore (muse of dancing), Erato (muse of erotic poetry), Thalia (muse of comedy), Polyhymnia (muse of hymns), and Urania (muse of astronomy). Sometimes they are referred to as water nymphs having been born from the four sacred springs on Helicon which flowed from the ground after Pegasus, the winged horse, stamped his hooves on the ground. The mountain spring on Mount Parnassus was sacred to Euterpe and the other Muses. It flowed b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Natural Horror Films
Natural horror is a subgenre of horror films that features natural forces, typically in the form of animals or plants, that pose a threat to human characters. Though killer animals in film have existed since the release of ''The Lost World'' in 1925, two of the first motion pictures to garner mainstream success with a "nature run amok" premise were '' The Birds'', directed by Alfred Hitchcock and released in 1963; and ''Jaws'', directed by Steven Spielberg and released in 1975. Following ''Jaws'', numerous horror films of a similar narrative were produced, including ''Grizzly'' (1976), ''Piranha'' (1978), and ''Alligator'' (1980). Arthropods See also the section on insects. Arachnids * ''Kingdom of the Spiders'' (1977; tarantulas) * ''Arachnophobia'' (1990; spiders) * ''Ticks'' (1993; giant ticks) * ''Eight Legged Freaks'' (2002; giant spiders) * ''Big Ass Spider!'' (2013; giant spider) * ''Lavalantula'' (2015; giant lava-breathing tarantulas) Crustaceans * '' The Bay'' ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clytie Jessop
Clytie Jessop (born Clytie Erica Lloyd-Jones; 1929 – 9 April 2017) was a British-based Australian actress, gallerist, painter, screenwriter and film director, notable mainly for her association with cinematographer and film director Freddie Francis. Biography Born to Herman Jonah and Erica Lily (née Small) Lloyd-Jones in Sydney, New South Wales, Jessop's younger sister, Hermia Sappho Lloyd-Jones (1931–2000), married artist David Boyd (artist), David Boyd. Clytie Lloyd-Jones married her first husband antiques dealer, Peter Jessop, in London in 1952, with whom she adopted a daughter, Pandora, her only child. Living in New York in the late 1950s she worked as an actor in off-Broadway productions. Her first screen role was as the ghost of Miss Jessel in ''The Innocents (1961 film), The Innocents'' (1961), based on Henry James's ''The Turn of the Screw'' and starring Deborah Kerr. She appeared only in long shot. Francis had been cinematographer for ''The Innocents''; he later ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atropos
Atropos (; grc, Ἄτροπος "without turn") or Aisa, in Greek mythology, was one of the three Moirai, goddesses of fate and destiny. Her Roman equivalent was Morta. Atropos was the oldest of the Three Fates, and was known as "the Inflexible One." It was Atropos who chose the manner of death and ended the life of mortals by cutting their threads. She worked along with her two sisters, Clotho, who spun the thread, and Lachesis, who measured the length. Atropos has been featured in several stories such as Atalanta and Achilles. Origin Her origin, along with the other two fates, is uncertain, although some called them the daughters of the night. It is clear, however, that at a certain period they ceased to be only concerned with death and also became those powers who decided what may happen to individuals. Although Zeus was the chief Greek god and their father, he was still subject to the decisions of the Fates, and thus the executor of destiny, rather than its source. Acco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haunted Attraction (simulated)
A haunted attraction is a form of live entertainment that simulates the experience of visiting haunted locations or storylines typical of horror fiction. They usually feature fearsome sets and characters, especially demons, ghosts, monsters, possessed people, witches or wizards, serial killers, and slashers. Humorous characters may also be included. Haunted attractions may be set up at many kinds of locations. Built attractions or existing structures in which attractions may be operated include temporarily constructed simulations of haunted houses; actual abandoned or dilapidated houses; abandoned asylums; defunct prisons; defunct or active amusement parks; defunct or active ships; defunct factories; defunct or active barns; and shopping malls. Outdoor places hosting such attractions include corn mazes or cornfields; hedge mazes; farms (often including "haunted" hayrides); wooded areas or forests; and parks. Haunted attractions (also known as "haunts" or "mazes" within the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Traveling Carnival
A traveling carnival (US English), usually simply called a carnival, or travelling funfair (UK English), is an amusement show that may be made up of amusement rides, food vendors, merchandise vendors, games of chance and skill, thrill acts, and animal acts. A traveling carnival is not set up at a permanent location, like an amusement park or funfair, but is moved from place to place. Its roots are similar to the 19th century circus with both being fitted-up in open fields near or in town and moving to a new location after a period of time. In fact, many carnivals have circuses while others have a clown aesthetic in their decor. Unlike traditional carnival celebrations, the North American traveling carnival is not tied to a religious observance. History In 1893, the Chicago's World's Columbian Exposition (also called the Chicago World's Fair) was the catalyst for the development of the traveling carnival. The Chicago World's Fair had an area that included rides, games of chan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Psycho (novel)
''Psycho'' is a 1959 horror novel by American writer Robert Bloch. The novel tells the story of Norman Bates, a caretaker at an isolated motel who struggles under his domineering mother and becomes embroiled in a series of murders. The novel is considered Bloch's most enduring work and one of the most influential horror books of the 20th century. The story was famously adapted into Alfred Hitchcock's seminal 1960 film of the same name, and also loosely adapted into the '' Bates Motel'' television series (2013–2017). Bloch later wrote three sequels, which are unrelated to any of the film sequels. Plot Norman Bates, a middle-aged bachelor, is dominated by his mother, a mean-tempered, puritanical old woman who forbids him to have a life outside of her. They run a small motel together in the town of Fairvale, but business has suffered since the state relocated the highway. In the middle of a heated argument between them, a customer arrives, a young woman named Mary Crane. Mar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
