|
The Haunted Palace
''The Haunted Palace'' is a 1963 horror film released by American International Pictures, starring Vincent Price, Lon Chaney Jr. and Debra Paget (in her final film), in a story about a village held in the grip of a dead necromancer. The film was directed by Roger Corman and is one of his series of eight films largely based on the works of American author Edgar Allan Poe. Although marketed as "Edgar Allan Poe's ''The Haunted Palace''", the film actually derives its plot from ''The Case of Charles Dexter Ward'', a novella by H. P. Lovecraft. The film's title is derived from a 6-stanza poem by Poe, published in 1839 (which was later incorporated into Poe's horror short story "The Fall of the House of Usher"), and the film uses eight lines from the poem within the framing of the story. Plot In 1765, the inhabitants of Arkham, Massachusetts, are suspicious of the strange phenomena surrounding the grand "palace" that overlooks the town. They suspect the palace's owner, Joseph Curwen, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reynold Brown
William Reynold Brown (October 18, 1917 – August 24, 1991) was an American realist artist who painted many Hollywood film posters. He was also briefly active as a comics artist. Biography He attended Alhambra High School and refined his drawing under his teacher Lester Bonar. A talented artist, Brown met cartoonist Hal Forrest around 1936-37. Forrest hired Brown to ink (uncredited) Forrest's comic strip ''Tailspin Tommy''. Extensive discussion of the comic strip. Norman Rockwell's sister was a teacher at Alhambra High, and Brown later met Rockwell who advised him to leave cartooning if he wanted to be an illustrator. Brown subsequently won a scholarship to the Otis Art Institute. During World War II he worked as a technical artist at North American Aviation. There he met his wife, fellow artist Mary Louise Tejeda. Following the war Brown drew numerous advertisements and illustrations for magazines such as '' Argosy'', ''Popular Science'', '' Saturday Evening Post'', ''Bo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Fall Of The House Of Usher
"The Fall of the House of Usher" is a short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, first published in 1839 in ''Burton's Gentleman's Magazine'', then included in the collection ''Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque'' in 1840. The short story, a work of Gothic horror, Gothic fiction, includes themes of madness, family, isolation, and metaphysical identities. Plot The story begins with the unnamed narrator arriving at the house of his friend, Roderick Usher, having received a letter from him in a distant part of the country, complaining of an illness and asking for his help. As he arrives, the narrator notices a thin crack extending from the roof, down the front of the house and into the adjacent Tarn (lake), tarn, or lake. It is revealed that Roderick's sister, Madeline, is also ill and falls into catalepsy, cataleptic, deathlike trances. Roderick and Madeline are the only remaining members of the Usher family. The narrator is impressed with Roderick's paintings and attempts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frank Maxwell
Charles Francis Maxwell (November 17, 1916 – August 4, 2004) was an American actor who served as president of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists from 1984 to 1989. Life and career A native of The Bronx borough of New York City, and a graduate of the University of Michigan, he appeared in 151 films or television programs. Maxwell began his acting career on the Broadway stage, appearing in such notable plays as ''Death of a Salesman'' (playing the role of Willy Loman's son, "Happy"), '' South Pacific'' (playing "Luther Billis," a role that went to Ray Walston in the film version), and ''Stalag 17''. His first television acting roles were in 1950 in episodes of the ''Goodyear Playhouse''/''Philco Playhouse'' followed in 1951 by an appearance in the episode "The Overcoat" of the television series ''Big Town''. Maxwell subsequently appeared in such series as ''Decoy'', with Beverly Garland, ''Peter Gunn'' (twice), ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' (five episodes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spirit Possession
Spirit possession is an unusual or altered state of consciousness and associated behaviors purportedly caused by the control of a human body by spirits, ghosts, demons, or gods. The concept of spirit possession exists in many cultures and religions, including Buddhism, Christianity,Mark 5:9, Luke 8:30 Haitian Vodou, Hinduism, Islam, Wicca, and Southeast Asian, African, and Native American traditions. Depending on the cultural context in which it is found, possession may be considered voluntary or involuntary and may be considered to have beneficial or detrimental effects on the host. In a 1969 study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, spirit possession beliefs were found to exist in 74% of a sample of 488 societies in all parts of the world, with the highest numbers of believing societies in Pacific cultures and the lowest incidence among Native Americans of both North and South America. As Pentecostal and Charismatic Christian churches move into both Africa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Human
Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, and language. Humans are highly social and tend to live in complex social structures composed of many cooperating and competing groups, from families and kinship networks to political states. Social interactions between humans have established a wide variety of values, social norms, and rituals, which bolster human society. Its intelligence and its desire to understand and influence the environment and to explain and manipulate phenomena have motivated humanity's development of science, philosophy, mythology, religion, and other fields of study. Although some scientists equate the term ''humans'' with all members of the genus ''Homo'', in common usage, it generally refers to ''Homo sapiens'', the only extant member. Anatomically moder ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yog-Sothoth
American author H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937) created a number of fictional deities throughout the course of his literary career. These entities are usually depicted as immensely powerful and utterly indifferent to humans who can barely begin to comprehend them, though some entities are worshipped by humans. These deities include the "Great Old Ones" and extraterrestrials, such as the "Elder Things", with sporadic references to other miscellaneous deities (e.g. Nodens). The "Elder Gods" are a later creation of other prolific writers who expanded on Lovecraft's concepts, such as August Derleth, who was credited with formalizing the Cthulhu Mythos. Most of these deities were Lovecraft's original creations, but he also adapted words or concepts from earlier writers such as Ambrose Bierce, and later writers in turn used Lovecraft's concepts and expanded his fictional universe. Great Old Ones An ongoing theme in Lovecraft's work is the complete irrelevance of humanity in the face of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cthulhu
Cthulhu is a fictional cosmic entity created by writer H. P. Lovecraft. It was first introduced in his short story "The Call of Cthulhu", published by the American pulp magazine ''Weird Tales'' in 1928. Considered a Great Old One within the pantheon of Lovecraftian cosmic entities, this creature has since been featured in numerous popular culture references. Lovecraft depicts it as a gigantic entity worshipped by cultists, in the shape of a green octopus, dragon, and a caricature of human form. The Lovecraft-inspired universe, the Cthulhu Mythos, where it exists with its fellow entities, is named after it. Etymology, spelling, and pronunciation Invented by Lovecraft in 1928, the name Cthulhu was probably chosen to echo the word ''chthonic'' (Ancient Greek "of the earth"), as apparently suggested by Lovecraft himself at the end of his 1923 tale "The Rats in the Walls". The chthonic, or earth-dwelling, spirit has precedents in numerous ancient and medieval mythologies, often guard ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Old Ones
American author H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937) created a number of fictional deities throughout the course of his literary career. These entities are usually depicted as immensely powerful and utterly indifferent to humans who can barely begin to comprehend them, though some entities are worshipped by humans. These deities include the "Great Old Ones" and extraterrestrials, such as the "Elder Things", with sporadic references to other miscellaneous deities (e.g. Nodens). The "Elder Gods" are a later creation of other prolific writers who expanded on Lovecraft's concepts, such as August Derleth, who was credited with formalizing the Cthulhu Mythos. Most of these deities were Lovecraft's original creations, but he also adapted words or concepts from earlier writers such as Ambrose Bierce, and later writers in turn used Lovecraft's concepts and expanded his fictional universe. Great Old Ones An ongoing theme in Lovecraft's work is the complete irrelevance of humanity in the face of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Necronomicon
The ', also referred to as the ''Book of the Dead'', or under a purported original Arabic title of ', is a fictional grimoire (textbook of magic) appearing in stories by the horror writer H. P. Lovecraft and his followers. It was first mentioned in Lovecraft's 1924 short story "The Hound", written in 1922, though its purported author, the "Mad Arab" Abdul Alhazred, had been quoted a year earlier in Lovecraft's "The Nameless City". Among other things, the work contains an account of the Old Ones, their history, and the means for summoning them. Other authors such as August Derleth and Clark Ashton Smith also cited the ' in their works. Lovecraft approved of other writers building on his work, believing such common allusions built up "a background of evil verisimilitude." Many readers have believed it to be a real work, with booksellers and librarians receiving many requests for it; pranksters have listed it in rare book catalogues, and a student smuggled a card for it into t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black Magic
Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 1456. During his period of scholarship, A. E. Waite provided a comprehensive account of black magic practices, rituals and traditions in ''The Book of Ceremonial Magic'' (1911). It is also sometimes referred to as the "left-hand path". In modern times, some find that the definition of black magic has been convoluted by people who define magic or ritualistic practices that they disapprove of as black magic. The seven ''Artes prohibitae'' of black magic The seven ''artes prohibitae'' or ''artes magicae'', arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 1456, their sevenfold partition reflecting that of the artes liberales and artes mechanicae, were: #necromancy #geomancy #hydromancy #aeromancy #pyromancy #chiromancy #scap ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Deformity
A deformity, dysmorphism, or dysmorphic feature is a major abnormality of an organism that makes a part of the body appear or function differently than how it is supposed to. Causes Deformity can be caused by a variety of factors: *Arthritis and other rheumatoid disorders *Chronic application of external forces, e.g. artificial cranial deformation *Chronic paresis, paralysis or muscle imbalance, especially in children, e.g. due to poliomyelitis or cerebral palsy *Complications at birth *Damage to the fetus or uterus *Fractured bones left to heal without being properly set (malunion) *Genetic mutation *Growth or hormone disorders *Infection *Reconstructive surgery following a severe injury, e.g. burn injury Deformity can occur in all organisms: * Frogs can be mutated due to Ribeiroia (Trematoda) infection. * Plants can undergo irreversible cell deformation * Insects, such as honeybees, can be affected by deformed wing virus * Fish can be found with scoliosis due to environment ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Curse
A curse (also called an imprecation, malediction, execration, malison, anathema, or commination) is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to one or more persons, a place, or an object. In particular, "curse" may refer to such a wish or pronouncement made effective by a supernatural or spiritual power, such as a god or gods, a spirit, or a natural force, or else as a kind of spell by magic (usually black magic) or witchcraft; in the latter sense, a curse can also be called a hex or a jinx. In many belief systems, the curse itself (or accompanying ritual) is considered to have some causative force in the result. To reverse or eliminate a curse is sometimes called "removal" or "breaking", as the spell has to be dispelled, and often requires elaborate rituals or prayers. Types The study of the forms of curses comprises a significant proportion of the study of both folk religion and folklore. The deliberate attempt to levy curses is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
