Here's a point to ponder during the Halloween season: who is the greatest star of classic horror cinema? (And by classic, I simply mean "before I was born," which was thirty-mumble years ago, so the modern greats, such as Jeffrey Combs, Tony Todd, and Lance Henriksen, don't count.) What do you think? That's right - it's poll time again!
Spooky Text of the Day: Today's story is "The Sad Story of a Vampire" (1894) by Count Eric Stenbock.
Excerpt:
Vampires generally arrive at night, in carriages drawn by two black horses.
Our Vampire arrived by the commonplace means of the railway train, and in the afternoon.
You must think I am joking, or perhaps that by the word "Vampire" I mean a financial vampire.
No, I am quite serious. The Vampire of whom I am speaking, who laid waste our hearth and home, was a real vampire.
Read the complete story here.
Who is the greatest star of classic horror cinema? (Choose more than one if you like.)
Evelyn Ankers
0(0.0%)
Lionel Atwill
0(0.0%)
John Barrymore
0(0.0%)
Colin Clive
0(0.0%)
Boris Karloff
4(10.8%)
John Carradine
0(0.0%)
Lon Chaney
2(5.4%)
Lon Chaney, Jr.
0(0.0%)
Hazel Court
0(0.0%)
Peter Cushing
0(0.0%)
Dwight Frye
0(0.0%)
Klaus Kinski
0(0.0%)
Elsa Lanchester
1(2.7%)
Christopher Lee
9(24.3%)
Herbert Lom
0(0.0%)
Cont'd
Peter Lorre
0(0.0%)
Bela Lugosi
2(5.9%)
Fredric March
0(0.0%)
Ingrid Pitt
0(0.0%)
Donald Pleasence
1(2.9%)
Vincent Price
7(20.6%)
Claude Raines
0(0.0%)
Basil Rathbone
0(0.0%)
Max Schreck
2(5.9%)
Barbara Shelley
1(2.9%)
Simone Simon
0(0.0%)
Vampira
0(0.0%)
Fay Wray
0(0.0%)
George Zucco
0(0.0%)
The horrifying ticky-box is ready for its close-up!
0(0.0%)
My favorite star wasn't listed above. He/She is...
Spooky Text of the Day: Today's story is "The Sad Story of a Vampire" (1894) by Count Eric Stenbock.
Excerpt:
Vampires generally arrive at night, in carriages drawn by two black horses.
Our Vampire arrived by the commonplace means of the railway train, and in the afternoon.
You must think I am joking, or perhaps that by the word "Vampire" I mean a financial vampire.
No, I am quite serious. The Vampire of whom I am speaking, who laid waste our hearth and home, was a real vampire.
Read the complete story here.
- Current Music:"Bela Lugosi's Dead," Bauhaus
Comments
Hence: Cushing, Lee, Lugosi and (the master) Vincent Price.
Fun. :D
Edited at 2009-10-15 03:46 pm (UTC)
I wish there were a way to rank or weigh multiple votes. Peter Lorre is a great choice!
I loved that story. It was really quirky.
Edited at 2009-10-15 04:00 pm (UTC)
I'm so glad you liked the story, too. Quirky, indeed. :)
Thank you for uploading the vampire story - hadn't heard of it before, but Stenbock sounds like an interesting character (I just looked him up on Wikipedia). The story seems to be a kind of retelling of Le Fanu's "Carmilla" (also set in Styria, the narrator is called Carmela) with a male/male pairing instead of a f/f one. The picture of Lee & co is quite stunning. I've voted for Lee and Dwight Frye, because his Renfield is the only scary thing in Browning's Dracula.
I'm really enjoying this countdown!
I'm so glad you like the picture. I thought it was stunning, and I'm a fan of all of them: Price, Cushing, Carradine, and Lee. It's so perfect in capturing the character etched in their faces and the quality of their personalities - and it certainly wouldn't be as powerful if it were in color.
Dwight Frye, because his Renfield is the only scary thing in Browning's Dracula.
LOL! :)
I'm so glad you're enjoying the countdown. Thanks so much! I love your icon, by the way. It's gorgeous.
Back in the late '70s the BBC did the most amazing series: every Friday night around midnight, two horror films back to back, the first from the b&w period, the second from the Hammer stable. So many of these names take me back to that time :)
Good point!
Back in the late '70s the BBC did the most amazing series: every Friday night around midnight, two horror films back to back, the first from the b&w period, the second from the Hammer stable. So many of these names take me back to that time :)
How fun! Sounds like perfect snuggle-up-in-the-dark with popcorn viewing.
TCM is showing an interesting-looking film noir tonight, The Narrow Margin at 8:00. Also Lured* at 10:30 and The Lodger at 12:30.
* Hey Luuucy, time for you to die! Waaaaahhhh!!!!
The other gentleman is John Carradine. (He normally didn't have that hat!) I love how the black-and-white photography captures the character of their faces.
If Charles Bronson had stayed in horror films, he might have made the list after that debut *g*.
Excellent point. And I'd probably have ended up seeing many more of his films! Ha. (Although I'll admit I liked him quite a lot in Once Upon A Time in the West.)
But! Christopher Lee all the way. :D