Authors/researchers Nige Burton and Jamie Jones deserve profound praise for their detail-extensive, horror/science-fiction periodicals. An exceptional example of their know-how can be tapped in the Classic Monsters of the Movies, two-volume set, Hammer Horror: An Illustrated Chronicle (1934 - 2019).
Their overviews are most pleasing, covering the studio's top-shelf chapters, The Curse of Frankenstein, Horror of Dracula, Brides of Dracula, The Hound of the Baskervilles, The Curse of the Werewolf ... The Mummy, but early (too often overlooked) gems like The Mystery of the Mary Celeste (with Bela Lugosi) and Song of Freedom (with Paul Robeson) are also acknowledged, along with such brash, historical experiments as The Terror of the Tongs, The Stranglers of Bombay and The Devil-Ship Pirates, which bolster the studio's wide-range significance even further.
The Hammer father-and-son founders and influencers are chambered among the comprehensive pages: William and Anthony Hinds and James and Michael Carreras. The studio's supplementing writers and directors share the same, esteemed spotlight: Terence Fisher, Freddie Francis, Jimmy Sangster, Val Guest, John Gilling, Tudor Gates, Roy Ward Baker, Don Sharp, Don Houghton, Peter Sasdy, Seth Holt, Alan Gibson and more.
Of course, Hammer's proficient performers grab attention page upon page, with fulfilling bios, tidbits and respectful nods: Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Veronica Carlson, Hazel Court, Anton Diffring, Michael Ripper, Thorley Waters, Oliver Reed, Herbert Lom, Bette Davis, Michael Gwynn, Francis Matthews, Ingrid Pitt, Madeline Smith, David Peel, Dave Prowse, Barbara Shelley, Andrew Keir, Patrick Troughton, Freddie Jones, Ralph Bates, Martine Beswick, Raquel Welch, Richard Wordsworth, Horst Janson, Jacqueline Pearce; Caroline Munro, Christopher Neame, Susan Denberg, Shane Briant, the Collinson Twins, et al.
Indeed, the background on each production, filmmaker and star is exquisite and edifying (embellished by an inclusion of the studio's recent revival and subsequent productions, including The Woman in Black 2012), with each aesthetic period accentuated by crisp, black-and-white and color photos.
These fine volumes can be purchased separately or together and are (beyond debate) essential for any cinema library. To order, visit
https://www.classic-monsters.com/shop/product/hammer-horror-an-illustrated-chronicle-volume-1-1955-1965/
and
https://www.classic-monsters.com/shop/product/hammer-horror-an-illustrated-chronicle-volume-2-1966-1976/
