Doc Rotten's 666 Revelations: Horror Icons of 1972

In 1972, Peter Cushing appears in a number of horror treats: Tales from the Crypt, Fear in the Night, Asylum and Dracula, AD 1972 with Christopher Lee. Cushing also guest stars with Vincent Price returning as Dr. Anton Phibes in Dr. Phibes Rises Again. In this picture Price goes up against Robert Quarry as Darrus Biederbeck. Quarry also stars as Khorda in Deathmaster. William Marshall creates blaxploitation’s successful twist on the vampire legend in Blacula. Robert Tayman, Anthony “Corlan” Higgins and David Prowse terrorize a small village in Vampire Circus. David Hess represents the worst of humanity as Krug Stillo in Last House on the Left. Cornel Wilde battles the Gargoyles on TV and David Janssen uncovers a mystery in Moon of the Wolf. Joseph Cotton battles Baron Blood for Mario Bava and Paul Naschy returns as Waldemar Daninsky in Fury of the Werewolf. Here are six of these roles that have become Horror Icons of 1972.

WILLIAM MARSHALL as PRINCE MAMUWALDE in BLACULA

With his Shakespearean background, a deep thunderous voice and an ominous presence, William Marshall, as Prince Mamuwalde, delivers one of Seventies’ most memorable vampires, Count Blacula. The actor, the character and the film, Blacula directed by William Crain, far exceeds the limitations of its blaxploitation origins. Marshall treats the material with all the gusto and respect any producer could hope for. Before the ending credits, he sets himself admirably beside Christopher Lee, Bela Lugosi and Robert Quarry. Marshall’s  vampire Count is visually threatening, much like a Mr. Hyde to a Dr. Jekyll, his features pronounced with facial hair and makeup. To his credit, Marshall’s Prince Mamuwalde carries himself with confidence and credibility while wearing Victorian attire in the modern settings, bringing much needed nobility to the character. And, as Count Blacula, he is also very capable of bringing the ferocity and power to the vampire with the help of subtle but effective make-up and his booming, commanding voice. William Marshall returns to role in Scream, Blacula, Scream (1973) and plays a priest in the Exorcist-derived Abby (1974).

SAM ELLIOT as PICKETT SMITH in FROGS

Early in his career, Sam Elliot stars in the ecological, animals-run-amok horror flick, Frogs. Lacking his signature mustache and looking incredibly, almost unrecognizably young, Elliot, as Pickett Smith, arrives on a private island and encounters a wealthy family led by the family patriarch Jason Crockett, played by Ray Milland. Soon he finds himself surrounded by mystery, corruption and danger as the local reptile population begins to strike back, killing the inhabitants one by one. Somehow, he must survive the onslaught and rescue his new-found love, Karen Crockett played by Joan Van Ark. A few years earlier, Sam Elliot made his feature film debut in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, which also stars his future wife Katherine Ross; however, they would not actually meet until they co-starred together in The Legacy (1979, another of Elliot’s rare horror genre pictures). In the 2000s, after becoming know primarily for Westerns or as Wade Garrett in Road House (1989), Sam Elliot stars in a few super-hero fantasy films, such as Hulk (2002) and Ghost Rider (2007).

DAVID HESS as KRUG STILLO in LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT

Krug Stillo, from the film Last House on the Left, is perhaps one of the most vile antagonists in the Seventies. Played by David Hess, Krug leads a group of escaped convict that brutalize two young friends, Phylis and Mari, in the remote countryside. Hess, with unkempt curly locks and unshaven face, wreaks of evil, lacking all compassion for humankind, even in some cases his own son and companions. Murdering one of the two, Phylis, and leaving the other, Mari, for dead, Stillo and his gang move on to Mari’s home where they begin to size up and terrorize her parents, who must fight for their survival and avenge their daughter’s death. Before filming Last House on the Left, Hess had a career in music writing songs for Elvis Presley, Sal Mineo and the Ames Brothers. David Hess would go on to play roles in House on the Edge of the Park (1980) and Swamp Thing (1982) again with Wes Craven directing.

PETER CUSHING as ARTHUR GRIMSDYKE in TALES FROM THE CRYPT

In Tales from the Crypt, Peter Cushing gets a chance to play the living dead, as Arthur Grimsdyke who rises from the grave to get revenge on the neighbors who wrong him. This role illustrates Peter Cushing’s extraordinary talents, from the visual mannerisms he gives Grimsdye to emotions he effortless breathes into him. Cushing’s Grimsdyke is endearing, innocent, sad, and lost; he loves interacting with the neighborhood children and he deeply misses his deceased wife. He becomes the target of a family of wealthy neighbors who want him out of the neighborhood and possession of his property; they keep Grimsdyke from the children he adores, they take his dogs that bring him comfort and send him spiteful Valentine's Day cards. When he receives the demeaning greeting cards, it is difficult not to feel Grimsdyke’s heart break, from the crackle in his voice, to the wimper in his lips and the sadness in his eyes. It is arguably the strongest single performance in all of Amicus’ anthology films and one of Peter Cushing’s most touching. Then he gets to portray a zombie, a first for his career, rising from his grave is haunting splendor with visuals that are as memorable as the performance already praised.

ANTHONY “CORLAN” HIGGINS as EMIL in VAMPIRE CIRCUS

Cast as Emil in Hammer’s Vampire Circus, Anthony Corlan, later known as Anthony Higgins, was poised to give a break-out performance. But it did not happen, perhaps due to an overcrowded cast and an over-ambitious script or perhaps due to timing. At this time, Hammer films’ output and quality begins to decline and public tastes begin to move toward more sensational, modern and visceral horrors such as Exorcist (1973), Jaws (1975), Carrie (1976) and Dawn of the Dead (1978). Like many of the horror-stars-to-be at that time, becoming a horror icon is not in the cards. He does, however, have a successful career on stage, TV and screen in UK, becoming one of the few actors to play both Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarity. In Vampire Circus, he is given very few lines but strikes a handsome and memorable vampire. Higgin’s Emil foreshadows the vampires of present day cinema, young, handsome, quiet and deceptively dangerous. In this very film, Count Mitterhaus represents the Victorian upper class vampire given birth by Bram Stoker, while Emil represents the lower class vampire that can easily hide among humanity.

ROBERT QUARRY as KHORDA in DEATHMASTER

Robert Quarry rose to fame playing Count Yorga in Count Yorga, Vampire and Return of Count Yorga. In 1972, he plays another unique vampire character, Khorda, in Deathmaster for director Ray Danton, costarring Bobby Picket who recorded the Halloween hit, Monster Mash. For Deathmaster, Quarry dons long hair and sports groovy attire to become a Guru for a hippie commune. It’s a very interesting and entertaining twist on the vampire myth and a very progressive placement of the legend into modern culture, much more so than previous attempts to update vampires such as Count Yorga, Vampire, Blacula and Dracula AD, 1972. Unlike Dracula and even Yorga, Khorda cannot be accused of wearing outdated Victorian clothes; this vampire attempts to blend in to his surroundings, wearing modern clothes, becoming the leader of the commune he has targeted and feeds upon. Robert Quarry continues to fill horror roles throughout the Seventies, including Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1973), Madhouse (1974) and Sugar Hill (1974).