Doc Rotten's 666 Revelations: Horror Icons of 1971

The early Seventies, the second wave of horror legends are in full swing: Cushing, Lee and Price. In 1971, Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee star in The House That Dripped Blood and I, Monster for Amicus and Cushing also appears in Twins of Evil for Hammer films. Vincent Price creates his most famous role for his 100th picture, The Abominable Dr. Phibes. Newer stars return to the screen as well; Paul Naschy returns as Waldermar Daninsky in Werewolf Shadow and Robert Quarry reprises his vampire role in Return of Count Yorga. Bruce Davidson and Ernest Borgnine face rats in Willard, the legendary Charlton Heston faces vampire mutants in The Omega Man and Malcolm McDowell becomes Alex DeLarge in A Clockwork Orange. Andrew Keir (Blood from the Mummy’s Tomb), Nigel Green (Countess Dracula), Ralph Bates (Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde), Eric Porter (Hands of the Ripper) and Mike Raven (Twins of Evil) star in the numerous Hammer horror films this year alone. On TV, Darren McGavin creates a legend, Karl Kolchak, the Night Stalker, and Dennis Weaver faces a killer tractor-trailer in Stephen Spielberg’s Duel. Here are six of these talented actors who are the Horror Icons of 1971.

VINCENT PRICE as DR. ANTON PHIBES in THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES

After spending most of the Sixties playing various roles in adaptations of the works Edgar Allen Poe (House of Usher in 1960, Pit and the Pendulum in 1961 and The Tomb of Ligeia in 1964 among others) and becoming a horror icon to rival Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney, Vincent Price teams up with director Robert Fuest to create the imaginative, charming and villainous Dr. Anton Phibes. Visually, the horror beneath the mask would appear much like Prof. Henry Jerrod in one of Price’s earliest horror films, The House of Wax (1953); however, here, his face is even more skull-like, lacking lips, a nose and ears. Ironically, the character of Phibes would not utilize Vincent Price’s most recognizable trait: his voice. Much like Boris Karloff, Vincent Price can frighten the weak of heart with just narration (The Raven) or an evil laugh (Thriller); but, in the Phibes movies, he is forces to speak through a voice-box device that muffles and disguises his true voice. Still, a testament to his charismatic presence, Price makes Phibes an entertaining and memorable character as he masterminds elaborate traps to capture, torture and dispatch the doctors he holds responsible for the death of his wife. Vincent Price returns as Dr. Anton Phibes in Dr. Phibes Rises Again in 1972, facing off against Robert Quarry.

DARREN MCGAVIN as CARL KOLCHAK in THE NIGHT STALKER

Known more for comedic roles, No Deposit, No Return (1974), Hot Lead, Cold Feet (1978) and A Christmas Story (1981), Darren McGavin teams up with producer Dan Curtis and writer Richard Matheson to create one of televisions premiere monster hunters and horror iconic characters, Carl Kolchak, the Night Stalker. Kolchak, an abrasive newspaper reporter, believes a recent string of murders in Las Vegas were committed by a European vampire. Darren McGavin returns as Kolchak in The Night Strangler in 1973 followed by the television series Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974-1975). The series would influence television horror for decades, X-Files and Supernatural both incorporate key elements in their serial plot structures.

CHARLTON HESTON as ROBERT NEVILLE in THE OMEGA MAN

From 1968 with Planet of the Apes throughout the Seventies, Charlton Heston starred in a number of genre-related sci-fi, disaster flicks: Soylent Green (1973), Earthquake (1974), Airport 1975 (1974) and The Awakening (1980). In 1971, he brought Richard Matheson’s Robert Neville to the screen for The Omega Man, a version of I Am Legend. In the post-apocalyptic world, Heston’s Neville faces the threat of mutated vampire-like survivors; he’s a man on the edge of sanity trying desperately to find a cure to the horror all around him. His larger-than-life persona goes a long way in giving Neville the presence needed to convey the solitude and magnitude of the situation. Much like Planet of the Apes, he carries much of the picture by himself, facing the surrounding threats alone until finally teaming up with others in similar despair.

MALCOLM MCDOWELL as ALEX DELARGE in A CLOCKWORK ORANGE

Directed by Stanley Kubrick in A Clockwork Orange, Malcolm McDowell would rise to stardom and horrify audiences as the ultra-violent UK youth, Alex DeLarge. It is a career defining role and screen persona that reaches cinema lexicon still today. Whether it be the chorus of “Singing in the Rain” or the indelible fashion statement, the passion for milk laced with narcotics or the histrionic reactions to the experimental and shocking treatments Alex receives in prison, Alex’s journey is filled with tragic, frightening, and disturbing visuals many in 1971 were unprepared for. Malcolm McDowell reinvents the psychotic protagonist for many generations to come.

ERIC PORTER as DR. JOHN PRITCHARD in HANDS OF THE RIPPER

In Hammer’s Jack the Ripper horror outing, Hands of the Ripper, Eric Porter plays Dr. John Pritchard. Set 15 years after the infamous Ripper killings, Jack the Ripper’s daughter may be possessed by the killer’s spirit and begins to rack up her own murderous body count. Noted psychiatrist, Dr. John Pritchard believes he can cure the young lass. He soon find he regrets that decision. As with many horror scripts in the early Seventies, Hammer twists the plot to make the female the villain (much like Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde). Eric Porter as the protagonist almost becomes secondary to the plot, but that doesn’t stop the respected Shakespearean actor from adding class to the role and the movie. He would only star in a few genre flicks, both for Hammer films, this and The Lost Continent (1968). He later stars as Professor Moriarty in BBC’s Sherlock Holmes in 1985.


DENNIS WEAVER as DAVID MANN in DUEL

As David Mann in Stephen Spielberg's Duel, Dennis Weaver is the everyman, unsure of his future, struggling to rise to the occasion and lacking the confidence to deal with the challenges ahead of him, large or small. However, when confronted with a mysterious and menacing tractor-trailer on a lonely two-lane highway, he eventually musters the courage and strength to confront the threats before him. In the face of danger and possible death, he becomes the man he wasn’t sure he could be. Duel would be one of the very rare genre roles for Dennis Weaver, who is best known as Sam McCloud on the McCloud television series.

Doc Rotten's 666 Revelations: Scream Queens of 1971

Thanks to recent pivotal roles portrayed by Ingrid (Vampire Lovers 1970) Pitt and Mia (Rosemary’s Baby 1968) Farrow and the changing times, actresses begin to find stronger and more important roles in genre movies of 1971. At times these roles would be more meaningful, such as Zohra Lampert in Let’s Scare Jessica to Death, but many, while given more screen time, would be more sensational, such as Hammer’s leading ladies Yutte Stengaard in Lust for a Vampire and Madeline and Mary Collison in Twins of Evil. Others would balance the extremes, such as Ingrid Pitt in Countess Dracula and Martine Beswick in Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde (in which she would take half the leading role from Ralph Bates). Even in supporting roles, screen sirens find meatier material, such as Mariette Hartley in Return of Count Yorga, Rosalind Cash in The Omega Man and Jacqueline Bisset in Mephisto Waltz. Below are six scream queens from 1971 that made an impact on the face of horror.

INGRID PITT as COUNTESS ELIZABETH BATHORY in COUNTESS DRACULA

After reinventing the femme fatale with Vampire Lovers in 1970, Ingrid Pitt returns to Hammer studios to film Countess Dracula. Again, she would take the lead role and the lead monster. Female leading monsters have been few and far between; even the bride (Elsa Lancaster), in The Bride of Frankenstein, wasn’t the lead in her own film. Hammer is no stranger to bringing female monsters to the screen with such beasts as The Reptile (1966), The Gorgon (1964) and Frankenstein Created Woman (1967); but, even then, Peter Cushing or Christopher Lee would be the leading actor. Not so with Ingrid Pitt, in Countess Dracula the picture is all hers; she is the lead, the monster and the story. Ingid Pitt, as Countess Elizabeth Bathory, is villainous, vivacious and voluptuous. She would also appear in The House That Dripped Blood (1971) and The Wicker Man (1973).

ZOHRA LAMPERT as JESSICA in LET’S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH

As Jessica in Let’s Scare Jessica To Death, Zohra Lampert commands the screen, not only with her performance but with her haunting narration provided throughout the movie. The film is entirely hers; it’s her story and her mental deterioration that is explored. The audience is also viewing the events through her eyes, seeing and experiencing what she sees and experiences. Throughout the movie, it is unclear if what is seen is fact or hallucination. In this, her role is very much like Mia Farrow’s role in Rosemary’s Baby (1968). As Jessica, Zohra Lampert makes a rare appearance in a genre movie, her next would be in the underrated Exorcist III (1990) playing the wife to George C. Scott’s portrayal of Lt. Kinderman.

JESSICA WALKER as EVELYN DRAPER in PLAY MISTY FOR ME

As Evelyn Draper in Play Misty For Me, Jessica Walker is the antagonist opposite Clint Eastwood as Dave Garver. Evelyn is obsessed with Garver, the famous disc jockey, continually calling in requesting he play the song Misty for her. Dave and Evelyn meet resulting in a one-night stand. Not satisfied with casual outcome of the affair, Evelyn becomes a psychotic stalker causing havoc on Garver’s career and home life. She ruins his business lunch, attacks his maid, invades his house and destroys his belongings, and finally threatens to brutalize his girlfriend Tobie (Donna Mills) Williams. The Golden Globe nominated role of Evelyn Draper would be the model for such deranged femme fatales in such features as (most notably) Fatal Attraction (1987), Basic Instinct (1992) and Single White Female (1992).

MARTINE BESWICK as SISTER HYDE in DR. JEKYLL & SISTER HYDE

Hammer films puts a bizarre spin on Robert Louis Stephenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by changing Mr. Hyde’s gender creating Sister Hyde. Ralph Bates’ Dr. Jekyll creates a toxin that supposedly cures all common diseases but instead transforms him into Sister Hyde, portrayed by Martine Beswick. Much like Countess Dracula and Play Misty For Me discussed above, the female is again the villain. Here, Director Roy Ward Baker and writer Brian Clemens make Sister Hyde the evil side of the male protagonist, Dr. Henry Jekyll. Throughout the Seventies, woman would either be the instrument of evil or just evil itself in many features such as Exorcist (1973), Beyond the Door (1974) and Carrie (1976).

ROSALIND CASH as LISA in THE OMEGA MAN

Director Boris Sagal and writers John William Corrington and Joyce Hooper Corrington cast Rosalind Cash as Lisa, one of the non-mutated survivors in The Omega Man, based on I Am Legend by Richard Matheson. Rosalind Cash stars opposite, and holds her own against, the legendary Charlton Heston as Dr. Robert Neville. She starts off as a leader of a small team of survivors who encounter Neville, who is struggling to discover a cure, as they both fight off the mutated, vampire-like, survivors of an apocalyptic virus. Unfortunately, she would mysteriously and unexpectedly mutate and become one of “The Family” revealing Neville's hideout and sabotaging his safety. However, even in the end, having declared her allegiance to “The Family,” she revolts to stand by Neville, watching over him as he succumbs to his wounds.
   
MARIETTE HARTLEY as CYNTHIA NELSON in RETURN OF COUNT YORGA

In 1971, Robert Quarry’s Count Yorga would return to find Mariette Hartley as Cynthia Nelson the object of his affection and the instrument of his demise. Mariette Hartley, who would rise to fame playing in a series of Polaroid TV commercials opposite James Garner, portrays as the attractive, desirable lead, the damsel in distress and, finally, the victorious heroine. In a rarity for vampire features, there is no “Van Helsing” character to destroy the Count, Hartley’s Cynthia Nelson steps up during the finale and stakes Count Yorga with an axe. While the typical “Van Helsing” character is a loner, driven, with nothing to lose, Cynthia has to tragically sacrifice much of what she loved, her sister, her little brother and her fiancée.

Doc Rotten's 666 Revelations: Movie Monsters of 1971

Horror movies in 1971 get busy. A remarkable number of horror flicks make their way to screens and drive-ins in the U.S., England, Japan and across Europe. Werewolves, Frankenstein Monsters and Vampires are everywhere. Hammer continues their Karnstein trilogy with Lust for a Vampire and Twins of Evil, they introduce Countess Dracula, shake up Dr. Jekyll's world with a cross-gender twist in Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde, and tackle Jack the Ripper with Hands of the Ripper. Godzilla returns in a flick that reflects current ecological issues in a way only the Seventies could produce with Godzilla vs. Hedora. Count Yorga returns and Vincent Price delivers Dr. Phibes. From Spain, Amando de Ossoria unleashes the Knights Templar in Tombs of the Blind Dead. Also from Spain, Paul Naschy returns as Waldermar Daninsky, the werewolf and battles Countess Wandesa Darvula de Nadasdy. Witches, zombies, ghosts and talking apes, 1971 has them all. Below are six of these monsters that made an impact on horror cinema.

DR. ANTON PHIBES in THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES

For his 100th film, Vincent Price creates his greatest horror character, the abominable Dr. Anton Phibes. Spectacular make up, a delightful campy and smart script, and a series of Grand Guignol style deaths combine to make a modern classic. Dr. Phibes, horribly scarred in an car crash, plots revenge on those responsible for the death of this wife. Dr. Phibes takes inspiration from the ten plagues of Egypt to eliminate the doctors he deems incompetent: boils, bats, frogs, blood, hail, rats, beats, locust, first born and darkness. The design for the scarred organ player is inspired, his face is burned and scarred beyond recognition, with no lips to hide his teeth, no nose and no ears, he is very skull like. Creatively, he fashions a mask to restore his appearance near to his old self, and must use a device to speak through. His character is as much his actions and surroundings as the scars he bears, the odd decor, the costumes and even the music define what makes Dr. Phibes an impressive and lasting monster. Dr. Phibes would return in 1973 with Dr. Phibes Rises Again.

COUNTESS ELIZABETH BATHORY in COUNTESS DRACULA

The historical equivalent to Vlad Dracula, Countess Elizabeth Bathory bathes in the blood of virgins instead of drinking their blood. Not a vampire by definition, but still very much a similar monster, Bathory kidnaps and murders local girls to retain her youth and beauty - to become immortal. The Countess tricks the castle steward, Captain Dobi, to do her bidding and takes her daughter's identity when her youth is restored. As she continues to seduce Lt. Imre Toth, her appetite for blood increases. Soon she must face a monstrous decision when her daughter finally returns home. Countess Dracula is a very different type of monster, much different than Hammer's vampires, or even their other female creatures, the Gorgon and the Reptile. She is equally as villainous, and deadly, as the aged Countess as she is as the youthful imposter.

THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR in TOMBS OF THE BLIND DEAD

In the early Seventies, the modern flesh eating zombies have yet to catch on and wouldn't in earnest until 1978 with Dawn of the Dead and 1979 with Zombi. Romero's Night of the Living Dead would introduce the modern age zombie to horror fans across the globe. In 1971, Spain and director, Amando de Ossorio, would introduce a variant to the theme with Tombs of the Blind Dead and the Knights Templar, referred to in the titles as the Blind Dead. Ossorio's zombies are more mummy-like, slow, and blind and hunt by sound. They are also more cognizant than traditional Romero or Italian flesh-eating creatures, and they seem to drink the blood of their victims more than savagely devour them. Their cadaver-like visage sets them apart from all other zombies prior and since and Ossorio presents them in glorious slow-motion giving them much needed mood and atmosphere. The Blind Dead would return in three more films: Return of the Blind Dead, The Ghost Galleon and the oddly titled Night of the Seagulls.

HEDORA, THE SMOG MONSTER in GODZILLA vs. HEDORA

A product of its time, but no less relevant today, Hedora is a alien creature nurtured by sludge and pollution and as it grows it feeds on smog, sucking on smoke pouring from factory chimneys across Japan. Hedora's eating habits may have to change slightly if it were unleashed today, but it would still have little trouble finding sustenance to devour. One of the more charismatic characteristics of Hedora is its many shapes. Since it is a composite of millions of smaller organisms, Hedora shifts its appearance as necessary: in the ocean, it resembles a giant tadpole; walking on land, it is a four-legged pile of sludge; for flying, it looked like a round bat; and to battle Godzilla, Hedora takes a humanoid shape. In each incarnation, it has large red eyes turned on their side; it could vomit sludge balls, spray surfuric acid and fire crimson energy beams. Hedora is one of the most formable foes to ever face Godzilla.

WALDEMAR DANINSKY, THE WEREWOLF in WEREWOLF SHADOW

First introduced in Frankenstein’s Bloody Terror (1968), Paul Naschy’s Waldemar Daninsky returns in Werewolf Shadow, also known under the more colorful title Werewolf vs the Vampire Woman. Daninsky appears in over a dozen loosely related films. In Werewolf Shadow, arguably the most famous and accessible of these films, the werewolf is revived when a mortician removes a silver bullet from Daninsky’s dead chest. Once he becomes the beast again, he encounters and battles the Countess Wandesa Darvula de Nadasdy, the Vampire Woman from the U.S. title.

TRUCK in DUEL

Director Stephen Spielberg and writer Richard Matheson introduce the Killer Machine to the lexicon of horror movie monsters only hinted at in terrors past. In Duel, a massive tractor-trailer truck terrorizes David (Dennis Weaver) Mann while he travels on a long, lonely stretch of two-lane highway. The driver of the truck is never truly seen and only implied; the truck becomes the monster. Loud, overpowering and menacing, the truck embodies evil just as much as Dracula, the Frankenstein Monster or the Wolfman ever could, perhaps more-so as the threat was more real, more possible. In future machine driven horrors, such as The Car (1977) and Christine (1983), the monstrous vehicles would lose the driver altogether, no longer needing even a hint of a human behind the wheel.