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Tales of a Monster Hunter
Tales of a Monster Hunter Cushing, Peter
208 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1977
About the author
Peter Cushing
25 books10 followersPeter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the distinguished-looking but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally Vincent Price. A familiar face on both sides of the Atlantic, his most famous roles outside of "Hammer Horror" include his many appearances as Sherlock Holmes, as Grand Moff Tarkin in Star Wars (1977) and as the mysterious Doctor in Dr. Who and the Daleks and Daleks – Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D. in 1965 and 1966, two cinema films based on the television series Doctor Who.
Cushing's first appearances in his two most famous roles were in Terence Fisher's films The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) and Dracula (1958). Cushing is closely associated with playing Baron Victor Frankenstein and Van Helsing in a long string of horror films produced by Hammer Film Productions. He later said that career decisions for him meant choosing roles where he knew the audience would accept him. "Who wants to see me as Hamlet? Very few. But millions want to see me as Frankenstein so that's the one I do."
Cushing was often cast opposite the actor Christopher Lee, who became his best friend. "People look at me as if I were some sort of monster, but I can't think why. In my macabre pictures, I have either been a monster-maker or a monster-destroyer, but never a monster. Actually, I'm a gentle fellow. Never harmed a fly. I love animals, and when I'm in the country I'm a keen bird-watcher", he said in an interview published in ABC Film Review in November 1964.
In the mid-1960s, Cushing played the Doctor in two films (Dr. Who and the Daleks and Daleks – Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D.) based on the television series Doctor Who. He decided to play the part as a lovable and avuncular figure to escape from his image as a "horror" actor. "I do get terribly tired with the neighbourhood kids telling me 'My mum says she wouldn't want to meet you in a dark alley'." he said in an interview in 1966.[this quote needs a citation] He appeared in The Avengers and its successor, The New Avengers. In 1986, he played the role of Colonel William Raymond in Biggles. In Space: 1999, he appeared as a Prospero-like character called Raan.
Cushing was one of many stars to guest on the Morecambe and Wise Show — the standing joke in his case being the idea that he was never paid for his appearance. He would appear, week after week, wearily asking hosts Eric and Ernie, "Have you got my five pounds yet?" When Cushing was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1989, one of the guests was Ernie Wise (Morecambe had died in 1984), who promptly presented him with a five pound note, but then, with typical dexterity, extorted it back from him. Cushing was absolutely delighted with this and cried "All these years and I still haven't got my fiver!"
Cushing played Sherlock Holmes many times, starting with Hammer's The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959), the first Holmes film made in colour. Cushing seemed a natural for the part and he played the part with great fidelity to the written character — that of a man who is not always easy to live with or be around — which had not been done up to that point. He followed this up with a performance in 16 episodes of the BBC series Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes (1968), of which only six episodes remain. Finally, Cushing played the detective in old age, in The Masks of Death (1984) for Channel 4.
After Star Wars, Cushing continued appearing in films and television sporadically, as his health allowed. In 1982, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, but managed to survive for the remaining 12 years up to his death without surgery, though his health was precarious.
Cushing appeared in a comedy play written by Ernie Wise in The Morecambe and Wise Show on BBC2 in 1969. Throughout the BBC era of the shows he would appear often with More
Cushing's first appearances in his two most famous roles were in Terence Fisher's films The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) and Dracula (1958). Cushing is closely associated with playing Baron Victor Frankenstein and Van Helsing in a long string of horror films produced by Hammer Film Productions. He later said that career decisions for him meant choosing roles where he knew the audience would accept him. "Who wants to see me as Hamlet? Very few. But millions want to see me as Frankenstein so that's the one I do."
Cushing was often cast opposite the actor Christopher Lee, who became his best friend. "People look at me as if I were some sort of monster, but I can't think why. In my macabre pictures, I have either been a monster-maker or a monster-destroyer, but never a monster. Actually, I'm a gentle fellow. Never harmed a fly. I love animals, and when I'm in the country I'm a keen bird-watcher", he said in an interview published in ABC Film Review in November 1964.
In the mid-1960s, Cushing played the Doctor in two films (Dr. Who and the Daleks and Daleks – Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D.) based on the television series Doctor Who. He decided to play the part as a lovable and avuncular figure to escape from his image as a "horror" actor. "I do get terribly tired with the neighbourhood kids telling me 'My mum says she wouldn't want to meet you in a dark alley'." he said in an interview in 1966.[this quote needs a citation] He appeared in The Avengers and its successor, The New Avengers. In 1986, he played the role of Colonel William Raymond in Biggles. In Space: 1999, he appeared as a Prospero-like character called Raan.
Cushing was one of many stars to guest on the Morecambe and Wise Show — the standing joke in his case being the idea that he was never paid for his appearance. He would appear, week after week, wearily asking hosts Eric and Ernie, "Have you got my five pounds yet?" When Cushing was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1989, one of the guests was Ernie Wise (Morecambe had died in 1984), who promptly presented him with a five pound note, but then, with typical dexterity, extorted it back from him. Cushing was absolutely delighted with this and cried "All these years and I still haven't got my fiver!"
Cushing played Sherlock Holmes many times, starting with Hammer's The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959), the first Holmes film made in colour. Cushing seemed a natural for the part and he played the part with great fidelity to the written character — that of a man who is not always easy to live with or be around — which had not been done up to that point. He followed this up with a performance in 16 episodes of the BBC series Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes (1968), of which only six episodes remain. Finally, Cushing played the detective in old age, in The Masks of Death (1984) for Channel 4.
After Star Wars, Cushing continued appearing in films and television sporadically, as his health allowed. In 1982, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, but managed to survive for the remaining 12 years up to his death without surgery, though his health was precarious.
Cushing appeared in a comedy play written by Ernie Wise in The Morecambe and Wise Show on BBC2 in 1969. Throughout the BBC era of the shows he would appear often with More
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 20, 2018
While the stories in this collection are fantastic, the main appeal of this particular book is the lovely introductions to each story by Peter Cushing. Readers will delight at the evident pleasure Mr. Cushing exhibits towards his career as a refined Monster Hunter.
October 31, 2024
I was thrilled to recently find a used copy of this in near-mint condition, just in time for Halloween, my favorite day of the whole year.
This book contains a delightful opening essay about Peter Cushing by frequent biographer Peter Haining, and each story in the book is accompanied by a wonderful anecdote from Cushing. He selected each story in the book to reflect all of the "monster hunter" roles he played - so there's a Mary Shelley, a Bram Stoker, etc. A couple of these I had never read. The highlights are Robert Bloch's "The Man Who Collected Poe," which was anthologized in Torture Garden, with Cushing and Jack Palance as the two characters in it, and "There Shall Be No Darkness" by James Blish, the story The Beast Must Die was based on.
The book is, of course, dedicated to Helen Cushing, which always makes me smile. I'm so glad I found this.
This book contains a delightful opening essay about Peter Cushing by frequent biographer Peter Haining, and each story in the book is accompanied by a wonderful anecdote from Cushing. He selected each story in the book to reflect all of the "monster hunter" roles he played - so there's a Mary Shelley, a Bram Stoker, etc. A couple of these I had never read. The highlights are Robert Bloch's "The Man Who Collected Poe," which was anthologized in Torture Garden, with Cushing and Jack Palance as the two characters in it, and "There Shall Be No Darkness" by James Blish, the story The Beast Must Die was based on.
The book is, of course, dedicated to Helen Cushing, which always makes me smile. I'm so glad I found this.
December 31, 2019
'Tales of a Monster Hunter' is a collection of short stories selected and introduced by Peter Cushing. Each story is related in some way to one of his iconic acting roles. With stories from the likes of Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, I was pleasently surprised to find the collection is all lesser-known stories. As far as I can tell this book was only published in the 70s so it might be difficult to track down. I managed to buy an ex-library copy in good condition from Amazon. Because it's a lovely collection of stories and Cushing's introductions add an additional delightful element for classic horror fans it would be nice to see it become more widely available. I'd buy a Kindle copy if it ever becomes available.
January 17, 2022
Some nice stories here which aren't the usual choices for this kind of thing, with the exception of Dracula's Guest: an outtake from the original publication of Dracula which has ended up as a short story in it's own right - and a good one, well told and atmospheric. The others are less well known, however, and I hope that Peter Cushing really did select them himself as personal favourites.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews