What do you think?
Rate this book
The Dr. Phibes Companion
In The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971) and its sequel, Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972), horror great Vincent Price starred as vaudevillian organist and super-genius Dr. Anton Phibes, architect of incredibly ingenious murders. Set in 1920s London and Egypt, their outstanding Art Deco production design, absurd humor, and soaring romance made them hits, beloved by generations of horror fans. The Abominable Dr. Phibes’ admirers include directors Tim Burton, Frank Darabont, and Ken Russell. Comedian Kumail Nanjiani built a scene around it in his The Big Sick (2017). Quentin Tarantino recently programmed it five times in less than two months at Hollywood’s New Beverly Cinema. Andrew Muschietti, director of It (2017), has said that The Abominable Dr. Phibes ranks among the scariest films of his childhood. Stephen King quipped on Facebook that the phrase “doctor recommended” on commercials makes him think of Dr. Phibes. The Telegraph ranked it among the fifty best horror films of all time and The Museum of Modern Art screened it in February, 2018. Now, Phibesologist Justin Humphreys expands his extensive previous writings on the series to tell the full story of these unique cinematic masterpieces. The Dr. Phibes Companion - An expanded version of “The Kind of Fiend Who Wins,” the definitive history of The Abominable Dr. Phibes. - A new essay on the making of Dr. Phibes Rises Again. - A new foreword by Dr. Phibes’ creator, William Goldstein. - Interviews with many of the series’ creators, including director Robert Fuest, screenwriters William Goldstein and James Whiton, art director Brian Eatwell, sound designer Peter Lennard, including previously unpublished conversations with organist Nicholas Kynaston (“War March of the Priests”), composer John Gale, screenwriter Lem Dobbs, and others. - Never-Before-Seen production artwork by director Robert Fuest from Fuest’s personal shooting script. - Previously unpublished behind-the-scenes photographs. - Photographs of The Abominable Dr. Phibes’ world premiere from screenwriter James Whiton’s files. - Dozens of illustrations from the Phibes films. - A thorough history of the “unphilmed” Phibes sequels. - And much, much more. Read on, relax, and enjoy. The organ plays till midnight. . .
274 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2018
5 people are currently reading
21 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 27, 2019
It hadn’t been my intent to finish reading this book on the birthday of Vincent Price. It just worked out that way!
THE DR. PHIBES COMPANION is written by a self-acknowledged fan of the two Dr. Phibes movies for other fans of them. The book grew out of an excellent feature article by this writer about THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES that had appeared in “Little Shoppe Of Horrors” magazine ... and, yes, I have that issue. He uses this book to expand that article and provide insight into the story behind the sequel, DR. PHIBES RISES AGAIN, the aftermath, proposed continuations of the story, Dr. Phibes’ appearances in other media, and tributes to some of the creative talents on the other side of the camera lens.
Also being a fan of both movies, I sped through this book in a couple of days. Part of this was due to the book’s fairly short length supplemented by a generous (and delightful) collection of photographs. (Many of these photographs were new to me and worth the price of the book on their own account!). But, much of it was also due to a great deal of information enthusiastically shared.
Enhancements in three areas would have made this better for me:
* There is a fair amount of repetition within the sections, sometimes word for word. It is not overdone, but I recall multiple “I’ve read this before” moments. Also, while I assume this was not the fault of the writer as much as the publishing house, there were several typos in the book;
* Kudos for the extensive information about the Director, Robert Fuest, and the Art Designer, Brian Eatwell. I would assume the writer knew that many fans would be reading this for new stories from and about the performers. For instance, I’ve never seen much written about Valli Kemp, and I didn’t learn anything more here;
* I was surprised by some of the omissions regarding plans to extend the Dr. Phibes series. The most glaring one I first read about in the magazine, “Van Helsing’s Journal,” in its feature article about Dr. Phibes. In it, Caroline Munro revealed there had been discussion about continuing the series with Victoria Phibes, the Doctor’s resurrected wife. Apparently, she was to be more malevolent than her husband!
Still, what is here is quite enjoyable and informative. Anyone who really enjoyed the Dr. Phibes movies should certainly appreciate this work.
THE DR. PHIBES COMPANION is written by a self-acknowledged fan of the two Dr. Phibes movies for other fans of them. The book grew out of an excellent feature article by this writer about THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES that had appeared in “Little Shoppe Of Horrors” magazine ... and, yes, I have that issue. He uses this book to expand that article and provide insight into the story behind the sequel, DR. PHIBES RISES AGAIN, the aftermath, proposed continuations of the story, Dr. Phibes’ appearances in other media, and tributes to some of the creative talents on the other side of the camera lens.
Also being a fan of both movies, I sped through this book in a couple of days. Part of this was due to the book’s fairly short length supplemented by a generous (and delightful) collection of photographs. (Many of these photographs were new to me and worth the price of the book on their own account!). But, much of it was also due to a great deal of information enthusiastically shared.
Enhancements in three areas would have made this better for me:
* There is a fair amount of repetition within the sections, sometimes word for word. It is not overdone, but I recall multiple “I’ve read this before” moments. Also, while I assume this was not the fault of the writer as much as the publishing house, there were several typos in the book;
* Kudos for the extensive information about the Director, Robert Fuest, and the Art Designer, Brian Eatwell. I would assume the writer knew that many fans would be reading this for new stories from and about the performers. For instance, I’ve never seen much written about Valli Kemp, and I didn’t learn anything more here;
* I was surprised by some of the omissions regarding plans to extend the Dr. Phibes series. The most glaring one I first read about in the magazine, “Van Helsing’s Journal,” in its feature article about Dr. Phibes. In it, Caroline Munro revealed there had been discussion about continuing the series with Victoria Phibes, the Doctor’s resurrected wife. Apparently, she was to be more malevolent than her husband!
Still, what is here is quite enjoyable and informative. Anyone who really enjoyed the Dr. Phibes movies should certainly appreciate this work.
December 22, 2018
I did not come to this book as a huge fan of the Dr. Phibes movies (I like them), but rather as a fan of the author’s previous book Interviews Too Shocking to Print! What I admire about the earlier book is the thoroughness and intimacy of Humphreys’ approach to the films and filmmakers he loves. He brings the same qualities to this anthology of essays on the Phibes phenomenon.
Humphreys presents his bias right up front, calling AIP’s 1971 horror-comedy The Abominable Dr. Phibes “lavish, melancholic, visually stunning, unique, dark, stylish, musical, haunting, and hilarious,” and even comparing it to Mozart (“heavy, but light”). Because he loves the film so much, he has spent years digging up information about it, conducting his own research to fill in gaps in existing film study scholarship. Tellingly, the book presents its bibliography in front of its table of contents, thereby highlighting the author’s hard work as well as his indebtedness to earlier researchers.
The bulk of the Companion is an in-depth review of the development, production and legacy of each of the two produced Phibes films. The third chapter, written by David Taylor and Sam Irvin, is an even deeper dive. Taylor and Irwin offer short synopses of more than a dozen Phibes treatments, outlines, scripts and spinoffs, including The Bride of Dr. Phibes (later Phibes Resurrectus, with filmmaker Roger Corman and an all-star cast attached), The Son of Dr. Phibes, Dr. Phibes vs. Count Yorga (!), Dr. Phibes vs. Adolf Hitler (!!), Phibes in the Holy Lands, an animated TV series called The Sinister Dr. Phibes, and a Pink Panther movie pitting Inspector Clouseau and James Bond against Fu Manchu and Anton Phibes…. Not to mention intended reboots from George Romero’s Laurel Entertainment, Tim Burton / Johnny Depp, and a more recent one starring Malcolm McDowell.
This list demonstrates the main strength of The Dr. Phibes Companion: It presents the Phibes story not as the fixed mythology of two films, but as an expanded universe of previously unshared stories. I can’t help wondering how I would feel about Phibes today if it had turned into the franchise that AIP originally envisioned, spanning five films or more. That (so far) unfulfilled promise forces me to re-watch the existing films with a renewed sense of wonder—and what more can an enthusiastic movie geek ask for from a film study?
I suspect that the informality of this book will bother some readers. There are a ton of parenthetical asides, digressions, author’s notes, etc. which can be distracting. Occasionally, the author also cites promotional blurbs about his own previous work. Tacky? Perhaps. But I think those passages also testify to the author’s determination to share everything he knows about his subject, and produce a definitive work for fans. I, for one, admire Humphreys' dedication to comparing and contrasting rare documents, asking probing questions of every co-creator he can find, and separating facts from “fake news.”
I also admire his decision to get personal about it all. The Companion ends with four shorter chapters which are really more like appendices, two by Humphreys and two by Mark Ferelli. These minor but worthwhile contributions profile Phibes creators as individual artists. The most moving chapter is Humphreys’ eulogy for Robert Fuest, which includes a number of very personal anecdotes about friendly exchanges between the author and the late filmmaker. Notably, it’s an appreciation of Bob Fuest as a human being, not just an appreciation of the artist—and I am grateful for the invitation to view him that way.
Humphreys writes, “Probably the greatest joy of being an interviewer is getting to know your favorite filmmakers and discovering that they are even more marvelous than their work.” Of course, interviewing heroes is not always such a pleasant experience—but I believe that the outcome is largely due to how we approach our heroes. I think there’s an art of the interview, which involves letting the subjects be who they are instead of worrying about who we want them to be or think they should be. (But that’s true in any real relationship, isn’t it?)
When we do that, we are not engaging in celebrity worship, but rather expressing awe and gratitude for a mysterious kinship with other human beings who have expanded our world by sharing their innermost world with us. I say again: What more can an enthusiastic film geek ask for from a film study?
Humphreys presents his bias right up front, calling AIP’s 1971 horror-comedy The Abominable Dr. Phibes “lavish, melancholic, visually stunning, unique, dark, stylish, musical, haunting, and hilarious,” and even comparing it to Mozart (“heavy, but light”). Because he loves the film so much, he has spent years digging up information about it, conducting his own research to fill in gaps in existing film study scholarship. Tellingly, the book presents its bibliography in front of its table of contents, thereby highlighting the author’s hard work as well as his indebtedness to earlier researchers.
The bulk of the Companion is an in-depth review of the development, production and legacy of each of the two produced Phibes films. The third chapter, written by David Taylor and Sam Irvin, is an even deeper dive. Taylor and Irwin offer short synopses of more than a dozen Phibes treatments, outlines, scripts and spinoffs, including The Bride of Dr. Phibes (later Phibes Resurrectus, with filmmaker Roger Corman and an all-star cast attached), The Son of Dr. Phibes, Dr. Phibes vs. Count Yorga (!), Dr. Phibes vs. Adolf Hitler (!!), Phibes in the Holy Lands, an animated TV series called The Sinister Dr. Phibes, and a Pink Panther movie pitting Inspector Clouseau and James Bond against Fu Manchu and Anton Phibes…. Not to mention intended reboots from George Romero’s Laurel Entertainment, Tim Burton / Johnny Depp, and a more recent one starring Malcolm McDowell.
This list demonstrates the main strength of The Dr. Phibes Companion: It presents the Phibes story not as the fixed mythology of two films, but as an expanded universe of previously unshared stories. I can’t help wondering how I would feel about Phibes today if it had turned into the franchise that AIP originally envisioned, spanning five films or more. That (so far) unfulfilled promise forces me to re-watch the existing films with a renewed sense of wonder—and what more can an enthusiastic movie geek ask for from a film study?
I suspect that the informality of this book will bother some readers. There are a ton of parenthetical asides, digressions, author’s notes, etc. which can be distracting. Occasionally, the author also cites promotional blurbs about his own previous work. Tacky? Perhaps. But I think those passages also testify to the author’s determination to share everything he knows about his subject, and produce a definitive work for fans. I, for one, admire Humphreys' dedication to comparing and contrasting rare documents, asking probing questions of every co-creator he can find, and separating facts from “fake news.”
I also admire his decision to get personal about it all. The Companion ends with four shorter chapters which are really more like appendices, two by Humphreys and two by Mark Ferelli. These minor but worthwhile contributions profile Phibes creators as individual artists. The most moving chapter is Humphreys’ eulogy for Robert Fuest, which includes a number of very personal anecdotes about friendly exchanges between the author and the late filmmaker. Notably, it’s an appreciation of Bob Fuest as a human being, not just an appreciation of the artist—and I am grateful for the invitation to view him that way.
Humphreys writes, “Probably the greatest joy of being an interviewer is getting to know your favorite filmmakers and discovering that they are even more marvelous than their work.” Of course, interviewing heroes is not always such a pleasant experience—but I believe that the outcome is largely due to how we approach our heroes. I think there’s an art of the interview, which involves letting the subjects be who they are instead of worrying about who we want them to be or think they should be. (But that’s true in any real relationship, isn’t it?)
When we do that, we are not engaging in celebrity worship, but rather expressing awe and gratitude for a mysterious kinship with other human beings who have expanded our world by sharing their innermost world with us. I say again: What more can an enthusiastic film geek ask for from a film study?
October 11, 2024
This book is incredibly dense, but very well-researched. Would only recommend if you’re as weirdly into these films as I am.
November 21, 2018
A fantastic and informative book. Mr. Humphreys has painstakingly crafted the ultimate tome on anything Dr. Phibes. With hard to find photographs and back stories, this is without a doubt, a treasure for Vincent Price fans everywhere. The Seven Fates of Dr. Phibes (an unphilmed sequel) was a movie that HAD to have been made.
Get this book!
Get this book!
April 20, 2020
Once you get past the occasional typo, typesetting quirk, or repetitive content this in-depth look at the making of one of my favorite movie series/characters is pretty darn entertaining.
I learned plenty, and now I need to watch 'The Abominable Dr. Phibes' again...
I learned plenty, and now I need to watch 'The Abominable Dr. Phibes' again...
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews