John Burke - Hammer Horror Film Omnibus 2

[dem bones]

John Burke - The Plague Of The Zombies (from The Second Hammer Horror Film Omnibus, Pan, 1967)

Audacious spoiler!

Alice began to crawl out of her coffin.
She slid onto the ground like some giant, slimy insect. Her hands groped forward and hauled her along. As though emerging from a sticky chrysalis she tested every step, raised her head and twitched from side to side, and probed the soil with her fingertips. Then she steadied her head and looked straight at Pete. She smiled. He flattened himself against the massive headstone and watched, stricken, as she clawed towards it and began to pull herself up .....

London, 1907. Sir James Forbes of the Royal College of Physicians is looking forward to a fishing holiday in Scotland when he receives a garbled letter from his former pupil, Dr. Peter Tompson, who now runs a practice in Tarleton village, Cornwall. Of late, healthy young men have been "dropping like flies" and young Thomson is at a loss to explain the cause. Sylvia, Sir James' indomitable daughter, insists they abandon their plans and set off for the West Country immediately and the old boy reluctantly complies.

As they approach Tarleton a fox hunt is in progress and Sylvia, appalled deliberately sends the pursuing huntsmen in the wrong direction. When they realise they've been duped, these young ruffians follow the coach into the village and rampage through the churchyard where the funeral of the latest victim is in progress, scattering the coffin-bearers and causing them to drop their burden. The corpse spills out onto the soil and the Hooray Henries trot off toward the Manor House thoroughly pleased with themselves.

Dr. Thomson is married to Alice, Sylvia's closest friend, and both she and her father are shocked at the deterioration in the young woman's health in the two years since last they met. Sylvia does her best to rally her but Alice is vague and clearly distressed. Worse, she appears to have a crush on the dashing Squire Hamilton, "Lord of the Manor - and of everything. He acts as coroner and magistrate, judge and jury", whose cronies caused the unseemly to-do at the funeral!

Her overworked husband isn't in any better shape. Sir James catches up with him in the local pub where he's downing whisky and being told what a useless doctor he is by Martinus, brother of the recently upset corpse and professional hostile yokel. Sir James buys everyone a drink and leads Peter home, lecturing him about his drinking and taking up where Martinus left off: what was that rubbish letter he sent all about and why hasn't he conducted any autopsies or at least taken some blood samples? The answer is simple. The villagers don't hold with new-fangled medical ideas and won't allow him to disturb their dead. That settles it.

"Dig one up," said Sir James with relish. The gruesome idea appealed to him enormously. "That lad they buried today will do. Nice and fresh. Then we can really start work."

*****

Some hours later, the pair slip into the churchyard and set to work with their shovels. Just as they're about to lift the coffin-lid they're apprehended by the long arm of the law in the form of Sergeant Swift and a young constable. As Sir James goes through his "do you know who I am?" routine, Peter slides away the lid and .... empty! The amiable sergeant - whose own boy was among the first to die - agrees to give them 48 hours leeway before he files his report.

The would-be grave-robbers aren't the only ones abroad after dark. Thinking the rest of the household asleep, Alice sneaks off in the direction of the disused tin mine unaware that the inquisitive Sylvia is following her. Sylvia is forced to take a detour when she bumps into the drunken Martinus and loses sight of her friend. She decides to return to the Tompsons' but is cut off by the Hooray Henries. Their leader, Denver, manhandles her onto his horse and heads back to the Manor House where he wins her in a game of cards. As he approaches her brandishing his riding crop, Squire Hamilton walks in. Furiously, he bloodies Denver's nose and orders the others to get out of his sight. Sylvia, retaining her dignity, refuses both his profuse apology and offer of a chaperon and heads off home again, having had quite enough excitement for one night. But the worst is yet to come! Passing the tin mine she is disturbed by a grey figure in the cerements of the grave bearing a bloodied woman in his arms. On seeing the girl he contemptuously tosses the bundle of rags onto the path and disappears. It's Alice! She's dead!

At least her husband and Sir James have a body for autopsy now.

*****

Sergeant Swift takes Martinus into custody for Alice's murder. He was found in a drunken slumber mere yards from where the corpse fell but he's insistent he didn't do it. He even claims to have seen the murderer, not that he expects anyone to believe him as he scarcely does himself. It was his own brother who he'd buried not twenty-four hours earlier!

The autopsy is a bummer, yielding no useful results whatsoever so maybe it wasn't such a lucky break that Alice was killed after all. Sir James, however, has been piecing the puzzle together and the finger of suspicions points directly toward - Squire Hamilton! It seems the old mines are worth a fortune but, after a series of casualties, no villager can be imposed upon to work them. Who better, then, to mine all that lovely tin than - Zombies! And the Squire has spent much time living on the continent - including Haiti - so it all fits! Sir James decides it's time to have it out with this Hamilton chappie, but first he must keep moonlit vigil at Alice's grave to ensure she stays put.

Squire Hamilton, meanwhile, has paid Sylvia a visit at the Tompsons to again apologise for his guests' boorish behaviour and offer his condolences over her friends untimely demise. Before he leaves he requests a drink of water. He makes a drama of dropping the glass and Sylvia cuts her finger picking up the pieces. The Squire bandages her finger over an empty glass ... and runs off with the blood. Now he's got her!

Sir James, the frail Vicar and Peter stake out the graveside. Nothing seems to be amiss so the doctors tell the Holy man to go home to bed. As he heads back to the vicarage they hear him cry out. Someone - or something has attacked him! Turns out it was all a ruse: somebody who resembles Squire Hamilton has despoiled the grave while they were attending the old boy but Peter disturbs him before he can abscond with the body. He looks upon the face of his beloved wife. She sure looks healthy for a corpse, no decomposition or anything.

Her eyes open .....

*****

There's more, of course, but even I'm not going to ruin the outcome of that remarkable churchyard scene nor the final confrontation between the Doctors, Hamilton and his undead slaves. Some novelisations succeed because the author fleshes out or otherwise embellishes the original screenplay to good advantage - Hardy and Shaffer's The Wicker Man being a prime example. Others stick rigidly to the script and, in the case of The Plague Of The Zombies, I reckon you'll be glad of it. At just over eighty pages, should ever it receive stand-alone publication, I'd rate it as one of the most must-have pulp novels ever. As it stands, it's like the best issue-length Supernatural Stories epic Lionel Fanthorpe never got to write.

[killercrab]

Priorities Dem - my review of The Reptile:

You might ask yourself , why bother reading a novelisation or adaption of a film - after all most are carbon copies word for script . It's a good question.

In THE SECOND HAMMER HORROR FILM OMNIBUS you get four stories - The Reptile , Dracula Prince of Darkness , Rasputin and Plague of the Zombies. Not by coincidence , these four films were made by Hammer back to back in a four film deal. Utilising the same sets to cut costs , they make up a rather nice chilling quartet.

I know the story of The Reptile backwards - married couple inherit a quaint rose bedecked cottage called Larkrise. The locals are suspicious and there's a stonking great bleak house nearby , where the bleak doctor Franklyn dominates his innocent seeming daughter with a rod of iron.

Well she's a human reptile y'see - so you would.

The adaption opens with Harry Spalding and Valerie meeting the solicitor Mr Beeding. In the film we don't get to this until after the initial prologue where Charles' brother is killed by the Reptile ( which the adaption ignores). Burke expands on the details of the bequest and this flows naturally into the couple arriving at Clagmoor Heath. Characters like Mad Peter don't turn up until he jumps Charles one night - whereas in the film he's introduced earlier. The rest of the story follows the film except that after Charles is bitten , Valerie doesn't rush off to find the barkeep Tom Bailey - he turns up next morning and slips some brandy into her drink instead of presumably a herbal medicine ala the film.

These small changes , which are actually tighter edits make me wonder if Burke was working from an early script or wether director Gilling expanded on scenes on set.

Overall I found reading the adaption as compelling as watching the film - Burke's writing is tight yet not too functional and he presents the story well. The only other adaption I've read is THE GORGON , which I found much drier. I'm hoping PLAGUE OF THE ZOMBIES stands up next!

ade

[dem bones]

....... from the old place, etc. June 6th - Sept 25th 2007

Franklin Marsh

Weird - I've just read this Ade! (And half of Dracula - Prince Of Darkness). I think they stand up very well. Burke's novelisations were a godsend back in those pre-video three channel days when you had to wait years for your most wanted's to turn up (and hope you could stay awake). I remember holiday times being a particular nightmare - would the boarding house have a TV - and what with ITV regions all showing different stuff - would you miss something important (or perhaps get an unexpected bonus?)
I remember reading The Reptile long before I ever saw the film - but Burkey did it justice. I like the scene where the graves are opened in the pouring rain.

*****

Killercrab

I remember reading The Reptile long before I ever saw the film - but Burkey did it justice. I like the scene where the graves are opened in the pouring rain. >>

Hooray a response ! - thanks FM - fancy you reading it too! You make an EXCELLENT point ( that stupidly I didn't think of!) - if you've not seen the film - well it's all new ain't it ?!

I read all the HOUSE OF HAMMER comic strips before seeing the films and my fave strips are fave films!

The Reptile , Dracula Prince of Darkness , Plague of the Zombies and Vampire Circus!

Burkey's books are like revisiting old friends.

ade

*****

pulphack

I'm sure Burke must have worked to shooting scripts, as his Dad's Army novelisation has a very touching scene between Arthur Wilson and Mavis (Mrs Pike) that reads as though it fits the structure of the movie, yet is missing from the final cut. He also likes to flesh out some thin material - in his Strange Report novelisation he welds two scripts together with some excellent - yet small - new scenes and some good character work. Similarly, his Jason King books (as Robert Miall) flesh out the characters in a way that the thin scripts did not (pains me to say it as I've modelled my career on JK, but the series is woeful in this respect, and the creator of Mark Caine would NOT have approved).

There's a good case to be made for Burke as a relatively unsung Brit pulp hero. And I'll gladly make it, if pissed enough at the nearest party.

*****

Calenture

John Burke was an author I used to appreciate years ago - I have those two Hammer omnibus tie-ins that he wrote. Recently I tried re-reading one story, (Plague of the Zombies, I think). I felt disappointed when I re-read it, it all seemed too sketchy. I can't help thinking of Dem's reluctance to re-read favourites as they often seem to disappoint.

The Dad's Army tie-in, read for the first time just a few years ago - now that one I enjoyed.

I have another of his Pan film tie-ins here from 1963. The Man Who Finally Died. I haven't brought the book down, but according to my database, it's from a screenplay by Lewis Greifer (story) and Louis Marks.

Well of course I had to get the book down in the end, and good grief, it's got a painting of Pete Cushing and Stanley Baker on the cover. Do we have a John Burke thread in Favourite Authors...? Should we...? Should I post the cover...?

Of course not.

*****

AllysonBird

The Reptile - one of my favourite films. John Laurie as Mad Peter - sooooo good!

*****

John L. Probert

John Burke would warrant a section to himself. As well as the above & the 'Takes of Unease' series he edited for Pan, his collection 'We've Been Waiting for You' from Ash-Tree is well worth a read. It includes 'Comedy of Terrors' from Pan Volume Nine, which wasn't really typical of his original horror fiction

*****

Killercrab

The Reptile - one of my favourite films. John Laurie as Mad Peter - sooooo good! >>

I've never seen a chicken drumstick stripped so lip smackingly bare as by John Laurie! Glad to see more Reptile fans out there Allyson!

John Burke was an author I used to appreciate years ago - I have those two Hammer omnibus tie-ins that he wrote. Recently I tried re-reading one story, (Plague of the Zombies, I think). I felt disappointed when I re-read it, it all seemed too sketchy.>>

I think that's mostly down to the source material. Hammer films by dint aren't heavy on characterisation , but utilize tried and tested set pieces. Burkey does try to flesh out characters a bit though - the solicitor in The Reptile for instance - but overall , with 90 pages of straightforward plot , it's about narrative and atmosphere above all else - just like the films. I'd like to have seen written sequels attempted myself. Question is - do these films warrant depth - I'm assuming that's what you mean Rog?

ade

*****

Calenture

No, not depth in that sense, Ade - not heavy characterisation - but I'm just starting another Burke thread as promised. I think John is right about Burke needing a section to himself, he certainly influenced me years ago. I'm just dithering, wondering if the post ought to go here and how many quotes I can steal from this one as frankly I wanted them all! I'll link the two threads when I post the other, which will be any second now.

*****

Franklin Marsh

Polished off Dracula - Prince Of Darkness - great! As one of the only two Hammer Dracula novelisations, I enjoyed it as much as Scars. One little extra from Burke - when Dracula seizes the sword from Charles, blood pours from his hand. I always expect this to be in the film. JB does a good job of delving into Klove's thoughts, too - he's apparently been waiting for ten years for someone to turn up at the castle.
I've nearly polished off POTZ - I've enjoyed it Rog! Although Squire Hamilton doesn't appear much, Burke has made him a thoroughly nasty villain - a superficial sheen of charm masking an arrogant, malevolent dastard - and, worst of all, he's only in it for the money!

*****

demonik

Just reached the halfway mark of The Reptile and I'm very impressed. What a wonderful village pub that is! Do they name this hotbed of "dull, backward, inhospitable yokels" in the film?

"What have you done with them?"
"I'm sorry. I ---"
"You've driven them all away."
"I've done nothing to drive anyone away. I came to this inn expecting hospitality. I'm a complete stranger here."
The landlord nodded wryly. "That's it. You're a stranger. They don't think much on strangers. They don't even like me all that much, and I've been here nigh on three years"

Three years? What does he want? The freedom of Cornwall?

Bleedin' townie Jessies!

*****

Killercrab

Just reached the halfway mark of The Reptile and I'm very impressed. What a wonderful village pub that is! Do they name this hotbed of "dull, backward, inhospitable yokels" in the film? >

No I don't think so - the Spaldings just go to a place called Clagmoor Heath ( which I assume is fictitious) - their cottage called Larkrise. The village is a typical Hammerverse creation where the locals go for a beer when facing reptiles or zombies.

No wonder they are so grumpy...

ade

[dem bones]

It was either this or his novelisation of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. I don't think i'm strong enough for that yet, so ....

The Reptile

Clagmore Heath, Cornwall, 1902. On the death of his brother in mysterious circumstances, Harry Spaulding of the Grenadier Guards inherits Larkside Cottage and marries his fiancee Valerie the same day. Larkside proves so far off the beaten track as to be impossible to find, so Harry calls in at the village pub to ask directions. The locals extend him a typical Clagmore welcome - they leg it out out of the public bar. Landlord Tom Baily needlessly explains that they're not fond of strangers - he's been here three years and they still hate him - but Harry suspects there's more to it than that. could it have something to do with his brother's death?

Bailey directs the Spauldings to their new home. Harry lifts his blushing bride across the threshold into .... mayhem! The furniture has been trashed. Furious, Harry is all for giving every man-jack in Clagmore a damn good thrashing, but Valerie placates him and is soon setting the place to rights. Harry suffers this until the cottage is in some kind of order then storms off to confront his new neighbours, openly accusing them of vandalism. You suspect it's going to take him far longer than three years to win them over.

On his way home, Harry encounters Mad Peter, the local epileptic and, finding him slightly more communicative than the rest, invites him in for supper. Between mouthfuls, Mad Peter blurts out that "they" killed Harry's brother, then makes a bolt for the door and runs off into the night having been upset by voices. Three hours later, Spaulding spots him at the window, his face blackened and foam dripping from his mouth. Mad Peter manages to gurgle "Dr. Franklyn" before losing consciousness. The name's a blank to Harry, but Valerie's already had the privilege. While her husband was out gallivanting, a surly gent burst in on her demanding to know the whereabouts of his daughter.

Harry Spaulding goes to fetch him.

"There's a man dying at my cottage. Could you come at once?"
"What's it to me?"

Eventually, Harry persuades the miserable bastard to attend the stricken man, but by now it's too late. Franklyn, knowing the locals well, advises that he'd best deal with the matter from here and summons a huge Malay, his manservant, to remove the corpse.

The following day, the Spaldings attend the funeral. Of the villagers, only Tom Bailey is there to mourn Mad Peter's passing. He explains that the dead man was popular with the villagers but none will attend as they know what killed him - "the Black Death"!

Harry and Tom trundle off to the pub while Valerie makes her way home alone through this hostile and allegedly plague-ridden area. Imagine her astonishment on arriving home in one piece to find the cottage has been tidied, festooned with beautiful flowers and there's an attractive young woman waiting to greet her. What is it with these people that they think they can drop in whenever they please. However, her guest, Ann Franklin, is the first friendly face she's seen since she arrived in this dive and Valerie accepts her invitation to dine with she and her father that same evening.

The Spauldings arrive to be met by Dr. Franklyn storming up the path and ranting at his daughter for not informing him she was going out socialising. But the damage has been done. It wouldn't do to withdraw the invitation, so the newlyweds are forced to endure a second miserable evening during which Franklyn first demands his daughter play for them, then goes into a frenzy when she obliges. And then there are her 'pets'. Rodents, cats and dogs all trapped in cages. Appalled at their host's behaviour, Harry and Valerie stomp off home, only to find their kitten has vanished.

Tom Bailey at last comes off the fence and throws in his lot with Harry. He reasons that the best way to get to the bottom of the mystery is to dig up Mad Peter's corpse and examine it. Oh, and they might as well exhume Harry's brother while they're at it. That night they go about their grim business in the teeming rain (best moment in story so far). The faces on both the dead men are black and there are identical twin-puncture marks on their necks. Bailey recognises these wounds from his days in India: the mark of the cobra!

tension mounts ....

to be continued

[dem bones]

The Reptile concluded. One massive spoiler

Back home from his graveyard adventure, Harry is handed a note which had been slipped under the door earlier in the evening;

"I desperately need your help. Please come before it is too late.

Anna Franklyn."

You can tell Valerie 's new to this marriage lark as she doesn't bat an eyelid when her husband throws on his wet coat and zooms off to help this beautiful young damsel in distress. Already adopting local customs, Harry doesn't bother with the door but sneaks in through a window and creeps about the pitch dark rooms whispering "Anna .... Anna". Eventually he reaches the room stacked with caged pets and, among the recent additions, Valerie's little kitten!

Something horrible slithers from the shadows ....

" ... the snake's head that was still, grotesquely, a woman's head struck forward ... the venomous fangs stuck into the collar of his coat ..."

Harry, barely surviving the attack, stumbles home and pleads with his wife to stab him in the neck to bleed out the poison. Lapsing into a fever, he babbles out a stream of helpful clues - something about his brother, Anna, snakes, Dr. Franklyn .... what can it mean? Enter Tom Bailey like the do-gooding cur he is! Pub landlords have enjoyed a good press on Vault in the past, but that sure doesn't extend to this jerk. There are even times you suspect he doesn't have a surly, malicious, conniving bone in his body - talk about letting the side down. He's at it again, seeing that Harry's OK, fussing over Val and, fatally, warning her not to go snooping around at Dr. Franklyn's place tonight. She's a woman for crying out loud! Sure enough, the moment he heads off to open the pub ...

Valerie slips in through the window left open by Harry and tip-toes through the house until she locates Anna's room. There she is, sleeping naked on the bed - or maybe she's already dead? Valerie gingerly reaches out to the lifeless figure and ... well, it's certainly her skin, but where have all her innards gone?

Reading this again reminded me how much more i enjoyed Hammer Horror Film Omnibus 2 than it's predecessor. Reptile is much slower than Plague Of The Zombies and we don't get to see the snake-woman in action until right toward the end, but it's worth the wait. Locked in a room with the mad Doctor, the house going up in flames all around them, Valerie finally gets chapter and verse on the mystery (Anna's condition is punishment for her father delving too deeply into the mysteries of the Snakemen of Borneo). You don't need to have seen the movie to know how it's going to pan out, but isn't that all part of Hammer's appeal?

[noose]

Thought the peeps of the Vault might like to know that I've been filming recently for a special feature for an upcoming Hammer Horror re-release, it's going to be about John Burke and Hammer tie-ins. The blu-ray/DVD will be released around December time, I think.

I think I did okay - really enjoyed the day, held the ORIGINAL sheet-music of CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN and listened to the original score of THE DEVIL RIDES OUT being played on the peeyana, and also had a nice time with Madeline Smith, whom I've met more than a few times now, but who is always lovely.