It's Thanksgiving time in America again, and I've resisted (until now) writing down what I'm particularly thankful for, as so many do around this part of the year. What I would have done this post is dedicate it to someone very dear to me, except his wish apparently wasn't to be reflected upon in public, so I can't say his name.
I'd never met him in person, yet I may have still seen him in person. We both had attended the Son of Famous Monsters Convention in Horrorwood, Karloffornia back in late May of 1995 and each of us described similar events we were at. He had to have seen me at the awards dinner, as my seat was right in front of the podium and I would frequently get up and take photos of the speakers from close range as they gave their talk.
In any case, we really met online, on Facebook, and shared many wonderful similar memories, including those of Forry Ackerman and how his love for the genre led to my friend to become a writer and author of several books. He wrote for Scarlet Street a few times. He came into my life when I needed someone to talk to and support me through difficult times. He called me his little brother. Even now as I still struggle, I'm reminded of his calming thoughts for me.
Then he disappeared, and I feared the worst. I respected his privacy, however, and did not make pursuit. Sure enough around his birthday this year I finally got the dreaded confirmation that he had died near the end of 2017, almost one year ago now to be exact.
For some reason, he'd decided to distance himself from me and the public in general and went in his own private way. I get that. A part of me still tries to understand that once more I was 'taken in' by someone, only to be made to feel somewhat 'cast out' when it was probably the most important time to be there for that person. Yet, I get it.
Instead of dwelling on what I feel I might have been deprived of, it is of course, best to think about what I have to be thankful for in knowing him. The fact he came into my life at a time when I really needed him. His support probably kept me from doing even greater damage to myself over the loses I have suffered.
He probably did mean all of the good things he ever said to me, but his landscape changed, and he had to look to his future his way....and it's only best that I simply be thankful for what piece of his life that I was able to experience.
I don't believe our lives are our own, but gifts. We do, however, have some control over how we use them, these lives. Focusing on what we've gained is always the better road, than on that we feel we've lost...or more truthfully what we never really had in the first place. His gift was his own to share as he pleased, and I'm thankful he did indeed share some of it with me!
Since I can not mention his name, I'll instead dedicate this post to all out there whom each of us are thankful for. You know it's someone who has touched your life. Its someone who brightened up your experience of living. We help each other through life and that's some gift to have, when you know you've got it. Happy American Thanksgiving!
*Christopher Lee (with Joachim Fuchsberger, 2nd from top) in "The Face of Fu Manchu" [1965]
*Christopher Lee (with Tsai Chin, top photos) in "The Face of Fu Manchu" [1965]
*Karin Dor (top photo) and Tsai Chin (2nd from top) join Christopher Lee (below) in "The Face of Fu Manchu" [1965]
*Christopher Lee in "The Face of Fu Manchu" [1965]
*Harry Alan Towers (top) and one of his early motion picture productions, "Information Received" [1961] with William Sylvester and Sabina Sesselmann (3rd from top).
Embed from Getty Images
*Harry Alan Towers (ca. 1955)
*Harry Alan Towers (ca. 1955)
*"Death Drums Along the River" [1963 - 2nd from top] was not only produced but co-written by Harry Alan Towers and successful enough to warrant a follow up, "Coast of Skeletons" [1965 - 3rd from top], written and produced by Mr. Towers. He also produced and wrote the original story for "Code 7...Victim 5" [1964 - bottom artwork] with Lex Barker
Embed from Getty Images
*Harry Alan Towers (sitting left) attends an ATV Management Meeting (Sept. 1955) with (L2R) Norman Collins, Richard L. Meyer, Lew Grade and Val Parnell
Marie Bäumer is Roxane from "She" [2001]
*"Fantômas", the 1913 serial directed by Louis Feuillade.
*More artwork for the "Fantômas" 1913 serial (top) along with the same for the 1921 American adaptation (3 bottom frames).
*"Fantômas" in 1921 (top), 1949 (2nd from top) and in 1964 (two bottom frames).
*"Fantômas" returned and starred in a trilogy of motion pictures from 1964-67.
*Christopher Lee in "An Eye for an Eye" [1981 - top] as "Count Dracula" [1970 - 2nd from top] in "The Oblong Box" [1969 - 3rd from top] and as himself [below photo].
*Christopher Lee in "The Brides of Fu Manchu" [1965]
*Harry Alan Towers (sitting left) attends an ATV Management Meeting (Sept. 1955) with (L2R) Norman Collins, Richard L. Meyer, Lew Grade and Val Parnell
*Lex Barker would return with Mickey Rooney in the Harry Alan Towers production (again based of an original story by Mr. Towers) called "24 Hours To Kill" [1965]
*Harry Alan Towers shown with Lawrence Oliver
*After kicking off his "Fu Manchu" films with "The Face of Fu Manchu" [1965 - 2nd from top], which he produced and wrote under the pseudonym Peter Welbeck, Mr. Towers would then go on to produce "Ten Little Indians" [1965 - bottom 2 images] which he also co-wrote.
*More Harry Alan Towers productions with "Our Man in Marrakesh" [1966 - top two] with Tony Randall and Herbert Lom, followed by Christopher Lee in "Circus of Fear" [1966 - 3rd from top] and "Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon" [1967 - bottom artwork].
*Mr. Towers wrote and produced "Five Golden Dragons" [1967]
*Christopher Lee as Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, Kharis (The Mummy) and Dr. Fu Manchu!
*Christopher Lee has fun with the cast of "Dracula, AD 1972" [1972 - above], is seen next to his coffin in "Dracula Has Risen From the Grave" [1968 - 3rd from top] and ultimately falls apart in "Taste the Blood of Dracula" [1970 - bottom photo]
*Christopher Lee
*Christopher Lee on his wedding day (top) to Birgit Kroencke in 1961 and years later (2nd from top) together in 2012 along with another photo including their daughter Christina (3rd from top) and as Saruman once more (bottom) in "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" [2012]
*Scenes from "She" [2001] including the cover of the soundtrack LP (top).
Ophélie Winter is "She" [2001]
*Ian Duncan plays Leo Vincey in "She" [2001]
*More scenes from "She" [2001]
*René Navarre portrays "Fantômas" (below) in the 1913 serial directed by Louis Feuillade along with a poster for the film (above).
*Marcel Allain (below), co-creater with Pierre Souvestre of "Fantômas" along with the cover of one of their many novels (above).
*Marcel Allain (below), co-creater with Pierre Souvestre of "Fantômas" along with more covers of just a few of their many novels (above). (Unfortunately I've not been able to find a photo of Mr. Souvestre. He would die at the young age of 39 and Mr. Allain would go on to single-handedly write 10 more Fantômas books.)
*Another "Fantômas" novel (top) along with advertisements for the 1913 serial (2nd and 3rd from top) and as a comic strip (below).
*The 1921 American serial for "Fantômas".
*"Fantômas" [1947]
*Ioan Gruffudd as Horatio Hornblower (top 3 photos) with Vincent Grass (2nd from top) and Duncan Bell (3rd from top) and author C. S. Forester (below), creator of the character, Hornblower.
*Ioan Gruffudd as Horatio Hornblower (top 3 photos) with Jamie Bamber (top photo) and author C. S. Forester (below), creator of the character, Hornblower.
*Ioan Gruffudd as Horatio Hornblower with Robert Lindsay (top photo).
*Ioan Gruffudd as Horatio Hornblower and Jamie Bramber as Archie Kennedy.
*Christopher Lee with forever friend Peter Cushing (top), in "She" [1965 - 2nd from top], "The Man with the Golden Gun" [1974 - 3rd from top] and "The Mummy" [1959 - bottom photo]
*More Harry Alan Towers productions that were also written by him, "Eve" [1968 - top] and "House of 1,000 Dolls" [1967 - bottom 3 photos] with Vincent Price
*Christopher Lee in "The Face of Fu Manchu" [1965] top three photos. Mr. Lee, of course, would return many times in character, the first being "The Brides of Fu Manchu" below [1966].
*Robert Lindsay (top photo), David Warner (2nd from top) and Jamie Bramber (bottom photo) all support the efforts of Horatio "Hornblower" [1998-2003]. (Note: At the time of this article in Scarlet Street, six episodes had been made. There would be two more produced afterwards.)
* Supplemental images are noted with an (*) asterisk. My intention is to only enhance the reading experience and not take away from the original publication