Hammer Films Biography

The first thing Hammer did following the success of The Quatermass Experiment was to cash in on the unexpected success of the Quatermass film by producing another X-orientated production, this one to be titled X -The Unknown. X - The Unknown remains of interest primarily for two reasons: first, it firmly established Hammer's transition from B-movie thrillers to out-and-out horror/science fiction, and secondly, it was the first feature to be scripted by Jimmy Sangster, who would not only go on to write the studio's most important genre entries over the next couple of years. X - The Unknown was a low budget effort centring around a curious radioactive mud-like creature with the ability to kill a man on contact. This was all directed with competence if not flair by Ealing veteran Leslie Norman, who took over from one Joseph Walton when he had to withdraw from the project because of illness. In reality, Walton was a pseudonym for Joseph Losey who, at the request of the star, Dean Jagger, was booted off the film because of his alleged Communist sympathies.

When Warner Bros released X The Unknown in America it by no means approached the success of The Quatermass Experiment, with that in mind, Hammer decided to bring back the originator of this success with a sequel, Quatermass II (aka Enemy From Space). Based on Nigel Kneale's own 1955 TV follow-up to The Quatermass Experiment, the script was adapted by Kneale himself and director Val Guest. Though the film did fairly well when released, it was obvious that Hammer could not continue plundering what was basically the same idea indefinitely.

Jack Goodlatte, now the managing director of the ABC circuit, suggested that Hammer remake the Frankenstein story Hammer needed no more encouragement. The proposed film was to be called Frankenstein and the Monster, a low budget affair to be shot in black and white within the breakneck time of just three weeks. Hastily scripted by Milton Subotsky, Universal stepped in at the last minute; threatening legal action because certain plot developments Universal had imbued the Shelley story with for the earlier Karloff film. As a result, the Subotsky script was scrapped and Jimmy Sangster was given the task of coming up with a new one that contained no reference, either verbal or visual, to the Karloff film. These revisions consequently led to changes in the production schedule, which was extended to four weeks, and the budget, which was upped to £70, 000. Most important, however, was the decision to shoot in colour.

The film certainly received its fair share of ballyhoo. The lobby of the Warner theatre was decked out to look like Frankenstein's laboratory, while the media reported on the huge crowds, who helped break the theatre's box office records, clocking up its biggest weekend take ever. The film's 'monster business' at the British box office was nothing compared to the reception it received when it finally opened in America in June 1957. 'Full week's business in two days,' boasted the trade ads, whilst cinema managers were encouraged to go the whole hog in promoting the film. 'Feature the creature and go!' exclaimed the pressbook, which went on to suggest 'Around-the-clock horror-a-thon shows. Indeed, the film eventually grossed £2 million worldwide - not bad for a small independent British company who, up until recently, had barely been scraping by in the quota quickie market.

The studio's main player of 1958 proved to be their production of Dracula (aka The Horror of Dracula), the success of which not only confirmed Hammer as the world's leading purveyors of horror, but also made them a bucketload of money to boot. The success of The Curse of Frankenstein had provoked a certain degree of interest in Hammer from Hollywood, so that by the time they came to make Dracula and the films which immediately followed it, they had financial backing from a number of American sources, including Columbia, Universal and United Artists. These companies also distributed Hammer's product in the US and throughout the world, which eliminated the need for Hammer's own distribution arm Exclusive; which was gradually wound down.

As had been hoped, the film was another box office smash for Hammer when it was finally released in 1958, even surpassing the box office take of The Curse of Frankenstein. Some of the critics were even slightly more disposed to praise this time round, with Film Bulletin referring to the film as a 'TechniColoured nightmare, directed by Terence Fisher with immense flair for the blood-curdling shot.' By now, the name of Hammer was synonymous with horror. All they had to do now was to keep up the flow of product and reap the benefits - which they did with a vengeance.