The above YouTube interview was done in 1990, just a few years before his death, and is splendid. Many of us will have seen Peter Cushing in interviews which naturally played up his career as a horror icon, so he would clown around a bit uncomfortably but never really get the chance to show what he was really made of.
"The Human Factor" addresses such issues as his faith, his insecurities and his relationship with his wife Helen. He covered those things and more in the two volumes of his autobiography, but this is the first time I'd seen him talking openly about them. It's a revelation. Never before had Mr Cushing seemed so genuine and profound in his interviews. It's an inspiring piece indeed. What a wonderful, wonderful human being. God Bless Saint Peter.
What a magnificent interview. I never expected to see him speak so openly about his wife; I'd heard the story about him running up and down the stairs before, so to hear him retell it in his own words is deeply moving.
Perhaps not on the same scale but this very brief clip of Cushing and Lee always made me smile.
That's a good one, LeHah. Quite touching, because Cushing is quite clearly in his final months, and Christopher Lee seems to know that he will soon lose a very dear friend. They apparently had a whale of a time making the films they both acted in, but once the cameras started rolling it was deadly serious.
oh my, thanks for putting this one up here. I saw it in the past and was touched by it. Peter had said so many great things in his life that has been written about in books and magazines to see this man in the twilight of his life making a few of his great statements is great, Only adds to the fine honest down to earth man he was.A treasure of honesty in a industry too often filled with fabrication.
About the small clip, sure, Lee wrote about it how he knew he would never see his life long friend again as he left the shooting that day. When he left in the car traveling back home he remain in silence and said I am the LAST one left. Obviously in reference to that special group of people who were known as horror stars[Chaney- senior- Boris Karloff, Bela Lugusi- Lon Chaney JR, John Carridine, Vincent Price, etc etc, there are others who should be mentioned as well] But it is about a certain era, a certain style, a certain actor, a certain institution in the wonderful sense of wonder world millions loved and love in this world.As Peter said or would say, we don't die we just move on. But then more then any other genre in this world is that not what the horror genre has said through the decades? Hopefully book me for the good place though on that eternal trip.
The above link will take you to another part of the session which LeHah linked. It's more Christopher Lee's show here, but Peter's reactions are delightful too. It's clear that Mr Lee was doing his utmost to amuse his friend, knowing that it would probably be their last meeting - which it was. Poignant and funny at the same time.
Timmer, I'm bumping this because although you posted above, and should thus have springboarded this thread to the top, and in doing so your name should have appeared as the last person who posted, but it seems that your name has not appeared as the last person who posted, because my name appears as the last person who posted, nor have you springboarded the thread to the top, because it's hanging back there way down the board, don't know if it's a glitch on my compo, but I hope I've fixed it, okay?
"You would prefer a different target? A military target? Then name the system!"
I hope I don`t insult the man given how long he was in the cinema, but for me his penultimate role had to be Grand Moff Tarkin in the original Star Wars. When James Earl Jones` Darth Vader shuts up to listen to Tarkin, thats stage command. I have always thought that Mr. Cushing was a crucial key that lent the film its gravity. He played it utterly seriously, and the power of his conviction forced you to receive it that same way.
He should have won an award for that role.
As a sidenote, Sideshow Toys/Collectibles has or had an absolutely stunning likeness of Mr. Cushing as Tarkin. One of their better sculpts.
I think the footage of Mr. Cushing so enjoying the company of Mr. Lee... is a testament to the power of happiness. Its so fittingly good to see Mr. Cushing thoroughly, wonderfully happy.
I think the footage of Mr. Cushing so enjoying the company of Mr. Lee... is a testament to the power of happiness. Its so fittingly good to see Mr. Cushing thoroughly, wonderfully happy.
It's absolutely heartwarming. I have my theory about this, and I could be wrong of course, but I think that Peter Cushing seemed to get increasingly happy as he neared the end of his life, because he firmly believed that he was finally on his way to be reunited with his beloved Helen. Watching that clip of Christopher Lee (wonderful - the most relaxed I've ever seen him, doing all he can to make sure the ailing Cushing has a great time) and Peter together is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. What a bittersweet moment. Lee knowing that he was seeing his dear friend for probably the last time, and Cushing, skeletal and riddled with cancer, almost crying tears of laughter and happiness. It creates very conflicting feelings within me, but it's tremendous stuff.
It would be logical that could be true, as he so often stated she was his life and when she went the core of his life went. Of course there are so many nice things that can be told about this nice man. When he was at conventions he told the workers he was with I will stay until EVERY person who wants a autograph from me will get it. Very nice that was.
TO WARLOK- Yes Peter was right on the mark in Star Wars, solid small part. Small not in the sense of how important his character was to the plot of the movie, but if you break down his scenes it was small compared to most movies he was in .So yes it was a fine performance but a tiny morsel of a great career of acting.
"The Human Factor" addresses such issues as his faith, his insecurities and his relationship with his wife Helen. He covered those things and more in the two volumes of his autobiography, but this is the first time I'd seen him talking openly about them. It's a revelation. Never before had Mr Cushing seemed so genuine and profound in his interviews. It's an inspiring piece indeed. What a wonderful, wonderful human being. God Bless Saint Peter.
He's become a full-blown Transcendentalist in that clip, and there are very fine touches in there, like the 'synchronicity' (as Jung would call it, who believed completely in life beyond death) of the bible verse on the scrap of paper. There was a time when, after his wife's death he descended perhaps unhealthily into spiritualism etc., but what you see here is a wholesome and resolved faith.
I'd be fairly sure what his wife meant was something like, 'When I meet God, I'll tell Him you're my greatest life's work, and he'll see I did well: You'll have saved me'. That's a great compliment, and Peter is obviously too modest to admit he knows what that might mean.
If all the great religious mystics say is true, and the 'Kingdom' is eternal and omnipresent in space and time, then for BOTH of them it'd be a simple matter of leaving this life one minute and meeting immediately the next, no matter how long we imagine to have passed in the interim between the two.
P.S. Did you notice the bass riff ostinato in the Jellybottys' song? Not dissimilar to the 'Man from Uncle' theme .... It was a UK No. 1 at one point in the '80s!
TO WILLIAM M CRUM- With your fine words your making me cry in a good way on a Monday morning. But off to work I must go, my tears will turn to ice as I walk out the door in this weather.
In Tales from the crypt-72 -Peter did one of his real life roles playing a elder man who lives alone after his wife dies with his dogs His mischievous next door neighbor is up to no good and decides to wreck his already simple life of being nice to kids and animals. In typical Amicus anthology fashion the bad neighbor gets his at the end. There is a touching scene in the film where Peter is looking at his departed wife and they actually used the picture of Peter's real wife in the scene. While it is a great small role for Peter. I think he also would have been great in the Ralph Richardson part as the messenger from another world telling the bad characters that you will now have to enter a sought of eternal abyss for your evil deeds. However Milt did get good old Peter to play a similar character in 2 of his films DR Terror house of horrors and From Beyond the grave.
In Tales from the crypt-72 -There is a touching scene in the film where Peter is looking at his departed wife and they actually used the picture of Peter's real wife in the scene.
Actually dan, I know I'm being an insufferable smarty-pants here, but it's a popular misconception that the photo of Grimsdyke's late wife is that of Helen Cushing. It isn't - Amicus just used a stock photo from their archives. If you look closely (the full film's up on YouTube), you'll see that she is certainly a different person from the real Mrs Cushing. Perhaps you're getting confused with THE GHOUL... Peter does gaze lovingly at a photo of the real Helen in that one. Heartbreaking performances in the two movies - I'm pretty sure that the red-rimmed watery-eyed look which Cushing displays in some of those scenes is only partly "acting".
