Editing Hammer Film Productions (section)

==Hammer before horror==

===Early history (1935–1937)===
In November 1934, [[William Hinds]], a comedian and businessman, registered his film company, Hammer Productions Ltd.{{sfn|Meikle|1996|page=3}}{{sfn|Hearn|Barnes|1997|page=8}} It was housed in a three-room office suite at Imperial House, [[Regent Street]], London. The company name came from Hinds' stage name, Will Hammer, which he had taken from the area of London in which he lived, [[Hammersmith]].{{sfn|Sheridan|1978|page=40}}

Work began almost immediately on the first film, a now [[lost film|lost]] comedy, ''[[The Public Life of Henry the Ninth]]'' at the MGM/ATP studios. Filming concluded on 2 January 1935. The film tells the story of Henry Henry, an unemployed London street musician, and the title was a "playful tribute" to [[Alexander Korda]]'s ''[[The Private Life of Henry VIII]]'' which was Britain's first [[Academy Award for Best Picture]] nominee in 1934.<ref>"[http://www.bfi.org.uk/nationalarchive/news/mostwanted/public-life-of-henry-the-ninth.html BFI Most Wanted: The Public Life of Henry the Ninth] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101117173042/http://www.bfi.org.uk/nationalarchive/news/mostwanted/public-life-of-henry-the-ninth.html |date=17 November 2010 }}" ''[[British Film Institute|BFI]]'' Retrieved 28 October 2010</ref> During this time Hinds met Spanish émigré Enrique Carreras, a former cinema owner, and on 10 May 1935 they formed the [[film distributor|film distribution]] company Exclusive Films, operating from an office at 60-66 National House, [[Wardour Street]].{{sfn|Kinsey|2005|page=9}} Hammer produced four films distributed by Exclusive:

* ''[[The Mystery of the Mary Celeste]]'' (1935; ''Phantom Ship'' in the U.S.), featuring [[Bela Lugosi]]
* ''[[Sporting Love (film)|Sporting Love]]'' (1936)
* ''[[Song of Freedom]]'' (1936), featuring [[Paul Robeson]]
* ''[[The Bank Messenger Mystery]]'' (1936)

A downturn in the British film industry forced Hammer into [[bankruptcy]], and the company went into liquidation in 1937. Exclusive survived and on 20 July 1937 purchased the leasehold on 113-117 Wardour Street and continued to distribute films made by other companies.{{sfn|Hearn|Barnes|1997|page=9}}

===Revival (1938–1955)===
[[File:Bray_Film_Studios_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1591972.jpg|thumb|right|[[Bray Studios (UK)|Bray Studios]], Berkshire. Bray Studios, close to the frequently-used filming location [[Oakley Court]], was Hammer's principal base from 1951 to 1966.]]
[[James Carreras]], Enrique's son, joined Exclusive in 1938, closely followed by William Hinds' son, Anthony. At the outbreak of World War II, James Carreras and [[Anthony Hinds]] left to join the armed forces and Exclusive continued to operate in a limited capacity. In 1946, James Carreras rejoined the company after [[demobilisation]]. He resurrected Hammer as the film production arm of Exclusive with a view to supplying '[[quota-quickies]]', cheaply made domestic films designed to fill gaps in cinema schedules and support more expensive features.{{sfn|Kinsey|2005|page=11}} He convinced Anthony Hinds to rejoin the company, and a revived Hammer Film Productions set to work on ''[[Death in High Heels]]'', ''The Dark Road'', and ''Crime Reporter''. Not able to afford top stars, Hammer acquired the film rights to BBC radio series such as ''[[The Adventures of PC 49]]'' and ''[[Dick Barton: Special Agent]]'' (an adaptation of the successful [[Dick Barton]] radio show).<ref>{{cite web|work=Radio Days|url=http://www.whirligig-tv.co.uk/radio/pc49.htm|access-date=3 November 2013|title=The Adventures of PC 49}}</ref> All were filmed at Marylebone Studios during 1947. During the production of ''[[Dick Barton Strikes Back]]'' (1948), it became apparent that the company could save money by shooting in [[country house]]s instead of studios. For the next production, ''[[Doctor Morelle|Dr Morelle – The Case of the Missing Heiress]]'' (another radio adaptation), Hammer rented Dial Close,<ref>Dial Close, Winter Hill, Cookham, Maidenhead, Windsor And Maidenhead SL6 9TT</ref><ref name="ribapix/dial-close">{{cite web |title=Dial Close, Cookham Dean, Berkshire: the library |url=https://www.ribapix.com/dial-close-cookham-dean-berkshire-the-library_riba106749 |website=RIBApix |access-date=29 December 2024 |language=en}}</ref> a 23 bedroom mansion on Winter Hill,<ref name="cookham/films">{{cite web |title=Cookham and the movies |url=https://www.cookham.com/adverts/miscellaneous/heritagecentre/cookhamfilms.htm |website=www.cookham.com |access-date=29 December 2024}}</ref> beside the [[River Thames]], at [[Cookham Dean]], [[Maidenhead]].<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Little Shoppe of Horrors|issue=4|editor-first=Richard|editor-last=Klemensen|page=38|title=Michael Carreras interview}}</ref>

On 12 February 1949, Exclusive registered "Hammer Film Productions" as a company with Enrique and James Carreras, and William and Tony Hinds as directors. Hammer moved into the Exclusive offices in 113-117 Wardour Street, and the building was rechristened "Hammer House".{{sfn|Kinsey|2005|page=13}}

In August 1949, complaints from locals about noise during night filming forced Hammer to leave Dial Close and move into another mansion, [[Oakley Court]], also on the banks of the Thames between [[Windsor, Berkshire|Windsor]] and Maidenhead.{{sfn|Kinsey|2005|page=16}} Five films were produced there: ''[[Man in Black (film)|Man in Black]]'' (1949), ''Room to Let'' (1949), ''[[Someone at the Door (1950 film)|Someone at the Door]]'' (1949), ''[[What the Butler Saw (1950 film)|What the Butler Saw]]'' (1950), ''[[The Lady Craved Excitement]]'' (1950).

In 1950, Hammer moved again to Gilston Park, a country club in Harlow, Essex, which hosted ''[[The Black Widow (1951 film)|The Black Widow]]'', ''[[The Rossiter Case]]'', ''[[To Have and to Hold (1951 film)|To Have and to Hold]]'' and ''The Dark Light'' (all 1950).

In 1951, Hammer began shooting at their most fondly-remembered base, Down Place, on the banks of the Thames. The company signed a one-year lease and began its 1951 production schedule with ''[[Cloudburst (1951 film)|Cloudburst]]''. The house, virtually derelict, required substantial work, but it did not have the construction restrictions that had prevented Hammer from customising previous homes. A decision was made to remodel Down Place into a substantial, custom-fitted studio complex{{sfn|Kinsey|2005|pages=20–22}} that became known as [[Bray Studios (UK)|Bray Studios]]. The expansive grounds were used for much of the later location shooting in Hammer's films and are a key to the 'Hammer look'.

Also in 1951, Hammer and Exclusive signed a four-year production and distribution contract with [[Robert Lippert]], an American film producer. The contract meant that [[Lippert Pictures]] and Exclusive effectively exchanged products for distribution on their respective sides of the [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]]{{spaced ndash}}beginning in 1951 with ''[[The Last Page]]'' and ending with 1955's ''[[Women Without Men (1956 film)|Women Without Men]]'' (a.k.a. ''Prison Story'').{{sfn|Kinsey|2005|page=22}} It was Lippert's insistence on an American star in the Hammer films he was to distribute that led to the prevalence of American leads in many of the company's productions during the 1950s. It was for ''The Last Page'' that Hammer made a significant appointment when they hired film director [[Terence Fisher]], who played a critical role in the forthcoming horror cycle.

Towards the end of 1951, the one-year lease on Down Place expired, and with its growing success Hammer looked towards more conventional studio-based productions. A dispute with the Association of Cinematograph Technicians blocked this proposal, and the company purchased the freehold of Down Place instead. The house was renamed [[Bray Studios (UK)|Bray Studios]] after the nearby village of [[Bray, Berkshire|Bray]], and it remained Hammer's principal base until 1966.{{sfn|Kinsey|2005|page=22}} In 1953, the first of Hammer's science fiction films, ''[[Four Sided Triangle]]'' and ''[[Spaceways]]'', were released.

===The birth of Hammer Horror (1955–1959)===
Hammer's first significant experiment with horror came in a 1955 adaptation of [[Nigel Kneale]]'s [[BBC Television]] science fiction serial ''[[The Quatermass Experiment]]'', directed by [[Val Guest]]. As a consequence of the contract with Robert Lippert, American actor [[Brian Donlevy]] was imported for the lead role and the title was changed to ''[[The Quatermass Xperiment]]'' to cash in on the new [[X certificate]] for horror films. The film was unexpectedly popular, and led to the popular 1957 sequel ''[[Quatermass 2]]''{{spaced ndash}}again adapted from one of Kneale's television scripts, this time by Kneale and with a budget double that of the original: £92,000.{{sfn|Kinsey|2005|page=50}} In the meantime, Hammer produced another ''[[Quatermass]] ''-style horror film, ''[[X the Unknown]]'', originally intended as part of the series until Kneale denied them permission to use his characters (the writer is known to have disliked Donlevy's performance as Quatermass).{{sfn|Pixley|2005|page=18}} At the time, Hammer voluntarily submitted scripts to the [[British Board of Film Classification|British Board of Film Censors]] (BBFC) for comment before production. Regarding the script of ''X the Unknown'', one reader/examiner (Audrey Field) commented on 24 November:

<blockquote>Well, no one can say the customers won't have had their money's worth by now. In fact, someone will almost certainly have been sick. We must have a great deal more restraint, and much more done by onlookers' reactions instead of by shots of 'pulsating obscenity', hideous scars, hideous sightless faces, etc, etc. It is keeping on and on in the same vein that makes this script so outrageous. They must take it away and prune. Before they take it away, however, I think the President [of the BBFC] should read it. I have a stronger stomach than the average (for viewing purposes) and perhaps I ought to be reacting more strongly.{{sfn|Kinsey|2005|page=41}}</blockquote>