Editing Peter Cushing (section)

==Career==
===Early films and acting===
Cushing eventually applied for a scholarship at the [[Guildhall School of Music and Drama]] in London.<ref name="Bangor">[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=xZ0zAAAAIBAJ&sjid=qTgHAAAAIBAJ&pg=2422,3435323& "Horror actor Peter Cushing dead at age 81"] (12 August 1994). ''[[Bangor Daily News]]''. p. C10.</ref> His first audition was before the actor [[Allan Aynesworth]], who was so unimpressed with Cushing's manner of speech that he rejected him outright and insisted he not return until he improved his [[diction]].<ref name="Cush45" /><ref name="Payne">Payne, Graham (June 1958). "The star who never grew up". ''New Zealand Home Journal''.</ref> Cushing continued to pursue a scholarship, writing twenty-one letters to the school,<ref name="Payne" /> until the actor and theatre-manager [[Bill Fraser]] finally agreed to meet Cushing in 1935 simply so he could ask him in person to stop writing. During that meeting, Cushing was given a walk-on part as a courier in that night's production of [[J. B. Priestley|J.B. Priestley]]'s ''Cornelius''. This marked his professional stage debut, although he had no lines and did little more than stand on stage behind other actors. Afterward, he was granted the scholarship and given odd jobs around the theatre, such as selling refreshments and working as an assistant stage manager.<ref name="Cush45" />

One of his earliest professional stage performances was in 1935 as Captain Randall in Ian Hay's ''The Middle Watch'' at the [[Connaught Theatre]] in Worthing.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.filmreference.com/Actors-and-Actresses-Co-Da/Cushing-Peter.html |title=Peter Cushing – Films as actor |publisher=Filmreference.com |access-date=22 August 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120824072514/http://www.filmreference.com/Actors-and-Actresses-Co-Da/Cushing-Peter.html |archive-date=24 August 2012}}</ref><ref name="SLT">"Horror-film actor Peter Cushing dies at 81, Played variety of roles – From Sherlock Holmes to Baron Frankenstein" (12 August 1994). ''[[Salt Lake Tribune]]'': p. A5.</ref> By the end of the summer of 1936, Cushing accepted a job with the [[repertory theatre]] company [[Southampton]] Rep, working as assistant stage manager and performing in bit roles at the Grand Theatre in the [[Hampshire]] city.<ref name="Cush45" /> He spent the next three years in an apprenticeship at Southampton Rep.,<ref name="SWI56" /> auditioning for character roles both there and in other surrounding theatres, eventually amassing almost 100 individual parts.<ref name="Cush45" /><ref name="Earnshaw3">Earnshaw, p. 3</ref> While he was in Southampton, he met an 18-year-old fellow actor, [[Doreen Hawkins|Doreen Lawrence]], and they were engaged to be married. Lawrence broke off the engagement, citing his frequent crying and bringing his parents on dates.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Miller|first1=Mark A.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3T3VDwAAQBAJ&q=Doreen+Hawkins&pg=PT48|title=Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing and Horror Cinema: A Revised and Expanded Filmography of Their Terrifying Collaborations, 2d ed.|last2=Hogan|first2=David J.|date=2020-02-28|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-3842-3|language=en}}</ref>

Soon, he felt the urge to pursue a film career in the United States. In 1939, his father bought him a one-way ticket to Hollywood, where he moved with only £50 to his name.<ref name="SWI56" /> Cushing met a [[Columbia Pictures]] employee named Larry Goodkind, who wrote him a letter of recommendation and directed him to acquaintances Goodkind knew at the company [[Edward Small]] Productions. Cushing visited the company, which was only a few days away from shooting ''[[The Man in the Iron Mask (1939 film)|The Man in the Iron Mask]]'' (1939), the [[James Whale]]-directed adaptation of the [[Alexandre Dumas, père|Alexandre Dumas]] [[The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later|tale]] based on the [[Man in the Iron Mask|French legend]] of a prisoner during the reign of [[Louis XIV of France]].<ref name="Cush56">Cushing, pp. 56—58</ref> Cushing was hired as a [[stand-in]] for scenes that featured both characters played by [[Louis Hayward]], who had the [[Dual role|dual lead roles]] of King Louis XIV and Philippe of [[Gascony]]. Cushing played one part against Hayward in one scene, then the opposite part in another, and ultimately the scenes were spliced together in a [[Split screen (video production)|split screen process]] that featured Hayward in both parts and left Cushing's work cut from the film altogether.<ref name="Earnshaw3" /> Although the job meant Cushing received no actual screen time, he was eventually cast in a bit part as the king's messenger, which made ''The Man in the Iron Mask'' his official film debut.<ref name="Monush">Monush, Barry (2003). ''The Encyclopedia of Hollywood Film Actors: From the Silent Era to 1965'' (1 vol.). [[Berkeley, California]]: [[Hal Leonard Corporation|Applause Books]]. p. 166. {{ISBN|1557835519}}.</ref> The small role involved [[Swordsmanship|sword-fighting]] and, although Cushing had no experience with [[fencing]], he told Whale he was an excellent fencer to ensure he got the part. Cushing later said his unscreened scenes alongside Hayward were terrible performances, but that his experience on the film provided an excellent opportunity to learn and observe how filming on a studio set worked.<ref name="Cush56" />

Only a few days after filming on ''The Man in the Iron Mask'' was completed, Cushing was in the [[Schwab's Pharmacy|Schwab's Drug Store]], a famous [[Sunset Boulevard]] hangout spot for actors, when he learned producer [[Hal Roach]] was seeking an English actor for a [[comedy film]] starring [[Laurel and Hardy]]. Cushing sought and was cast in the role. Cushing appeared only briefly in ''[[A Chump at Oxford]]'' (1940) and his scenes took just one week to film, but he was proud to work with whom he called "two of the greatest comedians the cinema has ever produced."<ref name="Cush60">Cushing, p. 60</ref> Around this time the actor [[Robert Coote]], who met Cushing during a cricket game, recommended to the director [[George Stevens]] that Cushing might be good for a part in Stevens' upcoming film ''[[Vigil in the Night]]'' (1940). Adapted from a [[Serial (literature)|serial]] novella [[Vigil in the Night (short story)|of the same name]], it was a [[Drama (film and television)|drama film]] about a nurse played by [[Carole Lombard]] working in a poorly-equipped country hospital. Stevens cast Cushing in the second male lead role of Joe Shand, the husband of the Lombard character's sister. Shooting ran from September to November 1939,<ref>Cushing, p. 62</ref> and the film was released in 1940, drawing Cushing's first semblance of attention and critical praise.<ref name="SWI56" />

Cushing continued to work in a few Hollywood engagements, including an uncredited role in the [[war film]] ''[[They Dare Not Love]]'' (1941), which reunited him with director James Whale. Cushing was cast (again uncredited) in one of a series of short films in an entry in the [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer|MGM]] series ''[[John Nesbitt's Passing Parade|The Passing Parade]]'', which focused on strange-but-true historical events. He appeared in the episode ''The Hidden Master'' (1940) as a young [[Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive|Clive of India]], well before the soldier established the military and political supremacy of the [[East India Company]]. In the film, Clive tries to shoot himself twice but the gun misfires, then he fires a third time at a pitcher of water and the gun works perfectly. Clive takes this to be an omen that he should live, and he goes on to perform great feats in his life. Studio executives were pleased with Cushing's performance, and there was talk among Hollywood insiders grooming him for stardom.<ref>Cushing, pp. 64—65</ref> Despite the promise, however, Cushing grew homesick and decided he wished to return to England. He moved to New York City in anticipation of his eventual return home, during which time he voiced a few [[Radio advertisement|radio commercials]] and joined a [[summer stock theatre]] company to raise money for his voyage back to England. He performed in such plays as [[Robert E. Sherwood]]'s ''[[The Petrified Forest]]'', [[Arnold Ridley]]'s ''[[The Ghost Train (play)|The Ghost Train]]'', [[S. N. Behrman]]'s ''Biography'' and a [[modern dress]] version of [[William Shakespeare]]'s ''[[Macbeth]]''. He was eventually noticed by a Broadway theatre talent scout,<ref>Cushing, pp. 67—69</ref> and in 1941 he made his Broadway debut in the religious wartime drama ''The Seventh Trumpet''. It received poor reviews, however, and ran for only eleven days.<ref name="Earnshaw3" />

===Return to England and theatrical work ===
Cushing returned to England during the Second World War. Although some childhood injuries prevented him from serving on active duty,<ref name="SWI56" /> a friend suggested he entertain the troops by performing as part of the [[Entertainments National Service Association]].<ref name="Payne" /><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-peter-cushing-1375859.html|title=Obituary: Peter Cushing|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|date=12 August 1994|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170829054242/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-peter-cushing-1375859.html|archive-date=29 August 2017}}</ref> In 1942, the [[Noël Coward]] play ''[[Private Lives]]'' was touring the military stations and hospitals in the [[British Isles]], and the actor playing the lead role of Elyot Chase was called to service. Cushing agreed to take his place with very little notice or time to prepare, and earned a salary of ten pounds a week for the job.<ref>Cushing, p. 75</ref> During this tour he met Violet Hélène "Helen" Beck, a former dancer who was starring in the lead female role of Amanda Prynne.<ref name="Bangor" /><ref name="Veg">[https://web.archive.org/web/19981205075607/http://www.vegsoc.org/HQdata/cushing.html "Obituary: Peter Cushing OBE"] (Autumn 1994). ''[[Vegetarian Society|The Vegetarian]]''.</ref> They fell in love and were married on 10 April 1943.<ref name="Cush81">Cushing, p. 81</ref> Cushing eventually had to leave ENSA due to [[Pulmonary edema|lung congestion]], an ailment his wife helped him recover from.<ref name="Payne" /> The two had little money around this time, and Cushing had to collect from both [[National Assistance]] and the Actors' Benevolent Fund. Cushing struggled to find work during this period, with some plays he was cast in failing to even make it past rehearsals into theatres. Others closed after a few showings, like an ambitious five-hour stage adaptation of [[Leo Tolstoy]]'s novel ''[[War and Peace]]'' that opened and closed in 1943 at the [[Phoenix Theatre (London)|Phoenix Theatre]] in London.<ref name="Cush81" />

Cushing recorded occasional radio spots and appeared in week-long stints as a featured player at the [[Q Theatre]], but otherwise work was difficult to come by.<ref name="Earnshaw3" /> He found a modest success in a 1945 production of Sheridan's ''The Rivals'' at [[City of Westminster|Westminster's]] [[Criterion Theatre]], which earned him enough money to pay off some growing debts.<ref>Cushing, p. 84</ref> The war years continued to prove difficult for him, however, and at one point he was forced to work designing ladies [[Headscarf|head-scarves]] at a [[Macclesfield]]-based silk manufacturer to make ends meet.<ref name="Earnshaw3" /> In the autumn of 1946, after the war ended, Cushing unsuccessfully auditioned for the part of Paul Verrall in a stage production of the play ''[[Born Yesterday (play)|Born Yesterday]]'' that was being staged by the famed actor and director [[Laurence Olivier]]. He was not cast because he insisted he could not perform in an [[American English|American accent]].<ref name="Earnshaw3" /> After Cushing attempted the accent and failed, Olivier replied, "Well, I appreciate you not wasting my time. I shall remember you."<ref>Cushing, p. 87</ref> Nearing middle age and finding it increasingly harder to make a living in acting, Cushing began to consider himself a failure.<ref name="SWI56" />

In 1947, when Olivier sought him out for his film adaptation of ''[[Hamlet]]'', Cushing's wife Helen pushed him to pursue a role.<ref name="SWI56" /> Far from being deterred by Cushing's unsuccessful audition the year before, Olivier remembered the actor well and was happy to cast him,<ref name="SWI56" /><ref name="Earnshaw3" /> but the only character left unfilled was the relatively small part of the foppish [[courtier]] [[Characters in Hamlet#Osric|Osric]].<ref name="SWI56" /> Cushing accepted the role, and ''[[Hamlet (1948 film)|Hamlet]]'' (1948) marked his British film debut.<ref name="Monush" /> One of Cushing's primary scenes involved Osric talking to [[Prince Hamlet|Hamlet]] and [[Horatio (character)|Horatio]] while walking down a wide stone spiral stairway. The set provided technical difficulties, and all of Cushing's lines had to be post-synched. Cushing had recently undergone dental surgery and he was trying not to open his mouth widely for fear of spitting. When this hindered the post-synching process, Olivier leaned in close to Cushing's face and said, "Now drown me. It'll be a glorious death, so long as I can hear what you're saying."<ref>Cushing, p. 90</ref>

''Hamlet'' won the [[Academy Award for Best Picture]], and earned Cushing praise for his performance.<ref name="Bangor" /> Also appearing in the film was [[Christopher Lee]], who eventually became a close friend and frequent co-star with Cushing.<ref name="Monush419">Monush, p. 419</ref> Cushing designed custom hand-scarves in honour of the ''Hamlet'' film, and as it was being exhibited across England, the scarves were eventually accepted as gifts by [[Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother|the Queen]] and her daughter [[Elizabeth II|Princess Elizabeth]].<ref name="Payne" /> After ''Hamlet'', both Peter and Helen Cushing accepted a personal invitation from Olivier to join [[Old Vic]], Olivier's repertory theatre company, which embarked on a year-long tour of [[Australasia]].<ref name="Earnshaw3" /> The tour, which lasted until February 1949, took them to [[Melbourne]], [[Sydney]], [[Brisbane]], [[Hobart]], [[Tasmania]], [[Auckland]], [[Wellington]], [[Christchurch]] and [[Dunedin]], and included performances of [[Richard Brinsley Sheridan]]'s ''[[The School for Scandal]]'', Shakespeare's ''[[Richard III (play)|Richard III]]'', [[Thornton Wilder]]'s ''[[The Skin of Our Teeth]]'', [[Jean Anouilh]]'s ''[[Antigone (Anouilh)|Antigone]]'' and [[Anton Chekhov]]'s ''[[A Marriage Proposal|The Proposal]]''.<ref name="Cush92">Cushing, pp. 92—95</ref>

===Success in television and major films===
Cushing struggled greatly to find work over the next few years, and became so stressed that he felt he was suffering from an extended [[Mental breakdown|nervous breakdown]].<ref name="Cush92" /> Nevertheless, he continued to appear in several small roles in radio, theatre and film.<ref name="SWI56" /><ref name="Earnshaw4">Earnshaw, Tony (2001). ''An Actor, and a Rare One''. [[Lanham, Maryland|Lanham]], Maryland: [[Rowman & Littlefield|The Scarecrow Press, Inc.]] p. 4. {{ISBN|0810838745}}.</ref> Among them was the [[John Huston]] film ''[[Moulin Rouge (1952 film)|Moulin Rouge]]'' (1952) in which he played a racing spectator named Marcel de la Voisier appearing with [[José Ferrer]], who played the artist [[Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec]].<ref name="Monush" /> During this discouraging period for Cushing, his wife encouraged him to seek roles in television, which was beginning to develop in England.<ref name="SWI56" /> She suggested he should write to all the producers listed in the ''[[Radio Times]]'' magazine seeking work in the medium. The move proved to be a wise one, as Cushing was hired to complement the cast of a string of major theatre successes that were being adapted to [[live television]]. The first was J.B. Priestley's ''[[Eden End]]'', which was televised in December 1951. Over the next three years, he became one of the most active and favoured names in British television,<ref name="SWI56" /><ref name="Payne" /><ref name="Earnshaw4" /> and was considered a pioneer in British television drama.<ref name="Monush" /><ref name="Veg" />

He earned praise for playing the lead male role of [[Mr. Darcy]] in an early [[BBC Television]] serialisation of [[Jane Austen]]'s ''[[Pride and Prejudice]]'' (1952).<ref>MacDonald, Andrew and MacDonald, Gina (2003). ''Jane Austen on Screen''. [[Cambridge]], England: [[Cambridge University Press]]. p. 166. {{ISBN|0521797284}}.</ref> Other successful television ventures during this time included ''Epitaph for a Spy'', ''The Noble Spaniard'', ''Beau Brummell'',<ref name="Earnshaw4" /> ''Portrait by Peko'',<ref name="Cush140">Cushing, p. 140</ref> and ''Anastasia'', the latter of which won Cushing the ''[[Daily Mail]]'' National Television Award for Best Actor of 1953–54.<ref name="Earnshaw4" /> His largest television success from this period was the leading role of [[Winston Smith (Nineteen Eighty-Four)|Winston Smith]] in ''[[Nineteen Eighty-Four (British TV programme)|Nineteen Eighty-Four]]'', (1954) an adaptation by [[Nigel Kneale]] of [[George Orwell]]'s [[Nineteen Eighty-Four|novel of the same name]] about a [[totalitarian]] regime. The production proved to be controversial, resulting in death threats for the director [[Rudolph Cartier]] and causing Cushing to be vilified for appearing in such "filth."<ref name="Earnshaw4" /> [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]] even considered a motion immediately after the first screening to ban the play's live repeat.<ref name="Veg" /><ref name="Earnshaw4" /> Nevertheless, a second televised production was filmed and aired, and Cushing eventually drew both critical praise and acting awards, further cementing his reputation as one of Britain's biggest television stars.<ref name="SWI56" /> Cushing felt his first performance was much stronger than the second, but the second production is the only known surviving version.<ref>Cushing, p. 110</ref>

In the two years following ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'', Cushing appeared in thirty-one television plays and two serials, and won Best Television Actor of the Year from the ''[[Evening Chronicle]]''. He also won best actor awards from the [[Guild of Television Producers and Directors|Guild of Television Producers]] [[Guild of Television Producers and Directors Awards 1955|in 1955]],<ref name="Meikle37">Meikle, p. 37</ref> and from the [[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]] in 1956.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001088/awards "Peter Cushing – Awards"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170917073409/http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001088/awards |date=17 September 2017}}. [[IMDb]]. Retrieved 14 February 2018.</ref> Among the plays he appeared in during this time were [[Terence Rattigan]]'s ''[[The Browning Version (play)|The Browning Version]]'', [[Josephine Tey|Gordon Daviot's]] ''[[Richard of Bordeaux (play)|Richard of Bordeaux]]'', and the production of [[Nigel Kneale]]'s ''The Creature'' (1955),<ref name="Earnshaw4" /> the latter of which Cushing starred in [[The Abominable Snowman (film)|film adaptation]] released in 1957.<ref name="Meikle46">Meikle, Denis (2008). ''A History of Horrors: The Rise and Fall of the House of Hammer''. [[Lanham, Maryland|Lanham]], Maryland: [[Rowman & Littlefield|The Scarecrow Press, Inc.]] p. 46. {{ISBN|0810863545}}.</ref> Despite this continued success in live television, Cushing found the medium too stressful and wished to return to film.<ref name="SWI56" /> Cinematic roles proved somewhat difficult to find, however, as film producers were often resentful of television stars for drawing audiences away from the cinema.<ref name="Wogan">''[[Wogan]]'' (24 February 1988). Cushing, Peter. [[White City, London|White City]], London: [[BBC One]].</ref>

Nevertheless, he continued to work in some film roles during this period, including the [[adventure film]] ''[[The Black Knight (film)|The Black Knight]]'' (1954) opposite [[Alan Ladd]].<ref name="Meikle37" /> For that film, he travelled to Spain and filmed scenes [[Filming location|on location]] in the castles of [[Manzanares el Real]] and [[El Escorial]].<ref>Cushing, p. 118</ref> He also starred in the film adaptation of the [[Graham Greene]] novel ''[[The End of the Affair]]'' (1955) as Henry Miles, an important civil servant and the [[cuckold]]ed husband of Sarah Miles, played by [[Deborah Kerr]].<ref name="Monush" /> Also around the same time, he appeared in ''[[Magic Fire]]'' (also 1955), an autobiographical film about the German composer [[Richard Wagner]]. Filmed on location in [[Munich]], Cushing played Otto Wesendonck, the husband of the poet [[Mathilde Wesendonck]], who in the film is portrayed as having an affair with Wagner.<ref name="Cush119">Cushing, p. 119</ref>

===Hammer Frankenstein films===
[[File:Revenge of Frankenstein (trailer) - Must I?.png|thumb|As  [[Victor Frankenstein]]  in [[The Revenge of Frankenstein|Revenge of Frankenstein]]]]
During a brief quiet period following Cushing's television work, he read in [[Trade journal|trade publications]] about [[Hammer Film Productions|Hammer]], a low-budget production company seeking to adapt [[Mary Shelley]]'s [[Horror fiction|horror novel]] ''[[Frankenstein]]'' into a new film.<ref name="Meikle37" /> Cushing, who enjoyed the tale as a child,<ref name="SWI56" /> had his agent John Redway inform the company of Cushing's interest in playing the protagonist, [[Victor Frankenstein|Baron Victor Frankenstein]]. The studio executives were anxious to have Cushing; in fact, the Hammer co-founder [[James Carreras]] had been unsuccessfully courting Cushing for film roles in other projects even before his major success with ''Nineteen Eighty-Four''. Cushing was about twenty years older than Baron Frankenstein as he appeared in the original novel, but that did not deter the filmmakers.<ref name="Meikle37" /> Cushing was cast in the lead role of ''[[The Curse of Frankenstein]]'' (1957), marking the first of twenty-two films he made for Hammer.<ref name="Higham">Higham, Nick (11 August 1994). ''[[BBC News]]''. [[BBC]], London.</ref> He later said that his career decisions entailed selecting roles where he knew that he would be accepted by the audience. "Who wants to see me as [[Hamlet]]? Very few. But millions want to see me as [Baron] Frankenstein, so that's the one I do."<ref>Brosnan, John. ''The Horror People'', 1976, Plume Books. p. 190.</ref> The film critic [[Roger Ebert]] described Cushing's work in the Hammer films: "[Cushing is] the one in all those British horror films, standing between Vincent Price and Christopher Lee. His dialog usually runs along the lines of, 'But good heavens, man! The person you saw has been dead for more than two centuries!{{'"}}<ref>{{cite book|last=Ebert|first=Roger|title=I Hated, Hated, Hated This Movie|date=2000|publisher=Andrews McMeel Publishing|location=Kansas City|isbn=978-0740706721|page=21|chapter=At The Earth's Core}}</ref>

Unlike [[Frankenstein (1931 film)|''Frankenstein'']] (1931) produced by [[Universal Pictures|Universal]], the Hammer films revolved mainly around [[Victor Frankenstein]], rather than [[Frankenstein's monster|his monster]].<ref name="OFlinn">O'Flinn, Paul (1983). "Production and Reproduction: The Case of Frankenstein". ''Literature and History''. 9.2: 194—213.</ref> The screenwriter [[Jimmy Sangster]] wrote the protagonist as an ambitious, egotistical and coldly intellectual scientist who despised his contemporaries.<ref name="Meikle37" /> Unlike the character from the novel and past film versions, Cushing's Baron Frankenstein commits vicious crimes to attain his goals, including the murder of a colleague to obtain a brain for his creature.<ref name="OFlinn" /> ''The Curse of Frankenstein'' also featured Christopher Lee, who played Frankenstein's monster.<ref name="Monush" /> Cushing and Lee became extremely close friends, and remained so for the rest of Cushing's life. They first met on the set of the film, where Lee was still wearing the monster make-up prepared by [[Phil Leakey]]. Hammer Studios' publicity department put out a story that when Cushing first encountered Lee without the make-up on, he screamed in terror.<ref>Cushing, p. 112</ref>

Cushing so valued preparation for his role that he insisted on being trained by a surgeon to learn how to wield a [[scalpel]] authentically.<ref name="Veg" /> Shot in dynamic colour with a £65,000-budget, the film became known for its heavy usage of gore and sexual content.<ref name="SWI56" /> As a result, while the film did well at the box-office with its target audience, it drew mixed to negative reviews from the critics. Most, however, were complimentary of Cushing's performance,<ref name="Meikle42">Meikle, p. 42</ref> claiming it added a layer of distinction and credibility to the film.<ref>Leggett, Paul (2002). ''Terence Fisher: Horror, Myth and Religion''. [[Jefferson, North Carolina|Jefferson]], North Carolina: [[McFarland & Company]] p. 6. {{ISBN|0786411678}}.</ref> Many felt Cushing's performance helped create the [[Archetype|archetypal]] [[mad scientist]] character.<ref name="Veg" /> The ''[[Picturegoer]]'' writer Margaret Hinxman, who was not complimentary of Lee's performance, praised Cushing and wrote of the film: "Although this shocker may not have created much of a monster, it may well have created something more lasting: a star!"<ref name="Meikle42" /> [[Donald F. Glut]], a writer and filmmaker who wrote a book about the portrayals of ''Frankenstein'', said the inner warmth of Cushing's off-screen personality was apparent on-screen even despite the horrific elements of Frankenstein, which helped to add a layer of likability.<ref>[[Donald F. Glut|Glut, Donald F.]] (2002). ''The Frankenstein Archive: Essays on the Monster, the Myth, the Movies, and More''. [[Jefferson, North Carolina|Jefferson]], North Carolina: [[McFarland & Company]] p. 1. {{ISBN|0786413530}}.</ref>

''The Curse of Frankenstein'' was an overnight success, bringing both Cushing and Lee worldwide fame.<ref name="Monush" /><ref>[[Tim Burton|Burton, Tim]] (2006). ''Burton on Burton''. London: [[Faber and Faber]]. p. 170. {{ISBN|041521355X}}.</ref> The two men continued to work together in many films for Hammer, and their names became synonymous with the company. Cushing reprised the role of Baron Victor Frankenstein in five sequels.<ref name="Monush" /> In the first, ''[[The Revenge of Frankenstein]]'' (1958), his protagonist is sentenced to death by [[guillotine]], but he flees and hides under the alias Doctor Victor Stein.<ref name="Monush" /> He returned for ''[[The Evil of Frankenstein]]'' (1963), where the Baron has a carnival [[Hypnosis|hypnotist]] resurrect his monster's inactive brain,<ref>[[American Film Institute]] (1997). ''The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States: Feature Films, 1961–1970'' (1 ed.). [[Berkeley, California]]: [[University of California Press]]. p. 313. {{ISBN|0520209702}}.</ref> and ''[[Frankenstein Created Woman]]'' (1967), in which the Frankenstein's monster is a woman played by the ''[[Playboy]]'' magazine [[Playboy Playmate|centrefold model]] [[Susan Denberg]]. Cushing played the lead role twice more in ''[[Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed]]'' (1969) and ''[[Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell]]'' (1974).<ref name="Monush" /> The former film portrays Frankenstein as a far more ruthless character than had been seen before, and features a scene in which Cushing's Frankenstein rapes the character played by [[Veronica Carlson]]. Neither Carlson nor Cushing wanted to do the scene, filmed despite the director [[Terence Fisher]]'s objections, and the controversial sequence was edited out of the film for its American release.<ref>[[Veronica Carlson|Carlson, Veronica]] (actor). (5 October 2004). ''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments Flesh and Blood: The Hammer Haeritage of Horror] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119082856/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments |date=19 November 2010}}''. <nowiki>[</nowiki>Documentary<nowiki>]</nowiki>. [[Veronica Carlson]], Los Angeles, California: [[Image Entertainment]]. Retrieved 18 February 2018.</ref> In ''Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell'', Cushing portrayed Frankenstein as having gone completely mad, in a fitting coda to the earlier films.<ref>''The Scarecrow Video Movie Guide'' (2004). [[Seattle]], Washington: [[Sasquatch Books]]. p. 87. {{ISBN|1570614156}}.</ref><ref>Leggett, p. 147</ref>

===Hammer Dracula films===
[[File:Count Dracula and His Vampire Bride (1973) - Peter Cushing.png|thumb|Cushing as [[Abraham Van Helsing|Doctor Van Helsing]] ]]
When Hammer sought to adapt [[Bram Stoker]]'s classic [[vampire]] novel ''[[Dracula]]'', they cast Cushing to play the vampire's adversary [[Abraham Van Helsing|Doctor Van Helsing]]. Cushing envisioned the character as an idealist warrior for the greater good, and studied the original book carefully and adapted several of Van Helsing's characteristics from the books into his performance, including the repeated gesture of raising his index finger to emphasise an important point.<ref>Leggett, p. 49</ref> Cushing said one of the biggest challenges during filming was not missing whenever he struck a prop stake with a mallet and drove it into a vampire's heart.<ref name="Cush147">Cushing, p. 147</ref> ''[[Dracula (1958 film)|Dracula]]'' was released in 1958, with Cushing once again starring opposite Lee, who played the [[Count Dracula|title character]], although Cushing was given [[Billing (filmmaking)|top billing]].<ref>Meikle, p. 55</ref> During filming, Cushing himself suggested the staging for the final confrontation scene, in which Van Helsing leaps onto a large library table, opens window curtains to weaken Dracula with sunlight, then uses two candlesticks as a makeshift crucifix to drive the vampire into the sunlight.<ref name="SWI56" /> As with the ''Frankenstein'' film, critics largely disliked ''Dracula'' because of its violence and sexual content, deeming it inferior to the 1931 [[Dracula (1931 English-language film)|Universal version]].<ref>[[Christopher Lee|Lee, Christopher]] (actor). (5 October 2004). ''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments Flesh and Blood: The Hammer Heritage of Horror] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119082856/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments |date=19 November 2010}}''. <nowiki>[</nowiki>Documentary<nowiki>]</nowiki>. [[Veronica Carlson]], Los Angeles, California: [[Image Entertainment]]. Retrieved 14 February 2018.</ref>

In 1959, Cushing agreed to reprise the role of Van Helsing in the sequel, ''[[The Brides of Dracula (film)|The Brides of Dracula]]'' (1960). Before filming began, however, Cushing said he had reservations about the screenplay written by Jimmy Sangster and Peter Bryan. As a result the playwright [[Edward Percy]] was brought in to make modifications to the script, though the rewrites pushed filming into early 1960 and brought additional costs to the production.<ref>Meikle, p. 98</ref> For the sequel, ''[[Dracula: Prince of Darkness]]'' (1966), which marked Lee's return to the title role for the first time since 1958, Cushing granted permission for archival footage featuring him to be used in the opening scene, a reprisal of the climax from the first ''Dracula'' film. In exchange, Hammer's James Carreras thanked Cushing by paying for extensive roofing repair work that had recently been done on Cushing's recently purchased [[Whitstable]] home.<ref name="Cush149">Cushing, p. 149</ref> Cushing appeared in ''[[Dracula AD 1972|Dracula A.D. 1972]]'' (1972), a Hammer modernisation of the Dracula story set in the then-present day. Lee once again starred as Dracula. In the opening scene Cushing portrays the nineteenth century Van Helsing as he did in the previous films, and the character is killed after battling Dracula. Thereafter the action jumps ahead to 1972, and Cushing plays the original character's grandson for the bulk of the movie.<ref name="Monush" /> Cushing performed many of his own stunts in ''Dracula A.D. 1972'', which included tumbling off a haywagon during a fight with Dracula. [[Christopher Neame]], who also starred in the film, said he was particularly impressed with Cushing's agility and fitness, considering his age.<ref>[[Christopher Neame|Neame, Christopher]] (actor). (5 October 2004). ''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments Flesh and Blood: The Hammer Heritage of Horror] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119082856/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments |date=19 November 2010}}''. <nowiki>[</nowiki>Documentary<nowiki>]</nowiki>. [[Chatsworth, Los Angeles|Chatsworth]], Los Angeles, California: [[Image Entertainment]]. Retrieved 14 February 2018.</ref> Cushing and Lee both reprised their respective roles in the sequel ''[[The Satanic Rites of Dracula]]'' (1974), which was known in the United States as ''Count Dracula and his Vampire Bride''.<ref name="Monush" /> Around the same time, Cushing played the original nineteenth-century Van Helsing in ''[[The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires]]'' (also 1974), a co-production between Hammer Studios and the [[Shaw Brothers Studio]], which brought [[Chinese martial arts]] into the Dracula story.<ref name="Monush" /> In that film, Cushing's Van Helsing travels to the Chinese city [[Chongqing]], where Count Dracula is heading a vampire cult.<ref name="Wallflower">Allon, Yoram; Cullen, Del; and Patterson, Hannah (2002). ''The Wallflower Critical Guide to Contemporary British and Irish Directors''. London: Wallflower Press. p. 21. {{ISBN|1903364213}}.</ref>

===Other Hammer roles===
Although most well known for his roles in the ''Frankenstein'' and ''Dracula'' films, Cushing appeared in a wide variety of other Hammer productions during this time. Both he and his wife feared that he would become [[Typecasting (acting)|typecast]] into horror roles, but he continued to take them because they guaranteed regular work.<ref name="Wogan" /><ref>Cushing, p. 114</ref> He appeared in the horror film ''[[The Abominable Snowman (film)|The Abominable Snowman]]'' (1957), a Hammer adaptation of a BBC Nigel Kneale television play ''The Creature'' (1955) which Cushing had also starred in. He portrayed an English botanist searching the [[Himalayas]] for the legendary [[Yeti]].<ref name="Meikle46" /> The director [[Val Guest]] said he was particularly impressed with Cushing's preparation and ability to plan which props to best use to enhance his performance, so much so that Cushing started to become known as "Props Peter".<ref>[[Val Guest|Guest, Val]] (actor). (5 October 2004). ''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments Flesh and Blood: The Hammer Heritage of Horror] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119082856/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments |date=19 November 2010}}''. <nowiki>[</nowiki>Documentary<nowiki>]</nowiki>. [[Chatsworth, Los Angeles|Chatsworth]], Los Angeles, California: [[Image Entertainment]]. Retrieved 18 February 2018.</ref> Cushing and Lee appeared together in the Hammer horror ''[[The Mummy (1959 film)|The Mummy]]'' (1959), with Cushing as the archaeologist John Banning and Lee as the antagonist [[Kharis]].<ref name="SWI56" /> Cushing saw a promotional poster for ''The Mummy'' that showed Lee's character with a large hole in his chest, allowing a beam of light to pass through his body. There was no reference to such an injury in the film script, and when he asked the publicity department why it was on the poster, they said it was simply meant to serve as a shocking promotional image. During filming, he asked the director Terence Fisher for permission to drive a harpoon through the mummy's body during a fight scene to explain the poster image. Fisher agreed, and the scene was used in the film.<ref name="CushDoc">''[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments Flesh and Blood: The Hammer Heritage of Horror] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119082856/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0199528/usercomments |date=19 November 2010}}''. Cushing, Peter (actor). (5 October 2004).<nowiki>[</nowiki>Documentary<nowiki>]</nowiki>. [[Chatsworth, Los Angeles|Chatsworth]], Los Angeles, California: [[Image Entertainment]]. Retrieved 14 February 2018.</ref>

Around the same time, he portrayed the detective [[Sherlock Holmes]] in the Hammer production of ''[[The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959 film)|The Hound of the Baskervilles]]'' (also 1959), an adaptation of [[Arthur Conan Doyle|Sir Arthur Conan Doyle']]<nowiki/>s [[The Hound of the Baskervilles|novel of the same name]].<ref name="Monush" /> He again co-starred opposite Lee, who portrayed the aristocratic Sir Henry Baskerville.<ref name="Monush419" /> A fan of Sherlock Holmes, Cushing was highly anxious to play the character,<ref name="Earnshaw1">Earnshaw, p. 1</ref> and reread the novels in anticipation of the role.<ref>''[[Wogan]]'' (19 December 1987). Cushing, Peter. [[White City, London|White City]], London: [[BBC One]].</ref> Hammer decided to heighten the source novel's horror elements, which upset the estate of Conan Doyle, but Cushing himself voiced no objection to the creative licence because he felt the character of Holmes himself remained intact. However, when the producer [[Anthony Hinds]] proposed removing the character's [[deerstalker]], Cushing insisted they should remain because audiences associated Holmes with his headgear and pipes.<ref name="Earnshaw10">Earnshaw, p. 10</ref> He prepared extensively for the role, studying the novel and taking notes in his script. He scrutinised the costumes and screenwriter Peter Bryan's script, often altering words or phrases.<ref>Earnshaw, p. 11—12</ref> Lee later claimed to be awestruck by Cushing's ability to incorporate many different props and actions into his performance simultaneously, whether reading, smoking a pipe, drinking whiskey, filing through papers, or other things while portraying Holmes.<ref name="LeeNotebook">[[Christopher Lee|Lee, Christopher]] (actor). (2002). ''Actor's Notebook: Christopher Lee''. [Documentary, from ''[[The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959 film)|The Hound of the Baskervilles]]'' DVD]. Greg Carson: [[MGM Home Entertainment]]. Retrieved 19 September 2010.</ref> In later years, Cushing considered his Holmes performance one of the finest accomplishments of his career.<ref name="Earnshaw1" /> He drew generally mixed reviews: ''[[Film Daily]]'' called it a "tantalising performance" and ''[[Time Out (company)|Time Out]]''{{'s}} David Pirie called it "one of his very best performances",<ref>Earnshaw, p. 23</ref> while the ''[[Monthly Film Bulletin]]'' called him "tiresomely mannered and too lightweight" and [[BBC Television]]'s Barry Norman said he "didn't quite capture the air of know-all arrogance that was the great detective's hallmark".<ref>Earnshaw, p. 24</ref> ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' was originally conceived as the first in a series of Sherlock Holmes films, but no sequels were made.<ref name="CushDoc" />

[[File:Cash on Demand (1961) trailer - Peter Cushing 2.png|thumb|Cushing in ''[[Cash on Demand|Cash On Demand]]'' (1961)]]
Immediately upon completion of ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'', Cushing was offered the lead role in the Hammer film ''[[The Man Who Could Cheat Death]]'' (1959), a remake of ''[[The Man in Half Moon Street]]'' (1945). He turned it down, in part because he did not like the script by Jimmy Sangster, and the lead role was taken instead by [[Anton Diffring]]. Cushing next appeared for Hammer when he played the [[Sheriff of Nottingham]] in the adventure film ''[[Sword of Sherwood Forest]]'' (1960), which starred [[Richard Greene]] as the outlaw [[Robin Hood]].<ref name="Monush" /> It was filmed on location in [[County Wicklow]] in the [[Republic of Ireland]].<ref>Cushing, p. 120</ref> The next year, Cushing starred as an [[Ebenezer Scrooge]]-like manager of a bank being robbed in the Hammer [[Thriller (genre)|thriller film]] ''[[Cash on Demand]]'' (1961). He considered this among the favourites of his films,<ref name="Monush" /> and some critics believed it to be among his best performances, although it was one of the least-seen films from his career.<ref name="SWI56" /> He appeared in the Hammer film ''[[Captain Clegg (film)|Captain Clegg]]'' (1962), known in the United States as ''Night Creatures''. Cushing starred as Parson Blyss, the local reverend of an 18th-century English coastal town believed to be hiding his smuggling activities with reports of ghosts.<ref name="Monush" /> The film was roughly based on the [[Doctor Syn]] novels by [[Russell Thorndike]]. Cushing read Thorndike to prepare for the role and made suggestions to the makeup artist [[Roy Ashton]] about Blyss' costume and hairstyle.<ref name="Meikle126">Meikle, p. 126</ref> He and the director [[Peter Graham Scott]] did not get along well during filming and at one point, when the two were having a disagreement on set, Cushing turned to a cameraman named Len Harris and said, "Take no notice, Len. We've done enough of these now to know what we're doing."<ref name="Meikle126" />

Cushing and Lee appeared together in the horror film ''[[The Gorgon]]'' (1964) about the female snake-haired [[Gorgon]] character from [[Greek mythology]] and in ''[[She (1965 film)|She]]'' (1965), about a lost realm ruled by the immortal queen Ayesha, played by [[Ursula Andress]]. Cushing later appeared in ''[[The Vampire Lovers]]'' (1970), an erotic Hammer horror film about a lesbian vampire, adapted in part from the [[Sheridan Le Fanu]] novella ''[[Carmilla]]''.<ref name="SWI56" /> The next year he was set to star in a sequel, ''[[Lust for a Vampire]]'' (1971), but had to drop out because his wife was ill and [[Ralph Bates]] substituted.<ref name="CushDoc" /> However, Cushing was able to star in ''[[Twins of Evil]]'' (also 1971), a prequel of sorts to ''The Vampire Lovers'', as Gustav Weil, the leader of a group of religious [[puritan]]s trying to stamp out [[witchcraft]] and [[satanism]].<ref>Chibnall, p. 2</ref> Among his final Hammer roles was ''[[Fear in the Night (1972 film)|Fear in the Night]]'' (1972), where he played a one-armed school headmaster apparently terrorising the protagonist, played by [[Judy Geeson]].<ref>Chibnall, p. 76</ref>

===Non-Hammer film work===
Although best known for his Hammer performances from the 1950s to the 1970s, Cushing worked in a variety of other roles during this time, and actively sought roles outside the horror genre to diversify his work.<ref name="SWI56" /> In an interview published in ''ABC Film Review'' in November 1964, Cushing stated, "People look at me as if I were some sort of monster, but I can't think why. In my macabre pictures, I have either been a monster-maker or a monster-destroyer, but never a monster. Actually, I'm a gentle fellow. Never harmed a fly. I love animals, and when I'm in the country I'm a keen [[bird-watcher]]." In an interview published in 1966, he added, "I do get terribly tired with the neighbourhood kids telling me 'My mum says she wouldn't want to meet you in a dark alley'." He continued to perform in occasional stage productions, such as Robert E. MacEnroe's ''The Silver Whistle'' at Westminster's [[Duchess Theatre]] in 1956.<ref>Cushing, p. 116</ref> Around the same time he appeared in the film ''[[Alexander the Great (1956 film)|Alexander the Great]]'' (1956) as the [[Athens|Athenian]] General [[Memnon of Rhodes]].<ref name="Cush119" /> In 1959 Cushing originally planned to appear in the lead role of William Fairchild's play ''The Sound of Murder'', while shooting a film at the same time. The hectic schedule became overbearing for Cushing, who had to drop out of the play and resolved to never again attempt a film and play simultaneously.<ref>Cushing, p. 160</ref>

He appeared in the biographical [[epic film]] ''[[John Paul Jones (film)|John Paul Jones]]'' (1959), in which [[Robert Stack]] played the [[John Paul Jones|title role]] of the American naval fighter in the [[American Revolutionary War]].<ref name="Monush" /> Cushing became very ill with [[dysentery]] during filming and lost a considerable amount of weight as a result.<ref>Cushing, p. 191</ref> Cushing played [[Robert Knox (surgeon)|Robert Knox]] in ''[[The Flesh and the Fiends]]'' (1960), based on the true story of the doctor who purchased human corpses for research from the [[serial killer]] duo [[Burke and Hare murders|Burke and Hare]].<ref name="Monush" /> Cushing had previously stated Knox was one of his role models in developing his portrayal of Baron Frankenstein.<ref>Meikle, p. 65</ref> The film was called ''Mania'' in its American release. Cushing appeared in several films released in 1961, including ''[[Fury at Smugglers' Bay]]'', an adventure film about pirates scavenging ships off the English coastline;<ref name="Cush166">Cushing, p. 166</ref> ''[[The Hellfire Club (film)|The Hellfire Club]]'', where he played a lawyer helping a young man expose a cult;<ref name="AFI468">American Film Institute, p. 468</ref> and ''[[The Naked Edge]]'', a British-American thriller about a woman who suspects her husband framed another man for murder. The latter film starred Deborah Kerr, Cushing's co-star from ''The End of the Affair'', and [[Gary Cooper]], one of Cushing's favourite actors.<ref name="Cush166" /> In 1965 Cushing appeared in the [[Ben Travers]] [[farce]] play ''Thark'' at [[Garrick Theatre]] in Westminster. It was his final stage performance for a decade, but he continued to stay active in film and television during this period.<ref name="Cush158">Cushing, p. 158</ref>

Cushing took the lead role in two [[science fiction film]]s by AARU Productions based on the British television series ''[[Doctor Who]]''. Although Cushing's protagonist was derived from television scripts used for [[First Doctor]] serials, his portrayal of the character differed in the fact that Cushing's [[Dr. Who (Dalek films)|Dr. Who]] was a human being, whereas the original Doctor as portrayed on TV by [[William Hartnell]] was extraterrestrial.<ref name="auto">''Petting: Webster's Quotations, Facts and Phrases'' (2008). [[Philip M. Parker|Icon Group International]]. p. 603. {{ISBN|0546718116}}.</ref> Cushing played the role in ''[[Dr. Who and the Daleks]]'' (1965) and ''[[Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D.]]'' (1966).<ref name="Monush" />

Cushing later starred in the fifteen-episode BBC television series ''[[Sherlock Holmes (1965 TV series)|Sherlock Holmes]]'', once again reprising his role as the title character with [[Nigel Stock (actor)|Nigel Stock]] as Watson, though only six episodes now survive. The episodes aired in 1968. [[Douglas Wilmer]] had previously played Holmes for the BBC,<ref name="Meikle280">Meikle, p. 280</ref> but he turned down the part in this series due to the extremely demanding filming schedule. Fourteen days of rehearsal was originally scheduled for each episode, but they were cut down to ten days for economic reasons. Many actors turned down the role as a result, but Cushing accepted,<ref>Earnshaw, p. 29</ref> and the BBC believed his Hammer Studios persona would bring what they called a sense of "lurking horror and callous savagery" to the series.<ref name="Meikle280" /> Production lasted from May to December,<ref name="Earnshaw30">Earnshaw, p. 30</ref> and Cushing adopted a strict regimen of training, preparation and exercise.<ref>Earnshaw, p. 31</ref> He tried to keep his performance identical to his portrayal of Holmes from ''The Hound of the Baskervilles''.<ref name="CKnight">Knight, Chris (1971). "Talking to...Peter Cushing". ''L'Incroyable Cinema''.</ref> Although the series proved popular, Cushing felt he could not give his best performance under the hectic schedule, and he was not pleased with the final result.<ref name="Earnshaw30" /><ref>Cushing, p. 124</ref>

Cushing appeared in a handful of horror films by the independent [[Amicus Productions]], including ''[[Dr. Terror's House of Horrors]]'' (1965), as a man who could see into the future using [[Tarot]] cards;<ref>American Film Institute, p. 274</ref> ''[[The Skull (film)|The Skull]]'' (1965), as a professor who became possessed by a spiritual force embodied within a skull;<ref>American Film Institute, p. 998</ref> and ''[[Torture Garden (film)|Torture Garden]]'' (1967), as a collector of [[Edgar Allan Poe]] relics who is robbed and murdered by a rival.<ref>American Film Institute, p. 1125</ref> Cushing also appeared in non-Amicus horror films like ''[[Island of Terror]]'' (1966) and ''[[The Blood Beast Terror]]'' (1968), in both of which he investigates a series of mysterious deaths. He appeared in ''[[Corruption (1968 film)|Corruption]]'' (1968), a film that was billed as so horrific that "no woman will be admitted alone" into theatres to see it.<ref>Chibnall, p. 213</ref> Cushing played a surgeon who attempts to restore the beauty of his wife (played by [[Sue Lloyd]]), whose face is horribly scarred in an accident.<ref>American Film Institute, p. 204.</ref>

In July 1969 Cushing appeared as the [[straight man]] in the [[sketch comedy]] series ''[[The Morecambe & Wise Show (1968 TV series)|The Morecambe & Wise Show]]''. In the skit Cushing portrayed [[King Arthur]], while the other two gave comedic portrayals of characters like [[Merlin]] and the knights of the [[Round Table]]. Cushing continued to make occasional cameos in the series over the next decade, portraying himself desperately attempting to collect a payment for his previous acting appearance on the show.<ref name="Scully">Scully, Rob (11 August 1994). "Peter Cushing: The First Gentleman of Horror". ''[[Press Association]]''.</ref> Cushing and Lee made cameos as their old roles of Frankenstein and Dracula in the comedy ''[[One More Time (1970 film)|One More Time]]'' (1970), which starred [[Peter Lawford]] and [[Sammy Davis Jr.]]<ref>Glut, p. 63</ref> The single scene took only one morning of filming, which Cushing agreed to after Davis asked him to do it as a favour.<ref name="Cush149" /> The next year Cushing appeared in ''[[I, Monster]]'' (1971),<ref name="SWI56" /> which was adapted from [[Robert Louis Stevenson]]'s ''[[Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde]]'', alongside Lee as the Jekyll/Hyde figure. Later that year he was set to appear in ''[[Blood from the Mummy's Tomb]]'' (1971), an adaptation of the Bram Stoker novel ''[[The Jewel of Seven Stars]]''. He was forced to withdraw from the film to care for his wife, and was ultimately replaced by [[Andrew Keir]].<ref>Meikle, p. 191</ref>

[[File:Horror express gip.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|Cushing and his close friend [[Christopher Lee]] in ''[[Horror Express]]'' (1972). They starred in twenty-two films together, including three [[Dracula (Hammer film series)|''Dracula'' Hammer films]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Alex |last=Hamilton |title=Christopher Lee obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jun/11/christopher-lee |date=11 June 2015 |access-date=16 June 2023 |work=The Guardian}}</ref>]]
In 1971 Cushing contacted the [[Royal National Institute for the Blind]] and offered to provide [[voice acting]] for some of their audiobooks. They immediately accepted, and among the works Cushing recorded was ''[[The Return of Sherlock Holmes]]'', a collection of thirteen one-hour stories.<ref name="Earnshaw65">Earnshaw, p. 65</ref> He appeared alongside [[Vincent Price]] in ''[[Dr. Phibes Rises Again]]!'' (1972), a sequel to ''[[The Abominable Dr. Phibes]]'', and then co-starred with Price again in the film ''[[Madhouse (1974 film)|Madhouse]]'' (1974).<ref name="Bangor" /> He once again starred with his longtime collaborator Christopher Lee in ''[[Horror Express]]'' (1972). Cushing continued to appear in several Amicus Productions films during this period, including ''[[Tales from the Crypt (film)|Tales from the Crypt]]'' (1972), ''[[From Beyond the Grave]]'' (1973),<ref name="Chibnall138">Chibnall, Steve and Petley, Julian (2001). ''British Horror Cinema''. [[Routledge]] p. 138. {{ISBN|0415230039}}.</ref> ''[[And Now the Screaming Starts!]]'' (1973)<ref name="Wallflower" /> and ''[[The Beast Must Die (1974 film)|The Beast Must Die]]'' (1974).<ref>Chibnall, p. 222</ref>

For ''Tales from the Crypt'', an [[anthology film]] made up of several horror segments, Cushing was offered the part of a ruthless businessman but did not like the part and turned down the role. Instead, Cushing asked to play Arthur Grymsdyke,<ref name="Cush153">Cushing, p. 153</ref> a kind, working-class widower who gets along well with the local children, but falls subject to a [[smear campaign]] by his snobbish neighbours. Eventually, the character is driven to commit suicide, but returns from the grave to seek revenge against his tormentors.<ref name="Zomb">Kay, Glenn (2008). ''Zombie Movies: The Ultimate Guide''. Chicago, Illinois: [[Independent Publishers Group|Chicago Review Press]]. pp. 69—70. {{ISBN|1556527705}}.</ref> After Cushing was cast in the role, several changes were made to the script at his suggestion. Originally, all of the character's lines were spoken aloud to himself, but Cushing suggested he should speak to a framed photograph of his deceased wife instead, and the director, [[Freddie Francis]], agreed.<ref name="Cush153" /> Cushing used the emotions from the recent loss of his wife to add authenticity to the widower character's grieving.<ref name="Zomb" /> The makeup artist [[Roy Ashton]] designed the costume and makeup Cushing wore when he rose from the dead,<ref name="Zomb" /> but Cushing helped Ashton to develop the costume, and donned a pair of false teeth that he previously used in a disguise during the ''Sherlock Holmes'' television series.<ref>Cushing, p. 190</ref> His performance in ''Tales from the Crypt'' won him the Best Male Actor award at the 1971 French Convention of Fantasy Cinema in France.<ref name="Cush153" />

In 1975 Cushing was anxious to return to the stage, where he had not performed in ten years. Around this time he learned that Helen Ryan, an actress who impressed him in a televised play about [[Edward VII of the United Kingdom|King Edward VII]], was planning to run the Horseshoe Theatre in [[Basingstoke]] with her husband, Guy Slater. Cushing wrote to the couple and suggested they should stage ''[[The Heiress (1947 play)|The Heiress]]'', a play by [[Ruth Goetz|Ruth]] and Augustus Goetz, with Cushing himself in the lead role. Ryan and Slater agreed, and Cushing later said performing the part was his most pleasant experience since his wife had died four years earlier.<ref name="Cush158" /> Cushing also starred in several horror films released in 1975. Among them were ''[[Land of the Minotaur]]'', where he played Baron Corofax, the evil leader of a Satanic cult opposed by a priest played by [[Donald Pleasence]].<ref>Monush, p. 599</ref> Another was ''[[The Ghoul (1975 film)|The Ghoul]]'', where he played a former priest hiding his [[Human cannibalism|cannibalistic]] son in an attic. That film marked the first occasion on Cushing worked with the producer [[Kevin Francis (film producer)|Kevin Francis]], who worked in minor jobs at Hammer and had long aspired to work with Cushing, whom he admired deeply. They went on to make two other films together, ''[[Legend of the Werewolf]]'' (1975) and ''[[The Masks of Death]]'' (1984) with Cushing playing Sherlock Holmes once more.<ref>Cushing, p. 11</ref> Cushing appeared in the television film ''The Great Houdini'' (1976) as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes.<ref name="auto"/><ref name="Earnshaw65" /> Cushing wrote the forewords to two books about Holmes: [[Peter Haining (author)|Peter Haining]]'s ''Sherlock Holmes Scrapbook'' (1974) and ''Holmes of the Movies: The Screen Career of Sherlock Holmes'' (1976), by [[David Stuart Davies]].<ref>Pitts, Michael R (1991).''Famous Movie Detectives II'' (2 vol.). [[Lanham, Maryland|Lanham]], Maryland: [[Rowman & Littlefield|The Scarecrow Press, Inc.]] p. 169. {{ISBN|0810823454}}.</ref> Cushing also appeared in the horror film ''The Uncanny'' (1977).<ref>Chibnall, p. 228</ref>

===''Star Wars''===
The American filmmaker [[George Lucas]] approached Cushing with the hopes of casting him in his upcoming space [[fantasy film]], ''[[Star Wars (film)|Star Wars]]''. Since the film's primary antagonist, [[Darth Vader]], wore a mask throughout the entire film and his face was never visible, Lucas felt that a strong human villain character was necessary. This led him to write the character of [[Grand Moff Tarkin]]: a high-ranking Imperial governor and commander of the planet-destroying battle station the [[Death Star]]. Lucas felt a talented actor was needed to play the role and said Cushing was his first choice.<ref name="Rinz125">Rinzler, J.W. (2007). ''The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film''. New York City, New York: [[Del Rey Books|Del Rey]]. p. 125. {{ISBN|0345494768}}.</ref> However, Cushing has claimed that Lucas originally approached him to play the Jedi Master [[Obi-Wan Kenobi]] and only decided to cast him as Tarkin instead after the two met. He said he would have preferred to play Kenobi rather than Tarkin but could not have done so because he was to be filming other roles when ''Star Wars'' was shooting, and Tarkin's scenes took less time to film than those of the larger Kenobi role. Although he was not a particular fan of science fiction, Cushing accepted the part because he believed his audience would love ''Star Wars'' and enjoy seeing him in the film.<ref name="SWI56" />

Cushing joined the cast in May 1976, and his scenes were filmed at [[Elstree Studios (Shenley Road)|Elstree Studios]] in [[Borehamwood]].<ref name="SWI56" /> Along with [[Alec Guinness|Sir Alec Guinness]], who was ultimately cast as Kenobi, he was among the best-known actors at the time to appear in ''Star Wars'', as the rest of the cast were then relatively unknown.<ref>Grant, Devin (19 May 2005). "Charleston fanatics ready to celebrate 'Revenge{{'"}}. ''[[The Post and Courier]]'': p. 24F.</ref> As a result, he was paid a larger daily salary than most of his fellow cast, earning £2,000 per day compared to weekly salaries of US$1,000 for [[Mark Hamill]], $850 for [[Carrie Fisher]], and $750 for [[Harrison Ford]], who played the protagonists [[Luke Skywalker]], [[Princess Leia]] and [[Han Solo]].<ref name="Rinz125" /> When Cushing smoked between shots, he wore a white glove so the make-up artists would not have to deal with nicotine stains on his fingers. Like Guinness, he had difficulty with some of the technical jargon in his dialogue and claimed he did not understand all of the words he was speaking. Nevertheless, he worked hard to master the lines so that they sounded natural and his character appeared intelligent and confident.<ref name="Rinz177">Rinzler, p. 177</ref>

Cushing got along well with the entire cast, especially his old [[Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell]] co-star [[David Prowse]], who physically portrayed Darth Vader, and Carrie Fisher, who was appearing in her first major role as Princess Leia.<ref name="SWI56" /> The scene in which Tarkin and Organa appear together on the Death Star, just before the destruction of the planet [[Alderaan]], was the first scene with major dialogue that Fisher filmed for ''Star Wars''.<ref name="Rinz177" /> Cushing consciously attempted to define their characters as opposite representations of good and evil, and he purposely stood in the shadows so the light shone on Fisher's face. Fisher said she liked Cushing so much that it was difficult to act as though she hated Tarkin,<ref name="SWI56" /> and she had to substitute somebody else in her mind to muster the feelings. Although one of her lines referred to Tarkin's "foul stench," she said Cushing smelt like "[[linen]] and [[lavender]]," something Cushing attributed to his tendency to wash and brush his teeth thoroughly before filming because of his self-consciousness about [[Halitosis|bad breath]].<ref name="Rinz177" />

During the filming of ''Star Wars'', Cushing was provided with a pair of boots far too small to accommodate his size twelve feet. This caused a great deal of pain for him during shooting, but the costume designers did not have enough time to get him another pair. As a result, he asked Lucas to film as many shots of him as possible from the waist up and, after the director agreed, Cushing wore [[slippers]] during the scenes where his feet were not visible.<ref>{{cite book|title=Smirk, Sneer and Scream|author=Mark Clark|page=119|chapter=Peter Cushing|publisher=McFarland|year=2004|isbn=978-0-7864-1932-6}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Science Fiction|url=https://archive.org/details/sciencefiction00robe|url-access=limited|author=Adam Charles Roberts|page=[https://archive.org/details/sciencefiction00robe/page/n98 88]|chapter=The History of Science Fiction|publisher=Routledge|year=2000|isbn=978-0-415-19205-7}}</ref><ref name=Duke>{{cite book|title=Harrison Ford: The Films|author=Brad Duke|page=39|publisher=McFarland|year=2005|isbn=978-0-7864-2016-2}}</ref><ref name="Nottingham">"How Jim fixed it for horror actor Cushing" (8 May 2004). ''[[Nottingham Post|Nottingham Evening Post]]'': p. 16.</ref><ref>O'Brien, John (20 April 2002). "Bring on the Clones". ''[[The Courier-Mail]]'': p. M01.</ref> During rehearsals, Lucas originally planned for Tarkin and Vader to use a giant screen filled with computerised architectural representations of hallways to monitor the whereabouts of Skywalker, Solo, and Organa. Although the idea was abandoned before filming began, Cushing and Prowse rehearsed those scenes in a set built by the computer animation artist [[Larry Cuba]].<ref>Rinzler, p. 180</ref> The close-up shots of Cushing aboard the Death Star, shown right before the battlestation is destroyed, were actually extra footage taken from previously shot scenes with Cushing that did not make the final film. During production, Lucas decided to add those shots, along with [[second unit]] footage of the Death Star gunners preparing to fire, to heighten the space battle scenes.<ref>Rinzler, p. 238</ref>

When ''Star Wars'' was first released in 1977, most preliminary advertisements touted Cushing's Tarkin as the primary antagonist of the film, not Vader;<ref name="NW">Kroll, Jack (30 May 1977).</ref> Cushing was extremely pleased with the final film, and he claimed his only disappointment was that Tarkin was killed and could not appear in the sequels. The film gave him the highest amount of visibility of his career and inspired younger audiences to watch his older films.<ref name="SWI56" /><ref name="Majendie">Majendie, Paul (7 August 1986). "Master of horror tells his story." ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'': p. D9.</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Kroft|first1=Jack|title=Fun in Space|work=Newsweek|date=30 May 1977}}</ref>

For the film ''[[Rogue One]]'' (2016), [[computer-generated imagery]] (CGI) and digitally repurposed [[archive footage]]<ref name="vulture">{{Cite news |last=Lincoln |first=Kevin |date=24 December 2016 |title=How Did Rogue One Legally Re-create the Late Peter Cushing? |url=https://www.vulture.com/2016/12/rogue-one-peter-cushing-digital-likeness.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161224111514/http://www.vulture.com/2016/12/rogue-one-peter-cushing-digital-likeness.html |archive-date=24 December 2016 |access-date=24 December 2016 |work=Vulture}}</ref><ref name=Independent>{{cite news|title=the CGI used to repurpose the footage may not age well...|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/rogue-one-cgi-grand-moff-tarkin-actor-peter-cushing-princess-leia-carrie-fisher-animated-a7483991.html|access-date=24 December 2016|date=24 December 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161226075006/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/rogue-one-cgi-grand-moff-tarkin-actor-peter-cushing-princess-leia-carrie-fisher-animated-a7483991.html|archive-date=26 December 2016}}</ref> were used to insert Cushing's likeness from the original movie over the face of the English actor [[Guy Henry (actor)|Guy Henry]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jan/16/rogue-one-vfx-jon-knoll-peter-cushing-ethics-of-digital-resurrections|title=Rogue One VFX head: 'We didn't do anything Peter Cushing would've objected to'|first=Andrew|last=Pulver|date=16 January 2017|work=The Guardian|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171211141946/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jan/16/rogue-one-vfx-jon-knoll-peter-cushing-ethics-of-digital-resurrections|archive-date=11 December 2017}}</ref> Henry provided the on-set capture and voice work with the reference material augmented and mapped over his performance like a digital body-mask. Cushing's estate-owners were heavily involved with the creation, which took place more than twenty years after Cushing died.<ref name="TelegraphFilm-18-12-16">{{cite news|last1=Telegraph Film|title='Morbid and off-putting' or 'convincing'? Rogue One's CGI Peter Cushing gets a mixed response from Star Wars fans|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/12/16/morbid-off-putting-convincing-rogue-ones-cgi-peter-cushing-gets/|access-date=18 December 2016|work=The Telegraph|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161218012514/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/12/16/morbid-off-putting-convincing-rogue-ones-cgi-peter-cushing-gets/|archive-date=18 December 2016}}</ref> This extensive use of CGI to "resurrect" an actor who had died many years earlier created a great deal of controversy about the ethics of using a deceased actor's likeness.<ref name="Guardian">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2016/dec/16/rogue-one-star-wars-cgi-resurrection-peter-cushing|title=CGI resurrection of Peter Cushing is thrilling – but is it right?|work=The Guardian|access-date=24 December 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161223122751/https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2016/dec/16/rogue-one-star-wars-cgi-resurrection-peter-cushing|archive-date=23 December 2016}}</ref><ref name="RadioTimes">{{cite news|url=http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2016-12-15/how-a-holby-city-actor-brought-one-of-star-wars-most-iconic-characters-back-to-life|title=How a Holby City actor brought one of Star Wars' most iconic characters back to life|last1=Fullerton|first1=Huw|date=15 December 2016|access-date=15 December 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161216040012/http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2016-12-15/how-a-holby-city-actor-brought-one-of-star-wars-most-iconic-characters-back-to-life|archive-date=16 December 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/news/a52078/rogue-one-leia-tarkin-cgi-characters-star-wars/ |title=See the Stunning Detail That Went into Recreating Two Star Wars Characters For Rogue One |last=Miller |first=Matt |date=5 January 2017 |work=Variety |access-date=9 January 2017 |quote=Many debates have raged on the ethics of these characters being digitally placed in the film and if Industrial Light & Magic (the Star Wars visual effects company) even pulled it off. Certainly, the computerized characters look stunningly lifelike, but still kind of creepy in an uncanny valley sort of way. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170108165814/http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/news/a52078/rogue-one-leia-tarkin-cgi-characters-star-wars/ |archive-date=8 January 2017}}</ref> Joyce Broughton, Cushing's former secretary, had approved recreating Cushing in the film. After attending the London premiere, she was reportedly "taken aback" and "dazzled" with the effect of seeing him on screen again.<ref name="Variety">{{Cite news |last1=Tapley |first1=Kristopher |last2=Debruge |first2=Peter |date=24 December 2016 |title=What Peter Cushing's Digital Resurrection Means for the Industry |url=https://variety.com/2016/film/news/rogue-one-peter-cushing-digital-resurrection-cgi-1201943759/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221095306/http://variety.com/2016/film/news/rogue-one-peter-cushing-digital-resurrection-cgi-1201943759/ |archive-date=21 December 2016 |access-date=24 December 2016 |work=Variety}}</ref>

===Later career===
Towards the end of his career, Cushing performed in films and roles critics widely considered below his talent.<ref name="SWI56" /> The American filmmaker [[John Carpenter]] approached him to appear in the horror film ''[[Halloween (1978 film)|Halloween]]'' (1978) as [[Samuel Loomis]], the psychiatrist of the murderer [[Michael Myers (Halloween)|Michael Myers]], but Cushing turned down the role. It was also turned down by [[Christopher Lee]], and eventually went to [[Donald Pleasence]], another of Cushing's former co-stars.<ref>"Death on DVD: Halloween [R2]" (2001). ''[[Film Review (magazine)|Film Review]]'' 36—43: 284.</ref> Cushing appeared alongside his old co-stars Lee and [[Vincent Price]] in ''[[House of the Long Shadows]]'' (1983), a horror-[[parody film]] featuring [[Desi Arnaz Jr.]] as an author trying to write a gothic novel in a deserted Welsh mansion.<ref name="Meikle46" />

Cushing appeared in the television film ''The Masks of Death'' (1984), marking both the last time he played Sherlock Holmes and the final performance for which he received top billing.<ref name="SWI56" /> He appeared alongside the British actor [[John Mills]] as [[Dr. Watson]], and the two were noted by critics for their strong chemistry and camaraderie. As both actors were in their seventies, the screenwriter [[N. J. Crisp|N.J. Crisp]] and the executive producer [[Kevin Francis (film producer)|Kevin Francis]] both in turn sought to portray them as two old-fashioned men in a rapidly changing world. Cushing's biographer Tony Earnshaw said Cushing's performance in ''The Masks of Death'' was arguably his best interpretation of the role, calling it "the culmination of a life-time as a Holmes fan, and more than a quarter of a century of preparation to play the most complex of characters".<ref>Earnshaw, p. 82</ref> The final notable roles of Cushing's career were in the comedy ''[[Top Secret!]]'' (1984), the fantasy film ''[[Sword of the Valiant]]'' (also 1984) and the adventure film ''[[Biggles: Adventures in Time]]'' (1986).<ref name="SWI56" /> In 1986 he appeared on the British television show ''[[Jim'll Fix It]]'', hosted by [[Jimmy Savile]], in which it was arranged for the wishes of guests to be granted. Cushing wished for a strain of rose to be named after his late wife, and it was arranged for the Helen Cushing Rose to be grown at the Wheatcroft Rose Garden in [[Edwalton, Nottinghamshire|Edwalton]], Nottinghamshire.<ref name="Nottingham" />

During this period, Cushing was honoured by the [[British Film Institute]], which invited him in 1986 to give a lecture at the [[National Film Theatre]]. He also staged ''An Evening with Peter Cushing'' at St. Edmund's Public School in [[Canterbury]] to raise money for the local Cancer Care Unit. In 1987, a [[watercolour painting]] Cushing painted was accepted by [[Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex|Prince Edward]] and auctioned at a charity event he organised to raise funds for [[The Duke of Edinburgh's Award]] Scheme.<ref>Cushing, p. 208</ref> Also that year, a sketch Cushing drew of Sherlock Holmes was accepted as the official logo of the Northern Musgraves Sherlock Holmes Society.<ref>Riley, Dick and McAllister, Pam (1999). ''The Bedside, Bathtub & Armchair Companion to Sherlock Holmes''. London: [[Continuum International Publishing Group]]. p. 104. {{ISBN|0826411169}}.</ref>

Cushing wrote two autobiographies, ''Peter Cushing: An Autobiography'' (1986) and ''Past Forgetting: Memoirs of the Hammer Years'' (1988).<ref name="Monush" /> Cushing wrote the books as what he called "a form of therapy to stop me going stark, raving mad" following the loss of his wife. His old friend and co-star John Mills encouraged him to publish his memoirs as a way of overcoming the reclusive state Cushing had placed himself into following her death.<ref name="Majendie" /> In 1989 he was made an [[Officer of the Order of the British Empire]] for his contributions to the British film industry.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Oliver |first=Myrna |date=1994-08-12 |title=Peter Cushing, 81; Starred in Classic Horror Movies |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-08-12-mn-26296-story.html |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> Cushing also wrote a children's book called ''The Bois Saga'', a story based on the history of England. Published in 1994, it was originally written specifically for the daughter of Cushing's long-time secretary and friend Joyce Broughton, to help her overcome reading problems resulting from her [[dyslexia]]. It was Broughton who encouraged Cushing to have the book published.<ref>[http://www.antiqbook.co.uk/boox/lit/47828.shtml "CUSHING, PETER (1913–1994) The Bois Saga"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622000151/http://www.antiqbook.co.uk/boox/lit/47828.shtml |date=22 June 2013}}. ''AntiQBook''. Retrieved 14 February 2018.</ref> His final acting job was narrating, along with Christopher Lee, the Hammer Films documentary ''Flesh and Blood: The Hammer Heritage of Horror'' (1994), which was recorded only a few weeks before his death.<ref name="Higham" /> Produced by the American writer and director Ted Newsom, his contribution was recorded in [[Canterbury]], near his home.{{citation needed|date=March 2022}} Lee recognised Cushing's health was fading and did his best to keep his friend's spirits up, but Lee later claimed he had a premonition that it would be the last time he saw Cushing alive, which proved to be true.<ref name="LeeNotebook" />