Other Media
The popularity of The Quatermass Experiment gained the attention of the film industry, and Hammer Film Productions quickly purchased the rights to make an adaptation. It was released in 1955, and starred the American actor Brian Donlevy, with Val Guest directing and co-writing the screenplay. Nigel Kneale was unhappy with the result, and was especially displeased with the casting of Donlevy as Quatermass. He stated in an interview, " was then really on the skids and didn't care what he was doing. He took very little interest in the making of the films or in playing the part. It was a case of take the money and run. Or in the case of Mr Donlevy, waddle." The film was titled The Quatermass Xperiment to emphasise its X-certificate status. In America the film was renamed The Creeping Unknown after the title Shock! was considered for that territory, and an alternative opening title sequence with that name was prepared.
The BBC were also pleased with the success of The Quatermass Experiment and in 1955 a sequel, Quatermass II, was broadcast, with John Robinson in the title role following Tate's death. This was followed in 1958 by Quatermass and the Pit, and both serials also had feature film versions made by Hammer. The character returned to television in a 1979 serial, simply titled Quatermass, for Thames Television.
A script book of The Quatermass Experiment, containing several production stills from the missing episodes, was published by Penguin Books in 1959. To coincide with the broadcast of the Thames serial, it was republished in 1979 with a new introduction by Kneale.
In April 2005, BBC Worldwide released a box set of all their Quatermass material on DVD, containing digitally restored versions of the two existing episodes of The Quatermass Experiment, the two subsequent BBC serials, and various extra material—including PDF files of photocopies of the original scripts for episodes three to six. However, the quality of these photocopies is in some cases quite poor.
On 2 April 2005, the digital television channel BBC Four broadcast a live remake of the serial, abridged to a single special, also entitled The Quatermass Experiment.
Read more about this topic: The Quatermass Experiment
Famous quotes containing the word media:
“Few white citizens are acquainted with blacks other than those projected by the media and the so—called educational system, which is nothing more than a system of rewards and punishments based upon one’s ability to pledge loyalty oaths to Anglo culture. The media and the “educational system” are the prime sources of racism in the United States.”
—Ishmael Reed (b. 1938)
“Never before has a generation of parents faced such awesome competition with the mass media for their children’s attention. While parents tout the virtues of premarital virginity, drug-free living, nonviolent resolution of social conflict, or character over physical appearance, their values are daily challenged by television soaps, rock music lyrics, tabloid headlines, and movie scenes extolling the importance of physical appearance and conformity.”
—Marianne E. Neifert (20th century)