Yuku free message boards

Not true at all with regard to the Asian versions; they definitely existed, and had material in them that was not in the UK or US versions. Though I deleted it from my bin, I've frequently posted a frame blow-up of the HORROR OF DRACULA disintegration, shot off a screen some time in the mid-70s apparently, which appeared in a Japanese magazine and thence in a book on Hammer published over there. It's the same make-up that's seen in the familiar Christopher Lee still which was actually part of the Universal publicity packet (except that it wasn't in the movie.); it's also from an angle that matches the rest of the shots, unlike the publicity still.

The Japanese Film Archive had an Asian-territory print on hand, and I dealt with them for months trying to get a clip of it. Even with Hammer's OK, it was like pulling teeth. There had been a fire in the archive and the resulting water damage screwed up the first 3 or 4 reels of DRACULA-- which of course would still leave the best parts. I almost set up a telecine transfer when another archivist came in and scotched the deal saying, "The print can no longer be projected" (which is what the previous archivist said, until he actually examined it.)

In general, Phantom has a good point, it was not a "new" thing. Hammer over-shot stuff. They knew final cuts were always subject to approval by various people & organizations, in assorted territories. It was a game, which is still played with the MPAA today-- you put everything in, hoping that you can throw out something you don;t care about, and keep the stuff you want. Hammer's per-picture battles with the BFFC were documented at length in a recent book (I think it was Hammer the Bray Years, but I could be wrong.)