Help! Archives - The Beatles Bookstore

Posted on 11/09/202411/09/2024 by Buzz — 5 Comments

HELP! EIGHT ARMS TO HOLD YOU…A LITTLE “HELP” COULD BE ON THE WAY!!!

This is part of one of the strangest items in my Beatles collection from the film Help! but strangely enough, one of the most appealing items to me. Several years ago on Ebay, I came across a Beatles collector located in NJ (New Jersey) who had a couple of scrapbooks for sale that featured the autographs/signatures of supporting actors and actresses from several of the Beatles movies. Some of these supporting actors like Eleanor Bron and Victor Spinetti played significant roles in the film. Many of the other actors/actresses only played small parts or simply were walk-ons.

Help! Film

However at the price that the collector was selling the scrapbooks at, I could not resist adding it to the collection. The theme of this post will be some of the signatures contained from the Beatles “Help!” film from the scrapbook. To me the item is special because it collects a good portion of the team of actors that contributed to the movie’s success. Gathering the signatures together to place them in a single document must have been a very difficult task. That is why it holds a special place for me in the collection!

Please note: Those who reside in the UK will have a much greater knowledge than me of the actors/actresses that are mentioned in the scrapbook that I was able to acquire. If you have additional information about them that you would like to share and that you would feel to be interesting to others, please share in the Comments section-Thank you!

Eleanor Bron as Ahme:

Eleanor Bron is an English stage, film and television actress, and an author!

Leo McKern as Clang:

Reginald “Leo” McKern, who passed away in 2002 was an Australian actor who appeared in numerous British, Australian and American television programs and films and performed on the stage many times during his career.

Victor Spinetti as Foot-

Victor was a Welsh born actor who passed away n 2012 and has the distinction of appearing in three of the Beatles movies:

John Bluthal as Bhuta:

Another actor other than Victor Spinetti who appeared in both “Help” and “A Hard Day’s Night.” John passed away in 2018.

Patrick Cargill as the Superintendent:

Patrick had roles in both “Help” and the Ringo Starr/Peter Sellers “Magic Christian film

Patrick Cargill who passed away in 1996 was a well-known British actor who appeared in quite a few hit television shows in the UK.

Roy Kinnear as Algernon.

He was also to play a supporting role in the “How I Won the War” film featuring Michael Crawford and John Lennon:

Roy Mitchell Kinnear who passed away in 1988 was an English character actor and comedian!

Warren Mitchell as Abdul:

Warren Mitchell aka Warren Misell; passed away in 2015 was a British actor well-known for his many UK TV appearances.

Alfie Bass as the Doorman:

Alfie Bass born as Abraham Basalinsky, passed away in 1987 was an English actor.

Peter Copley as the jeweler:

Peter Copley was an English television, film and stage actor who passed away in 2008.

When the Beatles are about to enter their apartment in Help!, they encounter a couple of ladies who are their apparent neighbors. Here is the signature of Gretchen Franklin: In that Beatles apartment, the great video of them performing “You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away” was staged. ( the actual filming of the scene probably occurred at the movie studio)

Gretchen Franklin

She was an English actress and dancer with a career in show business spanning over 70 years. She passed away in 2005.

Dandy Nichols as the other neighbor:

Dandy Nichols born as Daisy Sander; passed away in 1986. She was an English actress.

Wendy Richard, one of the actresses who was a part of the fabulous UK cast of the show “Are You Being Served”, was also supposed to be in Help but the scene she was in was cut from the film:

A Missing Scene from Help! – YouTube

Wendy Richard

born as Wendy Emerton; passed away in 2009. She was an English actress.

Thomas Baptiste, one of the policeman near the end of the film:

Thomas Baptiste was a Guyanese-born British actor and opera singer who passed away in 2018.

Zienia Merton as a High Priestess in the film-apparently went uncredited in the movie:

Zienia Merton who passed away in 2018 was a British actress born in Burma.

Hope you enjoyed this post!

Buzz

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Posted on 24/01/202408/07/2024 by liddypool — 1 Comment

Help! With Your Beatles Books

These two books have the movie “Help!” as a common denominator. If you love photographs of the Beatles from that era, you will love both of these books in my humble opinion!

FIRST EDITION Eight Arms to Hold You 50 Years of Help! and the Beatles

Publisher ACC Art Books 2017 Simon Wells, Paul Skellett

This is a superb book with so many outstanding photographs from the individuals mentioned in the eBay book description which is from a current listing on the site the last time I checked there. This publication is a boxed set and is a first-class production. If you get a chance to find one of these books, it is well worth the purchase! The quality of the photos is superb.

Here is the eBay description of this excellent book

The follow-up to the successful Hard Day’s Night, with rare unseen photos- Help! is considered the forerunner to contemporary rock musicals and pop videos, with rare and unseen photos- The film includes a host of classic tracks such as Ticket To Ride, You’re Going To Lose That Girl, and the title track, Help! Remarkable as it may seem, this is the first book on The Beatles’ film Help! and that in itself is a rare milestone in Fab Four history.

So put down your mobile phone, turn off your satellite TV and unplug the internet, and travel back 50 years to wallow in the beauty of The Beatles as never presented before. It may seem clichéd to say this, but truly, a splendid time is guaranteed for all.

Simon Wells, from the introduction.

“Eight Arms to Hold You is a unique publication. It features both rare and unseen photos and materials from the movie Help!, drawn from archives on all four corners of the planet; all of which is forensically remastered by one of the country’s best forensic art and image restorers, Paul Skellett. The book is curated by world-renowned Beatles author, Simon Wells (Beatles 365 Days and Beatles Japan ). This is one of the most meticulously researched and restored Beatles titles to date, with support from Rex Features Archive, The British Film Institute, The Pete Nash Collection, The Vincent Vigil Collection, The Mark Hayward Collection, The Cavern Club, The Beatles Story Museum, The Hard Days Night Hotel, The Beatles Fest and many other private collectors.

Richard Lester, the legendary director of Help! has also lent his assistance in releasing parts of his private collection (including the original hand-noted script) as well as being part of the book’s final approval process. The project has renowned Beatles researcher and author Simon Wells on board to curate and narrate the story, with specialist forensic art and photography restorer, Paul Skellett handling the full image remastering process.

Another excellent photo book of photos from the first color film of the Beatles. Many previously unseen photos. This makes a great companion piece to the book shown above. Like Lennon/ McCartney, the two books make a great duo!!!

THE BEATLES: PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE SET OF HELP! By Emilio Lari & Alastair Gordon

HERE WAS THE EBAY BOOK DESCRIPTION WHEN PURCHASED:

Published in 2015 by Rizzoli International Publications, Incorporated

An extraordinary collection of mostly unseen photographs of the Beatles during the making of Help!. Published to coincide with the fiftieth anniversary of the release of the Beatles’ second motion picture, Help! , this almost entirely unpublished collection of photographs marks a pivotal turning point in the band’s history, as they evolved from much-loved musicians into the most important group of all time.

The Beatles’ first movie filmed in color, Help! is a madcap adventure featuring cinematography and film sequences widely considered to be hugely influential to the modern performance-style music videos of today. Specialist set photographer Emilio Lari was invited by director Richard Lester to shoot stills of the production at Twickenham Studios and document behind-the-scenes larking about as the band relaxed in their hotel between takes. With an introduction by Lester and intimate, never-before-seen images, The Beatles: Help! provides new and fascinating insights into the band that changed the history of music and the world.

Posted on 10/10/202231/05/2024 by liddypool — Leave a comment

With A Little Help! From Our Friends

Three books from a few of the character actors in the Beatles movie, “Help!”

Leo McKern, Eleanor Bron, and Victor Spinetti

Leo McKern Just Resting — Leo McKern – Just Resting

Leo played the character Clang/Klang in the movie and Eleanor portrayed the role of Ahme.

Victor had the role of the conniving Foot

Leo McKern’s book was published by Methuen in 1983, Bron’s book was published by Jonathan Cape in 1985. Spinetti’s book was published in 2006 by Pavilion Books.

Buzz