The Terror of the Tongs – 1961

Columbia Pictures Corporation Presents – A Hammer film production
Copyright MCMLX by Merlin Film Company – All rights reserved
MPAA Approved Certificate

The characters and incidents portrayed and the names used herein are fictitious and any similarity to the name, character, or history of any person is entirely accidental and unintentional

Produced at Bray Studios
RCA Sound Recording
Eastmancolor by Pathe 86 mins

Storyline

In the year of 1910, Hong Kong members of the secret Red Dragon Tong crime family protect their identities by murdering Helena Sale, the daughter of Captain Jackson Sale, a British sea officer who vows revenge and defies the spread of fear created by the tongs. Helped by a mysterious beggar and a young serving girl named Lee, Sale discovers there is an inside traitor who has been giving vital information to the tongs, thus making them one step ahead of Sale’s findings…

Crew


Function	Credited	Age at Release	Birth		Death	Age	Hammer Productions
	Click a link for more info						Credited	Uncredited	Total
Associate Producer	Anthony Nelson-Keys	49	13 Nov 1911		19 Mar 1985	73	41		41
Ast. Director	John Peverall	30	1 Jan 1931		3 Oct 2009	78	21		21
Camera Operator	Len Harris	45	19 May 1916		21 Feb 1995	78	52	1	53
Continuity	Tilly Day	58	1903		1994	91	13	1	14
Director	Anthony Bushell	57	19 May 1904		2 Apr 1997	92	1		1
Editor	Eric Boyd-Perkins	44	1 Jan 1917		4 Dec 2014	97	10		10
Executive Producer	Michael Carreras	33	21 Dec 1927		19 Apr 1994	66	82	3	85
Hair Stylist	Frieda Steiger	57	29 Dec 1903		19 Aug 1993	89	28		28
Make-up Artist	Roy Ashton	52	16 Apr 1909		10 Jan 1995	85	36	4	40
Music	James Bernard	36	20 Sep 1925		12 Jul 2001	75	24	1	25
Musical Supervisor	John Hollingsworth	45	20 Mar 1916		29 Dec 1963	47	36	2	38
Producer	Kenneth Hyman	32	11 Dec 1928	11.12.1928		94	1	1	2
Production Designer	Bernard Robinson	49	28 Jul 1912		2 Mar 1970	57	46	3	49
Production Manager	Clifford Parkes	34	1927		2014	87	12		12
Sound Editor	Alban Streeter	31	1 Jan 1930	01.01.1930		93	7		7
Sound Recordist	Jock May	56	1 Jan 1905		8 Jan 1991	86	30	1	31
Supervising Editor	James Needs	41	17 Oct 1919		4 Feb 2003	83	110	1	111
Wardrobe Mistress	Molly Arbuthnot	52	19 Dec 1908		31 Oct 2001	92	48	4	52
Writer	Jimmy Sangster	33	2 Dec 1927		19 Aug 2011	83	65	2	67
Uncredited
Accountant	Ken Gordon						1	7	8
Art Direction	Thomas Goswell	70	28 Mar 1891		1982	90		5	5
Ast. Art Director	Don Mingaye	32	1 Jan 1929		8 Nov 2017	88	26	14	40
Ast. Continuity	Pauline Harlow (Wise)	23	1 Jan 1938	01.01.1938		85	11	3	14
Ast. Costume Designer	Yvonne Blake	21	17 Apr 1940		17 Jul 2018	78		3	3
Ast. Editor	Chris Barnes	23	1 Jan 1938		5 Jun 2009	71	21	12	33
Ast. Editor	Paul Smith							2	2
Ast. Make-up Artist	Colin Garde	46	16 Jul 1915		Dec 1990	75	1	3	4
Ast. Wardrobe	Rosemary Burrows						36	5	41
Cashier	Paul Lancaster							1	1
Casting	Dorothy Holloway	63	7 Mar 1898		1972	73	1	5	6
Chief Accountant	W.H.V. Able	66	1895		1975	79		4	4
Chief Electrician	Jack Curtis						3	23	26
Chinese Fighter	Peter Diamond	32	10 Aug 1929		27 Mar 2004	74	4	23	27
Clapper Loader	Alan McDonald	23	1938	01.01.1938		85		14	14
Construction Manager	Arthur Banks						18	29	47
Floor Props Chargehand	Peter Allchorne	36	1925	01.01.1925		97		9	9
Focus Puller	Harry Oakes	40	16 Jan 1921		11 Dec 2012	91		53	53
Grip	Albert Cowlard	38	1923	01.01.1923		100		10	10
Master Carpenter	Charles Davis							8	8
Master Painter	Lawrence Wren							11	11
Master Plasterer	Stan Banks							5	5
Production Secretary	Ann Skinner	24	1 Feb 1937	01.02.1937		86	1	2	3
Property Buyer	Eric Hillier	41	1920		1975	55		16	16
Property Master	Tom Money	44	1917		1974	56	2	20	22
Publicist	Colin Reid							6	6
Second Ast. Director	Hugh Harlow	22	17 Jun 1939	17.06.1939		83	3	28	31
Second Ast. Director	Joe Levy							1	1
Still Photog.	Tom Edwards				1999			26	26
Studio Manager	A.F. Kelly							4	4
Stunt Performer	Joe D'Orazio	39	27 Jul 1922		9 Mar 2022	99		2	2
Stunts	Peter Diamond	32	10 Aug 1929		27 Mar 2004	74	4	23	27
Third Ast. Director	Dominic Fulford	42	19 Aug 1919		23 Apr 2007	87	1	5	6

Cast


Character	Actor	Age at Release	Birth		Death	Age	Hammer Productions
	Click a link for more info						Credited	Uncredited	Total
Captain Jackson Sale	Geoffrey Toone	50	15 Nov 1910		1 Jun 2005	94	1		1
Chung King	Christopher Lee	39	27 May 1922		7 Jun 2015	93	22		22
District Commissioner Harcort	Brian Worth	47	14 Jul 1914		25 Aug 1978	64	1		1
Dr. Fu Chao	Charles Lloyd-Pack	58	10 Oct 1902		22 Dec 1983	81	8	1	9
Inspector Bob Dean	Richard Leech	38	24 Nov 1922		24 Mar 2004	81	1		1
Lee	Yvonne Monlaur	25	15 Dec 1935		18 Apr 2017	81	2		2
Mya	Marie Burke	66	18 Oct 1894		21 Mar 1988	93	3	1	4
Tang Hao	Roger Delgado	43	1 Mar 1918		18 Jun 1973	55	4	1	5
Tang Hoe	Ewen Solon	44	7 Sep 1917		7 Jul 1985	67	5	1	6
The Beggar	Marne Maitland	46	18 Dec 1914		Mar 1992	77	8		8
Uncredited
Anna Chang - Housekeeper	Bandana Das Gupta				1965			2	2
Beamish	Tom Gill	45	26 Jul 1916		22 Jul 1971	54	4	1	5
Confucius	Ric Young	17	1 Jun 1944	1.06.1944		79		1	1
Girl	Anne Scott							1	1
Guardian	Milton Reid	44	29 Apr 1917		1987	69	1	3	4
Lee Chung	Andy Ho	48	2 Jul 1913		Jan 1992	79		1	1
Priest at Anna's House	Michael Hawkins	32	26 Nov 1928		26 Oct 2014	85	1	1	2
Su Yen	Michael Peake	42	13 Oct 1918		1 Apr 1967	48	2	3	5
Tong Room Girl	Audrey Burton							1	1
Tong Room Girl	Barbara Smith							1	1
Tong Room Girl	Hazel Gardner							1	1
Tong Room Girl	Julie Shearing							1	1
Tong Room Girl	June Barry	26	15 Jun 1935		2 May 2020	84		1	1
Tong Room Girl	Katy Cashfield	24	6 Apr 1937	6.04.1937		86		1	1
Tong Room Girl	Louise Dickson							1	1
Tong Room Girl	Marialla Capes				1983			1	1
Tong Room Girl	Mary Rose Barry							1	1
Tong Room Girl	Patty Dalton							1	1
Tong Room Girl	Pauline Dukes							2	2
Tong Room Girl	Ruth Calvert	45	15 Mar 1916		26 Jan 2004	87		1	1
Tong Room Girl	Valerie Holman							1	1
Tong Room Girl	Valerie Shevaloff							1	1
Tong Room Patron	Alf Casha	62	26 Feb 1899		Mar 1979	80		4	4
Tong Room Patron	Philip Stewart							3	3
With	Arnold Lee							1	1
With	Cyril Shaps	37	13 Oct 1923		1 Jan 2003	79	1	2	3
With	Harold Goodwin	43	22 Oct 1917		3 Jun 2004	86	5	2	7
With	Johnny Arlen							1	1
With	Jules Ki-Ki							1	1
With	Julie Alexander	23	9 May 1938		31 Jan 2003	64		1	1
With	Peter Gray	47	11 May 1914		24 Mar 2001	86		1	1
With	Poin Ping Sam							1	1
With	Ronald Ing							2	2
With	Santso Wong							1	1
With	Steven Scott	41	23 Jan 1920		1981	60		2	2
With	Sui Lin							1	1
With	Vincent Wong	33	4 Feb 1928		13 Mar 2015	87		4	4
With	Walter Randall	42	1919		2008	88		2	2

Production


FILMING BEGAN	19 April 1960
UK RELEASE	29 September 1961
STUDIO	Bray Studios, Down Place, Oakley Green, Berkshire, England

Footnotes

The film is notable in that is the first Hammer horror film to afford Christopher Lee top billing. Lee also reported to work on the film after a vacation in Northern Italy with a deep tan, which was problematic for the make-up department since his character was supposed to have very pale skin. Lee later said in interviews that the make-up to make him appear into a Chinese in this movie was the most uncomfortable make-up he had to endure up to that time.

Details were complied viewing the actual film.
Source of viewing copy – The Hammer Graveyard Collection