Horror Movies: An Illustrated History Volume 3: The 1950s Magazine

Product Description

Scheduled for May 2026 publication and shipping.

The first 250 copies of Horror Movies: An Illustrated History Volume 3, The 1950s are signed by authors Nige Burton and Jamie Jones, and come with a FREE art print – click here to view the signed limited edition!

With a new world come new monsters, and Horror Movies: An Illustrated History Volume Three, The 1950s is a luxurious full colour guide to a pivotal decade in the history of monster cinema. The dawn of the atomic age saw filmmakers around the world grapple with issues of safety, social responsibility and the prospect of exploring beyond our own world, leading to the creation of some daring and dynamic monsters; this prestigious publication is a rich, entertaining guide through an era that changed everything.

Sumptuously produced, lavishly illustrated with beautiful stills, and packed with information, this third instalment in our best-selling series of horror movie history guides is a must-have for your collection. Horror Movies: An Illustrated History, The 1950s takes you through a unique age in horror cinema, when new horizons opened up and imagination flourished into some of the most audacious and ambitious monsters yet seen on the screen. You’ll discover how the rapid pace of progress in the wider world led to huge leaps in storytelling and special effects, with social issues reflected in the unfolding cinematic dramas that made audiences gasp, scream and come back for more.

Written and designed to the absolute highest standard in line with our other industry-leading horror movie history publications, Horror Movies: An Illustrated History Volume Three boasts high-specification production values that mark it out as an essential for any fan of classic horror cinema. It’s finished to A4 size (297 x 210mm) with a sturdy, elegant matt laminated cover, while the inner content is printed on fine silk stock paper with a subtle sheen that makes every page a joy to discover.

As you explore this glorious horror cinema history magazine guide, each professionally written and informative chapter discusses the ways in which filmmakers looked both forward and back throughout the fifties. The prospect of exploring the stars, and meeting whatever might be living out there, inspired the growth of science fiction horror, but there were also plenty of monsters here already. Groundbreaking motion pictures like The Thing From Another World and It Came From Outer Space offered different perspectives on the nature of extraterrestrial visitors, while writers looked closer to home with the primal mystery of Creature From the Black Lagoon.

At the same time, the filmmaking community did not forget its roots: familiar monsters from earlier years got a new lease of life, reinvented for fresh and often kitschy adventures. However, the mid-point of the decade marked the dawn of something altogether new, as Hammer Film Productions took up the mantle of golden age horror and gave the industry an almighty shot in the arm with shocking, lurid fare like The Curse of Frankenstein and Dracula. Reflecting evolving social trends, the new age of Hammer Horror was a bold Gothic reinvention of the vintage terrors of the past.

The fifties was a time when everything was big. Vast alien invasion forces, giant insects and 50 foot women – this was an age of enormous ambition that translated to the movie screen in so many ways. Horror Movies: An Illustrated History Volume Three, The 1950s takes a reverent look at the many colossal creatures – as well as their more human-sized counterparts and, in the case of The Incredible Shrinking Man, those on a smaller scale – to examine just why this particular era remains such an important one in the history of cinema. We look at how real-life issues like the horror of nuclear weaponry took the form of Godzilla, while political angst manifested as social collapse in Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

A vital part of any horror movie history magazine is, of course, the stills, capturing crucial moments from the films we love. Horror Movies: An Illustrated History Volume Three, The 1950s is packed with stills that burst from the page, each one painstakingly restored to give you the best possible view of the myriad iconic moments that characterised fifties horror cinema. Our use of full colour print processes means even black and white stills have depth and contrast – worlds away from the flatness of traditional monochrome print, this is a truly beautiful way to rediscover your love of fifties horror cinema, and means this publication is sure to become a cherished part of your classic horror movie magazine collection.

Like the previous two instalments in the series, Horror Movies: An Illustrated History Volume Three introduces the people whose work gave us a heady mix of dreams and nightmares. This stunning publication captures the sense of a changing industry, with charismatic new stars like Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing coming into their own, while the likes of Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff had to work to find a new place in the world. You’ll meet the writers, directors and actors whose collective efforts gave generations of film fans a wealth of exciting new stories.

Horror Movies: An Illustrated History Volume Three is another unmissable publication for your collection. The combination of quality writing, breathtaking imagery and high-end production makes this chronicle of fifties horror cinema a worthy companion to your film library.

Remember, the first 250 copies of Horror Movies: An Illustrated History Volume Three, The 1950s are signed by the authors and come with a stunning FREE art print – click here to view the signed limited edition!

Or, if you’d prefer something extra special, click here to check out the exclusive limited hardback edition – there are only 50 in the world!

• 84 pages
• Full colour throughout
• Packed with stills, posters, articles and info
• Printed and finished to the highest standard
• Luxury matt laminated cover