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The Haunted Librarian

~ Researching, investigating, and writing about the paranormal.

The Haunted Librarian

Category Archives: Halloween

#SaveHalloween: Halloween Craft Kits Available

09 Wednesday Sep 2020

Posted by The Haunted Librarian in Crafts, Halloween

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The Crafty Scrapper

Spend time creating Halloween art.

Halloween is more than candy. It’s decorating your space and celebrating our inner creative persona. If you’re looking for affordable and unique Halloween decorations that are easy to assemble, head over to the Crafty Scrapper Website, https://www.thecraftyscrapper.com/. This year, they have assembled an eclectic mix of creepy vignettes that will make our COVID-19 restricted favorite holiday a success.

Click here to see the Halloween selections: https://www.thecraftyscrapper.com/iishop?form_version=2&showSearchResults=1&search_keyword=halloween+kits&image=Search.

If Christmas is more your thing, visit: https://www.thecraftyscrapper.com/iishop?form_version=2&showSearchResults=1&search_keyword=christmas+kits&image=Search.

The kits range from paper projects to small sculptures. The bell jar vignette titled “Help We Are Trapped” (created by Melody Winston) has two children trapped inside an upside-down glass jar. Definitely a Zoom session conversation starter. The bug-eyed “Spooky Crow” by Carolyn Ross returns as a customer favorite. And who doesn’t need a tin containing spooky spells? We’ve been social distancing and refraining from contact for over 6 months. It’s time to break open the glitter and glue sticks to create Halloween fun.

13 Tantalizing Morsels about Michael Jackson: Thriller

30 Wednesday Oct 2019

Posted by The Haunted Librarian in Halloween

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John Landis, Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson: Thriller (1983) remains the best music video ever produced. Here are 13 facts regarding the iconic and popular video.

  1. John Landis, fresh from directing An American Werewolf in London (1981), called the music video a “musical horror movie.”
  2. Thriller incorporates horror movie elements creating a lasting homage to the genre. MJ transforms into a were-cat, not a werewolf.
  3. MJ sought to change the music video genre and music listening by forcing radio stations to give equal airtime to artists of color.
  4. Costing nearly $900,000, Landis and MJ negotiated with cable provider Showtime and cable channel MTV to pay between $250,000-300,000 each by offering exclusive limited broadcast rights to The Making of Thriller.
  5. Two famous people were on set for the filming: Fred Astaire, legendary actor/dancer, and former first lady, Jackie Kennedy Onassis. MJ also brought his pet boa constrictor, Muscles, to the set.
  6. At the time of release, MJ was a Jehovah’s Witness and feared retribution from the church. He asked Landis to destroy the video. Instead, Landis penned the opening disclaimer.
  7. Landis called the short-film a “vanity” coming-of-age video addressing puberty.
  8. A popular urban legend claimed that the UPC barcode was MJ’s telephone number. Callers were surprised when employees of a hair salon in Washington state answered.
  9. Horror movie legend Vincent Price earned roughly $1,000 for 2 takes. Price recorded a rap to accompany his voiceover; however, the rap was cut from the final video.
  10. Nine million videos of the short film were sold. Today, the official video has over 625 million views on YouTube.
  11. The original title of the song was “Starlight.” Rod Temperton was brought onboard to re-write, and he renamed the song.
  12. Spoofs of the famous dance scene persist in popular culture. Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi’s spoof in Boy (2010) is a must-see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-TiQXCJtRk
  13. Dubbed as “innovative” and “inventive,” “Thriller remains a quintessential Halloween music video/short film. Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOnqjkJTMaA.

Image

#GardenGoals Dead Man’s Fingers

20 Sunday Oct 2019

Posted by The Haunted Librarian | Filed under Gardens, Halloween

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Dead Still Returns October 11th

10 Thursday Oct 2019

Posted by The Haunted Librarian in Halloween, Horror Movies, SyFy Channel, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

31 days of Halloween, booth brothers, christopher saint booth, dead still, philip adrian booth

Dead Still Returns

Dead Still returns on SyFy October 11th. Part of the 31 days of Halloween programming, Dead Still is a nice addition to the line-up. It stands out for not relying on CGI special effects to force the plot. Schedule your DVRs and watch this movie. In the meantime. read my review from 2014:

Dead Still Worth Viewing

I love horror movies. I’ve watched them since I was a teenager. My favorites include the classics: The Exorcist (1975), Jaws (1975), and Poltergeist (1982). However, I like the B-movie horror films, namely The House on Haunted Hill (1959), The Monster Squad (1987), and The Tingler (1959), too. I grew up watching Dr. Paul Bearer on Creature Feature on WTOG. Horror movies transcend decades and act as social commentary. The Booth Brothers’ new film Dead Still incorporates the Victorian practice of taking mourning portraits into a fictional modern-day inheritance issue. Dead Still, an original SyFy movie, is worth viewing.

The Horror film genre remains popular. Box office rival Annabelle nearly toppled Gone Girl this past weekend. Even though each film generated over $37 million in ticket sales, Annabelle was the money winner. Produced for under $7 million dollars, Annabelle’s return in one weekend was five times its production costs. Wow! Low-budget horror films produce huge profits. This applies to films released exclusively on television with DVD sales later.

 

Dead Still’s estimated production costs were $2 million dollars. That’s extremely low for any film project. Moreover, the film shines with beautiful cinematography, haunting music, and A-list acting.

Filmed on location in Baton Rouge, Dead Still features an incredibly spooky house. Philip Adrian Booth captures the moody ambiance of the house, as well as, the Negative world. Remember: This is a low-budget film. Philip does a lot on a tight budget.

Equally impressive is the eerily evocative soundtrack. Twin brother Christopher Saint Booth assembled a soundtrack heavy with strings—quite appropriate for a horror film. Working as “Saint,” Christopher has assumed the role as music scorer for their productions. Christopher delivers.

Producers landed three strong actors. Ray Wise is absolutely wicked. Mr. Wise’s transformation into the crazy “Wenton Davis,” great grandfather and original owner of the antique Victorian camera, is creepy. Creepy weird and chilling. Ben Browder as “Brandon” is convincing as the relationship-challenged heir to the camera. He’s at his best in the Negative world. Gavin Casalegno portrays “Bobby,” Brandon’s son. His facial expressions convey what words cannot. Already boasting an impressive acting resume, Gavin has a long career ahead of him.

Graphic scenes are limited; however, I could have done without the sexual scene with the newlyweds. It didn’t add any real content and could have been achieved without the nudity and hand-gripping bedrail close-ups.

The antique Victorian camera is an amazing prop. The claw-footed, custom-made stand is intricately detailed and gorgeous. Reproductions of mourning portraits are impactful. They realistically represent the type of photographs popular in America and Europe from 1840-1891.

Dead Still is entertaining and gruesome. The Booth Brothers have expanded their filmmaking collection and have made the jump into the fictional horror movie genre. I look forward to their next film. Until then, stay still—Dead Still.

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups #1 Halloween Treat Pick

03 Thursday Oct 2019

Posted by The Haunted Librarian in Halloween, Uncategorized

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2019 Top Candy Pick

According to CandyStore.com, the top ranked candy for Halloween Trick-or-Treating for 2019 is Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.

Here are the Top 10 BEST Halloween Candy:

  1. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
  2. Snickers
  3. Twix
  4. Kit Kat
  5. M&Ms
  6. Nerds
  7. Butterfingers
  8. Sour Patch Kids
  9. Skittles
  10. Hersey Chocolate Bar

Happy Halloween

31 Wednesday Oct 2018

Posted by The Haunted Librarian in Halloween, Uncategorized

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Spooky-Halloween-Tree-Banner1-1

Have a safe and festive Halloween!

October 21st: Best Ghost Story

23 Tuesday Oct 2018

Posted by The Haunted Librarian in Halloween, Horror Movies, Uncategorized

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Alejandro Amenabar, Nicole Kidman

TheOthers

October 21st: Best Ghost Story

Writer/Director Alejandro Amenabar based The Others (2001) off an episode on the British TV show Armchair Theatre. Nicole Kidman plays Grace, a mother of two anxiously awaiting the return of her military husband from World War II. The children suffer from a debilitating disease where sunlight makes them violently ill. Grace spends her time toiling within the dark mansion and admonishing the staff to keep the curtains closed. But then the curtains open, doors open, and sunlight is let in.

Originally written in Spanish and then translated into English, The Others was a box office hit. The budget of $17 million was easily recouped with US gross at $96 million and worldwide gross at $209 million. It remains the highest grossing film in Spain, where most of the scenes were shot. This traditional ghost story does not disappoint.

October 20th: Best Slasher Film

23 Tuesday Oct 2018

Posted by The Haunted Librarian in Halloween, Horror Movies, Uncategorized

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Tobe Hooper

TexasChainsawMassacre

October 20th: Best Slasher Film

Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) revolutionized the horror genre with his low-budget slasher film. Initial reviews were tepid at best. With an incredibly low budget of $300,000, this film grossed over $30 million in the US alone.

The plot was simple: Cannibalistic psychopaths feast off 5 teenagers on a road trip to visit a grandfather’s grave. The film is entirely fictional; however, it was loosely inspired by infamous killer Ed Gein. It was the subject of lawsuits and mafia ties. After all these years, it remains an iconic slasher film. The movie is part of the permanent collection in the Museum of Modern Art, where it has found newfound praise and criticism.

October 19th: Best Movie with a (Supposed) Curse Attached

21 Sunday Oct 2018

Posted by The Haunted Librarian in Halloween, Horror Movies, Uncategorized

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Dominique Dunne, Heather O'Rourke, Poltergeist, Steven Spielberg

Poltergeist

October 19th: Best Movie with a (Supposed) Curse Attached

Steven Spielberg’s entry into the horror genre is genius. In Poltergeist (1982) unknown forces kidnap the Freeling’s youngest daughter, Carol Anne. After its release, urban legends circulated that the movie was cursed. Several people associated with the film died unexpectantly. Most notable were 1) Dominique Dunne, who played older daughter “Dana,” was strangled by her ex-boyfriend days before her 23rd birthday and shortly after the movie was released and 2) Heather O’Rourke, who played “Carol Anne,” died on the operating table at age 12. Both are buried near one another at Westwood Memorial Park in L.A.

This film grossed over $123 million worldwide and has generated 2 sequels and a reboot. It is an iconic horror film classic with other films referencing it.

Spoiler: By the way, there is only one death in the film: Tweety the Bird.

October 18th: Best Made-for-TV on SyFy

19 Friday Oct 2018

Posted by The Haunted Librarian in Halloween, Horror Movies, Uncategorized

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Tags

booth brothers, dead still, syfy channel

DeadStill

October 18th: Best Made-for-TV on SyFy

In October 2014, I reviewed the made-for-TV SyFy original film Dead Still. It was the first fictional feature-length film from the Booth Brothers, twin brothers who produced several nonfiction films based on paranormal themes. Four years later, the movie remains enjoyable. The movie will be aired again on October 21st on the SyFy Network. Plan to DVR this one.

Here is the original review:

Dead Still Worth Viewing

I love horror movies. I’ve watched them since I was a teenager. My favorites include the classics: The Exorcist (1975), Jaws (1975), and Poltergeist (1982). However, I like the B-movie horror films, namely The House on Haunted Hill (1959), The Monster Squad (1987), and The Tingler (1959), too. I grew up watching Dr. Paul Bearer on Creature Feature on WTOG. Horror movies transcend decades and act as social commentary. The Booth Brothers’ new film Dead Still incorporates the Victorian practice of taking mourning portraits into a fictional modern-day inheritance issue. Dead Still, an original SyFy movie, is worth viewing.

The Horror film genre remains popular. Box office rival Annabelle nearly toppled Gone Girl this past weekend. Even though each film generated over $37 million in ticket sales, Annabelle was the money winner. Produced for under $7 million dollars, Annabelle’s return in one weekend was five times its production costs. Wow! Low-budget horror films produce huge profits. This applies to films released exclusively on television with DVD sales later.

Dead Still’s estimated production costs were $2 million dollars. That’s extremely low for any film project. Moreover, the film shines with beautiful cinematography, haunting music, and A-list acting.

Filmed on location in Baton Rouge, Dead Still features an incredibly spooky house. Philip Adrian Booth captures the moody ambiance of the house, as well as, the Negative world. Remember: This is a low-budget film. Philip does a lot on a tight budget.

Equally impressive is the eerily evocative soundtrack. Twin brother Christopher Saint Booth assembled a soundtrack heavy with strings—quite appropriate for a horror film. Working as “Saint,” Christopher has assumed the role as music scorer for their productions. Christopher delivers.

Producers landed three strong actors. Ray Wise is absolutely wicked. Mr. Wise’s transformation into the crazy “Wenton Davis,” great grandfather and original owner of the antique Victorian camera, is creepy. Creepy weird and chilling. Ben Browder as “Brandon” is convincing as the relationship-challenged heir to the camera. He’s at his best in the Negative world. Gavin Casalegno portrays “Bobby,” Brandon’s son. His facial expressions convey what words cannot. Already boasting an impressive acting resume, Gavin has a long career ahead of him.

Graphic scenes are limited; however, I could have done without the sexual scene with the newlyweds. It didn’t add any real content and could have been achieved without the nudity and hand-gripping bedrail close-ups.

The antique Victorian camera is an amazing prop. The claw-footed, custom-made stand is intricately detailed and gorgeous. Reproductions of mourning portraits are impactful. They realistically represent the type of photographs popular in America and Europe from 1840-1891.

Dead Still is entertaining and gruesome. The Booth Brothers have expanded their filmmaking collection and have made the jump into the fictional horror movie genre. I look forward to their next film. Until then, stay still—Dead Still.

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