Creeping Up On Halloween With Count Floyd

Count Floyd is always up to try and bring some terror to your Halloween. It's not his fault he doesn't get to pick the films he shows.

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True this is a character sketch from SCTV, but Floyd always represented that classic horror host and Creature Feature show. Often the host was someone that worked other jobs at a station, and they ran with what movies they had on hand.

In his case Count Floyd is Floyd Robertson, one of the anchors of SCTV's news show. He's played by the always energetic and fun Joe Flaherty.

Floyd was trying to put on a show, and have fun as the "dark" count. But the producers of his show could never really get their hands on decent horror movies for him to amp up his show, instead usually getting a line of weird or boring movies. And the station crew were constantly walking on set and working while he was trying to play his character and engage the kids at home watching.

But Count Floyd keeps trying to keep and maintain the feel.

Let's see some of the count's most horrifying film choices.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Dr. Gangrene

As we get to almost a week to October, we need to more Horror Hosts.


SEND MORE HORROR HOSTS!


So, let's see what we have...

Ah, the enjoyable genius of Dr. Gangrere.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Elvira

Today let's turn our hearts and minds to quintessential piece of Halloween and late night fun. Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. Always the official some or another of Halloween.

It's her birthday today, so let's celebrate her, Cassandra Peterson. How old is she this year? None Of Your Damn Business years old.

NEW Horror Host fun

It;s the time of year when we all should be giving horror movies some love. It's also a good time to appreciate the good work of any local horror hosts. (Really they are to enjoy all year long.) Of course these days it is easier to find and watch horror host shows. On some channels on my cable I have a couple of horror host shows like Svengoolie. And that doesn't even mention shows that are done, or made available online. Check them out!

Some favorites of mine who are working on new material are mentioned below:

Remember the Treehouse of Horror 16 title sequence?

We're now passed the 15 year mark...15 years of Treehouse of Horror? ...That's a whole lot of horror!

Still, it continues on, with a 16th. So, the 2005 Treehouse of Horror...

Okay. We get some baseball. This is some years into the state of things at FOX where The Simpsons' Halloween show was shown about a week after Halloween.

So they open the show on a long shot of a very slow and very boring...and average baseball game (and World Series).

And it is dull and tedious, so finally Kang and Kodos cut in, disgusted that it's taking so long to get passed this game and to the Treehouse of Horror.

The Horror Of...Universal Monsters and Shock Theater

From Screen Gem catalog.

Following my look at Universal Monsters in general, I wanted to consider how these characters emerged. Sure, they had their premieres, and found fans. But what happen in the decades to follow, to help keep them in the public's mind? I wanted to look at where those creatures went in the 1950's. And the answer is...

Shock Theater! (or Theatre, if you like)

In 1957 Universal made the decision to release 52 of it's horror movies in a package called SHOCK! It was part of a deal made with Screen Gems. (They also sold packages of other genres.) The idea was to syndicate these movies, and share them on television.

It was an important moment, as it allowed these movies to be more easily accessed by a new generation of potential fans. Like the young kids that never got to see these movies the first time around. Also those that remember seeing these movies in a different time. It was a chance to be taken back to their youths.

Among this package of movies was Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, The Invisible Man, and The Mummy. Most of what would be called the Universal Monsters. (Obviously Creature from the Black Lagoon was still a too recent movie for them to offer up.) Also many of the sequels were also offered up. And other interesting films, like The Black Cat.

And then in 1958 a second batch of 20 movies were released. SON OF SHOCK. It included more of the Universal Monster sequels, including Bride of Frankenstein.

It all created quite a stir with TV viewers, and inspired new merchandise and new media.

Friday the 13th on Almost Sunday the 13th - Episode 7 - Doctor Jack

So another The 13th has come? It's time for some cursing and killing.

Last time we saw stage magic gone fatal. This time around, it's medicine.

Giving Everyday - Supporting Media - Shilling Shockers, Citizen Radio, and TWiB

Previously, I noted some excellent charities to support. (And I hope you considered them.)

I have also wanted to point to some media that could use some support as well. It's always awkward to me, to put things like this forward. It feels like it comes down to advocating for business. I end up feeling this way even if they try and be altruistic, or are just plain fun.

But being so fun and useful, I do want to see them succeed. So I thought I'd note a few here, and let you see if you are fans, or interested in getting to know them better.



Media to know:


Penny Dreadful's Shilling Shockers

If you haven't seen me say it before, see it now. This is my favorite Horror Hosting show. It's been on 8 seasons so far, and now they are looking for financial support for a 9th.

The show follows the witch, Penny Dreadful, her husband Garou, a werewolf, and their friends, Dr. Manfred Von Bulow and Luna 13. as they watch bad old movies. They offer a lot of interesting insight and humor, and make for a hexcellent. evening's entertainment.

Now it's with Indiegogo, so if you are interested in helping them, be mindful of that system's rules. I am hoping they do get the funding they require, as I would love to see another season of the show. And, if they reach a secondary goal, they will finally be releasing a CD of music they've produced for the show. I've been hoping they'd do this for years now. (They've made some lovely fun songs for the show.)


Citizen Radio

On the more serious side (though with plenty of insightful cutting humor), Citizen Radio. The podcasts of Citizen Radio are free. But the show operates exclusively on donations from listeners, and the blood, tears, and sweat of Allison Kilkenny, Jamie Kilstein, Penny, and Dangles (Well, the last two mostly draw blood, and cause tears.). They pride themselves on their independence. But it also means that they need the support of fans and listeners.

They do a daily (Monday through Friday) show looking at the world around us, informing and advocating. They discuss issues and news. They go out into the streets to get stories. They also do interviews with the likes of journalists, thinkers, and news makers. Jeremy Scahill to Lindy West to Noam Chomsky. And they are rudely funny, with a touch of cat crazy (See Penny and Dangles.).

They are passionate and driven in their work. And if you like their efforts, and can afford it, they are worth investing in.


TWiB - This Week In Blackness

TWiB is another story of people covering news and society, and bringing a sense of humor to the reality around us, one podcast at a time. Led up by Elon James White, the team at TWiB put out a number of shows, from This Week in Blackness to Sportsball to We Nerd Hard. There is a variety of great programming.

They do a lot of good. They offer an underheard voice. And they create engaging conversation for you to be drawn into. And, like Citizen Radio, TWiB can bring in interviews you will likely not hear anywhere else.

But they can use support to maintain their quality of work, and take it to new levels. Also, they are moving their operations, and building a new studio. They are in the midst of plans to update there productions, and expand into more video production. They need support from listeners.



So, I hope if you do like any of these endeavors, and are in a place, financially, to help, you consider it. They all seem decent people making the world a bit better. And, if anything, their work is worth you getting to know.



Also, for Citizen Radio and TWiB, you can donate your Twitter and Facebook accounts. This means you agree to an occasional tweet/post promoting their shows on your account. I know for some that isn't desirable. But what it comes down is, at most, a single tweet a day promoting the podcasts. It's a minimal way to support them out.

Thanksgiving Streaming

It's Thanksgiving. And what better way to celebrate it than with bad movies? And thankfully people on the Internet have that handled. Movie marathons!!!

Right now, they've begun the Mystery Science Theater 3000 Turkey Day marathon. It's being hosted by Joel Hodgson.

It isn't clear what the schedule is for this. So catch it while you can. Currently, they are showing Space Mutiny.

 

But that isn't all. Tonight at 8PM CST/9PM EST Midnite Mausoleum will be doing a marathon of their horror host show.

Yet another way to avoid talking to the relatives.

Loving my Horror Hosts

Yeah, I do love my horror host, and their shows. I have been happy to get into finding, watching, and supporting some of the hosts active these days. You should look there are many, and they are all over the country, on many different mediums.

To get a look at some a quick way to go is via, Horror Host Graveyard, which list current happenings this different shows and hosts. Also different events going on, and how to access some shows. Plus it uses plenty of YouTube vids of the shows that are out there.

And one DVD that is out, looking at the history of these shows in American Scary. Had to grab it up after I learned about it and saw some parts of it on YouTube. Here are some bits.

A Trailer


First 10 Minutes


Clip from behind the scenes with Neil Gaiman and Malena Teves.

Horror Host fun

Came across some fun had by Neil Gaiman and Malena Teves during filming host segments for a Monster Movie marathon. Funny stuff with Teves.



It was to use with documentary over the Horror Host. And as I have said before I love a fun horror film, and really love a good horror host. It is just a pain that I cannot see them on TV around here. But there is some access on the net. But looking at the doc, American Scary, I will have to get it and enjoy.



And I now found I can watch old Elvira's on YouTube. Cool. Hope to find more old classics, and new ghouls.