Hello! This is the Doomed Show - Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995)

Secret Menu Items At Dracula Castle

 I made some spooky music for the holiday of Halloween. Hope you dig them! 

Hello! This is the Doomed Show - Jack-O (1995)

The Addams Family - "Puttergeist" (1992)

[Wednesday and Pugsley dressed as you know who.]

I checked out "Puttergeist", the Halloween episode of the 90s "The Addams Family" cartoon. This was my first exposure to the show and it's um... pretty weird. Or maybe I'm pretty weird. Who can say?

The plot of this episode is that it's Halloween night and the Addamses are preparing for two things: 1) spooky festivities and 2) the appearance of the legendary Puttergeist. In a not subtle reference to Caddyshack (1980), a foolhardy golfer dies at the 13th hole during a thunderstorm after being struck by lightning. Now every Halloween, he haunts the neighborhood on a souped up golf cart, launching golf balls at unlucky residents. 

The voice acting for this show is all excellent though Debi Derryberry's (real name?!) performance as Wednesday is probably too monotone to the point of distraction. I appreciate her commitment to the bit, but she was out-shined by legends like Carol Channing, Rip Taylor, John Astin, Edie McClurg, etc. The animation is goofy and well done, but the voice acting talent they managed to wrangle into the studio is where it's at. 

The big joke that made me laugh out loud featuring Gomez having his back walked/stomped on by Lurch to make him less relaxed. Afterwards, as he's suffering in pain quietly, Morticia asks him to stop being selfish and scream loud enough so the whole family can enjoy it. He then proceeds to crawl around on the floor, bleating in pain. 

The adult humor the creators snuck in is smartly tempered by a mountain of absurdity, which I greatly appreciate. Obviously, this is par for the course -see what I did there?- for Addams adaptations. I recommend this episode, but I can't tell how I feel about the series overall based on this small sampling. I suppose I'll need to see more than just "Puttergeist".  

Live. Laugh. Lurch. I guess. 

My Horror Shelfie 35 - From Jack-O to Kwaidan

#releasetheburpcut

Happy Halloween from Slow Wizard

The Slow Wizard Halloween Special

Recently I talked about how I've started a new YouTube channel for my music projects called The Slow Wizard. For the first ever Halloween Special, I filmed me twiddling some knobs! How is that different from any other episode of The Slow Wizard? That's a fair question! This time I used my Rob Zombie's Halloween II flag as a tablecloth. I can hear your oohs and ahs echoing from your caverns right now. I attempted to make these particular sounds to spookier than normal. Hopefully, I was successful! Before I go I just want to thank all of you who are still following this old blog. You are all amazing folks. Talk to ya later!

Films I Watched: October 2020

To check out our Halloween TV viewing, which was pretty massive this year, check out these posts: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

* means a first time watch!

My Mom's a Werewolf (1989)*
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992)
Halloween: Resurrection (2002)
The Diabolical Dr. Z (1966)
Deadtectives (2018)*
Prevenge (2016)*
My Best Friend Is a Vampire (1987)
Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow (1959)
Hack-O-Lantern (Video 1988)
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)
Corpse Bride (2005)
ParaNorman (2012)
Cowboy Bebop: The Movie (2001)
Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988)
Scare Me (2020)*
The Phantom of the Opera (1925)*
Bewitched (2005)
The X from Outer Space (1967)
May (2002)
Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 (2000)
Wisconsin Death Trip (1999)*
Legend of the Witches (1970)
Tales of Halloween (2015)
Idle Hands (1999)
Nightmare Cinema (2018)*
Host (2020)*
The Halloween Tree (1993)
The Head (1959)*
The Mummy's Hand (1940)*
The Mummy's Tomb (1942)*
The Mummy's Ghost (1944)*
Hocus Pocus (1993)
Hell Fest (2018)
The Mortuary Collection (2019)*
Trick 'r Treat (2007)
Halloween (2018)
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
Ginger Snaps (2000)
The Crow (1994)
Sleepy Hollow (1999)
Berberian Sound Studio (2012)
Dracula 2000 (2000)
Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween (2018)
Haunt (2019)
The Witches (1990)
Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983)
Ernest Scared Stupid (1991)
Dracula 3000 (2004)*
Scary Movie (1991)*
Freaky Farley (Video 2007)
Night of the Demons (1988)
Night of the Demons 2 (1994)
Vengeance of the Zombies (1973)
When Good Ghouls Go Bad (2001)
Cemetery of Terror (1985)
The Child (1977)
The Slumber Party Massacre (1982)
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
Halloween (1978)

Total Films Watched: 63
First Time Watches: 15

Halloween TV Specials and Episodes 2020 - Part 3

I’ve always felt that Halloween should be New Year’s Eve because I get so hyped up around this time of year that November 1st consistently feels like the New Year’s Day to me. It’s true, All Saints’ Day is so weird and refreshing that I feel like I need to get my Schmidt together like time will slip away from if I don’t get something huge done. So here I am bloggin’ up a storm for ya.

It’s hard to believe how much spooky stuff my wife and I squeezed in between the cracks of the movies this month. We managed to watch all this stuff AND sixty or so films. Jeez Louise! We are such cool people. The biggest disappointment in this list right off the bat is that Grace Under Fire episode. That show made me so angry. All of the supporting characters are great but Brett Butler’s unthinkable sarcasm made me want to throw a skull at my TV.

I have to take a moment to say thanks to my pals and podcast co-hosts, Jeffrey and Simon, for hooking me up with some seriously cool specials that I was having trouble getting my greedy claws on. I finally got to see the Halloween episode of Pete & Pete that’s been eluding me forever. That was one of the best and I will definitely be adding it into my yearly rotation. And somehow, I’d never seen an episode of Clarissa Explains It All before. Needless to say, I loved both of them in this list. One booboo that I keep making is that “Monsters in my Room” episode of Tales from the Darkside. LeEtta has to keep reminding me that it’s a Christmas episode. Woops!

Grace Under Fire - “The Ghost and Mrs. Kelly” S4 E6 (1996)
Are You Afraid of the Dark? - “The Tale of the Twisted Claw” S1 E4 (1992)
Clarissa Explains It All - “The Darling Wars” S3 E2 (1992)
Clarissa Explains It All - “Haunted House” S1 E6 (1991)
Party of Five - “Personal Demons” S3 E7 (1996)
Saturday Night Live - “Halloween Special” (199?)
Home Improvement - “Crazy for You” S3 E6 (1993)
The Simpsons - “Treehouse of Horror” 5, 6, 7 and 12
The Fall Guy - “October the 31st” S4 E7 (1984)
Tales from the Darkside - “Halloween Candy” S2 E5 (1985)
Tales from the Darkside - “Monsters in My Room” S2 E12 (1985)
Bewitched - “To Trick-Or-Treat or Not to Trick-Or-Treat” S6 E7 (1969)
Bewitched - “A Safe and Sane Halloween” S4 E8 (1967)
Midsomer Murders - “The Magician's Nephew” S11 E5 (2008)
Psychoville - “Halloween Special” S2 E0 (2010)
Hey Dude - “Ghost Stories” S2 E6 (1989)
Salute Your Shorts - “Zeke the Plumber” S1 E2 (1991)
The Adventures of Pete & Pete - “Halloweenie” S2 E7 (1994)
The Secret World of Alex Mack - “The Secret” S2 E4 (1994)
The New Lassie - “Dangerous Party” S1 E6 (1989)
The Lawrence Welk Show - “Halloween” S4 E7 (1958)
Witch’s Night Out (1978)
Over the Garden Wall (2014)
How To Carve Great Faces For Halloween with Gordy Falk “The Pumpkin Man” (1988)
Basic How-To Halloween Makeups (2007)
The Jeffersons - “Now You See It, Now You Don't” S6 E4 (1979)
Square Pegs - “Halloween XII” S1 E5 (1982)
The Facts of Life - “The Halloween Show” S5 E6 (1983)
Roseanne - “Boo!” S2 E7 (1989)
NewsRadio - “Halloween” S3 E5 (1996)
NCIS - “Murder 2.0” S6 E6 (2008)
NCIS - “Code of Conduct” S7 E5 (2009)
NCIS - “Thirst” S9 E6 (2011)
Garfield in Disguise AKA Garfield’s Halloween Adventure (1985)
Scary Godmother: Halloween Spooktakular (2003)
Scary Godmother: The Revenge of Jimmy (2005)
The Angry Beavers - “The Day the World Got Really Screwed Up” S2 E10 (1998)
Hey Arnold! - “Arnold's Halloween” S2 E7 (1997)
Rocko's Modern Life - “Sugar-Frosted Frights/Ed Is Dead: A Thriller!” S3 E3 (1995)
Jem - “Trick or Techrat” S2 E16 (1987)

Halloween TV Specials And Episodes 2020 - Part 2

Be sure to check out part one of this witchy extravaganza if you haven’t already. So yeah, LeEtta and I continue to attempt to overdose on the Halloween spirit because life in 2020 is so awesome and fun (sarcasm). A few favorites this time around from The Lawrence Welk Show and Ned’s Declassified Survival Guide, which would’ve been my favorite show of all time when I was 10 years old. It’s frickin’ brilliant. I saw my first ever episode of The Commish and well, I’ll never do that again. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention how astonishingly dull the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Meet Dracula episode was. Not even the legendary Paul Williams could save that snoozer. It’s a two-parter! Why?! I don’t know. More treats to come, folks.

Night Court - Halloween II: The Return of Leon (Season 4, Episode 4) (1986)
Highway to Heaven - The Devil and Jonathan Smith (S2, E5) (1985)
WMAQ Channel 5 - Kidding Around - Halloween '82 (1982)
Magnum, P.I. - The Woman on the Beach (S2, E3) (1981)
Hunter - Killer in a Halloween Mask (S2, E5) (1985)
iCarly - iScream on Halloween (S1, E7) (2007)
The Fairly OddParents - Scary Godparents (S2, E12) (2002)
Growing Pains - Happy Halloween (S6, E7) (1990)
Charlie’s Angels - Haunted Angels (S3, E6) (1978)
The Lawrence Welk Show - Halloween Party (S24, E6) (1978)
SpongeBob SquarePants - Scaredy Pants (S1, E13) (1999)
Tales from the Darkside - Trick or Treat (Pilot) (S1, E0) (1983)
Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide - Halloween & Vampires, Werewolves, Ghosts and Zombies (S3, E3) (2006)
Sabrina the Teenage Witch - A River of Candy Corn Runs Through It (S2, E7) (1997)
Sabrina the Teenage Witch - Episode LXXXI: The Phantom Menace (S4, E6) (1999)
Sabrina the Teenage Witch - The Halloween Scene (S5, E6) (2000)
Sabrina the Teenage Witch - Murder on the Halloween Express (S6, E4) (2001)
Clueless - Trick or Treat (S2, E6) (1997)
Beverly Hills, 90210  Halloween (S2, E13) (1991)
Clueless - Scream Again Murray, Scream Again! (S3, E5) (1998)
The Paul Lynde Halloween Special (1976)
Happy Days - Haunted (S2, E6) (1974)
Halloween Safety (Centron Corp.) (1977)
Halloween Safety (Updated) (Centron Corp.) (1985)
Halloween Party (Encyclopedia Britannica Films) (1953)
The Carol Burnett Show - Episode #6.11 (S6, E11) (1972)
EastEnders - Episode #1.74 (S1, E74) (1985)
Poirot - Hallowe'en Party (S12, E2) (2011)
21 Jump Street - Old Haunts in the New Age (S4, E6) (1989)
The Commish - The Witches of Eastbridge (S2, E5) (1992)
The Simpsons - Treehouse of Horror XII (S13, E1) (2001)
The Simpsons - Treehouse of Horror XXIII (S24, E2) (2012)
The Simpsons - Treehouse of Horror XXVI (S27, E5) (2015)

Halloween TV Specials and Episodes 2020 - Part 1

Since September 1^st of this year, my wife LeEtta and I have been watching a whole mess of Halloween stuff because damn it to hell, we wanted to do things right for a change. So, for these installments of spooky ooky scary hairy witchy gobliny whatever stuff posts, I’m listing them by the order in witch we watched them. I’m not including movies this time since those will be in a separate post. I have included season number, episode number, and year released to help you track this stuff down. There are a few that I just have no clue when they aired or what the actual heck is up with them. Anyway, good luck and have a haunted time. If you have any TV specials or Halloween episodes you love to watch every year, throw them in the comments!

Halloween Crazy (2011)
Halloween Crazier (2012)
Halloween Craziest (????)
The Trouble with Miss Switch (1980)
Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Meet Dracula (Season 2, Episode 1) (1977)
Cybill - Halloween (S4, E7) (1997)
Beverly Hills Teens - Halloween in the Hills (S1, E12) (1987)
The Wickedest Witch (1989)
The New Addams Family - Halloween with the Addams Family (S1, E1) (1998)
Recess - Terrifying Tales of Recess (S6, E1) (2001)
Halloween with the New Addams Family (1977)
Ghostbusters - Shades of Dracula (S1, E36) (1986)
DIY Halloween Fright House: Secrets Revealed (2010)
Home Improvement - A Night to Dismember (S7, E5) (1997)
Invader ZIM - Halloween Spectacular of Spooky Doom (S1, E12) (2001)
Benson - The Stranger (S7, E4) (1985)
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - All the Way (S6, E6) (2001)
Doug - Doug's Halloween Adventure (S4, E4) (1993)
America's Funniest Home Videos - Halloween (2007?)
Sabrina The Teenage Witch - A Halloween Story (S1, E5) (1996)
Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations - Romania (S4, E8) (2008)
Highway to Heaven - I Was a Middle Aged Werewolf (S4, E5) (1987)
Party of Five - Wrestling Demons (S6, E4) (1999)
7th Heaven - Halloween (S1, E6) (1996)
Sweet Valley High  The Curse of Lawrence Manson (S1, E7) (1994)
The Haunted History of Halloween (1997)
Halloween Tricked Out (2012)
3rd Rock from the Sun - Scaredy Dick (S3, E5) (1997)
The Beverly Hillbillies - Trick or Treat (S1, E6) (1962)
Martha Stewart - Halloween Episode (2009?)
My So-Called Life - Halloween (S1, E9) (1994)

Films I Watched: October 2018

* means a First Time Watch.

Bewitched (2005)
Hell Fest (2018)*
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1999)*
The Halloween Tree (1993)
Malevolent (2018)*
Repo! The Genetic Opera (2008)
The Ghost Breakers (1940)*
Hocus Pocus (1993)
Cowboy Bebop: The Movie (2001)
Frightmare (1983)*
Halloweentown (1998)
Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge (2001)
Haunters: The Art of the Scare (2017)*
[Rec] (2007)
[Rec] 2 (2009)*
[REC] 3: Genesis (2012)*
Corpse Bride (2005)
Paranorman (2012)
[REC] 4: Apocalypse (2014)*
Idle Hands (1999)
Lavender (2016)*
Trick 'r Treat (2007)
The Worst Witch (1986)
Sleepy Hollow (1999)
The Incredible Melting Man (1977)*
Spellbinder (1988)*
Torture Chamber (2013)*
The Pit (1981)*
Waxwork (1988)*
Waxwork II: Lost in Time (1992)*
The Collector (2009)
Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)
Halloween: Resurrection (2002)
May (2002)
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)*
The Lost Boys (1987)
Dracula 2000 (2000)
Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983)
The Slayer (1982)
Ginger Snaps (2000)
Halloween (2018)*
Halloween (2007)
The Innocents (1961)
The Children (1980)*
Blade (1998)
Halloween II (1981)
The Slumber Party Massacre (1982)
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995)
Hack-O-Lantern (1988)
Cemetery Man (1994)
Once Bitten (1985)
Baron Blood (1972)
The Mummy (1999)
Pumpkinhead (1988)
Mad Monster Party? (1967)
I Bury the Living (1958)
Freaky Farley (2007)
Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998)
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
The Midnight Hour (1985)
Halloween (1978)

Hallowed Friends

So my band, GYROJETS, put out an EP in time for Halloween this year and I wanted to talk about it just a little bit on the old bloogerino. It's called Hallowed Friends and you can listen to it, download it, or buy the CD. Are you still here? Phew, now that those very subtle links are out of the way, I can get down to the heart of the matter, even if, even if you don't love me anymore. I might be misquoting those lyrics.

We started recording this badboy in September and rushed it just a little to have it up on the Bandcamp page on October 30th. Some of these songs will be rerecorded again in the future, especially one of the tracks because we're still writing the song -but I'll get to that momentarily. As usual, my wife LeEtta played the part of our in-house artist and drew some fantastic art for this thing. We told her a few of our ideas and she did her thing. We did the recording ourselves as usual with Sam's drums being squished into a mono channel due to the limitations of my Tascam DP-006. I'm happy with the results but one of these days, we need to get some studio time.

Okay, let's run through the songs! First up is "Laurie Strode", our ode to Miss Strode, as played by Scout Taylor-Compton in Rob Zombie's Halloween II. I probably think about that movie too much. Anything Michael Myers-related makes me happy. We were still writing this one right up until we recorded it. Next up is the instrumental "Why Can't We Be Wraiths?". Sam and I jam a lot just so we can get into that pretentious zone where you mind-meld with your fellow artist. You can't spell artisanal without anal. Wait what? Sam and our pal Ryan Hoge made a bunch of synth sounds that I layered throughout this nearly 8 minute thing.

"Kari Frankenstein" was a birthday present for our bud in our sister band, The Prople. We wrote it the night before her birthday show and then performed it. This was the easiest song to record once we stopped trying to do it all fancy and stuff. You can hear Sam saying, "Yeah, 'cause it's fucking me up..." Then we nailed it the very next take. "We Are [Nearly] Dead" is an unfinished song. Sam wrote the lyrics and does the speaking part. I was flirting with this cool riff for this song forever, then I forgot how to play it. So we made this instead. My guitar is running through a fuzz pedal that my friend Wavley at Eccohollow built for me a while back. The last song is "Gay Werewolves"! I cannibalized some old riffs from a song we don't play anymore and then we wrote this LGBTQ-friendly song. I wrote a line or two while Sam wrote the rest and sings nearly the entire song. This song is so fun to play and hopefully makes everyone feel good. Or hairy.

Well, thanks for reading this and thanks for listening if you clinked those links. I hope you will play "Why Can't We Be Wraiths?" at the next haunted house you build. The secret of GYROJETS is something I will reveal here. It's all a ploy for me to get to hang out with Sam as much as possible. Awww, bless your heart, Richard.