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Between the summer of 79 & summer of 85, I was constantly “at the movies”.I would go with mom a lot [god, what I made her go through] sometimes my bro or cousins…but my favorite was when I went alone. The “terror” was definitely heightened if I was in the theatre all by my lonesome. Anyway, here’s a list of most of the “scary movies” I went to see during that period + a few cult favorites.
1979-1985
Alien
The Fog
The Amityville Horror
Friday the 13th part II
Halloween part II
When a Stranger Calls
The Changeling
Ghost Story
Dressed to Kill
The Entity
He Knows You’re Alone
Still of the Night
Sleepaway Camp
Mothers Day
The Shining
Friday the 13th part IV [The Final Chapter]
Andy Warhol’s Frankenstein in 3D
The Thing
Blood Simple
Blow Out
The Hunger
X-Tro
Mad Max II….The Road Warrior
Fright Night
Of Unknown Origin
The Howling
An American Werewolf in London
Creepshow
Vice Squad
Class of 84
Fear No Evil
The Burning
The Return of the Living Dead
Poltergeist
Eating Raoul
Liquid Sky
Christiane F
Suburbia
Repo-Man
Omen III The Final Conflict
Gremlins
Twilight Zone-The Movie
Psycho II
Ziggy Stardust-The Motion Picture
Visiting Hours
The Incubus
Halloween III
Cat People
*Honorable Mention goes to……”Scarface” not a “horror” movie but a wild experience seeing at the theatre.
And, of course “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”…I saw “RH” in 1982..on Halloween at The 8th st. Playhouse…I caught the tail-end of “RH” at it’s early 80’s peak. Oh, and of course, it was a Midnight showing.
Honestly, I’m a little confused as to whether I saw certain films in the theatre or on cable; ie:”Prom Night”…so until I jog my memory a bit I’ll leave the “uncertain” off the list.
This is me at Don Hills at the party ”Oh! You Pretty Things” 1-17-2010…also my bday party.
I’ve been a fan of horror ever since I was a child. Not sure what the connection or fascination was exactly…but it was there. Perhaps, I knew horror films were somehow “different” than other movies. I too was “different”, shall we say.
As I entered puberty, I became totally immersed with two “cultish” genres. New Wave music and Horror movies….I couldn’t get enough of either.
My “rite of passage” was in the summer of 1979.Granted, I had seen a number of horror movies by then…even some at the theatre but this was different for 2 reasons. A) I picked the film. B)It was an R rated motion picture.
I specifically picked an R rated horror film…I felt “adult” enough to see it, post movie nightmares, notwithstanding. At any rate, the film was “Alien”…it was a real good one. I went with mom and my brother-everyone enjoyed it and I was hooked!
Now, not all the films I went to see where “horror”…but the majority were definitely in the horror, thriller, sci-fi genre. I was in perfect sync with the times too…which was great…I didn’t discover “horror” during some “low” period. The horror genre was going through a major resurgence…kick-started largely in part by “Halloween” & “Friday the 13th”…both of these films were part of the very maligned but very successful “Stalk n Slash” sub-genre. However, the late 70’s/early 80’s were a no holds bar period for all kinds of horror films…not simply the “slasher”.
Furthermore, movies [and we’re talking NYC here] were cheap. During these years, most films I went to see cost anywhere between $3 to $5. Sometimes, you’d get a double-feature or you could see the movie twice..you were never asked to leave…you could stay at a theatre all day. I even had a neighborhood theatre that showed matinees for all of 99 cents….amazing!
Anyway, I’m delighted to finally have a blog and start writing my “reviews” on all the various horror films I now own on DVD. I hope you fiends enjoy it.
Pleasant Nightmares,
Michael T.