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Post by Phalon on Sept 26, 2010 7:42:18 GMT -6
Sure!
I'm not too sure about that, though. Sometimes the littlest things freak me out...like LX recently doing her impression of the creepy crawling thing coming down the stairs. I didn't sleep for days.
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Post by stepper on Sept 26, 2010 10:00:00 GMT -6
This happened in California, and when you read the rest of the tale you'll understand why it just had to be California. It's almost humorous, until the end. It begins with a traveling carnival and the fact that they make the strange and gory profitable. Sword swallowers, the bearded woman, the guy who hammers penny nails up his nose, two headed snakes, skulls, whatever makes normal people feel creeped out enough to fork over money will do. This particular carnival had numerous sideshows including one that was the "hanging man" prop. It was a lifelike scarecrow propped up on a gallows. Of course the scarecrow wouldn't have been all that scary just looking at it from a distance and really, that's what people are paying for - being scared. The trick to this one was you had to pay a nickel to see it, and you paid by prying open its jaw and stuffing your nickel down its realistic mouth. Eventually the jaw stuck open, but you still had to get right up there to stuff the nickel down its throat. They made it as dead looking as possible - and you had to touch it to pay the fare. Sophistication and movie trickery being what it is, it got to the point where the nickel down the throat hanged man wasn't creepy enough and was hardly making money. People wanted better, more realistic, and scarier stuff. Eventually this piece of the sideshow ended up in a permanent location in Long Beach California. It was displayed in the "haunted" house in an Amusement Park. Only children took notice but for them it was still fun to do something so daring as stuff a nickel down the throat of the "corpse." California being what it is, movie people are always scouting locations to use as sets for movies and TV shows. One happy day the Amusement park was picked as a location shoot for, of all things, the Six Million Dollar Man TV show. They were especially interested in using the Haunted House. Of course, this meant rearranging the furniture and props including a rather dilapidated hanged man, and move him they did. Unfortunately, they weren't exactly delicate with their handling and they bumped it a bit hard - at which point the arm made a cracking noise fell to the floor. Cleaning up the mess they made after filming the scene, the crew discovered to their horror that there was a real bone in the hanging man. In fact, the "flesh" looked a bit too real too. Creeped out, the film crew called the cops. Sure enough, the hanged man was a real corpse. The investigation revealed the whole sordid story. The body was that of a criminal named Elmer McCurdy who was killed in a shootout while robbing a train in 1911. The local undertaker was so impressed with how well the body turned out that instead of burying the remains, he propped them up in his business as evidence of his embalming skills. The undertaker is the one who started charging people a nickel to see the corpse of the criminal, including the nickel down the throat trick. After a few years of collecting nickels, the money making plan was ruined when Mr. McCurdy's brothers showed up and outraged, insisted the body be surrendered to them so they could take it home for proper burial. But. It wasn't McCurdy's brothers who showed up. It was the carnies. Thus began a long career as a side show hanged man which took Mr. McCurdy's body all over the US, Canada, and Mexico. And of course, many years in his final job as a prop in the Haunted House. Here are a couple things to consider. Someone had to retrieve those nickels, somehow, from somewhere, out of the corpse. And surely some of them got stuck. Think about it. By the way, if you've ever been to a carnival side show featuring a "hanged man" that you touched, and maybe fed it a nickel, you've touched Mr. McCurdy. See, as strange as it sounds, it's not a story at all. Mr. McCurdy really was nickel-eating prop. In a bit if irony, in the robbery that got McCurdy killed he garnered $46, but he made much more than that one nickel at a time - after he was dead.
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Post by Phalon on Sept 27, 2010 6:40:33 GMT -6
Ooooo....great story, Stepper. Carnivals, just like amusement parks, always seem to have a tinge of the macabre hidden behind the aura of fun.....and sideshows are the main attraction as far as creepiness goes. The town I grew up in used to have a small fair every fall - just rides and games mostly. And of course, a sideshow. It was housed in a semi-trailer that sat away from the rest of the fair, parked among the other semis that hauled in the rides. It was dark back there; the only lights were the sideshow trailer. It's painted wooden facade was lit up, depicting giant images of the bearded lady, wolfman, and other "freaks of nature". Howling and screams could be heard over the announcer's voice, beckoning people to come and be amazed.
I always managed to steer clear of it. One year, when I was about eight or nine, my brother insisted we go in. My youngest brother was just a baby, and Mom had stayed home with him because of the late hour. Dad was not about to leave me outside by myself; neither would he let my brother go inside alone. I had no choice but to enter. It was just as dark inside as it was outside, with only spotlights lighting up the attractions as we walked past. The wolfman was just a guy in a fake fur suit, rattling the bars of a not-very-real looking cage; the bearded lady's beard looked equally as fake. As scared as I was to go in, even I could tell they weren't real. But then...there was this thing in a jar sitting in the center of a table with a light shining down on it. It was a three-headed baby floating around in green liquid. I had nightmares about it for weeks.
I wonder if I ever put a nickle in a hanging man's mouth. Thankfully, I can't remember!
I told the girls the story of the hanging man while we were eating dinner yesterday. Hubs didn't think it could be true, and suggested I 'snope" it. I did - it's true. LX was thoroughly creeped out. Clowns too, hold a huge creep-out factor for her; even after watching Zombieland, she wouldn't go into a public restroom for a week. Last night, she, BP, and I were at the drugstore getting poster board and supplies for projects they each have at school. We wandered down the aisle with the Halloween stuff. I couldn't resist. She was on the opposite side of the aisle from me, and I called her over to "show her something". When she got sufficiently close, I held up a evil looking clown head, draped in tattered rags. She ran down the aisle, half laughing, half screaming, leaving me and BP cracking up.
I'm such a good Mom. (eye-roll)
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Post by stepper on Sept 27, 2010 21:18:22 GMT -6
Yep! True Story. That's part of what makes it so creepy - that it's true.
I have to admit, I always headed for those side shows. I remember vividly the screaming loud speakers "Alive, alive! Come in side and see them live!" And I went in. Can't say I ever saw a three headed baby in green goo. Was it real?
LOL! Isn't that a dinner conversation that'll make 'em want TV dinners in the other room?
OOO! Clowns! You're right. We love our funny clowns - and when they aren't funny they're scary! Just one question. Did you buy the clown mask for yourself?
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Post by Phalon on Sept 28, 2010 4:30:35 GMT -6
Of course not!!! At least that's what Dad said after-the-fact when he saw how scared I was.....kinda in the same way I told BP last night when tucking her in bed that the hanging man wasn't real. But really...I doubt it was real; I can't even say it was supposed to be a three-headed baby. It might have been billed as an alien or something. I just remember it had three heads and was floating in green stuff, and scared the cr@p out of me.
Ah....it was a mild one in comparison to some!
Nah, though the thought crossed my mind. It wasn't a mask; it was just a head with material draping from it - the kind of thing you hang somewhere to look ghostly. What I really wanted (and might go back to get) was the Jack-in-the-Box. "All around the mulberry bush, the monkey chased the weasel..." tune plays as a creepy voice beckons over the music. "Pop goes the weasel". Wicked clown pops out and starts maniacal laughter. Can you imagine being a trick-or-treater and having to wind the handle as a "trick" before you get your "treat". Oh, what fun!
LX wouldn't even look at it.
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Post by stepper on Sept 28, 2010 21:38:02 GMT -6
I wouldn't want them to have problems sleeping on my account. I know a couple more stories - maybe one that doesn't have the same ick factor would be better? Then again, maybe it should wait for October. Too funny! You and Hubs should greet BP and LX at the door when they come home Halloween evening - in full scary clown regalia.
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Post by Phalon on Sept 30, 2010 4:24:12 GMT -6
Hey, what about me?! It's not just the hangman story that's done it - I've been all over the Internet reading loads of scary stories for our 31 Days of Halloween, and must admit I've kinda freaked myself out imagining all kinds of things once the lights go out. My dream last night woulda made a good urban legend.
Which is tomorrow already! Sheesh, where did September go?
BOLL! The look on their faces would be priceless! I couldn't do it, though - as much for their sakes as mine. Looking in the mirror and seeing an evil clown staring back at me would be too much. Speaking of freaking out the last few days about stuff I've found on the Internet....
The other morning in the A-Z character thread, for some unknown reason "The Amazing Jonathon" popped into my head for the letter "A". I couldn't remember where I'd heard the name, or who the character was, so I drilled it. First site I click on, and up pops a full-screen clown head with a mouth full of rotted teeth in an evil grin. Creeped the hell outta me, and it was a good thing I didn't have a cup of coffee in my hand yet. An evil clown face is bad enough, but a lap full of piping hot coffee is downright painful! I went with "The Aardvark" instead.
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Post by stepper on Sept 30, 2010 20:28:17 GMT -6
You read so much that you scared yourself?? You must have a truly vivid imagination. Where did September go? Where the heck is 2010 going?? One thing that I have found to be true - when I was young only the summer went by too quickly, now that I'm older the season doesn't matter in the least. Tempus fugit. At least you didn't dream it! Now THAT would be creepy - having that clown face pop up in the middle of a dream? It'd wake you right up!
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Post by Phalon on Oct 1, 2010 6:25:17 GMT -6
Yes. Which, honestly, is not that hard to do. I'm constantly scaring myself....each time I look in the mirror, for example. But in this case, you have to take into account how I've done the drills. Usually I'm the last one to bed on weeknights, so I have a bit of time to myself to play around on the computer. Lights out, house dark except for the the glow of the screen; wading through hundreds of websites, and twice that many ghastly tales of fright - heck ya, I got scared. Who am I kidding? I woulda been scared in the light of day. That too! And here we are, the first of October - day one of The 31 Days of Halloween. I should probably start by explaining the two-minute drills - I really limited myself by sticking with stories pertaining to the specific days of the month. I ran across some truly creepy stories that made the back of my neck prickle, but discarded them because they occurred in a month other than October; July and December seem to be the months for horrid happenings for some reason - maybe the heat of summer, or the lonely gray days of winter is what drives people mad. A lot of my drilling led me on wild goose chases - I'd run across something that I thought might work, only to find there wasn't a way to tie it into October. It was quite fun actually, (and I've still got just under half a month to go), tracking down bits of information pertaining to a day in October, and then having find a spooky story to attach to it - had to get creative in a few cases. So...these stories may not be the spookiest out there in the vast paranormal recesses of the Internet, but I can guarantee they each pertain in some (relatively odd, or a blatant stretch of the imagination) way to each day of October. I wonder how Scrappy's coming along? I wonder if Scrappy's still out there....somewhere. Perhaps the Evil Clown got her; Scrappy hates clowns. Story for October 1st coming up tonight; I've got to get to work now. But before I go...speaking of Scrappy.... Oh, Dearest Poppet, my fellow admirer of those wondrous orbs of orange....here's one just for you.
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Post by stepper on Oct 1, 2010 18:39:30 GMT -6
Drat! I was hoping there'd be a story here by now. Sigh. Sweet or dill 'cause I really prefer sweet...whoops. pRickle! Sorry.
Sounds like the beginning of a good creepy story! BTW, how's your book coming? You know, that'd be a good name for a character in your book!
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Post by Phalon on Oct 1, 2010 21:19:56 GMT -6
October 1st - Night of the Living Dead. Oh, the horror! I remember it well. I was bored to death. He, as animated as a corpse. The good thing about corpses though...eventually they all become stiff.
Ba-da-boom.
Uhm....ok, enough about My Worst Date Ever.
We'll start this off easy; just a bit of trivia. Today is the anniversary of the release of that horror classic, Night of the Living Dead. The film premiered at the Fulton Theatre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on October 1, 1968, at 8pm, admission by invitation only. It was met with a standing ovation.
Critics of the time called it a ground-breaker, saying "one of the most gruesomely terrifying movies ever made — and when you leave the theatre you may wish you could forget the whole horrible experience", and ""If you want to see what turns a B movie into a classic don't miss Night of the Living Dead". And Ebert said, the film affected the audience immediately:
“ The kids in the audience were stunned. There was almost complete silence. The movie had stopped being delightfully scary about halfway through, and had become unexpectedly terrifying. There was a little girl across the aisle from me, maybe nine years old, who was sitting very still in her seat and crying...When the hero is killed, that's not an unhappy ending but a tragic one: Nobody got out alive. It's just over, that's all." This cheaply made movie was a ground-breaker in other ways. It was an independent film...all major studios refused it due to its graphic scenes, and tragic ending; they wanted a toned down version with a happy ending which was par for the course as far as horror films of the day went. George A. Romero refused to change it, and the film ended up grossing $12 million domestically and $30 million internationally. His first film made director Romero a sensation.
It's woefully low budget - a whopping $114,000 - called for some pretty creative improvisations. The most noticeable being it was filmed in black and white. The house used in the movie was scheduled for demolition anyway, so destroying parts of it during filming didn't matter - no sets had to be designed. Costumes consisted of second-hand clothing from cast members and Goodwill. The blood was Bosco Chocolate Syrup, (chocolate actually, was a good substitute for blood in black and white films, and used often). The flesh eaten by the zombies was roasted ham and entrails donated by one of the actors who also owned a butcher shop. The filmmakers and camera crew joked zombie makeup was a waste of time - while eating chocolate syrup covered ham, the actors looked so pale and sick that they didn't need any makeup.
Though the word "zombie" was never used in the movie, Night of the Living Dead defined the word as we know it now. Never before had zombies been depicted as flesh-eating corpses.
Perhaps the most potentially controversial thing about the movie was the casting of an African American as the main hero in a movie with nearly an all white cast. This was a time of extreme racial tension, and such a move had never been done before. Social commentators saw this as significant; Romero said that Duane Jones "simply gave the best audition".
Actually, many things about Night of the Living Dead were analyzed to death; historians see it as a critique on 1960s American society, international Cold War politics, domestic racism, of American involvement in Vietnam, the "disillusionment with government and patriarchal nuclear family" as well as "the flaws inherent in the media, local and federal government agencies, and the entire mechanism of civil defense".
Pretty scary stuff....maybe even more so than chocolate covered ham.
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Post by stepper on Oct 1, 2010 21:20:29 GMT -6
I'm not going to even try to post one story a day....and good luck to Phalon and Scrappy for even trying. But since today is the first and there's no stories yet, here's one I know is true.
Not all ghost stories are about bad ghosts. In many stories, the ghosts just appear doing little more than becoming visible - which is scary enough. Sometimes the ghosts speak or moan, and that would be uber scary. Sometimes, though rare, the ghosts are helpful. Now, I'll be the first to admit some people dispute what you are about to hear. We live in an age where skeptical people insist that if something doesn't happen to them personally, on their schedule when it's convenient for them, then "it" didn't happen to anyone, ever. Fortunately, that's a false concept and most people catch on right away. This story is well documented and has happened to enough people - including disbelievers - that there's not a shred of doubt about its authenticity. This is a story of ghosts - children ghosts - and yes the plural reference is intentional.
The location is just south of San Antonio TX, but people everywhere in TX know this story. In the 30s or 40s, prior to WW-II anyway, a school bus was transporting children down a dark road one cold and drizzly morning. Back in those days rail road crossings didn't always have flashing lights and crossing guards. And I'm sure you can already see where this story is heading. This was a bus loaded with young children, poor children, who lived outside of San Antonio. The creaking old bus wasn't in need of repair so much as it needed replaced, but just recovering from the Great Depression across the US, there wasn't much money for busses - especially for the poor districts and sleepy little towns like San Antonio. One dark and wet morning the bus driver stopped at the train tracks as usual, and looked both ways, as usual. Nothing, as usual. No lights. No sound other than the rattling of the engine. So they started across the tracks but it was then that something unusual happened. Only part way across the bus stalled. And off in the distance, everyone heard the sound of the train coming. Out in the countryside trains move rather more quickly than in town and everyone’s' heart began pounding faster. The driver tried to get the bus going, but it wouldn't budge. And the train whistle comes closer each second. The children began to panic and scream. And the train whistle is getting louder. Next he tried the starter with the bus in gear hoping the starter would move the bus, but this didn't work either. And the train and whistle are getting louder. The bus driver opened the door and got most of the children off the bus and away from the track - the train whistle sounding very loud now - and then in the darkness with the train headlight bearing down on the bus, he went back for the remaining children. Too late the conductor saw the bus straddled across the tracks as he rounded the bend. The train crashed into the bus at nearly full throttle killing the driver and 10 innocent children.
It was a horrible thing that happened that cold morning and horrible things leave their mark on the spot. This was 11 horrible things that happened all at once. Children however, are not horrible. They left their own special mark on this sad spot. Ever since the accident a remarkable thing has happened. Sometimes, vehicles that get stuck on that spot are miraculously moved safely across the tracks. Even those that intentionally stop short of the crossing will move slowly across those tracks. Uphill. Yes, I said uphill; uphill with enough force to clear the rise in the road bed for the rails and continue on till safely past the spot drifting to a stop - some as much as .2 miles up the road. What power moves stalled vehicles up hill? Some say, it is the ghost of the children. I know what you are thinking. Children? Ghost 'children' at that - pushing vehicles? As if ghosts can actually push?? Every so often people test this, especially around Halloween, because to personally experience this gives even the bravest people goose bumps. So people drive to the area and stop on the tracks, put their cars in neutral, turn off the engine, and wait. This is a stupid thing to do because the tracks are still in use, but people just can't resist being scared, and those who experience the event DO get scared. We tell ourselves there's no such things as ghosts, but no one can explain what happens.
I told you before, not everyone believes this. But the doubters can't explain the names of the streets in the area of the tracks. Names like Shane Rd, Cindy Sue Way, Nancy Carole Way, Richey Otis Way, Bobbie Allen Way, and Laura Lee Way. Some doubters say it can't be. It's an optical illusion - it must be down hill. But it isn't. Even if it was, it doesn't explain getting over the hump in the road where the tracks set. What of the children? There's no proof that "ghost children" have anything to do with this! It's a preposterous claim! But there is proof. To help you believe, to help you know the truth of this, that the ghost children are real, here are the results of separate investigations. There have been many, but these will do.
The San Antonio Children's Ghost Train Tracks story was covered for a Los Angeles TV station by "The Earth Man" Garcia as a Halloween piece. The California station sent out their own crew and recorded their 'test' in the presence of a San Antonio Sheriff. [Actually it was a Bexar Country Sheriff but that's getting picky.] Quote: The cars back end was cleaned off of any finger prints before the test was done and after it was done it was dusted for prints. Several small hand prints and finger prints showed up on the bumper, showing that the small hands of the ghost children were pushing the car to get it off the tracks.
There are also claims that this is nothing more than a gravity anomaly allowing a non-moving vehicle to move over a small up-grade. But no one can explain away the hand and finger prints. End Quote.
Need more? Part of another story: "Despite the much publicized story, its truth has been hotly debated in San Antonio and both area residents and local law enforcement are weary of the legend. Numerous accounts have been reported that cars do in fact inexplicably move on their own and mysterious prints are seen on vehicles. Others allege they have heard the voices and laughter of children while at the site."
One more documented account. [FYI: Seguin TX is East of San Antonio on I-10, about a 20 minute drive - it's the home of Texas Lutheran University.]
"I used to live in Seguin, Texas. I know many dispute the legend of the railroad track ghosts. However, I was witness to one very indisputable event there in my late teens, early 20s. Personally, I don't think a two degree declination is enough to push a 3600 pound car (2 tons with passengers) over those tracks with no starting momentum... But... One afternoon, I had gone to the railroad tracks with a few friends. After having drove over the tracks a couple of times, we were chatting with some visitors who had already taken a Lincoln Continental (2.5 tons +) over the tracks once. They were a husband and wife, and a visitor from Mexico, who didn't believe the event, accusing the husband, who was driving, of making the car roll. So, the husband and wife got out and let their Mexican visitor take the wheel for himself. They staged the Lincoln about five yards back from the tracks, with the engine shut off. With their visitor in the driver's seat, the car suddenly started to drift forward over the tracks. The visitor began to scream and slamming on the brakes. However, he could not stop the car until it completed its crossing of the tracks! He had also tried putting the transmission in park, but it still sped forward! I've never seen anyone so terrified. Once the car finally stopped, he jumped out, still screaming and shouting in Spanish, then demanded that his hosts take him back to his hotel, stating that he was leaving and was never coming back! ... Once, when I used the baby powder on my car, I had multiple small hand prints and one set of adult-sized hand prints. [My interjection here. Several people - mostly doubters - have done this. They clean the back of their cars and then dust them with baby powder to prove that no one has touched their car.] But, these hand prints did not belong to me -- they were larger than mine, but smaller than my husband's. I had had no children anywhere around my car previously and was extremely meticulous about the appearance of my car. Also, all the prints were either on the bumper (small prints) or the ridge of the trunk (adult & more small). The bumper is too low for most people to place their hands for anything other than pushing and all prints were with the fingertips pointed up, unlike if someone just touches the back of a car (usually if they're sitting on the trunk or opening the trunk lid). When one washes their car with dish soap, oils from hands is removed, so no prints will remain.
Personally, I think the "experts" are "debunking" the myth so that people stop coming to the ghost tracks. The area has developed considerably since my visits, with a number of nearby residences. When I went, it was "countryside" near an industrial area. Also, the targeting criminals probably live nearby; kids/teens. If their debunking helps divert unwelcome visitors, more power to them. However, I know the tracks myth is real!
Incidentally, I never went over the tracks with the engine running, unlike most who try this. Timeframe of my experiences there was mid 1970s to 1981."
To quote A Christmas Carol...
"You don't believe in me," observed the Ghost.
"I don't," said Scrooge.
"What evidence would you have of my reality beyond that of your senses?"
"I don't know," said Scrooge.
Old Scrooge may not have known what proof he required of his ghost, but if you have any doubts left you have joined the skeptics of this skeptical age. You are in for a shock if ever you go to San Antonio and try this for yourselves. But don't doubt too steadfastly. Not everyone has made it across those tracks. Children do like to play their tricks you know.
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Post by Phalon on Oct 1, 2010 21:37:27 GMT -6
Oooo, good one, Stepper!
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Post by stepper on Oct 1, 2010 21:46:02 GMT -6
October 1st - Night of the Living Dead. Excellent start Phalon!
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Post by Mini Mia on Oct 1, 2010 22:18:43 GMT -6
I saw the 'ghosts moving car trick' on a show once. Unsolved Mysteries or Ripley's Believe It Or Not ... or some such show. I think they also turned off the car. But still, I think it's healthy to hold out disbelief until you've tried it yourself.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Oct 1, 2010 22:37:42 GMT -6
Me first? Ok.......On this day: October 1st 1946 - The International War Crimes Tribunal in Nuremberg sentenced 12 Nazi officials to death. Seven others were sentenced to prison terms and 3 were acquitted.
Even more interesting and I wonder if it was a coincidence or just a matter of timing: On this day in 1938 - German forces enter Czechoslovakia and seized control of the Sudetenland.
Famous Birthday: Henry III King of England (reported to have given the "cheap manhoods" speech before the battle of Lewes)
Ok so maybe not Halloweeny, but still kinda creepy.
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Post by stepper on Oct 1, 2010 22:54:58 GMT -6
Works for me Scrappy. If Nazi's don't scare you, they should.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Oct 2, 2010 11:27:06 GMT -6
No kidding! Ok............just because I like to try and be one up on Madam P! HA!
On this day in 1959 "The Twilight Zone" debuted on CBS. One of my all time favorite shows ever and also a little bit Halloweenie!
Rod Stewart earns his first #1 hit with "Maggie May", 1971 Now that's scary....AND it's going to be on my head ALL day!
Also Famous Birthdays:
Richard III 10/2/1452 - 8/22/1485 King of England
Saint Charles Borromeo 10/2/1538 - 11/3/1584 Italian Roman Catholic bishop
Nat Turner 10/2/1800 - 11/11/1831 American slave hanged for leading violent slave uprising
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Post by Phalon on Oct 2, 2010 18:46:07 GMT -6
No. Quit skimming; I got mine in right before Stepper posted the ghost children on the train tracks story. (Yesterday was the anniversary of "Night of the Living Dead".)
No. Not kinda creepy. Really scary.....which just goes to show that sometimes the worst our imaginations can conjure up can't compare with some of the real life monstrosities out there!
This is what I had for today too! Though the opening monologue changed slightly for each of the five seasons that the original series ran, who can not recognize the general narrative:
You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension: a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You're moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas; you've just crossed over into the Twilight Zone. ~ Rod Serling
Great stories, always ending in a twist. There were just a few twists behind the scenes too - maybe a couple of occurrences beyond this dimension; perhaps a shadow, an idea that is bordering on crossing over into.....The Twilight Zone.
Or just some fun trivia.
The episode "Little Girl Lost" is based on the writer's own experience. Richard Matheson's young daughter fell out of bed one night and rolled against the wall. When Matheson reached under the bed for her, there was a moment of panic when he couldn't find her, just out of his reach. In the Twilight Zone episode, a child falls into another dimension.
Auditioning actresses for the episode "Come Wander With Me", producer William Froug rejected an young actress who appeared extremely nervous. He recalled thinking, "I'll probably kick myself. She'll probably be a big star." The aspiring young actress's name was Liza Minnelli.
During the filming of the episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", Rod Serling was going to play a practical joke on writer Richard Matheson while they were flying board a propeller plane. The intent was to scare the crap out of him. Serling had arranged with the airline to tape a poster blow-up of the "Nightmare" gremlin's ugly face to the outside of the plane window. Just as Serling asked Matheson to open the curtain to reveal the monster, the plane's engines and props fired up, blowing away the poster, and ruining Serling's joke. Even if he had pulled off the joke, it would have been ruined anyway. Matheson envisioned his gremlin as a dark, creepy and nearly-invisible humanoid figure. "But this thing," he complained, "looked more like a panda bear."
In Serling's younger days, he was a WWII paratrooper, receiving, among other medals, the Purple Heart. In a bizarre twist during the war, he witnessed his best friend with whom he had survived the worst of the fighting with, get decapitated when a food crate dropped by a U.S. supply plane fell on him.
Disney's amusement park themed ride "The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror" is based on the episode of the Hollywood Tower Hotel which is struck by lightning on October 31, 1939, mysteriously transporting an elevator cart full of passengers to the Twilight Zone. When the ride was being built, it was struck by lightning.
The 1983 "The Twilight Zone: The Movie" is listed in the Top Ten Most Memorable Cursed Movies. It received notoriety for a helicopter crash during filming which took the lives of actor Vic Morrow and two child actors, Myca Dinh Le and Renee Shin-Yi Chen. (It was the only original segment of the five in the movie; the others were remakes of episodes that aired on television). A high-profile trial followed, though no one was found criminally responsible for the accident. The film of the crash was never destroyed, and clips of the tragedy still appear all over YouTube....
...which can be seen as a flaw in the human psyche, a reoccurring theme of moral and philosophical choices depicted in the series.
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Post by stepper on Oct 2, 2010 20:37:59 GMT -6
The Twlight Zone and Outer Limits _ both great shows.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Oct 2, 2010 22:26:05 GMT -6
OMG.....wonderful segment there Madam P. Way to out do me!
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Post by katina2nd on Oct 3, 2010 0:27:39 GMT -6
On this day in 1941 a certain little Austrian declared that Russia was broken, never to rise again .............. errrr, bad call.
Who's the leader of the club That's made for you and me M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E Hey! there, Hi! there, Ho! there You're as welcome as can be M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E
Mickey Mouse!
Mickey Mouse!
Forever let us hold our banner High! High! High! High!
Come along and sing a song And join the jamboree! M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E
Mickey Mouse club We'll have fun We'll be new faces High! High! High! High!
We'll do things and We'll go places All around the world We'll go marching
Who's the leader of the club That's made for you and me M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E Hey! there, Hi! there, Ho! there You're as welcome as can be M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E
Mickey Mouse!
Mickey Mouse!
Forever let us hold our banner High! High! High! High!
Come along and sing a song And join the jamboree! M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E
Mickey Mouse Club premiered on this day in 1955.
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Post by Phalon on Oct 3, 2010 8:23:13 GMT -6
I heard that on the radio yesterday, Katina....and wondered if I could, by some stretch of the imagination, fit it into our 31 Days of Halloween. I already had the Twilight Zone drilled though, so...
Nah, not outdo you, Poppet - just adding to what you found. Curious to see what you've got for today; mine is really a s-t-r-e-c-h. My drills produced nothing particularly Halloweenish. It seems October 3rd was a fairly good day for everyone....
...that is for everyone but the Ewalds.
The Ewalds (or Hewalds) were a couple of priest buddies in England, who set out upon a mission in 690 converting the ancient pagans to Christianity. Ewald the Black had dark hair, a dark complexion, and was more learned, outspoken, and bold in his tactics than his companion, Ewald the Fair, who had a light complexion and hair.
Their travels led them to the country of the Saxons, now part of Westphalia, Germany, where they were given shelter and food by the steward of a Saxon Earl. After several days with the steward, the Ewalds told him that they had a message of importance to deliver to the Earl.
The pagan Saxons had witnessed the Ewalds praying and reciting Masses, and determined the Ewalds' intent was to convert their over-lord, destroy their temples, and replace their religious beliefs with those of Christianity....which was, of course, true. The Saxons determined the Ewalds must die.
Both priests were quickly seized. On October 3, approximately 695, Ewald the Fair was killed quickly by sword. Ewald the Black, the more bold of the two, was tortured, and torn limb from limb. Both bodies were cast into the river Rhine.
The bopping Ewalds floated upstream for forty miles where they showed up at their traveling companions camp, emitting a column of light the entire way. The Earl, fearful of reprisals, had the murderers put to death, and their villages destroyed. The Ewalds were declared martyrs and saints by a monk of the time.
Now....I'm sure Christian martyrs and saints probably wouldn't be considered Halloweeny, but this has all the makings of a good ghost story. When two groups with opposing beliefs come together, usually someone's going to get too vocal and lose their head.....or in the case of Ewald the Black, lose a coupla arms and legs. Torture, dismemberment, murder, dead bodies floating illogically upstream, unexplainable glowing bright lights...what more could you ask for in a ghost story? Not to mention embellishment...all ghost stories have a bit of embellishment to make a better story. And in this one, Christianity wins out over logic.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Oct 3, 2010 16:53:52 GMT -6
Ok....funny and completely Halloweenie! Murder and Mayhem! Ghouls and Ghosties! Here's mine.....more death and mayem: On this day in 1283 Dafydd ap Gruffydd, prince of Gwynedd in Wales, becomes the first person executed by being hanged, drawn and quartered. He was fighting to keep the English King Edward 1st from taking over his country. Oh and Madam P!? Thank you sooooo much for the flying orb I barely noticed. Loks like it's been flying around early this year!
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Post by katina2nd on Oct 3, 2010 18:19:03 GMT -6
Yeah I screwed up [ again ] didn't realise we were in Halloween mode ............. nothing very scary about Mickey Mouse.
I'll try and come up with something suitably horrific next time.
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Post by stepper on Oct 3, 2010 19:53:37 GMT -6
Yeah I screwed up [ again ] didn't realise we were in Halloween mode ............. nothing very scary about Mickey Mouse. I'll try and come up with something suitably horrific next time.[/quote]I'm not so sure Kat. If a mouse came up to me and started singing, I'm not sure what my reaction would be. If, on the other hand it was Annette Funicello, that'd be a bit diffrent.
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Post by Phalon on Oct 4, 2010 6:28:26 GMT -6
What a name.....it sounds like, or rather looks like because I'd have no idea how to even begin to pronounce it, something that Porky Pig would say while trying to imitate Dafyddd..duck!
No, no, no, Dearest Katina - pfft, you have not screwed up anything. All kinds of stuff happens in October other than Halloween-type stuff. Here's another, for example.....and although it's not Halloween related, it is indeed very scary and hideous; it's cancer.
Ladies....October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month! Take care of those girls and get them checked regularly. It's important!
Wasn't Brittany Spears a Mouseketeer? Now she's pretty damned scary!
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Post by Mini Mia on Oct 4, 2010 16:50:21 GMT -6
It's rare, but men do get breast cancer too ... so if you men happen to notice a lump in the breast area, don't be shy about getting it checked out. Your family would like to keep you around to tease mercilessly.
I don't know if men have a testicular cancer month, (too lazy to do a 2-minute drill), but if you don't, use this month to check for that too.
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Post by katina2nd on Oct 4, 2010 23:59:34 GMT -6
If, on the other hand it was Annette Funicello, that'd be a bit diffrent. You're spot on there Step' from memory I'm pretty sure it wasn't a singing mouse that kept me glued to the set whenever the show was on. Wasn't Brittany Spears a Mouseketeer? Now she's pretty damned scary! LMAO. See, there was something Halloweenish about the Mickey Mouse Club after all.
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Post by Phalon on Oct 5, 2010 4:47:11 GMT -6
Yesterday's Nightmare was delayed due to my own 'yesterday's nightmare': Killer Sinus Headache. Pfft!
Going back to October 4....the year is 1904, and New York City's subway just opened, serving 350,000 people on 9.1 miles of track.
Just what hides deep beneath the City, in those dark, dank tunnels?
Could be there are insects - monstrously large, hideous looking bugs that are resistant to pesticides, that breed in only the sub-tropical environment of the New York City Subway system. Their bodies are covered with fine Velcro-like bristles which collect the dirt and grime to cover their scent and make them invisible to their only known predator, the large rats that share their sub-terrain environment....raccoon-sized rats called "track-rabbits".
Bugs, rats....and people...
...homeless people seeking shelter, people wishing to escape life on the surface, and the dregs of society who need to remain undetected and unseen. Though places such as subways have always been used by those seeking shelter, the people who have chosen New York City's subway system for this purpose have risen to the status of Urban Legend. They are the "Mole People".
The Mole People, it is said, have developed an entire civilization beneath the streets of New York, living in societies that number in the hundreds. These societies have their own language, mayors, teachers, nurses, even illegal electric hookups, and hot water from leaky steam pipes for cooking and laundry facilities. "Runners" make trips to the surface to scavenge food and supplies.
Tunnel dwellers have been a subject of study by some sociologists, but due to a lack of evidence not much is known about them. A 1993 book, "The Mole People: Life In The Tunnels Beneath New York City", was written by Jennifer Toth, who supposedly traveled the tunnels many times, interviewing the people of the cities beneath the City.
Though Toth claims many of the Mole People are intelligent and enterprising; a few have college degrees, have a source of income, such as collecting pop bottles, and hold jobs, just as many are alcoholics, drug addicts, mentally insane, or ravaged by illness. Some eat rats; some prey on other Mole People. She says one in particular, a menacing, unbalanced man feared by everyone, even the police, told her, "Leave, little lost angel, before the tunnels swallow you and you are one of mine."
The book has met with criticism because much of it's geographical information and facts are completely inaccurate. But still....
....next time you're standing on a deserted subway platform, that scurrying you hear in the tunnel might not be one of the subway's indigenous monster bugs, or a raccoon-sized rat. It could be a creature of a different sort. It just might be a Mole. You hear a faint whisper....
"Leave, little lost angel, before the tunnels swallow you and you are one of mine."
Run back to the surface as fast as you can.
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