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Tag Archives: Halloween

Paying Homage to the Monsters

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Posted by bradsbooks in My Fiction, My inspiration and motivation, To Sleep in the Ground

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Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff, Carl Laemmle, Claude Rains, Colin Clive, collage, Creature From The Black Lagoon, Dracula, Elsa Lanchester, film posters, Frankenstein, Frankenstein's Monster, Halloween, Happy Halloween, Julia Adams, Karl Freund, Lon Chaney Jr., Marco Dark, Phantom of the Opera, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Invisible Man, The Mummy, The Wolf Man, To Sleep in the Ground, Tod Browning, Universal Studios Classic Monsters

I enjoy the Universal Studios classic monster films.  I bought this Blu-ray set in 2014.  It features eight of the more popular and famous Universal monster movies.  The set came with postcards of the original film posters.  I made them into a collage a while back.

Trivia time!  Look closely at the titles of the films.  If you have read my novel, “To Sleep in the Ground,” then you may have gotten the joke I made in the book about some of the film titles seen here.  If you haven’t read my novel yet, but do so in the future, can you catch the hidden joke?  Hint:  You do not have to buy the book in order to read the joke.  It’s included in the free sample “Look inside” preview of my book on Amazon.  Happy hunting!

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

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Happy 141st Birthday, Antonio Bay!

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Posted by bradsbooks in My Fiction, My inspiration and motivation

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141st Anniversary, Adrienne Barbeau, Alfred Hitchcock, Antonio Bay, April 21, April 21st, Father Malone, Ghost Story, Ghosts, Hal Holbrook, Halloween, horror films, Jamie Lee Curtis, Janet Leigh, John Carpenter, John Houseman, Psycho, Seagrass, Stevie Wayne, The 21st of April, The Fog, Tom Atkins, vengeful ghosts

Eleven fifty-five, almost midnight, enough time for one more story…one more story before twelve, just to keep us warm. In five minutes, it will be the 21st of April…

These chilling words are the opening lines of dialogue from a horror film that shares this important date with us today.

Below is a slightly edited repost of a post I did a few years ago about today’s date and its significance in the realm of horror films.

Original post (edited):

Oddly, I’m not a big horror movie fan.  Even though I enjoy writing in the horror and mystery genres, when it comes to film my personal movie collection is heavy with science fiction, fantasy, adventure, and comedy rather than horror. The Fog is one of my all time favorite horror movies (the original 1980 film directed by John Carpenter). The plot is simple yet effective and harkens back to a nostalgic time of storytelling when ghost stories didn’t have to be gory or excessively violent to be frightening. Sure, there is some violence in the film, but it isn’t very bloody or overt like many of the horror films and TV shows of today, although, the film is loaded with lots of shocks and stingers that definitely get your attention.  They are the kind of scares that happen really quick, make you scream or jump, and then make you laugh at yourself afterward.  I won’t go into detail about the story because I don’t want to spoil it for anyone who has never seen the film before. The Fog inspires and encourages me to write scary stories that emphasize the old cliché, “Less is more.”

The Fog is pretty tame by current standards.  After all, it’s over forty years old! If you prefer your horror served up with gratuitous amounts of blood, gore, and sex, then The Fog may not be for you.  However, if you enjoy clever, old school, spooky, sit-around-the-campfire ghost stories, then you might find it entertaining.  It’s a fun film to watch while curled up on the sofa with your favorite snack or main squeeze.

There are also a couple of personal reasons why I like The Fog.  I was a radio DJ/announcer for a few years when I lived in Louisiana, and briefly when I later lived in Florida. The “Stevie Wayne” connection is something I can relate to. Stevie Wayne is basically the main character of the film.  She is portrayed by Adrienne Barbeau.  She’s a single mom raising her son in a sleepy, yet somewhat charming little seaside town (Antonio Bay, California). Stevie recently bought a radio station atop the town lighthouse that overlooks the Pacific.  A good portion of the film takes place in and around the lighthouse/radio station. I can relate to the tasks and responsibilities that Stevie has to contend with like the ever watchful and unforgiving demands of the clock, and time, that dictate a DJ’s every move and word while on the air.

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Jeremy Bulloch: Star Wars Legend

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Posted by bradsbooks in Uncategorized

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Boba Fett, Daytona Beach, Florida, Halloween, Halloween Costume, Jeremy Bulloch, Mandalorian armor, Return of the Jedi, St. Augustine, Star Wars, Star Wars Fans, Star Wars: Episode V, The Art of Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back

This is the 40th anniversary year of the Star Wars film “The Empire Strikes Back” *(Please see my two earlier posts celebrating the film and score). It is somber and poignant that the S.W. universe has lost at the end of that celebratory milestone an actor who portrayed one of its most iconic personalities.

With the passing of Jeremy Bulloch, the Star Wars character of Boba Fett has truly become legend. I, along with millions of S.W. fans around the world, consider the intergalactic bounty hunter to be one of the coolest characters in the film franchise’s lore, and possibly in all of science fiction/fantasy.

For Halloween of 2001, I visited a military surplus store in Daytona Beach, Florida with a friend to buy a flight suit and accessories so that we could make our own Boba Fett costume. We both agreed that Boba Fett would be the costume to make if we were going to be bold enough to attempt a S.W. costume. My friend was much more adept at such things. I deferred to his expertise on the engineering of the costume (The jetpack that he created from two-liter plastic bottles was astounding). I footed the bill (roughly three hundred dollars after materials and labor) and he created the most awesome non-makeup Halloween costume that I have ever worn. I say ‘non-makeup’ because the very next year his sister did a Darth Maul makeup on me for Halloween 2002. The makeup was black and white rather than the black and red of Maul’s face. It was the first physical manifestation of Marco Dark, the main character of my novel “To Sleep in the Ground.” I accented the amazing makeup job with a black, long-sleeve fishnet shirt, and black leather pants. Marco does not dress as radically in the novel, but I was experimenting with the character back then as only a couple of chapters had been written at that point. Anyway, I digress.

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The DiVacci Curse: An Old-Fashioned Ghost Short Story

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Posted by bradsbooks in My Fiction, The DiVacci Curse

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Chills, Creepy, Frightening, Ghost Story, Halloween, Halloween Reading, haunted house, haunted mansion, Horror, Insomnia, New Hampshire, Night-light, spooky, Thrills

Perfect for Halloween…

It’s so frightening that you’ll have to sleep with a night-light weeks after reading it!

Feel free to share this post…if you’re brave enough! (Insert sinister laughter here)

Have a safe and healthy Halloween.

Creepy Halloween reading…The DiVacci Curse!

30 Wednesday Oct 2019

Posted by bradsbooks in My Fiction

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Creepy, Ghost Story, Halloween, Horror, New Hampshire, Short stories, Spirit, The DiVacci Curse

Looking for something creepy to read to get you in the mood for All Hallows’ Eve?  If so, then I recommend my short story The DiVacci Curse.  It’s about a couple that buys the mansion of their dreams in New Hampshire.  But the new dwelling is not what it seems. The DiVacci Curse is not appropriate for children.  You can access the Amazon page for the story via the link below or from the My Books page of this blog.

I hope that you enjoy reading it….if you dare!

May you all have a spooky, safe and happy Halloween!

Time for a Little Shameless Self-Promotion!

19 Thursday Oct 2017

Posted by bradsbooks in My Fiction

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Dare, e-book, Fear, Frighten, Ghost Story, Ghosts, Halloween, Horror, Read, Scary, Short stories, Spirit, The DiVacci Curse

Happy Halloween!  I hope that everyone is doing well.  Thanks for reading.

If you need a little help getting into the spirit of Halloween, may I suggest my ghost short story, “The DiVacci Curse.” As always, you can access the direct link to the book from the My Books page of this blog.  Read it with the lights out…if you dare!

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  • A Day of Horror: The March 11, 2011 Japan Earthquake-A Foreigner's Perspective (8)
  • A Day of Horror: The March 11, 2011, Japan Earthquake-A Foreigner's Perspective (6)
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