Dahlia DeWinters – Author – Page 64 – Quirky Heroines, Happy Endings

Blogtoberfest – Scary Stories – Survivor Type

Yes. It’s a Stephen King story. No, it’s not one of the ones that have been made into a movie. However, I will tell you right now, even thinking of the story…it is one that I’ve read twice and not one that I will come back to any time soon.

It’s a story about a shipwreck, just like Cast Away, but King grabs your hand and forces you down a path to make you closely examine the situation: You are stranded on a desert island with little hope of rescue…and little food. How far will you go to survive?

You’ll see what one man’s desperation will lead him to.

The story is not available as a stand alone, as far as I know, but as part of Skeleton Crew, an older selection of stories that are King at his best, at least in my opinion. (Not that it matters, really, right?)

Oh, and look at the creepy cover with the monkey with the symbols. (Shivers). That story, ugh. I can’t even.

Skeleton Crew also contains “The Mist”, “The Raft” (another ordinary day gone terribly wrong), the aforementioned “Survivor Type”, and “The Monkey”.

These older King stories are excellent for a howling night next to the fire. Just check the locks before you go to bed and put that stuffed monkey with the clanging cymbals in the garage.

Blogtoberfest – Magic (and not the Mike kind)

This is a movie that scared the mess out of me when I was a teenager. First of all, I am no fan of ventriloquist dummies. I can’t stand them, they scare the heck out of me. Give me a movie with a dummy and you’ve got me scared.

A looooooong time ago, back in 1978, there was this movie trailer that ran on television. Mind you, this was back in the fun 70s where the cars waiting in line for gas would queue in front of my parents’ house. This trailer wasn’t anything NEAR Silent Hill 3d (which by the way also frightens me with its grotesqueness) but was creepy just in the fact that it featured a dummy.

The movie was directed by Richard Attenborough, the kindly old John Hammond in Jurassic Park. You’ll also find Burgess Meredith, Ann-Margaret, and

Here’s the creepy trailer.

According to Wikipedia (that bastion of totally true facts) : “The trailer for this film was pulled from TV due to calls from parents who claimed that it gave their children nightmares.” Oh, most certainly.

Seriously, it may not scare you now, but imagine a 10 year old watching this on the late night movie or Chiller Theatre (remember channel 9 Chiller with the six-fingered hand?)

This was Anthony Hopkins before he was Hannibal Lector, a failed magician who is basically going off the deep end. Yikes!

The movie is on YouTube if you want to watch it. Warning, it’s 70s cheesy, but the story itself is disturbing.

Enjoy!

Blogtoberfest – Halloween Teapots

Though I am usually a coffee gal, nothing peaks my interest in an antique shop or thrift store than a teapot and/or teacups. My favorite design is anything floral; blue and white being my top favorite colors. However, I am also a lover of the novelty tea pot and here I offer you a few for your perusal. So cute!

Here there be dragons….

Halloween Costumes that Murder Childhood

I let my children dress up. That’s it. I’m beyond the stage where I’m going to put on a purchased costume and parade around. As a woman of a certain age, I know when its time to give the children the spotlight and fade into the background. However, as a woman of a certain age, I’ve lived long enough (thank the good Lord) to witness the diabolical attempt at destroying my childhood with devious sexiness. Note the following horrible sexy costumes that shouldn’t be.

There will be no commentary. Just scroll down, seeing your childhood go down in flames while your eyes melt down your face a la the Nazis at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark.

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Yay! I wrecked your childhood too!

Blogtoberfest – Funny Halloween Movies

Oh, you sneaky Blogtoberfest, you almost got me, didn’t you? Clever girl. But I am not going to make the same mistake I did a few nights ago and scare myself

so much I’m sitting up and jumping and shadows. No. Today’s blog post is about the fun and/or campy Halloween movies. Unfortunately, there is an evil clown in one of them, but it’s balanced by a gangsta Woody Harrelson.

Which brings me to my first move, Zombieland. Zombies scare me but I watch ’em anyway. It’s something about the apocalyptic, nomad type existence that happens after such devastation that I enjoy. I like Zombieland because the lead guy isn’t a big ol’ tough zombie-killing hero, no sir. He’s a scared little beta dude, running for his life. “Double-Tap” indeed. A fun film to watch with excellent zombie-killing sequences that make you think “I could do that”. Let me tell you, I probably couldn’t.

Little Shop of Horrors:

Rick Moranis, the mousy florist who hits it big with a “Mean Green Mother from Outer Space”, a plant that brings him fame and fortune but demands a lot more in return. I’ve seen the 1960 version with Jack Nicholson but I do prefer the musical version with Steve Martin, Bill Murray, Jim Belushi as well as Tichina Arnold and Tisha Campbell as two of the three girl singers.

Son, be a dentist….you have a talent for causing things pain.

Ghostbusters:

Three words: StayPuft Marshmallow Man. I laughed so hard when I first saw the StayPuft man walking through New York, like a sweet, but angry albino King Kong, that my stomach muscles hurt the next day. The whole movie is such fun. Annie Potts and Rick Moranis are both cute and hilarious as a quirky couple.

Quote: Ray. If someone asks if you are a god, you say, “yes!”

What are your favorite “fun” Halloween movies?