MONSTER AND HIS GLOW RING

1982 TELEVISION EVENT REVENGE OF THE CREATURE IN 3-D

During the summer of 1982, the first 3-D broadcast was syndicated across the country making television history. The movie was The Revenge of the Creature, the sequel to Creature from the Black Lagoon. This monumental event was sponsored by local convenience stores and fast food restaurants. Buy a big gulp or a medium pizza and get a pair of 3-D glasses. Then watch the excitement in your own home on your television set! I remember we got our glasses at Pizza Hut when we first learned about the promotion. For myself, I was pretty excited as I’d never seen a 3-D movie before and the closest thing was staring at a 3-D poster out of Dynamite magazine that hung on my bedroom wall. My brother and I stayed up after the local news and watched the demonstration so we would know exactly how to use our 3-D glasses.

The glasses also came with instructions.

Just before this major television event, I had just turned twelve years old. I didn't care that I was witnessing groundbreaking TV, I just wanted the Creature to look as if he was jumping out of my Zenith. Ug, the 3D didn't work too well and we were kind of bored and sleepy. Really it was a struggle just trying to stay awake.

Here’s my small collection of some of the different 3-D glasses that were given out.



Follow this link for a cool 3D Revenge of the Creature ad in Pittsburgh. Be sure to scroll down to the middle of the page to view it.

I probably would have enjoyed it more if our local channel did something like they did in Chicago with the Son of Svengoolie entertaining the home audience during commercial breaks. Check out these fun clips of Son of Svengoolie presenting this historical TV event! (Uploaded by fuzzymemories).

First click here for a snippet of the local news that aired before "The 3-D Movie!"

Now for some of the promos -

And now for the big 3-D event, The Revenge of the Creature!

From KTXL in Sacramento, here's some promos for the 3-D Revenge of the Creature. Uploaded to YouTube by KTXL77.

One last item! Click here for a cool Farmers Jack ad for Revenge of the Creature 3-D glasses.

THE MASK IN 3D

In 1982 some TV stations in Canada aired The Mask, the 1961 weird and trippy film about a nightmare inducing mask. I don't have a pair of the TV glasses but instead I own a pair that was for the theatrical release of The Mask.



This specific pair was handed out at the Mayan theater in Denver.


Here's a photo that I snapped of the Mayan. Sorry for the bad shot, but I was driving through Denver and didn't have time to stop. So this drive by photo shot will have to do. Maybe the sun glare gives the pic that just enough of a trippy feel that it goes well with The Mask

Click here to see a scan of the TV glasses.

Here is Harry Blackstone hosting the 3D TV event of The Mask.

Video clips posted to YouTube by Retro Toledo.

HALLOWEEN IS GRINCH NIGHT

I was glad to see this seldom seen Halloween special, Halloween is Grinch Night show up on YouTube. I haven't seen it since I was a kid and my memory of it was very faded. The ad above is from the Oct. 27, 1979 issue of TV Guide and it aired on Sunday the 28th, 28 years ago today.

NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS PROP DISPLAY

Back in 1994 when we were in Orlando we enjoyed a day at Disney-MGM Studios. The best attraction was the Backlot Tour and I was blown away at all the giant movie props from Rocketeer, Blade Runner, Indy and other movies just sitting there in the Florida sun. (Since this is a Halloween post, I’ll cut to the chase) Not to worry, I'll post the other prop photos in the future.

The tour ended at a props gallery and we didn’t expect to see so many items from so many of our favorite movies. The year before we were introduced to Nightmare Before Christmas and we just went nuts for that movie. As we entered the gallery we were greeted with an amazing display of the stop-motion puppets from Nightmare. Too bad this was the age before digital cameras as I would have taken better photos and more more of them. At least I snapped a few.

THE HALLOWEEN THAT ALMOST WASN'T

Party like it's 1979 with this Halloween TV special.

HALLOWEEN SNAPSHOTS ARE SWELL

Maybe it's because I don't have any snapshots of myself as a kid during Halloween or maybe I like seeing all those cool character masks and costumes or maybe it's just another way to do a little time traveling, but the truth to the matter is that I love looking at old Halloween snapshots. I'm guessing you do too, so check out this photo of Li'l Darth Vader and Li'l Robin Hood from 1978. Then scroll down for a huge list of links to Halloween snapshots on flickr.


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1958 DOUBLE FEATURE AT LOEW’S STATE WHITE PLAINS, NY

I’ll spare everyone the commentary about this postcard since there’s not much going on in the photo. It’s of Main Street in White Plains, New York and listed on the marquee of the Lowe’s State movie theater is The Haunted Strangler starring Boris Karloff and Fiend Without a Face.


Wow, that would’ve been a fun double creature feature to see. Here’s the trailer for The Haunted Strangler. I wasn’t able to find the complete trailer for Fiend, but here’s part of the trailer with a Jerry Lee Lewis song added to the mix.