Christmas gift ideas for the person who thinks Halloween should be celebrated 365 days a year

Are there people who don’t think Halloween should be a year-long holiday?

Universal Classic Monsters

• Complete 30-film collection
• Dracula Funko Pop
• Frankenstein Funko Pop
• Funko Mysteri Minis
• Creature from the Black Lagoon Model
• Frankenstein & Bride Salt & Pepper Shakers
• Wolf Man T-shirt
• Coffee Mug
• Coasters

1970s and 1980s Slasher Era

• A Nightmare on Elm Street Collection
• Halloween: The Complete Collection
• Friday the 13th: The Ultimate Collection
• Friday the 13th: The Complete TV Series
• Child’s Play: Complete 7-Movie Collection
• Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger, and Jason Voorhees Funko Pops
• Leatherface Funko Savage World
• Chucky NECA Action Figure
• Freddy vs. Jason Horrorclix
• Michael Myers socks
• Stickers
  

I love these Funko Mystery Minis, but…

I don’t like getting doubles. The black & white Universal Monsters are exclusive to Walgreens, and the first one (on my birthday) I got was the Wolf Man. My wife went back the next day and bought four more…and one of them was the Wolf Man. What am I supposed to do with two Wolf Men? Offer it up for trade on the blog?

I really want Frankenstein or the Creature from the Black Lagoon. If you have either of these (either color or b&w) and you are willing to trade for Wolfie, let me know!

The perfect Christmas gift for your horror-loving friend…

I wasn’t planning to post any Christmas gift ideas until at least November 1, but I don’t know how long this deal will be available so I’m posting now…

FOR A LIMITED TIME (AND I DON’T KNOW HOW LIMITED) YOU CAN GET THIS HORRIFICALLY WONDERFUL BLU-RAY BOXSET FOR $70.

Those who have been long-time readers know that I love horror movies, especially the older stuff like this. Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy…it’s all here. Even my favorite, The Creature from the Black Lagoon. I cannot wait to have this set in my hands (Saturday) and start watching.

Here is the almost full list of movies included…

I say “almost full list” because there is a thirty-first film included as a bonus feature: the 1931 Spanish version of Dracula. In addition to all the movies, there are documentaries and commentaries and archival footage and theatrical trailers…it’s packed with extra features.

I’ve already ordered mine, and can’t wait to start binge-watching. I don’t know how long the price will stay this low (more than half-off the regular price); order now so you don’t miss out! Your horror-loving friends will love you to death!

Random Awesomeness (part 2019.12)

• Dean Cain writing Lois & Clark ‘idea’ exploring Superman’s parenting skills [SyFy Wire]
• Henry Cavill to Play Sherlock Holmes Opposite Millie Bobby Brown in ‘Enola Holmes’ [Variety]
• The Black Keys and Raconteurs Take Rock Back to the Future [Rolling Stone]
• Victoria Pedretti To Headline ‘The Haunting of Bly Manor’ Netflix Series [Deadline]
• Sir Elton [Phantom Cardboard]
• The True Story of How Toy Story 4’s Forky Was Conceived, Written, Voiced, and Animated [Vulture]
• He-Man and She-Ra Little Golden Book interior preview images are here! [He-Man.org]

Purchase Let’s Rock by the Black Keys!
 

30 Years Ago Today: The Crypt Keeper begins to tell his tales on HBO

Tales from the Crypt, the horror anthology television program, debuted on HBO on June 10, 1989. I did not have HBO growing up, so it was not until much later that I saw a few episodes. As a youth, I was more familiar with George A. Romero’s syndicated Tales from the Darkside.

Tales from the Crypt was based on a series of comics produced in the 1950s, and most of the storylines came from those books. The program lasted for seven years and resulted in many related projects, including feature films, a Saturday morning cartoon, a game show for kids, and three music compilations.

The first album is a soundtrack from the series, including music from Danny Elfman, Jan Hammer, and Ry Cooder. The second is Christmas-themed, called Have Yourself a Scary Little Christmas, with inspired music such as “Deck the Halls with Parts of Charlie” and “‘Twas the Fright Before Christmas.” The third—Monsters of Metal—featured a mix of hard rock favorites by bands such as Black Sabbath, Pantera, and Dio.

The television series is not currently included for free on any of the major streaming services, but you can buy the complete series from Amazon. If you prefer to read the comics that inspired the show, there are several anthologies available as well.

Random Awesomeness (part 2019.10)

• Scaring Your Readers 101: 8 Tips for Writing a Great Horror Story [Writers Write]
• The Guilty Pleasures of Procrastination [Fiction University]
• Unearthed Photos: Van Halen 1979 Record Store Signing at Peaches Records & Tapes [Van Halen News Desk]
• The year was #1987 [PAINTinMANning on Twitter]
• Reds legend Eric Davis talks Tony Gwynn, pulls off a great trade [Old Baseball Cards by Yahoo! Sports on YouTube]
• Disney Plus: Every show and movie that will (or may be) available to stream [CNET]
• Custom Cards: The Next Generation [The Shlabotnik Report]

What I’m Reading Right Now: Supermarket by Bobby Hall.
 

Pre-order Down To The River by the Allman Betts Band!
 

Random Awesomeness (part 2019.9)

• The New June Netflix Titles Are Here And There’s So Much Great Stuff [BuzzFeed] (JT sez: Spider-Man Into The Spiderverse is coming June 26!)
• Kiefer Sutherland & the ‘Designated Survivor’ Cast on a ‘180-Degree Shift’ in Season 3 [TV Insider]
• These Posters for a Vampire TV Show Erupt In Flames When The Sun Rises [Adweek]
• You Can Rent the Spice Girls Bus on Airbnb [Apartment Theory]
• The 1954 Topps Guide to Life [SABR’s Baseball Cards Committee]
• The Pete Alonso / Jeff McNeil Collection [Mets Baseball Cards Like They Ought To Be!] (JT sez: I love the ’86 Donruss-style “The Rookies” cards Warren posted!)
• The Inside Story of Jimmy Page’s Led Zeppelin Guitars [Guitar.com]

What I’m Reading Right Now: Almost Yankees: The Summer of ’81 and the Greatest Baseball Team You’ve Never Heard Of by J. David Herman.
 

Purchase “Bullet Holes” (from John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum) by Bush!
 

Random Awesomeness (part 2019.8)

• These Should Exist: The Karate Kid Edition [Branded in the 80s]
• Kentucky Is Home to the World’s Only Ventriloquism Museum [Mental Floss]
• Joe Schlabotnik: My Favorite Player [Infinite Baseball Card Set]
• The Art of the Trim: Practice of Cutting Baseball Cards Began Earlier Than You Think [Pre-War Cards]
• What if? A look at Eric Davis, Nomar Garciaparra and Grady Sizemore, three Cooperstown careers cut short [Sporting News]
• In Classic Children’s Books, a Window to Childhood in Past Centuries [The New York Times]
• Sony Pictures sets a March 2021 release date for Masters of the Universe! [He-Man.org]

What I’m Reading Right Now: Almost Yankees: The Summer of ’81 and the Greatest Baseball Team You’ve Never Heard Of by J. David Herman.
 

Purchase Reckless & Me by Kiefer Sutherland!
(Yes, that Kiefer Sutherland, a.k.a. Jack Bauer,
a.k.a. President Tom Kirkman, a.k.a. David Powers.)
 

Random Awesomeness (part 2019.7)

• 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings Event Schedule [1869reds.com]
• Celebrating Cincinnati Baseball: 150 Years of the Cincinnati Reds [The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County]
• The 100 Best Websites for Writers in 2019 [The Write Life]
• Lego haunted house MOC 🎃👻🦇 [kreimkouk’s YouTube]
• Nick Senzel Rookie Card Primer [Beckett]
• Musical Chairs [Night Owl Cards]
• #129T – Earl Weaver [1985 Topps] (JT sez: It makes me sad that the 1985 Topps blog is almost finished. The first card was posted way back in 2012, and it has been great following along with Greg as he wrote about every card in the entire set and now the Traded series. Only three more cards to go!)

What I’m Reading Right Now: The Message of Psalms 73-150 by Michael Wilcock.
 

Purchase Living The Dream by Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators!
 

Random Awesomeness (part 2019.6)

• Vincent Price’s Supper Casserole! [Dinosaur Dracula]
• A Babe Ruth Rookie Card Found in an Old Piano Just Sold for More Than $130,000 [Mental Floss]
• Beasties [Phantom Cardboard]
• Cody Bellinger PC [Baseball Card Breakdown]
• 1971 Alt-Topps Requests [Cards That Never Were]
• Violent Femmes announce new album, Hotel Last Resort, share title track: Stream [Consequence of Sound]
• Here’s why Richard Dawson started kissing female contestants on ‘Family Feud’…And why he stopped during his second stint on the show [WCVB]

What I’m Reading Right Now: Injustice vs. Masters of the Universe written by Tim Seeley and illustrated by Freddie Williams III.
 

Purchase American Rock ‘n’ Roll by Don Felder!