Friday, October 25, 2019

Once Upon a Midnight Scary (1979)



And so we close out the last full week of the 2019 Countdown to Halloween! No more time to dilly-dally, we need to put our Frankenstein foot to the floor and go into Maximun Overdrive!

It's Friday, which means a long-form program, and this week it means the 1979 TV special Once Upon A Midnight Scary! Debuting on October 21, 1979 on CBS, the special is hosted by blog favorite Vincent Price, who introduces adaptations of three spooky children's classics: "The Ghost Belonged to Me" by Richard Peck, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving, and "The House With A Clock In Its Walls," by John Bellairs.

I was only 5 when this first aired, so I somehow missed it, but this is exactly the type of program I looked for at Halloween time, so I can't wait to check this out. We get another dose of Sleepy Hollow goodness with this adaptation (with Rene Auberjonois perfectly cast as Ichabod Crane) as a post-Sleepy Hollow Week treat, and we also get an early adaptation of "The House With A Clock In Its Walls" decades before the theatrical version starring Jack Black. And of course, the late great Price, who has appeared at least once in each of my Countdowns the past few years. I'm happy to continue the tradition!

Enjoy! Have a great last weekend before Halloween! Don't hold back, it's time for the big stuff!

1 comment:

Caffeinated Joe said...

That was cool. Simple, but must have been great fun for a kid back then. Price brings the whole thing up a level, which helps. Fun watch. :)