Somewhere along the line, watching the WNUF Halloween Special crept in as part of my yearly traditions. That may not sound like much, but in this house, these yearly Samhain touchstones are sacred ground.
In fact, there are only a few things I’m guaranteed to do every ‘Ween:
- Watch Ed Wood, followed by a marathon of his “classics” (since ’95). That’s already done.
- Listen to the 1938 War of the Worlds broadcast (since ’88).
- Watch Halloween specials on random weekdays at 8 PM (since ’77).
- Run horror marathons at will (since ’89).
- Pick a pumpkin from a sincere patch and carve it on Halloween Eve (since ’81).
- Watch Ghostwatch (since the mid-’90s).
- Read EC horror comics and reprints (since ’86).
- Read The Monster Show by David J. Skal (since ’96).
- Make a Halloween novelty tune mixtape (now a playlist) and listen to it almost exclusively (since ’88).
As you can see, something as modern as WNUF doesn’t get added lightly. But here we are. Directed by Chris LaMartina, this brilliant 2013 faux-broadcast pretends to be a lost VHS recording of a live 1987 local TV news investigation into a haunted house, complete with era-perfect period commercials, cheesy news anchors, and uncanny nostalgic charm.
My curated perennial obsessive–compulsiveness is all the better for it. It’s the perfect thing to watch on a big comfy couch with a pillowcase full of candy.
Leave a Reply