The Los Angeles Halloween blog

Are you a creepy filmmaker? Universal wants you to prove it.

Submit a film with the theme “Where Nightmares Come Alive” and be eligible for $1000 and to be introduced in front of scores of celebrities, studio execs, and press at the Halloween Horror Nights opening night “Eyegore Awards” ceremony in Los Angeles. (films must be submitted on DVD by September 3rd, and be between 90 seconds and 3 minutes long).

More info here.

This Tuesday, join Robert “Freddy Krueger” England for the Los Angeles premiere of Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

The premiere is not only FREE but without an RSVP list! On the downside, not only is there no stadium seating, there are no seats at all! So, unless you like sitting on damp, grassy cemetery plots (like us), we recommend bringing beach blankets or lawn chairs. (unfortunately, Hollywood Forever also lacks a concession stand, so picnic baskets or other treats you bring from home are also encouraged.)

Synopsis: As a child Jack Brooks witnessed the brutal murder of his family. Now a young man he struggles with a pestering girlfriend, therapy sessions that resolve nothing, and night classes that barely hold his interest. After unleashing an ancient curse, Jack’s Professor undergoes a transformation into something not-quite- human, and Jack is forced to confront some old demons… along with a few new ones.

See the official flier here.

Note: Cinespia, the regular weekend screening series at Hollywood Forever, is showing Phantasm tomorrow (Sunday) night. More info on this and other cemetery screenings, check out their site.

…skull tip to Thrillist…

If you’re checking in on Creepy from time to time, you’ve probably also noticed some craziness with the site layout. Simply put, we’re in the midst of a redesign. Be assured that the site will look horrifyingly perfect by our official launch on September 1st.

Through the rest of August, we’ll be posting sporadically, and will be working on polishing the site. But come September, expect all sorts of Halloween weirdness and supernatural oddities on a daily basis.

In the meantime, if you know of any Halloween, horror, or other related stories or events, or would possibly join the CreepyLA team as a writer/blogger, drop us a line at creepyla@gmail.com.

Is it a good or bad sign for the economy when people begin selling off prepurchased cemetery plots on CraigsList?

At least 24 plots from around the Los Angeles area are available as of this posting, ranging from $600 to $10,000. (The $600 plot is described as less than regular size, “for child or cremated.”)

David Goldstein at KCAL9 interviews some of L.A.’s living of what appears to be a growing trend, and offers some tips for potential buyers.

Cinespia.org’s Cemetery Screenings resume again this Saturday with “Ace In the Hole,” a rarely seen Kirk Douglas film directed by Billy Wilder. But these outdoor screenings, held on empty plots at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, rarely get better than when showing horror films, such as “The Hunger” scheduled for Saturday, June 7th.

“The Hunger,” directed by Tony Scott, stars Catherine Deneuve as a centuries old Egyptian vampire who grows tired of her fellow bloodsucking lover, David Bowie, causing his immortality to reverse, while her affections turn to Susan Sarandon, a doctor specializing in premature aging. A lesbian sex scene follows, so what’s not to like?

Screenings begin 9pm, with gates opening at 7:30, but if you attend prepare to show up a couple hours early to secure a place in line - there are no seats, but there is a land grab for prime real estate on the lawn once the cemetery opens. Bring a couple blankets (one to protect yourself from the grass, another to keep warm), snacks and beverages, a flashlight for when things get dark, and some holy water - this is a cemetery, after all.

Tickets are $10, cash only “donation” - parking can be found on neighboring streets, but, again, prepare to show up early for a decent spot or prepare for a long walk.

We all know the lag time between ordering and actual delivery of fine furniture. It can take months! So in that respect, Halloween in Los Angeles is right around the corner, and now is the time to order one of these to-die-for Coffin Couches from, where else?, Coffincouches.com.

And since these macabre divans are from a Los Angeles company, two of the five models have appropriately themed designs; The Dodger Blue (above) and The Low Rider (my favorite.) To top it off, they even see their enterprise as being environmentally sensitive.

We at Coffincouches.com have the mindset of thinking “Green”… It is a health and safety law that funeral homes cannot resell used coffins to the general public. We approached funeral directors with the attitude of recycling. These coffins are not used for burial due to slight cosmetic inconsistencies…

Now just envision Elvira or Black Betty lounging on one of these… Side view after the jump. [click to continue...]

Creepiness beyond Los Angeles: In San Francisco, retired high school science teacher Ray Bandar has a collection of 7000 skulls in his house… although his wife has a rule that the bedroom is off limits.

And in Sacramento, our state capital, a man was arrested after police found over 300 dead cats stuffed in three freezers in his home.

From “Be Kind, Rewind.”

from www.youtube.com

As much as I love Halloween, I hate wearing a costume. Thats why I have a lot of affection for “costume t-shirts.” You know the kind - the tuxedo t-shirt is the grandaddy of costume t’s.

There are lazy costume tees… these usually just have some writing on them like, “This is my lazy ass costume.” But really, that just giving the middle finger to whoever hosted the party requiring you to dress up.

The costume t-shirts that impress me appear to have another costume printed on them. Like this ode to an 80’s era Michael Jackson zipper jacket (pictured). Brilliant! And the icing is a white glove.

T-shirts with superhero logos on them sort of cut it, but some go step beyond. Wicked Cool Stuff is selling tees that give the appearance as if you’re being buffed out like the Hulk or Wolverine.

Finally, 80’s Tees has a lineup of Star Wars, GI Joe, and other pop culture inspired attire, include a Wookie tee and another bowling shirt from “The Big Lebowski.” And lets face it, if the Dude were to abandon his robe for any sort of costume, it would be a costume tee.

The Fangoria Weekend of Horrors will be held in Burbank April 25 - 27, the same weekend as Coachella, LA Times Festival of Books, and the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival. But what everything but Fangoria is missing are hearse loads of goth babes, Vampira wanna bes, and other girls who aren’t afraid of the dark.

As evidence, check out this lineup of eerily sexy ladies competing to be the convention “Spooksmodel,” and vote on your favorite. They don’t offer much on background - just a single headshot for each, unfortunately, so I’m giving my one enthusiatic vote for Kimberly Violet Tomaska… because I’m a sucker for redheads.

Perfect for the neglectful gardener, all you need are some hanging planters, pantyhose, and pumpkin seed… and not much water.

Sure, its only April, but you can begin stocking up now, and according to Kerry at Associated Content, pumpkins can keep for a couple years if stored properly.

One tip:

Always make sure to store them stalk down. Some pumpkins have a dip in the top where the stalk emerges and water will accumulate and cause them to rot.

A park ranger found the bat, which was flopping around on the ground, on Saturday in the Crystal Springs picnic area, just south of the Griffith Park Drive ranger station at the eastern edge of the park. It was taken to a lab in Downey for testing and has been destroyed, said Los Angeles County Public Health Director Dr. Jonathan Fielding. [Daily News]

If bit by lycanthropes or any other sort of potentially infected animal in Griffith Park, contact the Public Health Department at (877) 747-2243.

Maila Nurmi, a. k. a. Vampira, has died. She was 86.

From Wikipedia:

The idea for the Vampira character was born in 1953 when Nurmi attended choreographer Lester Horton’s annual Bal Caribe Masquerade in a costume inspired by a character in The New Yorker cartoons of Charles Addams.

Her appearance with pale white skin and tight black dress caught the attention of television producer Hunt Stromberg, Jr., who wanted to hire her to host horror movies on the Los Angeles television station KABC-TV, but Stromberg had no idea how to contact her. He finally got her phone number from Rudi Gernreich, later famed as the designer of the topless swimsuit. The name Vampira was the invention of Nurmi’s husband, Dean Riesner.

A brief obituary at Metroblogging L.A.

The stuff legends are made of…

Originally uploaded by Here in Van Nuys