They
would usually join us on a Friday or Saturday night after the late night news,
keeping us company through the witching hour, and sometimes scaring the bejesus
out of us.
Horror Hosts of the Past |
Horror
show hosts are an American icon – dressing in costumes and presenting
B-grade horror movies to TV audiences late at night was a mainstay in the late
1950’s, 60’s, and 70’s. Every television station seemed to have a “Horror Host”
at some point during these years. And it was easy to achieve...
On set |
TV Control Room |
All
you needed was some grease paint, a costume, low lighting, and spooky music to
set the mood. The fact that the
host wasn’t afraid of vamping it up was a definite plus.
The
Shocking Idea:
It
all began in 1957 when Screen Gems released some old Universal horror movies
syndicated to television. The name
given to the show was “Shock”
and local television stations were encouraged to use hosts dressed in a horror
theme. It was a death-defying hit!
... And Spiders |
Those Giant Bugs |
; ) Japanese monster movies. The tradition continued into the 1980s before dying a slow death with the onslaught of the cable and satellite channels.
The
First Horror Host:
Vampira |
Vampira on Her Skull Couch |
Watch the open of Vampira’s Show from 1954
The
1950’s
Roland, The Cool Ghoul |
Zacherley |
Zacherle
continued appearing as a Monster of Ceremonies throughout the 1980’s and 90’s.
But now, at the age of 94, he does limited ghoul appearances.
A show open featuring Zacherley “and fiends.”
Morgus the Magnificent |
In
1964, Noel went to Detroit to host a horror show there called Morgus
Presents. When it went on the air on
WJBK, the Doctor had a new sidekick, Armsby. When Noel returned to New
Orleans the next year and so did Morgus, where he stayed until he left the show
in 1971.
Morgus Presents |
I could find no original Morgus the Magnificent segments.
Here is an opening bit for the 1980’s version of Morgus
the Magnificent
The
1960’s
The
1960’s brought a slew of horror hosts to local and regional television. Among
those best remembered:
Sir Graves Ghastly |
In His Coffin |
Get ready for a Ghastly Intro -
Ghoulardi |
Ghoulardi Later |
A clip of Ghoulardi from 1964. (A little Johnny
Carson and
Johnny Fever ; )
Sammy Terry |
Sammy Terry in His Dungeon |
A classic Sammy Terry intro…
Deadly Earnest |
Ian Bannerman as Deadly Earnest |
A Deadly Earnest Montage with Hedley Cullen
Next
week we’ll take a look at the famous and infamous horror hosts from the 1970’s
and 80’s. Till then “Happy Hauntings and Pleasant Dreams!”
~
Joy