Halloween treats gathered on a door-to-door basis are nice, but questionable snacks from strangers could no longer stand alone once scary motion pictures were invented. Those among us in the older class fondly remember attending theater showings of those great old Hammer, Universal-International, American International and other studio releases of classic horror films -- a time when a kid could pay 35 cents for a single or 50 cents for a double-feature at a matinee.
Even today's horror and science fiction film connoisseurs fondly embrace The Creature From the Black Lagoon, whilst swooning over any one of several reincarnations of The Mummy over the decades.
Christopher Lee as Dracula in several films, in my opinion, rivaled the pure evil of Bela Lugosi's original stage, and then screen vampire.
In the matter of art imitating life, a very interesting comparison could probably be made between the fifties movie, Invasion of the Saucer Men and, later, ongoing news reports around the world of small aliens with large heads observed near alleged spacecraft. In this instance, the producer, director and writer were ahead of their time in predicting through albeit silly sci-fi the sort of creature affiliated with numerous future UFO encounters.
Nevertheless, when one discusses the strange products of pure Hollywood vintage, fictional horror themes could sometimes be overshadowed by harsh reality. Who, for instance, would ever have guessed that Albert Dekker, star of Dr. Cyclops, would end up as a suicide attired in women's undergarments?
Way back, cross-dressing -- transvestitism -- was secretive and publicly alarming, while in the modern world there are places where the lifestyle is almost worth a badge of courage and a medal of honor. Me, I think I'll stick with old Drac' and all the mummies, thank you.
