It may seem unbelievable, but stories and scripts influenced by Halloween were first introduced on radio, not in movies. H.G. Wells, the well-known novelist of "War of the Worlds," the movie version of which starred Tom Cruise, is the first perpetrator of one of the earliest, most daunting, and hair-raising Halloween stories.
But how did a literary piece such as "War of the Worlds" scare people, especially when it's been in circulation for a time back then? A radio production by Orson Welles turned the novel into a radio script that would serve as the first Halloween show.
"And in the news today Aliens!"
You guessed it right. Somewhere in the recent thriller/horror/comedy films of modern Hollywood, Welles' production was remembered. Parts of War of the Worlds were used as news bulletins that were read in between the pieces of music.
Visualize the morbid situations depicted in the story of "War of the Worlds" -- like aliens arriving a day before Halloween, as real news on the radio. It's been said that there really were listeners in North America who panicked from the story. They were terrified.
The radio production of this classic literary piece from the 1930s was brilliant. How it was also accepted by the people was also superb. In fact, residents in New Jersey were subjected to public panic. After the big success of "War of the Worlds," the media became more sensible and careful in using Halloween for different productions.
Literature
The thematic of Halloween was also able to penetrate the realm of literature. Just fifteen years after the spooky radio production, a writer by the name of Anthony Boucher came up with a noir story that played with reality and the macabre. The setting of Boucher's story was in California.
The North American comic series 'Shock' was published five years later. It made the perception of Halloween more frightening than it used to be. The story line was about the cruel head of an orphanage, punished and turned into a Halloween pumpkin. In addition, during Halloween, pumpkins are finely carved and hollowed, and some of its peel were also taken off.It was a daring step, but the public took the idea well, making Halloween a production where a certain handful of themes was supported.
EC Comics was also not far behind, this time focusing on things like cutting off parts of the body. However, before the sixties, the American Comics Code regulated the use of such literary devices. It was no longer 'acceptable' and so the short while that the Code was really active, these comic books died down.
But today, Halloween-inspired comic series are still very successful, even without the endorsement of the ACC. The ACC only rewards more wholesome comic books, such as "Archie."
Halloween on TV and the Movies
It's surprising to know that TV took its sweet time getting used to Halloween. TV was more closely censored by religious and conservative groups, so Halloween-themed shows were difficult to produce.
Here are the some of the first Halloween-themed movies that landed on the boob tube in North America.
- Whispering Ghosts (Milton Berle)
- Footlight Serenade (Betty Grable & Victor Mature)
- Frankenstein (Boris Karloff)
- The House on the Haunted Hill (Vincent Price)
- Rosemary's Baby (Audrey Hepburn)
- Night of the Living Dead (George Romero)
- King Kong
- Godzilla
- Psycho (Hitchcock)
- Night of the Demons
But how did a literary piece such as "War of the Worlds" scare people, especially when it's been in circulation for a time back then? A radio production by Orson Welles turned the novel into a radio script that would serve as the first Halloween show.
"And in the news today Aliens!"
You guessed it right. Somewhere in the recent thriller/horror/comedy films of modern Hollywood, Welles' production was remembered. Parts of War of the Worlds were used as news bulletins that were read in between the pieces of music.
Visualize the morbid situations depicted in the story of "War of the Worlds" -- like aliens arriving a day before Halloween, as real news on the radio. It's been said that there really were listeners in North America who panicked from the story. They were terrified.
The radio production of this classic literary piece from the 1930s was brilliant. How it was also accepted by the people was also superb. In fact, residents in New Jersey were subjected to public panic. After the big success of "War of the Worlds," the media became more sensible and careful in using Halloween for different productions.
Literature
The thematic of Halloween was also able to penetrate the realm of literature. Just fifteen years after the spooky radio production, a writer by the name of Anthony Boucher came up with a noir story that played with reality and the macabre. The setting of Boucher's story was in California.
The North American comic series 'Shock' was published five years later. It made the perception of Halloween more frightening than it used to be. The story line was about the cruel head of an orphanage, punished and turned into a Halloween pumpkin. In addition, during Halloween, pumpkins are finely carved and hollowed, and some of its peel were also taken off.It was a daring step, but the public took the idea well, making Halloween a production where a certain handful of themes was supported.
EC Comics was also not far behind, this time focusing on things like cutting off parts of the body. However, before the sixties, the American Comics Code regulated the use of such literary devices. It was no longer 'acceptable' and so the short while that the Code was really active, these comic books died down.
But today, Halloween-inspired comic series are still very successful, even without the endorsement of the ACC. The ACC only rewards more wholesome comic books, such as "Archie."
Halloween on TV and the Movies
It's surprising to know that TV took its sweet time getting used to Halloween. TV was more closely censored by religious and conservative groups, so Halloween-themed shows were difficult to produce.
Here are the some of the first Halloween-themed movies that landed on the boob tube in North America.
- Whispering Ghosts (Milton Berle)
- Footlight Serenade (Betty Grable & Victor Mature)
- Frankenstein (Boris Karloff)
- The House on the Haunted Hill (Vincent Price)
- Rosemary's Baby (Audrey Hepburn)
- Night of the Living Dead (George Romero)
- King Kong
- Godzilla
- Psycho (Hitchcock)
- Night of the Demons
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Costume Finder is a leading supplier of Halloween fancy dress costumes including Zombie Costumes, Vampire Costumes, and Devil Costumes.
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