"Halloween III: Season of the Witch" (1982)

As we are in Halloween season...

In 1982, director John Carpenter and Debra Hill released Halloween III: Season of the Witch. 

Many were disappointed that there was no Michael Myers in the movie. The Halloween movie series was originally meant to be an anthology series. But it was disappointing at the box office. From Halloween IV and beyond, Michael Myers was the focus again.

The plot:

Hospital emergency room Dr. Daniel "Dan" Challis (Tom Atkins) and Ellie Grimbridge (Stacey Nelkin), the daughter of a murder victim, uncover a terrible plot by small-town mask maker Conal Cochran (Dan O'Herlihy), a madman who's planning a Halloween mass murder utilizing an ancient Celtic ritual. The ritual involves a boulder stolen from Stonehenge, the use of Silver Shamrock masks and a triggering device contained in a television commercial -- all designed to kill millions of children.

However, the movie has risen in esteem (especially if one looks at it as a stand-alone film) over the years. It is now a cult favorite. I watched it with my mother when it was on cable and we both got a big kick out of the dark humor. 

The Silver Shamrock jingle for the movie's mask commercials is both annoying and catchy. Some of us sang it at work for fun. 

If you get the chance, see Halloween III: Season of the Witch. I recommend it!

Classic Rock Music Monday

The stuff that now passes as "music", particularly rock 'n roll, leaves me cold. So, to start off the week, here's a video of a classic rock artist. 

To start off the first Classic Rock Music Monday of 2023, here is Mountain and their classic song, "Mississippi Queen" that was released in 1970. 

From Wikipedia:

Mountain was an American hard rock band formed in Long Island, New York, in 1969. Originally comprising vocalist and guitarist Leslie West, bassist and vocalist Felix Pappalardi, keyboardist Steve Knight, and drummer N. D. Smart (soon replaced by Corky Laing), the band broke up in 1972, but reunited on several occasions prior to West's death in 2020.

Probably "Mississippi Queen" gained its most notoriety was in the 1971 cult film Vanishing Point. A nude motorcycle rider, played by Gilda Texter, appears in the final third of the movie to "Mississippi Queen".

Museum of Death and Amoeba Music

An interesting, yet enjoyable, day was spent today with my daugher Amber and her boyfriend Neil at the Hollywood Museum of Death and at Amoeba Music.

Museum of Death

Above, the front of the Hollywood Museum of Death. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I've heard of the Museum of Death, but never visited it. Until today.

The museum has an interesting collection of death-related items from many sources.

According to their website:

The Museum of Death houses the world's largest collection of serial murderer artwork, photos of the Charles Manson crime scenes, the guillotined severed head of the Blue Beard of Paris (Henri Landru), original crime scene and morgue photos from the grisly Black Dahlia murder, a body bag and coffin collection, replicas of full size execution devices, mortician and autopsy instruments, pet death taxidermy, and so much more! 

Also on display are videos of autopsies and serial killers, the Heaven's Gate Cult recruiting video, and the infamous Traces (not Faces) of Death video, all real (not re-enacted) death footage.

Along with the aforementioned, there is a large collection of traffic accidents showing the poor souls who were killed and a section on cults.

They don't allow photography or videography in the museum and they are planning to produce a book (or booklet) of the museum.

The museum is not for everyone, especially those who are sensitive, as many of the items are gruesome.

For more information on the Museum of Death, go here.

*****

Amoeba Music

Above, the front of Amoeba Music. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Following our visit to the Museum of Death, we then headed over to Amoeba Music on Sunset Blvd. I've always wanted to stop in at Amoeba Music (my former roommate Jessica and I have often talked about doing so), but never got around to it).

Amoeba Music is a big store of new and used vinyl LPs, CDs, DVDs, Blu-Rays, books and audios equipment.

Above, a view of the inside of Amoeba Music. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The store has something for everybody, although I was disappointed that they did not have (admittedly rare) some music albums I have been searching for.

Above, another view of the inside of Amoeba Music. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Still, Amoeba Music will most likely have what you want and their staff is eager and willing to help you find it.

If you find yourself in Hollywood, both the Museum of Death and Amoeba Music are places that you should visit.

10 Awesomely Bad Films With Cult Followings

This little item came across my desk.

10 Awesomely Bad Films With Cult Followings by an online college group is an interesting list.

They describe their compilation as follows:

Bad movies come in all shapes and sizes: boring, too long, filled with plot holes or terrible actors. But there's a strange phenomenon that can occur when these bad-film qualities and others are combined in the right proportions. The movie becomes a cult classic, so ridiculous or poorly made that people can't help but be entertained by it. Here are 10 enjoyably bad movies that have gained cult followings for their strangeness, low budgets, or campy qualities.

I've some of these movies and I concur that they belong on the list. How many do you have?

To view the site, go here.

10 TV Series With The Biggest Cult Followings

This item came across my desk last night. This is about 10 TV Series With The Biggest Cult Followings.

The premise starts this way:

Let's be clear up front: there are cult-like TV shows, and then there are genuine cult series. It's easy to confuse the two, because anything that feels vaguely cult-inspiring -- usually a series about or involving aliens, mysteries, or surreal comedy -- is usually labeled as such by media and viewers. But real cult series never attract a broad audience, and they're almost always doomed to swift cancellation and low ratings.

That are the ten television shows with the biggest cult followings?

Go here and find out!

Do you agree? Disagree? Comments?

The last show on the list is one that I followed regularly back in the late-1960s.