MICROGORIA 118 - Renfield

We take at look at the latest incarnation of Dracula from Universal - a comedy horror starring Nicholas Hoult, Awkwafina, and Nicholas Cage as the Count

DIRECT DOWNLOAD - MICROGORIA 118 - Renfield

And you can find my podcast series on the history of the Universal Monsters here

Find all the podcasts in the HYPNOGORIA family here plus more articles on the weird and wonderful here-

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THE 'ORRIBLE 'OUSE OF TERRIBLE OLD TAT - Horror Bags Giveaways Galore (Part II)

Hello dear fiends and welcome back to the 'Orrible 'Ouse of Terrible Old Tat, a place where your collection of old crisp packets are history - and not in a Mum's just binned them way! This week we are continuing our exploration of the legendary snacks that went cruch in the night, the Horror Bags range from Smiths Crisps. Flourishing for a few marvellous spooky years in the mid 1970s, Horror Bags were a smash hit, and spawned an eerie empire of their own macabre mail order merchandise which you could only get your grubby little mitts on by sending in empty packets (and a smidge of pocket money sometimes). And what was on offer was very good indeed! Last time we looked at the standard stuff - the expected cards, t-shirts and bags, but this time we are looking at the more outre items that were only a mere 28 days for delivery away!  

The Grizzly Growler

Now the 1970s was not only the home decade of Horror Bags but also the golden age of the 7 inch single, and so it perhaps not surprising that records were a common free gift back then. Now obviously slabs of vinyl weren't quite cheap enough to just give away, but that was why the flexi disc was invented. For those of you blessed with enough youth not to remember the days when vinyl was king, a flexi disc was a floppy circle of plastic that had a groove printed on it, and essentially were an ultra-light weight, and hence also ultra-cheap, way of making a single. Now Horror Bags actually did two of these. Or rather it would seem the same disc was released twice. As far as I can tell, one version was a flexi that proclaimed it featured the sound of bats, and was somewhat confusing marketed as the Grizzly Growler mask. Yes, I know bats don't growl. 

To add further bewilderment, the mask wasn't a mask but an admittedly rather nice cardboard print of a snarling vampire which glowed in the dark. And just to muddy the waters even further, the flexi disc that came with it was also reissued later sans the non-mask. However the fun does not end there, for at least one version, if not both judging from some arrows on the packaging, featured the novel innovation that you didn't even need a record player to enjoy this spooky sonics. For each sleeve came with a tiny stylus built-in, so that you could spin the disc yourself by whirling the flexi around with your fingers. Yes, by all accounts it did sound as horrible as you imagine... 

Rather easier on the ears, were a couple of ranges of novelty items that were heavily promoted with tie-ins with popular British comics. In April 1976, if you were to pick up a copy of long running weekly humour comic Whoopee! you could get hold of a Horror Bags Gripper! And what in the name of Frank Windsor was a Gripper I hear you cry? Well, it was a spring-loaded clip, in the shape of a creepy claw, a spooky skull or a bitey version of the Horror Bags Dracula, that well, gripped things.

I am not sure what exactly they were meant to grip - there was vague talk of using them as ad hoc decorations or bookmarks, but personally I suspect much Gripper action involved minor attacks on the flesh of younger siblings, classmates and family pets. And if you didn't get the free one with Whoopee! you could get the full set of three by sending in 3 empty bags and the princely sum of 10p! Bargain! 

In a similar vein, and promoted in a similar fashion were the Creepy Clutchers! These were little printed plastic cards featuring versions of famous monsters on them, with a slot in them so they could be employed as once again as bookmarks and decorations. And while they presently no real risk of nipping any passing target, they were far more impressive visually, with lovely painted renditions of iconic creatures from the horror movies. And, as you can see below, several were clearly based on the old Universal monsters. There were six in the range - Dracula, the Mummy, the Wolfman, Frankenstein's Monster, a Vampire Bat, and a Witch (although an ad I found does show an alternate design featuring a skeletal ghoul). 

However the wrinkle here was that the offer was for a trio of these Creepy Clutchers, for 3 bags plus 10p. So then, if you wanted the entire set, you had to eat more Horror Bags in order to send off twice! And to promote this offer, you got one free with an issue of another long-running comedy comic Buster. 

But as creepy and cool as all this swag was, they weren't the best that Horror Bags had to offer! Next time we will take a look at the very coolest mail-order merch that came direct from Dracula's Castle! Or at least the one located suspiciously close to Smiths HQ...  

HYPNOGORIA 88 - The Chronicles of the Creature Part III

In this episode Mr Jim Moon takes a look at the further adventures of the Gill-man, exploring Revenge of the Creature (1955) and The Creature Walks Among Us (1956)

DIRECT DOWNLOAD -  HYPNOGORIA 88 - The Chronicles of the Creature Part III

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HYPNOGORIA 87 - The Chronicles of the Creature Part II

In this episode, we continue on your exploration of the Gill-man and take an in-depth look at the classic horror SF movie The Creature From The Black Lagoon (1954) directed by the great Jack Arnold. Plus we also take a peek at the Gill-man in print and unearth various plots for remakes.

DIRECT DOWNLOAD -  HYPNOGORIA 87 - The Chronicles of the Creature Part II

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The History of Horror Double Bills

Mr Jim Moon delves through the cinema archives of the Great Library of the Dreams to unearth the history of everyone's favourite two for one - the horror double bill! A three part podcast series exploring the history of the double feature, late night monster movies, horror hosts, and of course the legendary BBC2 horror double bills!

 


DIRECT DOWNLOAD - HYPNOGORIA 001 - Horror Double Bills Part 1

In the second part of our investigations of horror double bills, Mr Jim Moon details the second wave of the Universal Monsters, the chillers from RKO conjured up by Val Lewton, charts the building of the Hammer house of horrors, takes a spin through the history of the drive-in, and examines the double trouble that was AIP and Roger Corman!

 


DIRECT DOWNLOAD - HYPNOGORIA 002 - Horror Double Bills Part 2

In the third and final part of our series of double features in horror, Mr Jim Moon examines the history of the late night horror double bill on TV, discussing the likes of Shock Theater, horror hosts, Creature Features and the legendary BBC 2 horror double bills

 


DIRECT DOWNLOAD - HYPNOGORIA 003 - Horror Double Bills Part 3


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HYPNOGORIA 86 - The Chronicles of the Creature Part I

In this episode, Mr Jim Moon invites you all to take a leisurely boat trip down the Amazon river to the Black Lagoon. Here we'll learn of the origin and history of its famous resident monster the Gill-man, and all about the making of the classic movie The Creature From The Black Lagoon (1954).

DIRECT DOWNLOAD -  HYPNOGORIA 86 - The Chronicles of the Creature Part I

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MICROGORIA 06: The Story of An Evening With Boris Karloff and His Friends

Mr Jim Moon takes a trip into the Vinyl Vault at the Great Library of Dreams to tell the tale of a most seminal spooky record beloved of the monster kids of the '60s which paid homage to the Universal horrors and was hosted by Mr Boris Karloff himself!

DIRECT DOWNLOAD - Microgoria 06: The Story of An Evening With Boris Karloff and His Friends

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HYPNOGORIA 002 - Horror Double Bills Part II

In the second part of our investigations of horror double bills, Mr Jim Moon details the second wave of the Universal Monsters, the chillers from RKO conjured up by Val Lewton, charts the building of the Hammer house of horrors, takes a spin through the history of the drive-in, and examines the double trouble that was AIP and Roger Corman!




DIRECT DOWNLOAD - HYPNOGORIA 002 - Horror Double Bills Part 2

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HYPNOBOBS 86 - Children of the Wolf Man

Concluding our history of werewolvery, Mr Jim Moon tracks the progeny of the Universal Wolf Man, tracing the influence of Mr Larry Talbot on lycanthropic cinema. Under the light of the silvery moon, we hunt down The Mad Monster, The Undying Monster and The Wolves of Malveneur, hear the Cry of the Werewolf and witness the Return of the Vampire, before uncovering his descendants are alive and well in the modern age in the shape of An American Werewolf in London and The Wolf Man remake.

DIRECT DOWNLOAD - Children of the Wolf Man

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HYPNOBOBS 85 - Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart...

Even a man who is pure in heart 

And says his prayers by night,

May become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms

And the autumn moon is bright

Continuing what is turning into Werewolf Month here in the Great Library of Dreams, Mr Jim Moon rambles at great length about the 1941 Universal classic The Wolf Man starring Lon Chaney Jnr. Along the way we learn about the history of the Universal Monsters and just where the werewolf's vulnerability to silver actually comes from...

DIRECT DOWNLOAD - Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart...

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HYPNOBOBS 58 - Christmas With Frankenstein

In a change to the announced schedule, Mr Jim Moon represents a suitably seasonal tale on the perils of Christmas toys. Coming from the pen of forgotten author Tim Stout, Christmas With Frankenstein is a gleefully ghoulish yarn about some pint-sized replicas of the most famous of the Universal Monsters...

DIRECT DOWNLOAD - Christmas With Frankenstein

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