In addition to the usual reviews and comments you would find on a horror movie blog, this is also a document of the wonderfully vast horror movie section of the video store I worked at in my youth.

Friday, May 13, 2011

It Came From The Archives 11!

Friday the 13th is here again, this time only four days off from the thirty-first anniversary of the initial film’s release. I have mentioned before that I have numerous books & folders of random horror clippings in the archives, so to celebrate this most superstitious of dates, I dug out some stuff related to everyone’s favourite indestructible machete-wielding maniac.


The Friday series was pretty close to my heart while growing up. I’ve talked before about how, as a personality, I gravitated toward Freddy, but when it came to the actual movies, the Fridays had an infinite watchability factor. They were simple stories, that followed the same formula, but were all somehow different, at least in my mind. I could identify which entry a particular character or kill was from in the blink of an eye back then.

You know, we tend to make fun of the tweens for their running obsession with the Twilight series, but I guess I can’t really throw stones.


So, I guess by ‘approximately’ I meant ‘I’m just gonna throw a number down and hope it’s right’ because those figures aren’t even close. Oh, fourteen-year-old self, you so sloppy. The ratings are funny to look back on, as well. Due to the gratuitous nudity in Part V – what are there, like, three pairs of breasts in that? - I can understand my raging hormone-fuelled score, but what’s with the low score for Part VII? That one is the shit!


This was obviously before I saw the movie. I guess I interpreted the term ‘New Blood’ to mean that Jason would be fighting a relative, but we know now they didn’t go down that road until the ninth flick.

Speaking of Kane Hodder, the hulking presence that played Jason in parts seven through ten, I first met him in 1991 at Fangoria’s Weekend of Horrors. It was the only time they ever brought their travelling roadshow to Toronto.


And no, I didn’t ask him why he was signing photos of Richard Brooker from Part 3. I didn’t want him to, you know, pull my arms off with his bare hands.


I believe that last one was from a bit in Rolling Stone magazine circa 1990.


Though the magic of Google, I looked up how that whole thing played out. Not so good. No sequel for Mr. Branch.

Below are some fold-outs from various Fangoria poster issues, circa 1990.


A cool Friday-related thing I pilfered from my video store was a retailer ad for Part 9.


It then opened up to reveal…


My copies of the Friday the 13th movies were scattered over several tapes, until I finally dubbed them all together on a pair of VHS. I even made a neat little case for them.

Entire story. Riiiiiight.

I even clipped all the intros together in a montage. Keep in mind that this was edited with two VCRs, so it looks like you would expect.



I was able to find pretty much everything I remember having, except for my Jason Voorhees Madball and my recording of Jason on Arsenio Hall. Fortunately, thanks to YouTube user miscvids818, here is the latter below.



Happy Friday the 13th everyone!

1 comment:

True Ghost Stories said...

Ah man you bring back some memories. Jason and Freddy were the bomb back in the day. Classics, all classics!!!