剧情介绍：
Nightmare Theatre
Nightmare Theatre
Nightmare Theatre was one of the more prominent late-night horror programs of the 1960s and 1970s. During its fourteen-year run, this show introduced several generations of television viewers to the horror films of yesteryear across the Pacific Northwest. Produced by Seattle-based KIRO-TV, and utilizing much of the same cast and crew as the similarly popular The J.P. Patches Show, Nightmare Theatre reached an audience that stretched as far north as Alaska, as far east as Idaho, and south into Oregon. Its residential horror host, The Count, has accrued a cult following over the years, much in the same vein as his make-up laden peers Maila Nurmi ("Vampira"), John Zacherle ("Zacherley"), and Cassandra Peterson ("Elvira").
Contents
1 Early history
2 Opening Sequence
3 The End of Nightmare Theatre
4 Lost Footage
5 Joe Towey
6 References
7 External links and additional references
Early history
Late night horror programs had become immensely popular during the 1960s, so KIRO-TV decided to tap into a market virtually untouched by the Pacific Northwest stations at the time. Nightmare Theatre was conceptualized by Joe Towey, who not only functioned as the director of The J.P. Patches Show for its entire twenty-three years, but who also played a host of characters on the long-running children's program. (Just a few of his recurring characters include the klutzy handyman Mal Content, and J.P. Patches' evil twin brother, I.M. Rags.)
Nightmare Theatre debuted on September 25, 1964, with the 1958 low budget shocker The Screaming Skull. By April 1965, the program began playing double-bills which stretched into the early morning hours. The show proved popular among children and teenagers, but it found a ratings booster when it introduced its mascot a few years later. The Count (played by Towey) didn't actually appear in front of the camera until Halloween of 1968, but the character proved an instant success with viewers lucky enough to be able to tune in. Nightmare Theatre aired every Friday night on Channel 7 in the 11:30 pm time slot for most of its run, but was aired progressively later during the 1970s. KIRO-TV attempted to phase out the program on several occasions, but audience pressure forced them to revive it time and again.
Opening Sequence
For most of its run, the late-night program opened with a shot of a mist-shrouded castle (in actuality, a touched-up Addams Family Haunted House Aurora model kit), accompanied by sound effects borrowed from Walt Disney's Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House and music pilfered from Neal Hefti's score for the 1966 Roddy McDowall film Lord Love a Duck. Within its mouldering recesses, the camera settled onto a coffin, which opened to reveal a skeleton. A clever camera fade transformed the bones into The Count, a dime-store Dracula whose shtick was worse than his bite. (A fallible bloodsucker, any attempts to frighten his younger viewers would be undermined by such antics as
Nightmare Theatre
Nightmare Theatre was one of the more prominent late-night horror programs of the 1960s and 1970s. During its fourteen-year run, this show introduced several generations of television viewers to the horror films of yesteryear across the Pacific Northwest. Produced by Seattle-based KIRO-TV, and utilizing much of the same cast and crew as the similarly popular The J.P. Patches Show, Nightmare Theatre reached an audience that stretched as far north as Alaska, as far east as Idaho, and south into Oregon. Its residential horror host, The Count, has accrued a cult following over the years, much in the same vein as his make-up laden peers Maila Nurmi ("Vampira"), John Zacherle ("Zacherley"), and Cassandra Peterson ("Elvira").
Contents
1 Early history
2 Opening Sequence
3 The End of Nightmare Theatre
4 Lost Footage
5 Joe Towey
6 References
7 External links and additional references
Early history
Late night horror programs had become immensely popular during the 1960s, so KIRO-TV decided to tap into a market virtually untouched by the Pacific Northwest stations at the time. Nightmare Theatre was conceptualized by Joe Towey, who not only functioned as the director of The J.P. Patches Show for its entire twenty-three years, but who also played a host of characters on the long-running children's program. (Just a few of his recurring characters include the klutzy handyman Mal Content, and J.P. Patches' evil twin brother, I.M. Rags.)
Nightmare Theatre debuted on September 25, 1964, with the 1958 low budget shocker The Screaming Skull. By April 1965, the program began playing double-bills which stretched into the early morning hours. The show proved popular among children and teenagers, but it found a ratings booster when it introduced its mascot a few years later. The Count (played by Towey) didn't actually appear in front of the camera until Halloween of 1968, but the character proved an instant success with viewers lucky enough to be able to tune in. Nightmare Theatre aired every Friday night on Channel 7 in the 11:30 pm time slot for most of its run, but was aired progressively later during the 1970s. KIRO-TV attempted to phase out the program on several occasions, but audience pressure forced them to revive it time and again.
Opening Sequence
For most of its run, the late-night program opened with a shot of a mist-shrouded castle (in actuality, a touched-up Addams Family Haunted House Aurora model kit), accompanied by sound effects borrowed from Walt Disney's Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House and music pilfered from Neal Hefti's score for the 1966 Roddy McDowall film Lord Love a Duck. Within its mouldering recesses, the camera settled onto a coffin, which opened to reveal a skeleton. A clever camera fade transformed the bones into The Count, a dime-store Dracula whose shtick was worse than his bite. (A fallible bloodsucker, any attempts to frighten his younger viewers would be undermined by such antics as