Modern Day Spook Shows: Info and Questions

[The Phantom Creep]

  So here in Atlanta, Georgia once a month we are lucky enough to have an honest to goodness Spook Show. They just celebrated a year in action. In that time we've seen such classics as Jason and the Argonauts, Earth Vs. the Flying Saucers, 20 Million Miles to Earth, Infra Man, The Tingler, Frankenstein, Plan 9 From Outer Space, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, The Brain That Wouldn't Die, It Came From Outer Space in 3-D and Creature From the Black Lagoon in 3-D (Dan Roebuck actually made an appearance at this one, sorry Dan I still need to send you those photos!!) and coming up this month the House of Wax in 3-D. Next month it's the original King Kong.
  These guys do a really good job and if you live anywhere near Atlanta I highly recommend you attend. You can check out their page at:  http://www.myspace.com/silverscreamspookshow

  So I'm wondering if this type of thing is going on out there in any of the cities where you guys live? If so, please post some info and /or links here!

  If anybody needs any more info about the one here in Atlanta please let me know.
 

[ProfGriffin]

Greetings

Yes, it does.  Here in Austin Texas, I , Professor Griffin, host a few Spook shows in the classic tradition at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema.
Great fun, but sadly not as effective without the 'Spirit Blackout' at the end.

Impossible to do now because of the Fire Marshall and code restrictions.
You can NEVER plunge the theatre into complete darkness...exit signs must always be visible.

Great to hear the tradition is alive and well in Atlanta.

[The Phantom Creep]

Way to go Prof.!!

They do a pretty good blackout here with glowing spooks flying over the audience sometimes.

psssttt..... they also let you bring in booze if you're discreet!

For the Creature I was a zombie bartender and made up a tropical punch that we gave out free and people could "doctor" it up if they wanted.

[gracebuster]

DUDE!

Thats you?!?!?!?!?!??

Holy Crap!

Let me tell  you all something, this was such an amazing night.

These guys and this show were so much fun!!! I was down there doing a movie and was THRILLED to be able to check it out with m pal, Clayton Sayre!

[Dr.Terror]

I haven't seen much actual Spookshow footage, but I love the advertising. My avatar is from a Spookshow promo for someone called Dr. Devious??  The footage I've seen of Dan's is fantastic. He really captures the feel of the old school SS.  This new one looks like Kara Kum and Rom Zombie had a party in burlesque hell!  And I mean that in a good way. 

I wish a Spookshow would hit the East coast.

[raycastile]

I would love to see an honest-to-goodness Spook Show someday.  Most of my knowledge about Spook Shows comes from the Monsters Crash the Pajama Party DVD and Dan's Halloween: The Happy Haunting of America DVD.  I've got a nice Monsters Crash window card:



I displayed this as part of the UMA toy display at Wonderfest 2006.

[The Phantom Creep]

Yes Dan, 'tis I. We were honored to have you join us and I'm so glad that you had a good time. Like I said earlier I still have some photos to shoot your way. Now that I remember them I'll try to get to them in the next couple of days.

For anyone interested in classic spook shows, I highly recommend the book  GHOSTMASTERS: A LOOK BACK AT AMERICA'S MIDNIGHT SPOOK SHOWS by Mark Walker. It's out of print but you can find 'em pretty easy. It's an incredible book filled with amazing photos and artwork and a great history of the spook shows of old. You will love this book, trust me!

[The Phantom Creep]

Here are a couple of photos I've taken at out local Spook Show.

[NekroDave]

I swear, I'm coming back for a Spook Show one of these days. It'll happen. Just you wait.. 

There used to be a guy in Vermont by the name of Davey Horror who did a Spook Show every year, but I never made it up there. Didn't want to make the 5 hour drive by myself (especially since I didn't know if it would be any good) and no one else here was interested. Last year he put out a dvd so I figured I'd check it out that way, but honestly, I got bored watching it and it didn't look that great. Maybe it was better in person, but I'm sort of glad I didn't bother going and evidently he won't be doing them anymore now.

[ProfGriffin]

Yeah, the Spookshow cannot be recreated through a DVD or tape. You have to be IN THE THEATRE.
The whole experience is bizarre, forbidden...MIDNIGHT!!!

The Rocky Horror Picture Show is the ultimate destination for the LIVE participatory spook show experience.
It evolved, it changed, but the energy, the sheer thrill remain the same.

And yes, I agree...I LOVE the Ghostmasters Book...a really great read.

[1975]

First off, thanks to you guys for keeping the spook show alive. I am obsessed with them, currently I'm trying to find a copy of Jim Ridenour (SP?) documentary if anyone has any leads.

Secondly, I'm off to buy Ghostmasters, thanks for the tip!

[Gareee]

Ok, color me inorant.. what exactly IS a spookshow? How long has it been around?

(I have been to a few rocky horror events in the past, but never heard of a spookshow advertised anywhere.)

[The Phantom Creep]

So The Silver Scream Spook Show here in Atlanta showed the original KING KONG this past weekend. Man it was a blast. Best one they've done yet. Somehow they had, during a blackout and with strobe lights, a gigantic Kong towering over the audience and near the end a life size Kong hand came out from the back and carried someone off!

Here is a photo of me in the Kong hand...






Here's a photo of a mini, and kinda disturbing, Kong and the 50 Foot Woman...







And finally the shots that I really annoyed a lot of people with my flash but I just had to get...







I just wish the couple had their heads together in the shot with Kong on stage or that the shot where they do have their heads together you could see Kong better. He's looking right at them.

[mike c]

Ok, color me inorant.. what exactly IS a spookshow? How long has it been around?

(I have been to a few rocky horror events in the past, but never heard of a spookshow advertised anywhere.)

You REALLY NEED to find a copy of Mark Walker's GHOSTMASTERS book... everything you need to know is in it.
Failing that, do the ol' Google search for history of spookshows, or similar. The spookshow was big from the 30's to the early 60's or so, though it held on in some parts of the U.S. until the 70's. Magicians (usually) would book various theatres and put on midnight shows, consisting of some variant of magic show, horror/comedy routines, the prerequisite 'blackout' (where all lights, usually including exit signs, were turned out and for some minutes the audience was inundated with glow in the dark ghosts, bugs, monsters, etc.), and then a showing of a horror film. Was hugely popular for a time.

I've been wanting to put one together here in Branson for years.


Mike C.

[raycastile]

I've been to Rocky Horror maybe three or four times, but I don't feel like I've been to a Spook Show.  I want to see one with a blackout, monsters chasing people through the audience, etc.