October's Thrills, Chills and Creepy Destinations on the Small Screen

by Rae Lori


The weather is getting cooler now and by cooler I mean it's not a blazing three digit temp here in the desert! I'm missing the hot swim temps but, as time zooms by, fall is inevitable. Bring on the soup, hot tea and warm blankets!

I'm not into Halloween but I'm a huge fan of the paranormal genre. Every year I look forward to October because paranormals will be spotlighted in books, movies and, most of all, television. So being a nostalgic TV junkie, I'm jazzed to welcome another October and look forward to all the paranormal spotlights around the small screen from old classics, to recent favorites. Larissa's Monday blog about vampire television made me sigh with much nostalgia as I remembered and very much enjoyed a lot of what was on her list. Thankfully most are on DVD so I can revisit some goodies all month. I'm even thinking of going old school with my reading pile (actually, it's now a tower) as I'm thinking of re-reading Stoker's Dracula, Anne Rice's Interview With the Vampire, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and maybe a few Harlequin Nocturnes just to make things interesting. I highly treasure my vampire themed anthology The Penguin Book of Vampire Stories (which I highly suggest for any vampire enthusiast looking to capture some fanged favorites throughout lit history).

Since we're early into the month, I'm not quite sure if I'll see some old paranormal themed TV favorites like Bravo's Countdown to the Scariest Moments in Movie History. Or The Travel Channel's Haunted Travel series which includes Weird Travels, Creepy Destinations and Mysterious Journeys. The shows feature many stories of paranormal happenings which I will happily watch from the safety of behind my television! One story in particular featured the creepy doll Robert which has been rumored to wander and leave tiny footprints in the museums he's lived.

As an author, the stories behind the haunts amuse me to no end because they're always embedded in history. For instance, the Top 10 Creepiest Destinations feature everything from the Bermuda Triangle to Haunted Hollywood Hotels to Haunted Gettysburg and even Roswell to name a few. Each place has a story and the occupants and workers are eager to tell their own personal stories. Great fodder for creating a story atmosphere and an eerie paranormal world I think!

On the flip side, some of these specials are just plain entertaining to see. I always looked forward to old favorites like Tod Browning's Dracula which will always have a special place in my vampire loving heart and new favorites I haven't discovered yet.

Some networks feature specials all month long.

For instance:

TCM

For my fellow fans of old classic horror films, TCM is the go to channel for the month of October. Not only are they featuring Thrillers every Friday this month, we'll also get a high style 1932 international import (Danish director Carl-Theodor Dreyer's Vampyr). Also movies featuring Psychic Powers, Silent Movie Sundays (featuring Nosferatu & the 1925 feature Phantom of the Opera) an 10/30 marathon for character creature movie actor Boris Karloff and an all day marathon for Halloween day.

The Chiller Channel

For kitschy horror movies, cancelled yet still good tv series and some trippy anime imports, Chiller is THE channel for horror, paranormals, the occasional sci-fi and dark fantasy. Consider this your all year round H-ween fix as each day features a morning to early afternoon marathon of favorite tv shows from Wolf Lake, Twin Peaks, Freakylinks, Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction, Beauty and the Beast and more. The Chiller Channel is also owned by NBC Universal like the Sci-Fi, er SyFy(lis) channel so you'll see a lot of the same shows and layout between the two. After all, how can you not like a channel that features a movie merging kick boxing and vampires together?

I'm hoping more pop up as October unfolds. If not, there's always DVDs to fall back on, Hulu.com for online streams and the old DVR.

Pics Courtesty TCM, Travel Channel & Chiller Websites

How about you guys? Do you have any favorite shows, books and/or movies you love to watch every year around this time?


Rae writes in multiple genres including science fiction, fantasy, romance and suspense, sometimes all meshed together in one story. Currently she is at work writing short speculative stories as a break from her larger works. Recently she has contributed to the world-building chapter for the upcoming The Complete Guide to Writing Paranormal, to be released this fall from Dragon Moon Press and is gearing up for the release of her futuristic A Feast of Shadows from Eirelander Publishing in March 2010.

Check out more of her work at her website where you can sign up for her newsletter, check out her blog and see what’s coming up for new releases and free reads.