Classic Creepy Commercials, Volume 32!
By the time you read any edition of Classic Creepy Commercials, it’s just words on a page and some embedded videos. What you don’t see is the long, ridiculous process involved with obtaining these old TV spots.
I hunt for vintage TV commercials all year long, and I’m always gunning for spooky spots. Sometimes I browse through dozens of tapes before I find one. Whenever I do, it’s like I’m in Johto and goddamned Ho-Oh landed right on my head.
When you watch these ads, just know that there was a digital adventure behind every single one of them!
Happy Halloween from WPIX! (1980s)
This short spot from WPIX aired *on* Halloween. I loved it when networks aired these little greetings, and many of them did, for practically every major holiday.
I watched television straight through plenty of holidays as a kid, and it was always depressing. It felt like the last thing anyone should be doing, even when the programming was seasonally-appropriate. Everything felt so automated and lifeless. It was the at-home version of a waiting room vibe.
So these five-second spots — essentially digital corporate cards — were always super appreciated. They made the experience seem less lonely, and let me trick myself into believing that I wasn’t watching shit that got programmed days prior.
I guess what I’m saying is, “Happy Halloween to you too, Channel 11!” Read More…
Fave Things To Get While Trick-or-Treating!
Welcome to October! I wanted to do something special to kick off this most awesomely unholy of months, so surprise, you’re getting a Friday night video:
Click here to watch it on YouTube!
Join me for ten minutes as I tell you about the best “unusual” things I used to get while trick-or-treating, like McDonald’s gift certificates and teensy tiny comic books. My prime trick-or-treat years started in the mid ‘80s and ended in the early ‘90s, so if you’re around my age, this one’s gonna pack a big nostalgic punch!
What were some of the “weirder” things — good and bad — that YOU used to get while trick-or-treating? Confess and boast, in the comments!
Thanks so much for watching the video, too! The vids will be a big focus this month, so you’ll definitely be getting a few more. Enjoy the start of October, and I’ll be back early next week with more. In the meantime, you can visit Dino Drac After Dark for late-night chats with fellow Halloween maniacs.
Purple Stuff: Spooky Songs Volume VIII!
A lot of folks asked if we’d be doing another Spooky Songs episode of the Purple Stuff Podcast this year. Well, of course! It’s our most popular series and one of our favorite subjects!
Get set for the EIGTH volume of Spooky Songs! This year, me and Jay from Sludge Central are coming at ya with ten tracks that NEED to be on your Halloween playlist.
We’re both insane mega fans of spooky music, and we probably take these episodes a little too seriously. No joke, we start building our lists like ten months in advance! I think we’ve got some very strong selections in Volume VIII. You’re gonna love ’em.
Click here to listen to this month’s show!
As a reminder, we are also on Patreon, where you can grab an exclusive bonus show each and every month. September’s is already there, if anyone wants to hear us raid eBay for the best and weirdest Elvira collectibles. Next month’s bonus will also be Halloween-themed, of course!
Thanks so much for your time and your ears, and for sharing the show around. We appreciate y’all to death, and we both feel very lucky that you’re still paying attention to our gibberish all these years later. Enjoy the new episode!
2021’s Best Halloween Junk Food, Part 3!
This is the third edition of 2021’s Best Halloween Junk Food, and I bet I can do another three before October 31st. As I’ve been saying, this is a crazy year for Halloween snacks — like to the point where I can barely keep up.
Compare this year to most years, when the well seemed dry by the second week of September. 2021 is one of the books! Enjoy it while you can, and worry about the extra pounds in 2022.
Ghost White Ding Dongs!
(Found at Stop & Shop)
Recentism is surely shading my perspective, but frig it: This genuinely might be my favorite snack of the 2021 season. Ghost White Ding Dongs smother cream-filled cakes with white fudge, and they are DIVINE. They look like albino hockey pucks and smell like a birthday party.
It’s a big surprise from Hostess, which has spent the last several Halloweens only offering repeats. Nothing against ScaryCakes and Chocolate S’cream Twinkies, but if I’m gonna eat 42 grams of carbs in 4.2 seconds, I need it to be on something worth Instagramming.
GRADE: A+. They taste orgasmic — I don’t know how else to put it — and their cellophane wrappers are adorned with witches and dead trees. Add that gothic box and a solid euphemism for my junk, and yeah, this is an easy A+. Read More…