Well, let me tell ya, back in the seventies, them TV horror movies, they were somethin’ else. Scared the bejesus outta ya, they did. No fancy stuff like they got now, just plain old spooky stories.
I remember this one time, they had this movie on, somethin’ about a doll. Yeah, a doll! Looked innocent enough, little thing with big eyes. But, oh honey, that doll was pure evil. Started movin’ around, blinkin’ its eyes, whisperin’ things. Gave me the chills, it did. My kids, they were hidin’ behind the couch, peeking through their fingers. We didn’t have no fancy TVs back then, just that big ol’ box with the rabbit ears. But that doll, it looked real enough, like it was gonna jump right outta the screen and get ya. I ain’t slept with a doll in the room since, I tell ya.
- Scary Dolls
- Creepy Crawlies
- Ghosts and Goblins
Then there were the ones with the monsters. Big, hairy things, some of ‘em. Or slimy, crawly things that came outta the swamp. They didn’t have all that computer stuff back then, so they had to make it look real with makeup and rubber and whatnot. And let me tell ya, some of it looked pretty darn real. Made ya think twice about goin’ outside after dark. I remember one time, there was this movie about spiders…big as your head, they were. Crawlin’ all over the place, spinnin’ their webs. I swear, I was scratchin’ myself for days after watchin’ that one.
And the ghosts! Them 1970s made for tv horror movies were full of ‘em. White sheets floatin’ around, chains rattlin’, voices whisperin’ in the dark. They always had some sad story, them ghosts. Like they were wronged in life and couldn’t rest. Made ya feel sorry for ‘em, even though they were scary as all get out. One movie I recall had this old house, looked like somethin’ outta a picture book, all pretty and whatnot. But turns out, it was haunted. Doors slammin’ shut, pictures fallin’ off the walls, the whole shebang. The family that moved in, they didn’t last long, I tell ya.
Now, my kids, they like them newfangled horror movies, with all the blood and guts. But I tell ya, them old TV movies, they were somethin’ special. They didn’t need all that gore to scare ya. They just got under your skin, you know? Made ya think about things that go bump in the night. Made ya look over your shoulder every now and again.
One thing them old movies were good at was buildin’ suspense. They wouldn’t just jump out and scare ya, like they do now. They’d take their time, build up the tension, make ya wait for it. And that waitin’, that was the worst part. Your heart would be poundin’, your palms would be sweaty, you’d be sittin’ on the edge of your seat, just waitin’ for somethin’ to happen. And when it did, oh boy, you’d jump a mile high.
They didn’t have all them special effects back then, like they do now. No computer generated monsters or nothin’. They had to use real stuff, ya know? Make-up, rubber masks, fake blood. And sometimes, that made it even scarier, ‘cause it looked real. Like that movie about the exorcist girl. Lord have mercy, that one was somethin’ else. That girl’s face, and the way she talked…it gave me goosebumps just thinkin’ about it. My neighbor, she swore she saw the devil himself in that movie. I don’t know about that, but it sure was scary.
And the music! Them old horror movies, they always had that creepy music, playin’ in the background. Drums beatin’, violins screechin’, all them spooky sounds. It would get louder and louder, buildin’ up the tension. And then, when somethin’ scary was about to happen, it would go silent. Just dead silent. And that silence, that was even scarier than the music. ‘Cause you knew somethin’ was comin’, you just didn’t know when.
I tell ya, watchin’ them old movies with my family, that was an experience. We’d all huddle together on the couch, scared outta our wits. But we loved it. It was like a…a shared experience, ya know? Somethin’ we could all talk about the next day. “Did you see that part when…?” “Oh my Lord, that was the scariest thing I ever saw!” It brought us closer together, in a way. Even though we were all terrified.
Now, I don’t watch much horror anymore. My heart ain’t what it used to be, and I get scared too easy. But every now and again, I’ll see one of them old 1970s made for TV horror movies on TV, and I’ll stop and watch it. And it’ll take me right back to those days, sittin’ on the couch with my kids, scared outta my mind. And I’ll smile, and I’ll think to myself, “Them old movies, they don’t make ‘em like that anymore.” They really don’t. Those 1970s horror films had a special kind of scare, a real scare, not just a bunch of fancy effects. It was the stories and the way they told ‘em, that’s what got ya.
