THE LOST SCRAPBOOK OF CADAVRA

In the 1960’s, movie theatres took a leaf from the William Castle book of exploitation by staging live Spook Shows, sometimes at midnight, but often at kiddies matinees. Usually featuring a double bill of two older films and a cartoon or short subject, the centerpiece of the program would be the live show. Soon, somebody (David L. Hewitt, auteur of THE WIZARD OF MARS) had the brilliant idea of creating a film that would work specifically with a live show, crafting a break in the cinematic action where the movie monsters would “COME OUT OF SCREEN”, “INVADE AUDIENCE”, and “CARRY GIRL VICTIMS BACK INTO PICTURE”, causing panic and terror in the popcorn tossing public. This is the handbill for one such show, which I saw back in the Summer of 1965. If you’ve only seen Something Weird’s DVD of MONSTERS CRASH THE PAJAMA PARTY, believe me, you haven’t really experienced MONSTERS CRASH THE PAJAMA PARTY. If a monster suddenly jumped out of your TV screen and sat in your lap — COULD YOU TAKE IT??  (Click on image for larger view.)

— Robert Deveau, The Doomed Farmer