Creatures from the Lost Message

 I was sent these pics by a reader but alas I've lost the email, so I can't say who from!

Thanks anyway, what a marvellously monstrous store! I wonder if you bought anything?

Is this your kind of shop readers?

FRANKENSTEIN ON THE MOORS

 We've been sorting piles of old photos at Moonbase.

As soon as I saw this I remembered what was above my head [I'm on the right]!

Its a Marx tinplate Frankenstein!

Just when I'd started out collecting toys I saw this Frankie in this Beck Hole pub bar in the Yorkshire Moors circa 1990.

Mulling it over once home I then wrote to the bar owners - a proper handwritten letter with an SAE! - and asked if they'd sell it.

They didn't but they served a great half-pint!

Have you ever seen an old toy in a pub or an office that you wanted readers?

Eating our Way out of Halloween: 1997 Burger King Universal Monsters - Frankenstein

Here's the last of the BK Universal Monsters from 1997. 

Looking back, Frankie and The Count were my two favorites. The Mummy and The Creature didn't do much for me. I mean, I would watch them if there were no Westerns, Charlie Chan, Sherlock Holmes, or Bowery Boys flicks on TV but other than that I pretty much ignored them.

From Universal's Las Vegas Annex

Ed

Eating our Way out of Halloween: 1997 Burger King Universal Monsters - The Wolfman

While the figures themselves are nicely done, I really like the artwork that came packaged with them.

From Universal Studios - Vegas Annex

Ed

How Many Frankenstein Films Did Boris Karloff Make ?

My Dark Corner of this Sick World is a You Tube movie review channel devoted to what most people consider bad movies (and a few good ones). Frankenstein 1970, in which Boris Karloff plays Frankenstein rather than the creature, was recently reviewed. This got me wondering, how many Frankenstein films did Boris Karloff make in his long career?

He only played the Monster in the first three Universal films: Frankenstein (1931), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), and Son of Frankenstein (1939). Then retired from the role.

But this would not be his last appearance in a Universal Frankenstein movie. Following on from Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943), Universal made House of Frankenstein, which added Count Dracula to the cast.

In House of Frankenstein (1944), Karloff plays the central villain, Dr Gustav Niemann, who has just escaped from prison, and is out for revenge on those who put him there. This time Glenn Strange played the Monster.

Then came Frankenstein 1970 (1958), in which Karloff plays Baron Victor von Frankenstein. Mike Lane played the Monster.

Mad Monster Party ? (1967) was a stop-motion animated film, in which Boris Karloff provided the voice of Baron Boris von Frankenstein. The puppet somewhat resembled him.

So that makes six films by my count.

Paul Adams from New Zealand

The Phantom's Prisoner

 

When I was a kid the agonised man behind bars at the back of this fabulous Bama Aurora cover art scared the bejeeses outa me! Far more than the Phantom, although his green head was pretty creepy! I used to wonder who the poor prisoner was. Anyone know?

TINPLATE TERRORS BY TONY K

Rather ritualistically, the run up to Halloween always seems to find me looking for The Lost Boys on dvd, binge watching old horror B-movies on youtube and spinning the dusty vinyl of Siouxsie and the Banshees and Bauhaus. 

I like the cooler temperature, the magnificent colours of falling leaves and the spooky vibe which prevails as the veil is said to become thinner and the bat decorations come out of the belfry. The media I consumed as a kid played an influential part in sowing the pumpkin seeds. 

Old Universal and Hammer movies, childhood horror comics, Warren publications, Pan paperbacks, monster themed gum cards, ghoulish glow-in-the-dark Aurora kits and Mego's Mad Monsters all conspired! I was bitten by Halloween and spellbound for life.

Three old tinplate toys which personify the enjoyment of Halloween for me are - Hootin' Hollow Haunted House, Whistling Spooky Kooky Tree and Frankenstein, all sold by MARX in the early '60s.

Haunted House films, stories, toys and games have always been a popular Halloween hoot. Hootin' Hollow Haunted House is a beautiful example of a tinplate toy from this genre. It's a fun filled des res of cobwebbed spooks and spooky spectres. 

Eight old fashioned typewriter keys make the magic happen. 

They unlock the door to Hootin' Hollows hidden horrors. These included; a jumping black cat, a moving back-lit ghost seen through a window, a suspiciously welcoming vampire opening the front door, a window shade, a rattling roof, a friendly skeleton who pops out of the chimney, spooky noises and whistling wind sound. 

As if all that wasn't captivating enough, the bewitching litho is a work of art which draws the eye and lures the imagination.

'Rudy's World' youtube channel gives an exceptional review of his own Haunted House and demonstrates it spooktacular functions.

https://youtu.be/p89q1PFpcj4?si=wtPCXSlAQc-GZhZi

'It's in the Trees!'... erm, well actually it is a tree... a Whistling Spooky Kooky Tree! This tinplate gem with a wacky appearance could be seen to laugh at our unease of scary childhood fairy tales and foreboding forests, or from an adult perspective, paganism, folklore and even folk horror! 

A rare oddball amongst tinplate toys, this lavishly lithographed moving tree has big rolling eyes, a moving mouth, a twisty branch for a conk, all topped with a crown of moving leaves. Its long gnarly arms wave up and down as it moves through the mist. 

To intensify the fear factor, the tree emits an eerie whistling noise to enchant those unfortunates stranded in the forest when darkness descends. This adorable tree trunk terror is definitely a cut above the rest for far-out Halloween fun. Incidentally, Marx branched out and made two versions. 

The darker Autumn/Winter tree (seen here) and the lighter Spring/Summer example, which has identical functions but a different litho design.

Here's a very short youtube link which shows 'Tintoyman's' Whistling Tree in action. https://youtu.be/uHexwDpdjKo?si=c1W_JcHFI5qDthXQ

'It's Alive, It's ALIVE!'. My final Halloween fave is Frankenstein (The Monster). It isn't lightening or electricity which sparks him to life... it's a plastic battery operated remote control. By pushing various buttons he walks, he bows, he raises and lowers his long arms. He can also open and close them to grab torch bearing yokels. (These functions are also found in two other popular robotic toys from that era - Mr. Mercury and Dux Astroman). 

Frankenstein's litho is based on Universal Studio's dark movie costume, which is polarised by a vibrant green Glenn Strange head sculpt and hands. The brooding box art could've been taken from an old cover of Eerie, Creepy or Famous Monsters.

For those with an interest, Raymond Castile has produced a lovely in-depth youtube review of his own Marx Frankenstein.

https://youtu.be/2ied7HbVmuk?si=7FzRKIEuxVB_3c3A

All three of my Halloween favourites come from a time when top toy technology was battery operated. All three feature ingenious mechanical functions. All three of these old childhood relics is beautifully lithographed with colourful detail and design. Each has a charm and appeal all of its own. Over the years, I've enjoy being their 'temporary custodian'. 

It's a bit like looking after fragile old friends who were around when I was a kid. In return, they make me smile. They conjure up a happy carefree time when my world was full of imagination and wonder, where things were magical and anything seemed possible. 

 Happy Halloween 2023.

Tony K

UK

Eating our Way over Halloween: 1997 Burger King Universal Monsters - The Creature From The Black Lagoon

Burger King's Creature has been a hard one to fit into my Halloween scenarios but he's still a cool classic. Molded in an icky green he's actually a squirt gun of sorts.

From Vegas Lagoon

Ed

Eating our way through to Halloween! 1997 Burger King Universal Monsters - Dracula!

I love the set of four Universal Studios Monsters Burger King released back in 1997.

 These were the classics I remembered and enjoyed as a kid. They are a bit large when placed next to the other Halloween figures that I set out for display, but they still look cool.

From Vegas Castle Dracula!

Ed