Happy Hauntings From The Haunted Mansion

It's October 31, and since 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland, let's take a look back at some haunting history. Or is it a look ahead? The 1965 Disneyland Pictorial Guidebook featured a preview of the Haunted Mansion four years before its opening. Prominent in this rarely seen preview is one of the most famous pieces of Disney theme-park art: the painting of a very haunted looking Haunted Mansion by Sam McKim, based on Ken Anderson's 1958 sketch. With this fascinating example of Disney art, we come to the end of our countdown for this year. Happy Halloween 2019!

A Celebration For The Ages: 50 Happy Years

Can Gyro Gearloose be part of our Countdown to Halloween 2019? Sure, because the inventor created by master Disney artist/writer Carl Barks,  is something of a mad scientist, even if this mild-mannered friend of Donald Duck seldom gets mad. But more to the point, look at this cover of Walt Disney Showcase #18, October 1973. Prominently displayed is the 50 Happy Years logo, for 1973 saw Disney celebrating its golden anniversary. To discover more about one of the most spectacular celebrations in Disney history, click here to read the D23 article I wrote about 50 Happy Years. It's a great way to honor the day on which Disney was founded, October 16, 1923.

View-Master Monster Pack (Featuring Drac)

Back here Tulgey Wood took a look at the View-Master adaptation of Dracula and here a look at the View-Master Frankenstein. This year we present a look at the View-Master Monsters Gift Pack. And in this vintage ad, some of the other irresistible gift packs are also on display in this vintage ad. It's all part of the Countdown to Halloween 2019 in Tulgey Wood. And be sure to click on the preceding link and discover some other scarily good blogs celebrating Halloween.

An Artful Halloween

What better way to Countdown to Halloween than with some frightfully artful art? The great Hayden Evans is holding his own day-by-day countdown to October 31with another Drawlloween celebration on Facebook of his horror-themed art that is anything but horrible. Check out his sensationally stylized art every day this October.

Sacred Silly, Searle Style

In the first decades of TV Guide, the covers were almost always artful, so it's no surprise that they turned to artists to create covers as often as they turned to photographers. As the magazine continued it's slow but sure decline in 1990, its publishers at least had the ease and calls to sign up British author and former TV Guide contributor Ronald Searle to draw up this haunted house in the classic style for this October 27, 1990 Halloween edition—and it's part of Countdown to Halloween 2019 here at Tulgey Wood. This TV Guide comes courtesy of the Facebook page, The TV Time Machine. If you are on Facebook, tune in this fun-fest of classic TV of all kinds.

Scooby-Doo, When Do You Celebrate Your 50th Anniversary?

50 years ago, this fall, Scooby-Doo Where Are You! debuted on CBS, on September 13, 1969—and spooky old houses, seemingly supernatural doings, villains in disguise, and meddling kids and their munchie-chomping mutts have never been the same. This silly-but scary animated TV series is among the most popular ever created. It's of course entirely fitting we salute Scooby on his 50th during our Countdown to Halloween 2019, for the cowardly Great Dane and his pals have confronted any number of ghouls and ghastly specters during their first five decades. Plenty of merchandise has paid tribute to the Scoobster, including this rare 1969 coloring book. Happy anniversary to this Hanna-Barbara headliner and may he be haunted by baddies for another 50 years.

               

Pancakes (Addams) Family Style

The new animated Addams Family film has more than one tie-in. Besides the Monsters Cereal promo, there is a major campaign at IHOP. For our Countdown to Halloween 2019, here is a look at some of the posters, menus and signage you will find during this "For A Limited Time Only" period. Fun Halloween-y graphics, as the Addams Family would naturally inspire. I didn't sample any of the Addams Family fare but if you'd like a review check out Dinosaur Dracula and Mad Matt's take on the pancakes and more. Dinosaur Dracula is one of my favorite sites, especially at Halloween time, so I hope you are a regular visitor there, anyhow. Lots of fun spooky stuff for the spooky season.

When Ghosts And Goblins By The Score Ring The Bell Not The Front Door But The Main Titles

For many, Walt Disney's Trick or Treat is a perennial part of the Halloween celebration. But did you know that the opening titles we see on DVD are not the titles the short was originally released with? On YouTube, a YouTuber named Erik has uploaded the original titles with the RKO credits (RKO was Disney's distributor at the time this seasonal short was originally produced), pans between the credits and an animated paint brush as seen in the short itself. This is all from an original Technicolor print. You can discover more about this favorite spooky time cartoon in the D23 article I wrote at this link. It's another frightfully fun (and Disney) way to celebrate our Countdown to Halloween 2019.

Eerie vs Salem, Marshall vs Max

1991 saw the premiere of the cult TV series, Eerie, Indiana, a horror/supernatural/sci-fi/comedy that ran for one abbreviated season. As seen in the Preview from the TV Guide Fall Preview issue for that 1991-1992 season, the show centered on a teen, Marshall Teller, who discovers that the town he and his family have just relocated to is, well, eerie. Marshall was portrayed by Omri Katz, who just a couple of years later, upped his already substantial supernatural cred by also playing Max Dennison who battles the evil Sanderson sisters in Salem, Massachusetts in Disney's Halloween classic Hocus Pocus. To find out more about Omri and the rest of the cast and creators of Hocus Pocus, please click here to read the D23 article I wrote about Disney's 1993 comedy-horror-thriller as the Countdown to Halloween 2019 slinks on through the jack-o-lantern illuminated darkness.

Little Audrey's Big Halloween Adventures

Casper, Spooky and their ghostly cohorts may be the Harvey comics stars we automatically think of during Halloween time, but the decidedly not supernatural Little Audrey...make that, Playful Little Audrey also had spooky-season fun. Just in time for our Countdown to Halloween 2019, here are a few classic covers that demonstrate LA's Halloween expertise.

Quik, Pass The Poisoned Dragon's Liver

In 1971 Nestle's Quik offered six Bedknobs and Broomsticks "full color frameable art prints" as a tie-in with the brand new musical fantasy that premiered on this date, October 7th, in that year also notable for the debut of a certain Vacation Kingdom. In fact, Nestle ran a sweepstakes with a grand prize of a trip (actually ten trips) to Walt Disney World Resort as part of the overall To discover more magic behind the scenes of Disney's Academy Award-winning motion-picture click here to read the article about this "bewitching witches' brew of a movie." It's a fun way to continue our Countdown to Halloween 2019.

Parking GOOOOD!

The Universal Studios Theme Park here in Hollywood (Universal City, actually) is especially popular during Halloween time, thanks to their annual Halloween Horror Nights. But this grandaddy of all movie studio parks has been home o the classic Universal Monsters right from the start. It's great to see these spooky cinematic stars permanently celebrated in thumbing, such as this parking lot. Universal's classic Frankenstein Monster is a perennial fixture here at Tulgey Wood, especially in October for the annual Countdown to Halloween blogathon. Be sure and stop by every day this month because Tulgey Wood is alive...it's alive!

He's Looking For A Head To Chop

70 years ago today, in the very appropriate month of October, Walt Disney's The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad was released—and the second half of this animated feature about "Two Fabulous Characters" (the working title of this, the last of Walt's package features), "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," has been a Halloween favorite. Here's an article I wrote for Sketches, the Official  Magazine of the Walt Disney Collectors Society, Number 3, 2000. Click on each page of the article to discover contains some tantalizing tidbits  and rare artwork and other images about this sure-footed adaption of Washington Irving's classic Halloween tale, a perfect addition to our Countdown to Halloween 2019.

Monsters And More On TCM

As is usually the case on Turner Classic Movies, October is turned over to spooky cinema, including a Monster of the Month. Be sure and tune into TCM on Fridays starting tonight to catch the Monster of the Month for 2019, Godzilla. And tune in all month for some classic horror movies. TCM's annual monster movie-a-thon is another spooky step along the way on our Countdown to Halloween 2019 here at Tulgey Wood.

They're Altogether Ooky—Especially As Part Of A Nutritious Breakfast

The General Mills Monster Cereals are back for Halloween 2019. And though it can (again) be lamented that Big G is not using the original art that once graced the Monsters' cereal boxes and their animated commercials, it's great to have Frank, the Count and Blue Boo back again. As an added jolt for this Halloween season, the Cereal Monsters are teaming up with the Addams Family to promote the new animated Addams Family movie that starts scaring up audiences on October 11th. There's even a whole set of Pumpkin Carving Stencils that star Franken Berry, Count Chocula and Boo Berry alongside six members of the Addams clan. Nothing so mundane as having the stencils Free Inside This Specially Marked Box in this digital age—they can be downloaded at MonsterCarving.com. These spectral cereals (with marshmallow "sweeties" as they were called once upon a spooky time) are all part of the Countdown To Halloween 2019. Be sure and click on the preceding link for the many other blogs participating in this fun boo-a-thon this year.

It's The Great Pumpkin, Linus Van Pelt

October 2 marks the anniversary of the Peanuts comic strip's debut in 1950. It's only appropriate that Charles M. Schulz's comic magnum opus first appeared during the spooky season as it has become an inseparable part of Halloween thanks to Schulz's annual Halloween-themed strips. This spooky-time association was especially cemented with the debut of the hit 1966 television special, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.  Long-time Peanuts licensee Hallmark was one of the first to both capitalize and celebrate the Great Pumpkin theme, as noted before here in Tulgey Wood, in 1968 with a waiting-in-the-pumpkin-patch theme for their Plan-a-Party line. In the early 1970s, Hallmark again returned to Linus's very sincere pumpkin patch with both wall decorations and a new centerpiece. Enjoy this spookily seasonal art with a Peanuts twist as we Countdown to Halloween 2019 here at Tulgey Wood.

There’s No Turning Back Now...It's Time for The Countdown To Halloween 2019!

Kindly step all the way in please, and make room for everyone...it's October 1, and that can only mean it's time for the 2019 Countdown to Halloween! The theme of this annual blogathon this time around is a celebration of the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland Park upon the occasion of its 50th anniversary—as you can see from the 2019 badge that has hitched a ride on this here blog.  So, even though most posts here in Tulgey Wood will not be focusing on the menacing manse, we'll kick things off with some, um, haunting imagery of the Haunted Mansion, by looking back to 2015. That's when three of the main Disney comic book titles ran some merrily macabre art as variant covers. While you consider these dismaying covers, welcome. To regular visitors, good to see you again and I hope you like the treats I toss into your plastic jack-o-lantern bucket because I have decided it's candy I don't want myself. And to new visitors, a special welcome—Tulgey Wood is full of surprises, treats and even a few spooky tricks, so I hope you enjoy the chilling challenge of wandering through the madness. Be sure and visit the other blogs participating in this Halloween sppok-a-thon. These dedicated "crypt keepers" have decorated their front porches with scarecrows and specters so be sure and knock on their doors. (Do be aware that some of these blogs focus on the more horrific side of this holiday, and may also include strong language and mature themes.) Most of all, be sure and stop by throughout this spooky month right through October 31st itself as we Countdown to Halloween 2019 here at Tulgey Wood.