RADIO ROCK 92.6 THE BLITZ
But enough already about radio! Let's talk horror! Take it away, Mr. Amo.
It was a dark and stormy
night.
Doesn’t
it seem that most ghost stories, horror novels or anything to do with stuff
that goes bump in the night, all begin with that classic first line? Well, for
this author, it doesn’t have to be dark or stormy, to find myself immersed into
the dark, paranormal corners of my mind. And with that said, we can begin our
tour.
Unless
you’re television generation, (ages 45 - 60) give or take, a great deal of
references made in today’s blog may go over your head. However, don’t feel
excluded. Quite often many people come to appreciate things that were created
long before they were residents on this planet. So, you’re in luck. Who knows,
perhaps you may find something new here today and add them to your list of likes?
It
was 1969, yours truly was six-years-old, and hooked on all things spooky and
scary. Especially, horror films and television shows. I know, six-years-old and
already a creepy kid. I loved the classic black & white Universal horror
films from the 1930s and 40s. My heroes were Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, and
Lon Chaney Jr. How many kids that age could not only tell you who the stars
were, but also knew the director’s names too? Add to that list, film composers
and the makeup men as well. (Jack Pierce, incidentally.)
During
this golden era of the “boob tube” a new series came in the form of a movie of
the week. Rod Serling had returned to television and this time it wasn’t going
to be the science fiction morality tales of The
Twilight Zone. This was a place where horror, the strange, and bizarre
would have a permanent home. This residence would be known as the Night Gallery.
Nonetheless,
Rod Serling remained a constant inspiration to me as a young would-be author.
He was the Stephen King of his day,
and there was no denying, he was truly a gifted writer. Noted as the only
television writer to win seven Emmy Awards.
So,
flash-forward to 2014, it’s a dark and stormy night, and this author cannot
sleep. So instead of tossing and turning for the next hour, a trip downstairs,
a cup of coffee and late night television is my prescription for this night of
declined slumber. And what do I settle on to watch? You guessed it kiddies; Rod
Serling’s Night Gallery. I can’t tell
you which episode it was I watched, but it was on long enough to wake up my
muse and get her back to work. As I reflected on the show, it not only took me
back to a time, fondly remembered, but served to inspire me to pay homage to
the creative forces that gave my imagination more material than it knew what to
do with. I had never entertained the idea of writing a collection of short
stories. The closest I had ever come to that, was writing episodic scripts for
independent television.
Okay,
now on to the show. “Midnight Never Ends” is an adult horror anthology of four
tales, ranging from the subjects of death, to the consequences of black magic,
and the occult. Each story, like in the Night
Gallery itself is presented with its very own canvas, complete, with a
Serling type narration to segue the reader into the story. I felt if I was
going to attempt a tribute at this show and the man; then the artwork was going
to be as essential as the stories themselves. Four original paintings by
artist, Jeannifer Marciella Soeganda,
provide rich details that capture the true essence and flavor of Night Gallery artist, Tom Wright.
Prepare
yourself to return to a time, where a man in a black suit, resonate voice and a
macabre smile, takes you on a tour where the paintings are tilted left of
center. A place where, “Midnight Never Ends. NOW ON SALE on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
Follow Tom on:
MIDNIGHT NEVER ENDS by THOMAS AMO
