Join a Live (Well, Undead) Host to Face Dracula, the Mummy, and More at the Pickford’s ‘It’s Alive’ Series – whatcomtalk.com

The last time you were around a campfire andthe ghost tales began, did you run for your tent? Doubtful, as most of us take gleein some kind of fear-based storytelling. Especially when it happens just likein the woods: youre catching the thrillalong with a group, you have a trusty guide, and some part of you logicallyknows there isnt really a werewolf (who might be you) about to emerge whenthose clouds move off the moon. Pickford Film Center is happily re-creatingthis exhilarating experience for all of us with seven classic horror movies youcan attendone per monthstarting in February.

The series celebrates theemergence of horror films in the United States at Universal Studios, andfeatures screenings of landmark titles from the 30s, complete with a live hostto set the scene.

One of the things I think is going to be coolabout this for audiences is that while we do have Dracula and Frankenstein (1931), we also havelesser known but also amazing shows from the Universal vault, says seriesco-host and Bleedingham co-founder LangleyWest. The Old Dark House (1932) was directed by James Whale, thesame director as Frankenstein, andstars Boris Karloff. James Whale was oneof the first people to inject humor into the horror genre. Bride of Frankenstein (1935) is also Whale and is one of thefew sequels that is universally regarded as being superior to its predecessor.

Pickford Film Center Executive Director Susie Purveshad the original vision to present these films. We do many series looking atAmerican classic cinema, and these Universal horror films were the template foreverything that has followed, she says. I was interested to look at thembecause horror is such a popular genre nowit encompasses really everythingsoI was interested in introducing our audience to what were the originals.

She says that the experience, much like thecampout described above, can be family friendly. She remembers watching thesetitles herself when she was young, on tv, nearly always presented by a creepyhost. The host I grew up with in Detroit was Sir Graves Ghastly (actor Lawson J. Deming), she recalls. So wethought we should have our own creepy host. Uncle Bloody Joe will rise out ofa coffinor somethingand explain some things about horror to the audience. Wereally wanted to do something different than just showing the films.

ItsAlive is the name of the series, which cannot be said of Uncle Bloody Joe,West adds. He will be your host and guide for these forays into the cobwebbedhallways of black-and-white gothic cinema. Uncle Bloody Joe is a creation ofWest and fellow horror buff and PFC Board Member Gary Washington.

Purves says she wanted Washington and Westinvolved because both are co-founders of Bleedingham and know a ton about thegenrebut also because theyre filmmakers themselves. When it comes to a livehost and a creepy setting, they can make it happen, says Purves. Also, thisseries is speaking to an audience they are already involved with.

Washington points to the impact of the filmsthemselves. Even though horror is subjective, theres so much to learn from theclassics, he says. No matter how shiny or gritty the movie becomes today, youcan always trace back to themes or elements from the originals.

Purves adds that the series is programmed inchronological order, so audiences can experience how the genre evolved overtime.

All of these movies are beautiful art pieces,the template that becomes the aesthetic for gothic horror, says West. Earlygothic cinema came from Germany after WWI. Nosferatu(Germany, 1922) becomes Dracula inthe Hollywood lens (1931). People here were dealing with the relatively recentmemory of the horrors of WWI mixed with the dread of what was happening inGermany as we led up to WWII. You also cant discount the uncertainty and fearthat was brought on with the Great Depression. America was ripe not only tohave the pants scared off of them, but to escape.

Purves adds, These films were made right as the Hollywood code came into being and codified the mores of acceptabilitysort of set the moral rules of film of the time. Horror films were a way to deal with some issues that werent available in other filmmaking. It was the Great Depression [and] people were dealing with a lot; coming to these films made them feel better somehow. Many things simmer under the surface in these filmsas in many modern horror movies.

Fear is a big deal, Purves continues. Butthen, when I was a kid watching Dracula, just knowing that a wooden stake wasall I needed to be safe made me feel better. These films built in ways for us todeal with the fears we have.

Tickets can be bought online in advance or at the door. Show time is 3:00 p.m. the last Saturday of each month, February through August.

Featured photo by Jake Holt

Join a Live (Well, Undead) Host to Face Dracula, the Mummy, and More at the Pickford’s ‘It’s Alive’ Series – whatcomtalk.com

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