Halloween Parades, Zombie Hikes, Harvest Homecomings, Demonic Curses and Meatcleaver Massacres This Weekend in the Ville!
Welcome to the wildest weekend of the Halloween season, my friends and fiends, this is The Phantom of the Ville with a rundown of some of the major Halloween events taking place between Friday, October 12th, and Sunday, October 14th. As a mystical phantom with the powers of astral projection, I plan on attending as many of these events as I possibly can either in body or in spirit. I only wish you could also be in two places at the same time because all of these spooky events are worth checking out. Where to begin?
CAUFIELD’S 9th ANNUAL HALLOWEEN PARADE: On Friday evening at 7PM in the Highlands, the Caufield’s Halloween Parade will roll down Bardstown Road from Rosewood Avenue onto Baxter Avenue ending at Lexington. The parade ends directly at the gates of The Baxter Avenue Morgue which will be open to accommodate guests. This family oriented event gets bigger every year and has taken on Mardi Gras style aspects with many floats and Halloween decked out vehicles throwing treats into the crowd. Bring your trick-or-treat bags.
THE DRIVE-IN OF TERROR: A HALLOWEEN EXPERIENCE: The Georgetown Drive-In at 8200 State Road in Georgetown, IN is hosting a unique series of Halloween weekends that include a family friendly haunted trail and a number of classic, Drive-In horror films all for the price of $15 per person. This Friday the Georgetown will be offering chili cooked on an open campfire while you watch the original “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974) at 8:15PM followed by a real Drive-In obscurity, “Meatcleaver Massacre” (1977), at 10PM which is hosted by classic horror icon, Christopher Lee! Counter, family friendly, programming will be offered on the Drive-In’s second screen with Tim Burton’s new “Frankenweenie” at 8PM and “The Odd Life of Timothy Green” at 9:45PM. Saturday offers homemade bean soup accompanying two screenings of the original “Night of the Living Dead” (1968) at 8PM and 9:45PM followed by “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” at 11PM. (Stay tuned the following weekend for a Michael Myers Marathon of the original “Halloween” (1978), “Halloween 4” (1988) and “Halloween 5” (1989) as well as “The Shining” (1980) and a SUPER RARE screening of the demonic possession flick, “Ruby” (1977), staring Piper Laurie and directed by cult film director Curtis Harrington.
WILD & WOOLLY IN THE WOODS: This event, which takes place Saturday night, October 13th from 7PM until 11PM, includes both a zombie hike through the Jefferson Memorial Forest at 11311 Mitchell Hill Road (see Wild & Woolly Video’s event Facebook page for detailed directions) and an outdoor screening of the cult Spanish zombie classic, “Let Sleeping Corpses Lie” (1974). According to Wild & Woolly Video owner, Todd Brashear, this event is a celebration of the 15th Anniversary of the locally owned cult video store. “When we first opened our doors,” says Brashear, “we only had 100 VHS tapes and ‘Let Sleeping Corpses Lie’ was one of them.” This isn’t a haunted forest attraction, but more like the annual Louisville Zombie Attack that took place in August, only in the woods. Everyone is encouraged to make themselves up as the living dead and shamble through the forest trail. Along the way, there will be a trivia quest where you’ll stumble upon props from various horror films that you’ll have to identify and answer questions about. The winners of the Trivia Contest will win prizes provided by Wild & Woolly Video. There will also be a Best Zombie Costume Contest. The film starts at approximately 8PM. The hike is expected to take 30 to 45 minutes. You’re welcome to bring flashlights, blankets and chairs for the event. Food will be provided by Taco Punk and beer will be provided by BBC. You must be 18 years old to participate.
“CURSE OF THE DEMON” (1957) MIDNIGHT MOVIE AT THE BAXTER AVENUE THEATERS: The Baxter Avenue Theater’s Midnight Movie Halloween Series continues this Saturday night with a 35MM screening of Jacques Tourneur’s 1957 horror classic, “Curse of the Demon.” If you’ve never seen this masterpiece of suspense and terror, I highly recommend you attend this incredibly RARE theatrical screening of one of my personal favorite classic horror films. Based on M.R. James’ “Casting of the Runes,” the film stars Dana Andrews as supernatural skeptic who attends a paranormal conference with the intent of exposing Satanic cult leader, Julian Karswell, as a fraud. Karswell places a curse on Andrews by slipping him a piece parchment with ancient runes that he claims will cause Andrews’ death at a specific time. Niall MacGinnis’ portrayal of the charmingly evil Karswell is one of the most interesting and seductive performances in classic horror history. Although director Tourneur hated the addition of an onscreen demon to his psychological thriller, the resulting monster is one of the coolest and iconic demons ever put on the silver screen. You’ll see hypnotism, seances, spirit possessions, clowns and giant horned demons before it’s over! Don’t miss this!
HARVEST HOMECOMING: This year is the 45th Harvest Homecoming Festival in downtown New Albany, IN, a charming, family friendly event that takes place all weekend long just over the bridge from downtown Louisville. One of the largest festivals of its kind, Harvest Homecoming attracts hundreds of thousands of folks every year. Encompassing several city blocks, this is great place to find locally made Halloween arts & crafts, food, music, rides and pumpkins.
“SCREAMER” (LOCAL HAUNTED ATTRACTION DOCUMENTARY) PREMIERE: Premiering Saturday, October 13th, at the Sheraton Riverside Louisville in the 2nd Floor Ballroom located at 700 West Riverside Drive is a documentary about the folks behind the screams of the local haunted attraction business. The film follows haunters Matt Kemp and Phil Granger as they risk life and financial ruin for the love of haunted houses and Halloween. They were the creative force behind the dearly departed Psychomania in New Albany. Doors open at 7PM and there will be a haunted attraction exhibit and reception before the film starts at 9PM. Tickets are $12 at the door.
