Editorials
Here Are Some of Your Memories of Wes Craven
On Sunday night, after hearing news that Wes Craven had passed away, we found ourselves heartbroken and crushed. A gaping void suddenly entered the world of horror and it felt like nothing could fill it. But as we spoke about our memories, we found ourselves feeling the slightest bit better, our reminiscing slowly closing that dark hole. But it wasn’t enough. We still felt alone in our grief. So we turned to you, the readers, via Twitter.
We asked you, “Tonight we say goodbye to the master of horror, Wes Craven. I want to spend a few minutes sharing stories. What are your favorite memories?”
Below is a selection of the responses that we got, many of which were incredibly touching, many of which simply reinforced the importance and love that Wes Craven so richly deserved.
As you read through these, we encourage you to think of your own stories and memories to share with us in the comments below.
@BDisgusting Bill Pullman screaming as he was buried alive in Serpent & The Rainbow.Wes tapping that primal fear of noone coming to help you
— Viddik (@The_Viddik) August 31, 2015
. @BDisgusting There wouldn't be a #Freddie without #WesCraven #RestInPeace #MasterofHorror pic.twitter.com/NNbrODoEZ0
— Leah (@Leah_Cevoli) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting Renting all his films on VHS as a kid and marathoning them all weekend. RIP
— Josh Kellett (@joshjkellett) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting my first time seeing last house on the left will always stay with me. That movie and wes are why I am a horror fan.
— Richard Kirk (@RichardPKirk) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting I'll always remember seeing Scream in the theater as a child & getting the shit scared out of me during the first 10 minutes.
— TS Comics (@TSComics) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting im basically a filmmaker thanks to him
— NotSo Ancient One (@Josh_Mateos) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting while my parents watched the 1st NOES on cable I snuck out of bed and laid under the kitchen table watching in secret.
— Tim Murr (@holyrooster) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting When I was young I watched The People Under the Stairs and it terrified me, but I loved it deep down.
— matt sans frontieres (@spookyVHS) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting watch with my cousin javi, every thursday, a nightmare on elm street movie, when I was 15. 🙁 🙁
— David Romero (@FCBdarocalabria) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting I have always been astounded by how soft spoken and genuinely funny he was. Not really a story, but, still wanted to share.
— Zac C (@gottabezac) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting So many. First time I saw Elm Street I was blown away. Helped kickstart my horror obsession. 1,2 Freddy's coming for you..
— Dave (@troonooyawker) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting Watching Scream for the first time. I was so scared, I cried cause I was 5 when I first watched.
— drew. (@itsdrewbbybxtch) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting I saw Scream in the theaters and the day it came out on video I rented it on VHS from Blockbuster.
— PAULY HⒶRK (@paulyharker) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting watching Nightmare as a child and being afraid to sleep. Also watching Scream and having nightmares to this day of Ghost Face.
— Travis Grimm (@travisthegrimm) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting I know I can't be the only Deadly Friend fan out there.
— John Tyler (@john_tyler646) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting Sneaking into my living room at 5 years old to watch ANOES. It changed my life forever, and I mean that. Wes was a genius.
— DanCleary (@dancleary79) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting NOES was the first horror movie I ever watched. Thank you for a lifetime of horror @wescraven !! You will be missed!
— J Jossey (@theanswer_o98) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting All of New Nightmare, one of my all-time favorite films. You need only look at my penname to see how his work affected me.
— Rathan Krueger (@DarknessOpera) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting Being completely traumatized by Freddy killing Glenn when I was 5. Still kind of freaked out by that.
— Traci McKagan. (@xTraciMcKagan) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting NOES 1 and 3, Deadly Friend, and The Hills Have Eyes.
— Zero The Hero (@Illuminati322) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting remember watching The People Under The Stairs when I was 7. It didn't scare me, I wanted more. Still one of my favorites!
— Leann (Oni) Miller (@WickedQueenOni) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting Watching Scream at night by myself when I was 11. Always loved horror but the opening truly scared the hell out of me. Amazing
— Matt W. (@mattdubbs) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting He always based his stories in a real fact. That amazes me since I was 10. He told us the truth using fantasy.
— Corina (@VivaLaMangas) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting Dressing up as Freddy in elementary school but being too scared to keep the glove and mask in my room in case they killed me.
— Nikki (@duranieinblack) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting NOES was the first horror film I ever saw. I watched it with my mom when I was 5. I've been hooked ever since…
— Nichole Hamilton (@NBHamilton) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting I watched Scream when I was home sick from school. I felt like shit, but it made my day, and I've been obsessed ever since.
— Emma Kitt (@EmmaKitt) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting Watching NOES Four aged about 11 taped off tv. It was in the afternoon and as it got darker I got more scared.
— lferney (@lferney) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting seeing the first Elm Street. Lisa in the bodybag traumatized me for years. He knew how to effect his audience. Play them. #RIP
— Viddik (@The_Viddik) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting Growing up scared shitless of his movies. Fighting back tears
— Sean Flaherty (@SeanFlaherty13) August 31, 2015
@BDisgusting his movies were my childhood. Losing him is like loosing a family member. I'm thankful for his films and legacy.
— Morgan jones (@morgmorgan25) August 31, 2015
The trailer for Ti West’s upcoming adaptation of A Christmas Carol raised a lot of eyebrows when it dropped earlier this week. While plenty of folks initially dismissed Ebenezer as a derivative project meant to cash in on the recent wave of unnecessary prequels that expand the backstory of beloved characters (such as 2023’s Wonka), Charles Dickens’ original novel already made a point of exploring Ebenezer Scrooge’s origins in detail – meaning that this new film is likely just a particularly faithful adaptation of the source material under a different name.
Couple that with the fact that the movie is being helmed by a genuine horror auteur and I think it’s safe to say that the latest iteration of the first modern ghost story is in good hands.
That being said, one detail that immediately jumped out at me during the brief teaser (other than a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it nod to Johnny Depp’s iconic bedroom death scene from the original A Nightmare on Elm Street) is the fact that many of Ebenezer’s ghosts appear to have been directly lifted from the iconic John Leech illustrations that accompanied the first edition of Dickens’ novel.
Here are a couple of stills from the trailer compared to the original artwork:
The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come in ‘Ebenezer’ and ‘A Christmas Carol’
The Phantoms in ‘A Christmas Carol’ and ‘Ebenezer’
Marley’s Ghost in ‘Ebenezer’ and ‘A Christmas Carol’
Mainly working with old-school wood and steel engravings that would later be transferred to print, Leech was instrumental in crafting the iconic look of history’s most influential phantoms – especially since Dickens is said to have been deeply involved with the creation of these so-called “comic illustrations.”
And since the novel is commonly said to have popularized spiritualism in Victorian England, much of the ghostly iconography that we still see in genre media to this very day (including some of Ti West’s previous films) can be traced back to the author’s partnership with Leech.
Ebenezer won’t be the first A Christmas Carol adaptation to borrow heavily from these designs, but I can appreciate how Ti West is incorporating an important part of horror history into his latest film.
Ebenezer will be available in theaters starting November 13.
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