Editorials
CBS Celebrated “The Last Halloween” With a Largely Forgotten Animated Special in October 1991 [TV Terrors]
Horror and science fiction have always been a part of the television canvas, and constant attempts have been made over the years to produce classic entertainment. Some have fallen by the wayside, while others became mainstream phenomena. With “TV Terrors,” we take a look back at the many genre efforts from the 80’s, 90’s, and 00’s, exploring some shows that became cult classics, and others that sank into obscurity.
This month we head back to the ’90s to relive The Last Halloween!
- Aired on October 28th, 1991
- Aired on CBS
It’s hard to believe that 1991 was thirty years ago, as it feels just like yesterday when I, at the age of seven, sat down to watch the TV movie “The Last Halloween” before bed time. What’s so peculiar about “The Last Halloween” is that it seemed to get a hefty push from the MARS company as the foursome of aliens that star in the short film were apparently being propped up as mascots. I vividly remember seeing the special promoted on the back of a bag of chocolate chips, and they even had their own ads at some point.
It seemed like we were going to see so much more from them with an ad campaign and perhaps the same push that the Energizer Bunny or the Noid were given. The live action special is centered on Crystal Lake, a small town with an economy reliant on their massive candy factory. Their only problems are mad scientist Mrs. Gizborne (every town should have one) and her assistant Hans (the two characters played enthusiastically by Rhea Perlman and Richard Moll), who are experimenting on bugs to find the secret to eternal youth.
To do so, they’re illegally draining the town’s lake, making it impossible to produce candy and fuel the town’s economy. In response, the town of Crystal Lake has to eventually shut down and begin moving its residents elsewhere (hence the title). Young Jeanie and her big brother Michael (a very young Will Estes) are celebrating their “Last Halloween” and one night, by fate, four small Martians crash land in the woods. The aliens are in desperate search of “coobi,” a mineral that could help their planet and give them enough fuel to get back home.
The friendly travelers are known as Gleep, a multicolored cat-like Martian; Romtu, the de facto leader who is colored blue and dons a giant helmet; Scoota, who wears a silver helmet that acts as a “coob-a-meter”; and Bing, a springy gold creature who squeaks every time it moves. Of course the “coobi” can be found on Earth, and they happen to land on the right night as what they call “coobi” is what we know as–dramatic pause–CANDY! We have it in abundance and of course the pair of siblings offer to help them grab as much of the mineral as possible so they can go home safely.
But they have to outwit the evil Mrs. Gizborne and her assistant Hans, both of whom want the aliens for nefarious purposes. All four of the martians were voiced by legendary voice actors Frank Welker, Don Messick, and Paul Williams, and yes, were very similar to ET (including the candy tie in). The aliens get the majority of the focus and garner some interesting exposition– or as much as you can fit into a half hour. They’re charming and likable heroes, and they’re well fleshed out within the admittedly minimal narrative.
After one primetime airing (and a few other airings) on CBS, the special faded into obscurity and we never really saw these characters again. That’s quite the surprise when you consider that “The Last Halloween” is very unique in many ways. For starters, it was produced and narrated by William Hanna of Hanna-Barbera fame. This was his only live action project, all the while the special effects were taken up by none other than Industrial Light & Magic alongside Pacific Data Images. Also in lieu of hand drawn animation, or puppets, the foursome of alien stars are fully computer animated which, in 1991, was quite the spectacle.
There’s no real explanation for why “The Last Halloween” disappeared after Halloween of 1991, or why it was largely forgotten. It seems the MARS company were planning a big ad campaign in 1993 (titled the “Mission To Mars” campaign), and teamed with CBS to get the foursome out in the collective ether as they were being propped up to become bonafide mascots (according to CollectingCandy.com) for the MARS company. The movie was meant to function as a prequel/back story for the charming Martians before they were unleashed on the public.
Alas, it wasn’t meant to be. It’s sad since “The Last Halloween” plays out like a great Scholastic kids novel you would have picked up at a school book fair. It’s simple, wholesome fun, and it’s endearing, even down to its dated (but impressive for its time) CGI. I wish CBS had invested more in these characters, even without the backing of the MARS Company. With or without the rose colored nostalgia, “The Last Halloween” could definitely cast a spell on a new generation of Halloween loving kids.
Is It On DVD/Blu-ray/Streaming? Sadly the special has never been released on any form of media (including VHS), and has been unavailable for viewing since 1991. Thankfully the original special can still be found in its uncut form on YouTube, however. There’s no real demand for its revival, but it’d be nice if someday it could be included on a compilation from Mill Creek or Shout! Factory.
Judging from the unprecedented box office success of Kane Parsons’ Backrooms adaptation, you’ve likely already seen the liminal horror hit that managed to make audiences afraid of empty hallways and bad wallpaper. And now that so many of us have already entered the yellow labyrinth (some of us more than once), the time has come to discuss the spoiler-filled details that make the movie so fascinating in the first place.
And if there’s one element here that makes the Backrooms movie stand out from any previous lore/mythology, it has to be the genius addition of the Still Life entities. Warped recreations of real people that somehow wandered into the Complex, these misremembered creatures are responsible for some of the most disturbing imagery of 2026 – as well as laugh-out-loud memes created by one of the film’s very own concept artists.
However, true to Parsons’ word that the movie would rely heavily on practical effects, each of these distorted monsters was brought to life by real actors under heavy layers of makeup and prosthetics (with the occasional splash of CGI enhancements). While Anora and If I Had Legs I’d Kick You actress Ivy Wolk wasn’t among these performers, despite what Letterboxd might have you believe, the creature cast did benefit from veteran players with plenty of genre experience.
For starters, Alien: Romulus alumni Robert Bobroczkyi (who previously brought that film’s horrific Offspring to life during its most memorable sequence) plays the flick’s main antagonist, the Still Life version of Captain Clark. And though there was some obvious CGI involved in making the character’s peg-leg and nightmarish face more believable, Bobroczkyi’s monstrous performance and his natural 7’7″ frame helped to make that final chase sequence a clear highlight among this year’s genre offerings.
The film’s Texas-Chain-Saw-inspired “dinner” scene also features a freaky collection of less-aggressive Still Life creatures in the form of the Bearded Man, the Red-Headed Woman and, strangest of them all, the cheekily named “Archibald Leland Sutter Still Life” (who earned this title among fans and crewmembers as a reference to his apparent affinity for lamps).
While this was the first major horror outing for both Patrick Baynham (The Bearded Man) and Dana Mahmood (Archibald), Rhiannon Roberts has worked as a stunt performer in everything from Yellowjackets to HBO’s The Last of Us adaptation – which is probably why The Red-Headed Woman is the most active out of Clark’s impromptu “family.” That being said, the Archibald Leland Sutter Still Life is my personal favorite of the bunch simply because his anachronistic outfit suggests that the Backrooms phenomenon might be a lot older than the Async Foundation. I also love how hard he tries to be helpful with that little light of his!
That might be it for the Still Life entities, but I think horror fans will also be pleased to hear that the film’s Found Footage prologue stars none other than Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City star Avan Jogia as Naren Warne – and American Mary herself Katharine Isabelle also shows up in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo at Mary’s house party towards the middle of the story (though I have a feeling that she originally had a bigger part that was likely cut for time).
At the end of the day, Parsons’ Backrooms may have been an auteur-driven project motivated by the young director’s unique take on the classic creepypasta, but film has always been a collective artform, so it’s fun to see just how many talented performers it takes to bring this kind of supernatural nightmare to life in a way that connects with so many people.
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