Category: Traumafessions

When the guy kills the poor little otter with a shovel in RING OF BRIGHT WATER. I was about 3 when I saw this and never got over it. I suppressed the memory and one day picked the movie up from RedBox not knowing the emotional hand grenade I was holding. As the movie unfolded, something was gnawing at the back of my mind and a dreadful familiarity started to settle in. The deja vu was tangible and I knew I had been there before but couldn't, for the life of me, remember when. It was like being in a cemetery where you suddenly recognize all the tombstones but can't find the exit. As soon as I saw the guy raise the shovel my heart dropped and decades of suppressed horror screamed out from that dark corner of my mind where murky childhood memories lurk. Even thinking about it now I'm traumatized, sad and, most of all, angry that they would put something like that in a children's movie. It's like putting a razor in a cupcake.

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! -sniff- -sniff- -snorfle-

—bdwilcox

I searched for SPITTING IMAGE on your site and was surprised that you have never posted about this British Television Series featuring hideous puppet caricatures of celebrities and political figures. I was exposed to the show in 1986 when they ran a special in the US. I was only in kindergarten at the time, and I remember being so frightened by the characters that I begged my mom to change the channel.

She was enjoying the humor and of course didn't find the characters as frightening as I did, and told me I had to change the channel myself if I wanted to watch something else. Our T.V. had no remote which meant I would have to approach the television set and get closer to these demonic beings so, seized with fright, I had to sit through the entire show. After that, I was afraid these hideous creatures would pop up from the crack between my bed and the wall so I began sleeping with the sheet over my head.

Hey Guys,

Here's a Traumafession that I'm surprised no Gen-Xer has submitted yet…

In the summer of '77, my folks took me to the local drive-in to see ORCA. I was 8, so I'm not sure why my parents felt like a JAWS rip-off about a killer whale munching on people was appropriate. Another neglectful yet nostalgic chapter of '70s parenting…

Anyway, my Trauma is the scene that triggers Orca to feast on RICHARD HARRIS' crew (and BO DEREK's leg):

HARRIS accidentailly harpoons Orca's pregnant mate and reels her up to his boat's deck. While she's hanging there, she miscarriages — in blood-spurting slow motion — as she squeals in agony.

The baby whale plops to the deck, and what does Harris do? He hoses the poor little critter over the side like so much chum!

I was barely learning about the birds and the bees at age 8, so seeing all this water-mammal miscarrying mayhem unfold on a huge drive-in screen definitely scarred me for many moons to come.

(Shameless plug: Read my review of ORCA HERE.)

In about 1986 my favourite show was THE GROOVY GHOULIES, you know, the animated one which featured all the classic movie monsters Dracula, Frankenstein's monster, The Mummy et al. They played in a rock band doing slightly altered versions of 60's hits and were really friendly and cool.

At this time my father worked in a distribution warehouse for Warner Bros and had access to a huge amount of VHS tapes (usually promo copies of stuff often with no covers and strangely, not always Warner titles) which he was regularly allowed to borrow. He would bring home all kinds of movies, cartoons for my brother and I and a lot of horror for my mother who was apparently a real gore hound in her day, I think I even remember CLASS OF NUKE 'EM HIGH being in our house at one time, I'm guessing not that many mothers settle in for an evening to watch Troma titles, my mum's cool like that.

Anyway the horror stuff certainly made me curious but I wasn't allowed to watch any of it. Not that it mattered much to me, at that time I was all about THE GROOVY GHOULIES or as I called it, plain old GHOULIES. So I begged and pleaded with my dad to bring home a GHOULIES video for me and after what felt like a life time, one fateful night he brought home a video with no cover and just a sticker on the tape labeled in fancy lime green font GHOULIES .

Awesome, I was crazy excited, I ran into the next room and popped that big hunk of black plastic into our ‘80s style top loading video player completely unaware that I was not about to be treated to some rock 'n' rollin' monster fun but rather to CHARLES BAND's GREMLINS knock off. As the opening scene of a frantic woman desperately trying to save her baby from ritual sacrifice began I immediately forgot all about THE GROOVY GHOULIES and was enthralled by this strange scene unfolding before me.

"Wow, my first real horror movie," I remember thinking, that was until the frantic woman turned around and revealed THE MOST TERRIFYING PAIR OF GLOWING GREEN EYES!!!

I freaked and ran screaming into the next room and through sobs and teary eyes explained to my parents "that's not THE GHOULIES. For about a week I blamed my dad for scaring the s*** out of me, what I didn't realize at the time was that for the rest of my life I'd be thanking him for a lifelong love of all things horror.

Thanks dad your simple mistake created a monster, and mum the mysterious videos and books you always had around the house piqued my interest long before I laid my beautiful baby blues on those ghastly ghoulish greens.

I was quite literally born at the movies. From the time my mother was a child our family managed two small movie houses in New England…I have a million stories, here's my favorite, promise to keep it short: we ran IT'S ALIVE for weeks at one theater, when I was very young I was mostly shipped up the street to the other cinema when something "really bad" was playing. The poster alone caused me to be the only little girl I knew that refused to own dolls of any kind- for years I would even put my sister's in the hallway before bed! To this day they creep me out.

— Kim L.

Next Up: The Who's TOMMY at the ripe age of 4 or Someone Should Really Arrest My Mother!

Okay, so I have a fear of clown dolls. Not clowns (I respect that some of them may actually be funny), but clown DOLLS. I blame ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK?

I never watched this show as a kid, but my older brother did. One evening, I thought I'd be brave and watch an episode with him. Turns out I should have went to bed instead. The episode in question is called "The Tale of the Crimson Clown," and it has terrified me ever since I saw it as a child.

The episode starts with two brothers trying to find a present for their mom's birthday. The younger brother (Sam) is a snot-nosed brat who bumps into people without apologizing and steals money from his older brother (Mike) to spend on a video game. In the store, they both see a creepy clown doll. Mike tells Sam to smarten up or…or…or the Crimson Clown will come get him! He just scoffs and heads out to get into more trouble.

When they get home, Sam goes up to his room to find the creepy clown doll sitting on his desk! He calls Mike in, but the clown has disappeared. As they head down to dinner, and with the strings section screeching in the background, the camera pans under the bed to see the clown doll there, complete with glowing eyes and maniacal laughter.

I just about wet my pants.

I screamed and my brother being the kind soul he is, switched the channel. After that, I never watched another episode of that show. I had a clown doll that I used to love and think it was so pretty. I chucked it in my closet and closed the door (because monsters are trapped in closets if the door is closed) determined never to look at it again. Years later I was able to display it in my room, but it definitely was NOT my favourite doll.

Just recently, I watched that episode again just to find out what happens in the end. Well lo and behold, there is a terrifying dream sequence in which the clown ties Sam up, moves around under his covers, and disappears when Sam gets free and pulls back the sheets. Sam tries to get away and warn his brother, but instead of Mike being in the bed, it's the clown and his head blows up like a balloon and explodes scattering glitter everywhere. The clown is at the window and the door, and Sam can't get away, so he cowers in bed. Then he wakes up and he's learned his lesson and the mom gets a wonderful present for her birthday.

Years later (and knowing what to expect) I still freaked out when the camera panned under the bed… I am so going to have nightmares tonight.

Cheers,

Ariel

I was recently re-watching an episode from the final season of MOONLIGHTING ("I See London, I See France, I See Maddie's Netherworld"). The nightmare scene is surprisingly gory. I remember seeing a re-run of the episode on Lifetime when I was around 11. Even though it was shown in the middle of the day I got so scared I had to turn it off. Scary stuff.

I'm relieved and a bit anxious to get off my chest and confess the trauma which has eaten slowly away at my soul for years…

The TALES FROM THE DARKSIDE theme/intro. What evil beast composed that horrific bell chime tone? Not since the world infamous "Tubular Bells" has a simple bell theme made my heart race 'til I sweat. Then, there's that guy's voice.

OH, DEAR LORD, HIS VOICE!

It's like listening to Satan's alcoholic grandfather read you a nighty night story before he tucks you in and slices your throat.

Then…wait for it….at the end…. the ridiculously loud end note where all possible notes on that Casio keyboard are pressed at once and you can't help but wince in terror. And WTF is up with the beautiful nature/farm scenes turning into the demonic forest filled with hideously petrified wood all burnt up and a black sky?

What kind of EVIL TRICKERY IS THAT!

I remember it playing late night when I was about 7 or so and having to cover my ears and yell to cover up the sound. This show, along with MONSTERS and FREDDY'S NEW NIGHTMARES were family favorites, don't ask me why. My brother used to jack me and call me into his room and blast it on high when I walked in. I would cry and cry and cry….in fear. That dude's voice and those bells were coming after me, and I was unable to defend myself against it's evil infiltration of my brain. SCARY doesn't even describe it. I was so traumatized by this I was flipping the channels late night a few weeks back and came upon it and had nightmares for weeks! WEEKS! Just from seeing the name of the show on the menu guide.

Thanks, TALES FROM THE DARKSIDE.

I hate you.

When I was four years old and living in New Jersey, I was sent into a storm drain to retrieve a baseball that my brothers and friends lost during their game on the street. So into the black hole I went, I found the ball and then tried to get out and quickly realized that I was stuck and I could not get out. About an hour and a half later I emerged from the dark place thanks to my parents and friends from the neighborhood. While I was in the hole I had this terrifying feeling that something was in there with me. It was the longest hour and a half of my life, and the scariest.

A few years after the storm drain incident I caught my first viewing of Stephen King's IT on TV. While I watched the scene when Pennywise is in the storm drain and is trying to lure Georgie in I was more terrified than I ever had been since I had gone though a similar experience. Worst of all now I could put a face to the unknown thing that was in the dark hole with me, the face of Pennywise the evil clown. To this day that scene scares me like no other.