If You Like Piña Coladas And 35mm In The Rain...

2025 Patreon Screening #7
Mahoning Drive-In Theater - Lehighton, PA
The last Patreon screening of the 2025 season was a banger with two classic horror films on 35mm and a third digital presentation of a modern classic horror film.  The bonus material continued after the third film, but I had to head home so that I could get a little sleep before work on Friday morning.

The weather did not cooperate at first, but the rain settled down and we had a nice night under the stars.

Our friends Bill and Anissa give out hand-drawn Halloween cards every year.  Bill is an excellent artist.

Speaking of Bill, he recently purchased a 35mm trailer for Blast From The Past, which is one of his favorite movies.  Rob projected it before the first movie of the night.  Hopefully they can find a source for the movie in the future so we can make his double feature of it and Encino Man come true.  His working title for that double feature is "You Can't Bury Brendan".

Donovan is another close friend of ours.  You might have shopped at his Woodburning By Donovan vendor table if you've ever been to the Mahoning.  The dude is incredibly talented and has a heart of gold.

He surprised me with these three incredible ornaments for our Christmas tree.

And that's a wrap on the Patreon screenings on the lot for the 2025 season.

Spooky Season At Zayre

October Sales Circular
Zayre (1987)
This page from a Zayre sales circular was shared by Dinosaur Dracula last month.

The highlight for me is the ad at the bottom left corner for Friday The 13th, Deadly Friend, Fright Night, The Believer, A Nightmare On Elm Street 3, and Halloween on VHS for $16.99.

This is the candy that we all wanted to find in our bag after we were finished trick or treating... except maybe for the Smarties, which had about the same flavor as the packets of sugar on the table at the Blue Comet.  Also, I still say that Reese's Peanut Butter Cups tasted better when they came in a paper wrapper.

The Count Dracula Chocolate Flavored Candy at the top left of this part of the ad is the kind of thing that savvy kids would trade to their friends for their old boring Hershey and Snickers bars.  The package may be awesome, but they didn't usually taste very good.

Once in a while, there would be a seasonal goodie that you didn't want to give up, like these Alma Skull Crushers which oozed strawberry blood when you bit into them.  I don't think these are still sold in stores in the United States, but I was able to find them for sale on UK eBay and other online retailers under the name Hannah's Skull Crushers.

I was more of a rubber mask kid when it came to Halloween, but makeup was always a solid option.

These cardboard wall hangings sold for a buck and a half back in the 80's,  My grandmother used to wait and buy things like this when they went on sale after the holiday to put away for next year.  These old decorations are considerably more expensive when you can find them on eBay, especially if they're in good condition.

The last thing that caught my eye were these Halloween pinatas.  I can't say I ever remember seeing pinatas out for a Halloween party when I was a kid.  The witch in the center is giving off Viola Swamp vibes.

Who Could Ask For More?

Dead Man's Party
Oingo Boingo (1985)
The fifth studio album from Danny Elfman's band was released forty years ago today.  Most of the mainstream attention that this record has received is from its last song, Weird Science, which became the most successful single in the history of the band after it was used as the theme for the John Hughes film of the same name.  While I love that song, I must say that I enjoy every song on the first side of the record even more.  Just Another Day and No One Lives Forever are excellent as well, but my favorite song on the album is its title track which frequently graces the airwaves of Mahoning Drive-In Radio throughout October.

Dead Man's Party
Oingo Boingo (1985)

I'm all dressed up with nowhere to go

Walkin' with a dead man over my shoulder

Waitin' for an invitation to arrive

Goin' to a party where no one's still alive

I was struck by lightning, walkin' down the street

I was hit by somethin' last night in my sleep

It's a dead man's party, who could ask for more?

Everybody's comin', leave your body at the door

Leave your body and soul at the door

Don't run away, it's only me

Only me

I'm all dressed up with nowhere to go

Walkin' with a dead man, with a dead man

Waitin' for an invitation to arrive

Walkin' with a dead man, with a dead man

I got my best suit and my tie

Shiny silver dollar on either eye

I hear the chauffeur comin' to my door

Says there's room for maybe just one more

I was struck by lightning, walkin' down the street

I was hit by somethin' last night in my sleep

It's a dead man's party, who could ask for more?

Everybody's comin', leave your body at the door

Leave your body and soul at the door

Don't run away, it's only me

Don't be afraid of what you can't see

I was struck by lightning, walkin' down the street

I was hit by somethin' last night in my sleep

It's a dead man's party, who could ask for more?

Everybody's comin', leave your body at the door

Leave your body and soul at the door

Don't run away, it's only me

Don't be afraid of what you can't see

It's only me

The Kling Klang King Of The Rim Ram Room

Leaving Las Vegas
United Artists (1995)
The film that gave the world what I believe to be the finest performance from Nicolas Cage premiered in theaters thirty years ago today.

An Italian Inferno

Argento Inferno
Mahoning Drive-In Theater - Lehighton, PA
In any other year, the last Sunday of October would be the season finale at the Mahoning Drive-In Theater, but we're trying something new this season that I hope will become an annual tradition; more on that when it happens.

We spent the morning making runs to Rebs Pallet Co down the street to pick up scrap wood to build this guy for the post-show bonfire.

I'm really going to miss this place over the winter.

 

This was my third time seeing Suspiria at the Mahoning, and my fourth time seeing it on 35mm including the screening at The Gap earlier this year.  This film overloads the senses in a way that few other things that I've ever seen can match.  It's an incredible movie, and one that I will go back to see anytime that it's playing anywhere that's within a reasonable driving distance.

The 1955 Loony Tunes/Merry Melodies short One Froggy Evening was screened during intermission.  It's a classic piece of animation from Chuck Jones that always brings the house down wherever it plays.

The second half of the Argento Inferno double feature was the 1980 film Inferno.  I've seen this one on 35mm twice before; one at the Mahoning and once at The Gap.  To be perfectly honest, this film is over my head.  After seeing it three times, I can pretty confidently state that I just don't get it, and I don't think I ever will.  I wouldn't go as far as to say that I dislike it, but watching it is a very frustrating experience for me because it just makes me feel dumb for not following the plot.

 

The real inferno began after the credits rolled, and it was glorious.

The Monsters Are Due On Seneca Road

Universal Monster Mash IX
Mahoning Drive-In Theater - Lehighton, PA
This event has felt a little bittersweet since it was moved to the last full weekend of the season.  I enjoy it because I love classic horror and most of our friends come out for this event.  At the same time, I don't look forward to it because it means that my nights at the drive-in for the year are coming to a close.

This weekend was the last meeting of the season for the Mahoning Book Club.  We read and discussed a biography about the woman who created the head of the costume for The Creature From The Black Lagoon.  Her name was Milicent Patrick and the book is called The Lady From The Black Lagoon.  I'm not a big fan of this one.  While I agree that the subject of this biography has an impressive resume, I found her not to be all that terrific of a human being.  Also, while she has quite a few impressive accomplishments in her career, none of them really felt interesting enough to fill a 368 page book.  It's not a terrible, but it didn't hold my interest and definitely wasn't my cup of tea.

The special concession item for the weekend was tasty enough to make an exception for my diet.  It's called the Monster Mash, and it's a beef hamburger topped with mashed potatoes and gravy.  You can get it with cheese, but I decided to leave off those extra calories.

Louie and Shannon brought a board game for the hours before showtime.  I was working the front gate with Dave for most of the day so I missed out on the game, but I'm pretty sure it's the same one that I played with them earlier this season; can't remember what it's called though.

Before I discuss the movies, there was a cartoon shown during the first intermission on both nights of Universal Monster Mash IX.  It's a 1968 Woody Woodpecker cartoon called One Horse Town.  This was part of Jeff's collection of classic animation on 35mm, so it gets played quite a bit at the drive-in.  No matter how many times I see it, it's always a very cool experience.

 

The first movie on Friday night was the 1944 film House Of Frankenstein.  

Next up was the 1945 film House Of Dracula.  

The final film of Friday night was the 1958 film Monster On The Campus.  

Saturday night began with the 1935 film Werewolf Of London.  

 

The second film on Saturday was the 1955 Creature From The Black Lagoon sequel, Revenge Of The Creature.  

Last up was the Spanish language version of the original 1931 Dracula film.  

And that's a wrap on Universal Monster Mash IX.  If it's not obvious from the lack of detail on any of the films and the long delay in this post being published, I'm feeling kind of burnt out with the blog.  I'm not giving up on it, but I've been at it for a quarter century and there are days when it feels more like an obligation than a hobby.  I'm sure it'll pass.