Monsters and Creatures and Spooks

We rented a lot of VHS tapes from the library when I was younger. It's not like today where the library actually has a pretty decent selection of DVDs. These were mostly VHS tapes of movies that were 40+ years old at the time. 

My first experiences with the Three Stooges, Abbott and Costello, and the Little Rascals were all thanks to the library's collection. 

We'd rush home, pop the VHS tape in, let the automatic tracking work it's butt off to make some semblance of a picture, and then listen to the terrible sound mixing, on a worn out tape, on a TV with just OK speakers. And people wonder why I have such a passion for film. 

Some of the films I rented were the classic Universal Monster films. I found out about Frankenstein, the
Mummy, and Dracula via Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein and a 1980s movie called "Monster Squad." But every now and then, my mom would let us get a "scary" movie like the Canterville Ghost or The Mummy. 

The Scholastic book fair also had a really cool "How to Draw Monsters" book that was incredibly popular. 

I thought the monster designs were incredible and wanted to see the origins. Well... the library didn't have most of the origin films. Instead of Frankenstein, they have Son of Frankenstein. Instead of Dracula, they had Dracula's Castle. But it didn't matter. I was 10 and thought I was so cool. I loved these movies. 

I always had this vague idea for a tattoo that would feature the Universal Monsters. I couldn't decide if I wanted it down my arm, on my chest, or on my back. Well, I finally decided to pull the trigger and worked with my artist on a design and it pretty much takes up my entire back.

Once I had Frankenstein done, I got a craving to watch these old films and see if they hold up. So here's my review of both the film and the corresponding tattoos.