Thursday, June 25, 2009

The "Missing" FRIGHT NIGHT TV Guide Ads.

I brought this topic up on the AV Maniacs forum but I thought it might also be interesting to the readers of this blog. It's regarding my favorite "monster movie" showcase program of all-time, FRIGHT NIGHT. As I'm sure you all recall, FRIGHT NIGHT aired on WOR-TV Channel 9. I won't get too deep into a discussion of FRIGHT NIGHT right now as I plan on doing a blog entry on it sometime this coming weekend. However, there is one aspect of it that has bothered me.

I don't ever recall seeing a TV Guide ad for FRIGHT NIGHT. I find that very unusual since it was one of channel 9's most popular movie showcases and because, of all the local indies at the time, IMHO, it was channel 9 who advertised in TV Guide the most. Yet, nothing for FRIGHT NIGHT. I collect old Guides as a hobby and have scoured through hundreds in my lifetime but never came across an ad for FRIGHT NIGHT. It has always struck me as odd that WOR never seemed to advertise it in the Guide, yet they advertised almost everything else extensively. Obviously I haven't looked through every Guide published from back in the day but I feel I have read a very good sample of them but, I still have never seen an ad. I'm leaving open the possibility that channel 9 may have advertised it in the TV listings section of the local papers but I have no way of knowing. Now, hop on over to DVD Drive-In and read the terrific article on FRIGHT NIGHT. As you do, notice all the ads in that article and tell me if anyone of them is an actual FRIGHT NIGHT ad. I think this is a very big mystery that might not ever be solved. In the end, I could be wrong but that's been my experience. Anyone else think this is strange? Has anyone seen an actual FRIGHT NIGHT TV Guide ad? Does anyone know if it was advertised in the local papers back then? Any information at all would be helpful and greatly appreciated.

3 comments:

  1. I don't think WOR placed ads for their Saturday afternoon "Chiller Thriller," either. Or for "Movie 9."

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  2. Come to think of it, I don't recall seeing any ads for CHILLER THRILLER or MOVIE 9 in the Guide either.

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  3. ...I lost s draft:-(.
    I recall, in 1972 or so, TV GUIDE having a - Jack Davis-drawn? - cartoon ad for the 4:30 afternoon horror/sf-oriented slit they added then, I saw Universal horror classics on it and it ran these featurizations of old Republic serials I think were created in the 60s. This is an old Web name, if anybody wants to reach me, I'm at: wlllljoyyyyy@yahoo.com. Thank you for all that info!

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