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Hosted Horror on Television

by Bruce Markusen

Cover of Hosted Horror on Television

"In October 1957, Screen Gems made numerous horror movies available to local television stations around the country as part of a package of films called Shock Theater. These movies became a huge sensation with TV viewers, as did the horror hosts who introduced the films and offered insight-often humorous-into the plots, the actors, and the directors. This history of hosted horror walks readers through the best TV horror films, beginning with the 1930s black-and-white classics from Universal Studios and ending with the grislier color films of the early 1970s. It also covers and explores the horror hosts who presented them, some of whom faded into obscurity while others became iconic within the genre"--

Television broadcasting of horror filmsHorror television programsHistory and criticismHorror filmsPERFORMING ARTS / Film / Genres / HorrorPERFORMING ARTS / Television / Genres / Science Fiction, Fantasy & HorrorMonster filmsCreature features (Television program)Shock theater