Fascinating Facts About Your Favorite Horror Movies

By RodneyHatfieldJr for Movies

I am a true nerd when it comes to the premise of facts. I have a library of Uncle John's Bathroom Books(factoids). So naturally, my love would include movie facts. Facts and connections to other movies we didn’t know. Not only are they interesting, but give us a new insight into our favorite movies.

I am sure some of these you will know about, but hopefully a few will be new to you.


A Nightmare on Elm Street


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Wes Craven reportedly planned to have a stuntman play the seemingly immortal youth-hater known as Freddy Krueger but opted to go with an accomplished actor for the role instead. His first choice was the British character actor David Warner. Warner had to pass on the project, which opened the door for Robert Englund.

The school in the movie is Venice High School in LA. The same school from Grease. 


King Kong


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In his attempts to entice Fay Wray into starring in King Kong (1933), director Merian C. Cooper promised, she was going to have the tallest, darkest leading man in Hollywood. She didn’t know it was an ape till after signing the contract.

King Kong's roar was a lion's roar and a tiger's roar combined and run backward, but slowly.


The Thing


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For a scene where Dr. Copper's arms are severed, a real-life double amputee stand-in was used, wearing a mask in the likeness of Dysart. The audience focuses on the bloody stumps while the mask goes unnoticed. 


The Creature from the Black Lagoon


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Director Jack Arnold said there was a picture of the Oscar statuette. If we put a gilled head on the figurine, plus fins and scales, that would look pretty much like the kind of creature we’re trying to get. So they made a mold out of rubber, and gradually the costume took shape. At first, the creature had an eel-like physique. Slick and streamlined, the outfit didn’t come with much in the way of fins, ridges, or body armor. These were later enhanced to give the monster a more menacing appearance.

The Creature, using the name "Uncle Gilbert", appeared in an episode of the TV series The Munsters in 1964.


Friday the 13th


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Chi, chi, chi; ha, ha, ha." Is wrong, wrong, wrong. It's actually "ki, ki, ki; ma, ma, ma" which is supposed to resemble Jason whispering: "Kill, kill, kill; mom, mom, mom!" Harry Manfredini the composer for the original film reduced the words “kill” and “mommy” to “ki” and “ma,” then spoke these sounds into a microphone, heavily distorted them.

When the film was still just Cunningham’s drawing board, he envisioned calling it Long Night at Camp Blood.


Hocus Pocus 


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The large white house with the fountain in front in Hocus Pocus is the same house and fountain the cast of Friends dance and play in on the opening credits. 

The animatronic cat of Thackery Binx would later be used in the Sabrina the Teenage Witch TV show.


Sleepaway Camp


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Felissa Rose who played Angela was only 13 when making the film. She had to wait 4 years to watch the film.

All the victims are supposed to be between 13 and 15 years old.


People Under the Stairs


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Wes Craven was inspired to write this film after reading a real-life news story about burglars breaking into a house. When authorities arrived, the burglars had disappeared but they discovered locked doors with noises coming from behind. Children had been locked up inside the rooms by their parents, never allowed to go outside.

The "House" interiors were also used for filming Rob Zombie's Halloween.

Butterfly McQueen (the maid from Gone with the Wind (1939)) owned and lived in the house where this was filmed.

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