I’m not sure exactly how or when it happened, but at some point somehow some way, I got sucked into the whole slasher flick phenomenon, particularly when it came to the three biggest (by my estimation) ‘classic’ franchises: Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, and Halloween. It’s perhaps the many horror film conventions I’ve attended, which started out as a way of meeting celebrities who had done ‘other’ noteworthy films, that have gotten me hooked. Eventually the urge to collect all of the Jasons and Michael Myers was followed by a tendency to start picking up even the minor stars/victims. The Final Girls from the Friday films was a lot of fun, and then all of the hoopla surrounding Jamie Lee Curtis’ appearance at the Horrorhound Weekend event on November 17, 2012, also became too much to resist.
It was one thing to collect the actors from the original Halloween film. Afterall, that one was a classic, and if you don’t want to take my word for it, perhaps you will respect the fact that it was selected for preservation by the Library of Congress. But Halloween II? Seriously?
Yes, seriously, along with the impressive reunion of actors from the original film, there was an incredible gathering of co-stars from the first sequel happening too. Jamie Lee was there of course, and so was Dick Warlock, who had portrayed Michael Myers. And heaped on top of that, five of the actors who had been nurses and orderlies in the hospital where the bulk of the film takes place.
I had originally put these actors on my ‘maybe’ list, but the excitement of their presence in one room, coupled with their reasonable $20 fees, all of which included a free photo op, was a little too enticing to resist (but I did pass on Ty Mitchell, who had had an exceptionally minute role as young Gary). Admittedly, most of the supporting actors from the film were relatively unknown at the time, but some went on to bigger successes than others.
We’ll start with Pamela Susan Shoop, who was the only one of the five to not be designated as a ‘maybe’. I had a bit more connection with her, as she was the daughter of Julie Bishop (aka Jacqueline Wells), who had starred with Laurel and Hardy in two movies (The Bohemian Girl and Any Old Port) and had worked in the Hal Roach series The Boy Friends. Back in the early 2000’s, I had sent an email to Pamela and she had kindly mailed me a later picture of her Mom, the only one that I or anyone else I knew had ever seen. This kindness on her part prompted me to want to add her autograph to my collection for sure.
Pamela herself, in addition to her role as Karen in Halloween II, had starred in numerous guest roles in TV dramas such as The Mod Squad, Knight Rider, Magnum P.I. and The Incredible Hulk. I had to wait in a lengthy line to get to Pamela Shoop, which was cut off right after me (due to some fancy footwork on my part), so she could report to a group photo op. So while she seemed very interested in hearing about my interest in her Mom, she didn’t have much time to talk. She gave me her email address to contact her later.
The next victim of Michael Myers was Gloria Gifford, who had starred as Virginia. She had also starred in some TV series, such as Gimme a Break!, The Nanny, and The Incredible Hulk, and had supporting roles in such films as D.C. Cab, This Is Spinal Tap, 48 Hrs., and California Suite. She was only at the show for a limited time, so it was cool to get to add her to the collection before she took off.
Budd was one of the more obnoxious characters in the film. You just knew he was going to get picked off when he started singing Amazing Grace (adding “Don’t sit on my face” to the lyrics). Sure enough, he was strangled by a cord. He was portrayed by Leo Rossi, who has a lengthy list of film credits, although most aren’t all that impressive. A few exceptions are River’s Edge, Analyze This, and a bit part in Looney Tunes: Back in Action. But he was an extremely friendly guy.
The title of the blog posting notwithstanding, character Jimmy was never killed on screen. Many fans speculate that he went on to be the father of Jamie Lloyd, who would show up later in the Halloween franchise. He was played by actor Lance Guest, who had portrayed Johnny Cash in the Broadway play The Million Dollar Quartet. I knew this because one of the fans waiting in line recognized him from the show and had carried a lengthy conversation with him after the show a couple of years earlier.
Lance Guest went on to some moderate post-Halloween success with a recurring role in Lou Grant and a starring role in the The Last Starfighter and Jaws: The Revenge. Among his other notable TV credits were The Wonder Years, The X-Files, and Becker – but his recent claim to fame has no doubt been his impersonation of Johnny Cash, whom he’s portrayed on the Late Show with David Latterman, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and the All-American New Years Eve 2013 special just this year.
Last but not least was Tawny Moyer. She had been scheduled to appear as part of the Halloween II reunion at the Indy Horrorhound, but cancelled at the last minute – with the promise that she would appear at the next Horrorhound event in Cincinnati. True to her word, she was there on March 22, 2013, and I was excited to add yet one more Michael Myers’ victims. Incidentally, she had been stabbed in the back with a scalpel and lifted off the floor. I was glad to see that she was okay, and was very friendly. Naturally I told her that we had missed her at the other show, and she said she was glad to make it to this one.
It kind of makes me want to go back and re-visit this film, now that I have met nine members of the cast.
Celebrities of the November 2012 Indy Horrorhound will continue…
Celebrities of the Spring 2013 Cincy Horrorhound will continue…
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