Corsicana Daily Sun's Favorite Halloween Movies and Books

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Barb Vander Wyst, Advertising Director: Not being one for scary or horror flicks, a few of my favorites are mostly sentimental or comedies.

As a child, I loved “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.” Something about it seemed sweet and innocent and maybe it was because when I was a first grader, my neighbor was having a Halloween party that I was so excited to go to but was so upset when I got left home with the chicken pox. I stayed home and watched the classic Charlie Brown event.

Secondly, as I got a older, I remember loving two classic comedies, Ghostbusters and Beetlejuice. In Ghostbusters, I remember watching the Ghostbusters battle the ghosts in all of its hilarity. You can’t forget the music that came from the movie and the famous phrase, “Who are you going to call? Ghostbusters!”

Beetlejuice is about as scary as I like to get. The fun ensues as Geena Davis, Alec Baldwin and Michael Keaton entertain the audience with just pure comedy.

Teresa Watson, Business Manager: Hocus Pocus. It is hilarious, we watch it several times every

October. Can't wait until the new one comes out.

Mike Phillips, Sports Editor: The Ghost and Mr. Chicken. It may not be a Halloween classic like Night of the Living Dead, but it's so funny.

Megan Hempel, Assistant Editor: I love horror movies and watch them throughout the year, but Cabin in the Woods stands out above the rest. It's got everything you could want – horror, satire, and a twist you'll never see coming. It always sets the tone for our Halloween movie marathons.

Sarah Allen, Editorial Assistant: Favorite movie and book is Practical Magic. It's my favorite because of the bond the family has and the creepy allure the movie and book have really get me in the Halloween spirit.

Haley Jenkins, Office Manager/Graphic Designer: My favorite Halloween movie is tied between Ernest Scared Stupid and Beetlejuice. I used to watch both movies year-round (and still watch them an embarrassing amount of times to this day), but they were especially fun to watch on Halloween with a bag of popcorn and a big bowl of candy!

Guy Chapman, Reporter: When it comes to naming my “Favorite Halloween Movie,” I could instantly list three to five movies, so narrowing it down to one is challenging. But when forced to narrow it down to one, I'll feature “Poltergeist” for this piece (my sincerest apologies to “Halloween” and “The Shining”).

There's something so normal to Poltergeist, the 1982 tale of a Suburban family moving into their new California home. Even the initial hauntings are more curious than menacing. But it doesn't take long before the bottom drops out on normalcy, and things hit the fan. Part of the appeal relies on the great special effects and creepy childhood elements realized (I'm talking to you, awful tree and psycho clown doll), but the real appeal is the strong bonds the this family shares, and no matter how bad it gets, they'll risk everything to protect each other. You genuinely feel for the Freeling family and the trials they endure.

I'll never understand why they didn't move out before that last night, however. Did you know that those skeletons in the pool scene were real?

Michael Kormos, Editor: When asked “what's my favorite scary movie?” I intermediately thought about Scream. Not that Scream is my favorite scary movie, I consider it more a satire than horror cannon, but that the killer in Scream asks Drew Barrymore that same question in the opening scene. She says hers is Halloween, which makes sense because Michael Myers (no, not the guy in Wayne's World or Shrek) stalks young women like her in comfy suburban homes. I think a situation is scarier when it feels like to could really happen to us. This is the reason my favorite scary series is Friday the 13th.

If Myers is the patron spook of the suburbs, Jason has got the woods covered. As someone who likes to hike, camp and hunt, walking through the woods, alone or otherwise, takes on an added air of excitement when there is a possibility of a machete-wielding creep behind every tree. I had to go with the series because, (spoilers ahead) Jason isn't event the killer in the first film and only makes a brief cameo at the end as a waterlogged child victim of camp counselors' negligence. Maybe Drew's cameo would have been longer if she'd only paid attention to part one.

Macey Shinpaugh, Advertising Sales Consultant: My favorite Halloween movie is the original Annabelle. I love the entire Conjuring/Annabelle universe but the first Annabelle is my favorite by far!

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