From Cradle to Crypt, A History of Horror Films


If you are looking to get into the Halloween spirit and learn about the history of horror film, this is your year to hit up big-screen October showings in the Tristate region. Between these four events, you can get the full range of horror film history and genres.
It’s Alive: The Horror Film Is Born
Horror got its start in the silent era. The Bardavon in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., is hosting a screening on Oct. 29 of what some call the very first (and in my opinion, still scariest) horror film: “Nosferatu,” released in Germany in 1922 and the U.S. in 1929.
This first film version of the Dracula mythos was an unofficial and unauthorized adaptation of the 1897 novel by Bram Stoker; the names of the characters had to be changed for the film.
Although truly terrifying, “Nosferatu” is also beautiful. It uses shadow and light to create an atmosphere of mystery and foreboding. It was one of the first films to use special effects to create an impossible monster, one that can only exist on the screen. This movie shows where it all started with horror movies and is a must-see for anyone interested in not just horror but film in general.
“Nosferatu,” directed by F.W. Murnau and released in 1922, will be shown on Friday, Oct. 29, 7:30 p.m. at Ulster Performing Arts Center, on Broadway in Kingston, N.Y., with live organ accompaniment by John Baratta.
All seats are $6, Bardavon members are free. There will be costume contests, photo booths and more. Go to www.bardavon.org for information.
Romance and Gothic Terror
Moving forward chronologically through film history, the Kent Memorial Library in Kent, Conn., is offering weekly showings of “vintage horror” on an outdoor screen this month.
Featuring movies from the 1930s and early 1940s, the library’s film choices (curated by Ben Rybeck from House of Books) offer a Gothic and atmospheric lineup of black-and-white classics. These films may be less gory and shocking than modern horror — and are therefore good for all ages.
But they are also important moments in film history; and they offer a different type of horror than the modern viewer is used to: the slower build of terror, a reliance on an atmosphere of creepiness full of cobwebbed and candle-lit castles dancing with shadows and foggy, moonlit nights — rather than kill counts and jump scares.
There is also the romance of the Gothic monsters. Unlike the modern horror slashers who are stoic, silent juggernauts of strength who kill single mindedly, the Gothic villain is psychologically complex — and often even sympathetic.
“Dracula” was shown on Oct. 7. Next in the series is “The Old Dark House” on Oct. 14. This 1932 release is a lesser known black-and-white horror film by James Whale — best known for directing “Frankenstein” and “Bride of Frankenstein.”
This film was recently featured on the Criterion Channel’s collection called Queersighted Horror (Queer Fear). Whale’s own sexuality has caused many of his films, including “The Old Dark House,” to be re-analyzed through the lens of queer subtextual themes in pre-code Hollywood.
Whale’s films set a precedent for the horror film as a place for the outsider, “the othered,” to find comfort — which is why horror films are often so closely entangled with queer sensibility. After that is “Cat People” on Oct. 21; and another Whale film, “Bride of Frankenstein” Oct. 28.
The free outdoor movies at the library begin at 7 p.m. Blankets, chairs and cozy apparel are encouraged. Registration is not required but is helpful, kla-bmcallister@biblio.org.
Three Decades of Horror
The Millerton Moviehouse in Millerton, N.Y., has an October lineup that covers the history of modern horror through the decades. Manager Casey Lehman has curated a list that spans three different decades, starting in the 1960s and ending in 1990.
Each film is one that was influential on horror as we know it today — both their story themes as well as their cinematic techniques used to instill fear.
The series started on Oct. 6 with Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 film, “Psycho.”
The feature on Oct. 13 and 16 was “The Bird with the Crystal Plumage,” representing the “giallo” genre from Italy in the 1970s that, while lesser known in the States, has been hugely influential on the aesthetics of modern horror worldwide.
The two remaining films this month are both based on Stephen King novels.
Representing the 1980s is Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining,” which remains one of the most beautifully shot and psychologically complex and terrifying horror films, with legendary acting from Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall. Don’t miss the chance to see it on a big screen on Wednesday, Oct. 20, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 23, at 9 p.m.
Finishing the Moviehouse lineup is “Misery” from 1990. Kathy Bates won an Oscar for her performance as a crazed fan of the novelist main character, whom she traps in her isolated home during a snowstorm. The COVID-19 isolation of the past two years will add to your appreciation of this film’s claustrophobic suspense.
See “Misery” on Wednesday, Oct. 27, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 30, at 9 p.m. For more information and to order tickets go to www.themoviehouse.net.
And at Last: It’s ‘Halloween’
Arrive in the cinematic modern day at the Four Brothers Drive-In in Amenia, N.Y., with a double feature: the brand-new “Halloween Kills” and “Halloween” from 2018.The two most recent installments in the long-running Halloween franchise, started by John Carpenter in the 1970s, these two films are slick and modern but with plenty of homages to their horror history — and Jamie Lee Curtis reprising her role as the Final Girl.
There are other activities that evening as well. For information, go to https://playeatdrink.com and www.blackholemonoplex.com/HOLEAWEEN.
Wes Allyn breaks away from the St. Paul defense for a reception touchdown Wednesday, Nov. 26.
BRISTOL — The Gilbert/Northwestern/Housatonic co-op football team ended the season with a 34-0 shutout victory over St. Paul Catholic High School Wednesday, Nov. 26.
It was GNH’s fourth consecutive Turkey Bowl win against St. Paul and the final game for 19 GNH seniors.
The Yellowjacket defense played lights out, holding St. Paul’s offense to 73 total yards and forcing three turnovers. Owen Riemer and Tyler Roberts each caught an interception and Jacob Robles recovered a fumble.

QB Trevor Campbell threw for three touchdowns: one to Wes Allyn, one to Cole Linnen and one to Esten Ryan. GNH scored twice on the ground with rushing touchdowns from Linnen and Riemer.
The game concluded in some confusion. A late run by Linnen ended when he was tackled near the end zone. The ball was spotted at the one-yard line and GNH took a knee to end the fourth quarter with the scoreboard reading 28-0. After the game, Linnen’s run was reassessed as a touchdown, and the final score was adjusted to 34-0.

Coach Scott Salius was thankful that his team went out on a high note. “We’re one of the few teams in the state that will finish with a win.” He commented on the “chippiness” of this year’s Thanksgiving matchup. “We have started a true rivalry.”
GNH won four of the last five games and ended with a record of 5-5.
“Battling back from 1-4, huge turnaround. I couldn’t be happier,” said GNH captain Wes Allyn after the win. “Out of the four years I’ve been playing, undefeated on Thanksgiving. No one will ever take that away from me.”

Looking back on his final varsity season, Nick Crodelle said he will remember “practice, complaining about practice, and getting ready for the games. Game day was a lot of fun.”
Hunter Conklin said ending on a win “feels great” and appreciated his time on the field with his teammates. “There’s no one else I’d rather do it with.”
“I’m so thankful to have these guys in my life,” said Riemer. “It’s emotional.”

“Once Upon a Time in America” features ten portraits by artist Katro Storm.
The Kearcher-Monsell Gallery at Housatonic Valley Regional High School in Falls Village is once again host to a wonderful student-curated exhibition. “Once Upon a Time in America,” ten portraits by New Haven artist Katro Storm, opened on Nov. 20 and will run through the end of the year.
“This is our first show of the year,” said senior student Alex Wilbur, the current head intern who oversees the student-run gallery. “I inherited the position last year from Elinor Wolgemuth. It’s been really amazing to take charge and see this through.”
Part of what became a capstone project for Wolgemuth, she left behind a comprehensive guide to help future student interns manage the gallery effectively. “Everything from who we should contact, the steps to take for everything, our donors,” Wilbur said. “It’s really extensive and it’s been a huge help.”
Art teacher Lilly Rand Barnett first met Storm a few years ago through his ICEHOUSE Project Space exhibition in Sharon, “Will It Grow in Sharon?” in which he planted cotton and tobacco as part of an exploration of ancestral heritage.
“And the plants did grow,” said Barnett. She asked Storm if her students could use them, and the resulting work became a project for that year’s Troutbeck Symposium, the annual student-led event in Amenia that uncovers little-known or under-told histories of marginalized communities, particularly BIPOC histories.
Last spring, Rand emailed to ask if Storm would consider a solo show at HVRHS. He agreed.
And just a few weeks ago, he arrived — paints, brushes and canvases in tow.
“When Katro came to start hanging everything, he took up a mini art residency in Ms. Rand’s room,” Wilbur said. “All her students were able to see his process and talk to him. It was great working with him.”
Perhaps more unexpected was his openness. “He really trusted us as curators and visionaries,” Wilbur said. “He said, ‘Do with it what you will.’”

Storm’s artistic training began at New Haven’s Educational Center for the Arts. His talent earned him a full scholarship to the Arts Institute of Boston, then Boston’s Museum School, where he painted seven oversized portraits of influential Black figures — in seven days — for his final project. Those works became the backbone of his early exhibitions, including at Howard University’s National Council for the Arts.
Storm has created several community murals like the 2009 READ Mural featuring local heroes, and several literacy and wellness murals at the Stetson Branch Library in New Haven. Today, he teaches and works, he said, “wherever I set up shop. Sometimes I go outside. Sometimes I’m on top of roofs. Wherever it is, I get the job done.”
His deep ties to education made a high school gallery an especially meaningful stop. “No one really knew who these people were except maybe John Lennon,” Storm said of the portraits in the show. “It’s really important for them to know James Baldwin and Shirley Chisholm. And now they do.”
The exhibition includes a wide list of subjects: James Baldwin, Shirley Chisholm, Redd Foxx, Jasper Johns, Marilyn Manson, William F. Buckley, Harold Hunter, John Lennon, as well as two deeply personal works — a portrait of Tracy Sherrod (“She’s a friend of mine… She had an interesting hairdo”) and a tribute to his late friend Nes Rivera. “Most of the time I choose my subjects because there are things I want to see,” Storm said.
Storm’s paintings, which he describes as “full frontal figuratism,” rely on drips, tonal shifts, and what feels like emerging depth. His process moves quickly. “It depends on how fast it needs to get done,” he said. “Sometimes I like to take the long way up the mountain. Instead of doing an outline, I just start coloring, blocking things off with light and dark until it starts to take shape.”
He’s currently in a black-and-white phase. “Right now, I’m inspired by black and white, the way I can really get contrast and depth.”
Work happens on multiple canvases at once. “Sometimes I’ll have five paintings going on at one time because I go through different moods, and then there’s the way the light hits,” he said. “It’s kind of like cooking. You’ve got a couple things going at once, a couple things cooking, and you just try to reach that deadline.”
For Wilbur, who has studied studio arts “ever since I was really young” and recently applied early decision to Vassar, the experience has been transformative. For Storm — an artist who built an early career painting seven portraits in seven days and has turned New York’s subway corridors into a makeshift museum — it has been another chance to merge artmaking with education, and to pass a torch to a new generation of curators.
Le Petit Ranch offers animal-assisted therapy and learning programs for children and seniors in Sheffield.
Le Petit Ranch, a nonprofit offering animal-assisted therapy and learning programs, opened in April at 147 Bears Den Road in Sheffield. Founded by Marjorie Borreda, the center provides programs for children, families and seniors using miniature horses, rescued greyhounds, guinea pigs and chickens.
Borreda, who moved to Sheffield with her husband, Mitch Moulton, and their two children to be closer to his family, has transformed her longtime love of animals into her career. She completed certifications in animal-assisted therapy and coaching in 2023, along with coursework in psychiatry, psychology, literacy and veterinary skills.
Le Petit Ranch operates out of two small structures next to the family’s home: a one-room schoolhouse for animal-assisted learning sessions and a compact stable for the three miniature horses, Mini Mac, Rocket and Miso. Other partner animals include two rescued Spanish greyhounds, Yayi and Ronya; four guinea pigs and a flock of chickens.
Borreda offers programs at the Scoville Library in Salisbury, at Salisbury Central School and surrounding towns to support those who benefit from non-traditional learning environments.
“Animal-assisted education partners with animals to support learning in math, reading, writing, language and physical education,” she said. One activity, equimotricité, has children lead miniature horses through obstacle courses to build autonomy, confidence and motor skills.

She also brings her greyhounds into schools for a “min vet clinic,” a workshop that turns lessons on dog biology and measuring skills into hands-on, movement-based learning. A separate dog-bite prevention workshop teaches children how to read canine body language and respond calmly.
Parents and teachers report strong results. More than 90% of parents observed greater empathy, reduced anxiety, increased self-confidence and improved communication and cooperation in their children, and every parent said animal-assisted education made school more enjoyable — with many calling it “the highlight of their week.”

Le Petit Ranch also serves seniors, including nursing home residents experiencing depression, social withdrawal or reduced physical activity. Weekly small-group sessions with animals can stimulate cognitive function and improve motor skills, balance and mobility.
Families can visit Le Petit Ranch for animal- assisted afterschool sessions, Frech immersion or family walks. She also offers programs for schools, libraries, community centers, churches, senior centers and nursing homes.
For more information, email info@lepetitranch.com, visit lepetitranch.com, follow @le.petit.ranch on Instagram or call 413-200-8081.