Psycho: Sanitarium by Chet Williamson tells the story of Norman Bates's time in a mental institution during the 23-year hiatus between Robert Bloch's original Psycho and the sequel that sees Bates go on a killing spree in Hollywood—get a digital copy for only $2.99 through the month of October! The original Psycho novel by Robert…
What have you done, mother!? Is there a more iconic scene than the shower stabbing in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960)? Is there a more iconic art piece that Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Monroe silkscreen prints? Seems only natural to combine the two and make the ultimate icon! Well, that’s just what UncleGertrudes has done. Measuring 12”…
Horror audiences take so much for granted. So many of the monsters, tropes, and scenarios of the genre have been hammered into us over the years that we've become quite jaded. “Oh,” we say halfway through the trailer or synopsis blurb, “another serial killer story—yawn.” We fail to appreciate that clichés had to start somewhere.…
Psycho: Sanitarium by Chet Williamson tells the story of Norman Bates's time in a mental institution during the 23-year hiatus between Robert Bloch's original Psycho and the sequel that sees Bates go on a killing spree in Hollywood (Available April 12, 2016). The original Psycho novel by Robert Bloch was published in 1959 and became…
Man, this show is sure fond of massacres. I wish I could scoop up all the good bits of this episode and keep them fresh in the fridge, ready to reheat when things get stale. I don’t think I have enough Tupperware to clean up this mess. This episode was all loose ends and random…
From Edward Hyde to Hannibal Lecter, to the serial killer in practically every James Patterson novel, what would the world of mystery thrillers be without the psychopathic, criminally disturbed villain? It’s practically a sub-genre in itself. Yet, as a therapist as well as a mystery writer, I can’t tell you how often I’ve read thrillers…
When someone says the name Alfred Hitchcock, it immediately signals a barrage of visuals and memories for me. One of the first is the familiar bass tones of the haunting opening theme to his television show, Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955-1962). Another is those ominous black birds swarming overhead, lunging down to peck at people as…
I liked Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho as much (and perhaps even a bit more) than the next person. When I watched it again a few years back I found that it didn’t pack quite as much of a punch as it had all those years earlier when I first saw it, but it was still worth…
The last time we saw Norma Bates, she was just skin and bones. I was quite worried about her . . . Okay, okay, all jokes aside: Bates Motel, the A&E prequel series to Alfred Hitchcock’s iconic Psycho, has just cast its Norma Bates and it’s Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air and The Departed).…
I’ve watched a number of episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents over the years and given that it recently began airing on the Encore Suspense cable channel not long ago, I’m sure I’ll watch quite a few more. What I didn’t realize was what a formidable presence it was in its day. The show kicked off…
