Child’s Play (1988)
Catherine Hicks
The first subject of this installment of Scream Queens is Catherine Hicks star of Child’s Play. Taking the haunted ventriloquist dummy to new heights (or lows considering the creature’s stature), Child’s Play manages to make an impression strong enough to generate seven more films from 1990 to 2019 as well as a TV series.
Hicks was making her mark as a Scream Queen in an extraordinarily bizarre horror film: though it would be her only foray into the genre, her performance grounded the implausible concept into a more than satisfactory suspension of disbelief scenario. The franchise really took off in the 90’s with Child’s Play 2 & 3 and the inevitable, Bride of Chucky!
Catherine Hicks & Alex Vincent in Child’s Play (1988)
Hicks had a long career where she appeared in many TV movies and series. Getting her start as a regular on the TV soap, Ryan’s Hope, Hicks quickly gained recognition and began making TV movies.
Catherine Hicks in Marilyn: The Untold Story / Catherine Hicks in Star Trek: The Voyage Home
Her fourth project, Marilyn: The Untold Story (1980) won her an Emmy. She also appeared in Peggy Sue Got Married (1986), Star Trek: The Voyage Home (1986), and went on to do more TV movies and guest roles on TV until 1996 when she became a regular on the hit show, 7th Heaven which ran until 2007. She has continued working in film and TV.
Kathleen Turner & Catherine Hicks in Peggy Sue Got Married / Catherine Hicks in 7th Heaven
Halloween 2 (1981)
Jamie Lee Curtis & Tawny Moyer
Halloween II picks up right where Halloween ended, and Laurie Strode finds herself in the hospital. Dr. Loomis is searching Haddonfield for the vanished Michael while Laurie tries to cope in the hospital along with nurse Tawny Moyer.
Jamie Lee Curtis & Tawney Moyer in Halloween 2 (1981)
Tawny Moyer worked as a model in the late 70’s and 80’s, and her first screen credit was as a stewardess in 1978’s California Suite. She made TV guest appearances in shows such as Barnaby Jones (1979), Hunter (1984), The A-Team (1984) & Knight Rider (1985) as well as films including the one that she is most remembered for, Halloween II (1981). She has just 17 screen credits from 1978 to 2001.
Fright Night (1985)
Amanda Bearse
Amanda Bearse began her acting career as Amanda Cousins on the day time soap, All my Children . From there want on to do small roles in two films, Protocol (1984) and Fraternity Vacation (1985) before landing in Fright Night (1985) for the first of two roles for which she is best known.
Amanda Bearse in Fright Night (1985)
After Fright Night, she began working almost exclusively in television where in 1987 she joined the cast of Married…with Children.
The Return of the Living Dead (1985)
Beverly Randolph
The Return of the Living Dead was Beverly Randolph’s first credited feature film. Prior to her appearance as Tina, she had very little experience and most of it when she was very young. In 1965 she had two uncredited appearances in the feature films, Shenandoah as Baby Martha Anderson and in A Very Special Favor as Baby Chadwick. In 1983 she had yet another uncredited appearance in the television series, Quincy M.E. episode, Cry for Help.
Randolph would not return to the screen until 2015 in No Solicitors along with Scream Queen Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp). Working mainly in the horror genre, Randolph has a total of 14 acting credits include the four films currently in production, including Death House (2017), Shriekshow (2022), and the upcoming Sacred Ground: Forbidden.
Poltergeist (1982)
Heather O’Rourke & JoBeth Williams
As Scream queens go, Heather O’Rourke is not just the youngest, but also the one with the most amazing discovery story. While waiting for her mother (a seamstress) in the MGM cafeteria, a man approached her and asked her what her name was, and she replied, “My name is Heather O’Rourke, but you’re a stranger, and I can’t talk to you.” The man was Steven Spielberg. Although she failed the first screen test, Spielberg called her back for a second round and asked her to bring a scary story book. He asked to to scream over and over and she did until she broke down in tears. “I don’t know what it is about her, but she’s got the job.” he advise her and her parents.
Heather O’Rourke in Poltergeist (1982)
She became an overnight celebrity and went on to appear TV shows popular at the time, (1974) (1982-1983), The New Leave it to Beaver (1983) (1986-87), and Webster (1983-84).
Heather O’Rourke Cat’s Eye (1985)
In 1986 Poltergeist II: The Other Side would further her fame as she delivered an astonishing performance. She would go on to appear in Poltergeist III (1988). Although she had recently been diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease and was taking medication during the filming, she showed no signs of the illness. Sadly, her condition was more serious than the doctors thought, and she suffered cardiopulmonary arrest and intestinal stenosis and died at the age of 12 on February 1st, 1988.
JoBeth Williams in Poltergeist (1982)
JoBeth Williams began her career in New York as a regular on daytime TV in both Somerset (1970) and Guiding Light (1972). In 1979, she made her big screen debut in Kramer vs. Kramer as a one night stand caught in the all together by his precocious son (Justin Henry).
JoBeth William & Robert Urich in Endangered Species (1982)
Also in 1982, JoBeth appeared in Endangered Species with Robert Urich. Continuing to work in both film and television and returning to Poltergeist in Poltergeist II: the Other Side (1986). She has continued to working and has clocked more that 120 projects and counting.
Craig T. Nelson & JoBeth Williams in Poltergeist II: the Other Side (1986)
The Shining (1980)
Shelley Duvall
Shelley Duvall in Brewster McCloud (1970)
Shelley Duvall has had a long and eventful career that began when she was discovered by Robert Altman and reluctantly made her first film appearance in the director’s 1970 film, Brewster McCloud.
Shelley Duvall in Thieves Like Us (1974) Shelly Duvall & Sissy Spacek in 3 Women (1977)
This was followed by her role in Altmans’s McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), and then Thieves Like Us in 1974. In 1975 she made a splash in Altman’s Nashville, and then in 1977, Altman’s 3 Women. Before making another film with Robert Altman, Shelley Duvall was chosen to play Wendy Torrence in Kubrick’s film based on the Stephen King novel, The Shining.
Jack Nicholson & Shelley Duvall in The Shining (1980)
Stanly Kubrick cuts loose with full tilt horror! A Steven King book, perfect casting, what could go wrong? Well, King might hate the film, but for most viewer’s–it is exactly on the mark. Duvall was sensational as the wife of the slowly unraveling madman.
Shelley Duvall & Danny Lloyd in The Shining (1980)
Shelley Duvall in The Shining (1980)
Duvall went on to a number of staring roles including Altman’s Popeye (1980),Terry Gilliam’s Time Bandits (1981), and Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie (1984).
Shelley Duvall in Time Bandits (1981) Shelley Duvall in Frankenweenie (1984)
Robin Williams & Shelley Duvall in Popeye (1980)
Facts, Rumors & Hearsay
Child’s Play
Katherine Hicks & Kevin Yagher (Chucky’s creator) met on set and were married a year later.
Halloween II
Even though Jamie Lee Curtis receives top billing, Donald Pleasence has a lot more screen time.
Nurse Karen’s car is a 1965 Ford Mustang.
Fright Night
The character Peter Vincent is named for two actors well-known for their appearances in horror movies: Peter Cushing & Vincent Price.
The Return of the Living Dead
The filmmakers had to get approval from Lysol to have Frank spray away the stench of death with their product. “They liked the idea that Lysol would kill any conceivable odor.”
The film’s German title is “Verdammt, die Zombies kommen,” which is roughly “Damnit, the Zombies Are Coming” and the Danish title is “Ligene er ligeglade” which is roughly “The Dead Don’t Care” – playing up the comical aspect of the film.
Poltergeist
This was the highest-grossing horror film of 1982, and the eighth-highest grossing film of the year. It was re-released in October, 1982 to take advantage of the Halloween weekend. It was also shown in theaters for one night only on October 4, 2007, to promote the 25th anniversary DVD, released five days later. The event also included a documentary about poltergeist phenomena, which is available on the DVD.
The Shining
It is believed that Kubrick’s secretary spent weeks, if not months, typing dozens of pages “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” for the scene where Wendy discovers those pages that Jack has been typing.