Written by freddyk Tuesday, 08 June 2010 03:47 17 Comments
The history of Halloween
It’s almost that time again. Things are about to go bump in the night. Spook masters would have you believe that the dead actually walk the earth on that day, but Halloween is as much a matter of shadows and mirrors as the horror movies we watch. For anyone interested, here is a history of the modern day holiday known as Halloween.
First of all, it was called All Hallows Eve. We are not speaking of Sleepy Hollow. Hallow means holy, like in The Lord’s Prayer for all the Sunday schoolers out there. Early pagan religions specifically the Celts would celebrate different phases of the earth. One such festival was Samhain. It is pronounced “saw-in.” it was a festival that commemorated the lives of the dead. There was nothing wrong with this, except that they didn’t discriminate between the “good” dead and the “bad” dead. People remembered all of the dead. The date that this festival fell on was October 31st.
Isn’t sounding too scary so far is it? Well, you must remember that early pagan religions were prone to superstition as in the Middle Ages. They were afraid of spirits and the thought of them returning to the human world frightened them.
As history goes, during this time, priests of the religion would contact these spirits to divine the future of the harvest as this was also harvest season. People’s livelihood depended on those crops and they were afraid that the spirits would curse them and destroy the crops.
The church decided to combat such superstition by adding a bit of Christianity to the occasion. They moved the celebration of All Saints Day from March 13th to November 1st. People would hopefully be less scared and more into the Christian celebration than the pagan one. Everyone didn’t change their long held beliefs however. People would cover their faces with masks when they went out at night in hopes that any roaming spirits would recognize them as fellow travelers and suspend their mischief. They also used large carved turnips with candles inside as lanterns.
All Hallows Eve became Halloween in modern times. Instead of walking through the veil between this world and the next, kids dress in a variety of costumes to scare each other silly and get a bit of candy in the process. The only spirits around on Halloween are the ones we create on the movie set. Well, maybe…
Here’s the fun movie lineup for this weekend starting tonight along with the scoop on what’s new at theaters and on DVD at the video store! The schedule is posted according to Eastern Standard Time. I’ve rated each of the films that I’ve seen on a five star basis if you were thinking about just picking a few choice movies.
Friday 1/15/10
Kindergarten Cop HBO 3:30-5:30 p.m. ***
She’s All That Encore 6:20-8:00 p.m. **
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Starz Cinema 8:20-10:00 p.m. **
Towelhead MoreMax 11:00-1:00 p.m. **
Saturday 1/16/10
The Soloist HBO 8:00-10:00 a.m.
Mozart and the Whale Showtime 2 10:15-12:00 p.m.
The Dark Knight 5 Star Max 1:00-3:30 p.m. ***
Training Day Cinemax 3:30-6:00 p.m. **
Burn After Reading HBO Comedy 6:00-7:30 p.m. **
Sixteen Candles Encore WAM 7:50-9:30 p.m. **
With Honors Encore Drama 9:35-11:20 p.m. ***
Sunday 1/17/10
Sunshine Cleaning Starz 6:50-8:30 a.m. *
Seven Pounds Starz In Black 9:45-11:50 a.m. ****
I Am Legend HBO 12:00-2:00 p.m. *
In the Bedroom Encore Love 2:50-5:05 p.m. **
Mission: Impossible 2 Showtime 5:45-8:00 p.m. **
Mr. Holland’s Opus Encore Drama 8:00-10:30 p.m. ****
Halloween (2007) 11:25-1:25 a.m. ****
New Today in Theaters 1/15/10
The Book of Eli starring Denzel Washington
44 Inch Chest starring Ray Winstone and John Hurt
The Spy Next Door starring Jackie Chan and George Lopez
Fish Tank, an independent film starring new actor Katie Jarvis
The Last Station starring Christopher Plummer, Helen Mirren and Paul Giamatti
The Lovely Bones stars Saoirse Ronan, Mark Wahlberg and Rachel Weisz. This film tells the story of a young girl who is murdered. She leaves her grie
New Today in Video Stores 1/15/10
Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself starring Taraji P. Henson and Adam Rodriguez
The Hurt Locker starring Jeremy Renner and Anthony Mackie
Halloween II (Rob Zombie’s remake) starring Tyler Mane and Scout Taylor-Compton
The Burning Plain starring Charlize Theron and Kim Basinger
Post Grad starring Alexis Blendel and Zach Gilford
Fame starring Kristy Flores and Ashwer Book
Mystical Brain is a look at the unexplained religious phenomena that occur with some people and the possible connections it could have with the brain.
Recommended Movies
Here are the films I recommend the most out of the ones listed above that I’ve seen along with new releases that look great…
Mystical Brain This is a documentary that has my attention due to its unique subject matter. there have been unexplained instances that have occurred with many people that are linked to religious miracles due to psychological and physical healing of the mind and body through meditation and religion. This film shows how the University of Montreal conducted the study along with its findings of meditation and the way it works within the brain.
Halloween II I can’t tell you how badly I wanted to watch this movie in the theater but my schedule at the time just wouldn’t allow for it. Now is the time to check it out! I’m hoping this Rob Zombie flick will be available by the time I get to the video store tonight because I can’t bear one more day without watching it! The first Halloween he gave us knocked me off my feet. The original hit was so old and overplayed when Rob Zombie’s first rendition was released that I was a little discouraged that it might be more of the same thing or at least similar and, boy, was I wrong. I am the proud owner of Zombie’s first Halloween film and I heard from a reliable source that Halloween II might even be better!
The Burning Plain This film has not one story but many that are ultimately connected in one way or another and it seems to be a very captivating drama. I’m not a Kim Basinger fan, in fact, I would probably give her a D on her acting skills but that’s just me. That doesn’t mean that I’ll let it stop me from watching this film when it has such an interesting plot, especially with an actor like Charlize Theron. The characters involved strive to find the answers they need to find happiness in life from a child who crosses the Mexican border by herself to help her family to a couple trying to figure out what to do with the affair they have become involved with as married people. I’m assuming this film will have a slow tempo but the journey should be quite entertaining.
Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself Tyler Perry movies are wonderful. They’re everything from drama to comedy and back again and the acting is always superb. This looks like another hit by Perry and the plot seems, once again, very relatable. Perry has a way of touching the hearts of the audience by brushing on many personal topics that we encounter in our lives from parenting, marriage and career choices to personal and financial success.
By: Frank Bilotta
Frank helps people learn about Dish Network Satellite TV, and how they can save money every month with popular Dish Network Packages. Dish has advanced, award winning, Dish DVR and Dish HD receivers, there is a lot of good news to share. Frank and his team also help people determine if satellite internet is right for them and, if so, helps explain the offers from WildBlue and Hughesnet
.
Click below to become a friend of the Dimension Horror Channel and get access to exclusive content. www.youtube.com Video Rating: 4 / 5
There are so many wonderful flavors of candy to choose from, the decision can be very difficult. Manufacturers are aware of this and compete for your business by enticing you with candy wrappers that will catch your eye. They wrappers are colorful, often lined with gold or silver wrapping. Of course all candy wrappers have nutritional information on them, but most of us simply pass that by!
It is very fun and simple to make your own candy at home. You can purchase candy wrappers online or from hobby shops to wrap them up individually. This is great for chocolates and other types of candy that you wish to make for your friends and family. Some people operate a home based business selling their own candy. You can customized the candy wrappers as well, putting your name or business name on them.
Candy wrappers can be individualized as well. This is very popular for weddings, graduations, class reunions, and birth announcements. You can select the type and size of candy you want and the wrappers will be customized.
The most popular kind is the candy bar. The customized label slips over the candy bar and can be saved as a memento.
Customized gum balls and suckers are very popular as well. You can have these created for you or you can use templates to create your own. I made them once for my son’s football team and they were a hit.
Candy wrappers change with the times, so it is really fun to look at older candy wrappers. Find out how the Hershey chocolate bar was originally packaged or remember some great candies from the past that you can’t get today. One of the most complete collections can be looked at online at www.thecandywrappermuseum.com.
You will have a great time seeing old fashioned candy wrappers for your favorites as well as remembering some you actually purchased years ago. The wrappers date back to 1977 and working through the years. They are also classified in groups including the classics, celebrities, and the interesting don’t eat category.
Candy wrappers have a great deal more to do with your candy selection then we think. The next time you are looking at the rows of candy to choose from, ask yourself what made you choose the one you did. Chances are in had something to do with the wrapper as well as the flavor of the candy.
Need more information about candy? Please visit Http://www.webinforonline.com/candy
The history of Halloween
Feedback