William Castle’s Homicidal: Theatrical Trailer
Once described by John Waters as “the greatest showman of our time,” director William Castle best embodied that title with HOMICIDAL, his 1961 classic that introduced the first-ever “Fright Break” — a 45-second opportunity before the film’s climactic ending for too-terrified audience members to leave for the lobby and have their admission refunded. Castle later added a “Coward’s Corner” to discourage viewers from taking him up on his offer.
From the world’s premier collection of coming attractions at the Academy Film Archive comes the original theatrical trailer for HOMICIDAL, featuring Castle himself offering his infamous money back guarantee. Experience the “Fright Break” (or maybe even the “Coward’s Corner”) for yourself this month when the Academy presents “Let There Be Fright: William Castle Scare Classics.” The four-night series offers a chance to see six of Castle’s horror hits, kicking off September 5th with THE TINGLER and culminating with HOMICIDAL on September 26th. http://www.oscars.org/events-exhibitions/events/2014/09/let-there-be-fright.html
The Packard Humanities Institute Collection is the largest known acquisition of theatrical trailers on film, deposited at the Archive by David Packard in 2009. This historically significant collection contains over 60,000 moving images and has transformed the Academy Film Archive into the world’s foremost repository of motion picture trailers.
