GOOSEBUMPS/
ULTIMATE GOOSEBUMPS
(FOX, Canal Famille, YTV, NHK, October 27, 1995-November 16,
1998)
Protocol Entertainment, R.L. Stine Productions, Scholastic
Productions
MAIN CAST:
As an anthology series, there was no set cast of characters.
Reader beware, you’re
in for a scare!
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| R.L. Stine surrounded by his creations. |
After the success of his young adult horror novels, Parachute Press persuaded R.L. Stine to write a series of scary books for a
younger audience. Stine conceived of an anthology series that focused on a
rotating cast of characters in various locations; typically with young children
using their wits to deal with horrific situations. Stine used pop culture, real
life influences and memories of his own childhood fears to devise stories that
blended humor and horror; typically by coming up with a title first. After
seeing an ad in the TV Guide with the
slogan “It’s goosebumps week on Channel 11,” Stine found the title for his
series: Goosebumps.
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| The very first Goosebumps. |
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| Stine's wall o' Goosebumps stuff. |
As demand began to grow, so too did the franchise. In
1994 Tales to Give You Goosebumps and Goosebumps Triple Header featured collections of short stories
while 1995 saw the debut of Give Yourself Goosebumps; a choose-your-own-adventure-type book
ghostwritten by several authors. A merchandising blitz followed, including t-shirts,
puzzles,
board games
and more. By 1996, Goosebumps accounted
for 15% of Scholastic’s annual sales.
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| Fear can age you. |
Despite the growing popularity and the series’
inclusion on several best-seller lists, expanding beyond the printed format
proved a challenge as licensors were hesitant to try and market something
without a recurring character or stable story. Scholastic attempted to rectify
this by giving the series a logo in the form of its “G”, dubbed the “G-splat”
from designer Sharon Lisman, and by creating a skeleton mascot named Curly who had
hair and glasses like Stine’s.
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| Who's the dummy? |
Goosebumps’ big
breakthrough came when Margaret
Loesch, head of the Fox
Kids programming block, bought her son a copy of Say Cheese and Die! His reaction to the book prompted
Loesch to enter into a deal with Scholastic to bring Goosebumps to FOX. Developed by Deborah Forte, the live-action
series largely adapted stories from the original Goosebumps series with a few coming from the later Tales anthologies and Goosebumps 2000, and a couple of completely original episodes. Sometimes elements
of the stories were modified, with Stine’s approval, to make them work better
within the format and the time allotted and to keep those familiar with the
books guessing. Like the books, the show featured a rotating cast of characters
and locations excluding any sequels. The series was written by Dan Angel, Billy Brown, Rick Drew, Charles Lazer, Neal Shusterman, Ron Oliver, Scott Peters, Jeffrey Cohen, Bruce Edwards, Jose Rivera, Sean Kelly, Jessica Scott, Mike Wollaeger, Peter Mitchell, Michael Short and Andrea Raffaghello.
Goosebumps debuted
on October 27, 1995 on FOX and originally
aired on Friday afternoons, replacing Mighty
Morphin Power Rangers in the timeslot, before moving to its permanent
home on Saturdays for the next two seasons. It became a hit; taking the #1 spot in its first week and maintaining
a steady momentum for most of its run. Those ratings quickly translated into
sales, as the books saw a major increase in demand. Along with its run on Fox
Kids, the series aired on YTV and Canal Famille in Canada,
where it was principally filmed. The series was also broadcast around the
world, although some countries’ censorship rules led to many episodes being
banned or shown at night.
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| The Haunted Mask comes to life. |
While the episode structure was virtually the same
throughout the entire series’ run, the thing that changed the most was the
series’ intro. The original opening featured a man, supposedly R.L. Stine,
looking over a town from a hilltop when his briefcase opened and manuscript pages
came spilling out. One page became a shadowy G-splat that flew over a town
before winding up at a house whose doorway opened to a montage of scenes before
the title. For the second season, the G-splat was sped up and the montage was
cut out. Each intro played over a hip-hop inspired theme by Jack Lenz.
For the third season, the show was renamed Ultimate Goosebumps to showcase the new
content it would present to viewers and distinguish those episodes from the
reruns airing on weekdays. It also had its theme music altered slightly. The intro
began the same way, but special effects were added to show the hill covered in
slime and lightning striking from the briefcase when it opened. After the
G-splat escaped, “Stine” turned into a colony of bats before it cut right into
a new montage of scenes and segments from the original intro. Season 4 used the
same intro, but “Ultimate” was
removed from the title. The only consistent part was that the intro ended with
a voice saying a modified version of the books’ tagline: “Viewer beware, you’re
in for a scare.” Before the V-Chip
and television ratings systems came into effect in 1996, each episode began
with the warning that the show was rated “GB-7, because it may be too spooky
for kids under seven.” After, the GB-7 became the standard TV-Y7 rating.
The third season also saw Goosebumps become part of the “No Yell Motel” programming block in
1998, which featured interstitials starring puppets working inside a creepy
motel. It was accompanied by the new Steven Spielberg cartoon, Toonsylvania, and the sequel series Eerie,
Indiana: The Other Dimension. Despite the series’ continued success,
Fox Kids moved it to Monday afternoons for its final season to clear the way
for Saban Entertainment original
programming as Saban had merged with Fox Kids back in 1996. Unfortunately, the
series languished there and was ultimately cancelled after the season ended. After
its run, the series was moved to Fox Family Channel for the
next two years. Cartoon Network
aired reruns in October between 2007 and 2009 and The
Hub aired the series from 2011-2014 until it became Discovery Family.
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| Make sure your fathers are properly fed and watered. |
Scholastic republished 18 of the adapted books as Goosebumps Presents between 1996 and 1998. The only
differences from their original printings were the altered title and the
inclusion of photos from their respective episodes. However, by 1997, sales of
the books had begun to slump due to increased competition from other publishers
looking to capitalize on Goosebumps’ success.
Scholastic’s total sales took the biggest hit, dropping 40% and making front
page news. In response, Scholastic and Stine created Goosebumps 2000, which was meant to be scarier than the original
while not changing much else stylistically. After its conclusion in 2000, Stine
intended to release a new series called Goosebumps Gold, but it ultimately ended up being cancelled even though some cover art was
already rendered. In 2008, Stine began publishing a new series called Goosebumps HorrorLand, which featured an overreaching plot
set in HorrorLand from the original series and crossing over various characters
from the books. When that series concluded in 2012, Stine launched Goosebumps Most Wanted which featured new stories with the
series’ classic villains.
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| Step right up for the scariest theme park ever! |
Ten episodes were released independently on VHS
between 1996 and 1998 in the United States and the United Kingdom, with three
of them being re-released together on two volumes. In 2004, 20th Century Fox began
releasing the series to DVD
in individual volumes. Initially, each release contained one episode but later
began to include two. In 2008, twelve of the episodes were re-released as
double-feature sets. To coincide with the release of the new HorroLand series, new DVD sets were
released featuring between three and four episodes and replaced the recycled
book art from prior releases with all-new cover art. In 2013 and 2014, the complete
series has been released as both individual seasons and a full collection
by Revelation Films in the United
Kingdom and by Madman Entertainment in
Australia and New Zealand. The entire series was also made available on
streaming services iTunes and Netflix.
In 1998, Fox Family Films attempted to
make a Goosebumps movie produced by Tim Burton that would have a grander scope
than the series, but the plans fell apart. In 2008, Columbia Pictures
acquired the film rights and featured series developer Forte as a producer, along
with Neal H. Moritz. The film
was finally released on October 16, 2015 starring Jack Black as a fictionalized
version of Stine and Odeya Rush
as his daughter, Hannah. The film dealt with the fact that all the monsters
from Stine’s books were locked away within the books until they were
accidentally released by Zach Cooper (Dylan
Minnette), leading to Stine, Hannah and Zach having to recapture them all.
EPISODE GUIDE:
Season 1:
“The Haunted Mask, Part 1” (10/27/95) – Carly-Beth Cadwell buys a
Halloween mask and ignores the storekeeper’s warnings about wearing it more
than three times.
“The Haunted Mask, Part 2” (10/27/95) – Carly-Beth tries to find a
spell to get the mask off of her face.
“The Cuckoo Clock of Doom” (11/3/95) – After vandalizing his father’s
cuckoo clock, Michael Webster finds he’s regressing backward in time and
growing younger.
“The Girl Who Cried Monster” (11/10/95) – Lucy Dark discovers that the
librarian is a monster, but no one will believe her.
“Welcome to Camp Nightmare, Part 1” (11/17/95) – A strange creature
lurks around the camp as Billy’s friends begin disappearing.
“Welcome to Camp Nightmare, Part 2” (11/24/95) – Billy plans to get
revenge on his counselors for the missing campers.
“The Phantom of the Auditorium” (12/1/95) – Brooke Rogers and Zeke
Matthews believe a real-life phantom is sabotaging their school’s production of
Phantom of the Opera.
“Piano Lessons Can Be Murder” (12/8/95) – Jerry Hawkins’ piano
teachers like to steal the hands of their students.
“Return of the Mummy” (12/22/95) – Gabe and his cousin end up trapped
in the pyramid of an Egyptian queen.
“Night of the Living Dummy II” (1/12/96) – Amy Kramer brings her ventriloquist
dummy Slappy to life.
“My Hairiest Adventure” (1/19/96) – As Larry Boyd’s friends disappear
his neighborhood becomes flooded with stray dogs…and he begins growing extra
hair.
“Stay Out of the Basement, Part 1” (1/26/96) – Margaret and Casey
investigate their father’s lab when he starts acting strangely and find a main
claiming to be him in the closet.
“Stay Out of the Basement, Part 2” (1/26/96) – Margaret and Casey
discover their dad is actually half-man and half-plant.
“It Came From Beneath the Sink” (2/2/96) – The sponge Kat found under
the sink in her new home turns out to be a bad luck monster.
“Say Cheese and Die!” (2/9/96) – Three friends find a camera that
predicts the future—a bad future.
“A Night in Terror Tower, Part 1” (2/25/96) – Sue and Eddie get
separated from their tour group in an English castle and end up chased by an
executioner.
“A Night in Terror Tower, Part 2” (2/25/96) – Sue and Eddie are
shunted back in time where they learn they’re really the prince and princess who
were wanted dead by an evil king.
“The Werewolf of Fever Swamp, Part 1” (5/17/96) – Grady Tucker’s
family suspects his new dog is a werewolf.
“The Werewolf of Fever Swamp, Part 2” (5/17/96) – Grady tries to prove
the werewolf isn’t his dog.
Season 2:
“Be Careful What You Wish For...” (8/10/96) – Samantha Byrd receives
an amulet for helping an old fortune teller that grants wishes, but causes
misfortune for everyone around her.
“Attack of the Mutant, Part 1” (9/7/96) – Skipper Matthews discovers
his favorite comic book character is real.
“Attack of the Mutant, Part 2” (9/7/96) – Skipper begins to lose his
grip on reality, and his best friend is hiding a secret.
“Bad Hare Day” (9/14/96) – Tim Swanson steals his favorite magician’s
stuff and is unable to control the magic inside.
“The Headless Ghost” (9/21/96) – Duane Comack and Stephanie Alpert are
trapped in a seaside haunted house.
“Go Eat Worms” (9/28/96) – After Todd Barstow pranks his sister with
his worms, he begins finding worms everywhere.
“You Can’t Scare Me!” (10/5/96) – Two pranksters attempt to scare the
fearless Courtney.
“Revenge of the Lawn Gnomes” (10/12/96) – Joe and Mindy discover their
dad’s lawn gnomes are alive.
“Ghost Beach” (10/19/96) – Siblings visit relatives at a haunted beachside
house.
“Attack of the Jack O’ Lanterns” (10/26/96) – Two pumpkin-headed
creatures force a group of kids to trick-or-treat forever.
“The Haunted Mask II, Part 1” (10/29/96) – Steve Boswell buys an old
man mask and rapidly ages, while the original mask seeks revenge on Carly-Beth.
“The Haunted Mask II, Part 2” (10/29/96) – Carly-Beth tries to defeat
the haunted mask and save Steve in the process.
“Let’s Get Invisible!” (11/2/96) – Max and Noah think the mirror they
found just turns them invisible, but it also invites their reflections to take
their place.
“The Scarecrow Walks at Midnight” (11/9/96) – An elderly couple is
haunted by demonic scarecrows.
“Monster Blood” (11/16/96) – Evan Ross and Andy play with novelty
slime monster blood, which devours everything it touches and grows.
“More Monster Blood” (11/16/96) – Evan heads back home and discovers
he didn’t destroy all of the monster blood.
“Vampire Breath” (11/26/96) – Freddy and Cara free an elderly,
fangless vampire.
“How to Kill a Monster” (5/1/97) – Gretchen and Clark discover a
monster locked in their grandparents’ house.
“Calling All Creeps!” (6/15/97) – A prank leads Ricky Beamer to
discover the school bullies are actually aliens.
“Welcome to the Dead House, Part 1” (6/29/97) – The Benson family
moves into a house where the previous occupants died from a chemical accident.
“Welcome to the Dead House, Part 2” (6/29/97) – The accident turns the
Benson’s neighbors into zombies.
“Don’t Wake Mummy” (7/12/97) – A family inherits a cursed sarcophagus.
“The Blob That Ate Everyone” (7/19/97) – The old typewriter that Zack
types a story on brings the story to life.
“Night of the Living Dummy III, Part 1” (7/20/97) – Slappy returns to
life with a new family to terrorize.
“Night of the Living Dummy III, Part 2” (7/20/97) – Slappy partners
with another dummy to turn his new family into wood.
Season 3:
“A Shocker on Shock Street” (9/6/97) – Erin Wright and Marty end up
trapped in an amusement park.
“My Best Friend is Invisible” (9/8/97) – The ghost of a lonely boy
follows Sammy Jacobs home.
“The House of No Return” (9/13/97) – Chris Wakely is tasked with
spending an hour in a haunted house in order to join a club.
“Don’t Go to Sleep” (9/20/97) – Sleeping in the attic ends up sending
Matt Amsterdam to alternate worlds.
“Click” (9/27/97) – Seth Gold’s new remote control controls
everything…including his life.
“An Old Story” (10/4/97) – Tom and John are turned into old men by
their Aunt Dahlia’s cookies.
“The Barking Ghost” (10/11/97) – Cooper Holmes and Fergie switch their
bodies with ghost dogs.
“One Day at HorrorLand, Part 1” (10/25/97) – The Morris family are
trapped in a theme park run by real monsters.
“One Day at HorrorLand, Part 2” (11/1/97) – The Morrises are forced to
compete in a gameshow.
“The Haunted House Game” (11/8/97) – The board game two friends play
comes to life.
“The Perfect School, Part 1” (11/15/97) – Brian O’Connor is sent to an
all-boys boarding school where a well-adjusted clone will replace him in his
life.
“The Perfect School, Part 2” (11/15/97) – Brian tries to fight back
against his clone and learns his best friend is an agent for the school.
“Werewolf Skin, Part 1” (11/22/97) – Alex Blackwell discovers a secret
about the werewolves in the park where his relatives live.
“Werewolf Skin, Part 2” (11/22/97) – Alex learns more about how his
relatives turn themselves into werewolves.
“Awesome Ants” (2/7/98) – An ant farm comes complete with pellets to
make the ants giants.
“Bride of the Living Dummy” (2/14/98) – Slappy returns to life and
finds love with an equally evil doll.
“Strained Peas” (2/21/98) – Nicholas’ baby sister intends to become an
only child.
“Say Cheese and Die…Again!” (2/28/98) – Greg Banks retrieves the evil
camera in order to prove to his teacher that it’s real and accidentally takes
Shari’s picture.
“Chillogy Part 1: Squeal of Fortune”
(4/25/98) – A girl is sucked into toy town Karlsville where she cheats
the residents and ends up a pig-like humanoid.
“Chillogy Part 2: Strike Three…You’re Doomed” (5/2/98) – A boy ends up
in Karlsville and ends up part of a twisted baseball game.
“Chillogy Part 3: Escape from Karlsville” (5/9/98) – Matthew and
Jessica go to Karlsville in order to save Matthew’s brother Todd from being a
prize in a contest.
“Teacher’s Pet” (5/16/98) – While on a field trip in the woods, two
kids find out why their teacher likes snakes a lot.
Season 4:
“How I Got My Shrunken Head, Part 1” (9/14/98) – Mark Rowe is sent a
shrunken head by his aunt that possess dark powers.
“How I Got My Shrunken Head, Part 2” (9/14/98) – Seeking his aunt
leads Mark to encounter her assistants who want his shrunken head for
themselves.
“The Ghost Next Door, Part 1” (9/28/98) – Hannah Fairchild suspects
her neighbor is a ghost, but learns she in fact is.
“The Ghost Next Door, Part 2” (9/28/98) – Hannah must save her
neighbor from the dark figure.
“Cry of the Cat, Part 1” (10/31/98) – Allison gets scratched by a cat
and begins acting like one.
“Cry of the Cat, Part 2” (10/31/98) – Allison learns more about the
cat that scratched her after she’s hospitalized from an accident.
“Deep Trouble, Part 1” (11/16/98) – Billy and Sheena Deep’s vacations
are interrupted when they learn of a plan to turn fish into mutants.
“Deep Trouble, Part 2” (11/16/98) – Billy and Sheena attempt to stop
the mad scientist from unleashing his virus.
Originally posted in 2015. Updated in 2017.
Originally posted in 2015. Updated in 2017.
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