This Halloween, dead things are coming back to life – dead (or obsolete) media, in our case, but that doesn’t mean we’re ruling out the other kinds of spooky either. Keep reading for ghostly Halloween highlights from our Online Reading Room!
North Carolina Now Episode from 10/31/1995
Maybe you’ve heard the one about the ghostly hitchhiker? North Carolina Now’s Halloween episode from 1995 features a retelling of the classic, plus an interview with the author of “Haunted Wilmington and the Cape Fear Coast.” Favorite fact: the New Hanover County Library in Wilmington is reportedly haunted by the ghost of a local historian who enjoys performing postmortem research. (Attracting a ghost who’s that invested in our collection is our new Online Reading Room goal. Can a ghost haunt a digital library, you ask? Personally, I don’t see why not — anyone remember PBS’ Ghostwriter?)
Upper Cumberland Camera Halloween Special
This ghost story double feature from 1991 offers firsthand accounts of local Tennessee hauntings for Halloween night. Folklore aficionados will be interested in the tale of buying a haunted drum from a Tarahumara (or Rarámuri) family in Mexico, but if the cultural appropriation and Native American stereotypes throw you out of the first story, skip ahead to 17:54 to find out how to placate the ghostly Old Woman of Standing Stone.
Even if you’re ready to grapple with ghosts tomorrow night, some members of your household – your pets, for instance – might not be so prepared. This radio PSA from Montana’s KGLT radio reminds us that Halloween can be a stressful time for the small and fuzzy among us:
Take good care of your black cats, hellhounds, and local friendly ghosts tomorrow — and Happy Halloween from the AAPB!
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