CHILDREN SHOULDN'T PLAY WITH DEAD THINGS
Bob Clark's Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things (1973)
The VHS Archives Factsheet
Label: Gorgon Video
Catalog: MP3051
Box Type: Clamshell
Year of Release: ?
Runtime: 86:20
Print: 1.33:1 / English / No subs
Extras: Trailer for Faces of Death
About the Film
Director: Bob Clark
Year of Release: 1973
Country of Origin: U.S.A.
Stars: Alan Ormsby, Jeff Gillen, Valerie Mamches, Anya Ormsby, Paul Cronin
AKAs: Revenge of the Living Dead, Cemetery of the Dead, Zreaks, Things from the Dead, Zombie Graveyard, The Siege of the Dead, Night of the Thundering Graves, Night of the Living Dead II
Verbatim Box Synopsis
While preparing themselves for an upcoming play, five aspiring actors are led to a deserted burial ground by their bizarre director/mentor Alan. (Alan Ormsby - "Deranged," "Cat People," "Porkeys II").
Alan, a "Manson type", seems to exert strange control over his group whom he calls his "Children."
At Alan's urging the "Children" dig up a rotting corpse and Alan attempts a revival with various occult incantations.
Unfortunately, in CHILDREN SHOULDN'T PLAY WITH DEAD THINGS, the dead do rise - and they are hungry.
CHILDREN SHOULDN'T PLAY WITH DEAD THINGS thrusts its unwitting performers into a nightmare of madness and murder in a gruesome movie that follows the infamous tradition of "Night of the Living Dead".
Occasionally campy and always terrifying -- don't see this one alone.....
(Sun-faded) U.S. Gorgon Video sleeve!
One with a little more color, courtesy reader Scott Gacek!
U.S. Gorgon Video promotional advertisement,
courtesy of Critical Condition!
U.S. VCI Command Performance slipcase, again
courtesy Scott Gacek! Thanks a bunch!
courtesy of Critical Condition!
courtesy Scott Gacek! Thanks a bunch!
U.S. VCI reissue sleeve, courtesy of
the Basement of Ghoulish Decadence!
the Basement of Ghoulish Decadence!
U.K. Exploited sleeve, courtesy of It's Only a Movie!
Japanese Nikkatsu sleeve!
Spanish JML sleeve, courtesy of Mondo VHS! This release tries to
pass the film off as a sequel to Romero's Night of the Living Dead!
Italian Cinehollywood sleeve!
Greek Cinehollywood sleeve, originally photographed by "helviocult75"!
Special snackbar menus issued at theatrical screenings,
courtesy of the Temple of Schlock!
courtesy of the Temple of Schlock!
Original theatrical trailer, uploaded by "PGSegal"!
Looking for Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things on VHS? It's available on Amazon here. It was also released to DVD from VCI, by itself or paired with Roger Evans' Forever Evil (1987).
Investigate more titles with Project: MPI!
© 2012 -- Bruce Holecheck. All Rights Reserved.
Don't forget that this very same director also directed A CHRISTMAS STORY!
ReplyDeleteAnd, oh yeah, I remember seeing this on THE GHOUL (a Cleveland area horror host) back in the late 70's/early 80's and he added the perfect sound effects to this movie! Normally I didn't like that but it really worked here.
ReplyDeleteI guess Gorgon Video didn't necessarily see Clark's connection to a PG-rated family film as something to exploit, haha.
ReplyDeleteI have a vhs copy of this movie but it has a cool different cover with some Ron Jeremy lookin dude getting bit up. Its pretty gory it seems for 73. Is it some rare cover... Any info appreciated email bobbyrocksalt@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteThere were two GORGON/MPI VIDEO released formats: (1) Clamshell and (2) Slipcase from Gorgon Video.
ReplyDeleteWhich of these two were released first and what years precisely were they released?