Just recently I reviewed yet another of my favorite masks, Unleashed Wickedness, by Zagone Studios, seen HERE. At the time I was not aware that they were releasing a limited edition of this mask, with only four copies being produced. Having the ultimate edition of this mask was something I knew I had to have and I must say, it definitely is the the best I have seen.
The 1980s were a great time to start collecting Halloween masks. There were so many companies doing great stuff and small mom and pop stores started opening that would sell these very masks, long before Spirit Halloween was even a thought. Though I had seen catalogs from many of these companies, the first masks I bought were from Be Something Studios, now known as Zagone Studios.
1985 was a big year for me. I graduated high school, I had my first full-time job and I was introduced to the hobby of collecting Halloween masks. Prior to graduating I started receiving catalogs in the mail from companies such as Don Post Studios, Distortions Unlimited, House of Horror Studios and Be Something Studios (now known as Zagone Studios). I was mesmerized by these catalogs as to prior to this, I had only been aware of the latex masks you could buy in your local department or drug stores every October. I had never seen anything of the quality being offered by these companies.
I have been a fan of skull masks ever since Don Post Studios released their vinyl skull so many years ago. When I started getting masks from Zagone Studios I quickly realized that over the years they have had some amazing skull masks!
Zagone Studios has oftentimes been the first to introduce a particular type of mask. In this case it is the moving mouth masks, also known as sock masks. The concept is that the latex mask is attached to a black sock that fits over your head. The jaw is separate from the rest of the mask and when you open and close your mouth, the mouth of the mask also moves as you do. In addition, this style of mask allows for great visibility and breathability.
The 1957 movie INVASION OF THE SAUCER-MEN is not only one of my favorite movies of the fifties but it is also one of my all-time favorite movies. It’s imaginative and a lot of fun and the aliens, created by special effects artist Paul Blaisdell, are one of my favorite designs ever put on film.
I started collecting masks in 1985, with the first called Shrunken Head by a company called Be Something Studios, later to be called Zagone Studios. To this day, 35 years later, they are still one of my favorite mask companies of all time. They offer a wide variety of masks, all of great quality, known for their ease of wearing. Most latex masks provide either poor viewing holes or poor breathing holes; this is not the case with Zagone masks. They are all comfortable to wear with great vision and breathing.
One thing I have always been a fan of is the big-brained alien creatures from the movies, such as INVASION OF THE SAUCER-MEN from 1957. In fact I like them so much, I wrote a whole blog on them (seen HERE). The subject of this blog, The Monitor from Trick or Treat Studios, falls in this category.
According to Wikipedia, “Creepypastas are horror-related legends that have been copied and pasted around the Internet. These Internet entries are often brief, user-generated, paranormal stories intended to scare readers. They include gruesome tales of murder, suicide, and otherworldly occurrences.” Though some of these stories can be silly, there are some that are genuinely scary. As a result, the folks at Ghoulish Productions have created a series of masks based on Creepypasta stories. Unfortunately, the subject of this blog no longer seems to be available directly from the manufacturer (though they can be found on eBay and Amazon).
Nothing screams Halloween quite like a pumpkin. It has been representative of the season for as long as we can remember and capturing them in latex is nothing new. From Don Post Studios creating their famous pumpkin mask for the 1982 film HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH to today, where almost every mask company offers some kind of pumpkin mask, which vary in quality and design.
