I was in 6th grade or so when the tv movie of Helter Skelter was broadcast. It's the ONLY thing I was ever forbidden to watch or read by my parents, who thought it would be too frightening (I read the book Sybil-about the woman with multiple personality disorder-when I was in 3rd grade, and was confused by descriptions of menstruation. I had no idea!) Being a headstrong and precocious 11 year old, I immediately went to the library and checked out a copy of the book Helter Skelter. Looking at the crime scene photos (the corpses are whited out, but there's lots of blood-spattered carpet and furniture), I was traumatized, and spent about two weeks convinced that Charles Manson would break out of prison in California, make his way to rural mid-Michigan, and do me in! It's all funny to think of now, but back then, I was really scared! And, my parents were right, although I neler let THEM know that! And as long as I'm on the subject, my older sister, the athiest, slept with a cross for a few days while reading Stephen King's The Shining in high school! I remember seeing the Blob on TV & being > terrified that it would > oooze through my door when I went to sleep that > night. > The thing that scared the bejesus out of me was the Banshee in "Darby O'Gill and the Little People" (yep, a Disney film - and they're supposed to be for kids.) Make international calls for as low as $.04/minute with Yahoo! Messenger http://phonecard.yahoo.com/
