PopHorror Let's Get Scared
On March 28th, 1979, Phantasm was released in U.S. cinemas, introducing horror fans to the dark, existential coming of age tale surrounding young Michael (A. Michael Baldwin) as he battles interdimensional minions, a flying silver sphere of death, and a menacing undertaker known as The Tall Man (Angus Scrimm) alongside his older brother Jody (Bill Thornbury) and the baddest ice cream man in town, Reggie (Reggie Bannister).
This year marks the 45th anniversary of Don Coscarelli’s imaginative entry into the genre and we help celebrate its milestone with eight fascinating facts surrounding the film.
After earning a studio gig with Universal when he was only nineteen, Phantasm creator Don Coscarelli was inspired to head to an isolated cabin to begin writing what he saw in his dreams as a kid – long marble corridors, a silver sphere with a needle chasing him, and phantasmic, surreal imagery. He wrote so much – including a tremendous amount of character development, drama and additional scenes with The Tall Man – that the original cut of Phantasm was nearly three hours long.
Phantasm is the epitome of independent filmmaking. Filming only on weekends with rented equipment, no permits, stolen electricity, and a cast and crew of those close to him, Phantasm took over a year to complete. Tackling the roles of writer, director, editor, and director of photography, Coscarelli aimed to help make his horror sci-fi passion project work with what he had. In his book aptly titled True Indie, the filmmaker describes in detail the trials, tribulations, and dedication it took to make not only Phantasm, but Bubba Ho-Tep, The Beastmaster, and more.
On a meager $300,000 budget, Phantasm earned nearly $12 million at the box office making it the second highest grossing horror film of the year, coming in behind Alien.
Despite its box office success, the sequel, Phantasm II, wasn’t released until nearly a decade later in 1988, which was followed by Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead in 1994, Phantasm IV: Oblivion in 1998, and Phantasm: Ravager in 2016.
One of the stars of Phantasm is Jody’s absolutely gorgeous 1971 Plymouth ‘Cuda. The sleek black piece of American muscle is prominently featured and one of the most recognizable images from the film. The car continues to be a co-star in the subsequent four Phantasm films although in parts III and IV, it was a 1970 convertible.
As I mentioned before, Coscarelli surrounded himself with those closest to him, including his mother, Kate Coscarelli, who not only worked as costume designer and make-up artist on Phantasm, but also lent her talents as a published author to pen a novelization of the film based on Don’s screenplay. In 1980, this novelization was released only in Japan. Several years later in 2002, an English edition was finally made available in an extremely limited number.
Phantasm wouldn’t be what it is without The Tall Man, portrayed by Angus Scrimm, which is the stage name of actor Rory Guy. Standing at 6’4”, Scrimm was already an imposing figure, but with platform shoes, thoughtful camera work, and an incredibly menacing performance, he helped bring a sinister component to this seminal piece of 70s American horror.
On March 23rd, 2024, in Burbank, California, fans lined up around the block at the iconic horror shop, Dark Delicacies, for a sold-out event celebrating Phantasm’s 45th anniversary. Not only were photo ops with some of Coscarelli’s personal prop collection and riding shotgun with Reggie Bannister in the ‘Cuda available, but Don was there to sign copies of his new book PHICTION: Tales from the World of Phantasm – a book described as “a new limited collector print edition of original stories written by Don Coscarelli exploring the characters and universe of Phantasm.”
Make sure to help celebrate this fantastic film today by giving it a watch! It’s available to stream on Tubi, Amazon Prime, Peacock, and more. If you’re like me and value physical media, don’t delay in picking up the Arrow Video box set off all the Phantasm movies.
