# TV Moments That Scarred You For Life **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 9, 2006, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051 "2006-05-09T12:30:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![moonstarssun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@moonstarssun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moonstarssun)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/121 "2006-05-10T20:52:15Z")
[QUOTE=gigi] Did you say clowns? Pennywise from It…shiver…especially when he popped a balloon and blood splattered everywhere. [/QUOTE] And don’t forget, “We aaaaall float down here!” :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/122 "2006-05-10T20:56:45Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] AGH! I remember that! “But I’m not _your_ Boogeyman…” Scared the crap out of me for weeks! That and another Dark Shadows one, with the little albino creature that lived in a closet in the room of a girl who was boarding with a…professor? Something like that. Hell, just hearing the theme of _Dark Shadows_ when I was lying upstairs in bed was enough to creep me out…my mother loved that show and watched it all the time. [/QUOTE] I remember a twilight zone episode like this, but it was the Shadowman. My memorymight be foggy. I know the Shadowman’s voice was all whispery. This kid has the Shadowman living under his bed and the Shadowman says “I am the Shadowman, I will never harm whose bed I live under.” So the kid figures he is safe. He is out playing and runs into a Shadowman. The guy grabs him around the throat. The kid gasps, “But you said you would never hurt me.” The Shadoman says, “I am the Shadowman, I will never harm whose bed I live under.” The kid gaps, “See, you promised” and the Shadowman says “But I live under someone else’s bed.” Does anyone else remember that? ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/123 "2006-05-10T20:58:42Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] That sounds right. All of the anthology horror shows from the 80s start to run together for me: Twilight Zone, Tales from the Darkside, certain episodes of Amazing Stories, the new Outer Limits… And of course, Dark Shadows wasn’t an anthology horrow show, it was a horror soap opera… [/QUOTE] Ahh too late. Sorry about that. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Means\_Go](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cc9497/32.png) [@Green\_Means\_Go](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Means_Go)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/124 "2006-05-10T21:02:03Z")
[QUOTE=kelly5078] There was a show about mentally ill children telecast on or about Thanksgiving when I was 10. These kids were seriously messed up. I spent the next couple of years fearful that I would go off the rails.QUOTE] This reminded me… Jerry Lewis Telethon for MS. All those poor people paralyzed and in wheelchairs. When that came on and I saw it, I had to sleep in my younger brothers room for like 3 days. I was convinced I was going to get MS! ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/125 "2006-05-10T21:02:59Z")
**The Day After** The story of what ot would be like to survive a nuclear attack. I was in 6th or 7th grade and had a small TV in my room and my parents never checked what I watched. The last hour or so was aired without any commercials and was brutal. I remember sitting there, on my bed saying “go to commercial, go to commercial” and they never did! It was terrifying, since I grew up near a ground zero (Niagra falls) and knew we could be attacked. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/126 "2006-05-10T21:14:48Z")
[QUOTE=ArrMatey!] I believe the movie was called ‘Notaro’, or something similar. I was four or five, and it was on television. Schlock horror film about some castaways that eat mushrooms and become hideously mutated mushroom people. I was convinced that such a story _might_ be true, and thus made certain never to eat mushrooms after that. Psychosomatically, I still loathe them. [/QUOTE] So it wasn’t the fact that your older brother chased you around the house threatening to touch you(read as “pinch \*real \*hard”) afterwards like what happened to us? ---
**Author:** ![What\_s\_That\_Smell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/3bc359/32.png) [@What\_s\_That\_Smell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_s_That_Smell)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/127 "2006-05-10T21:29:17Z")
[QUOTE=Gordon Urquhart] It was a _Twin Peaks_ scene for me as well … the one in which Laura Palmer’s cousin Maddy (who looks just like Laura, amazingly enough) is in the Palmer living room and sees BOB, who starts walking toward her by stepping \*\*over \*\* the couch and \*\*over \*\* the coffee table – yeesh! [/QUOTE] Ah yes! This is the one for me too. In fact I’m getting chills right now just remembering it again. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/128 "2006-05-10T21:42:00Z")
[QUOTE=Pixiesnix] Maybe someone can help me with this… I have a very fuzzy memory of seeing this late-70’s-to-early-80’s British film on television about a guy who enters a weird village. The village is suffering from some sort of famine and the protagonist befriends a childlike woman who talks about rabbits a lot. Anyhoo, the protagonist asks the woman how the village continues to eat despite the famine. The girl talks about eating from “boxes”, then points to a nearby graveyard littered with open, empty caskets. “Boxes gone now,” she says. Just realizing the implication of cannibalism was quite the shock to my five-year-old mind. [/QUOTE] What was the name of this one? ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/129 "2006-05-10T21:48:24Z")
> [@](#): > > This kid has the Shadowman living under his bed and the Shadowman says “I am the Shadowman, I will never harm whose bed I live under.” So the kid figures he is safe. He is out playing and runs into a Shadowman. The guy grabs him around the throat. The kid gasps, “But you said you would never hurt me.” > The Shadoman says, “I am the Shadowman, I will never harm whose bed I live under.” The kid gaps, “See, you promised” and the Shadowman says “But I live under someone else’s bed.” Aaaaaaaagh! Yup, that was the one. I guess the whole “shadow” thing had me thinking it was _Dark Shadows_ when it was really a _Twilight Zone_ ep. Man, that freaked me out. I kinda got the shivers just reading that summary! Thanks for the memories. No, really. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/130 "2006-05-10T22:00:03Z")
\*\*Where the Woodbine Twines" - one of the few hour-long episodes of ‘Alfred Hitchcock Presents’. The story is about a racist woman who becomes the guardian of her orphaned niece. The niece has a black doll named “Numa” whom she _claims_ comes to life when no-one else is around, and sometimes the niece herself turns into the doll and Numa plays with her. The end of the story has the racist aunt discovering a little black girl playing with a doll on her property and tells her to go away and never come back. After the girl leaves, the aunt realizes the doll is her actually her niece…but now that Numa is gone, she can’t become a little girl again and is trapped in a doll form. Brrrrrrrr… And of course there was the original “Willy Wonka” film, in particular the scene in which Violet eats the gum and blows up into a giant blueberry. Gah! ---
**Author:** ![snorlax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@snorlax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snorlax)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/131 "2006-05-10T22:23:46Z")
[QUOTE=The New and Improved Superman] And of course there was the original “Willy Wonka” film, in particular the scene in which Violet eats the gum and blows up into a giant blueberry. Gah! [/QUOTE] Surely this is trumped by the chicken being beheaded during the boat tunnel scene. In a kid’s film! ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/132 "2006-05-10T22:34:01Z")
When I was very little I was attacked by a swarm of Yellow Jackets. Ever since I’ve been terrified of stinging insects. About two years after the attack, I saw the Battlestar Galactica episode where the colonists gambled in a casino, but sometimes when they got in the elevator, it took them below ground where they were captured by bee creatures and placed in honeycomb-looking things. ::shudder:: ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/133 "2006-05-10T23:57:50Z")
[QUOTE=The New and Improved Superman] \*\*Where the Woodbine Twines" - one of the few hour-long episodes of ‘Alfred Hitchcock Presents’. The story is about a racist woman who becomes the guardian of her orphaned niece. The niece has a black doll named “Numa” whom she _claims_ comes to life when no-one else is around, and sometimes the niece herself turns into the doll and Numa plays with her. The end of the story has the racist aunt discovering a little black girl playing with a doll on her property and tells her to go away and never come back. After the girl leaves, the aunt realizes the doll is her actually her niece…but now that Numa is gone, she can’t become a little girl again and is trapped in a doll form. Brrrrrrrr… [/QUOTE] There’s a Ranma 1/2 OAV like this. I hate freaky dolls. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2006, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/134 "2006-05-11T00:08:36Z")
Okay, I’ve got a couple… The remake of _Cat People_ with Malcom McDowell. Now, I love a good scary movie, but I was NOT ready to see Ed Begley Jr.'s arm come off! Crap! I am seeing this piece in my mind, but can’t name it- it sounds like one that other posters are describing but I remember some details. It is a professor in a house with a lovely young girl, and she is complaining about the sounds of rats in the walls. Blah blah blah, plot thickens… turns out there is a freaky little monster with REALLY scary fangs and long nails in the closet, and it’s _strong_. The girl investigates because she is stupid and has never seen a horror movie, and gets in a fight with the little monster, who gets up on her back, grabs her by the hair and yanks her off of her feet. She hits her head and is dragged into the closet by the little monster. The kicker was that at some point, the professor catches the little thing out of it’s closet, and starts baby talking to it and getting very affectionate. Somehow, and I don’t remember how, the monster is his **daughter**. Meep. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2006, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/135 "2006-05-11T00:10:57Z")
The prof might have been played by David Gale from _Re-Animator_… ---
**Author:** ![ladybug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/46a35a/32.png) [@ladybug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladybug)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2006, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/136 "2006-05-11T01:03:02Z")
I second (third? fourth?) all the mentions of _M_A_S_H\*. Especially the finale with Hawkeye in the mental hospital. That freaked me out for a long time. I was very disturbed by one of the early episodes of _FullMetal Alchemist_ when the alchemist Tucker fuses his young daughter, Nina, and his dog together to create a chimera. I felt physically ill after watching that. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2006, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/137 "2006-05-11T01:07:28Z")
[QUOTE=EJsGirl] I am seeing this piece in my mind, but can’t name it- it sounds like one that other posters are describing but I remember some details. It is a professor in a house with a lovely young girl, and she is complaining about the sounds of rats in the walls. Blah blah blah, plot thickens… turns out there is a freaky little monster with REALLY scary fangs and long nails in the closet, and it’s _strong_. The girl investigates because she is stupid and has never seen a horror movie, and gets in a fight with the little monster, who gets up on her back, grabs her by the hair and yanks her off of her feet. She hits her head and is dragged into the closet by the little monster. The kicker was that at some point, the professor catches the little thing out of it’s closet, and starts baby talking to it and getting very affectionate. Somehow, and I don’t remember how, the monster is his **daughter**. Meep. [/QUOTE] That’s the one I mentioned! It’s a _Tales from the Darkside_ episode called [In the Closet](http://www.tv.com/tales-from-the-darkside/inside-the-closet/episode/54642/summary.html). ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2006, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/138 "2006-05-11T01:42:15Z")
[QUOTE=IvoryTowerDenizen] **The Day After** The story of what ot would be like to survive a nuclear attack. I was in 6th or 7th grade and had a small TV in my room and my parents never checked what I watched. The last hour or so was aired without any commercials and was brutal. I remember sitting there, on my bed saying “go to commercial, go to commercial” and they never did! [/QUOTE] Oh man, I remember my mom and dad making a big deal about us NOT seeing any of The Day After. And of course I made sure I caught a glimpse of it and then I was anxiety ridden for months. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2006, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/139 "2006-05-11T01:50:19Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] That’s the one I mentioned! It’s a _Tales from the Darkside_ episode called [In the Closet](http://www.tv.com/tales-from-the-darkside/inside-the-closet/episode/54642/summary.html). [/QUOTE] That’s it! Tom Savini! I should have known- I remember seeing bits of it on a Tom Savini tribute show. ---
**Author:** ![Pixiesnix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/898d66/32.png) [@Pixiesnix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pixiesnix)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2006, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051/140 "2006-05-11T04:31:51Z")
> [@](#): > > **Johnny L.A.** wrote: > What was the name of this one? I wish I could remember, I only have a vague memory of it. All I know is that it was a British production from the late 70’s or early 80’s. Part of me wants to say it’s an episode of _Doctor Who_, but the subject matter is a bit dark, even for them. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-moments-that-scarred-you-for-life/356051.md?page=8)