Mid-July horror gets mutated, vengeful, infectious, and lost in the woods in this episode of This Week in Horror History, covering the week of July 13 through July 19. This time, we’re digging into mad-scientist island nightmares, supernatural revenge literature, one extremely angry killer whale, a science-fiction body-horror classic, biological vampires, and the tiny independent movie that changed horror marketing forever. Inside this episode: July 13, 1977 — The Island of Dr. Moreau opens in U.S. theaters Burt Lancaster brings H.G. Wells’ nightmare of science without conscience to the screen in a sweaty, pulpy story filled with animal-human mutations, unchecked authority, and a scientist convinced that nature would be better if he personally rearranged it. July 14, 2020 — The Only Good Indians is published Stephen Graham Jones delivers one of modern horror literature’s sharpest supernatural reckonings as four Blackfeet men discover that something from their past has memory, purpose, and antlers waiting in the dark. July 15, 1977 — Orca opens in New York The post-Jaws creature-feature wave gets stranger, angrier, and surprisingly tragic when a killer whale driven by grief, intelligence, and patience begins pursuing the human responsible for an unforgivable act. July 16, 1958 — The Fly releases in the United States A scientist, a teleportation machine, and one tiny insect create one of science-fiction horror’s most unforgettable transformations, turning a dream of human progress into a cruel nightmare of mixed bodies and irreversible mistakes. Deep-Cut Spotlight — The Strain Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan drag vampires out of the velvet cape and into the quarantine zone as a passenger plane lands at JFK filled with the dead. What follows treats vampirism like a biological outbreak capable of spreading through New York while officials argue, deny, and react too late. Horror Birthdays This Week: Patrick Stewart, Larry Cohen, Corey Feldman, and James Brolin enter the birthday roll, bringing connections to Lifeforce, Green Room, It’s Alive, Q, The Stuff, Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, The Lost Boys, Gremlins, and The Amityville Horror. Weekly Recommendation — The Blair Witch Project Three student filmmakers enter the Maryland woods with cameras, recording equipment, and a local legend, creating a landmark of found-footage horror built from darkness, disorientation, improvised performances, and the terrifying possibility that the footage might be real.Plus, Weekly Spooky returns Wednesday with another fresh original horror story, followed by more terrifying history, strange mysteries, movie talk, and unexplained broadcasts throughout the week. From The Island of Dr. Moreau and The Only Good Indians to Orca, The Fly, The Strain, and The Blair Witch Project, this week in horror history proves that terror can spread through laboratories, guilty memories, dark water, crowded cities, and one cursed corner of the internet. 🎧 LISTEN NOW and subscribe for spine-tingling horror stories every week! 🎉 Unlock exclusive bonus episodes and support the show on Patreon! 👉 WeeklySpooky.com/Join 📬 Contact Us / Submit Your Horror Story! Twitter: @WeeklySpookyFacebook: facebook.com/WeeklySpookyEmail: WeeklySpooky@gmail.com 🎵 Music by Ray Mattis 👉 Check out Ray’s incredible work here ! 👨💼 Executive Producers: Rob Fields, Bobbletopia.com 🎥 Produced by: Daniel Wilder 🌐 Explore more terrifying tales at: WeeklySpooky.com
