“They’re here!”
Only 27 days to Halloween!
As Halloween creeps closer, TVTA remembers the American child actress and star of Poltergeist movie trilogy Heather Michelle O’Rourke. O’Rourke (born 27 December, 1975) played the character Carol Anne Freeling, youngest child of the Freeling family who becomes the conduit for terrifying supernatural entities that haunt her family. Sadly O’Rourke died during the making of Poltergeist III of cardiac arrest caused by septic shock due to intestinal stenosis. She died on the first of February 1988 aged 12 years old. Poltergeist III was released posthumously and dedicated to her. As well as her role in the trilogy, O’Rourke appeared in the TV series Happy Days, Fantasy Island, CHiPs and others.
I’d rank the original Poltergeist high in my list of favourite horror films, with O’Rourke’s performance being a standout. Below are Japanese chirashi movie posters for Poltergeist and Poltergeist III.
Poltergeist. 1982.
Poltergeist. 1982. Japanese chirashi. Front.
Poltergeist. 1982. Japanese chirashi. Back.
Poltergeist III. 1988.
Poltergeist III. 1988. Japanese chirashi. Front.
Poltergeist III. 1988. Japanese chirashi. Back.
Did we mention Halloween is one of TVTA’s favourite annual events?
Look out for more special Halloween posts coming soon!
The Vintage Toy Advertiser 
Great job. RE-posted on twitter @trefology
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Thank you Tref 🙂
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Cool!!!! Did you check out the Black Roses poster?
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Thanks! I found three: one photo style poster with guitar and roses; one zombie dude making devil horns with hand; and one very cool art piece with guitar wrapped in roses surrounded by flying demons – my fave!
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YAY!!!!
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Hi TVTA, wow, I’ve never seen a promotional leaflet/flyer/Chirashi that had newspaper cuttings depicting the news of it’s child actor having died before. I know it is a very strange story surrounding Poltergeist but just wow. Thanks for the chills down my spine.
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Yes, it’s strange to see it. As the film was dedicated to her memory that must be the reason why, and showing both Japanese and English headlines too.
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Hi again, I just thought it was so unusual but then the situation was also. How would you like a sneak peek at a new design you inspired me to make?
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Ah yeah, intriguing 🙂
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Hi again, I’ll send you a few work in progress pictures to your zoho account. I’ll put “New Saber plus pics” in the subject and it will have attachments.
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Cool. Will check those out for sure!
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I’ve sent them and they should be in your inbox!
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You know what, I love it! I sent a reply. Very cool so far.
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Thanks I’ll check my email. I have to say it was a bit of a challenge as it is solid black so I may add a few accent lines just to lift it slightly but I’m glad you could see what I attempted!
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Poltergeist, man… terrified me when I first seen it. Good grief. The sequels weren’t dreadful, either. Not great, but certainly worth watching. That image on the second poster is even creepy today…
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Yikes, it terrified me too. For ages I was wary of thunderstorms, TV white noise, and toys that might come to life. Agree the image of Carol Anne in front of the TV is still creepy today!
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I love Poltergeist, it is my third favourite horror of all time after Halloween and The Thing. Halloween is indeed getting closer, so it’s time to pull out those three classics in readiness for the witching hour!
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Love the film Halloween. The Thing is one of the best films ever!
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