“If we do catch him, it’s gonna be a miracle.”
What makes today’s Thirty-One Days O’Horror entry scarier than most of the other slashers that I’m looking at this month is the fact that he actually existed! While the 1976 film The Town That Dreaded Sundown took a few liberties with the actual Texarkana Moonlight Murders, people really were murdered by an unknown assailant in 1946 during a ten week spree that ended abruptly and without a criminal behind bars. While tons of theories, guesses, and rumors still abound about who the murderer, dubbed the Phantom Killer by an executive editor of the Texarkana (Arkansas) Gazette, his true identity was never discovered.
In the film, the Phantom Killer stalks out his victims, primarily couples on lonely roads, after dark. The brutality of the attacks, almost all of which end in murder, sends the town of Texarkana into a gun-buying frenzy. They board up their windows and live in fear as the local and state authorities attempt to find the killer.
The Phantom Killer was portrayed by Bud Davis, a stuntman and stunt coordinator who has appeared in or coordinated the stunts for tons of films that you’ve probably seen. Just a few of the films that he worked on include Star Trek: Generations, The Blob, Child’s Play, the CHiPS television series, and Sliver.
The Phantom Killer had no specific weapons, but his most iconic kill in the film is probably the trombone stabbing murder of Peggy Loomis. As far as his look, the Phantom Killer wears a sack (possibly a pillowcase) tied over his head, a jacket, pants, and dark boots. The boots are utilized throughout the film to signify that the killer is walking amongst the citizens of Texarkana all of the time. We never see his face.
Director Charles B. Pierce and writer Earl E. Smith changed the names of the victims from the actual murders in Texarkana, TX and the surrounding area that went into Arkansas. They also changed certain details, locations, and times for most of the events as well. If you’d like to know more about the true Phantom Killer and the Texarkana Moonlight Murders, check out this article from The Crime Wire. If you’re interested in more information about the film, check out my review.
A very, very forgettable “sequel” was released in 2014 by Blumhouse Productions. It uses the original film as a trigger for a new Phantom Killer to slip the sack on his face and start a new killing spree in Texarkana. It’s entirely fictional and not recommended.
Thanks for checking out today’s slasher! If you haven’t seen the original The Town That Dreaded Sundown, I highly recommend it. There’s plenty more mayhem left for this month, so stay tuned!
Ken's Alternate Universe! 