The Late Night Show That Introduced A Generation To Horror

Unlike the traditional local syndicates that had a host or hostess that introduced the film, USA Saturday Nightmares began in its early seasons with mashups from old black and white horror films and a creepy narration from famed announcer Alan Kalter. Several years in, the show changed up its opening and took its audiences through an CGI-created haunted mansion. At each turn in the spook house, there would be a still photo of a famed horror movie monster.

USA Saturday Nightmares consisted of two parts. The first part was the film that was being showcased that evening. The second part was a 30-minute episode of one of three series that the USA Network had secured the rights for. It was a way to keep the mood of terror going another half an hour, or sometimes lighten it up with some mild comic relief.

The USA Network had acquired the rights to show The Ray Bradbury Theater from HBO in 1988 and created additional episodes until 1992. The series’ 60+ episodes were largely based on Bradbury’s short stories and added a great sci-fi/fantasy nightcap to the evening.

USA Saturday Nightmares would sometimes be coupled with episodes of the new Alfred Hitchcock Presents, a show that ran on the NBC network for one season in 1985/86 before its rights were purchased by USA. USA churned out three additional seasons of the series, the episodes mostly remakes from the 1950s/60s television series.

The anthology series The Hitchhiker was also secured from HBO, with USA producing additional episodes that would sometimes accompany Saturday Nightmares.

USA Saturday Nightmares aired hundreds of horror films in the 11 seasons that it aired. The show played staples of horror like The Exorcist, Halloween, an American Werewolf in London, but also gave horror fans some of their first looks at the Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street films. But the real treat in tuning in each week was when the network aired an old B-movie that you’d never even heard of.

From the 1970s, USA Saturday Nightmares had a film vault that included Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter, The Devil’s Nightmare, Dracula’s Dog, Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell, and Let’s Scare Jessica to Death. But 1980s low-budget horror also made the cut, as Mausoleum, Motel Hell, Day of the Dead, and Blood Beach gave fans the chills.

USA Saturday Nightmares was the perfect vehicle to deliver nearly every type of horror film to the young fans in the 1980s, many of whom were likely up late and taking in the graphic violence and bloody gore that required viewing after the parents were asleep. The anticipation of what the show would air that night began early in the week, and certainly added to the fun. The days of weekly horror shows are long gone, but the films they aired are mostly available to stream, keeping the art alive and well for future generations.