Ok, many years ago, c.1970-72, when I was just a little thing of about 4, maybe 5; I recall a movie that struck terror in me that hung around for years to come. My babysitter was to put me down for an afternoon nap and I begged her to let me stay up and watch the scary black and white movie that happened to be on the T.V. She hemmed and hawed but finally I was able to break her down and she allowed me to watch (this, of course, became something I would wholeheartedly regret.)
There was a scene in the movie that I'm not sure is exact in my memory due to the fact that I was a small child but the images burned themselves into my psyche forever more. The scene seemed to involve a man and a skeleton. The man was carrying this skeleton in his arms. The skeleton's hand just so happened to fall into a standing pail of water as the man tried to maneuver the skeleton to wherever he was heading with it. I believe the water somehow causes the skeleton to grow skin and come alive or something.
Anyhow, this skeleton was now alive due to the hand in the water and he is now wearing a raincoat and actually hitchhiking down the road in the dark of night. There is a rainstorm beginning and you realize that the raindrops are going to continue to infuse this skeleton with even more life. The image of that skeleton in the raincoat, in the dark with his skeleton thumb sticking out hitchhiking, truly horrified me.
For the remainder of my little kid years, I often had dreams involving skeletons somehow coming alive and chasing me. One that I had was so horrible that I remember the dream just as well as I remember that terrible skeleton scene/movie. I haven't ever been able to find this movie or seen it anywhere based on what I know about it.
Can someone help?
Thanks,
Kim
UPDATE: NAME THAT TRAUMA SOLVED! Special thanks to readers Tim Tylor & Craig for solving it with THE CREEPING FLESH!
It sounds rather like The Creeping Flesh.
This sounds a lot like THE CREEPING FLESH. It's not b/w, but the similarities are almost exact.
Water. Skeleton in raincoat (More like a cloak or cape). Creeping Flesh. Truly scary for a small child!
Aack, that POV shot is CREEPY!!!! Looks like Grand Moff Tarkin won't get out of this one…again…
I want to thank you all for finding this info for me. You are correct, it was THE CREEPING FLESH. craig pointed out that it wasn't a black and white but we had a B&W television until I was about 7 or so. I figured I had to be 4 or 5 but I guess I was a bit older. 6 or thereabouts….close enough. Just watching the clip clarified why in the hell it scared the crap out of me like it did. EEEeewwww!! The FLESH has obviously been CREEPING over the skeleton form in a queer way!! How horrifying it must have been to a 6 year old! ICKY! Thanks again…now I can add the film to my collection.