From the 1979 film, ‘Alien’. Directed by Ridley Scott

Still a funny thing to think about, Kenner (the same company that hit paydirt with ‘Star Wars’ action figures in 1978) decided to manufacture children’s merchandise for the next big science fiction movie to follow in theaters. Released by 20th Century Fox two years to the day after ‘Star Wars’, Ridley Scott’s masterpiece of suspense, ‘Alien’ was in no way, shape or form meant for children. But the impressive design and the word-of-mouth revolving around the ‘chestburster’ scene certainly captured the imagination of children.

I knew only one kid, a mischievous sort, who actually had the 18″ Alien figure. He was great fun. I was such a good little boy, he helped me get into all sorts of trouble. My sister has a fond memory of being terrorized with the giant toy by the mischievous kid. The ‘toy’ was creepy, no doubt. Giger’s incredible design communicates quite clearly that this thing is gonna do something bad. The retractable mouth flitting around was the scariest part. But the glow in the dark head is what stuck with me.

The imagery had so pervaded the mainstream, I was so into science fiction… I was determined to see this film. The Meyerland 3 had a giant poster in their vestibule which struck terror in me every time I dared to lay eyes on it.Like ‘The Exorcist’ and ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’, this film had been elevated to mythical status and it was science fiction!!! Yay!

There was no way in hell my folks were gonna expose me to ‘Alien’. I read every magazine I could get my hands on that had information about the movie, which did not amount to very much. But, I knew most of the plot before I ever saw the film. My typical method for circumventing the parentally-imposed restrictions to R-rated films was to read the novelization.

Finally, at a friend’s slumber party, I watched it by myself after all the other kids had fallen asleep. This friend’s father had amassed a giant collection of films on VHS, all dubbed by connecting VCR’s together, each tape had been set to SLP. So, at six in the morning I completed my mission. To this day, having seen this film dozens of times, having exposed the work to intense scrutiny, I am still amazed and intrigued by the unflinching view of Ridley’s nightmare, the one marketed to children.