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The Gruesomely Real Origin Of The Term “Stiff Drink”

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"Burke and Hare" -- 2010

Forget the fancy alcohols of today in their decorative little bottles. People in the early 19th century used to get their libations straight from the barrel; whiskey in particular.

Back in the 1800s things were a little bit different in America. Whiskey was served in plain barrels, but some of those vessels had more than just hooch–they were storage containers for preserving stolen dead bodies and unknowing customers were getting served from them.

How? You ask. Well, it’s quite a story:

pixabay.com

pixabay.com

Medical science has come a long way in the past 200 years. But in its early stages, it required research of course. That research consisted of using cadavers as learning tools. But people were funny about donating their loved-ones to science, so academia employed gravediggers to bring them fresh ones.

Gravedigging was a sort of an unregulated occupation back then. Everyone from students to janitors to doctors participated in the practice and it was good money.

But unlike today, shipping these large forms wasn’t easy. However, thanks to the new railway system it wasn’t impossible.

These heavy dead-weight bodies were hard to excavate. It required a crude pulley system in which the bodies were hoisted from the ground and then shipped to the client. The question was how to ship them to someone in New York from St. Loius.

Still Life, Skull, Whiskey, Glass, Cigarette Case, Cap

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Enter the railroad.

The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the only long-distance mass transit service at the time. So gravediggers would fold and stuff their stolen corpses inside whiskey barrels and send them down the rails in cargo holds.  There was only one problem: the stench. How to disguise the smell of a decomposing body to a train full of people?

Easy: whiskey. The barrels were filled with whiskey and that seemed to hide the unpleasant odor. Once the barrels were received the bodies were removed and on their way to labs to be explored.

Ever resourceful, the grim thieves found another way to make a buck. They sold the leftover whiskey to unwitting customers. These were called “stiff drinks” according to Ripley’s. The term was actually coined to describe a dead English Admiral whose body was preserved in brandy.

"Burke and Hare" -- 2010

“Burke and Hare” — 2010

Grave robbing wasn’t legal in America, but lawmakers seldom did anything about it. Cemetary owners were sometimes cut in on the deal so they often turned a blind eye.

Eventually, sometime in the 1900s, the laws were enforced and the practice was discontinued.

The most famous “graverobbers” in history are probably William Burke and William Hare. In the early 19th century, Scotland’s cadavers for scientific study were in short supply. Laws were put into place so that only dead prisoners, suicide victims or orphans could be used. This limited the available quantity of usable dead bodies so Burke and Hare decided to make their own.

They killed 16 people in just under a year in 1828. A comedy movie, directed by John Landis, about the grave-robbing duo was made in 2010, starring Simon Pegg.

So the next time you use the term “stiff drink” to describe your cocktail you’ll know that it doesn’t describe the amount of alcohol in it, but pays homage to the dead bodies pickled in a barrel in the name of medical research so many years ago.

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Childhood Memories Collide in New Horror Film ‘Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble’

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It looks like ITN Studious and Jagged Edge Productions are going the Avengers: Infinity War route with their upcoming film Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble. From the deranged mind of Rhys Frake-Waterfield (Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey) comes this belligerent mash up of beloved childhood icons.

According to an article out of Variety today, Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble will consist of Winnie the Pooh, Bambi, Tinkerbell, Pinocchio, Peter Pan, Tigger, Piglet, The Mad Hatter, and Sleeping Beauty. All of these iconic figured will be warped into nightmarish versions of their former selves. Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble is set to be released upon the world sometime in 2025.

Poohniverse

Actor-producer Scott Chambers (Malevolent) had the following to say about Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble. “As horror fans, we would love an Avengers that is all villains. It’d have Freddy Krueger, Jason, ‘Halloween,’ ‘Scream,’ all of those. Obviously that will never happen, but we can make it happen in our own little way, and that’s where this film has been born.”

Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble will be a part of The Twisted Childhood Universe. Just like the MCU, each character will first get a standalone film. After introductions are made, they will be reunited in an Avengers style film. Although they will be killing off the survivors from the previous films, they won’t be working together.

Chambers describes this as an “epic sequences of monster vs. monster.” And I don’t know what more fans could ask of the studio. This fantastical idea is a huge risk but Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble sounds amazing.

That’s all the information we have at this time. Check back here for more updates on Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble. If you haven’t already, check out the trailer for Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 2 below.

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Blumhouse’s ‘The Wolf Man’ Reboot Kicks Off Production with Leigh Whannell at the Helm

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Blumhouse Productions has officially commenced filming its reboot of the Universal Monsters legend, “Wolf Man”. Under the direction of Leigh Whannell, known for his acclaimed work on “The Invisible Man” (2020), the project promises to breathe new life into the iconic tale. The film is slated for a theatrical release on October 25th, marking a new chapter in the storied franchise.

Wolf Man

The journey of a “Wolf Man” reboot began in 2020 when actor Ryan Gosling presented a fresh take on the classic story to Universal. This concept quickly evolved into a screenplay crafted by the talented duo Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo, who are known for their work on “Orange Is the New Black,” alongside contributions from Whannell and Corbett Tuck. The narrative is set in contemporary times, drawing inspiration from the atmospheric tension of Jake Gyllenhaal’s “Nightcrawler,” albeit with a distinct supernatural twist.

The film has seen its share of directorial and casting shifts, with Whannell initially signing on to direct in 2020, only to step away and then return to the project after Ryan Gosling and director Derek Cianfrance exited. The lead roles have been filled by Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner, both of whom bring significant talent to the screen. Abbott portrays a man whose family faces the terror of a lethal predator, with Garner likely playing his wife, sharing in the familial peril. The storyline also hints at a daughter named Ginger, adding a layer of depth to the family’s harrowing experience.

Julia Garner and Christopher Abbott

This reboot represents a collaboration between Blumhouse and Motel Movies, with Jason Blum producing. Ryan Gosling remains involved as an executive producer, alongside Ken Kao, Bea Sequeira, Mel Turner, and Whannell himself. The announcement of the film’s production start was made by Jason Blum, who shared an exciting glimpse of Whannell on set, signaling the beginning of what is hoped to be a memorable addition to the horror genre.

As the “Wolf Man” reboot moves forward, fans and newcomers alike are eager to see how this modern interpretation will pay homage to its roots while offering a fresh and thrilling experience. With a talented cast and crew at the helm, the film is poised to reintroduce the timeless tale of transformation and terror to a new generation.

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‘Immaculate’ Stars Reveal Which Horror Villains They Would “F, Marry, Kill”

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Sydney Sweeney is just coming off the success of her rom-com Anyone But You, but she’s ditching the love story for a horror story in her latest film Immaculate.

Sweeney is taking Hollywood by storm, portraying everything from a love-lusting teenager in Euphoria to an accidental superhero in Madame Web. Although the latter got a lot of hate among theater-goers, Immaculate is getting the polar opposite.

The film was screened at SXSW this past week and was well-received. It also gained a reputation for being extremely gory. Derek Smith of Slant says the, “final act contains some of the most twisted, gory violence this particular subgenre of horror has seen in years…”

Thankfully curious horror movie fans won’t have to wait long to see for themselves what Smith is talking about as Immaculate will hit theaters across the United States on March, 22.

Bloody Disgusting says that the movie’s distributor NEON, in a bit of marketing smarts, had stars Sydney Sweeney and Simona Tabasco play a game of “F, Marry, Kill” in which all their choices had to be horror movie villains.

It’s an interesting question, and you might be surprised at their answers. So colorful are their responses that YouTube slapped an age-restricted rating on the video.

Immaculate is a religious horror movie that NEON says stars Sweeney, “as Cecilia, an American nun of devout faith, embarking on a new journey in a remote convent in the picturesque Italian countryside. Cecilia’s warm welcome quickly devolves into a nightmare as it becomes clear her new home harbors a sinister secret and unspeakable horrors.”

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