HOW TO HAVE A HORROR ‘OUTING’ AT HOME
ANDRA ST. IVANYI AND SCOTT BANKSTON DRIVE BY THE HOUSTON MUSEUM OF NATURAL SCIENCE IN “THE OUTING. ”
Have you ever wanted to timetravel while facing an evil spirit in the bowels of the Houston Museum of Natural Science? Believe it or not, it’s an option this Halloween.
Back in 1987, the R-rated, schlocky horror film called “The Outing” (aka “The Lamp”) was shot at the HMNS. It’s honestly pretty good. Not “Nightmare on Elm Street” good. More like “Chopping Mall” good. Violent, gory and packed full of some of the most contrived nude scenes in horror history, it follows a group of teens who decide to sleep over at the museum as it is haunted by a murderous jinn with a penchant for resurrection and inventive telekinetic killing.
The script was ridiculous, and every character sounds like they walked right out of an audition for “Urban Cowboy” extras, but the cinematography is surprisingly good while the effects and real tension combine for real scares. Nonetheless, the money ran out when it came time to market and release “The Outing,” and the film quickly faded into obscurity.
It’s the onlymovie a lot of the cast and crew ever made. Director TomDaley’s other claim to fame is the video for Julie Brown’s campy, new-wave hit “The Homecoming Queen’s Got a Gun,” and actress Damon Merrill’s profile pic on imdb.com is her being killed in “The Outing” by undead snakes in the HMNS’ non-existent bathtub because it’s her only credit. It has become a very minor cult hit with VHS horror fans, though, and now you can find it easily on YouTube for free.
Because of the gore and bare breasts, the museum has screened the film only a few times for adult groups of volunteers, but, with the Halloween season upon us, they are offering an at-home experience that is quite inventive. For $25, the museum will send you an adventure box containing a vintage “I Spent a Night at the Museum” T-shirt as well as a party pack of activities. These come in such categories as ’80s Mayhem and Arabian Frights, and they contain themed cocktail suggestions, cosplay instructions, origami and a scavenger-hunt questionnaire to fill out as you watch. On the back of the questionnaire is a photo collage of things fromthe film still in the museum’s collection that you can use as a guide for a later in-person visit.
It’s no secret that 2020 has been a dumpster fire, and if you’ve been quarantined because you’re in the vulnerable population, missing out on regular trips to the museum can be a drag. The trip back in time that “The Outing” offers, complete with the lovingly packed activity box, was one of the most engaging cinema experiences I’ve had this year. It’s amazing to see the Houston of three decades ago, with Ron Stone on
the news and teens talking about catching concerts at the Summit and the Diplodocus watching over the museum’s main hall like it was when I was a kid.
More than that, it offered a little adventure in a year when most adventures are either unavailable or awful. The joy of horror is that it can teach an audience how to process fear and anxiety along with the characters as they battle the monsters. Seeing that happen safely in the past, in a place that is as beloved as the HMNS, was quite empowering.
The museum itself is delighted to finally bring this uncut gemto an audience, even if it’s just virtually. Associate curator of paleontology David Temple, who once worked in the very office where the Jinn’s lamp kills at least two people, has an incredible fondness for “The Outing” and loves seeing the museum as it was when he came to work there.