Creepy Things That Kept ’70s and ’80s Kids Up at Night

For kids growing up in the ’70s and ’80s, let’s be real — we saw some stuff.

Thanks to the lack of helicopter parents (latchkey kids unite!) and endless hours spent plopped in front of the TV eating sugary cereals, you could say the line between reality and fiction (and cavities and no cavities) was probably a bit blurred.

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For kids in the ’70s, the movies and TV they were exposed to were super raw. From Vietnam war films to scenes that left nothing to the imagination, there were little to no boundaries. We really did witness it all.

The “melting face” scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark and the haunting question of what might lurk beneath the surface were just two things that kept many of us awake at night.

In the ’80s, the rise of gruesome blockbusters took things to a new level. These films not only pushed the limits of visual effects but also brought an onslaught of blood, gore, and heart-pounding jump scares. Sharks, ghosts, melting faces … we had it all.

RELATED: 10 ’80s Movies That Could Never Be Made Today

There wasn’t such a thing as “parental controls.” I distinctly recall watching late-night movies by myself and thinking, “Oh god, this is going to give me nightmares…” You’d think that a kid growing up in an old, creaky house would know better than to start watching Amityville Horror at midnight … by himself.

Let’s break it down and take a look at the things that kept us ’70s and ’80s ragamuffins up at night. For the most part, we’re steering clear of the heavy, real-life stuff and focusing on the lighter, less serious things that gave us a good scare (or two) back in the day.

READ MORE: The Worst ’80s Movies (According to Letterboxd)