Friday the 13th Strikes Again
On paraskevidekatriaphobia
The term is “paraskevidekatriaphobia.” Fear of Friday the 13th.
Friday the 13th to me has always just been another day, but a kinda, sorta noteworthy one. Kind of like a “blue moon” or an eclipse.
However, a large number of people REALLY have a fear of it. Not in the way people fear Jason from Friday the 13th movies, but in the way they are on edge something is going to go very wrong. I once had a teacher who always took Friday the 13ths off out of genuine fear. Phobias are all about irrational fears and she certainly had it.
So today, let’s just talk about some interesting facts on Friday the 13th.
First off, its REALLY common. Experts say that it affects millions of people and estimate that businesses, especially airlines, suffer from severe losses on Friday the 13th. Triskaidekaphobia, or the fear of the number 13, is even more widespread. So much so that many high-rise buildings, hotels, and hospitals skip the 13th floor, and many airports do not have gates numbered 13. In many parts of the world, having 13 people at the dinner table is considered bad luck.
The longest one can go without experiencing a Friday the 13th is 14 months. Friday the 13ths occur in months where the first day of the month is a Sunday.
Some see it as an opportunity. Since 1995, Finland has dedicated one Friday the 13th in a year to observe National Accident Day. The day aims to raise awareness about safety—on the roads, at home, and at the workplace. Several movies in the Friday the 13th franchise were released on Friday the 13ths. Alfred Hitchcock, himself born on a Friday the 13th, released his first film on a Friday the 13th, titled “13.”
Very little is known about the origins of the day's notoriety. While Western cultures have historically associated the number 12 with completeness (there are 12 days of Christmas, 12 months and zodiac signs, 12 labors of Hercules, 12 gods of Olympus and 12 tribes of Israel, just to name a few examples), its successor 13 has a long history as a sign of bad luck. Some historians believe that the superstitions surrounding it arose in the late 19th century. The first documented mention of the day can be found in a biography of Italian composer Gioachino Rossini, who died on a Friday the 13th. A 1907 book, Friday the Thirteenth, by American businessman Thomas Lawson, may have further perpetuated the superstition. Others believe that the myth has Biblical origins. Jesus was crucified on a Friday, and there were 13 guests at the Last Supper the night before his crucifixion.
Horror movies are a place many actors get their start. They’re cheap, they don’t rely on star power and being young is usually a plus for them. Among some of the actors and actresses who got their start in Friday the 13th movies are Crispin Glover, Corey Feldman, Kelly Rowland, and probably the most famous of all, Kevin Bacon who was in the original.
PurpleAmerica’s Obscure Fact of the Day
The popularity of Horror film franchises ebb and wane but mostly coincide with economic downturns. This is in part because studios often get hurt financially from large tentpole films that bomb or on overhead when the economy craters. Horror films make for cheap, easily producible fare that can be distributed quickly and make a quick buck to re-establish themselves. New Line Cinema for instance was long known as “The House that Freddy Built” after The Nightmare on Elm Street series.
The Friday the 13th series though are known for a different reason; unlike most other horror films, audiences identify with the Killer. It’s a phenomena that has been studied by psychiatrists and is explained as an empathetic, cathartic release of anxiety. It’s the same kind of emotional release as experienced by “primal scream” therapy or a hard workout after a bad day. That’s why victims later in the series are usually archetypes of people that are hated by the general public. You actually want to see Jason off them in some bizarre way.
PurpleAmerica Cultural Criticism Corner
I saw my first Friday the 13th film in 1986, “Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives.” Even as a 13 year old I could see how dumb and pointless this movie was. The only good or memorable thing about it was the Alice Cooper song “He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask).” Did any of that stop me from watching any of the other Friday the 13th films? Of course not. I saw them all through Freddy v. Jason. In college even, we once had a Friday the 13th Film Festival where you had to drink everytime someone died on screen or the name “Jason” was spoken. So here is my order from worst to best Friday the 13th films.
Friday the 13th Part 3. Why did it suck? It was filmed for 3-D. Not just 3-D, but cheesy 80s 3-D. The one good thing about it? It introduces the iconic hockey mask.
10. Jason X. Jason goes to Space. ‘nuf said.
Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. Need I say more?
Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday. It wasn’t. False advertising.
Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning. Should’ve stopped at 4.
Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives. I have a little sentimentality to this one being the first I ever watched, but its pretty awful but for the Alice Cooper song.
Friday the 13th Part VII: A New Blood. If you’re going to have a psycho killer who doesn’t die, why not have a telekenetic girl in it too? Different from the others, but its a tame “Carrie v. Jason” film. It also gets points for being the shortest at under 90 minutes.
Freddy v. Jason. A horrible concept, terribly executed. But Robert Englund’s soundbytes as Freddy are eminently more watchable and interesting than most anything in any Jason film.
Friday the 13th. Yes, the original lands at #3.
Friday the 13th, Part 2. Yes, the sequel is better than the original. It also has the benefit of building up the Jason story. But no hockey mask (its a bag in this one).
Friday the 13th Part 4: The Final Chapter. If only it really was. It does have Corey Feldman in his best role outside of Goonies and Lost Boys though, although that isn’t saying much.
Parting Thoughts
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