Memories of the BUD

What is the BUD?

BUD stands for Big Ugly Dish.  In 1990, My grandfather decided to get a BUD because there is more TV channels to watch between G1 - G5 on the C-Band. 

Where did We order the BUD

My grandfather ordered our satellite dish through the Stereo Den in Newmarket, Ontario.  The Stereo Den was our satellite dealer that my grandfather bought the receiver, the codes, and the dish.

The Channels

When you get a satellite dish, you will have to subscribe to many channels.  There are some channels that are free to watch with audio.  Some channels scrambled and not available.  Most of the channels that everyone enjoys are known as subscription channels.  If you watch a subscription channel, there may not be any audio.  In order to activate the audio, you have to punch in a code that is 10 - 20 characters long.

Movies

The BUD Had so many movie channels ranging from Showtime to Cinemax.  There were great movies to watch from Comedy to Horror.  I saw many movies like Bad Dreams, Total Recall, Little Monsters, and more.  I will tell you more movie memories on another page.

A jump scare in an unknown wedding movie, 1989 - 1990

This movie features a wedding ceremony in a church.  In the scene, you will see the bride walk down the aisle.  The camera will pan and show her face which is gory followed by a scram and a jump cut to a man screaming in bed realizing it was a nightmare.  I searched the IMDB and Google and cannot find the title.

Total Recall,1990

I saw this movie for the first time in January / Febuary 1991 on Viewer's Choice Pay Per View (G 3 channel 16).  What grabbed my attention when I was flipping channels one afternoon, was a car chase scene through a tunnel. 

This is the scariest moment in Total Recall

The Implant Lab scene frightened me when I saw it for the first time because of the lights the flashing lights and the sounds of sparking by Quaid's ears during the Implant procedure.  I continued to watch the movie and got frightened again when Benny attempts to grind Quaid with a tunnel mole machine.  A moment later, I said I did not like the move and switched the channel.  Since than, I was afraid to look at the video cover.

Cartoons

One of my favorite cartoon / kids channel I fell in love was Nickelodeon.  I saw cartoons like Heathcliff, Maya The Bee, Loony Tunes, Yogi Bear, and more.  Please keep your ears to the tracks for a special posting for Memories of Nick.

Family Channel

The Family Channel was a great channel that featured cartoons during Fun Town.  Fun Town was a block that is devoted to cartoons including The Super Mario Brothers Super Show, Heroes on Hot Wheels, Captain N, and more. Other great shows that I saw were  Rin Tin Tin, K9 Cop, and Zorro.

Captain N, The Game Master

One of my favorite "Captain N" episodes I looked forward to watching was The Most Dangerous Game Master.  I was inspired to coin the term to get sparked up after watching the Frankenstein like scene.



In the August 1992, The sound to the Family Channel was switched off because the subscription ran out.

The Sci Fi Channel

In September 1992, The Sci Fi Channel was launched and graced my TV Screen for a year and a half.  There were many great memories from the Cartoon Quest to Classic Monsters Month.  I watched Frankenstein for the first time.

Memories of the Sci Fi Channel (Sy Fy)

Back in the 1990, my grandfather got a BUD (Big Ugly Satellite Dish).  There were great memories from the dream of visiting Nickelodeon Studios in Florida and getting scared while watching Total Recall.  I held some great BUD Memories while watching the Sci Fi channel.

On September 24, 1992, The Sci Fi Channel officially launched on G-5 Channel 4.  I watched great shows on that channel as such as Amazing Stories, Dr Who, Defenders of the Earth, Lost in Space, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, and the Incredible Hulk.  Some of these shows I watched inspired me to draw a silly picture at school.

Classic Monsters Month -- Hosted by Christopher Lee

In October, 1993, The Sci Fi Channel held a Classic Monsters Month featuring the four monsters.  October 4 - 8, 1993 was The Mummy Week,  October 11 - 15 was Dracula Week, October 18 - 22 was Frankenstein Week, and October 26 - 29, 1993 was The Wolf Man Week.  On October 30th was The Wonderful World of Zombies, a day devoted to zombie flicks like White Zombie.  On Halloween Day, The Sci Fi channel had a Marathon of Scary Movies including the Puppet Master, Phantasm, The Evil Dead, and more.  After October 1993, I was inspired to watch some classic horror films including Dracula and Frankenstein.

Doppleganger

The Sci Fi Channel screened the movie Doppleganger Sunday, February 20th, 1994 to kick off Boris Karloff Week.  I watched this film intermintely during the screening.  Towards the end, I got frightened and I turned off the TV.  This was a memorable BUD Scary Moment. 

Boris Karloff Week -- Hosted by Peter Bogdanovich

Between February 21 - 25, 1993 was a special week devoted to 5 Boris Karloff films.  The Sci Fi Channel screened on Monday Corridors of Blood, Wedensday, The Invisable Ray, Thursday, Targets, and Friday, Frankenstein to close the week. 



Watch this Boris Karloff week video.  There

 is a short Count Dracula

trailer you will love and remember

Bram Stoker's Count Dracula

On Saturday, February 26, The Sci Fi channel screened Count Dracula. A few days following Boris Karloff Week, the Sci Fi Channel was silenced forever. 

Mad Doctors Week

In March of 1994, The Sci Fi Channel had another horror week based on Mad Doctors.  I did not get to see this event because the channel was silenced.

Why did the Sci Fi Channel get Silenced?

The Sci Fi Channel has changed its status on the C Band from a Free (Clear, Unscrambled) to a subscription channel. This means you have to contact your satellite dealer and get the code to re activate the sound.  Occasionally the sound will be activated for a few days to give viewers a sample of what the channel is like before obtaining the code.

According to Wikipedia, Paramount  was sold to The V of Doom (Viacom) = Sci Fi channel silenced.  The channel was silenced intermittently in February until the conclusion of Boris Karloff Week.

Why Codes?

The BUD satellite receiver requires you to get a decoder chip installed every year to access all the subscription channels like Nick, Family, Etc.  If you cannot afford the chip, you can contact your satellite dealer and they will fax you the codes for the channels you want to subscribe to.  After punching in the code, the sound will magically turn on.  You can still watch the channel without sound if you can read lips.  When you want to enter a subscription code, you must turn to the channel, and enter the 10 - 15 digit code.  If you enter the code correctly, you will hear the people talk again for one month.

The Legends of Horror Month -- Hosted by Christopher Lee

In October 1994, The Sci Fi channel had its second annual classic horror movie month.  The Legends of horror featured films by key actors like Peter Cushing, Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, and, Lon Chaney Jr.  When the Legends of Horror Month was underway, the Sci Fi Channel was silenced. Unfortunately we did not want to spend the money on subscription codes because there were some clear channels including Fox, NBC, Etc.

Horror VHS Rental Number 1


On November 5, 1994, I rented the original 1931 Bela Lugosi Dracula at Jumbo Video. 

This was the first horror film I rented from
Jumbo Video, 

Keep your ears to the tracks for more great memories of the BUD.

The London Times

Dracula has left the Building

 

 

 

On Sunday December 2, 2012, Dracula had his final drink of Blood at the Mady Centre for the Performing Arts. Dracula was one of the best Pantos that the On Stage Performance Group has produced. I I I I I Loved the excellent Make Up design for the Dracula and his bat army. It is too bad that Dracula had to return to Transyalvania and manage the hotel.

 

 

Check out this short video that I created with the assistance of the Robots.  This video will give you a bit of a flashback of your recent EVS Experience.  Enjoy.

 

 

The London Times: Dracula The Vampire Strikes Back

EXTRA EXTRA EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT IT!

2 SHOWS LFFT!

Dracula The Vampire Strikes Back rocked the house!

This is your last call to Catch the London Blood Fiend at the Mady Centre for the Performing Arts before he has to catch his fight back to Transylvania to open a hotel.  Coco, Saphi, Lucy, and friends rocked a packed house Saturday, December 1, 2012.  Great jokes and laughs you cannot miss.

Come to the Mady Centre for the Performing Arts, 1 Dunlop Street W, Barrie, ON and get into the fun and games.
 
Ticket Details:

Adult Tickets are 18 bucks

Children 12 and under are 15 bucks.

Don't Worry! There are plenty of tickets for both performances.

For info call the Uptown Box Office at 705-739-4228.

If you are in the Downtown Barrie area, you can purchase tickets at the door before both performances.

Enjoy the Show!