# Tales from the Crypt (1989)

> A cackling Crypt Keeper hosts grisly, darkly comic morality tales adapted from classic E.C. Comics stories.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/2271

## Facts

- Seasons: 7
- Episodes: 81
- Episode runtime: 29 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: horror, comedy
- Created by: William M. Gaines, Steven Dodd
- Network: HBO
- Cast: John Kassir, Michelle Johnson, Sugar Ray Leonard, Ben Cross, Madge Sinclair, Al Hunter Ashton, Roger Ashton-Griffiths, Yvonne De Carlo
- TMDB rating: 8.0/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096708/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: graphic
- Tone: macabre, darkly comic, gleeful, grotesque, irreverent, campy

## What critics say

Viewers broadly regard the anthology as a darkly funny, uniquely crafted horror series whose self-contained tales were consistently entertaining despite uneven episode quality.

## Synopsis

Tales from the Crypt (1989-1996) is an American horror anthology series created by William M. Gaines and Steven Dodd and broadcast on HBO. Cadaverous host the Crypt Keeper, voiced by John Kassir, introduces each macabre episode with gleeful wordplay and grim asides. Adapted from the classic E.C. Comics stories, the series runs seven seasons and roughly eighty-one half-hour episodes, each one a self-contained tale with new characters and no continuing plot. The engine of every episode is a cruel or greedy protagonist, such as a philandering wife, a vengeful husband, or a corrupt business owner, who schemes for money, love, or revenge and is then undone by a grotesque twist of fate. Stories range across science fiction, western, monster, and comedic modes, and the mood is gleefully grotesque, dark, and playful rather than frightening in a sustained way. Viewers who enjoy gothic horror, poetic justice, and cheeky supernatural morality will find the show delightfully macabre. Fans of Creepshow, The Twilight Zone, and Are You Afraid of the Dark? will find resonance in its blend of dread and dark humor. Its tone stays wry and irreverent throughout, making each half hour a satisfying jolt of comeuppance.

## Shows like Tales from the Crypt

- [Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King (2006)](https://ember.film/tv/4125)
- [The Twilight Zone (1985)](https://ember.film/tv/1810)
- [Goosebumps (1995)](https://ember.film/tv/5503)
- [The Hitchhiker (1983)](https://ember.film/tv/9632)
- [Night Visions (2001)](https://ember.film/tv/4310)
- [Elvira's Movie Macabre (1981)](https://ember.film/tv/27578)
- [Are You Afraid of the Dark? (1992)](https://ember.film/tv/2771)
- [Tales of the Unexpected (1979)](https://ember.film/tv/2085)
- [Freddy's Nightmares (1988)](https://ember.film/tv/4131)
- [Night Gallery (1970)](https://ember.film/tv/4103)

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