Maddie James
Candle Cove is a fictional children's television show that is the subject of an online creepypasta horror story written by web cartoonist and author Kris Straub. The story is told in the form of a thread on a fictional forum, where a group of users discuss their memories of watching the show as children. The show centres on a young girl named Janice who imagines herself to be friends with marionette pirates. As the users continue to reminisce, they recall more disturbing details about the show, such as a character known as the Skin-Taker. The story gained a lot of popularity and inspired numerous YouTube videos, fan fictions, and even a television show adaptation.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Author | Kris Straub |
| Format | Online creepypasta horror story |
| Inspiration | The Onion article "Area 36-Year-Old Still Has Occasional Lidsville Nightmare" |
| Publication Date | 2009 |
| Website | ichorfalls.com |
| License | Creative Commons |
| Story Format | Epistolary, exchange between posters on a forum |
| Story Elements | Correspondence between characters, interaction, horror, mystery |
| Adaptation | Channel Zero, SyFy Channel |
| Airing Channel | Channel 58 |
| Airing Date | 1971 or 1972 |
| Genre | Children's television show, horror |
| Characters | Janice, Skin-Taker, Pirate Percy, Milo, Earl of Wax, Horace Horrible |
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What You'll Learn
Kris Straub's 2009 story
Straub's story is written in an epistolary form, with the plot revealed through interactions between different characters on the forum. This modern take on the epistolary structure adds to the believability of the story, as forum posts are typically full of grammatical errors. The story's format also allows readers to piece together the plot non-linearly, as if several individuals were sharing fragmented memories of the show.
"Candle Cove" was originally published on Straub's website, ichorfalls.com, which hosted his horror stories about the fictional town of Ichor Falls. The story quickly gained popularity, inspiring numerous YouTube videos, fan fictions, and fan art. In 2015, Straub self-published "Candle Cove" in a collection of short stories titled "Candle Cove and Other Stories".
The concept for "Candle Cove" came from a satirical Onion article titled "Area 36-Year-Old Still Has Occasional Lidsville Nightmare". Straub embraced the fan-powered evolution of his short story into an urban legend, acknowledging that the natural behaviour of such a story is to be appropriated and shared in the shadowy corners of the Internet.
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Candle Cove's author
Kris Straub is the author of Candle Cove. In 2009, Straub, a web cartoonist and author, published Candle Cove on his website ichorfalls.com, which hosted his horror stories about the fictional town of Ichor Falls. The story centres on a discussion about a fictional children's television series on an internet forum.
Straub was inspired to write the story after reading an article in The Onion titled "Area 36-Year-Old Still Has Occasional Lidsville Nightmare". The story quickly gained popularity, inspiring numerous YouTube videos and fan fiction. In 2015, Straub self-published Candle Cove in a collection of short stories entitled Candle Cove and Other Stories.
The story is written in an epistolary form, made up of correspondence between different characters on a forum. This format allows the plot to be revealed through the interactions between the characters. The story is told in the format of a thread on the fictional "NetNostalgia Forums", where a group of users discuss their memories of watching the show as children. As the users continue to reminisce, they begin to recall more disturbing details about the show.
The story has had such an impact that fans have created their own visions of the show and expanded upon its mythology, creating detailed episode descriptions, exploring the book that supposedly inspired the show, and producing countless pieces of fan art and even fan fiction. The story has also inspired numerous videos and music, with some claiming to be footage of the fictional show itself.
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The TV adaptation
In 2015, the Syfy Channel announced its intention to adapt the Candle Cove story for television as the first season of a newly announced series, Channel Zero. The show premiered on October 11, 2016, starring Paul Schneider and Fiona Shaw.
The fictional show-within-a-show follows a young girl named Janice, who imagines herself to be friends with marionette pirates. One of the pirates, Pirate Percy, is described as being built from parts of other dolls, including an old porcelain baby doll's head. Another character is the Skin-Taker, a skeleton pirate who wears clothing made out of children's skin.
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The show's premise
Candle Cove is an online horror story, or 'creepypasta', written by web cartoonist and author Kris Straub. It centres on a discussion about a fictional children's television series on an internet forum. The story is written in an 'epistolary' form, meaning it is made up of correspondence between different characters, with the main plot revealed through their interactions.
The story takes the form of a thread on the fictional 'NetNostalgia Forums', where a group of users discuss an unusual low-budget children's television show, Candle Cove, that they remember watching as children in the early 1970s. The show is about a young girl named Janice, who imagines herself to be friends with marionette pirates. As the users continue to reminisce, they recall more disturbing details about the show, such as a character known as the "Skin-Taker" (a skeleton pirate who wears clothing made out of children's skin) and an episode that consisted of the puppets flailing and screaming while Janice cries.
The story was inspired by a satirical Onion article titled "Area 36-Year-Old Still Has Occasional Lidsville Nightmare". Straub's story quickly became popular, inspiring numerous YouTube videos and fan fictions. In 2015, the SyFy Channel announced their intention to adapt the story for television as the first season of a newly announced series, Channel Zero. The season was named after the creepypasta and centred on a child psychologist who returns home to investigate the disappearances of his brother and other children in the 1980s.
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The show's characters
Candle Cove is an online horror story written by web cartoonist and author Kris Straub. It centres on a discussion about a fictional children's television series on an internet forum. The story is written in an epistolary form, made up of correspondence between different characters.
The fictional show-within-a-story follows the adventures of the Laughingstock, a pirate ship sailing through the land of Candle Cove. The protagonist is a young girl named Janice, who imagines herself to be friends with marionette pirates. The show features three main antagonists: the Earl of Wax, Horace Horrible and his Rubber Fishes crew, and the Skin-Taker, a skeleton pirate who wears clothing made out of children's skin.
The Skin-Taker is a particularly disturbing character, described as a dirty skeleton wearing a brown top hat and a cape made of sewn-together children's skin. He had glass eyes that were too big for his skull, and his appearance was accompanied by calliope music.
Horace Horrible is another villainous marionette, described as having a handlebar moustache above very tall, narrow teeth. He also wore a monocle on top of his moustache, leading some viewers to believe he only had one eye.
The show also features a sinister talking boat, and a character named Pirate Percy, who is not a very good pirate because he gets scared too easily. The puppet for Pirate Percy appeared to be made from parts of other dolls, including an old porcelain baby doll's head.
The characters and mythology of Candle Cove have been further fleshed out and expanded upon by fans, who have created detailed episode descriptions, fan art, and even fan fiction and videos inspired by the show.
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Frequently asked questions
Kris Straub.
On Kris Straub's website ichorfalls.com.
2009.
Epistolary, in the form of a thread on the fictional "NetNostalgia Forums".
An Onion article titled "Area 36-Year-Old Still Has Occasional Lidsville Nightmare".
