Friday Conversation: Your First Theatrical Friday Experience
I first saw Jason on the big screen opening weekend 1988. It was The New Blood and my dad foolishly took me to see the movie. My mom strongly disagreed, but Dad thought it would be no problem. During the movie there were about 6 drunk bikers yelling obscenities at the movie. That, along with the multiple nude scenes and number of swear words thrown about and my Dad never took me to see another horror movie again that decade. I had to sneak into Jason Takes Manhattan the following year with some friends, pretending to go to another movie. Good times indeed.
What was your first Friday movie in the theater and what was your experience like?
My first theatrical Friday was when I snuck into a theater showing Freddy vs. Jason. I had the misfortune of being born to late and missing out on all the good Friday movies, just bad luck I guess.
Anyway FvJ was awesome and absolutely loved seeing two horror icons go at it on the big screen. I haven’t missed a Friday movie sense and I don’t plan on doing so ever.
I had realy bad luck with Friday! I tried to go see Jason goes to Hell twice. First time my date stood me up so I didn’t go and the second time I got to the theater but the movie was gone. I was not a happy camper to say the least. I was also going to see Jason X but I ended up missing that one cause my buddy didn’t want to go to the movies that night and it was gone soon after that. Freddy vs Jason ended up being my first Friday in a theater. I got to see it twice. I also saw Friday 2024 twice
My first Friday in theaters was Jason Goes to Hell in 1993; I was only 8 at the time! My brother was only 13 so he finagled some people to buy us tickets as he usually did for R rated movies. It was really funny cuz although it was my first Friday in theaters I had already seen all the previous ones; I probably started watching them at age 5 or something. I remember seeing the nude scene and hearing everybody cheer in the crowd like crazy hahah….. I see 8 year old kids today and I say to myself “damn was I really that small when I saw Jason Goes to Hell in the theatres?????” GREAT TIMES LOL
unfortunately only the 2024 remake….Too young for other (I was born in ‘91)
i was born in 84. i was unfortunate enough to watch jason X in theatres,as well as f v j and 2024. I remember fondly browsing the vhs tapes in the video rental store and being in awe at the sheer number of Films, i had seen them all on vhs by the time i was like 8.
My first was The New Blood in 1988 at the tender age of 8 with my dad. My parents didn’t give a shit about the so called “effects” of horror films, my dad took me to see JTM and JGTH as well.
I am 25 and the first Jason i saw in a theatre was Jason goes to hell. When I was younger though I first saw I think it was either number 2 or number on either Billy Bobs late night or that UP all night show.
My first thaetrical Friday the 13th experience or the first Friday I saw in the theatre? My first experience was my friends and I doing our best to try to look of age to sneak into A New Beginning. The girls were wearing so much make-up they looked like Miami hookers and The guys were wearing the tallest cowboy boots that we could find! We looked ridiculous and we did not get in. We ended up at Quest For Fire. Sheesh! I remember leaving to go to the bathroom and watching Pam and Reggie run through the rain until someone pulled us away from the door.
I finally saw Part VI: Jason Lives in the theatre. I was still under age but I got in and I was so excited that I could hardly sit still. Since then, I have never missed one theatrically.
Happy Friday the 13th everyone!
friday the 13th part 3 in 3d,it was a sold out friday night.had just seen the other two on hbo.probably why i hate everything after part 5.well have a happy friday the 13th.
F v J was my first, because it was the first I could legally see in the theater, other than Jason X, and X looked dreadful to me. It was a lot of fun to see F v J with a group of people, so it is a bit of a let down to watch at home.
My best F13 theater-going experience was seeing Part 3, in 3-D, at Coolidge Corner in Boston. The crowd was fun, there was a drunk guy wearing a Jason mask, plus it was 3-D!!!! Other than the “hilarious” teen girls behind us who kept yelling aboot the ‘barn of death’, because they found it so funny the first 27 times they said it, it was a very memorable experience.
when did part 3 play at Coolidge Corner??? I saw Final Chapter there. I hope they play it again. Never saw it in 3-D except on DVD which is a friggin joke. They screwed up that transfer.
First theater experience was Jason Lives. I had been getting into the series on video and was psyched! I think I was 11 years old or something but nobody cared.
Afterwards my friend and I started making a Jason movie in his backyard, which had a pond. I walked out of the pond in full Jason garb and the neighbor saw and called the cops.
I feel so old compared to you guys ! My first Friday experience was in 1980 at 18 seeing Friday the 13th. I can remember taking a date to the movie and trying to act all cool. With the exception of Halloween and Black Christmas, there weren\’t too many slasher movies around at the time. I can remember the hype surrounding the movie and how everyone was talking about it. I have been fortunate to have seen all the Friday movies in the theatre. The most memorable has to be seeing Part 3 in the theatre.
My dad took me to see Friday the 13th Part V at the old KB Silver theatre in Silver Spring MD. He didn’t know what they were and I was thirteen years old. I didn’t know what they were either but all my friends did and I didn’t want to feel left out. The movie scared the crap out of me! The first five will always be the best in my opinion.
BTW: shout out to the kid who scared the shit out of me by the 7-11 that afternoon wearing a hockey mask!
My first time was in St. Matthews, SC at a crappy theater showing Part 4 and 5 in 1986 right before Jason Lives was released. We were late for 4, but it was awesome. I was a young kid with a kickass older brother who would always take me to movies like this. Great bonding moment and opened me up to this franchise.
My first in theater was Part 3. I was 13 lol…
Saw the first 2 on video, had read the Part 3 book, so I knew what to expect. Had actually read the book prob 25 times….lol
Couldn’t wait to see what Vera, Andy & Chili looked like, since they weren’t pictured in the book.
The whole movie, my 6 year old brother sat backwards and wouldn’t watch the movie.
And, I was disappointed when we got there and it wasn’t shown in 3D. Still have no idea why. But it was a great experience and the best movie in the series nonetheless.
Part 4 was awesome in the theater, it was packed! People were screaming & everything. A total circus experience.
I saw parts 1 & 2 during part 2’s initial theatrical run at the Monte Vista Drive-in in Gastonia, NC. I’ve been hooked ever since, and I have seen every Friday the 13th/ Jason film at the theater since. I was 7 years old.
My first was sneaking into Part 2. Fell in love and was scared at the same time.
It was great being able to see the chapters as they came out after that (snuck into part 3 as well – after that, I could rightly see them). There was something extra cool when they premiered on Friday the 13th dates.
Things all started going down hill when Manhattan came out. I was bored and rolled my eyes through most of it. I rented Goes to Hell and pretty much hated it.
It took Jason X for me to see another chapter in the theatres…not great, but I liked it much more than Manhattan and Goes to Hell.
Saw Freddy vs Jason in the theatres too but I’ll never consider that an F13 chapter.
And I fell for the re-boot and went on the premier date; it was okay but it’s a different audience then back in the day – it’s just so all in your face now – where is the hidden terror and slow suspenceful buildups and generally likeable characters? And no slicing string orchestration as a soundtrack – boo.
Happy Friday the 13th everyone.
I was never allowed to go see JGTM or JGTH! Too young they told me. So you can imagine how rebellious I got when I was old enough.
My first was Jason X. Very drunken hot mess. Don’t like to talk about it cuz I can’t remember it. That was that!
I consider my real first as Freddy vs. Jason because that was my best experience. Got to enjoy this awesome flick in a 96 Chevy T- top convertible at the drive-in. I hadn’t been to a drive-in in probably 10-15 years. The sound and the quality were awesome. We had an awesome view. Great night.
Ive only seen Freddy vs Jason and Friday the 13th 2024 in theaters. I would love to see them re-release the originals on the big screen though.
MY first thearical experience with Jason was JAsonj x in an screening for the former german distributor in 2024 (years befoe it was released officially). It was a screening at a trade-show for theatre-owners. ME and some other fans found out about it and asked the distributor if we coukld join … and thankfully they let us in. Then I saw JX again at the 2024 Fantasy filmfest with hundreds of fans.
I saw FvsJ at the 2024 Fantasyfilmfest, again with hundred of fans. Those experiences at the Fantasyfilmfests whre great. It was like one giant party.
Saw FsvJ 3 times at the regular thearical tun afterwards.
Watched the Remake 3 times in the theatre as well.
The New Blood was mine too!!. And I was 9!. Lol. It wasn’t my first F13 film, but my first in theatters, and I have seen every one since in the theater. 1988 was a good year. Elm Street 4 was the first Freddy movie I saw in the theater too.
I was born in ‘86, but I’m ashamed to say that my first big screen Friday was the ‘09 remake. I never had the time or the money to see them unfortunately.
I remember sneaking into Final Chapter because it was rated R and my buddy and I were underage so we would pay for some PG movie and then sneak into the theater where Friday was playing. Great memories.
Well the first F13 i saw in cins was 2024. Not good i know, but i nerver liked horrer films until i saw F13 on dvds
First theater experience was freddy vs Jason because i wasnt old enough to be allowed in the theater for the previous ones.. However my first F13 i saw on video as a kid was F13 1980 the original. I remember it being the scariest movie ever and I remember me and my friend turning it off after the girl gets the axe in the head…. we were probably ghost white at that moment. As a kid each time I would be in a movie rental store id stare at the many boxes with hockey masks and read the back. Finally I was able to rent them and enjoyed them.
Jason Takes Manhattan. While not a great entry IMO, or anywhere near the top of my list, it holds a special place for me and I get oddly sentimental about it to this very day whenever I re-watch it. It came out one day prior to my 11th birthday, and having been dropped off at the theater on my birthday for the afternoon/evening by my parents, several friends and I snuck in to a showing after we saw Honey, I Shrunk the Kids – lol. We didn’t see the whole flick, but over half of it. I had only ever seen The Final Chapter and Jason Lives on video at a friend’s house before that. Even then, I could kinda discern that Part 8 was pretty crappy overall, but the experience of sneaking in with friends will always be a fond one, so it has a soft spot for me, regardless.
Well this really takes me back. The first Friday film I saw was The Final Chapter in 84. My Mom used to take My brother and I to the drive in every Friday night. Kind of our family bonding time. I was really young like 6 or 7 so some of it I dont recall, except for the nudity and certain kills like Axel’s and Jimmy’s and of course Doug’s untimely head crushing in the shower. I was already familiar with the series because My Mom had previously shown Me the first 3. I guess You can say Shes the reason I became a Jason fan as well as a horror fan in general. I didnt really get scared off the first 3 except Ari’s infamous scene in part 1 at the end. But for some reason The final Chapter seemed more scary. The blood and FX were so realistic (courtesy of Tom Savini). And Ted White played a different kind of Jason…quicker, smarter and more pissed off. Maybe it was the axe he took to the head in part 3. But it was quite an experience Ill never forget. And since then Ive seen every friday film that followed in theatres.
I really hate to say this, but my first theatrical F13 was the remake…
But I’ve been a fan for years. I just wasn’t old enough to see Freddy vs. Jason. And Jason X wasn’t playing near me. lol
My first friday movie was Freddy vs Jason….i was 4 when JGTH came out and my friends never picked me up to see Jason x and it only played for one week at my theater, so FVJ was the first one i was able to go see on my own
15 was a good age for me….i finally got to see a Friday movie in theaters
I WAS A HAPPY TEEN!!!
I wasn’t born early enough to see the best ones in the theater. I started at Jason X and I make sure to see all the ones that have came out since then. Watched the old ones since I was a little kid though on VHS.
Ha Randy! Black Christmas, eh? Do I smell another Canadian? Awesome movie. I watch it every Christmas.
Jason Takes Manhattan opening day in 1989. I was 12 and had seen the previous 7 films several times. I was a big fan already.
I got to see Freddy vs Jason with my dad. My dad for some reason would always rent part 7 for me and my sister for us to watch when we were kids
The New Blood…mom bought me tickets, for me and my friend Jason, (insert dumb joke), and it was quite an experience. People were going nuts, cheering on Jason and loving every minute of it. The sleeping bag kill still ranks as my all time favorite, and the theater reaction was unforgettable. Kane Hodder is the man. All love to every Jason actor, and I’m a big fan of Mears and look forward to the sequel, but I grew up with Hodder as Voorhees, checking the closet at night as a kid (no way his big ass was under the bed). Happy Friday the 13th kids.
Unfortunately i was born in the wrong time period to have been fortunate enough to see the earlier fridays in theatre (I wish i could have seen part 3 in polarized 3d) my first experience was seeing freddy vs jason. While it was nowhere near one of the best in the series, hearing the ki ki ki ma ma ma in loud surround sound was spinechilling. Of all the movies and genres i have seen in theatres nothing beats the adrenalin buzz of a friday the 13th.
I was also too young to watch the best in theaters. While I had the others on video and watched them multiple times at home, my first theatrical Friday was Jason Goes to Hell.
My mom never liked my Friday films. Nevertheless, she promised me she’d take me to see Jason Goes to Hell. The trouble came when none of the theaters in town would carry it. Mom was so good on her promise, she drove me around until we found this small, dingy little yellow-and-red place with peeling paint; I mean, this was the *perfect* place to watch a horror film. JGTH didn’t turn out to be my favorite film in the series, but the setup and atmosphere was so great, I had a blast anyway.
Jason Lives was my first Jason Film! I remember being blown away by the fact that Jason was a ZOMBIE being that I’m a big Romero Fan! I remember thinking “Jason is THE UBER Zombie!!!!!!!”
Happy Friday the 13th! My first was Jason Lives – I was 9yrs old, and absolutely BEGGED my mom to take me (I did everything I could to make myself look good for the 2 weeks prior – chores, good grades, you name it). I haven’t missed an opening night since!
Mine was Jason Takes Manhatten in 89′ my dad took me to that after i had seen part 6 for my first time. ive been a fan ever since
I saw the midnight showing of Friday the 13th 2024. I really liked it. It was awesome.
The first theater experience with Friday The 13th for me was Freddy Vs. Jason on opening weekend. My dad took me and my brother to see it since I was only 13 at the time. I thought that movie was epic when I saw it lol. Now not so much. But oh man, my dad got pissed walking out of the theater becaause of how inappropriate he thought it was lol. That was nothing compared to his reaction when he took me to see The Devil’s Rejects. The funny thing about that is, he asked me if I wanted to see it and he thought it was a PG-13 movie about an exorcism lol.
I also saw the midnight showing of the remake. I remember when Jason X came out too and that was the year I started watching all of the Friday The 13th movies. I wanted to see it in theaters so bad despite terrible reviews. I ended up seeing it on dvd 2 years later, and I’m glad I didn’t see it in theaters.
Well, the first time I saw a F13 movie in the theater was when I saw Freddy vs. Jason on opening night.
My first one was part one. I was 7. The only one I didn’t get to see in the theater is the final chapter. Happy Friday the 13th everyone.
I am joining the ranks of the rest of the young ‘uns. I’m 28 and can vividly remember the Jason Takes Manhattan “Start Spreadin’ the News” commercials that were always on TV. It was the first F13 movie I saw, but the first one in theaters was Jason X. I saw it twice. It might have been a lackluster movie as far as the franchise is concerned, but I’m a dedicated fan and will go back and see a Jason movie twice if I can.
Friday the 13th Part 3 in 3D in 1999 in a convention at age of 9 years old ( =
Friday the 13th Part 5 and it was in VHS years (1988 or 1989).
I was 12.
Wonderful website!
Greetings from Spain.
Friday the 13th Part 3 3D in 1982 when it first opened to a packed theater. I remember when the opening disco horror title theme came on everyone started clapping along. It was awesome. The movie really blew me away!
Johnny Voorhees Nov 13th, 2024 at 11:43 am
unfortunately only the 2024 remake….Too young for other (I was born in ‘91)
I was born in 91 also. But the remake wasn’t my first.
I remember it, All the hype all the excitement for a new Jason movie. Yes I’m talking about Jason X. I remember clipping out the time for it in the news paper. I had my own little countdown. It was quite nerdy. I saw the movie,Loved it.It was too quickly removed from theaters where i live. I think it was in there for two weeks at the most. But over the years I realized what a shit bomb that movie is. I saw Freddy Vs. Jason afterward. Twice. Opening day also. And the New Friday. Twice. Midnight showing and with my free ticked entry that came with His Name Was Jason.
My First Friday In the theaters was unfortunetly Jason Goes To Hell I was 13 and I saw it opening day I was born in 1980 so i was too young to see the classic fridays Id give anything to see all of them on the big screen but my Hidef tv will have to do atleast now the fridays look beautiful on dvd and blu ray (keep em coming Paramount) I remember being pissed that Jason was barely in it Jason X was a lot of fun in the theaters only bad thing was it was dead at the theater But it was nice to see FINALLY a Jason in the woods movie on the big screen this year and I hope thats where they keep him from now on Best Friday movie experience was Freddy VS Jason and The Remake at midnight shows and a side note my first Halloween on the big screen Was 6 (blah) and first Nightmare was Wes Craven new nightmare which is by far the best after the 1st (atleast freddy was scary again) anyways my first was JGTH I did however love gttinhg the unrated cut on video whenj i rented I was 14 and the cashier said your lucky this is unrated if it was R your parents would have to rent it for ya I remember think what a fucking moron lol
anyways ive rambled enough
In Sweden they were banned and not theatrically released from part three or four, three I think. I was in my pretty early teens and hadn´t had the senses to discover this kind of movies by then.
I discovered Jason and the movies purely by chance on finishing watching a video and ending up in the middle of the paintball scene of part six on a movie cable channel in April 1989, and although the Swedish movie censorship eased up substantially in the 80´s/90´s, no distributor picked up any of the New Line installments, INCLUDING Freddy vs Jason!!!
But with Paramount back on board, with UIP as distributor, something fantastic happened with the 2024 reboot. It went up on the big screen here as well!
So on opening night I saw all the shows on the major Stockholm theates showing it, 7 PM, 9 PM and 11.30 PM. I did get in touch with UIP Sweden and got a brand new Jason mask for myself as a gift when they heard from me, and was offered to get one more as a prize for some contest on my Swedish fan site. But I was eventually sitting in full houses in that theater, just mumbling for myself “Hey people… fredagenden13e.se…”
It was just AWESOME, though, to finally, finally get to see JASON on the big screen. For the 9 PM show the theater had hired a Swedish Jason impersonator, who showed up in the mist of the place and walked among us for a while. There a pictures of this at the site in my link, the Swedish fan site.
We Swedish fans have since formed possibly the first formal fan club ever (?), Crystal Lake Campers Sweden. Is there any interest for such a thing on an international scale?
My first friday experience was part 3 in 3D and bean a little kid at the time it scared the hell out of me jason is the best out of all the horror movie icons.It was the greatest experience i have so to all the jason fan’s around the would JASON is watching you.
Jasonsfury:
Hey my story is about the same haha. Well my mom didn’t really disagree because when I was very young I saw the first 5 and just wasn’t old enough to see 6 (in their eyes) but I got the green like on New Blood and I remember reading about it in Fangoria and couldn’t wait to go see this.
I remember I couldn’t sleep the night before and my brother and I were so pumped to see Jason on the big screen finally. We finally got there and the crowd was INSANE! People were screaming at the movie and shouting and they actually STOPPED the movie and the theater came in shouting if everyone didn’t calm down they were kicking everyone out and it would have been chaos. All I remember is sitting there so mad thinking I wasn’t going to see the end, but we did!
good times man.. good times.
=mWd=
The New Blood opening week. I was 15 at the time. Snuck into it with my older brother. I remember paying for and watching Beetlejuice with him and his 2 friends. When it was over, we decided that we would take in a second show – for free. After strategically hiding out in the restroom, we followed his friends into Above the Law. After some prodding from me (and a few minutes of witnessing the great Steven Seagal), my brother decided to ditch his friends and follow me over to Part VII. Needless to say, it was the right choice.
The first Friday movie I seen in theaters was Jason X, (I was only 4 when Jason Goes to Hell came out so I missed it). When I seen Jason X I didnt even care that it sucked I was just beyond happy to see Jason on the big screen cause up till that point I had been watching all the old Paramount Friday’s on vhs that I copied while watch Joe Bob Briggs on Monstervision (for those of you who haven’t seen Monstervision ya’ll really missed out!) but anyways, do to my over excitment about seeing Mr. Voorhees on big screen I didn’t notice how…….blah….Jason X was. That was my first Friday in theaters, after hat I seen Freddy vs. Jason twice two nights in a row (not that I liked it but just cause it was Jason), then my Friday the 13th 2024 experience was…well, I show’d up at the theater, tickets were sold out, I sat in the front of theater untill it ended then I was the head of a huge line to get into the next showing, I had to pee beyond bad but I couldnt move or I’d lose my place in line and I didnt want to miss anything in the movie so I held that piss untill the movie was over, I cannot even begin to describe what it was like, I guess try watching the new Friday while grinding a pine cone on your junk, and that still doesnt even come close to how it felt. anyways, thats my First, second and worst Friday theater memories.
Mine was The New Blood for my birthday May 12th, 1988 – the movie came out on May 13th so it made for a great 11th birthday present. I saw it with my late friend Jerry who has since passed. For my brithday he bought me Wierd Al\’s BAD on record! Oh, I miss the 80\’s. I\’ve seen each one in the theatre since.
Well my 1st friday….if i remember correctly was part 6…..im a 70’s baby..born n 77….i just remember growin up as a kid….and being with my grandma…alot…..on tv…parts 1 2 and 3…especialy…and not being able 2 sleep at night….or if i did….Jason….was stalking me at everyturn…n the city…at the lake….like b4 i went 2 the opening night showing…of 2024…I had a dream as did we all…about Camp Blood’s…Death Curse…..and woke up….realizing its only the 12th…but you could just feeling…the creepyness….of all this shit….ps…..part 6 is allways gonna b my favorite…just because its the best begining…a friday the 13th film could have….they tried really hard to top….that 1….with Friday (2009)…but n my opinion…they still didnt…THAT MOVIE “FRIDAY THE 13TH…JASON LIVES…..IS THE BEST….ITS JUST THE CREEPYEST….PART 3 IS 2…..BUT 4 ME..THE OLDER ONES JUST HAVE MORE MEANING…MY TOP 5……1ST…IS PT6…2ND…IS PART 3…..AND 3RD…WOULD BE 2024…I THINK THEY RUSHED THE NEW ONE A LIL….4 US..THE FANS OF THE GENRE….BUT THE BEGINING AND THE DEATH SCENES…ARE BEST OF ALL THE PREVIOUS 10…AND MOST OF ALL…..THIS IS WHERE THEY REALLY HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD…AND I SAY GO AHEAD AND MAKE 1 MORE…..THEY SHOWED JASON…KILLING AT CAMP BLOOD…..N THE DAYTIME…..N THE LAKE….BITCHES WAS ALWAYS N THE LAKE AT NIGHT…BUT JSAON N BROAD AS DAYLIGHT WAS DIFFRENT…FELT LIKE ONE OF THOSE LOST CRYSTAL LAKE MOVIES….SOMEWHERES BETWEEN PART 1-5…YOU CAN THROW THIS ONE N ANYWHER N THERE…..OUTY 5000…..
My first Friday in theaters would was Part 12. It was awesome. There was so much energy in the audience. It was the midnight showing opening night. The lobby was packed with people wanting to see Jason. It was beautiful to me to see a legend reborn. My first Friday at all was Part 11. Honestly, though, I love all 12 and look forward to Part 13. The opening really got people going. It blew people away.
2009. friday the 13. my parents sat in the back while me and my girl were up front. jason jumps out. she grabs my arm. i hear my dad scream like a girl in the back. i love horror movies
Well, I’m with Randy: My first theatrical Friday was P2 in 1981, when I was 11. It was playing on a double-bill (yes, we had double-features way back then) with P1, and my 17-year-old brother and his friends took me and my friends to see it. Scared the crap out of me. And the next year, I was fortunate enough to see P3 in 3-D on the big screen. Awesome memories for me. Friday the 13th shaped my love for horror.
I guess I should clarify: P1 had already premiered on cable (for those of us that actually had it back then), so I had seen it prior to the double-bill w/ P2.
Part 6 at the drive-in. It was pretty much, a wild drunken party… Alot of fun.