Gud ev-vening. Velcome to another edition of Free on iTunes, where I dissect Apple’s media store to bring you all of the freshest, tastiest freebies this side of THE GRAVE!!!!! MUAHHHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

OK, this being the season for Halloween I sometimes get all creepified and have to share my creepiness with others, much to my wife’s dismay.

I love a good scare. The problem is, it take a bit to scare me. I guess I’m just getting so old that I’ve pretty much seen it all. Still, during this time of year, I like to watch creepy movies. The creepier the better. I comb through my DVD collection and pull out my top ten favs, and this year these include (in no particular order):

• Alien (The first one because it was creepy. The second is a great action flick. Can you believe that the iTunes Store does not have this movie?)
• 28 Day Later (I hear they are making a follow-on to 28 Weeks later, to be called 28 Months Later. Good title. Not on the iTunes Store either. Weird.)
• The Shining ( I swear, those two kids in the hallway give me the creeps every time)
• The Mist ( A newcomer, but it ranks high on the boo-factor. Not on the iTunes Store either. Spooky!)
• Silent Hill (Several scenes in that movie makes my skin crawl, the bathroom scene for one)
• Original Invasion of the Body Snatchers (Classic creepy goodness. No version on the iTunes Store. )
• Pan’s Labyrinth (Another newcomer, not sure which is the creepier, the stepfather or that thing in the hole. Another one missing.)
• The Blob (original) ( What’s creepier that a blob of flesh-eating goo on a stick? Only the newer version’s available. )
• From Dusk Til Dawn (It’s corny and creepy and Selma Hylek dances in it. What’s not to like? Apparently the iTunes Store doesn’t like because it’s not there either.)
• The Complete Original Twilight Zone Series (Creepiness that makes you think. You guessed it, not there either)

I won’t have time to watch them all, sadly enough, but I’ll make a sizable dent. I’m always on the lookout for more stuff to make my skin crawl.

The new movie, Quarantine, is high on the boo-factor (stuff that makes you jump) and it’s real enough to be just plain creepy. But that’s in a theater where you have to pay. This is about free stuff on iTunes, so lets talk about free creepy stuff.

Those of you who get the Chiller cable channel may already know that they held a contest and challenged viewers to make their on horror short movie. Well, they got a bunch of entries. They judged them and now they have announced the winners. Chiller created a 25 minute show that highlights the best of amateur horror shorts. The contest was called Dare 2 Direct and they awarded in three categories: Creepiest Character, Scariest Special Effects, and Best Picture.

Chiller’s Dare 2 Direct Award Show gives you peeks at winners and runner ups and shows the whole Best Picture short.

Some of these are pretty good and many of the folks who submitted entries are really creative.

It’s good stuff and it’s free.

What I’m going to talk about next is not necessarily scary, but it is weird, which can pass for scary or even creepy in certain circumstances.

Mike Monday has a new video out called Catnip. It looks like it’s Flash based, but don’t let that scare you, it’s actually pretty good.

Psychology students will see the video heavily doused with Freudian references, and children of the 70’s might think they’re reliving one of their better Acid trips, but the music rocks and it is free.

The video promotes Mr. Monday’s new album, Songs Without Words. I’m not a huge fan of electronic music, but I like this. Check it out.

Note: The Catnip video will appear in your music playlist, not in your video playlist where it SHOULD be (Apple!!).

OK, last, and definitely not least, I’d like to direct your attention to The Adventures of Cippi, the bushy tailed chipmunk with a special ability.

Yeah, this isn’t scary or creepy, it’s just plain fun.

My favorite of the eight episodes available on the iTunes Store is A Game of Farts. With that I will leave you to allow your imagination to wander.

The animation is first rate, the characters are spot on, and each episode has the potential to bring you to tears.

The Adventures of Cippi. Watch it.

OK Folks, that’s a wrap for this week. (Could that be a MUMMY’S WRAP? MUAHHHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!)
(Ahem! Sorry.)

Here’s more free stuff at the iTunes Store, with direct links:

Vern Seward is a writer who currently lives in Orlando, FL. He’s been a Mac fan since Atari Computers folded, but has worked with computers of nearly every type for 20 years.