Casper and Wendy

 Halloween is so magical as a child and when you can keep that spirit all year long that is the best. Casper the Friendly Ghost did that for me. Nothing beat early mornings before school when you could catch The Ray Rayner Show out of Chicago. Thanks to Uncle Ray I became a fan of Beatle Baily, Aquaman, and Casper to name a few. Good old Casper he was on all the time and I was such a happy boy for it. Still to this day, Casper is one of my favorite things to watch during the haunting season. 

And it did not end with just the cartoon we had Books, Comics, Records, Video Games, and of course Movies. And I had them all in fact we still have the record and will be playing it sometime soon in the Man Cave. 

And it's not just that classic from 1995 with my heartthrob Christina Ricci that is watched every year, oh no let us not forget those offal sequels like Casper: A Spirited Beginning with Steve Guttenberg from 1997 (Very hard to find) to the much better Casper Meets Wendy in 1998 with Hillery Duff playing our cute little witch. Now the one we also watch year after year Casper's Haunted Christmas from 2000. This Christmas special came out on Halloween that year of all Hallmarkesq things to do. Yet this fully animated special is rather cute and fun at the same time. And last and the one that seems to be on the most the 2006 Scare School. Again a fully animated special with the voices of Bob Saget and Jim Belushi. Casper was enrolled in a Scare School so he can learn to be a properly scary ghost. However, he uncovers an evil plot and it's up to him, a mummy, and a zombie girl to save the day! Yep, another October release for our favorite ghost. 

Then there was Wendy, as a witch, Wendy possesses a force known as magic, little is known about the exact origin and working of magic in Casper universe, but it can be used for a wide of purposes, including matter transmutation, control of the elements of nature, energy projection, among many other forms of magic. Wendy was introduced as a back-up feature as well as a companion for Casper in Casper the Friendly Ghost in May of 1954. Her popularly quickly grew into her own title, Wendy the Good Little Witch, in 1960. 

In addition to Casper, Wendy comics frequently feature Wendy's "aunties" Thelma, Velma, and Zelma, with whom she shares a cottage in a haunted forest. The story in the comics "Remember When" recounts how Wendy was abandoned as a baby on their doorstep. The sisters tried to raise her to practice black magic, but Wendy consistently called on good spirits for white magic. Also, a popular plotline has the aunts becoming frustrated over Wendy's determination to use her magic powers to do good only. Unlike Wendy, her aunts have green warmish skin of the type associated with Halloween witches; most adult witches seen in Wendy's stories have similar skin, implying that, in the Harvey Comics universe, it is a trait witches develop after reaching a certain age. One story states that the reason for this is because witches don't get enough sleep.

So when everybody else was off watching Scooby-Doo I was all about Wendy and Casper, they will always be a heartwarming Halloween treat in our house. 

As for Ray Rayner well your in luck as his last show has been posted for everybody's enjoyment.

While your traveling the friendly skies on your broom make sure to zoom over to the Countdown to Halloween page for more spooky fun.