Happy Birthday To Me (Episode 11) - Hot Date with Dan and Vicky

Melissa Sue Anderson was eager to break out of the house that Michael Landon built when she signed on for 1981's slasher Happy Birthday to Me.  She was still screaming and crying but this time it was from trying to avoid being shish kebabbed by a mysterious killer and not from the trials of prairie life.  She was joined by tough guy film legend Glenn Ford as her psychiatrist, Canadian stalwart Lawrence Dane as her preoccupied Dad, future soap superstar Tracey Bregman as her best friend and fledgling actors Lisa Langlois, Lesleh Donaldson, Matt Craven and David Eisner who would all go on to healthy careers.   Dan and Vicky discuss Happy Birthday to Me's place in slasher history and how it's twisty and convoluted plot was a departure for the genre.  They also take a look at the minor controversy that greeted the film when it premiered on DVD in 2005 and how the Canadian government's tax system of the era inadvertently gave rise to the beloved horror subgenre affectionately titled Canuxploitation.   There's a tribute to the late Wes Craven, a look at the music of May 1981 (Sheena Easton and Kim Carnes lovers take note) and some Straight Out of Compton love. Hot Date 11:  Happy Birthday to Me!  You're all invited to Dan and Vicky's party!  Blow out the candles and cut the cake.