20 Top Old School Made-For-TV Horror Films

From “The Night Stalker” to “Gargoyles” and beyond, the 1970s and 1980s presented a number of bonafide classics … and trashy faves.

Introduction

Lists.

I always get myself in trouble with lists.

But that’s half the fun.

If, like me, you are of a certain age (56, here), you did not have the benefit of streaming services or more than a couple of premium cable outlets during your formative years. And yet, if today’s plethora of televised product represents the true Golden Age of Television, having surpassed in quality and daring classic programming from decades earlier (we’ll argue that at another time), the early 1970s to the end of the 1980s represented a whole other Golden Age …

The Golden Age of Made For Television Horror

As an inveterate old school TV movie viewer — horror being my genre of choice — when I set out to write this article I found myself confronted with an intimidating pool of product from which to select.

I make no claims to being a completist. The films that follow are ultimately an accurate delineation of those that most personally resonated.