We horror nerds have long suspected that there was more to Michael Myers than met the eye, so imagine our surprise when John Chambers, the make-up man on Halloween II (1981), was revealed to have been a CIA contact. For helping free Americans held during the Iran Hostage Crisis, Chambers received the Agencys Intelligence Medal Of Merit as youll know if youve seen Argo (2012). In the movie, Chambers helps create a fake sci-fi movie looking to shoot in Iran during the crisis, and its implied that this is by no means his first assignment. Which begs the question: what else did he do for the Agency? Perhaps Chambers introduced his CIA handlers to Myers, who even at age 6 had shown a remarkable capacity for violence. Hed grow up to be a stealthy, indestructible assassin, but he didnt get that way by accident. He had training. This helps fill in the gaps in our understanding of Myers, such as how a mute 21-year-old, kept in solitary confinement for 15 years, could drive a car. It also explains his remarkable ability to survive acts of shocking violence that would destroy an ordinary human being. Make no mistake, Myers is not like you and me: he is the ultimate super soldier, imbued with great powers by his CIA trainers, who use him to wreak havoc each Halloween. For a list of those powers, read on.
Ian Watson is the author of 'Midnight Movie Madness', a 600+ page guide to "bad" movies from 'Reefer Madness' to 'Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead.'
