I was going through photos for the book I’m agent shopping — “How To Live Bullshit Free: A Practical Guide To Not Killing Yourself” — and found this one of a much, much, MUCH younger version of me and a… “friend”, let’s call him, The Crypt Keeper.

From season three till the bitter end, I wrote every word the Crypt Keeper, um, “said”. It was a strange gig — pulling my hair out to come up with words for a puppet to speak (in addition to writing and producing the Tales From The Crypt episodes).

The Crypt Keeper was designed by special effects wizard Kevin Yagher (who directed all the Crypt Keeper segments) and was actually the product of 6 separate puppeteers. One was the CK’s right hand, one his left, one controlled his head movements and the others worked the animatronic controls that gave remarkable life to the Crypt Keeper’s face.

Everything was synched to the vocal track I’d recorded with Jon Kasirer, the actor who provided Crypt Keeper’s voice. Working with Jon was always great fun. With the vocal track playing, Kevin would call “Action”, the puppeteers would go to work and The Crypt Keeper would seem to fill with life.

I don’t believe in magic but… our minds play tricks. While he was moving and talking and acting like the Crypt Keeper, there was no puppet. There was only the Crypt Keeper.

Then Kevin would call “Cut!” The take would end. The puppeteers would sit back — and the Crypt Keeper, now lifeless, would sag to the surface of his table like, well, a lifeless puppet.

It was like watching him die each and every time. It’s still disconcerting how disconcerting it was.