The Downfall and Reformation of Hiram Stokely: A Beach Party Essay

It is once again that time of year to discuss the artistic merits of the acclaimed Beach Party series, friends! Today we will be delving into the life and times, and afterlife of the on and only Hiram Stokely...

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Before we know of the beginning of this man's life, we will see where he is at the beginning of the movie/story.    A deceased spirit who wishes to make up for his conniving ways before he moves on to Heaven.

Hiram Stokely began life as an industrious and poetic[reverse?] young man interested in the trade of  the theatrical. He worked his way up the ranks of the circus world, wowing audiences everywhere with his magic tricks, including the greatest of all-The Girl in the Invisible Bikini! Sadly, tragedy struck when his love and partner Cecily died in an accident during a performance. Hiram retreated from public life and inside himself, where he became hardened to the feelings of others and decided to use his = skills for crime...

The rest of this man's life sailed by, as he conned people out of their money and got rich off of the proceeds, living inside a stately old Gothic mansion (complete with Chamber of Horrors, of course), under the guidance of his sinister lawyer Reginald Ripper. Eventually he passed away, finding himself in his crypt, and is met by the spirit of his long departed love Cecily. She has been sent from the afterlife to help Hiram redeem his past misdeeds and make his way up to =. While he can't leave the confines of his crypt, only able to watch the actions at the house from his magic ball, the ghostly Cecily will take a more proactive approach to try and defend those present at the will reading from the wiles of the murderous lawyer.

While Hiram may have been given the chance to pull off one last good deed before he moves on, he's not being given a reprieve only after his death, for if you pay attention, you'll realise he already invited his heirs over for the will reading when he was alive. Since he has no descendants of his own, you're probably wondering who they are, and that's a good question. They're the children of the victims who lost [everything] due to Stokely's con-tricks!

Heirs Chuck and Lily are skeptical at first, but the will turns out to be on the level. While even to the end Hiram still had a love for the theatrical, and felt that rewards should never come too easily to those who haven't necessarily earned it, he ultimately left the entirety of his fortune to [the families of] those he hurt in life. It's one thing to suddenly try and redeem oneself when already dead and acutely aware of where they might end up, but the fact this this process began earlier shows that he was a changed man before he was in the grave. Perhaps this is what earned him that post-mortem chance in the first place!

In the end, Reggie Ripper is stopped, and the money is divided between those to who it belongs, though they may have to beat three dozen teenagers away in order to access it. They're an easily pleased lot though. Give 'em a Chamber of Horrors to party in and they're happy. Cecily returns to Hiram with the good news, and they set out to begin their new journey.

In the closing of this day, I think we should all raise a glass in salute to the late Hiram Stokely, and may he wow many in the afterlife with those famous invisible bikinis!...

*PS, as is an April Fool's Day post I'm of course taking the piss to an extent, but partially sincere. I'm not actually making anything up this time! The Boris Karloff-Susan Hart scenes were of course shot after the fact when the movie was completed, but it's interesting to think that even the original offscreen Hiram Stokely is still an unexplored wealth of character! The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini of course comes recommended, though with the proviso that it's perhaps more fun than 'good'...

crystal ball
sign, 9:44, 13:45, 22:50, 25:13