From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Friday the 13th occurs when the thirteenth day of a month falls on Friday, which superstition holds to be a day of bad luck. In the Gregorian calendar, this day occurs at least once, but at most three times a year. Any month's 13th day will fall on a Friday if the month starts on a Sunday. In 2010 this applies to just one month - August. The same will apply (although in May) for 2011.

Phobia

The fear of Friday the 13th is called paraskevidekatriaphobia,^[1][2] a word derived from the concatenation of the Greek words Paraskeví (Παρασκευή) (meaning Friday), and dekatreís (δεκατρείς) (meaning thirteen), attached to phobía (φοβία)(from phóbos (φόβος), meaning fear). The term triskaidekaphobia derives from the Greek words "tris", meaning 'three', "kai", meaning 'and', and "deka", meaning 'ten'. The word was derived in 1911 and first appeared in a mainstream source in 1953.^[3]

History

According to folklorists, there is no written evidence for a "Friday the 13th" superstition before the 19th century.^[4][5][6] The earliest known documented reference in English occurs in an 1869 biography of Gioachino Rossini:

[Rossini] was surrounded to the last by admiring and affectionate friends; and if it be true that, like so many other Italians, he regarded Friday as an unlucky day, and thirteen as an unlucky number, it is remarkable that on Friday, the 13th of November, he died.^[7]

However, some folklore is passed on through oral traditions. In addition, "determining the origins of superstitions is an inexact science, at best. In fact, it's mostly guesswork."^[8] Consequently, several theories have been proposed about the origin of the Friday the 13th superstition.

One theory states that it is a modern amalgamation of two older superstitions: that thirteen is an unlucky number and that Friday is an unlucky day.

• In numerology, the number twelve is considered the number of completeness, as reflected in the twelve months of the year, twelve signs of the zodiac, twelve hours of the clock, twelve tribes of Israel, twelve Apostles of Jesus, twelve gods of Olympus, etc., whereas the number thirteen was considered irregular, transgressing this completeness. There is also a superstition, thought by some to derive from the Last Supper or a Norse myth, that having thirteen people seated at a table will result in the death of one of the diners.
• Friday has been considered an unlucky day at least since the 14th century's The Canterbury Tales^[3], and many other professions have regarded Friday as an unlucky day to undertake journeys or begin new projects. Black Friday has been associated with stock market crashes and other disasters since the 1800s.^[6][9] It has also been suggested that Friday has been considered an unlucky day because, according to Christian scripture and tradition, Jesus was crucified on a Friday.^[10]

On the other hand, another theory by author Charles Panati, one of the leading authorities on the subject of "Origins" maintains that the superstition can be traced back to ancient myth:

The actual origin of the superstition, though, appears also to be a tale in Norse mythology. Friday is named for Frigga, the free-spirited goddess of love and fertility. When Norse and Germanic tribes converted to Christianity, Frigga was banished in shame to a mountaintop and labeled a witch. It was believed that every Friday, the spiteful goddess convened a meeting with eleven other witches, plus the devil - a gathering of thirteen - and plotted ill turns of fate for the coming week. For many centuries in Scandinavia, Friday was known as "Witches' Sabbath."^[11]

Another theory about the origin of the superstition traces the event to the arrest of the legendary Knights Templar. According to one expert:

The Knights Templar were a monastic military order founded in Jerusalem in 1118 C.E., whose mission was to protect Christian pilgrims during the Crusades. Over the next two centuries, the Knights Templar became extraordinarily powerful and wealthy. Threatened by that power and eager to acquire their wealth, King Philip secretly ordered the mass arrest of all the Knights Templar in France on Friday, October 13, 1307 - Friday the 13th.^[4]

The connection between the superstition and the Knights Templar was popularized in the 2003 novel The Da Vinci Code. However, some experts think that it is relatively recent and is a modern-day invention.^[3][8][9] For example, the superstition is rarely found before the 20th century, when it became extremely common. One author, noting that references are all but nonexistent before 1907 but frequently seen thereafter, has argued that its popularity derives from the publication that year of Thomas W. Lawson's popular novel Friday, the Thirteenth,^[12] in which an unscrupulous broker takes advantage of the superstition to create a Wall Street panic on a Friday the 13th.^[4]

A further theory goes back to a combination of Paganism, Christianity, and the Battle of Hastings. For many, the number 13 was considered a lucky number (such as 13 lunar cycles each year), but with the efforts of Christianity attempting to degrade all things Pagan, they promoted 13 as an unlucky number, with Friday thus also being considered a bad day of the week. However, on Friday the 13th of October 1066, the decision was made by King Harold II to go to battle on Saturday the 14th of October, rather than allow his troops a day of rest (despite his army having made a long and arduous march from a battle near York just 3 weeks earlier).

This decision in going to battle before the English troops were rested (the English lost and King Harold was killed), further established Friday the 13th as an unlucky day.

In Spanish-speaking countries, instead of Friday, Tuesday the 13th is considered a day of bad luck.^[13] For example, the Fall of Constantinople, when the city fell to the Ottomans, fact which marked the end of the Byzantine Empire, happened Tuesday, May 29^th, 1453, that is why the Greeks consider Tuesday to be an unlucky day.^[13]

Social impact

According to the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute in Asheville, North Carolina, an estimated 17 to 21 million people in the United States are affected by a fear of this day. Some people are so paralyzed by fear that they avoid their normal routines in doing business, taking flights or even getting out of bed. "It's been estimated that [US]$800 or $900 million is lost in business on this day".^[5] Despite this, representatives for both Delta and Continental Airlines say that their airlines don't suffer from any noticeable drop in travel on those Fridays.^[14]

Rate of accidents

There are conflicting studies about the risk of accidents on Friday 13th. The Dutch Centre for Insurance Statistics (CVS) on June 12, 2008, stated that "fewer accidents and reports of fire and theft occur when the 13th of the month falls on a Friday than on other Fridays, because people are preventatively more careful or just stay home. Statistically speaking, driving is slightly safer on Friday 13th, at least in The Netherlands; in the last two years, Dutch insurers received reports of an average 7,800 traffic accidents each Friday; but the average figure when the 13th fell on a Friday was just 7,500.^[15][16] However, a 1993 study in the British Medical Journal that compared the ratio of traffic accidents between Friday 6th and Friday 13th stated that there is a significant increase in traffic-related accidents on Fridays the 13th.^[3][17]. There are indications that there are more accidents on Fridays than average weekdays (irrespective of the date) probably because of alcohol consumption. Therefore it is less relevant for this purpose to compare Friday 13th with, say, Tuesday 13th.

Occurrence

This sequence, here given for 2001–2029, repeats every 28 years from 1901 to 2099. The months with a Friday the 13th are determined by the Dominical letter (G, F, GF, etc.) of the year. Every month that begins on a Sunday will contain a Friday the 13th, and there is at least one Friday the 13th in every calendar year.

The longest period that can occur without a Friday the 13th is fourteen months, either from July to September the following common year (e.g. in 2001/2002 and 2012/13), or from August to October the following leap year (e.g. in 2027/28).

Each Gregorian 400-year cycle contains 146,097 days (365 * 400 = 146,000 normal days plus 97 leap days), 146,097 / 7 = 20,871 weeks, and 400 * 12 = 4,800 months. Thus, each cycle contains the same pattern of days of the week (and thus the same pattern of Fridays the 13th), but no day of the month up to the 28th can occur the same number of times on each day of the week (because 4,800 is not divisible by 7). The 13th day of the month is slightly more likely to be a Friday than any other day of the week.^[18] On average, there is a Friday the 13th once every 212.35 (212 and 241/688) days.

The distribution of the 13th day over the 4,800 months is as follows:

Planned events on Fridays the 13th

Some events are intentionally scheduled for Friday the 13th for dramatic effect. They include:

• Resident Evil 5 was released in the US and UK on Friday March 13, 2009.
• SAW - The Ride at Thorpe Park, UK was opened on March 13, 2009. Coincidentally the ride was marred by 'teething problems' for the first few days after it was opened^[19][20]
• Black Sabbath's eponymous debut album was released in the UK on Friday, February 13, 1970.
• The Opening ceremony of Athens Olympic Games took place on Friday, August 13, 2004.
• The 13th book in A Series of Unfortunate Events was released on Friday, October 13, 2006 by Lemony Snicket, also known as novelist Daniel Handler.
• Four of the twelve films in the Friday the 13th series, including the most recent (reboot of a second film), were released on a Friday the 13th. The sequel to the reboot is planned to be released Friday August 13, 2010.
• Joss Whedon's show Dollhouse aired its pilot on February 13, 2009.
• Every Friday the 13th thousands of bikers ride to the small town of Port Dover Ontario, Canada.
• Boston Lee Day is celebrated every Friday the 13th. Participants gather to enjoy the Boston Lee Drink for which this day is named.^[21]
• The popular Browser-based RPG Dragonfable has an undead war every Friday the 13th, with a common drop being the hockey mask all of the monsters wear.
• The 2009 film "2012" was released on Friday November 13, 2009.

Events on Friday the 13th

Due to the large number of events that happen in the world, a similar list could be compiled for any combination of day of the month and day of the week. Events that have been notable for being linked to the concept of Friday the 13th include:

• Hurricane Charley made landfall in south Florida on Friday, August 13, 2004.
• The "Friday the 13th Storm" struck Buffalo, New York on Friday, October 13, 2006.
• The asteroid 99942 Apophis will make its close encounter on Friday, April 13, 2029.^[22]
• The Andes Plane Crash of 1972 occurred on Friday, October 13, 1972.

References

External links

• Your Unlucky Day: The religious roots of triskaidekaphobia
• Some don't count on Lucky 13 - Via Magazine
• Calendar showing 13 years of Friday 13th
• A Bad-Luck Guide to Friday the 13th - image slideshow by Life magazine

From Wikia Gaming, your source for walkthroughs, games, guides, and more!

Friday the 13th
Developer(s)	LJN
Publisher(s)	LJN
Release date	1988
Genre	2D platformer
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer
Age rating(s)
Platform(s)	NES
Credits | Soundtrack | Codes | Walkthrough

Friday the 13th was released by LJN in April 1988 for the Nintendo Entertainment System, based on the popular slasher film series of the same name, though the game doesn't follow one particular movie. Rather, the game is a hodge-podge of selected films.

Synopsis & Game Play

Infamous serial killer Jason Voorhees is terrorizing another group of camp counselors. However, this time Jason is also targeting the fifteen children under their care. The player takes on the role of one of the six counselors to defeat Jason and any natural (and supernatural) foe that threatens the safety of the children and fellow counselors. The six counselors are:

• George (white male; slow runner, low jumper, slow rower)
• Paul (token black guy; medium runner, medium jumper, slow rower)
• Mark (white male; fast runner, high jumper, fast rower)
• Laura (white female; medium runner, medium jumper, slow rower)
• Debbie (white female; slow runner, low jumper, fast rower)
• Crissy (white female; fast runner, high jumper, fast rower)

The game starts at daytime, goes to sunset, and then nighttime, remaining dark until Jason is defeated. During daytime, the only enemies the player faces on the the main routes are zombies and Jason. At sunset and into night, more foes appear.

The game is broken up into two play modes: a run-&-jump side-scroller (while outside and in the cave) and a RPG-eque mode (while inside a cabin or room).

When Jason attacks a counselor or a cabin of children (each cabin houses 5 children), an alarm sounds and the player has 60 seconds to respond. Failure to reach the counselor/children in time will result in the death of the victim(s). The game ends when either all the camp counselors or campers die.

Enemies

• Jason Voorhees: The main villain. Very tough and has a long life line. He's the only enemy that can attack somebody inside a cabin. Occasionally swims through Crystal Lake, damaging any counselor that's transversing the body of water.
• Zombies: Jason's previous victims (presumably). Weak foes that sprout out of the ground. The player will encounter these the most (maximum of three zombies onscreen). After killing three zombies, the player can obtain a lighter (more on that below). Zombies also jumps out of the water of Crystal Lake while the player rows to or from the children's cabins.
• Crow: Airborne foe. Comes onscreen high in the air, then sweeps down for one attack before flying off. The weakest enemy as one hit from any weapon will stop it.
• Wolf: Four-footed predator. Hunts in the forest (starting at sunset[?]) and in the cave. The wolf will run up and leap at the controlled counselor. Can take several hits before going down.
• Bat: Found only in the cave. Flies up and down; doesn't aim for the counselor.
• Jason's Mother: The severed head of Pamela Voorhees. Hidden inside a room within the cave, Jason's mother floats around and strikes at the player. Can take a fairly good amount of damage, but defeating this fiend will net a useful weapon or item. Battling Pamela Voorhees is purely optional and isn't required to beat Jason.

Weapons & Items

Weapons

• Rock: Default weapon. Very weak (3 hits to destroy a zombie); limited range; thrown at an arc.
• Knife: First weapon upgrade; obtainable very early in the game and available throughout. Weak (2 hits to destroy a zombie) but fast; flies straight across the screen. Careless jumping can cause the counselor to grab a knife that appears in midair, losing whatever weapon he/she was holding at the time.
• Machete: A strong, fast weapon in that it can take down a zombie in one strike. Flies across the screen like the knife but with a wider vertical width. Can be obtained by 1) killing a large amount of enemies, 2) defeating Jason's mom on Day 1 of the game with rocks or the knife, or 3) exploring one of the cabins hidden in the forest (you will need a key to get inside) though the machete only randomly appears.
• Ax: Another strong weapon that flies across the screen. More powerful than the machete, but slower. Can be obtained by 1) defeating Jason's mother on Day 1 with the machete, or 2) randomly finding it inside one of the forest cabins on Day 2 or 3.
• Torch: The second-most powerful weapon in the game. Has a limited range and is thrown at an arc like the rocks, but the torch remains on the ground for several seconds and destroys any minor foes that run into it. Can be obtained inside one of the larger cabins by lighting most of the fireplaces (which are found inside the larger cabins), including the the two by Crystal Lake.
• Pitchfork: The ultimate weapon. Powerful, fast, flies straight across the screen and through minor enemies, defeating them all. Can only be obtained by defeating Jason's mother on Day 3. There is only one pitchfork available (unlike the other weapons).

Items

Note: All these items can only be found during the side-scrolling part of gameplay unless otherwise noted.

• Lighter: Used to light the fireplaces found in the larger cabins. Can be obtained early on by slaying at least three zombies.
• Key: Unlocks the hidden cabins inside the forest and cave. Can be found shortly after obtaining the lighter.
• Vitamin jar: Health item that can restore a little bit of the player's lifeline after it has been depleted or can be used on another counselor in the RPG-ish mode. Can be obtained during the daytime and sunset time periods (the vitamin jar seems to be more abundant in the forest).
• Pamela Voorhees' sweater: This article of clothing protects the wearer from random appearances of Jason during the side-scrolling part of the game and reduces damages received from Jason by 50%. Only one is available, which can be obtained by defeating Jason's mother on Day 2 during the RPG-like mode.
• Flashlight: Lights up the inside of the cave to find the hidden passages that could lead to the hidden cabin where Ms. Voorhees' severed head resides. The flashlight can be obtained in RPG-mode after lighting all the fireplaces.
• Clues: Notes that sometimes gives the player directions in finding a weapon. Can be found inside the larger cabins by looking around.

Reception

Like most movie-based games, LJN's 'Friday the 13th' was a fairly poor game. The graphics were sub-par (whenever Jason used the ax in the RPG-mode, it looked like he was holding a bath brush) and gameplay got cheap later on when Jason became lightning fast in RPG-mode, making the battles very difficult. Many critics panned this game and 'Friday the 13th' appeared on several 'Worst NES Games' lists (Nintendo Power magazine, in Vol. 100, declared 'Friday the 13th' the worst game ever). However, despite its warts, the game seems to have an allure for some gamers. Some people have also stated that 'Friday the 13th' was one of the forerunners of survival-horror games like 'Resident Evil' and Silent Hill.

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