Hot Topic was our hero. I know those aren’t words that are uttered all that frequently, but let me take you in Doc Brown’s DeLorean for a moment. Circa 2000 or 2001 when Ghostbusters was almost completely off the radar, we considered ourselves lucky the moment that official merchandise was being released through Hot Topic in the form of a red “ringer” t-shirt and a hoodie. It was the most we had been enticed with since Extreme Ghostbusters, and we loved every minute of it (you’ll also recall that there was a cell phone cover for the candy bar Nokia phone of choice released at the same time). That red ringer shirt was a big deal, and the message boards were lit up with fans trying to track one down (long before the internet Hot Topic site made things accessible).

Here’s the scary part… I still have that t-shirt. In fact, in complete contrast to 2001, I now have enough Ghostbusters t-shirts that I could probably wear a different one every day for two weeks straight. That’s a lot of damn Ghostbusters t-shirts, and many of them (especially the older ones including the aforementioned “red ringer”) are ugly as sin. I never wear 80% of them.

Why does this come up? Why is Troy waxing semantics about t-shirts? I moved for what seems like the fiftieth time out here in Los Angeles last June and I sat, looking at the stack of Ghostbusters t-shirts in front of me and actually faced a dilemma that “Me of 2001” would never have dreamed of… should I give a few of these to Goodwill?

Aside from my GB Video Game promo shirt and my 25th Anniversary Logo shirt, I never wear them. In fact a few of them were only purchased because of the excitement that I finally had the ability to buy Ghostbusters shirts again. So why am I hanging on to several of these shirts? Nostalgia? Not really, unless I was nostalgic for the “I’ve Been Slimed” shirt that I had as a kid (that, coincidentally you can now buy again from the GBFans.com store). I’m telling you, I could donate a handful of these and before you knew it, you’d see an army of homeless dudes in Santa Monica rocking the No-Ghost logo.

Maybe that’s indicative of how readily available the shirts are now; I can buy a variety of shirts from a variety of places. And, that being the case, maybe the allure of holding onto the shirts from nearing ten years ago had lost its luster. As B.B. once famously said, maybe the thrill is gone? I’m curious if anyone else out there has gone through this transition or faced a similar dilemma?

As an aside, I’d like to thank everyone for their comments and questions following what was just the introductory column of The Private Sector. I figured 9/10ths of folks would be scratching their heads saying, “Net who? That’s a lame name for a lame guy.” (It is, and I am). I’m going to run one question per week with a short answer that hopefully everyone will benefit from… this week’s question comes from “Bennythegeek”, who – in a great letter asks:

“We all know that everyone involved in getting the project running have all said ‘maybe, possibly, it will happen, 2010 start date, 2011 release date & need a production number.’ How can we all sit here and just accept what we’re being told about Sony Pictures not greenlighting the project? Truth be told, ever since the first hints of a new GB video game the GB merch business (ie. figures, RGB box set, ect.) has been booming! But why would they approve it all if Sony had no intentions of doing a third film? Think about it, man! What’s the best way to get a huge fanbase for your film BEFORE it hits the screen?”

Benny, good point – here’s the scoop. The term “greenlight” is thrown around outside of Hollywood quite a bit as the term for “go ahead”. Makes sense – “I just got the greenlight from the wife to play poker tonight”, right? But in reality, here in LaLa Land, it’s a little different. The greenlight isn’t as informal as a “blessing” or “permission.” The greenlight is the term for the official moment that all pieces are in place for the actual physical production of a film to start (that’s also when the majority of the funding is provided by the studio or by the financial backer to start spending money, hence Dan Aykroyd’s quip several weeks ago). Sony is well aware that a third Ghostbusters movie is in pre-production, in fact – they’re the ones that put in the order and approved the new screenwriters to be commissioned to write the film. They have every intention of making another film – as long as all of the proverbial ducks and in a row (and committed to marching in step). So there’s no deception or curtain pulling involved. Once all parties (including the studio) are happy with the screenplay, once agreements are put into place for key roles including the directors, lead actors, etc., and (without going too far into the business side of things) a very specific line-itemized budget has been submitted and approved, a movie receives the greenlight and (generally) principal photography starts very quickly after that. Sometimes productions WILL have all the pieces in place, but the studio doesn’t want to commit to the financial obligation – and the movie will sit in a purgatory state, infinitely waiting for “the greenlight.”

That said, it’s a pretty safe bet that licensing and merchandising is working very closely with the marketing departments at Sony on a very specific strategy to increase awareness. None of these home video releases, toy releases, etc. is coincidence. These things are planned years in advance… I pause for dramatic tension on this ominous note because I want to tease that there’s someone, wearing a very nice suit, sitting in a very nice desk chair, that knows exactly what’s in store for us all over the course of the next couple years. Think about that…

Whew. That’s all the space the guys are kind enough to give me this week, as always keep your thoughts and questions coming to me at netsolo@aol.com and here in the comments sections of the respective sites. See you next week!

[The Private Sector is a weekly syndicated column written by Troy Benjamin presented every Wednesday on Proton Charging, GB Fans, and Ghostbusters.net as an op-ed look at the goings on in the world of the Ghostbusters franchise.]

Welcome to The Private Sector, where results are expected and patent clerks still continue to earn next to nothing… This is a bit of a unique experiment as, for the first-time ever; we’re simulcasting an op-ed article across three Ghostbusters fan sites at the same time. Syndication comes to Ghostheadom, you might say.

I know what you’re thinking right about now… So what exactly is this all about, and who the hell is this guy?  Is he really that narcissistic to want an article on three websites? First of all, the answer is yes. But here’s the lowdown on what The Private Sector is and who I am.

The Private Sector is going to be an editorial column on recent goings on, a bit of nostalgia, and a whole lot of gibberish spewing from my crazy mind about the crazy community we have. Every Wednesday, Proton Charging, GBFans, and Ghostbusters.net will syndicate the column to each of their sites for your reading pleasure (or displeasure, if you can’t stand me).

Which brings us to the next question that I thought I was affectively going to dodge: who am I? Well, I’m the old man around these parts that grumbles and shouts at people to get off his lawn. Posing under the super-chick-magnet handle NetSolo for close to almost fifteen years, I was the maniac behind the wheel at Ghostbusters HQ for what seems like an entire lifetime. If you haven’t heard of me, I can’t blame you; I had taken a bit of a backseat in recent years when it came to community goings on. During that time Ghostbusters, as the little franchise that could, exploded and left me behind. I’m actually working in the entertainment industry now and have signed so much of my life away to non-disclosure agreements that make discussing anything that isn’t my opinion increasingly difficult. If you’re interested in my credentials, you’re more than welcome to stalk me on the interwebs over at stillplayingwithtoys.com. Or you can do a Google search for Troy Benjamin – I’m the one that’s not a football player or porn star. Okay, well maybe I aspire to be the latter. But that’s beside the point.

The Private Sector isn’t just an outlet for me to pull a Michael Corleone and come back to the family and get back involved; it’s also very interactive as well. Especially with Ghostbusters III on the horizon, there can be a whole lot of confusion as to how the development and pre-production process for a feature film works. When is a project greenlit? What is needed for that greenlight from the studio? What’s going on behind closed doors now? If you have any questions, no matter how great or small, film related or not, or if you just want to send rampant hate mail - feel free to fire away to netsolo@aol.com (yes, I’m still on AOL – if that’s any indication as to what a fossil I am around these parts).

All right, so with the pleasantries out of the way – we now resume you to your regularly scheduled GB site programming. Tune in next Wednesday for the first REAL column of The Private Sector!

Please post your comments on the Ghostbusters Message Board, just until the site re-launches with a proper commenting system.

RSVP on Myspace or Facebook.

Ghostbusters.net and Graham Crackers of Wheaton, Illinois — part of the greater Chicagoland area — are excited to inform you that on October 15th we will host a Ghostbusters event in honor of the Graham Crackers Comics Exclusive cover to Ghostbusters: The Other Side #1 and the long-awaited return of Ghostbusters to the world of comics!

This day long event will begin with a midnight opening for the impatient masses, as the store will be open from midnight until 1 am in the morning Wednesday, Oct. 15.  The day events listed below will take place between 11 am - 8 pm at night on Wednesday, Oct 15 at the Graham Crackers in Wheaton.

• Ghostbusters: The Other Side artist Tom Nguyen will be here doing an in-store signing!
• Exclusive screening of The Real Ghostbusters DVD Collection sponsored by Ghostbusters.net, including special features never before seen and fully restored episodes of The Collect Call of Cathulhu and Take Two.
• Ghostbusters.net / 80’s Tees, Cereal Geek Magazine w/ The Real Ghostbusters on the cover, and The Real Ghostbusters Promo DVD in-store giveaways.
• Day long Ghostbusters movie marathon-including episodes of the Real Ghostbusters.
• A Classic Ghostbusters video game tournament.
• Coloring contest for kids of all ages-including prizes
• Replica of the Ghostbusters Headquarters being built in store

For all of those in Chicagoland looking to sample The Real Ghostbusters DVD special features, pick up the first edition of Ghostbusters: The Other Side and meet the artist behind the comic, this is the event to attend.  Who knows, you might even come home with some great Ghostbusters swag in the process.

RSVP on Myspace or Facebook now!

For more on Ghostbusters: The Other side, check out Newsarama’s exclusive first look at the new comic series.

I reached a new level a geekdom. Luckily for me, it’s a healthy dose (no pun intended, of course).

Late in the summer, I purchased a vintage Raleigh 10 speed bicycle off of Craigslist. This was the end of a long search. You see, I am 6′ 7″ and an XL bike frame isn’t easy to find… let alone a used one! And to find one that is in good shape and not ugly as sin is nearly impossible! Yet fate dealt me a good hand and I found a bike that was the right size, in great condition and a fun color scheme of white, red and chrome.

It’s that color palette that first caught my attention. It reminded me of the Ecto-1. After a little research, I also discovered that the bike was made in 1984, the same year Ghostbusters was released. With that in mind, I had no choice but to flush out the Ghostbusters theme and turn this old 10 speed into an Ecto-10 Speed.

I purchased a pair of vintage WW2 khaki bicycle saddle bags off of ebay for cheap, as well as a Ghosbusters logo and Venkman name tag patch to sew on the bags. I mounted the saddle bags to a chrome rear wheel rack (to match the chrome fork in front) with a glossy red wood shelf down the center that I added (to add extra support for the saddle bags and continue the color scheme).

With some khaki handlebar tape, and a hand sewn top tube pad to bridge the color gap between the front and back of the bike, I now have an Ecto-10 Speed.

If you combine Ghostbusters and Bicycling, the official colors would be red, white and green!

Whether I riding in the city streets, or on bike trails, I am always representing the Ghostbusters community on two wheels.

Ron Daniels and Jason Hughes of Ghostheads: The Ghostbusters podcast deliver the fourth episode.  Show notes and audio below.

News - Minutes 1:25 -  10:50

• Ghostbusters 3 -WHAT?!
• Grahamcrackers.com Exclusive Cover
• GB Fans Chat Room
• The game comes out when? I DON’T KNOW!

A Word from our Sponsor - Minutes 10:50 - 11:15

• Featured Fanwork: The Chronicles of Gozer - Minutes 11:31-14:27

Chat and Emails - Minutes 14:30-30:00

• Email your questions/comments/suggestions to ghostheads@gmail.com

Before I begin the final chapter of my Real Ghostbusters blog series, I would like to thank Alex Upton of The Real Ghostbusters.com for mentioning my From Real to “Real” series. When I started this, I was hoping it would be enjoyed by fans, but to have other members of the Ghostbusters community validate the work is icing on the cake!

We now come to the final chapter of my series, “From Real to “Real”. We’ve had a fun ride together. Five fruitful chapters full of fun memories. We laughed, we cried, we made out in the back of the Ecto-1 and we both felt awkward the next day. But we got past it and we still signed each other’s year book. I’m gonna miss you From Real to “Real”. But we must look to the future, move forward, and continue our lives. So without further to do, I bring you the final chapter… Egon Spengler!

Out of all the Ghostbusters to be translated from film to cartoon, Egon is the most extreme. None of the choices made with his design are subtle, but the perfectly capture the character traits the embody Egon.

Those traits being:

• Genius
• Extremely Logical
• Disciplined
• Introverted/antisocial
• Honest/No Filter
• Pessimistic

As you can see, the two Egons are extremely different, yet share a commonality. There are a few features that were crossed over from Harold Ramis. Notably the lips (though they are fuller in the animated version), the chin, the large ears, and the size of the nose in proportion to the face. But there are also drastic changes. First off, they shaved quite a few pounds off the movie counterpart…and the movie Egon was already a thin chap! They made the cartoon Egon down right twig like! But this allows the artist to define his bone structure, which gives Egon’s face a more unique appearance, and allows him to stand out from his more fleshy teammates. While they kept the round rim glasses, they made them red rather than black or gray. That is because in animation, color pallete is important and helps separate characters. Not only does it allow him to stand out from any other character who may have glasses, it also compliments the yellow of his hair. And that segways me to Egon’s greatest change…this hair! It only draws one similarity to the movie counterpart in the fact that its big hair. Egon always had poofy hair. I personally thought it was because Egon was out of touch with popular culture and thought big hair was cool. That a big pomp adore would make him a little more relatable.

The artists on Real Ghostbusters took that concept and twisted it…literally. They gave Egon the big twisted burrito hair, and to keep it from feeling front heavy, added a rat tail in the back for balance. They even changed the hair line to accentuate the massive front. You can imagine Egon being so unhip, that he would visual that hair as “hip” and make it his own. Egon is also a character of patterns and habit, he would most likely maintain that hair til his death. So the fact that he got rid of it for Extreme Ghostbusters seemed like a faulty move.

Now why make his hair yellow? Simple. It was another way to seperate Egon from the rest of the pack. Winston already had black hair, while Ray and Peter already had two different shades of brown. The only option was blonde….and it works! Egon’s hair is the visual representation of his inability to connect with popular culture. He is the Yin to Peter’s Yang. Egon is such a genius, he has a hard time relating to others. It’s that genius that is the root of all his other character traits. It is why he is antisocial, and a pessimist. If you were that smart, of course the rest of the world would appear dumbed down. I would have a hard time relating to that as well.  Brain power that also allows him to be extremely disciplined with his emotions. Even in the scariest of moments, he verbalizes his thoughts and feelings rather than showing them with erratic behavior. Excluding the opening library scene in Ghostbusters, but I dare say he ran only because being there alone would only make for poor science. The artists captured these other traits in his eyes. By having them slightly slopped downwards along the outside corner, he gives an appearance of being slightly unamused and under stimulated by the outside world.

For the body, the design department exaggerated the physical attributes that were already present with Harold Ramis. Much like how they took Ray and made him shorter and rounder, they took Egon and made him taller and more lanky. This serves a few purposes. The first, of course, is to help separate him from the group. Aside from the unique silhouette the hair provides, having Egon taller and thinner than the rest also allows him to break away visually when they are all side by side. Secondly, Egon is a bit socially awkward, and one of the best visual signs of that is the tall, lanky kid in high school. You know the type…long limbs, slightly hunched over, never able to fit in. As for the uniform color selection, it is the most drastic color change of the group, right up there with Winston’s uniform color selection. But lets read into it a little deeper. The majority of Egon’s suit is sort of a desaturated blue-green. A far cry from the Khaki suits of the movie, but perfect match for Egon.

Blue-Green represents a person who is exacting, discriminating, and poised. If anyone is exact and discriminating, it’s Egon. He is first to calculate with no room for doubt and dismiss all options that doesn’t fit the math. The Blue-Green person tends to be intellectual and refined, persevering and stable if rather detached. That couldn’t describe Egon any better! The pink trim is a stroke of genius in my opinion. That subtle color change ads a great deal of insight into Egon’s character. Pink embodies the gentler qualities of Red, symbolizing love and affection without passion. This shows that Egon has a subtle sensitive side beneath that brainy and detached exterior. We see this when he converses with Janine towards the final act of the movie. He shoes some affection towards Janine, but he is sure to keep it void of any passion.

So as you can see from my Real to “Real” series, no matter how true they stay to the movie, or how far the stray into extremes, each design aspect of The Real Ghostbusters was clearly thought out with each character’s personality in mind. It is a quality that many cartoons lack in favor of a current design trend or fad. But cartoons that take the time and effort to visually flush out a character’s traits and personality tend to be the shows that become classics. The Real Ghostbusters is a prime example.

Ron Daniels and Jason Hughes of Ghostheads: The Ghostbusters podcast deliver to us the third episode.  Show notes and audio below.

News Minutes 3 to 22

• Time Life Official Announcement of Real Ghostbusters on DVD
• IDW Comics Ghostbusters: The Other Side
• Activision not releasing Ghostbusters: The Video Game

Sponsor Minutes 22 to 24

• Proton Charging - http://www.protoncharging.com

Featured Site Minutes 24 to 31

• Ghostbusters HQ - http://www.ghostbustershq.com

Mailbag Minutes 31 to 44

• Extreme Ghostbusters

• Why we like Ghostbusters

Site Updates Minutes 44 to 45

• Updating the Site
• Look for Fan Works to posted soon

Facebook Minutes 45 to 47

• Sign up for the Ghostheads group on Facebook
• Email your questions/comments/suggestions to ghostheads@gmail.com

This post is going to sound lame, but I’ve spent 13+ years wading through Ghostbusters III rumors online, trying to do my part as a fan of the franchise, contributing the only way I know how. From running this website for over 11 years to recently building my own replica of the Ecto-1.  So, if that wasn’t lame enough for you, here goes nothing.

The online Ghostbusters community may not be as big as the Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Star Trek fandoms.  In reality, we’re a whole different group all together.  It is easy to typecast and dismiss us all as nerds, geeks, dweebs, etc.  Want to hear something strange?  I haven’t seen any of the Star Wars films, nor have I ever sat through an entire episode of Star Trek.  Yes, that’s right folks!  I’m a 27 year old white male, born and raised in the United States and I have never seen Star Wars.  I’m a different kind of nerd, I suppose.  I listen to NPR, collect vinyl, enjoy working at a tech startup, and I really enjoy Ghostbusters.

When Ghostbusters was released in 1984, it was a blockbuster success on so many levels.  Sure, it had innovative special effects, science fiction / fantasy undertones, and a huge budget.  But it was also a well written comedy, executed on behalf of a very talented and bright cast.  It had the magic formula. There is just something about the film, it transcends any stereotype, pigeonhole, or label you could possibly fathom.

The online Ghostbusters community, in a similar fashion, is comprised of a healthy amount fans who were touched by the franchise in many different ways.  We have grown together as a tight knit community, not because of sequels, spin-offs, and licensed merchandise, but because of the adversity we have collectively faced over the years.  We have all waded through years of Ghostbusters III rumors, we witnessed a new cartoon and toy-line awkwardly come and go after just one season, and we have, in recent years, dealt with rumors regarding a Ghostbusters remake.

Each member of the community expresses themselves in their own way. For example, Chris Stewart of Proton Charging is passionate about finding and distributing Ghostbusters news to the masses, exploring and chronicling the fandom, it was one of very first Ghostbusters sites to come online. AJ Quick of Ghostbusters Fans has been building props, identifying and selling prop parts and recently expanded his website earlier this year.  Paul Rudoff of Spook Central has been faithfully documenting many aspects of the franchise for over 13 years!  There are tens of thousands of ghostheads all over the world in the community who contribute in their own way, with hundreds of websites dedicated to Ghostbusters in one form or another.  Ghostbusters.net, which will be coming out of hibernation soon, has focused on user-generated content, fan fiction, and collaborative documentation, piecing together the small tidbits of information we’ve been fed over the years.  There are many facets of this fandom and we all congregate because we love the franchise.

This is our year to soak in all the cool new stuff coming our way.  We have a lot to be thankful for. In light of what some reactions were to the recent Activision pull-out.  We really aren’t “ungrateful little yuppie larva”.

Thank you Dan Aykroyd for keeping the franchise alive with your passion and big heart.  Thank you Terminal Reality for building the next chapter of the Ghostbusters series with with your phenomenal game engine.  Thank you Sierra Entertainment / Vivendi Universal for picking up the license and believing in the franchise.  Thank you Sony Pictures for moving the franchise forward.  Last, but certainly not least, thanks to the original cast for coming back and lending their voices (Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and William Atherton).

We are grateful and excited to not only watch, but experience the next chapter of Ghostbusters, which Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis so lovingly penned.  What more can you ask for?  Did you ever think you would have the opportunity to trap a ghost with Dan Aykroyd?!

In short, cheer up folks.  We have something very special coming.. and it’s real!

Newcomers: parts one, two, and three.  Now on to the next chapter… Peter Venkman.

As we move towards the final two characters left on the list, we start to find that the designs look less and less like their live action counterparts, yet capture more and more of the character’s traits. With Peter Venkman (and lastly, Egon), we see animation character design at its best. They show us that a character can be interpreted many different ways, yet still retain the soul that everyone relates to.

Those traits being:

• Charismatic
• Humorous
• Witty
• Extroverted
• Mildy Sleazy
• Kind Hearted
• Business Savvy (always thinking of the dollar)
• Flirtatious

These traits are manifested in two ways within the translation of the face. First, the literal cross overs from Bill Murray. They kept the hair line, cheeks,  nose, the tired / jaded eyes, the smirk, and the flat “butt chin” . Secondly, they created traits from scratch that best represented the character. Most notably, his hair. Dana put it best when he said said “you look more like a game show host”. And what do all game show hosts have? Nice hair! Which is why the cartoon Venkman has much more styled hair than Mr. Murray…especially with the nice pseudo cow lick bangs with the lovely curl at the end. But the hair is just messy enough, and just long enough in the back, to pay a little homage to Murray’s hair while still taking it into the TV show host / ladies man realm. Another significant change is the head shape. Murray’s head is shaped like a rounded square. Problem is, in animation, a round head suggests innocence or youth, while a square head suggests someone is dense or dim witted. Venkman is neither. So they narrowed his face into more of a tapered rectangle. The narrow shape and slight “V” angle makes him both witty, and more attractive. Which plays well into his womanizing routine.

Venkman’s body shape fits Murray pretty well. But the main changes come in the suit colors. Again, these colors were chosen because they represent his character traits. Venkman is no doubt the most popular character associated with Ghostbusters and fans are going to want him to remain true to the movie. But alas, the classic Tan suit is already used for Ray, as his character best represents the heart of Ghostbusters. Venkman also represents the heart…but a slightly darker, more cynical heart. What is a darker version of tan?…brown. Also, people who prefer brown, tend to not be impulsive. And as we all know, Venkman rarely likes to just dive into a situation head first….he lets others do that for him. “Go Get Her, Ray!”

Now Venkman also has dark blue-green accents to his brown suit. People who prefer blue-green tend to be discriminating (dismissed Walter Peck right away), poised (always appears composed and self assured), as well as attractive and charming (both play into the lady’s man routine). And of course, blue-green is an opposite on the color wheel with brown. Contrasting colors always go well together.

So there you have it! By taking some of Bill Murray’s features, adding some classically attractive physical features over top of that, as well a dash of TV host hair, and colors that reflect those character traits, you get a timeless Peter Venkman animated design that doesn’t “look” like the live action Venkman, but sure as hell feels like him!

In the next and final chapter, I will be discussing Egon.

Too Zuul For School

As the great Norman Gagnon once said, Greetings and Hallucinations!

We’re all waiting on tender hooks for Ghostbusters: The Video Game to be released, and as such, I know that most (if not all) of you have seen the many screen shots and gameplay videos the internet has to offer on the subject; I sure have.

Those of you who recognize my name will also know that my thing has always been the Ghostbusters’ equipment (and subsequently prop-making). I devoted a lot of time to knowing all there is to know about the Proton Packs in the hopes of one day building one of my own. One decade and 5 packs later, I consider myself not an expert by any means, but yet still extremely well versed.

Okay, I promise I’ll get to the point now. I was watching the latest video with all of that new, exciting in-game footage when I noticed two lights on the proton pack in the game that aren’t supposed to be there in the movie. Now, before you start to throw roasted marshmallows at me, I know as well as the next ghosthead that there are MANY differences between the movie packs and the game packs. One glance reveals this obvious fact. From what I understand, the myriad of added lights and whatnot on the right hand side of the pack will be used to indicated health, pack heat, or whathaveyou. I can totally dig that.

Note the semantics of my assertion: I noticed two lights on the game pack that aren’t supposed to be there…in the movie.

In the first film, during the first call at the Sedgewick hotel, observant fans have undoubtedly noticed that there’s something slightly wrong with the pack Dan Aykroyd is wearing. The “power cell” (read: the little box on the left side with the blue lights) was either damaged by a careless stage hand or painted improperly, because the lights from inside the box - which are actually white lamps that shine through a blue gel of sorts - are prominently visible shining out of the front and sides of the box, as seen in the pictures below.

Clearly, this wasn’t by design, because nowhere in either of the two films do any of the other shots exhibit this detail. One viewing of the scene makes it obvious to anyone who has had the pleasure of constructing a proton pack that they simply didn’t paint the inside of the pack 100% thoroughly, allowing some light to spill through. Surely, this must have been noticed during viewing of the dailies, but what director would let such a minor inconsistency spoil a perfect take by these three comedic legends? I sure wouldn’t.

At any rate, the designers of Ghostbusters: The Video Game, in their thorough and amazing quest for ultimate attention to detail, very well might have gotten this production gaff confused for an intentional nuance, because these same two accidental lights appear quite intentionally in the in-game pack, as seen below.

How interesting! It’s much more noticeable if you actually watch the gameplay footage itself. Now it can be told, to those who might have had reservations before.

Alas, I am a huge nerd.  Hope to share more insight with you all soon.

- Astantax