May 21- Horror’s Most Wanted “Objects of Desire”

I saw an interesting article online, with a list of items in movies that were “objects of desire” that were a major part of the films. Among the listed items were the Ark of the Covenant from “Raiders of the Lost Ark” (with a crystal skull soon to be added, I’d guess…)-the sports almanac that went back in time in “Back to the Future II”- and, of course, “the Maltese Falcon”
(no, ye uninitiated, that’s not a previous model of the Millennium Falcon!)About the only true horror item on the list was the Necronomicon- the ancient Book of the Dead- from “Army of Darkness”-but, surely, there are other items we can put together for a horror-oriented list…
There’s certainly fodder for a few listings from the Universal
Frankenstein series- Dr. Frankenstein’s original notebook is a definite one. In last week’s movie, plus the upcoming “Ghost of Frankenstein”- and others-the doc’s original notebook where he provides notes on his infamous experiments is sought after, whether to replace the brain in the Monster, or to try to help whining Larry Talbot find eternal rest. I always hoped they’d find someone who said they had the doctor’s notebook- and they would produce a school type three-ringed binder, with his science homework, doodles of Prussian army guys fighting dinosaurs, and graffiti like “Gretchen is Dreamy” and “Heinrich Sucks”!
Does a living thing- like the Creature from the Black Lagoon-qualify, since so many people sought it? Certainly, there have been objects of desire of the female variety, like all the women the Gill Man had a yen for- heck, even the Frankenstein Monster had the hots for his Marge Simpson-esque Bride. The Mummy searched for the Scroll to bring back his beloved- and also for whichever woman was the current reincarnation of said babe.
Can the item be something that’s sought, but not found- like Griffin trying to discover the formula to return to visibility in “the Invisible Man?” (although his brother does find it in “Invisible Man Returns…”)
Any number of films have had people in search of creatures like dinosaurs, Loch Ness Monsters, but are any of them truly list-worthy as “objects of desire?” The amulets worn by each high priest in the Mummy series have some significance- but,
Are they really desired by anyone other than the priests?
Maybe you can suggest some things- again, we want them to be in the horror genre- and, we want the item to be something that truly IS desirable enough to deserve a spot on a list. Submit your list items, and we’ll see if it’s even worth compiling a list!