Tim Burton's VINCENT, a Tribute to Edgar Allan Poe and Vincent Price

Today in 1809, Edgar Allan Poe was born. As a poet of the macabre, Poe has left a lasting mark on American letters, most famously with The Raven, one poem which most of us know, despite most of us not being huge poetry fans.

Today marks a sad end to a mysterious tradition. For 60 years, on Poe's birthday, an unknown person has left three roses and a half-bottle of cognac on Poe's grave in Baltimore. Today: nevermore. Some speculate that the ritual ended on Poe's 200th birthday (last year), but we'll likely never know why the ritual started or finally stopped.

So as a special Poe's Birthday treat, I give you Tim Burton's "VINCENT," a 1982 stop-motion animated film. Narrated by Vincent Price (a hero of Burton's), this is the perfect treat for a winter's afternoon.