Sleep Deprivation: A Nightmare On Elm Street

After losing everyone she cared about and dealing with sleep deprivation, she began to go insane. In addition, her appearance progressively worsened and she started to look older than what she was – she grew gray pigments in her hair. As stated by Dr. Michael Breus in his article regarding sleep deprivation, it can have very harmful to one’s body and mind. When someone is sleep deprived, they are not able to function correctly or perform nearly to their potential. It is difficult to fully participate in any event considering that sleep deprivation causes a lack of energy and attention span which is demonstrated in the scene where Nancy loses concentration in class and falls asleep. In addition to these side effects, one of the most harmful

As with the dream aspect of the film’s plot, the character Freddy was inspired by a neighbor from his childhood hometown. He would be spotted from Craven’s apartment window as he would walk along the sidewalk drunk almost every night. He would wake Craven up from his sleep with the weird noises he’d make while walking to the apartment. One night, he looked outside his window to see what the fuss was about and instantly, both made eye contact. Craven to this day describes the look as one of the most terrifying stares a young boy can get late at night by an adult

I went back and hid for what for what I thought was hours. I finally crept back to the window, and he was still there. Then he started walking almost half-backwards…The guy was not only still looking at me but he thrust his head forward as if to say “Yes, I'm still looking at you” (extract from The Nightmare Never Ends: The Official History of Freddy Krueger and the Nightmare on Elm Street Series by William Schoell (1992) (IMDB)

This neighbor not only set Krueger’s taunting bogeyman character, but it also set his appearance. In an interview about the film, Craven mentions his childhood story and briefly touches base on Krueger’s attire. He states how the scary man from his childhood would always wear dirty clothes and a hat. Due to this unforgettable style, Craven had to replicate the same attire for the film to fit the inspired person behind the character.

As for the villain’s name, it originated from an adolescent experience as well. When Craven was in middle school, he was bullied by a boy named Freddy Krueger; "…He and I both had paper routes and shared the same drop-off point for newspapers. We used to get into a fight every day. Fred became my least favorite name” which is where the character led to the same naming. In addition, Craven had done the same in his 1972 film The Last House on the Left, where the villain’s name was “Krug”. (Extract from The Nightmare Never Ends: The Official History of Freddy Krueger and the Nightmare on Elm Street