October isn’t just about candy and costumes—it’s the perfect month to understand how IRS predators really operate.

And it all starts with my favorite horror movie: Psycho.

The Bates Motel Welcome

Remember that iconic scene? Marion Crane pulls up to the Bates Motel on a dark, rainy night. She’s tired, vulnerable, looking for shelter.

Norman Bates comes out to greet her. Polite. Helpful. Almost charming.

“We don’t get many visitors here,” he says with that boyish smile.

Marion feels safe. Norman seems harmless. Just a quiet young man running a family business.

She has no idea she’s just met a monster.

The IRS Psycho Playbook

That Bates Motel scene is the perfect blueprint for how The Collector operates.

The Polite Introduction Your first IRS letter (CP14) reads exactly like Norman Bates sounds:

“We need to hear from you about the amount you owe… Please contact us to resolve this matter… We’re here to help.”

Friendly. Professional. Reasonable.

Just like Norman offering to carry Marion’s luggage.

The False Security Marion thinks she’s found refuge at the Bates Motel. You think that CP14 is just a billing error your accountant can fix with a phone call.

Both of you are dead wrong.

The Escalating Danger In Psycho, we get glimpses that something’s not right. Mother’s voice from the house. Norman’s nervous twitches. The stuffed birds watching from the walls.

With The Collector, the warning signs are just as clear:

  • CP503: “Second Notice” (Mother’s voice getting louder)
  • CP504: “Urgent” (Norman’s getting agitated)
  • CP90: “Final Notice” (The shower scene is coming)

The Shower Scene Then comes the moment that changed horror movies forever.

Marion thinks she’s safe. She’s in the shower, washing away her troubles, planning her fresh start.

The shower curtain rips open.

SCREAMING VIOLINS.

Financial death.

Why Norman Bates = The Collector

Both seem normal at first glance. Both follow predictable patterns. Both give you multiple chances to escape.

And both will destroy you if you ignore the warning signs.

The Mother Complex Norman can’t escape Mother’s control. The Collector can’t escape bureaucratic procedures.

That’s actually the key to surviving both monsters: understanding their rules.

Norman has to follow Mother’s commands. The Collector has to follow IRS procedures.

Those procedures create opportunities for rescue—if you know how to exploit them.

The Plot Twist

Here’s what Hitchcock understood that most people miss about Psycho:

The real horror isn’t the shower scene. It’s that Marion had multiple chances to leave the Bates Motel safely.

She could have kept driving. Could have found another hotel. Could have called for help.

Instead, she ignored her instincts and stayed.

Families do the exact same thing with IRS letters.

They ignore the CP14. Throw away the CP503. Assume the CP90 is another empty threat.

Then the wage garnishment hits like Norman’s knife through the shower curtain.

Why October Works

Halloween teaches us something important: monsters are scariest when you don’t understand them.

Once you know Norman’s pattern—his triggers, his weaknesses, Mother’s rules—he becomes manageable.

The same applies to The Collector.

This October’s Mission

Over the next five weeks, we’re going to study the complete IRS monster playbook using my favorite horror classics:

  • Week 1: Psycho (The Collector’s polite introduction)
  • Week 2: Night of the Living Dead (Wage Garnishment Zombies)
  • Week 3: Blair Witch Project (CaliClaw’s cursed notices)
  • Week 4: Halloween (The Revenue Officer Hitman)
  • Week 5: The Exorcist (When tax debt possesses your life)

Because unlike Marion Crane, your story doesn’t have to end in the shower.

You just need to recognize Norman Bates before he shows you to your room.

Next week: Why “Night of the Living Dead” perfectly explains how wage garnishments devour your paycheck—and the three warning signs the Wage Garnishment Goblin is about to bite.