HEY YOU!  YES YOU, READING THIS POST!  YOU LIKE FREE STUFF RIGHT?

 

I want to play a game...again....

 

Earlier this year, I gave away a free issue of Rue Morgue magazine for the answer to a trivia question.  I had a lot of fun with it, and figured if I was able to at some point, I'd do it again...but I don't like doing things half-assed......

Over the past 3 or so months, from the various conventions I go to (and postal service screwups), I've been accumulating a decent-sized pile of convention schwag and, after a long time trying to figure out how the hell I was going to do this, I think I've come up with a challenge thatll be a bit more complicated than knowing the answer to a trivia question.

SO WHAT ARE WE PLAYING FOR?

 

Due to a postal service screwup, I am, again, able to give away a free issue of Rue Morgue!  This time, Issue 91, featuring a Blair Witch retrospective and pieces on Straw Dogs, Combat Shock, and the history of death masks, among many other things.

 

BUT WAIT!  THERES MORE!

 

             

 

A) An Inglourious Basterds one-sheet I picked up at Monstermania in August, B) A deck of Fox Home Entertainment "Vote for Gore" playing cards I grabbed at Fangoria in June, C) A T-shirt for the now-defunct Fangoria webchannel, Fangoria TV, size Large, that I grabbed at Fangoria in June, D) Autographed 8X10s, 1 of the Friday the 13th Pt. 2 onesheet, signed by Lauren Marie Taylor ("Vickie"), 1 of Judge Doom and Roger Rabbit, signed by Charles Fleischer ("voice of Roger Rabbit"), nabbed at Fangoria and June Monstermania respectively, E)  A black pen (the red's just on the inside of the barrel) advertising "The Uninvited" from Fangoria, F) A wide range of Alien Trespass one-sheets, all different, from Fangoria, and G) a Saw VI onesheet from Monstermania August.  EDIT:  H)  THE WINNER WILL ALSO GET HIS OR HER CHOICE OF THE TWO SELLSHEETS SHOWN ABOVE THAT I PICKED UP AT MONSTERMANIA IN AUGUST.

 

So, by now, I'm imagining you're curious what you have to do to win some of these FABULOUS PRIZES....Well, over in the music section, I've uploaded 15 instrumental tracks from various horror movies, each named "Contest Song 1", 2, 3, etc.  Some are easy, some are a bit more challenging, a couple pretty rough and no movie is repeated (I've linked them here, clicking will open each in a new window, they play automatically):

Song 1

Song 2 (I will only accept ONE answer for this)

Song 3 (Two possible answers)

Song 4

Song 5

Song 6

Song 7

Song 8

Song 9

Song 10

Song 11

Song 12

Song 13

Song 14

Song 15

 

So here's what you do: In order to keep my BHM site inbox relatively empty, email me a list of the 15 movies these songs are from at crypticpsych@best-horror-movies.com.  As an example, if song 10 happened to be the theme from Halloween (pointless hint:  it isn't), you'd email as part of your list "10) Halloween".  I'm not gonna be an evil EVIL human being and ask for song titles, composers, or anything like that.  Just movie names.  After the contest ends, I will look over all the entries and the entrants who get the most movies right will then be randomly picked from to determine the winner.  REMEMBER:  Even if you don't know all 15, email what you DO know, properly numbered.  If no one is able to get all 15, I will move to 14, and so on.  This contest IS open to international members as well, so if, for example, you live in say...Australia, England, Canada, or Romania, by all means jump in.  (And if you're curious how come there's only one winner...it's because I don't know a really good way to break the nine prizes into tiers.)

 

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER:  It is my wish to give these prizes away to active forum members.  Therefore, I also ask that you include your forum name.  Two or three posts won't cut it here.  I'm not asking for someone who has over 1000 posts on the site...or necessarily even over 200.  Just a person who's active in discussions so that I'm sure I'm giving these to an avid horror fan AND an avid Ossuary member.  If you join the site after this contest opens and enter, I may disqualify you solely on the grounds that I don't know how much you'll post after the contest (we've had a few people join up, post like 5 things, and then vanish totally into the ether.  I don't aim to give this much stuff to such a light poster.  No offense.)

 

So have fun, everyone, and get your entry to me by midnight Eastern Standard Time on September 9th!

 

Let the games begin.

If you've been reading these for a while, you already know that I think Monstermania is far and away the best, and most underrated convention I've ever been to.  I'd say in the country, but I haven't been outside this little 5 to 6-state area in the mid-atlantic/northeast.  This particular run at the usual Cherry Hill location was slightly different for a few reasons...for one thing, I left early enough and my GPS took me on a certain route that actually bypassed the worst part of the traffic (thanks Garmin!).  For another, while I was once again staying with my convention-going friends Maura and Jess, as well as their friend Franklin this time, we instead booked a room inside the hotel where the convention was going on.  I also...unfortunately...had camera issues again when my camera died on me midday Saturday and there was no place for me to go to get a disposable replacement.  As a result, I'm gonna have to do something unorthodox and a little odd...I'm going to use pictures of things I got signed as replacements for panel pictures (I do apologize for that).  Suffice to say, no matter how much its charged beforehand, I'm charging my camera before every convention now.  In terms of guests, Monstermania did have a substantive number of good guests, but this time it did seem a bit culty, if you will.  We're talking a six-person Sleepaway Camp reunion and a large Friday the 13th Part V reunion after all.  But even then, the convention doesn't lose it's fun because it's held correctly and in a simple, logical configuration.  Real quick though, I gotta say in the interest of full-disclosure, no information about the following guests is presented below:  James Marsters, the Addams Family Reunion (John Astin, Felix Silla, Lisa Loring), any of the wrestlers (Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff, and George the Animal Steele), Barbara Steele (regrettably, she cancelled).  I only have so much money and given that I forgot the pre-purchased tickets at home, I had even less.  Also, this time I specifically avoided the Friday the 13th 2009 reunion (Derek Mears and Travis Van Winkle) because I've done so many of those things even though they really are one of the nicest casts of any movie you'll ever meet.  So let's begin.

 

FRIDAY:

 

ADAM WEST:

 

 

I know what you're thinking.  What the heck does Adam West have to do with horror?  The answer?  Well...he was in an ep of Goosebumps and an ep of Tales from the Crypt.  Translation, not much.  But he's a nice enough guy,  He had his own room and table (its where they once put the Phantasm reunion).  Line moved VERY quickly which isn't surprising given it was Friday and very early on into the con.  He overcharges a bit, but seems generally nice (a lot of people seemed to be miffed about him but I think it was the price that did that, not anything he did).  I asked him if he'd been given a line on Family Guy that really really struck him as odd.  He went with "who stole my water?"  You'll also notice in the lower left hand corner...he has the "Adam We" photograph available for autographing.

 

MICHAEL BIEHN

 

 

My friends Jess, Maura, (pictured), and Franklin really really were jazzed to see Biehn.  He was there with his girlfriend (?) Jennifer Blanc (hence the banner since she was at the table next to him).  His line was absolutely crazy though.  It was a fairly short line, but he would talk to every single person who came up as long as they wanted to.  It's a nice gesture, virtually unheard of...but it really really drags a line out.  He was a really nice guy though, I have to say.  Later that evening, as we went back to the hotel room, we realized Jennifer Blanc was walking with us.  It turned out Biehn and Blanc were staying directly across the hall from us.  One hopes their room was better than ours though given they were guests.

 

James Duvall was also nearby.  I don't have a picture, but he's done a lot of conventions lately.  Was really really nice and spent a lot of time discussing film making and his upcoming projects with Franklin.

 

So during the hour of the Biehn line, I decided to get some other things done.  (One of the MANY benefits of not going to a con alone):

 

MICHAEL BERRYMAN:

 

 

Berryman was super nice.  Later on he was in an elevator with us and he just seems to be a super easy-going guy.  My greatest wish wouldve been if Monstermania had the time to do a panel with him and another awesome guest who sat at the table right next to his...Sid Haig.  Just a suggestion.

 

SLEEPAWAY CAMP REUNION:

 

     

 

In order:  Frank Saladino (Geno), Karen Fields (Judy), Paul DeAngelo(Ronnie), Desiree Gould (Aunt Martha).

Not pictured:  Jonathan Tierston(Ricky, who I met at Chiller the previous May), and Robert Hiltzik (Writer/Director...who I did meet, but had a bum camera by the time I did).

 

It has been long noted on these forums my deep, abiding love of the Sleepaway Camp movies.  The first movie was one of the two horror movies that started me on the path I am now when I was in college (the other being The Evil Dead).  So this was something I was really looking forward to.  I'm a bit surprised Felissa Rose was not there but I don't have a real problem with that.  The interesting thing about the stars and director of Sleepaway Camp....is that they don't like charging.  They charge very little, sometimes nothing for the autographs because they realize that it's the fans who built the movies up to where they are now.  DeAngelo only charged because I asked, for instance, and gave me an 8X10 as a bonus because he didn't feel right charging.  Hiltzik, when I asked about how much, he told me he should charge me.  The autographs (as you'll see later) all involved being a good fan or the "real star".  The humility of this cast is literally overwhelming.

 

WILL SANDIN:

 

 

The most amazing thing about horror conventions is that the people who appear at them are sometimes utterly iconic...yet you'd never recognize their names.  Will Sandin is a great example of this.  Sandin, when he was young, played child Michael Myers in the original Halloween.  He's seen literally for about 5 seconds of the movie yet the character is remembered forever since then.  He loves the conventions, meeting the fans, etc.  He wasnt the only one there as there was a minor Halloween reunion with PJ Soles and Tony Moran (who I've met at other cons).

 

KATHARINE ISABELLE:

 

 

The other big thing of the convention was a "Werewolf" reunion.  In addition to the next few photos, it included Belinda Balaski, Dee Wallace Stone, Dick Miller, and Katharine Isabelle(above).  It is here I would like to point out that I am an idiot.  I forgot that Dee Wallace Stone was the villain in The Frighteners and didn't get her to sign it.  Even more egregious to people who read my posts on the forums...I forgot Dick Miller was Uncle Willy in Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight.  So no pics of them.  I did remember that, in addition to Ginger Snaps, Isabelle was in Freddy Vs. Jason as "Gibb" and the little sister in one of my favorite movies, Disturbing Behavior.  She was really nice and surprised that someone had brought Disturbing Behavior to get it signed (it's better if you incorporate the deleted scenes...a lot better.  That's all I'm saying.)  More information is later about the panel with the rest.

 

AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON:

 

 

 

As part of the Werewolf reunion, they also had David Naughton and John Landis, representing An American Werewolf in London.  Naughton was supernice.  We talked with him about Brutal Massacre and about the difficulties of the famed transformation scene.  Landis, who arrived fairly late on Friday but still came downstairs and signed some, talked with us about the Masters of Horror dinners Mick Garris threw.  He still holds them now, just without the tv show.  Great guy.

 

FRED DEKKER AND NIGHT OF THE CREEPS:

 

   

 

Friday night's special event was a Q&A with Fred Dekker, director of The Monster Squad and Night of the Creeps.  They also, afterwards, gave away the dvd artwork shown above as a special gift, for free.  This is an exclusive cover of the October dvd release.  It's NOT the one that was chosen (though it does match the Blu-Ray).  Instead, elsewhere on the forums there's a thread that has the three choices in it.  The garish, yellow one was chosen.  Also, the free autograph was a bit rough given people kept cutting into the line, but as I thought, they brought plenty enough for everyone.  Afterwards, they showed the Director's Cut of Night of the Creeps (though they originally messed up the dvd...it was only the secnod time it had been shown in public).  Id've stayed for it, but it was after midnight and I was dead tired.  Moving on to the ceremonial hail of bullets:

 

• On Robocop 3:  "I should've fought for more effects, directed my script."
• Directing Tales from the Crypt, Dekker did his favorite story, The Thing From the Grave
• Dekker is extraordinarily proud of the dvd and wants to use it to prove that there is a market for a sequel which he already has ideas for, though he doesn't want to say what they are.  However, "[He] would not make a sequel to Night without Tom Atkins".
• Is currently writing a sequel to Cliffhanger.
• Thinks idea of rumored sequel to The Monster Squad is a terrible idea.
• In Dekker's opinion, Monster Squad was revolutionary for it's time, and Harry Potter owes a large debt to it.
• On Rebooting, Dekker says that for all the ones that work, there are 12 to 20 that don't.
• DVD has tons of interviews on it.
• Dekker liked Slither.  He's facebook friends with James Gunn and thinks it owes more to The Fly because of the degradation of Michael Rooker's character.  Also says Night of the Creeps was not remotely original in and of itself.
• Dekker met Stallone through Demolition Man.
• Tom Atkins or Steve Marshall:  both had great personalities in different ways.  Steve Marshall was a character in Night of the Creeps, Tom Atkins WAS Night of the Creeps.
• Halloween 3 is his favorite Tom Atkins movie
• Atomic Age or Godzilla was his Monster Squad sequel idea, but Monsters vs. Aliens already did it.
• I asked him who he'd name the characters after, if there were any other directors he didn't use (he said he'd never been asked that).  He said he thought the original was kinda cute but it's been done since then, so if he did the sequel, maybe he'd use spaghetti western directors or something.
• The movie House had very little other than that it was his idea.  He was distracted, so his roommate took it.
• DVD will have 5 documentaries, all the deleted scenes, 2 commentaries, a trivia track, and both endings
• The TV Version of Night of the Creeps has many scenes that were put in to make the movie longer
• Demolition Man was meant to be Wizard of Oz, but they took out Kansas (needed to have the 80s, which he concieved but didn't write)
• His proudest moments as a director were the premiere of The Monster Squad and filming the scene in Night of the Creeps were Tom Atkins has his flashback and stutters while he talks.
• He reconciled with Tom Noonan after years of fighting at a Monstermania.  Bogus with a goofy grin was not what he wanted.
• When discussing Stan Winston, Dekker choked up.  Said he really missed him and that he was a geek.  He loved what he did and thrilled at reinvineting makeup.
• Wants to work with Paul Giamatti, Vince Vaughn, and Sarah Polley, and Colin Farrell.

 

SATURDAY:

 

I'm going to begin Saturday with the costumes of the con because they were the last shot I took with my camera.  I decided it was a tie between:

 

 

On the left, I have to give it Rorshach because of the grappling gun.  The Comedian's okay, but the Rorshach is dead on.  On the right, I have to give you props if you wander around the convention floor on stilts.  On Saturday, he had changed into a worse butcher outfit, so I will recognize him for this far better and creepier one.

 

Before I went in to take in the panels, I did go meet up with Lloyd Kaufman again.  I wanted to ask him about Bloodsucking Freaks because in an interview with The Onion years ago, he said he regretted picking it up.  I asked if that was still true, and he said it was because it's a very misogynistic film toward women on an almost mean level and that, while we've learned since then and it's a good and funny film, it's really a bit more extreme in that area than most Troma work.  Now then, panel time.  After skipping the Friday the 13th 09 panel, I was going to go see the Adam West one.  Then I stepped inside and heard someone ask him what else he had done besides Batman.  And that was when I realized that one wouldnt have enough respect.  So I left and came back in later for:

 

HALLOWEEN REUNION:

 

 

Again, I really apologize about having to do it this way.

 

PJ Soles, Tony Moran, and Will Sandin did the Q&A for the film.  All were really nice, receptive to questions and appreciative of the fans.  I learned such things as:

 

• For Halloween now, Soles trick or treat's with her son, Moran gives out the really good candy.
• Soles and Moran will be starring in a movie called Beg.
• Being in the mask and hearing himself breathe helped Moran get into the role of Michael Myers.
• On Rock and Roll High School, PJ Soles said the Ramones had issues with their lines but were still really cool to work with.
• For Will Sandin, to his mom it was just another role, his dad was okay with it, and his sister got scared at the premiere.
• PJ Soles says the remake wasnt better because she didn't like how Michael Myers was already on the path to serial killer-dom earlier in his youth in the Zombie film.
• According to Moran, Halloween is still effective due to its psychological impact.
• On working with Brian DePalma and John Carpenter, Soles said DePalms sets the scene and lets you go, while Carpenter is more tender and hands-on.
• Jamie Lee Curtis wanted to play Lynda originally and was a lot of fun.
• There was nothing in the script about Laurie Strode being Myers sister until the sequel hit.
• According to Soles, working with Bill Murray on Stripes was fun and he had his highs and his lows.
• At the time they didn't realize what it would become.  Moran thought it wouldnt last.  Was kinda jaded and told a funny story about how he didnt used to do conventions and tried to hide what he'd done, and then kids would come around his house on Halloween, every so often dressed as Myers and freaked him out, making him think they'd found him.  Said he's been humbled by what happened and is grateful for it.
• Soles wasn't told about the nude scene in the film, only knew Bob and Lynda "go upstairs".

 

SLEEPAWAY CAMP REUNION:

 

 

The Sleepaway Camp panel was really well attended, though Tierston and Saladino did not take part.  Really down-to-earth and humble toward the fans.

 

• Isaac Hayes (who Hiltzik directed in Return to Sleepaway Camp) was a tremendous guy who always loved to tell stories form his past.
• The cast was unusual when the movie was made because of how young they all were.
• Paul DeAngelo's two brothers ragged on him about his role, Desiree Gould gets recognized from time to time, and Karen Fields was totally in the dark about the reception the film and her character had gotten.  She'd never done a convention before.
• Hiltzik said Karen's original role was supposed to be for a blonde, but Karen did a fantastic job in the role in the end.
  
• Hiltzik thought that horror was the most accessible genre, and wrote the film at the age of 25.  He came up with the beginning and the end, then filled in the middle.  And no one on the cast knew what the ending was.
• MPAA:  "We're really sorry, but we're going to have to give you an R".  Hiltzik:  "Great!"
• Sleepaway Camp Reunion is written, but he needs money to make it and is contemplating 3D.
• The female serial killer came out of a "need to do something different".
• Finishing Sleepaway Camp was easy.  Return to Sleepaway Camp was harder cuz funding fell through.
• Once and for all, Hiltzik did not direct Sleepaways 2 and 3.  Three different people asked him about it.  Stop it.  He even said, given the choice again, he wouldn't have licensed it.
• Felissa was 13 when given the role, her parents were understanding and her role is totally opposite her personality.
• Favorite films, horror and otherwise:  Hiltzik:  Bride of Frankenstein, Fields:  Audrey Hepburn films, Gould:  Likes a wide, varied group specifically mentioning Psycho, DeAngelo:  DeNiro movies, Psycho, and Exorcist.

 

FRIDAY THE 13TH PART V:

 

 

Apologies again.  Picture above used because it was directed by Danny Steinman who also directed Savage Streets.

 

The panel...which was fairly insane, but not Jason panel level nuts...featured Shavar Ross, Danny Steinman, Ron Sloan, Carol Locatell, and Miguel Nunez, Jr. (who was hilarious).

 

• Steinman insulated the cast from studio politics.
• In terms of plot, they were told to "turn Tommy into Jason"
• Working on Different Strokes with Gary Coleman taught Shavar Ross quite a lot.
• Kills were destroyed by the MPAA.
• Steinman was once attached to a sequel to Last House on the Left, but it ran out of money.  He made Friday the 13th part V first, then right before they started shooting it, the studio shutdown.
• Nunez mentioned how he loves going to conventions now because it allows them to meet genuine people, not hollywood phonies.
• Ross imitating Steinman during a famous.....water-related scene:  "That's not enough water!  Spray the breasts, spray the breasts!"
• Original name the cast heard when they were cast was "Repetition".  They were super pumped when they got to the set and found out it was a Friday the 13th.
• Sloan's favorite scene was when he died and his head was supposed to roll and look upward.  The MPAA cut that.
• Nunez was so cold, he didn't know if he could cry doing his scene.
• Locatell basically did her own makeup, making herself look dirty.
• Sloan got knocked out in a fight during the movie.  He also once went home to his mother...covered in stage blood.
• Steinman: The nudity amount...was very intentional.
• Shavar Ross had known Jaleel White of Family Matters since one of Flip Wilson's shows.
• Steinman's one casting gripe:  The mayor was a terrible actor.
• Nunez:  Return of the Living Dead was tons of fun, Life was great too.  They laughed and joked all night and played games for money.
• Nunez ran away from home with 3 bologna sandwiches to become an actor.
• The song Nunez sings in the movie was such that it had to be unrecognizable for copyright reason.
• Nunez:  Joey was the worst experience in my life.  The producers thought they were funnier than the actors.

 

WEREWOLVES:

 

No picture this time sorry.  I'd use the Katharine Isabelle autograph pic, but she actually didn't take part in the reunion.  So, the werewolf reunion was:  Belinda Balaski, Dee Wallace Stone, and Dick Miller.  Again, they were very nice.  Dick Miller seems a man of few words...and some minor hearing issues.

 

• Balaski's part in The Howling came about as being written into it after Piranha.
• Stone had to audition for Howling...and kinda pushed for them to cast her fiance...surreptitiously.  And succeeded.
• Miller didn't have to audition.  He usually doesn't have to.
• Stone on Halloween:  She was glad her character wasn't in the original and said it's not a remake really...it's a "robmake".
• Dick Miller always thought Little Shop of Horrors was a movie meant to be played straight.  If a movie is funny, and you play it funny, you're playing it straight.
• Stone:  Cujo was hell and gruesome.  They were freezing.
• Stone:  The Lassie she worked with was dumber than nails.  She couldn't catch socks.  The standin was smarter.  The dogs on Cujo were trained and very smart.
• Miller's favorite Dante films:  The Howling and The Explorers.
• Stone:  Longest day of the Howling was 15 hours.  In the script originally, there was no nudity.  Then they went into the barn and there were 8 topless women around the roof.  Stone objected, they called in the producer, he agreed, and they were pulled.
• Stone:  Working with Zombie is bliss.  Everyone brings their own thing in.
• Miller:  Gremlins was mostly adlibbed, Demon Knight was filled with problems.
• Miller on the Burbs:  "I get to play a garbage man", was also mostly adlibbed.
• Bucket of Blood was also mostly ad-libbed according to Dick Miller.
• Favorite directors:  Belaski:  Dante;  Stone:  Curtis, Dante, Peter Jackson; Miller:  Dante because he left you alone and directed by his castings.
• Stone on Peter Jackson:  He'll be in a new zealand winter...in a parka, shorts, and flipflops.  He's humane.  Zemeckis and Jackson paid for her flights during her husbands fatal illness and played with her daughter on set.  Special effects people even made a harness for her daughter so she could do what her mom was.  She also was the source of the idea that her Frighteners character would get younger as she killed (not older as was the original idea).  Jackson loved it and immediatly incorporated it.
• On remakes:  Belaski:  These movies are nothing like the movies of the 80s, Stone:  You can't capture the soul (she says that's why they're okay.  the other is still there with its soul)
• Stone further on Frighteners:  was immensely fun to shoot and to kill everyone.
• Stone on ET:  Shot in sequence, kids were great, Drew Barrymore was a director, lots of waiting, wouldnt let steven on set one day because he didnt have the ID badge, said the script was amazing and read it behind a locked door.  "It won't do a lot for me...but it will do a lot for a lot of people".
• Miller was asked how many movies he'd done.  He said well if I had to estimate I guess Id say...166.
• Roles they passed up: Belaski was offered Airplane!, Stone didn't really regret passing it up, but really wanted to do it and was working on a series.  They wouldn't hold it for her.  Miller was supposed to be the lead in Little Shop but turned it down for the smaller part.
• On Rob Bottin:  Was always excited about his work on The Howling, and was robbed of the Oscar.
• Fave scenes:  Balaski running to big ben, stone's husband slapping her in the bedroom, Miller explaining about werewolves in the bookstore.

 

AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON:

 

 

David Naughton and John Landis closed out my show with the American Werewolf panel (followed by a showing the movie, which I didn't stay for given time of night and need to drive home). Incidentally, the whole panel room was brought to us by Blood Night:  The Legend of Molly Hatchet.  Which we heard, many times.  It's out on dvd October 30.  I think it has potential.  The host of the show also thanked us for coming and broke down when we applauded him because he does this convention in honor of his late father who got him interested in conventions and the genre to begin with.  In terms of the panel though:

 

• The songs in American Werewolf in London were written into the script.  They got most of what they were going for.  Missed a Bob Dylan song(he was born-again at the time), Elvis's version of Blue Moon (he had to deal with Col. Parker), and a Cat Stevens song (he was Yusaf Islam at the time).  So as he put it, God, Allah, and Col. Parker.
• Makeup wise, the scleral shells in Naughton's eyes were very difficult to deal with.  When Rick Baker met Naughton, he told him "I feel sorry for you."  To do the shots, it was shot in reverse and out of order, sometimes backwards.
• Landis on Thriller:  Thriller was a good experience.  Michael wanted to be made into a monster.  Landis wanted a woman in it because, "Michael may be many things, but gay no."
• Landis on Black or White:  Michael was still sweet, but on another planet.  Tryed to fulfill his vision without it looking too crazy.
• On Comedy and Horror:  Landis wrote the script intending it to be horror.
• Things you mightve missed:  The main characters in American Werewolf are first seen in the back of a truck filled with sheep.  They're dropped off...outside The Slaughtered Lamb.  And are thereby doomed from the start.  Landis:  "I put the B in subtle".
• Landis pointed out, in terms of the silver bullet not being the killing implement:  "Vampire and werewolf mythos were created by Hollywood and an Edwardian (Bram Stoker)".  In other words, while there exist rules, they're malleable.  The silver bullet was added in "because he was listening to Lone Ranger while it was being written"
• I asked Naughton about how he responded when he saw he was gonna have to ask a boy for his balloons while naked.  He basically said it was par for the course.   Landis then learned something personal about Naughton through this that I will not repeat here out of respect for his privacy.
• Landis said he didn't intend to show the wolf that much, but fell in love with Baker's work.
• New DVD/Bluray will have documentary that has shot of Slaughtered Lamb from the outside.
• Landis once posed the idea of Creature from the Black Lagoon remake in 3D....they filmed footage as a test of their technology and the studio loved it.  In fact they loved it so much...they killed the project and rushed it, using it poorly on Jaws 3-D
• Landis wanted Jack Nicholson for a role he was casting at one point, Nicholson's agent said he wanted to meet with him.  At the time The Shining was out, so he went and saw it, was floored.  He then trekked up to Nicholson's cabin in Aspen...at which point Nicholson scared him half to death by diving out the door yelling "HELLO JOHNNY!"
• Landis's favorite Kentucky Fried Movie skit:  Fistful of Yen
• "Vampires all you need to do is put fangs on them.  Werewolves take work."
• On Twilight:  "It's written by a Mormon!"  Why the vampires can walk around in the daytime:  "Have you ever been in Salt Lake City at a time other than daylight?"
• The two most important things in directing for Landis:  directing and caring about the actor.
• On remakes:  He hopes they do because then he gets a lot of money.  The problem, according to him, is they're remaking bad movies.  That's the terrible ones, but good ones do exist (mentioned The Fly and The Thing)
• On Vincent Price and Thriller:  The song in the video is different.  To get such a long song they had to reloop the whole thing.  (They wouldnt give him the tapes, so Michael had to actually go down with them and take them so he could do so.  They duplicated them at 3AM, had them back by 430).  When Vincent ("call me Vinnie") had to redo his speech, it took him one take.  Then Landis asked for evil laughter...which is what you hear in the video.  One take.  Later Vincent would call him back because he had not gotten anything other than the 300 or so he'd been paid for each the song and the video.  Landis tried to get him the money, called Michael (who told him to call the higher ups), and they would not give it to him.  Later, when Michael was on trial the first time, Landis was in Tower Records in LA with Max, his son and Vincent was there.  He called to him from over the other racks.  "John, what do you think about our friend Michael?"  "Well, I think it's terrible and I really hope it all turns out in the end, I hope he didnt do it."  "WELL, HE CERTAINLY FUCKED ME!"

 

And on that note, this tired con goer is going to bed.  The next one I'm doing is gonna be a lot smaller and more lowkey so don't expect a huge report from that.

 

Until next time though, stick to the roads and keep clear the moors.  Beware the moon.

And after a long hiatus, we near the end of my paper.  Today we finish the 90s with me discussing Tales from the Crypt Presents:  Demon Knight and its character, Jeryline.  This part had to be done differently than the entire rest of the paper, as there really is no book or essay that analyzes this movie for me to quote.  Thus, most of the citations in this section come from the movie itself and most of the analysis comes from my own interpretation of events in the movie.  In addition, there is a little more in terms of citations:  David Holden's review of the film in the New York Times, and Dave Kronke's review of the film in the Los Angeles Times.  I have yet to decide whether the next part of this will be the final one or not.  I may split the conclusion (about female protagonists in the new millenium) into two parts, may not.  We shall see.  And of course, spoilers be found within.  Continuing:

 

While The Silence of the Lambs has transcended its genre to be described by some as one of the greatest movies of all time, another movie which features a hybrid female protagonist released in the same decade was passed over by critics and is generally underappreciated by many. That film is Ernest Dickerson's Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight. The movie deserves a place in this essay because an argument can be made that Jeryline, the female hero of the film, does represent a change and departure from characters in previous films, a fact that is not necessarily diminished by a low box-office gross or by a panning given by some critics. The film is slightly different from Silence and the other films discussed thus far in that its main protagonist is a male, nomadic vigilante named Brayker. Brayker's job is to protect an ancient relic that contains a mixture of the bloods of Christ and all the artifact's previous guardians from a demon leader called "The Collector". Prior to the film, they have been chasing each other for years around the world. At the beginning of the film, predator and prey have ended up in Texas after a fiery car crash destroyed both their cars. Brayker escapes to a mission that has been refurbished into a motel. Meanwhile, the Collector manages to convince local law enforcement that Brayker stole the relic from him and leads them to the mission to collect his quarry. Inside the mission, Brayker meets with the group who will become his allies as the movie progresses. The Collector soon arrives with lawmen in tow to retrieve the mysterious relic. However, his plan fails as both men are arrested due to the fact that both of the cars in the accident were found to be stolen. At this point, the Collector chooses to reveal his identity in a very violent manner, killing one of the policemen in the process. After Brayker hurts him by burning his face with the side of the artifact, The Collector calls forth demon hordes to retrieve the instrument for him, thus setting off a gory battle in the mission that lasts throughout the night. Through the fight, almost all of the allies are killed in some way, either by their own choice or through the temptations of The Collector. This includes his seduction of the sexually promiscuous tenant, his plying the town drunk with alcohol, and his double-crossing what one might call the town jerk after tricking him into retrieving the key for him. As the movie reaches its final act, Brayker, a child found in underground mines named Danny and the hotel's housekeeper, Jeryline are the only ones left alive, hiding in the hotel's attic. Brayker realizes at that point that Jeryline is meant to be his successor for multiple reasons. These include the fact the Jeryline has avoided the Collector's seductions thus far and that she understood the appropriate usage and reverence for the blood in the relic. After Brayker is mortally wounded by a possessed Danny, he officially passes the position on to her, burning the relic's seven-star mark into her hand and refilling the vial with his own protective blood.

 

It is at this point that the protagonist role in the movie shifts from Brayker to Jeryline as she goes on to defeat the Collector through multiple methods. These included covering herself with the blood in the vial to trick the Collector into thinking she was injured, and storing some of the blood in her mouth after the Collector had captured and begun to clean the blood off her and empty the vial. By doing this, she was able to spit it in his face, vanquishing him instantly. The movie ends with her refilling the vial and embarking on her personal quest to protect the artifact from the new Collector.

 

One of the most interesting aspects of this film is the examination of the evolution of Jeryline through the movie from her initial appearances as a housekeeper with a problem with authority into the heroine who is protecting us all. Jada Pinkett Smith's portrayal of Jeryline, in one of her least remembered yet most underrated roles, has been described in reviews as "[bringing] a depth to her role that the script never even hints at" (Kronke) and "[playing] a crucial role in the story" (Holden). From the beginning, Jeryline does not look feminine in almost any way. Her hair is cut very close to her head, and she wears jeans and dress shirts in a style that seems to show that she does not particularly care about looking like the perfect woman or sex object, contrasting with the character of Cordelia who embodies the stereotypical sexually-active prostitute stock female horror character. The first time we see her in the movie, Jeryline is shown to have a form of an independent streak, butting heads continually with the manager, Irene. A back story is then told in which Jeryline is revealed to have served time in jail for stealing and is only working in the hotel as part of a work release program. Interestingly, Brayker appears to realize from the moment he enters the house that she will be the one to carry on the fight as he tends to focus on her and her past more than any other tenant. Jeryline even seems to test the idea of being a heroine at certain points during the film. At these times, she goes at the head of the group in attempts to lead tenants to safety. She is also the first to ask Brayker about what is inside of the vial. She is the one who is the primary caretaker of Irene shortly after her arm is removed in an attack. She is also the only member of the clan to decide to separate from the group during the mine sequence, rescuing a survivor in the process.

 

While throughout the movie she tends to appear to be just as terrified and weak as the other characters (both male and female) in the face of the demons, she does show her true self at one point by willingly disobeying Brayker's orders and following him while he sealed the upstairs. When questioned about why she came upstairs, Jeryline's simple response speaks volumes about her similarity to Brayker and her incongruity with the rest of the tenants: "I just thought you might need some help" (Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight). As the sequence goes on, Jeryline's trust in Brayker is revealed as is her curiosity about him as a whole. However, the most interesting aspect of Jeryline's character, and the action that appears to be central to Brayker's assurance that she is the one to protect the relic and the world, can be seen during the two separate times where The Collector attempts to seduce Jeryline in much the same way as he overtook many of her colleagues.

 

His first such attempt occurs while the tenants are hunting for the missing Danny. Shortly after Jeryline searches under a bed, she resurfaces in a dream-like world which The Collector has created. Over the course of this sequence, The Collector makes numerous promises. They particularly involve the idea that, by joining him, she will be able to escape the middle-of-nowhere lifestyle she has been forced to take and will be able to see the world. He also argues that Brayker will die in attempting to save them and protect the key, showing Jeryline a vision of Brayker being devoured by the demons. He concludes by promising her that, if she helps him, he will let her go and will make sure that nothing bad happens to her in the new era his ascension to power will create. After she spits in his face, thus vehemently declining his offer, The Collector attempts to gain control over her in general, saying: "You will give me what I want, that's just the way it is. And the sooner you figure that out, the better" (Tales from the Crypt Presents Demon Knight). While Jeryline is visibly shaken by this and does outwardly appear to be in a trance-like state, she has the strength and self-control to break free of the Collector's grasp in the end. It is unfortunate, however, that this willpower is not enough to protect Brayker from dying in the attic. Intriguingly, though Brayker does appear to realize that The Collector has attempted to make a deal with Jeryline and acts on faith that she has fully refused it when he passes the key on to her:

 

-"Brayker look I can't do this, all right? I'm not the right type of person for this shit."
-"He tried to seduce you didn't he?"
-"He tried."
-"You're exactly the right type of person" (Tales from the Crypt Presents Demon Knight).

 

Shortly after Brayker's demise, Jeryline succeeds in fooling The Collector with the aforementioned blood trick, only to be captured in a shower curtain shortly thereafter and cleaned off. The Collector brings her downstairs, takes the key, and begins his second seduction. In this attempt, he claims he wants to bring her back to hell with him to be his wife. While making this proposition he dances with and spins her rapidly, thus raising the question of whether or not he suspected the ruse of the blood in her mouth. At one point, The Collector becomes increasingly frustrated at her lack of response and even makes a remark that perfectly underlines the difference between Jeryline and many of the female protagonists who preceded her: "WHAT THE HELL IS THERE TO THINK ABOUT? There was a time when a coy silence was appreciated in a woman. Well this is not one of those times! And you're really starting to piss me off!" (Tales from the Crypt Presents Demon Knight). He also attempts to claim that he loves her, though he is unable to speak the words. It is shortly after this that Jeryline spews the blood at him and kills him. In that way, Jeryline is both vanquishing her demons in the movie and attempting to vanquish a stereotypical feminine role. In both of The Collector's seductions, he attempts to gain Jeryline's trust through claims of love, wealth, prosperity, or beauty. However, none of these matter enough to her to cause her to ally with evil. It is interesting to note that in the same movie, Jeryline's foil character, Cordelia, does fall for this particular trick willingly, owing to her history with an abusive boyfriend. In many ways, Jeryline's two acts of defiance in this movie define her as a hybrid protagonist. Through her assertions she vanquishes previously held stereotypes of a woman's role in film and assumes the role and characteristics held by the male hero through much of the movie. In this way, some claim that her character has become just as memorable in retrospect as Brayker and The Collector, even if the movie itself was forgotten somewhat.

 

After 12 straight conventions in Cherry Hill, NJ, Monstermania decided to move northward and hold a convention near Hartford in Cromwell, CT.  I try to do conventions if it's a feasibly short distance for me to get to them or if there's something at them that I feel I can't miss.  Connecticut's not easy for me to reach from here, but it's not Pittsburgh or Cleveland either in relation to Jersey.  But mostly, Monstermania becaume the offer you couldn't refuse.  According to the staff, the goal of the convention was to gather, in one place, the most fan-friendly guests they've ever had....sort of make a good first impression.  This meant a 25th Anniversary Nightmare on Elm Street Reunion.  This meant an Evil Dead reunion.  This meant Derek Mears making his 3rd straight Monstermania (4th if you count the upcoming August Cherry Hill one).

 

Comparatively with the Fangoria convention from the week before, Monstermania is like a whole other....far better held part of the world.  Where Fangoria stupidly schedules movies and panels at the SAME TIME causing people to miss either great movies or good panels, Monstermania tends to schedule the movies on Friday evening and the panels all day Saturday, thereby allowing people to get the best of both worlds. Where Fango couldn't put the panel room in a separate place from the vendors, Monstermania put the vendors in one area of the hotel, then all the guests on the other end of the hotel and finally did their usual combination film room and panel room idea in a fully enclosed, separate room (the same general and very wise idea they use in Cherry Hill).  While this still works well, I have one complaint.  In Cherry Hill, the hotel is fairly linear, so it's fairly easy to reach each room and section of the convention off of one pathway.  At the Crowne Plaza in Cromwell, the hotel has one of the most inane layouts I've ever seen.  While it's easy to reach the vendors rooms, the panel room is a bit off to the side and the guest room is literally hidden away in some kind of nook off the path.  Good idea in theory, screwed up minorly by bad hotel architecture.  Also, and I don't blame the convention for this, but getting there on Friday was nuts (I stayed over with a friend on Friday night).  A 2-3 hour drive, because of traffic, took 4-5 hours and was murder in the summer heat.  But I made it and I have pics and notes from panels for you.

 

FRIDAY:

I learned this technique at Monstermania that has never steered me wrong:  With special exception for big celebrities, on Friday I basically hang around the guests room and a bit in the vendor room, meeting EVERYONE on the quiet Friday.  (I tried once to meet people on a Saturday....it didn't go so well.  There's a reason this con was my 3rd attempt to meet Derek Mears at a Monstermania.)  So let's begin my run through every guest but one (On Saturday, I probably shouldve gone and seen Robert Englund again, but I figured I should save the money since I already saw him.  Wouldve been a lot easier though...all inside line.  WAY better):

 

JASONS:

 

   

 

Steve Dash (Jason 2) on the left, Richard Brooker (Jason 3) on the right.  Also at the con were CJ Graham and Betsy Palmer, but no photos, because as you saw in the last blog post, I met them at Fango.  I've seen Dash at another Monstermania.  He's kinda relentless on the the whole Warrington Gillette thing.  All his signage is for "The Real Jason" and he even will sign stuff that way.  Richard Brooker is kind of refined and a very nice, well-mannered kind of guy.  Very much like Angus Scrimm.

 

EVIL DEAD:

 

 

 

On the Left, Hal Delrich (who played Scott), on the right, the Ladies of the Evil Dead:  Betsy Baker (Linda), Ellen Sandweiss (Cheryl), and Sarah York (Shelly).  All four of these people charges substantially less each than every other guest, which is awesome and shows a lot of respect for fans, especially in times of recession.  Hal was really nice and was friendly to all the fans.  I was surprised he didnt take part in any of the panels.  The Ladies are great because they travel and do conventions and panels as a unit.  They have special things with the Ladies of Evil Dead logo, and are, just like Hal, really nice to fans.  The Ladies actually were a real highlight of the con and provided one of the most awesome events I've ever seen, but more on that later.

 

CHRIS SARANDON:

 

 

Chris Sarandon from Child's Play, Fright Night, Jack Skellington from Nightmare Before Christmas, and Humperdinck from Princess Bride.  I really wish that the event I did on Saturday hadn't taken as long as it did since it meant I missed his panel, but I did get to talk to him about just how rough his makeup in Fright Night was.

 

NIGHTMARE REUNION:

 

       

 

In order:  Ronee Blakeley (Nancy's mom Marge), Amanda Wyss (Tina Grey), Charles Fleischer (Dream Study Lab doctor), Leslie Hoffman (Hall Monitor, and the only "Female Freddy"), and John Saxon (Nancy's father).  Not pictured are Heather Langenkamp (nice, also was there with the producer who made His Name was Jason, so we might see a similar Freddy one at some point), Robert Englund(see above), and Jsu Garcia (Rod, who was in the area but was unable to get away from a film he was shooting, even though he wanted to.)  Ronee Blakeley seemed a bit spacey but otherwise nice.  She went on after the movie to have a fairly decent singing career...but I'm not entirely sure what's going on now, she might not be able to walk easily anymore (had to ride up to her panel I think in a scooter....).  Amanda Wyss and I talked about how rough the filming of her death was and how iconic it became.  I didn't talk to Fleischer about Nightmare (because I'm weird).  I also didn't ask him about being the voice of Roger Rabbit.  Nope, if you know me, you know I couldn't pass up the opportunity to talk about his performance as the shy postal worker in Demon Knight.  Leslie Hoffman and I talked about how she's kinda like a "that girl" of horror, in that no one knows her name but everyone knows what she did.  She also said she loves cons, but people won't ask her to come, even though she was, truly, the only female Freddy (wore the glove for that scene and everything.  Had it playing on a small tv at her table).  And John Saxon and I talked about his great performance in Pelts, from the Second Season of Masters of Horror.  I told him I wished he'd lived longer in the movie cuz the character had a lot of potential.  At the later panel, Robert Englund talked about just how many roles and how many great actors Saxon has worked with (imdb him some time, it's kind of amazing).  All were super awesome and nice.

 

FRIDAY THE 13TH 2009:

 

 

 

On the left (finally), Derek Mears (Jason), and on the right Arlen Escarpeta (Lawrence).  (I couldve done better on my pose in the one on the left....apparently I don't show fear well.)  Derek continues to be one of the nicest, most genuine people I've ever met and is literally born to do conventions.  I reminisced with him about his appearance at the March monstermania and his antics there.  (See prior site report for that one if you want more info).  The Mallrats poster is because he was next to another Jason...Mewes.  That becomes relevant in a Q&A (and I shouldve looked to see if he had Zack and Miri Make a Porno since I loved that movie).  Arlen, also a great guy, continued to prove my point I've made before that you can love or hate the remake, but the cast has some of the most amazing chemistry I've ever seen.  He said he'd just been to one of the cast member's baby showers.  He was also situated right next to Betsy Palmer who stayed the whole time (I told you in the other one that she was generally a good person).  And now for something completely different, the costume of the con.  As last time, it's not about what it is, it's about who it's on.

 

 

This the only time I've seen a girl wearing the Heath Ledger Joker costume.  (once again, like Fango, there wasn't much to choose from...and her friends were um....whorier).  After that I headed to the film room for one of the most awesome things I've ever done at a convention:

 

THE EVIL DEAD (W/LIVE COMMENTARY BY THE LADIES OF THE EVIL DEAD)

 

 

You can vaguely see Ellen Sandweiss coming in from the left in this shot.  They'd mentioned earlier in the day they were gonna do this if they stayed up late enough.  They all did.  It was amazing.  Covered everything from crushes on Bruce Campbell to Sam Raimi to the Tree rape to various behind the scenes tidbits, to just how many times Bruce Campbell ends up flying into a bookcase or shelves in the movie.  I'll have more of their thoughts in the discussion of the panel, but this was literally amazing on every single level.

 

After this, I headed over to a friend who I'm very gracious to (I'dve never made it back for the next day if I had to drive all the way back to Jersey again).  The next morning, I headed out bright and early, hoping to make sure to get a certain autograph...what I got...was yet another reason to appreciate this convention.

 

SATURDAY

 

BRUCE CAMPBELL(!):

 

 

How to properly run a massively important celebrity draw:  Bruce Campbell, in his appearances, has an agreement to only sign 400 autographs a day, one per person.  Monstermania gave out numbered tickets and actually was still giving them out later on (I got in fairly early given I was there an hour before the whole con started).  When the time came, they had us line up outside by number, then brought us in to a second, shorter, air-conditioned line, then to Bruce Campbell.  The system got us in in under 2 hours, and Campbell has this down to a science to the point of being able to get all 400 done in the exact 4-5 hours he says he can, even with talking to people.  This photo was the best of about four I have because how it works, is they have you give the camera to a worker who takes your picture candidly.  Works awesome because you have to be really unlucky to not get a good photo that way.  Super awesome.  And wait till you hear later about his panel.....But first, another interlude:

 

 

Normally at conventions, a group comes who brings some kind of prop from a LionsGate film.  Usually it's the Saw 2 Head trap or the Halloween Michael Myers costume or the Saw 4 blade chair.  This time, the My Bloody Valentine 3D screen worn pickaxe and costume were there.  And again, I won't pay extra to stand in front of a dumb background or get a photo on a corny plastic background.  Now back to the panels:

 

SID HAIG:

 

 

The blob in the middle there (I swear, it must be a law that every convention's panel room must have terrible lighting) is Sid Haig of...far too many classic horror movies to count.  It should be noted that, again, Monstermania beat the hell out of Fangoria by actually using mikes on the sides of the room to make it easier for the guests to hear you and for you to hear them.  Common sense really.  I liked the whole "bullet idea" from last report, so let's do it again:

• He liked Devil's Rejects more than House of 1000 Corpses, found it realer and more gritty.
• It is possible to see Capt. Spaulding's....coinpurse...in his sex scene with the pornstar in Devil's Rejects.
• At the time of the panel, he did not know when El Superbeasto would be released.  I've since seen info putting it at Sept. 22nd.
• Sean Connery, with whom he worked on Diamonds are Forever is a great guy.
• His role as the judge in Jackie Brown taught him that it was okay to hold out for the good scripts.  He had quit in 1992 and became a certified hypnotherapist because he believed he'd been typecast.
  
• On his dream scene with Ginger Lynn in Devil's Rejects:  "How hard could it be?"
• On Rob Zombie:  He's easy to work with, knows what he wants, tells his vision to you, and gets out of the way..but he "wasn't ready for [him]".
• Advice for getting foot in the door acting wise is Winston Churchill's "Never Quit".
• On David Carradine.  Great guy to work with, told him "There are no failures in Hollywood, only people who quit too soon."
• Has a future project called Dark Moon Rising and will actually sing on the soundtrack.
• Favorite directors he's worked with:  Zombie, Tarantino (is as crazy as he is), and Jack Hill for the history
• The tutti fucking frutti line was an improv that was one of many that made Rob Zombie fall out of his chair.
  
• There were two things Haig said that I will remember forever:  First, he mentioned Tarantino's level of respect for him.  At Spike TV's Scream Awards, Tarantino responded while recieving an award that "My hat goes off to any award show that will recognize the work of Sid Haig" (Haig had been nominated for Rejects and won).
• Second, and most relevant here, someone asked him about why he wasn't nominated for an Oscar for Devil's Rejects.  In response, he discussed his feelings and what he knows about the way studios percieve horror.  He said major studios shy away from horror.  To prove his point he told the story of what happened when House of 1000 Corpses was made.  Originally, Universal was distributing it.  They had a screening for many people including an executive from Universal.  She left the theater crying and shaking.  The film was axed the next day and later picked up by LionsGate.  Later, Anthony Hopkins would be in Hannibal, which would be classified as a "psychological thriller".  Hopkins recieved a nomination for his portrayal of Hannibal previously and the same woman was later asked in an interview why Hopkins can get nominations but people like Haig can't.  Her response:  "Because we know Anthony Hopkins isn't like that."  Food for thought.
  
• "Who needs an Oscar, I've got 9 Action Figures, FUCK!"
  

 

LADIES OF THE EVIL DEAD PANEL:

 

 

Sandweiss, York, and Baker (L to R).  To the rain of gunfire/list of bullets!

• On the Musical:  Tons of fun, Ellen's been to all 3 (Chicago, New York, and Toronto).  "Sea World with Blood"
• On Remake possibilities:  It will never be able to top the original, and they'll believe it when they see it.
• On the Sequels:  Ellen liked it's comedic style and setting.
• On the "Scene":  Sarah has a 19 year old daughter who hasn't seen the movie.  Betsy has a 22 year old and a 19 year old that she will show it at a reunion.  Ellen had an exhusband that refused to allow her to show their children.  She finally did when they were 15.  The script also originally said "Cheryl is attacked in the woods".  Sound effects were added in post so that it looked as it does now.
• Bruce Campbell was brought up Christian Scientist and had never taken aspirin at the time the movie was made.
• Movie most definitely involved much moonshine and weed.
• They got together 8 years ago, Ellen was in Detroit and Sarah and Betsy were in LA.  Betsy was a guest of honor at a convention and Rob Tapert gave her the idea.  They went to a convention in raincoats, incognito to get a feel and have been together since for this.  Ellen hadn't seen them in 20 years.
• Favorite actors they'd want to work with:  Sarah:  John Cusack, Betsy:  Meryl Streep, Ellen:  Phillip Seymour Hoffman
• Ellen was a seat filler at the Oscars and once sat as a result near Hoffman, Streep and Steven Spielberg.
• The set for My Name is Bruce was built on his Oregon property.  Ellen really liked working on it since she got to play Bruce's ex-wife, thereby technically making him marry his onscreen sister from Evil Dead (mmm...incesty)
  
• The biggest offscreen romance was really just "Bruce and Sam"
• Currently working on a web series called "Dangerous Women" in which they play suburban soccer moms who must do battle with their evil dopplegangers.
• I asked them about Brutal Massacre.  They said they actually had trailers.  Gary Bednob had a trailer with Ken Foree and Ellen and at some point, Bednob and Foree stopped being friends which was, of course, awkward.  They had a lot of fun filming it.

 

And now, what I call....THE BRUCE CAMPBELL STANDUP COMEDY HOUR:

 

 

I love how a photo comes together sometimes.  I had a few others...but the best just HAPPENS to be the one in which he is bathed in an otherworldly halo from the chandelier overhead.  He also asked that the mikes be removed because he prefers freeform Q&As.  BULLETS!:

• How to begin a Q&A:  Bruce asked the crowd who'd lost a job.  One guy worked for a bank and had lost his job. Bruce gave him a dollar and called it his bailout.
• People he'd like to have worked with:  Bob Hope, Danny Kaye
• On the reception of My Name is Bruce:  "I signed two of those fucking movies today."
• Adrienne King (Friday the 13th) lives up the road from him, Kirstie Alley does as well (she bought it from Johnny Depp)
• Loved Blair Witch but hated its sequel on principle without seeing it because of what it stood for in relation to the original.
• His next book:  Vagabond:  The Gypsy Life of an Actor
• Bulgaria:  Love the people, love Bulgaria...crappy place to make a movie.
• When did Hollywood lose its soul?  When they started "putting movies on Taco Bell cups".
• On Spiderman:  Raimi's started torturing Tobey Maguire now.  Also, his cameos are signifigant.  He gives spiderman his name (as wrestling promoter), he defeats spiderman (as the usher), and he doesn't help spiderman well because parker was being a douche in the restaurant (as the maitre d)
• Maniac Cop 2 was funded by "entrepeneurs"
• Freddy V. Jason V. Ash won't happen because he'd only do it if he could win and he'd only have control over the Ash part of the project.
• I asked him about The Woods....because I'm a Lucky McKee fan and I figure he hasn't been asked about it enough.  He said "McKee's a weirdo" and after reading the script, his only question was "How do we win?".
• On David Carradine:  Rational, peaceful, nice man
• On horror:  we cycle:  Shocking (NOTLD), Funny (Nightmare), Torture Porn (which he says are lazy filmmakers who find suspense difficult to pull off)
• On the possibility of Ashton Kutcher playing Ash in a remake:  "Wouldn't you love to see him raped by a tree?"
• Bubba Ho-Tep was the weirdest script he's ever read.
• And finally, when one person asked him if he could say hello to his friend on the cellphone, his response was "Sure if I was your little fucking monkey".

 

FRIDAY THE 13TH PANEL:

 

 

L to R:  Arlen Escarpeta, Betsy Palmer, Jason Mewes (really), Derek Mears, Ron Millkie (poor him, he didnt get to answer one question.  Played Officer Dorf in the original), CJ Graham, Richard Brooker, and Steve Dash.

 

Why Jason Mewes you might ask?  Well, he came in and mess with Mears a bit, so Derek invited him up (he is a Jason...get it?).  He didn't really jump in the convo much but it was still absolutely hilarious and surreal to see.  Mostly the panel was just as chaotic as at Fangoria and covered most of the same stuff.  The minor new stuff though:  Palmer said she did the role for 10,000 dollars, no residuals.  "I did it to buy a car".  She also didn't do Freddy Vs. Jason because it was a crappy line and "I have integrity".  Dash was offered the third movie, but was told he'd have to pay his way to California.  The Jasons were never played Englund money.  Freddy Vs. Jason was called what it was because Sean Cunningham wouldn't sign off on calling it Friday the 13th.  Derek Mears, as the new Jason, wanted to take it back to basics and make Jason into a character again.  Also, they're still negotiating the possibility of a sequel to the remake.  For more info on Friday the 13th from other cons, try the prior Fango and Monstermania site reports.  Moving on, we conclude with....

 

NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET REUNION:

 

 

L to R:  Fleischer, Langenkamp, Englund, Blakeley, Hoffman, and Wyss.  (Saxon was tired, understandable).

 

One final blaze o' bullets:

 

• Englund is writing a book, due out in October, called Hollywood Monster.
• Hoffman was originally the stunt coordinator and they decided they wanted someone who looked different.
• Englund on his career:  He was the nerd for 5 years, the best friend for 5 years, the geek for 5 years.  He calls his career a happy accident of a career.
• Englund wrote a script for Part 3, parts of which would filter into later movies.  It keyed on Tina's older, wilder sister.  She went on to investigate the backstory of Freddy.  It became the pilot of Freddy Nightmares and big parts of Nightmare 5.
• Behind the Mask occurred because Freddy's Nightmares (the fearfactor like reality show) bombed.  It was the second script he picked up.
• Englund is a Penn and Teller fan
• On Johnny Depp:  They thought the town would tear him up, instead he's stayed earnest and has a sense of etiquette.
• As I mentioned earlier, Heather is making a documentary.
• Fleischer:  Kreuger has realism like Dracula and Frankenstein.
• Amanda:  All women read first for Nancy.
• Fan Favorite:  3.  Cast likes either 1 or 7.
• John McNaughton was once signed on to do a prequel.
• "Freddy is the damage under the grass in our suburban world" (Englund likened it to the opening of Blue Velvet.  He said he takes pop culture and beats you with it.)
• Englund's favorite kill:  "The hearing aid kid"
• Remake thoughts:  Fleischer:  Go for it, but it won't erase this, hollywood only has 36 plots and they recycle them; Langenkamp:  wants to see one she can get scared at;  Englund:  It's how hollywood works, he had problems with the King Kong remake; Blakeley:  Compared it to Body Snatchers; Hoffman:  Compares it to Star Trek and J. J. Abrams; Wyss:  mixed feelings but wishes them well.

 

In conclusion, Monstermania continues to prove they are the best convention.  Even at a slightly more flawed convention in a place less conducive to the convention, it still runs like a well-oiled machine and is a joy to visit.  I'll be attending the next one (end of August, back in Jersey) and probably every one of them for the forseeable future(something I can't say with every other convention).  As usual, brilliantly put together and showed deep respect to fans and guests.  I leave you with a final thought.

 

Fangoria had toilet ink.  And people from T-Mobile trying to get you to change cell providers.  Monstermania had rooms of genre vendors selling fanged teddy bears, tshirts, bootlegs, action figures, etc.  And a guy doing actual castings for dental acrylic vampire fangs onsite.  I wonder which convention really is better.....

 

This is Crypticpsych saying....don't fall asleep.

You know, my life is busy.  Very busy.  Also, my handwriting is sloppy when taking notes quickly.  Very sloppy.  These two factors contribute to me taking over a month to write this (and the next one about a con I went to the week after this one).  I uploaded the pics to facebook fairly early on (if you've added me, you've can see them) with captions but not with full report notes.  I saved those for here to save time.  Then life intervened.  But now, I have a spare moment, and I've transcribed three days worth of notes from a tiny press notebook into 6 pages of singlespaced Word notes.  So, let's get started.

FRIDAY:

It should be noted that Fangoria this year returned to Manhattan for the first time in at least a few years.  (They'd been in Secaucus for some time.)  They held their event in the Jacob K. Javitz Center, about 10-11 blocks south of Madison Square Garden.  It looks like this:

 

   

 

Ooo...modern-arty.  And yes, the quality of these shots is quite subpar and there's a reason for that, which we'll come to.  Now, before someone thinks this was a big convention, that registration table is for a home design and decor expo that was setting up for the coming week.  To reach Fango, you walk around that....go down an escalator...down another escalator...and into the room.  To put that in perspective, I was told at one point that the room in which they held the convention was the room in which they held JUST the panel discussions at the East Coast Comic-Con.  For the love of God, use the space. 

Now you might be thinking this is just the vendor's room.  You'd be wrong.  To the right (off camera) is the screening room (small).  To the left (off camera) is the photo-op room (small).  Inside is the vendors room....and the panel room.  In one.  Separated by a black curtain that only covers half the space, vertically between the two rooms.  Repeating.  Vendors room in SAME ROOM with the panel room.  Let the numerous flaws of that sink in for a second.  Then take a closer look.  See those little pink lines in the room?  Those are T-Mobile Mobile Makeover sales people.  Yeah.  One of the vendors at a HORROR CON....was T-Mobile wandering around asking people to change service.  Which tells you how much trouble they must've had getting vendors.

First thing I did when I went inside continued to set the tone for how angry this convention made me:

 

BETSY PALMER

 

 

Ms. Palmer was very nice (she does that pose without being asked....don't look at me like that).  There's also a reason these photos look better than the others...again, later.  But I also learned some very important things from her.  See, in order to do this convention properly, I learned last year to use package deals.  Last year, I was able to get a Silver pass and get into the party (saving a ton of money on photo-ops).  This year they closed it to all but Gold people.  So I bought a gold pass.  As part of that pass deal, you get a card.  Like so:

 

 

 

That card represents complimentary autographs...from basically everyone.  Now here's the flaw.  This pass cost me a substantial amount of money.  Enough that it was feasible that my theory that a buck or two would go to each celeb who agreed to the deal would make sense.  Which was why I was angry all weekend (and grew more annoyed as the same thing kept happening to Danny Manfredini, the cast of Last House on the Left, and Ari Lehman) when I found out from Betsy Palmer that either they did not tell the celebrities about the gold passes or did not make their benefits clear to the celebs.  This meant the celebs, who normally might charge 20 or 30 for an autograph...were getting no money for this.  Creation Entertainment and Fangoria took all the money from the tix.  Ms. Palmer left within the hour after the con began on Friday.  She didn't return until after her panel on Saturday...for a couple hours.  Then she was gone the rest of the weekend and frankly I don't blame her.  It's insanely disrespectful to not tell celebrities about this aspect, whether you agree with them charging for autographs or not.  Thus, the sad sorry state of this con (in terms of logistics and organization) began.  Moving on, I headed.....through the curtain (the pure unmitigated idiocy of that will become apparent more and more)....to the panel room.

 

GUILLERMO DEL TORO AND CHUCK HOGAN

 

(L to R:  Tony Timpone, Chuck Hogan, Del Toro, and the head of Creation whose name I don't know)

Let's get something out of the way right now. I really dont like Tony Timpone.  One of the many reasons I read Rue Morgue is because its current editor-in-chief is a tattoo covered woman with flamingly orange-red hair who speaks to her readers like one of them.  Their previous editor went on to make award winning horror shorts and still writes for the magazine from time to time.  As is obvious, they both have a love of the genre.  Tony Timpone dresses like a used car salesman.  He looks like a used car salesman.  He acts like a used car salesman.  At a convention, I have never once seen him effectively guide a panel.  I've also never once seen, on any level, him show true, honest, heartfelt love of the genre.  I.  Don't.  Like him.  Moving on.
Del Toro and Hogan were there to discuss their new vampire novel "The Strain".  They were on a book tour and literally ran in just to do this panel (which shows a lot of respect for fans that seems to jive with how unbelievably kind I've heard Del Toro is.)  As I usually do, here's stream of consciousness as to what was discussed:  Originally the novel's idea was pitched to Fox by Del Toro as a series idea.  After they declined it, Fringe mysteriously had a premiere involving a 747 much like the opening of The Strain does...but he's not claiming plagiarism.  Because Del Toro would not go PG13, The Strain did not become a movie instead.  Del Toro on Twilight:  "Vampires are brutal creatures, they do not fucking sparkle, they want to rip your throat out." and "I'm too fat and ugly to believe in beautiful vampirism." and finally, that Twilight "doesn't fucking peel [his] banana.".  The book, however was not writtten as a response to Twilight.  The book does go into detail about vampire biology and as Del Toro says, ""If you want to know what happens to vampire's peepees, this is the book.".  The novel's characters include a Mexican gangbanger and vampire hunters who are not professionals.  The idea of the novel was also based in the idea of the reality of coming home and feeling like you want to eat your family.  One of Del Toro's greatest vampire influences was a book called "Living Vampires, Dead Vampires".  They were stories told as matter of fact and "fuck you if you don't believe them".  There is humor in The Strain, but it isn't necessarily intentional.  Del Toro also believes that mystical creatures should be treated like real animals and like they exist. The Strain is the first part of a proposed trilogy.  The second book is well on it's way, and the third will begin after he films "The Hobbit".  Del Toro is also a gamer, having finished Call of Duty 4 and is currently playing Left 4 Dead.  Bookwise beyond the afforementioned stories, Del Toro was influenced on vampires by Dracula, I Am Legend, Count Magnus, Carmilla, and Salem's Lot.  Moviewise, his world is based in Let The Right One In and Martin (for it's portrayal of the loneliness of that life.  He loved the power of Martyrs but won't watch it again (much like he felt about Funny Games).  He loved Firefly, but True Blood didn't grab him and as for Buffy, "[he's] waiting for a boner to watch it, but it hasn't happened."  Del Toro called working on "The Hobbit" very nice karma and related a story of how Peter Jackson met him at the airport in New Zealand with a gift of Warhammer models that he has since painted and used.  He mentioned that his favorite special effects were in The Thing, saying "Bottin is a sick bastard" and his favorite prosthetics were in Amadeus and The Exorcist.

NOW.  About that panel room.  About midway through the panel, one of the members of GWAR took it upon himself to stand at one of the openings and yell that people should go to the GWAR table.  At what point did it seem like a good idea to the organizers to connect the rooms?

 

HERSCHELL GORDON LEWIS

 

 

Hey, you know what's funny?  When you put a panel room RIGHT NEXT TO A VENDOR ROOM.....the vendor room gets noisy.  And when the vendor room gets noisy, it drowns out the panels.  In theory that defeats the purpose, which is why you DONT FREAKING DO THAT.

 

So, the Godfather of Gore.  Smartly, they basically just gave Lewis a mike and let him roll whichever way he went.  Super nice guy (I'd talked to him beforehand at his table in the vendors room about the Grand Guignol).  First, he previewed his upcoming new film "Grim Fairy Tales" with a clip of a person playing on a game show called 'Uh-Oh" during which she loses an arm.  (and later has it sewn back on).  He says the movie is about a channel that discovers it has a hit with the violent game show "Uh-Oh".  In response, they request a new show called Grim Fairy Tales (that is also of course violent) from which the movie gets its name.  I asked him during the panel if he had a favorite current director to which he replied "Anybody who puts their head in that lion's mouth has my respect."  Lewis says the idea in Grim Fairy Tales is that no one gets killed.  It's more to make people say "Isn't that ridiculous."  Lewis believes that digital is the future (over film).  Lewis also mentioned that it is his voice on the soundtrack to 2000 Maniacs and proceeded to lead the crowd in a rousing rendition of the theme complete with yeeeeeehas.  The original guy they were going to use had a voice that was too high and Lewis took no screen credit for doing the song.  In terms of his impact, Lewis said that it made no difference how primitive the movie was back then and that as a result of their work, certain special effects and gore effects exist and are able to be purchased.  Interestingly, Lewis also mentioned that people protested his movies but that there was no legislation in place against violence (just sex and language).  As such, the government's hands were tied.  Lewis also mentioned a movie he's in development on and filming called "Mr. Bruce and the Gore Salon", about a weight clinic that removes fat from people and replaces with stainless steel. It has a London Sheraton character that is analogue of Paris Hilton.  Lewis believes the main idea of his movies is to have a good time.  On Wizard of Gore, Lewis called it Murphy's Law in movie form. Mitchell camera was supposed to be built to last but left them with a full day's worth of dead film, for example.  Also, a carcass was supposed to be ripped from top to bottom.  In so doing, they got carcass all over rug of house they were using, cops were called.

 

LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT VILLAIN REUNION:

 

(L to R, not guy on right:  Marc Scheffler, David Hess, Fred Lincoln)

Three of the four Last House on the Left villains were there (Jeramie Rain was having knee surgery).  Regarding the remake they thought the direction and camera were good, but that that was to be expected, and the rest was crap.  Also, they believe the original was a product of it's time and had chemistry the remake did not.  Also, in the original people talked less about the rape (which was more implied) and more about the film as a snuff film (according to them).  In the remake, critics focused on the rape.  The actors bonded during the original and had lots of fun when they weren't acting.  Regarding the movie's ad campaign, the men said that it worked particularly because of the movie's verite style. There also was no true story, it was all advertising and the film originally had 3 other titles that failed before the actual one and the advertising campaign.  The film was originally inspired by Ingmar Bergman's Virgin Spring.The men are also pursuing a lawsuit over residuals.  Wes Craven and Sean Cunningham originally wanted this film to be a porno, but the actor's refused leaving us where we are today with both their careers.  Last House was also funded with money from a Marilyn Chambers movie.  The actors also believe that their characters never intended to kill their victims.  In terms of quotes, Sheffler said this has had the most impact of all the TV he's ever done, David Hess said in terms of acting, "It's easy to get into the dark side, but it's hard to get out without changing.  Lincoln was the most talkative and interesting.  He's still involved with the adult industry ("I'd rather fuck, kiss, suck, etc. than kill").  He also said the original script was one of the most disgusting things ever and mentioned he was supposed to decapitate someone and have sex with their neck and body ("Who does this?").  But the message that should be taken away from how they felt and feel about the role was probably when Lincoln said "If one asshole sees this and does something, I'd be ashamed for the rest of my life."

I then left the panel room to hit the film room to see the highly anticipated....

 

DEAD SNOW

 

Dead Snow, reviewed elsewhere on the site quite effectively by Will from the UK, is amazing.  Pure and simple.  Full disclosure, I missed roughly 10-15 minutes of the opening due to the other panel, but it appears all I missed was footage of them frolicking in the snow really.  This movie...is the Norwegian version of what happens when Evil Dead meets Dead Alive....with NAZIS.  The characters are engaging, the movie is fun on every level and the visuals are amazing (can you say on-rushing batallion of Nazi zombie soldiers?).  Best of all though is that Dead Snow has some of the most inventive gore shots in my recent memory and a brilliant sense of humor.  This is the tip of the iceberg:  machine gun snowmobile, hammer and sickle, chainsaw, beating zombies with parts of other zombies.  This is not just a must see.  This is a holy mother of God why are you still reading this go see it now movie.

 

SATURDAY

 

 

 

On Saturday, I met Marilyn Burns and saw a bit of a panel for the new Jack Ketchum adaptation "The Offspring".  I remember nothing of the panel as it was early, so I do apologize for that but I do have....

 

TRAILERS

 

There was a long...LONG...trailer reel.  I tried my best to pick out the ones that seemed either interesting, different, or new and I've uploaded my picks for the best to the video section for your perusal.  I make no claims on the movies themselves (with the exception of Dead Snow and as you will see momentarily, Dead Air) but the trailers do look good for low-budget movies, independent movies, documentaries, horror-comedies, and straight horror films.  My picks for the best trailers:  The Children, Grace, Hysterical Psycho, Skeleton Crew, Pig Hunt, Not Quite Hollywood, I Sell the Dead, George's Intervention, Dead Air, and Dead Snow.  I'd link to them, but it's just as easy for you guys, when this is done, to go take a look at the video page since they're all there, one after the other.  After that it was time for....

 

TOXIC AVENGER MUSICAL

 

Also known as:  two understudies (maybe?) perform songs out of costume on stage without any set pieces at all.  Don't get me wrong, I love the musical and will see it again before it leaves NYC, but this was just sad.  They performed "The Legend of the Toxic Avenger", "Evil is Hot", and "Hot Toxic Love".  Jesus, get a guy in a Toxie suite at least!  It was at about this point I realized just how stunningly empty this convention was for a Saturday.  Moving on was:

 

HELLRAISER REUNION PANEL

 

 

Doug Bradley and Ashley Laurence (who's wearing sunglasses because of cornea issues).

Doug Bradley's Favorite Hellraiser parts:  The tortures in 1 and 2 and the audience of death in 3.  For the most part, he's happy with the series but wishes some hadn't been taken to theaters.  Said 5 6 and 7 were all made into Hellraiser movies from pre-existing screenplays.  Ashley Laurence's first screen test was with Doug playing her father and Pinhead. Barker's initial direction to her: "Your uncle's in your father's skin and he's trying to have sex with you and kill you, maybe not in that order. Go."  Bradley also believes Pinhead's voice goes between a monk and a butcher, not like voice in hellbound heart who is supposed to be light and breathy.  It's also lower than his regular voice and played with in post.  Clive's one note on Pinhead to Doug: Do Less (was nudged toward standing in one place, no movement). Tribal makeup and scarring were an early Pinhead idea.  Regarding Hellraiser 4, Bradley wanted the unhappy ending with the merchant and Pinhead destroyed (welcome to Oblivion) instead of the corny pin on the floor ending they used.  Regarding Hellraiser 6, it originally had a character named Kirsty with a dog named Cotton. Bradley got Laurence back in on the condition she'd only do it if her sequence were to be a dream because she believed the character wouldn't act that way.  On the idea of a Hellraiser Remake: Laurence: "Shouldn't be made but there's a built-in audience."  Bradley: It's in Development hell, chaos and confusion, they don't know what they want to do. Every exec wants their snout in the trough. It's an admission of a failure to do your job which is to find the next Hooper, Craven or raimi. Money Is everything, and he's had no calls about the movie.  For fun on the set of the movies, Bradley enjoyed doing Monty Python sketches as Pinhead (this parrot is no more...).  Facts about horror you never realized you needed to know:  Pinhead could easily get through airport security after the first two movies because the pins were plastic thereafter.  Currently, Doug Bradley is working with Renegade Arts doing readings of Lovecraft and Poe.  I asked Laurence about being coated with blood for Hellraiser 2.  She discussed how she was coated with corn syrup and food coloring...and then they broke for lunch which she shivered her way through.  Regarding fan fiction, Doug Bradley said it was gratifying people cared enough about the universe to make their own version.  Finally, whats the status of Pinhead v. Myers you might ask?  Originally Doug Bradley was interested as an actor, Barker was going to write and Carpenter direct.  Barker wanted to make that world where they could coexist.  Pinhead mightve had a problem though since he likes a good conversation.  In the end, Moustapha Akkad kiboshed it.  (And for the record, Doug Bradley did not like how Rob Zombie removed the supernatural element from Michael Myers.

 

Then while I waited in line, it was DENNIS PAOLI:

 

 

Paoli wrote From Beyond, Re-Animator, The Dentist, etc. alongside Stuart Gordon.....but since Fangoria can't allow one line to die down, and since HAVING THE PANEL ROOM NEXT DOOR MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO HEAR, I have no info on Paoli since I couldnt hear him.  Up Next:

 

GLASS EYE PIX:

 

 

In this case, again, because it was a bit disorganized and hard to hear, I have no real info other than who everyone is and what they're involved with. From left to right:  Jim Mickle, Nick Damici, Glenn McQuaid, James Felix McKenney, Joe Maggio, Larry Fessenden, Graham Reznick, and Jeff Grace

And what they are involved with:
I SELL THE DEAD (Glenn McQuaid), SATAN HATES YOU (James Felix McKenney), STAKE LAND
(Jim Mickle, Nick Damici), BITTER FEAST (Joe Maggio) and I CAN SEE YOU (Graham Reznick), plus composer Jeff Grace (THE ROOST)

Want more info?  Google their upcoming movies:  Satan Hates You, Bitter Feast, Hypothermia, I Sell the Dead, and The Viewer (which I do have info on that will come up momentarily).  Up next,

 

JASONS

 

 

L to R: Kane Hodder (7-10), Warrington Gillette (2), Betsy Palmer (1), Ari Lehman (1), CJ Graham (6)

 

There is no greater craziness than Jason related panels at cons.  Palmer doesn't know how she had so many children. Didn't think anyone would see the movie, said "what a piece of shit". (always says those lines)  Lehman thinks he's a comic....good guy, but seems to almost think he's a standup comic.  Kevin bacon and Betsy Palmer got into the movie via NYC. Betsy Palmer, aka, how you can tell how crazy these get: "I never had sex on any playhouse, I had it out on a lawn."  Remake thoughts; Lehman: Fun film, Palmer, they're trying to make money (sean Cunningham and tom savini) Hodder, will see it and probably like it.  Lehman thought Jason lived, Savini said it was a dream. Lehman turned out right in the end.  The Friday the 13th 2 controversy over Jason is that Warrington Gillette is credited as Jason, but Steve Dash did all the stuntwork.  Kane Hodder's Favorite kills: Sleeping bag and frozen head.  Part 7 is his favorite.  CJ Graham was the second choice for his movie.  Palmer's seen the original movie three times, twice under duress.  Also, according to Betsy Palmer; In Ecuador they call it Tuesday the 13th (due to their superstition).  Warrington Gillette auditioned for John Furyk's role in the movie, but ended up as mongoloid hillbilly Jason.  And finally, Palmer did not originally know how Ari Lehman would look and was a bit offput by his mongoloid look.

 

So, much like the previous night where I avoided a fashion show hosted by GWAR, I then avoided a tattoo contest....mostly.  I went back out into the vendor's room.  I managed to meet up with Tatyana Kot, star of "Blitzkrieg:  Escape from Stalag 69":

 

 

And then a very important panel....

 

TRICK R' TREAT

 

Michael Dougherty and Dylan Baker

 

I SAW 20 MINUTES OF TRICK R'TREAT!  HA!  And all I will say is I saw a segment, very gory and darkly funny, based in the razor blade in the candy legend, a flashback story of a group of deformed children in halloween masks, and Brian Cox doing battle with Sam, the film's mascot.    The film looks absolutely amazing.  The film is a throwback to anthologies.  It is the holy grail of current lost horror films, having been sat on for 7 years after it was written in 2001.  Dougherty believes this is because studios don't know how to properly market anthologies.  Dougherty also believes the film fits because we're entering a fun cycle again (hardcore 70s, fun 80s, cycling around to fun again now.)  The character of Sam (see poster) is peripherally in every story as a spirit of the holiday.  Merchandise is out in stores (it came out before the movie by accident).  Dylan Baker's "Principal" character is said to be a cross between Norman Bates and Norman Rockwell (I saw it in his clip).  Which brings me to current release plans:  A road show started this month and will include ComicCon, Fantasia, After Dark, London, Toronto, and Fantastic Fest.  It will be out on dvd b4 halloween.  Also, comic books will be out in early October as a single graphic novel, and the soundtrack will be out in Late Sept.  The DVD, at least, will have commentary, a doc on halloween and its history, and the original short film that led to this.  Oh...and for you Spidey fans, Baker's been told The Lizard is coming...but has not been told when.  Up next:

 

PANDORUM:

 

 

We have Ben Foster of X-Men 3 (who seemed drunk) and mixed martial artist Cung Le.  I missed almost all of this panel while getting my free autographed Trick R' Treat poster (hell yeah).  But what I did see, and the trailer, failed to impress at all.

 

Then after a Walking Distance panel (Adrienne King's first movie in a long time), my camera died.  Hence the terrible quality back at the beginning.  It really sucked for a reason to be apparent.  So I went to the Hudson news inside the center and got a disposable.  Got back in time for:

 

DEAD AIR:

 

 

 

After a panel with some footage, I was actually very amped for this.  I went and saw it as a time filler before the Saturday night party.  (That's Josh Feinman and Elle Travis btw).  My opinion on Dead Air:  Well, you might want plot....it's the story of a grizzled radio veteran doing his show the night of a mass zombie outbreak in his town that threatens his and his team's survival...wait....*flips flips flips* oh these are my Pontypool notes.  Let me try again.  It's the story of a grizzled radio veteran doing his show the night of a mass zombie outbreak in his town that threatens his and his team's survival.  That's better.  In all seriousness, Dead Air is like the unintentional American remake of the great Canadian film Pontypool.  Here's the real shock though...IT'S BETTER THAN PONTYPOOL.  Bill Moseley nails the radio host role and the film also has a slightly different, more political, more conspiratorial tone that is very interesting and won't be for everyone.  A great, highly recommended movie that seems a good directorial effort by CORBIN BERSEN!

 

VAMPIRE BALL:

 

 

So then I headed to the New Yorker hotel.  Here's an idea...hold the party in the place you're holding the Con...LIKE YOU DID LAST YEAR.  And give info as to where to go when you reach the hotel.  NO wait, i'm not done bashing this party yet.   Last year, it was an ice cream social with cash bar.  at 10 o clock, ice cream's good.  This year, it's a VEGGIE AND CHEESE PLATE THING IN A TINY ROOM WITH A CASH BAR.  And of course the shitty distorted posters and fango covers projected on the walls did NOTHING to make this seem like a "Vampire Ball" (though two people did have the balls to appear in costume).  I can't complain too much though...as it allowed me once again to save a load of money on photo ops even if I was still using the disposable out of necessity:

 

     

 

In order:  Coralina Cattaldi-Tassoni and Dario Argento (I think she was his date since I never saw her the rest of the con....and HELL YEAH), Doug Bradley, Tobe Hooper, and Ari Lehman.

 

I repeat...I hate the disposable camera so much.  Those photos at the top were me just burning film since I'd charged my camera before sunday:

 

SUNDAY:

 

Sunday began with the costume of the Con.  It's not often you see an age 10 or less Leatherface:

 

 

Then SMASH CUT:

 

 

Other than that the trailer looked hysterically funny and bloody and HG Lewis and David Hess are involved (as seen above), I don't know much about this one.  But I mention it here....BECAUSE SOME MORON DECIDED TO CHANGE A LIGHTBULB IN THE VENDOR'S ROOM WITH A CHERRY PICKER IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PANEL.  THATS NOT DISTRACTING AT ALL IS IT?

 

Then it was LYNCH MOB:

 

 

With Tony Darrow of Street Trash and Paul Borghese of Sopranos.  I feel bad for Borghese, his name wasn't even on the screen.

 

This was a weird one.  The trailer never worked, Tony Timpone couldn't run this panel if he tried since no one asked a thing.  The info I do have though is that it was filmed in Lynchburg and has lots of gore, mobsters, and T&A.  The panel was filled with insult comedy and self-deprecating humor.  Regarding Street Trash, Darrow was told he'd ruined James Munro, Jr's movie since he'd made it into a mob film.  They also arrived at the premiere on a garbage truck.  His part was also 90% ad-libbed and his cane was due to a malignant melanoma in his foot.  Finally, Lynch Mob's promotional material says they used real blood.  What happened was Darrow was injured in the head on an effect, refused treatment, and his blood was part of the makeup they used in the shot.  Up next:

 

VINDICATION:

 

 

I'd give names but I lost track. Far left is definitely Alan Rowe Kelly, woman after Rowe Kelly is I think Zoe Chlanda, then Jerry Murdock, then Keith Frazer, then I'm not sure, then the far right bald guy is director Bart Mastronardi.

 

Vindication is an indie film about a boy tormented by his guilt.  It also has touches of discussions of sexuality in it as well.  The film recieved a great blurb from Clive Barker who got a hold of it through his life partner who knew Mastronardi.  More information later on.  (and I got another free awesome autographed poster)  Next (in case you couldnt tell, I'm getting tired.)

 

WILLIAM LUSTIG:

 

 

 

The owner of Blue Underground and director of Maniac brought release and remake news.  Blue Underground is moving toward blu-ray: current blu-rays: Stendahl Syndrome, Dead and Buried, Bird with the Crystal Plumage, Two Evil Eyes.  Coming soon: The Crazies, The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue, The Toolbox Murders, and New York Ripper.  In July: Bad Boy Barny.  In August: Fire and Ice.  In September: New York Ripper.  The company is now focused on repurposing, not gaining new stuff.  Maniac may be on blu-ray in a year. Caroline Munro, Tom Savini, and Joe Spinell all came onboard for the movie originally through Creation entertainment (the company who runs this con).  Lustig also says a Maniac remake is increasingly likely with at 12 million dollar budget.  He also thinks Joe Spinell's character could be played by Tom Sizemore.  Maniac's 16mm print was thrown out in the 80s, so the Blu-ray will be made from the negative.  New York Ripper will feature a new featurette comparing NYC of the movie's time to NYC now and the changes.  AND NOW THE MAN OF THE HOUR:

 

DARIO ARGENTO

 

 

 

Dario with his translator Paolo on his left, and Maitland McDonald, the moderator on his right.

 

Quick thoughts because i'm tired:

-"You're free to do what you want" on Masters of Horror. "You're sure?" ->The discussion that occurred before he made the censored ep Jenifer for MOH.
-Jenifer, Pelts, and Mother of Tears to a lesser degree were an experiment in blending sex and horror.
-Finishing trilogy: Suspiria, Inferno 2 years later, and then takes break to avoid having to expand on it over and over again. Seeing the restoration of Suspiria brought him back into the trilogy.
-Agatha Christie's 10 Little Indians was a big influence.
-Giallo: Didn't know what had happened to the film at the time. Doesn't speak with producers. Adrian Brody was very good and he had no problems with him. He knows music and cinema and he was friends with Asia Argento.
-Same thing on Two Evil Eyes with Harvey Keitel, he was very good.
-Actors he's had problems with: Tony Monsanti in Crystal Plumage. Had problems the whole film and afterwrs. Also, the Girl lead in Opera to whom he had to speak through an intermediary.
-"I do films because I like to do films. It's my life. Without films, it's nothing."
-Suspiria was inspired by school days, believed school was full of witches. "we were slaves of the teachers".
-Shot Do You Like Hitchcock and Stendahl Syndrome in Turin due to it's strange architecture.
-Martyrs is dedicated to him. Believes its similar to Spanish wave "interests"
-He's happy we have new people doing films similar to the way he did them.
-Digital is flat, 35 gives deeper bigger color, wanted to do same style as old Technicolor.
-Bava was not as much an influence as Hitchcock. He considers Bava too jokey.
-Ending of Suspiria and Third Mother: they laugh because it is finished, or because it's not real, it's a film.
-Never wanted to actually do a zombie film, only produce. Considers it romero's area.

And finally on the right, Dario recieved the lifetime achievement award (it's a hand clutching a heart)....BUT WE'RE NOT DONE!  After people paid too damn much for stuff at the auction and random time filler with new spooksmodel Danni Doll (it shouldve been BHM forum member Kaci),

 

TOBE HOOPER

 

 

 

More quick hits due to fatigue:

-Influences: Robert Weiss, Fellini, Antonioni, Welles, Hitchcock, Corman.
-His mother went into labor in a movie theater.
-Eggshells: Experimental comedy, first movie. Grueling difficult production whose nature helped the movie gain power.
-His films tend to have difficulties
-Masters gave him final cut and a budget.
-Working on From a Buick 8. Screenplay is done, and is working on casting.
-Lifeforce: mancini requested the scoring job, hooper liked him. Great experience. Blu-ray is in the works. Shouldve been called "Space Vampires".

-He likes adapting stepehn king because he loves his work. He tries to produce the feeling he had when he read the book.
-Invaders from Mars: Guy who installed a satellite dish on his house ended up doing the score for him.
-Craft services is better and you have more time on a big budget but the challenge is the same.
-Hooper's recorded a commentary for a new funhouse bluray or dvd but they're probably hanging on to it.
-"Rob Zombie is a dear friend and I sanction what he did. He's a cool dude." (On House of 1000 Corpses and Devil's Rejects)

Also, above is the Texas Chainsaw reunion panel.  Marilyn Burns, Tobe Hooper, Caroline Williams, and Tom Savini.  Me, I left.  Went to go see:

 

THE VIEWER/VINDICATION:

 

The Viewer, which I mentioned briefly earlier, is a 3D horror short by the people at Glass Eye Pix.  In it, you're accused of a crime and a profiler is attempting to read your mind and find out what happened.  The visuals get crazier and crazier and the whole short has a distinctly Warhol-esque feel to it.  It's very well done, both in terms of 3D and overall.

 

Vindication is a very unusual, very different film.  It's the story of a guy tormented by a violent visualization of his own guilt and inner feelings (sexual and otherwise).  It's a very interesting film and very well done considering we're talking a 3 year labor of love filmed on weekends made on a shoestring with paychecks.  It's very ambitious, very deep, and tends to stick with you a bit after the fact.  While it's, of the three movies I saw, the worst, it's still better than a lot of mainstream hollywood pablum that does hit theaters and deserves to be seen.

 

And with that, i'm done.  It's midnight here and my head hurts.  Overall, Fangoria massively disappointed me even while having a ton of amazing things.  It's like Chiller with more focus...and that's not a good thing.  Unless they pull something utterly amazing out of their ass next year, I ain't shlepping up to NYC for this next year.  So I leave you with a final thought.

 

When gothically designed and "Horror"...toilets....are your vendor....YOU NEED.  MORE.  BETTER. VENDORS.

So, I've been pushing that supposedly FearNet was going to be showcasing unaired eps of Fear Itself.  But, that's the last I'd heard.  I even saw on wikipedia recently that AIRDATES had apppeared in June.  Those dates passed, I saw nothing.  Also, way back when I first started doing this, I mentioned that LionsGate had promised that when it hit dvd, they were going to included extended cuts (this was before it got cancelled so your guess was as good as mine as to whether they were going to keep that promise).

 

But as we all know, Lionsgate and tv companies do funny things.  The five missing unaired eps have actually aired....in Canada and Latin America I believe.  SO people have seen these, they exist....

 

AND NOW YOU CAN TOO!

 

(I think it'd be better for all of us if we just ignored that thing on the left.)

Announced this past week and seen on Fangoria in multiple places:  Lionsgate presents FEAR ITSELF:  The Complete First Season in a collector's edition four-disc set with skeleton-tombstone case.  Street date will be September 15, MSRP is 30 dollars (so itll probably be on sale for 20 or 24).  Each ep will have a behind the scenes featurette with interviews.  The collection will also include EVERY episode, including the 5 unaired, all in 16X9 widescreen.  And most importantly:  The following 4 episodes will be presented in "Director's Cut" format with new footage not aired on tv:

• Stuart Gordon's "Eater"
• Darren Lynn Bousman's "New Year's Day"
• Larry Fessenden's "Skin and Bones"
• Rupert Wainwright's "Echoes" (which was unaired anyway...SO IT'S ALL NEW TO YOU!)

Once I've gotten my hands on the dvd, I'll probably do a variant on the liveblogging I used to do with this (no ads after all), but yes IT'S DEFINITELY COMING.

HEY YOU!  YES YOU!  YOU LIKE WINNING FREE STUFF RIGHT????

 

Owing to an error at the publisher when they sent me my subscription issue for the month (happened because I need to renew it), I now have a second issue of Rue Morgue this month to give away to a forum member!  (Btw, because this was just an error and I don't usually end up with stuff like this, don't expect a lot of this.  I just decided to be sure to give this to someone who would appreciate it)

 

So what are we playing for???

 

 

BUT!  I'm not gonna just give it away......we're gonna have a trivia challenge relating to it!  Here's how its going to work:  In this issue, and all issues, of Rue Morgue is a column called "Coroner's Report" in which Monica S. Kuebler compiles 13 dark and morbid facts.  So I'm going to ask you a question about one of the facts listed in the issue you're trying to win!  All you have to do to win is be the first forum member to comment with the correct answer to:

 

WHAT IS THE TECHNICAL TERM FOR "THE FEAR OF BEING BURIED ALIVE"?

 

If you win, I'll congratulate you and ask you to message me with your address, to which I'll send your free issue by USPS...and if Attrage happens to win, I'll find some way to ship it to Australia...

 

The contest begins NOW!  Good luck!

 

EDIT:  THE CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED!  BLOODYBONES IS THE WINNER!  THANKS FOR PLAYING!

First things first, I apologize for the delay in doing this...the week after the con, I had perfumery training in NYC for my job and shortly thereafter started having sinus problems....which then segued into a lovely chest cold.  But, I'm 95% healthy now, so I can do this more easily.

Now then, I'm also speechless.  It's no secret that I despise this show.  *Insert usual comment about it being too crowded, too expensive, too unfocused, and too apathetic about the fans here*  It still has problems, but to my utter shock, they've actually taken steps in the right direction this year.  For one thing, I avoided Saturday like the plague and had a FAR less stressful experience (hell on Sunday, I was done in an hour and a half because there were no lines).  For another, they expanded outward into the adjoining Hampton Inn, thus fixing overcrowding of guests.  They got far more horrorcentric guests then i've seen them do thus far.  And they managed to organize it in such a way that almost no line was oppressively long.  It wasn't perfect though...far too much of the program had people in the wrong places and I still think that if you need an exterior tent, you're TOO BIG.  But at least it's improvement.

 

FRIDAY:

I attended Chiller this time, once again, with my friend Rob (my other friend Jeff also joined up midway through the day).  Rob attends for the bootlegs, Jeff for the entertainment of the fans (Saturday's better for that though.  More costumes).  After first swinging over to the vendor room for a few things (I was buying someone a bootleg by request for instance....I do that if one asks nicely...not if someone from Belgium (I believe) anonymously writes on my profile.)  Then we headed to the Romero room.

 

THE ROMERO ROOM:

 

 

One of the smartest things Chiller did this year was expand outward into the Hampton.  By doing that, they basically created a secondary "Pit" FAR AWAY from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the show.  Wisely, they decided to put 90% of the Romero-related guests in this room.  This included George Romero (not pictured) who was super nice as usual (it's not pictured because i'd met him twice before then).  I did have him sign Day of the Dead and took a photo of him with Rob instead.  We also discussed site business.  I think I did okay with it....

 

Also in this room was the same Night of the Living Dead Reunion from Fangoria last summer.  They appeared to all be game as well.  The only member who wasnt in this room was Gary Streiner, the sound guy, who was iin the vendor room pushing the "Living Dead Festival" in Evans City, PA on Hallowen weekend.  Even more NOTLD people will be there as well (I can't make it...anyone else?).  He also hawked an indie film called Autopsy of the Dead which I will be messaging Don about shortly to see if he wants to try and get a pre-screener for review.

 

And there were a few people who weren't in Night of the Living Dead but were in Romero's canon.  This included Eugene Clark (Big Daddy from Land of the Dead).  Me, I went and saw those above.  On the left is Joe Pilato.  You might know him better as Capt. Rhodes from Day of the Dead ("CHOKE ON 'EM!!!!").  Was awesome.  Had my usual convention going friend duo, Maura and Jess been with me, I guarantee he wouldve loved to have gone to the bar after the con.

 

On the right, Lynn Lowry.  Romero-wise, you'd know her from The Crazies.  Otherwise, try...Cat People(remake), Shivers, and maybe Sugar Cookies (it's a Troma movie.  don't ask.  It's decent enough...but theres a weird pointless sideplot that distracts from the very well done erotic thriller.  But I digress...).  She was super nice.  Didn't realize I was waiting for her (she was on a cellphone) and apologized profusely when she did.  Like I said, though it's no big deal.  I mean, we're there for you, not the other way around.  We talked about that great banner in the photo.  She said a fan did it for her and she never expected something as big or well done as that which she got.  I only wish I had a larger shot of it because it really is one of the best I've ever seen at a con.  We talked about how good Sugar Cookies is as a movie (considering its basically a sexploitation erotic thriller....if you cut that stupid side story out).  She also talked with me about the remake of The Crazies which she said she's heard they're going in a different direction with it but that it sounds like they're doing good things with it.  She also mentioned her new indie movies Psychosomaticka, Basement Jack, and Schism (which she wrote, acted, and produced on).  Super nice...I only wish I'd thought at the time to buy a copy of Shivers like I did when I bought a copy of The Crazies from her.

 

After that, we specifically went to get one of the main things I came to the con for:

 

DEAN HAGLUND:

 

 

Dean Haglund, aka Langley of The X Files and the CRIMINALLY underappreciated The Lone Gunmen.  Great to talk to.  Discussed how Lone Gunmen was cancelled too soon.  We also talked about his invention, a laptop cooling device called the Chillpak which one places under their laptop to absorb heat from the running processor, thereby allowing the computer to process and run faster.  The invention went on to win awards and he now sells them at the site I just linked to and at the con.  While I didn't buy one, I did buy his self-penned comic book "Why The Lone Gunmen was Cancelled".  Super cool, easy-going kinda guy.  Now I just have to find a way to meet the other two....

 

Also in the same room was:

 

CORBIN BERNSEN:

 

 

You might know Corbin from...L.A. Law, Masters of Horror:  Right to Die, Psych, Major League, The Dentist, and it's sequel The Dentist 2:  Brace Yourself.  Great guy, we talked about how good he was in The Dentist (he grabbed a poster when I took a picture...his idea.  He does charge extra for a photo, which in some ways I don't understand.  However, I am thankful most people at Chiller this time didn't.  He also charges 60+ dollars to sign a baseball a la Major League.  I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that.  He's a nice guy though, I definitely have no complaints.  (Matter of fact, I'll say here:  Val Kilmer at this con a few times ago is still the worst person I've ever met and I don't know if thatll ever change.)

 

After this we went across the hall to one of the best things Chiller attempted to do this year...

 

ITALIAN INVASION (AKA 30TH ANNIVERSARY ZOMBIE REUNION)

 

 

Last year, Fangoria did a Masters of Italian Horror Panel.  Got Ruggero Deodato, Lamberto Bava, Sergio Stivaletti, etc. (more info here and they're planning to sorta top it this year...with Dario Argento).  So, maybe in response, maybe not, Chiller got 16 different people in or related to Italian Horror.  People like stars of Cannibal Ferox (not pictured), much of the cast of Contamination (not pictured...I SAID IT WAS EXPENSIVE), Luigi Cozzi, and the director of a Lucio Fulci retrospective movie.

 

Non-Zombie wise, not pictured is Malisa Longo, star of Cat in the Brain.  She seemed super nice but there was definitely a language barrier so I decided not to pay for the extra picture after I bought the new awesome version of Cat in the Brain.  Pictured is Cinzia Monreale, star of Fulci's The Beyond.  It really was like Fulcimania.  Zombie Master would've loved it.

 

Zombiewise, we had Ian McCulloch, Al Cliver, and Richard Johnson (not pictured).  See, I didn't want to pay 100 dollars to get a copy of Zombie signed by 4 people....I did, however, decide to get Ottaviano Dell'acqua.  Why you might ask?  When many consider you THE definitive Zombie (see poster in background of him in makeup), you deserve my money.  I also apologize for the yellow photo.  It's a dark retouched.  It was that or horribly blurry.

 

Now....TO THE TENT!  (God I hate saying that...it's like you're relegating a bunch of people to "out back in the yard")....

 

E.G. DAILY

 

If there is ONE thing, besides overcrowding, that I know Chiller for, it's random people who have some odd tenuous connection to horror.  This is a perfect example.  We have E.G. Daily.  You might know her from Pee Wee's Big Adventure.  Or as the voice of Tommy Pickles and Buttercup of the Powerpuff Girls and Babe of Babe:  Pig In the City.  Or...here it comes....as "Candy" the prostitute in The Devil's Rejects.  E.G. (or Elizabeth) is super nice and is very devoted to her fans.  She also has a musical career as well.  You can add her on myspace here.  (And yes, I know, there are many other....reasons people might add her on myspace.  I don't judge.  lol)

 

DIAN BACHAR

 

 

Again.  Tenuous connection to horror.  You might know Dian from Orgazmo.  Or Baseketball.  Or South Park (voice of Satan's human lover who isn't Saddam Hussein).  He's a close friend of Matt Stone and Trey Parker.  Which also means....again, here it comes...he's in Cannibal The Musical as George Noon!  I highly recommend this movie.  He was super nice and actually didn't even know theyd released the new 13th Anniversary Tromasterpiece version of Cannibal.  I'm glad I was able to provide him with that info so he can get a copy.  Movie should be way more popular than it is.

 

JONATHAN TIERSTEN

 

 

Hey everyone!  It's foul-mouthed cousin Ricky from Sleepaway Camp!  Great guy, we talked about the movie's deserved cult status, it's recent direct sequel (Return to Sleepaway Camp) and the upcoming direct sequel to the direct sequel (Sleepaway Camp Reunion).  Much like Ms. Daily, he also has a musical career.  Definitely appreciative of the fans.  He even complimented our site when he signed the dvd!  Yep.  "Your Sight Is The Best!".  He mispelled site.  Hilarious.

 

MO MELLADY

 

 

Moving back into voice acting for a moment, is that a great shot or is that a great shot.  Perfect angle.  I'd like to mention now btw, that BHM does not necessarily endorse things like Esurance that I might mention in these reports.  This is Mo Mellady, the voice of Erin Esurance and one of the Gorillaz.  If I didn't tell you that that's a cardboard standup, you'd think I photoshopped it in.  Super nice, said the ads are gonna probably be moving back toward spy stuff and away from the musical stuff and star trek stuff they've been doing.

 

Not pictured:  Debi Derryberry.  Voice of Jimmy Neutron and Timmy Turner.  Hey, I've only got so much money folks in this economy.

 

SUNDAY:

After spending Saturday resting, which was very nice, I headed back down.  How uncrowded was Sunday as compared to a Saturday?  The following pictures were totally done in 90 minutes.  I'm never doing Saturday again unless something insane is that day:

 

DEEP SPACE NINE

 

 

I'm not a huge Star Trek guy.  But my friend is!  So I got some 8X10s signed for him.  This is Rene Auberjonois(Odo), not pictured is Michael Dorn (Lt. Worf).  Dorn actually signed a photo of the Family Guy shot of the whole cast animated from a couple weeks ago (for me anyway....for him I just got each to sign a DS9 related one).

 

BRUCE ABBOTT

 

 

Bruce Abbott, Dr. Cain from Re-Animator and Bride of Re-Animator.  Super nice.  We talked about how Jeffrey Combs had taken up all the space on the cover of my dvd, relegating his autograph to the bottom of the cover.  Great guy.  His....agent?...bodyguard?...whatever, told me that the star of Braindead may be in Ohio in October for another Con.  That's too far for me, but I'm sure someone out there will get there.

 

MIGUEL NUNEZ JR.

 

 

Miguel Nunez Jr., Spike from Return of the Living Dead...and the lead in Juwanna Mann(I did not know that until the con.  weird).  Said he had just been talking to Linnea Quigley recently.  We talked about how the movie was finally getting the respect and acclaim it deserved.  Appears he was in California a couple days earlier.  Travelling man.

 

JASON LIVELY

 

 

And finally, Jason Lively, Chris from Night of the Creeps!  I can in fact confirm the upcoming October DVD Release and also can say for sure that they're attempting to put serious special features into this.  Lively mentioned that he's been called to do a commentary and that they're gonna attempt to do deleted scenes, etc.  So, at least it definitely won't be bare bones.  I know I'm psyched.

 

And that's Chiller.  A BIG step forward this year, but still far too big for the place it's held and far too expensive....oh and if you're looking for a costume pick?  There weren't really any costumes at the con.  It's that whole Friday-Sunday thing.  Next time, economy and money willing, I'll be doing Fangoria (cruddy notes and panel photos galore!) and Monstermania in Hartford.  Until then, this is Crypticpsych saying....

 

I can't believe how big a line Peter Criss from KISS had.  Family Guy once said "Nobody wants to be Peter Criss, not even Peter Criss". Well, I guess you never underestimate the KISS Army.

This is a quick note to clarify something in the last update I did on the status of Fear Itself and, by extension, my liveblogging of it.  In it, I mentioned Fearnet has a hold of all the aired episodes and has them for streaming on their site and cable service.  This is still true.  However, the removal of Fearnet from Brighthouse and Time Warner has had an unintended benefit for me.  When they announced the push to get it reinstated, they included a list of things they're planning to spotlight in the coming weeks and months.  Notice the first thing on the list:

 

5 Never-Before-Seen Episodes of ‘Fear Itself'
Hostel
Hostel 2
Army Of Darkness
Clive Barker's The Midnight Meat Train (Director's Cut)
Bug
Boogeyman
Resident Evil
Candyman
Darkman
Christine
Vacancy 2
Frontier (s)
Phantasm
Captivity
Child's Play
I Know Who Killed Me, starring Lindsay Lohan
Darkman
Snoop Dogg's Hood of Horror

 

So, this is just to mention, that when Fear Itself's final unaired eps go live on Fearnet, I will be there doing the same old liveblogging of them all.  Fear Itself lives on!

While I sit here and watch Harper's Island (I refuse to liveblog such a complicated show), its as good a time as any to roll into the nineties on my serialization of my thesis.  Today, we see the birth of the hybrid protagonist as seen through Clarice Starling of Jonathan Demme's The Silence of the Lambs.  Spoilers, of course, abound.  Cited this time around, besides the film itself, we have Carol J. Clover's Men, Women, and Chiansaws:  Gender in the Modern Horror Film, AFI's 100 Years, 100 Heroes and Villains, the award page of IMDB's Silence of the Lambs Page, Kendall R. Phillips's Projected Fears:  Horror Films and American Culture, and Cynthia A. Freeland's The Naked and the Undead:  Evil and the Appeal of Horror.  Next time, we'll hit the controversial part of the paper where I discuss Tales from the Crypt Presents:  Demon Knight.  And so, we continue with:

 

The 1990s: The Masculine-Feminine

     One of the lasting legacies of the archetypes of the 1980s slasher film boom was the rise of hybrid female protagonists who blend feminine and masculine stereotypes into one whole. The "final girl" was the prototype for this character with some describing them as "boyish, in a word. [... their] smartness, gravity, competence in mechanical and other practical matters, and sexual reluctance set [them] apart from the other girls" (Clover 40). Over time, the character would evolve, and would become more stereotypically masculine through appearance, action, and deed. In some instances, female protagonists would be seen to act, dress and look similar to a male authority figure. In others, the characters appear to show little or no emotion throughout much of the movie, choosing instead to have the air of a person who is apathetic about surrounding dangers. In so doing, they eschew the commonly-believed stereotype that women are more emotional and sentimental than men and carve out a new style of character for themselves. This particular type of blended protagonist can be seen most clearly in the leads of The Silence of the Lambs and Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight.

     Jonathan Demme's The Silence of the Lambs tells the story of Clarisse Starling, an FBI trainee thrust into the hunt for a serial killer who targets women. This particular serial killer, who goes by the name of "Buffalo Bill", has kidnapped a politician's daughter and is holding her captive in an unknown location. In order to capture him, Starling is sent by her supervisor, Jack Crawford, to interview an incarcerated serial killer, the cannibal psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter. These meetings drive the movie as Lecter becomes intrigued by Starling and helps her in her investigation through red herring clues, enigmatic puzzles, and his own attempts at psychoanalyzing both "Buffalo Bill" and Starling herself. It is these psychoanalyses that cause Starling to move closer to capturing Bill while simultaneously achieving a deeper understanding of herself and the inner demons of her past. Ultimately, the investigation culminates with Starling being separated from Crawford and his team after he believes that he and the rest of the FBI has determined where the killer is. Starling, on the other hand, acts on Lecter's tips and goes to where she thinks the killer was born, looking for clues from his past and basing her decision on the location where the first victim was discovered. She soon discovers that the house where the victim lived was directly next door to another house. Acting on a suggestion from Dr. Lecter that "we begin by coveting what we see every day" (Silence of the Lambs), Starling investigates the other house only to find the murderer at the same time the separate ground team investigates a completely empty house miles away. "Buffalo Bill" stalks Starling through the pitch-black house and is within moments of killing her when he cocks his gun, the click alerting her to his position and allowing her to kill him with one blind gunshot. Starling goes on to graduate from her training, gaining her supervisor's approval. The movie ends, however, with an escaped Dr. Lecter calling Clarisse to see how the case ended up and let her know that he is not going to kill her because "the world is more interesting with [her] in it" (The Silence of the Lambs). The final shot is of Lecter walking away into a Caribbean crowd, following a newly-arrived Dr. Clifton, his intent presumed to be cannibalistic.

      After its release, The Silence of the Lambs was praised by numerous critics and nominated for awards ranging from Writers Guild of America awards to Golden Globes to Academy Awards. One of the main reasons that the film received this many accolades and is recognized as one of the best movies of the 90s is apparent in the fact that many of these nominations were for the acting of Jodie Foster as Starling and Anthony Hopkins as Lecter. (Awards for The Silence of the Lambs) To discover the multi-layered portrayal of Lecter or sense his impact, one only need examine one of the many essays that have been written on the character or note that the American Film Institute recently named the character the greatest film villain of the 20th century. (AFI's 100 Years, 100 Heroes & Villains) Starling, on the other hand should be noted for Foster's ability to portray her as a woman struggling to gain ground in a male-dominated profession. As such, the performance appears to be one in which Starling chooses to adopt the mannerisms, emotions, and characteristics of the male higher-ups when in their presence as it is the only way for her to advance in the system. This includes that Starling's emotions are human, not over-the-top, showing disgust and fear that anyone would, rather than showing stereotypic "final girl" overreaction (e.g. screaming). In fact, Clover describes Clarisse as "masculine in both manner and career, uninterested in sex or men, and dead serious about her career" (233).

     Starling never shows any overt signs of physical attraction to any male character in the film, deflecting any advances that occur. Also, never once in the film is Clarisse seen at a point in time where she is "off the clock". She showcases tireless work ethic, tremendous drive, and deeply workaholic tendencies, all of which up until that point tended to be characteristics of either "final girls" or masculine heroes. Physically speaking, her voice is relatively deep and features a heavy Southern accent, features that combine to make her sound much less than stereotypically feminine. She also tends to dress in unflattering, business-style suits when not in her training clothes and always has somewhat "restrained" hair, thereby simultaneously appearing both as professional and as unfeminine as she can.

     Finally, in multiple instances throughout the film, she is forced to overcome and deflect both agents who are suspicious of her abilities as a woman and agents who make snide sexual jokes in her presence or attempt to make a pass at her. This includes a moment at the beginning of the movie where she enters the elevator to meet with Crawford, only to be dwarfed and gawked at by a group of other male recruits. This visual idea of Starling being surrounded by towering men is repeated multiple times in the film. Later, when she first goes to visit with Lecter and is being debriefed by Dr. Chilton, Chilton comments on Starling's beauty before making any remarks regarding her credentials. He, in fact, totally disregards her skills, claiming that Crawford only chose her to appeal to Lecter's baser instincts. "Crawford's very clever isn't he using you? [...] Pretty young woman to turn him on, I don't believe Lecter's even seen a woman in eight years." (The Silence of the Lambs) As the movie continues, other recruits stare at her while she practices her running and goes over codes for different crimes. Later, Crawford asks a local police officer to discuss the case in private, specifically doing so to have the conversation on the bizarre sex crime out of Starling's earshot. The rest of the local force is left alone with Starling and appraises her up and down, apparently believing she doesn't belong there and has no right to act as if she has authority over them. Starling would later chastise Crawford for it.

 

     Through all of this, she perseveres through the case, determined to see it through to the end and save the senator's daughter. (Phillips 159) This is perhaps why Clarisse has to be alone to finish her pursuit of "Buffalo Bill". In that way, she is able to prove her worth in the FBI's system by tracking and capturing the killer they missed. In fact, when Crawford ignores Clarisse's evidence of Buffalo Bill's location in favor of his own, it becomes the FBI's final mistake in ignoring the point of view of the female agent. In general, the final proof of the departure of Starling from the "final girls" who preceded her is found in her final battle with Bill. In it, she is continually hunting for him, willing to stop him at all costs, rather than running away. She is willing to lay her life on the line to stop the villain from killing again rather than protect herself and kill the villain as an afterthought. This departure of the female protagonist from being a character that simply runs from the danger or fights only as a last resort is underlined by Clarisse's use of a gun to deal the fatal blow. That particular weapon in many movies tends to be stereotypically male and is associated with masculine power and dominance. Overall, through the gunshot and her actions through the rest of the film, Clarisse adopts the characteristics of the males of her community, becoming a combination hero-heroine focused on achieving both success in resolving the case and advancement in the FBI's male-dominated system. As put by Cynthia Freeland in The Naked and the Undead: Evil and the Appeal of Horror: 

"Clarice occupies a more standard (male) heroic role within a narrative arc that presents a solution to the evil of at least the inner story of The Silence of the Lambs: she kills off the ‘bad guy' and rescues the ‘damsel'. Thus, this film suggests that a woman can become victorious over evil by taking on stereotypically male attributes and insignia" (210).