Elvira and Lianne Spiderbaby

Ran across this terrific photo of Elvira and Lianne Spiderbaby and thought I'd post it here, as it fits perfectly along with recent posts here.

Top 13 Horror Hosts

In yesterday’s post I wound up discussing, as Andrea Subisetti called it (thanks for the repost Andrea), the relevance of the horror host. Horror hosts on television got their start in 1954 with Vampira in Los Angeles. There is some question if Vampira was the very first host,  but for my money she’s the one that counts, especially considering her show was broadcast in the LA area and therefore much more influential than any other contenders.

The horror host is a natural extension of the old radio host programs such as LIGHTS OUT And SUSPENSE, where a mysterious announcer would introduce the evening’s offering of chills and thrills. The radio hosts were influenced in turn by the comic book hosts of companies such as EC Comics with their books TALES FROM THE CRYPT, VAULT OF HORROR, and HAUNT OF FEAR, hosted by the Crypt Keeper, the Vault Keeper, and the Old Witch respectively.

In 1957 Universal offered a package of 52 films to television stations. This was a big deal, as these movies had never been shown on television before. As a way to help promote these movies, Universal sent along suggestions for ways to increase viewership. Among these suggestions was the idea of adding a local host to introduce the movies. They suggested the hosts dress up in costumes and assume a character. These films were licensed to stations all across the country, and thus the local horror host was born. For more information about the Shock package of films see the fantastic Shock Theater blog here: http://shocktheater1.blogspot.com/

I say local horror host because that is where horror host works best, on the local level. In every city where a host introduced the SHOCK! package a community of devoted fans developed almost overnight. Kids latched onto their show and the hosts became local celebrities. The programs became the talk of the water fountain at school and their shows were a can’t-miss event. Ratings soared and in most cities these shows were the highest rated programs on the station.

The films in the SHOCK! Series were a pretty cool list of movies, some horror, some mystery:

The Black Cat

Calling Dr. Death

The Cat Creeps

Chinatown Squad

Danger Woman

A Dangerous Game

Dead Man's Eyes

Destination Unknown

Dracula

Dracula's Daughter

Enemy Agent

Frankenstein

Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man

The Frozen Ghost

The Great Impersonation

Horror Island

House of Horrors

The Invisible Man

The Invisible Man Returns

The Invisible Ray

The Last Warning

The Mad Doctor of Market Street

The Mad Ghoul

Man Made Monster

The Man Who Cried Wolf

The Mummy

The Mummy's Ghost

The Mummy's Hand

The Mummy's Tomb

Murders in the Rue Morgue

The Mystery of Edwin Drood

The Mystery of Marie Roget

Mystery of the White Room

Night Key

Nightmare

Night Monster

Pillow of Death

The Raven

Reported Missing!

Sealed Lips

The Secret of the Blue Room

Secret of the Chateau

She-Wolf of London

Son of Dracula

Son of Frankenstein

The Spider Woman Strikes Back

The Spy Ring

The Strange Case of Doctor Rx

Weird Woman

Werewolf of London

The Witness Vanishes

The Wolf Man

There were many, many pioneers of this tradition of horror hosting – the most comprehensive list of horror hosts past and present is the amazing website Ygor’s Chamber of TV Horror Hosts, run by George Chastain. If you ever wondered if your area had a horror host, check his site!

I thought I’d take this opportunity to make my own list of top horror hosts. Let me preface it by saying this is according to my own taste – I can only judge the hosts I’ve seen, naturally, and this is only my opinion. The categories I’m using to rank them are style, influence, and longevity. The magic number of hosts to rank seems to be 13, as it’s nice and spooky…



TOP 13 HORROR HOSTS

Runner up – Sir Cecil Creape, aka Russ McCown


I’d be remiss if I didn’t add my own host to the list, even if only in a runner-up position. Sir Cecil was my own horror host in Nashville TN. His show, CREATURE FEATURE, ran on the air from 1970-73, and he revived his show for a couple of years in the 1980s on TNN, The Nashville Network, although this time around the show was called THE PHANTOM OF THE OPRY. I actually didn’t get to watch CREATURE FEATURE– my parents wouldn’t let me stay up and see it. But I caught the promos for it and met him once at a Boy Scout event. I even got a patch at that event that reads “Sir Cecil’s Ghoul Patrol.” First thing I did when I began my show was to sew that patch onto my labcoat in tribute to Sir Cecil.

#13 – Chilly Billy Cardille – aka Bill Cardille

Host of Chiller Theater in Pittsburg, PA. The show ran on the air for 20 years in the Pittsburg area. Bill appeared in the George Romero classic film Night of the Living Dead as a TV news reporter. I’ve met Bill and he is a truly nice guy, and a true legend in the horror host field.




#12 – Joe Bob Briggs – aka John Bloom

Joe Bob was the host of JOE BOB’s DRIVE-IN THEATER on The Movie Channel for ten years and later MONSTERVISION on TNT for four years. Both were, of course, nationally syndicated programs. Joe Bob has one of the funnier schticks around, a redneck lowbrow lover of b-movies and drive-in theaters who employs a ratings system of three B’s (blood, breasts, and beasts) for his movies that is actually very smartly written. He has appeared in a number of movies and television shows and has written several books. He also went to Vanderbilt University, giving him a Nashville connection.




#11 – Dr. Paul Bearer – aka Dick Bennick

Dr. Paul Bearer was the host of SHOCK THEATRE, CREATURE FEATURE and FRIGHT THEATRE. He began hosting as Count Shockula in 1965 but changed his persona to Dr. Paul Bearer along the way. He hosted until 1995, originally in North Carolina but he later moved to Tampa, FL. Dr. Paul Bearer was famous for his use of puns and fake product placement. He spoke in an almost monotone voice that he called reverse falsetto.

#10 – Sammy Terry – real name Bob Carter

Sammy Terry hosted Nightmare Theater in Indianapolis, IN for close to 20 years in the 60s and 70s then off and on afterwards. He was and still is a fixture in the Indianapolis area, drawing large crowds at signings and events. Mention Sammy Terry to anyone from that area and their eyes will light up immediately!!




#9 – Count Gore DeVol – aka Dick Dyszel,

The Count hosted CREATURE FEATURE in Washington D.C. from 1973-87. In 1998 he revived his show on the internet in a weekly web series (the year before I began my own show – I met Gore for the first time in 1999, and we became fast friends). Almost 35 years later he’s still going strong, and has been influential to a new generation of horror hosts who followed his lead into the digital age of horror hosting on the internet.



#8 – Big Chuck and Lil’ John – real names Chuck Schodowski and John Rinaldi.

The duo hosted the BIG CHUCK AND LIL’ JOHN SHOW in Cleveland, Ohio from 1979 to 2007, an incredible 28 years! BUT, the show dates back much longer than that - it originally began as THE HOOLIHAN AND BIG CHUCK SHOW in 1966 with Chuck Schodowski and Bob Hoolihan, a weatherman on the station, bringing the total number of years the program ran in Cleveland to an amazing 41 years straight!!



#7 – Svengoolie – aka Rich Coz

Svengoolie is the host of a self titled program in Chicago, IL. Svengoolie started his show in 1979 as Son of Svengooli , taking over the role of Svengoolie from former host Jerry G. Bishop (his show, SCREAMING YELLOW THEATER, ran from 1970-73). Jerry is one of my all-time favorites as well. He was quick witted and funny with a really natural sense of humor. The Son of Svengoolie show ran from 1979-86, then returned in 1994 on another channel (WCIU) where it continues to this day. Rich shortened his name to simply Svengoolie and the rest is history. Sven is easily my favorite current horror host. 25 years on the air and counting and he’s still going strong!



#6 – Morgus the Magnificent – real name Sid Noel

Dr Morgus is the host of THE HOUSE OF SHOCK and DR. MORGUS PRESENTS! in New Orleans, Louisiana. He started his program in 1959 and it ran until 1989, then was resurrected in 2005 and reruns continue to this day. Dr. Morgus is a mad scientist who conducted mad experiments each week between breaks in the movie. It was my pleasure to induct him into the Rondo Award Hall of Fame last year.








#5 – Bob Wilkins/John Stanley

Okay, I know it isn’t fair to lump two hosts together but hey, it’s my countdown, so I make the rules here!! Bob Wilkins hosted CREATURE FEATURES in San Francisco from 1971 to 1978. John Stanley then took over host duties from Bob Wilkins and continued the program until 1984. Both hosts were non-costumed, appearing as themselves to introduce the movies wearing a suit and tie. Bob always had a trademark cigar in hand while hosting. Together the two kept their motto alive, “Watch Horror Movies, Keep America Strong.” Bob Wilkins was inducted into the Rondo Award Hall of Fame in 2008.



#4 – Ghoulardi – aka Ernie Anderson

Ghoulardi hosted Shock Theater in Cleveland Ohio from 1963-1966. While his run on the show wasn’t that long his impact was enormous. Ghoulardi was a hipster beatnik who appeared in trademark goatee and moustache. His show was the predecessor to Hoolihan and Big Chuck, who took over after he left. Music played an important part in THE GHOULARDI show, and they made especially good use of PAPA-OOM-MOW-MOW. He would blow up models and items sent in from viewers with fireworks, BOOM-BOOms he called them, live on the air. He had an irreverent air and defiant sensibility that kids immediately latched onto. Ghoulardi rocked the airwaves of Cleveland and is still remembered fondly to this day.





#3 – Vampira, aka Maila Nurmi

Vampira hosted THE VAMPIRA SHOW from 1954-1955. This will probably be the most controversial pick of this list, but despite her being recognized as the first horror host I ranked her #3 because her show was so short lived and so little of it exists (just a few minutes of footage that surfaced a few years back). She drew inspiration for her character from Morticia Addams of THE ADDAMS FAMILY cartoon. Skin-tight long black dress, impossibly thin waist and long jet black hair and nails were her trademark, and she would open every show with a blood curdling scream! She is perhaps best remembered nowadays for appearing in the Ed Wood film PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE. Vampira was inducted to the Rondo Award Hall of Fame the very first year, 2002.




#2 – Elvira – aka Cassandra Peterson

Elvira is perhaps the most widely recognized horror host alive today. Vampira might have done it first but Elvira certainly did it bigger! Anytime I need to explain my show to someone unfamiliar with horror hosting I mention Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. Her show, MOVIE MACABRE, was nationally syndicated from 1981-1987. She became an inter-national celebrity, appeared in commercials for national products and was a Halloween icon throughout the eighties. A series of Movie Macabre episodes were released on home video in the late eighties and she revived her show in 2010.




#1 – Zacherley – aka John Zacherle

Zacherley, the cool ghoul, was the host of SHOCK THEATER, ZACHERLEY AT LARGE, CHILLER THEATER. Zacherley is the epitome of a TV horror host. If you looked up the term in an encyclopedia, if such a thing existed any longer (dating myself here), Zacherley’s picture should be the one next to the description. Zacherley began his hosting career in 1957 as Roland, host of SHOCK THEATER in Philadelphia. In 1958 he moved to New York City and changed his host name to Zacherley. He was wildly popular and his personal appearances drew thousands. He was the first to use “cut-ins”, inserting himself into the movie as if he was part of the action, a standard trick for horror hosts thereafter. Zacherley was inducted to the Rondo Award Hall of Fame the very first year, 2002.

Stupid Costumes and Bad Jokes

I just finished listening to the latest episode of the Rue-Morgue Podcast and was kind of left feeling insulted afterward. The Rue Morgue Podcast is, of course, the podcast that endured after long running Rue Morgue Radio was cancelled. It features Stuart Feedback Andrews interviewing celebrities and figures in the field of horror. In this latest episode he spoke with Rue Morgue film critic the Gore-Met, who has a regular column in the magazine specializing in gory horror movies. The interview was a lengthy one so it was actually broken into two sections, and it was in part two that Gore-met made a comment I took offense to.

In part two Stuart took the Gore-Met to task for a series of comments he made regarding Women in Horror Month on the Rue Morgue blog that many felt were insensitive and offensive. Feedback was a little easy on him, truth be told. The Gore-Met offered up a lame excuse that those comments were made in jest, and it was all a joke, but I ain’t buying it. There was more than a little bit of personal opinion mixed in there to even make those remarks in the first place. And even if it WAS a joke it’s extremely insensitive to make those jokes at other peoples’ expense to begin with. I guarantee the women who read those posts, especially Lianne Spiderbaby, didn’t take it as a joke.

Speaking of Lianne Spiderbaby, it was a remark about her that led to the part of the podcast I drew offense to. The Gore-Met made a catty remark about women in negligee and high heels reviewing movies (Spiderbaby) which led to him talking about Elvira. Here’s the conversation, below:

( NOTE - I changed out this pic of Lianne Spiderbaby from the one I posted yesterday because this is probably a better representation of her - she's a movie reviewer, the others host horror movies. Different schtick, you know?)


Feedback: I want to actually get into that whole issue about sexualized images of women in horror, because I think that’s an important discussion to have, but not necessarily with you. (laughs)

The Gore-Met: Truth be told, the whole Elvira… the Katarina’s Midnight Movie thing that DVD companies have going on I think is thoroughly fucking insulting, and I don’t wanna look at that, I just want to see the movie. I don’t want to have to ogle the wrestling diva for five minutes before the movie, what the fuck is she doing there? What’s the significance of it, get out of the way.

Feedback: You don’t like Elvira?

The Gore-Met: She seems like a nice person but that whole horror host shtick… I don’t like when guys do it either. I used to watch that when I was a kid, I don’t care about it anymore. You know just get out of the way. Again, it’s somebody trying to make money and promote themselves off the back of the work of others. You could say that about us, too… but I think we’re presenting something of value more than just putting on a stupid costume and making a few bad jokes.





Ok, a few things going on here. First and foremost is the slam toward Elvira, Katarina (I think he means Katarina’s Nightmare Theater)and Lianne Spiderbaby. The Gore-Met really seems to have an issue with attractive women in the horror field who dress provocatively. Perhaps it’s an insecurity thing, but more likely it’s simply a male chauvinistic one. More than once he mentioned going to a strip club on the podcast. Perhaps it is the fact these women aren’t presented in the correct context for Mr. Gore-Met - maybe he is simply more comfortable with them when presented as sexual objects, or maybe the mixture of sexuality and authority unnerves him.

Elvira and Katarinna are “fucking insulting” to him, and he doesn’t want to have to ogle the wrestling diva for five minutes before getting to the movie. Fine. Don’t buy a copy of the film with her on it. Not a big problem. But perhaps the deeper issue is, again, why does this make you so uncomfortable? And why when you watch it do you feel you’re ogling her?

Next he goes on to say he doesn’t like it when men host horror movies either. Fair enough, it isn’t everyone’s bag, I get that. He feels the hosts should get out of the way so the viewers can get on to the film. I get that too. I feel the same way about Mystery Science Theater, so I don’t watch versions of movies with their treatment. Copies of these movies are readily available un-hosted and in many cases, like the MST discs, you can choose to watch with or without the host segments. No problem there.

He mentions he used to watch horror hosts as a kid but he doesn’t care about that anymore. Fine. Don’t buy it. But a lot of other folks do care about it, including many kids. I think that was meant more as a derisive comment than anything else. Horror hosts are too juvenile for the Gore-Met’s refined tastes therefore it doesn’t have merit. Hey, I have news for you, Gore-Met, despite what you may think, just because you don’t like something doesn’t make it bad.

He finally reaches the part of this that I take most offense to when he says horror hosts are simply “somebody trying to make money and promote themselves off the back of the work of others.” He does go on to say, “You could say that about us, too… but I think we’re presenting something of value more than just putting on a stupid costume and making a few bad jokes.”

Seriously, Gore-Met? What an arrogant statement. But then arrogance seems to be a pretty common trait among most critics. As I said in a comment on the Rue Morgue blog, if you don’t like horror hosts that’s fine but don’t act like your own work is somehow better than what we do, especially when compared to someone like Elvira, a beautiful, talented, funny, strong woman who is internationally famous through years of hard work as a writer, producer, and actor. She wrote those Elvira films as well as many of the shows themselves. She earned her place in horror history and definitely offers much more than a few bad jokes.

I personally spend countless hours researching, writing, shooting and editing my segments to make them as entertaining and informative as possible. I have had many young folks come up and tell me they grew up watching my show and want to thank me for getting them into horror. I feel it is a service I provide, in a way, helping to keep the memories of these shows and the people who made them alive in the public consciousness. My philosophy was always to never assume the viewer already knew something. In other words, I would mention that Boris Karloff played the Frankenstein Monster, or Lon Chaney played the Wolfman, facts that we as older horror movie viewers already know, but you know what? There are kids watching that DON’T already know these things. And I, as a “stupid costume wearing, bad joke telling” horror host have a way to reach these kids and introduce them to these wonderful classics.

Horror hosting is a time-honored tradition that a handful of us are trying to keep alive. I don’t simply do this for fame or money, there are much better ways to achieve both. In fact, for years I didn’t even take any merchandise with me to conventions. I found the shows much more enjoyable and it was much easier to gather interviews if I wasn’t chained to a table. Sure, I was missing out on sales but who cares? It isn’t about that. This is an artistic endeavor, a way to express myself that is fun and centered around one of my main interests, horror movies. I guarantee I spend way more than I make at this, in money and time. I only recently started getting a table at shows again, mainly because people kept asking me for new DVDs.

How is this any less noble a profession than what you do, which was admittedly started only because you wanted free swag? You get paid to write your opinions. Terrific. But the problem comes into play when critics start taking themselves too seriously. Of course their opinions are more important than everyone else’s, and of course they’re always right, and of course you offer more than someone in a stupid costume telling bad jokes because you’re the Gore-Met, fer Christ sakes! Just listen to how ridiculous that is. The Gore-Met. Why that’s as ridiculous a name as Elvira, or Lianne Spiderbaby, or Dr. Gangrene. That is a name worthy of someone wearing a stupid costume and telling bad jokes!

Tell you what, Gorey, if you get tired of spouting your opinion on gore films maybe you should consider hosting movies. You never know, you might just be a natural at it. But you probably won’t get as much free swag.

Creatures of the Night We Loved So Well

This is a promo I did for a new book on southern California horror hosts called CREATURES OF THE NIGHT WE LOVED SO WELL, by author Jim Fetters. It is an in-depth look at the hosts that haunted the scarewaves of Southern CA through the years, from Vampira to Elvira and everything in-between. It's a really great book chock full of great info and pictures. Available here

Women in the Rondos Hall of Fame… or lack thereof

Driving home from Wonderfest I got into a conversation with my buddy Cameron McCasland about women in the Rondo Awards Hall of Fame. If you look through the awards you’ll notice that there aren’t that many women who have made it into the HOF, which is probably to be expected as the genre tends to be a male slanted one. But there are plenty of women who have contributed to the horror field, so we started discussing some who we felt were worthy of inclusion.

Before I get into that I have to say I am still a little cloudy on the criteria for the Rondo Hall of Fame, but David Colton cleared it up quite a bit in the interview he did with me here on this blog. He said it is sort of the second generation of monster kids they’re aiming for - Those who were influenced by the classics and that influence in turn fueled their creative endeavors. OK, cool – makes sense.


Top on both of our lists was  
Cassandra Peterson, a.k.a. Elvira. 

As a TV horror host myself I have to say she definitely is one of the most influential people of all time in the field. From time to time I find myself describing what I do to someone who just doesn’t get it – they have no idea what a “horror host” is. In such cases I say, “Think Elvira,” and they almost always know who I’m talking about. She is probably THE most widely known horror host, even eclipsing her predecessors Zacherly and Vampira in popularity. She had nation-wide syndication, two motion pictures and more marketing and merchandise than you can shake a well-stuffed brassiere at! She is funny, smart, and an icon in the field. I would love for Cassandra to make it into the Rondo Hall of Fame.

Poison Ivy, (a.k.a. Kristy Wallace)

Poison Ivy of the band The Cramps is a woman who should definitely be in the Hall of Fame. I wrote David Colton after Lux Interior was added to the Hall of Fame and asked him if she could be added too. If you’re going to have Lux Interior In there, you’ve gotta have Ivy too. Lux was the front man but Ivy provided that cool rockabilly rhythm that made it groove. The two were a couple for 37 years – they wrote everything together, and were a team. In my book most horror rock boils down to two camps – The Misfits and The Cramps. The Cramps were rockabilly garage punk and influenced a generation of musicians. Ivy’s guitar playing was a huge part of that.

Jessie Lilley 

Jessie Lilley is a woman who I think has a good shot at winning monster kid of the year this year. She is the newly named editor of the revived Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine. She is also, in a sure sign of insanity, simultaneously Editor in Chief of Mondo Cult Magazine. How she’ll manage this juggling act I’m not sure but hey – more power to ya Jessie!  She is the former publisher and co-founder of Scarlet Street Magazine, Editor of Worldly Remains, A Pop Culture Review, and also served as Managing Editor for Retro Vision Magazine. She’s even acted in a few low budget movies to boot. She should be in the HOF for her years of dedication promoting the field.

Jovanka Vuckovic 

Jovanka Vuckovic is a woman who has a huge fan follow and is probably destined to get there eventually. What’s not to love about Jovanka? She’s smart, talented, and has that cool rock n’ roll vibe that she brought with her to Rue Morgue magazine. Under her leadership as Editor-in-Chief Rue Morgue Magazine became arguably the most popular genre magazine on the stands today, and the well oiled machine that has swept the Rondos the past two years.  She’s worked as a writer, visual effects artist, actor (as a zombie in the Dawn of the Dead remake and in Land of the Dead), and soon to be director. She may need to work in the field for a few more years to solidify her impact, but I certainly think she’s on her way.

Lorraine Bush 

Lorraine Bush is a painter specializing in classic monsters. Talk about someone fitting the description David laid out for the Hall of Fame, Lorraine is it. She picked up a passion for monsters and horror as a child, passed on from her dad. In 1993 she entered the painting competition at the Famous Monsters of Filmland Convention and won first place. She is the official cover artist for Monster Bash Magazine, and has won a Rondo for Best Magazine Cover. I think she should would be a nice addition to the Hall of Fame.

Dinah Cancer (a.k.a. Mary Sims) 

Dinah Cancer (a.k.a. Mary Sims) is another rocker who gets my vote for the Hall of Fame. She started her career in the 70s – her first band was an all woman punk band called Castration Squad. She sang for a couple other bands before forming 45 Grave in 1980. They sang exclusively about monsters and horror and were an early influential band in the field of horror-rock. In 1984 they recorded their signature track, “Party Time” for the cult classic Return of the Living Dead. You can’t think of that movie without hearing that song in your head. She has been in a number of other bands including Penis Flytrap (LOVE that name) and Dinah Cancer and the Graverobbers. She’s been an extra in a number of movies including Rock n’ Roll High School and Fright Night 2. Most recently 45 Grave have reformed and are performing again.

So there are a few of my choices to sort of get the ball rolling. There are. Of course, there are many other women out there who have kept that horror banner flying high, so feel free to leave a comment with your suggestions.