WONDERFEST 2014 Roundup!

The 25^th annual Wonderfest  http://wonderfest.com/ convention took place this past weekend, May 31^st-June 1^st, and I’m happy to report it was a rousing good time!

Held annually in Louisville, KY, Wonderfest is THE premiere hobby expo in the country, with a main emphasis on model making. A giant ballroom is filled each year with hand-built models, from both kits and of the custom variety, all beautifully crafted and meticulously painted. These are entered into a huge contest with prizes in a number of categories and divisions. Top prize wins the MOST AMAZING MODEL award - sponsored appropriately enough by AMAZING FIGURE MODELER MAGAZINE http://www.amazingmodeler.com/ - and a cash prize of $300!

Here’s the full list of categories:

Senior Division
 1. SF / Fantasy Figures (includes robots)
 2. Horror Figures
 3. Vehicles
 4. Super Heroes & Super Villains
 5. Mecha (mobile suits)
 6. Anime Figures
 7. Dinosaurs
 8. Kaiju (giant monsters)
 9. Props *NEW*
10. Dioramas
11. Humor & Super Deformed
12. Original Sculpt / Scratchbuilt (any subject)

 
Teen Division
Includes all categories listed above; for modelers age 13-19.

Junior Division
Includes all categories listed above; for modelers age 12 and under.

Wonderfest began in 1990 as a little show in a single room with no guests, and has since grown like the blob into a massive event that completely fills the Crowne Plaza Hotel (formerly the Executive West Hotel), packed with vendors, guests, artists and attendees. It is usually held over Memorial Day weekend, but this year’s show moved back a week to the first weekend in June. Wonderfest has traditionally brought in a variety of guests from the makeup and special effects field, and this year was no exception. This actually makes a lot of sense when you consider special effects and models go hand-in-hand, dating back to the time-honored tradition of stop-motion pioneers like Willis O’Brien and Ray Harryhausen (a guest in 1996 and 2003).

This year’s guests included Production Designer/Director Joe Alves (JAWS, CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KINDS, ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK); Model and Makeup FX expert Carol Bauman (STAR WARS PREQUELS, TRANSFORMERS 2, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN); Designer/illustrator Rick Sternbach (STAR TREK THE MOTION PICTURE, THE LAST STARFIGHTER); Makeup artist John Goodwin (CSI, CSI NEW YORK, JOHN CARPENTER’S THE THING); Director Robert Tinnell (FRANKENSTEIN AND ME, BELIEVE), and many more – see the full list here: http://wonderfest.com/upcoming-show/guests

I arrived Saturday morning and made my way to my table in Dealer’s Room B – the show has grown so much in recent years that a second dealer’s room has been set up for many artists and vendors. Throughout the day I enjoyed chatting with old friends and fans that I haven’t seen in years, especially as I didn’t make the show in 2013. That was an especially rough year for me and I took some time off for personal reasons and to kind of regroup a bit. But it was good to be back and see familiar faces and new ones alike. My Director Cameron McCasland and his fiancee Jamie Easterland joined us later in the day, too, and spent a good deal of time at the table as well, giving my son Luke and I a chance to roam the convention somewhat.

David Colton, organizer of the annual Rondo Awards, stopped by the table and asked if I would speak on behalf of Penny Dreadful and Garou at the awards ceremony. Garou was given a special Rondo Award this year, the PURE OF HEART AWARD, and I was honored to say a few words on their behalf. For those who may have missed the news, Garou was the sidekick of horror host Penny Dreadful and her real-life husband, Magoo Gelehrter. He unfortunately passed away earlier this year of cancer, at the too-young age of 51. Everybody who ever met Magoo, or his alter-ego Garou, loved the guy, and it was a real blow to the horror community to lose someone so kind and genuine.

After the awards I caught the premiere screening of Robert Tinnel’s new documentary THAT $#!% WILL ROT YOUR BRAIN. It traces the history of the monster-kid explosion of memorabilia and merchandising that flooded the market in the 60s and 70s, focusing on the magazines, toys, and movies that shaped the impressionable young minds of generations of kids (many of who were in attendance in that packed theater). It's chock full of interviewees that include many famous faces talking about their love of horror movies and memorabilia. Robert spoke briefly before the film, and explained that it was still very much a work in progress, but he and his team of editors and fellow filmmakers needed some fresh perspective on it. The crowd loved it, despite it very much being a work-print, with black slugs in place where video clips would be inserted, and an unfinished third act to the film. Once it is completed, edited, and polished this is going to be one amazing documentary, and I’m glad Robert allowed the folks at Wonderfest to see it.

After the documentary was the annual Wonderfest late-show, hosted by yours truly. This was the 9^th live show I’ve hosted there, and something I’m pretty proud of. Over the years we’ve hosted a slew of great films, including:

2004 - THE SHE CREATURE
2005 - GHOSTBUSTERS/MAJOR MARS
2006 - THE TINGLER
2007 - MONSTER ON THE CAMPUS
2008 - ROBOT MONSTER
2010 - IT CONQUERED THE WORLD
2011 - THE DREADFUL HALLOWGREEN SPECIAL
2012 - MEGAFORCE

As mentioned before, I didn’t attend Wonderfest in 2013, so there was no show that year, and in 2009 I missed because my oldest son was graduating from High school that same weekend. This year, however, the show was a GO!, and the evening’s fright flick was the 1973 classic schlockfest  GODZILLA VS. MEGALON. I was fortunate enough to catch that one in the theater as a kid, and remember loving it back then. This time around was no exception. That is one fun film, and the convention billed the show as DR. GANGRENE’S KAIJU SMACKDOWN! Perfect! We dedicated the show to Garou right before having the crowd recite the mandatory Dr. Gangrene’s Horror Movie Maniac Code of Horror.

Every year I try to make the live shows something a little bit special, and this year I was thrilled to have John Goodwin and Beau Kealin to add to the festivities! John is a master makeup artist who works professionally in Hollywood on such shows as CSI as well as in feature-films like MEN IN BLACK and THE THING. He held a makeup exhibition earlier in the day where he had made up Beau Kealin as a Wolf Man. Beau is a Louisville resident, Wonderfest staff member, and Indy filmmaker, (and a helluva creative guy). In addition to the Wolf Man makeup John also brought along a Frankenstein’s Monster makeup and made himself up too, as IGORSTEIN – the monster from FRANKENSTEIN VS THE WOLFMAN that has had Igor’s brain transplanted into it. So just how exactly, you might ask, do two classic Universal monsters fit into a kaiju film?

Well, I simply told the audience that this film was all about monsters fighting, and that while I didn’t have any beasts of the giant Japanese variety, Wonderfest is all about classic monsters, and I did have a special guest or two on hand. The theater was packed, and the crowd loved seeing these two classic monsters square off against one another. We also had some crowd participation sing-a-long, with a karaoke version of the Jet Jaguar theme song from the film, and I gave away DVDs and t-shirts – all in all it was a really fun show.

Doc Gangrene's Director Cameron McCasland posing with the monsters

Jamie meets the monsters!

I also want to thank a few folks in particular for allowing us to appear as guests again this year and for providing a stage to play on. First and foremost is the crew and staff of Wonderfest that work so hard all weekend long to make it run smoothly, especially CEO Dave Hodge, COO Melinda Angstrom, Guest Coordinator Beau Kealin, and Programming Director Dave Conover. They are four of the nicest people you’ll ever meet, and Dave in particular has always gone above and beyond to make Doc Gangrene and company feel right at home. I have to give a gigantic Godzilla sized shout-out to the tech crew, which is always especially awesome. Over the years I’ve made life a little difficult for that crew with some complicated setups at the live shows - but every time, without fail, the tech crew came through and made it happen, and this year it was Robert Gilmore to the rescue, rounding up additional DVD players and sticking around personally throughout the show to ensure that everything went smoothly.  Thanks again Robert!

Beau Kealin and John Goodwin are both amazingly talented and so fun to work with. I remember my favorite show we ever did, The Tingler, John appeared as a fellow mad scientist named Dr. Princent Vice, and did a spot-on imitation of Vincent Price in the process! So much fun. We missed working with our good buddy Bob Burns, who has been a staple of the late shows since we started them. Here’s hoping he can make it back out some future shows.

To everyone who stopped by the table and came to the late show – my Gangrenous thanks! You are all awesome. The very best part about going to shows like this is meeting all the great people and making lifelong friends. In that regard, mission accomplished. Superduper thanks to J. Sorrels for the hospitality and being such a great friend, and Cameron McCasland for being the best creative partner a guy could ask for.

So here’s to Wonderfest and hopefully many more years of good times and monstrous movies!!

Sad Farewell

Yesterday I received news that Magoo Gelehrter had passed away. I called my friend Cameron McCasland and asked if he’d heard anything about this. I was hoping that it wasn’t true, was just a rumor or misunderstanding of some kind, but he hadn’t heard anything. I next contacted my friend J. Sorrels, again hoping against hope, but J. didn’t have any news either. A couple of hours later I was deeply saddened to see official confirmation on the Shilling Shockers Facebook page.

Magoo Gelehrter was the man who played the werewolf Garou on the horror host program SHILLING SHOCKERS with his wife, Danielle. They began the show in 2006, and the very next year won a Rondo Award for Best Horror Host. 

 

Magoo was the little guy with a funny name and a huge personality – to meet Magoo was to fall in love with him. Funny, intelligent, warm-hearted and full of love of life. I first met Magoo and Danielle in person at Wonderfest, the year they won the Rondo Award. I was thrilled they took part in annual live show I host there each year, but the real fun of the weekend was just meeting and hanging out with them. We became fast friends off the bat, and talked about how much we wished we lived in the same town, and could hang out more often. We stayed in touch, and became even closer, and in 2010 worked together on the short film THE DREADFUL HALLOWGREEN SPECIAL. That was a fun project and I’m proud of how it turned out. It couldn’t have been a smoother, easier working experience. No egos, no problems, no hang-ups of any kind – it worked the way collaborations are supposed to work, in huge part due to the personalities of Dani and Magoo.

I have something of a love/hate relationship with Social Media. I find myself almost hitting the delete button on Facebook often, but there is a lot of good stuff that outweighs the drama and negativity that are so rampant there. But I’ve really come to appreciate INSTAGRAM over the last couple of years. It’s a different experience, and folks there tend to post an entirely different sort of material. It is more personal, for the most part, and more intimate. And Magoo was a voracious Instagrammer. 

 Anyone who has followed Magoo over there, under the title Garouvie, has enjoyed a true creative outpouring over the past couple of years.

http://instagram.com/garouvie#

He had a really great eye and a real flair for capturing the beauty and joy  in everyday objects, and his sense of humor really shines through in his pictures. His love for Danielle shines through equally brightly. I love this picture in particular. The caption is priceless.

 

Look who rolled back into town. So iconic my brain stops to see her face. #truelove

I had the pleasure of inducting Penny Dreadful and Garou into the Horror Host Hall of Fame this year. When I learned they’d been nominated I contacted Halloween Jack and asked if I could induct them when they win. Not if, when. Because I knew they would, and deservingly so. Danielle had hoped to be there in person to accept the award, but couldn’t because Garou was back in the hospital that weekend, and in fact had surgery that same day. I had truly mixed feelings as I spoke that morning, because as happy as I was for the both of them I was equally sad for what they were going through. I called Danielle after the ceremony and told her how it went, and mailed their award to them later that week.

 

Danielle has been amazingly supportive for Magoo. I remember when he was first diagnosed with Cancer they refused to even mention the disease by name. They were going to fight it, and by God Magoo did. He gave it his all, and he stayed positive throughout. And Danielle honored her husband by not only being there for him, but also continuing to live her life. Just last week she performed in a stage adaptation of Young Frankenstein, in the role of Frau Blucher. I know it must have been tempting to just curl up depressed and never leave the house, but that wasn’t happening. Both of them continued living life to the fullest, and whenever I talked with Danielle on the phone she always sounded strong, and positive.

Today I feel sad that such a sweet, creative man was taken from this world. He loved life with a passion, loved his little dog Krispy, and loved his wife Danielle most of all. They were partner in the truest sense – partners in life, and partners on the show. We are all going to miss you, Magoo. You are the best.

Fundraiser Campaign I hope you guys will support

I haven't promoted a lot of fundraiser campaigns over the years, as I either didn't know the filmmakers personally or anything about the project, and therefore it was difficult for me to vouch for the people behind them. I've softened my stance toward them a little over the last few months, and even had some folks hold one that involved my character as the host of a comic book, a horror anthology book, which was pretty cool. But the fundraiser campaign I'm about to mention is way more special and important than any of the ones I've mentioned before, and I wanted to share it in hopes you might be able to contribute in some way...

Danielle and Magoo Gelehrter are a married couple who are really close friends of mine. They also happen to be TV horror hosts like myself, hosts of the 2-time Rondo Award winning (for best horror Host) show SHILLING SHOCKERS, where they portray hosts Penny Dreadful and Garou the werewolf.

 I first met Danielle and Magoo at Wonderfest in Louisville and we hit it off immediately, becoming fast friends.  We stayed in touch, and in 2010 we made the Dreadful Hallowgreen Special together, a short film/crossover combining their hosts and Dr. Gangrene in an adventure to save Halloween. It was great fun making the movie and the working relationship couldn't have been easier.

Magoo (yes that's his real name) was diagnosed with Cancer in October 2012, and has been battling it ever since. They have incurred tremendous medical bills in the process, naturally, and that is what this fundraiser is all about - helping out some really terrific folks in their time of need. If you talk to anyone who has ever met Danielle or Magoo in person the first thing you hear is about what nice people they are. And it's true. They are two of the kindest and most generous folks you'll meet, and they make a fantastic show, too.

So I'm asking for your help. If you can give anything, please consider clicking this link and doing so:

http://www.gofundme.com/5wdoy8

Over the years I've met some of the nicest people at horror conventions. The horror community is an amazing collection of people, and I know you guys can help. Doesn't matter the size of the donation, every little bit helps. Unfortunately Magoo is unable to work because of his condition and the toll his treatment is taking onhim. So they can use all the help they can get.
Thanks.

To find out more about this campaign go to: http://www.gofundme.com/5wdoy8

To learn more about their TV Show, Shilling Shockers, and to purchase copies of their show, go to:
http://www.shillingshockers.com/

Thanks again,
Larry Underwood, aka Dr. Gangrene

Pardon my rant.

You know the saying, no good deed goes unpunished. Yeah, there's definitely a lot of truth to that statement.

 The 10th annual Rondo Awards were just announced this week, and voting is now underway. The Rondo Awards were started in 2002 by David Colton. It was an extension of the Classic Horror Film Board, a message board that originally started as a chat group among peers on AOL, then moved to the message board site. David started the awards as a way to congratulate and honor the folks who have had outstanding achievements in the field of horror - writers, artists, filmmakers and more recently, horror hosts are all on the ballot. It is a really neat award and has really helped spotlight and bring attention to some worthy projects and creators.


But, alas, along with anything of this type you are going to have detractors, and that's true of the Rondos. I've heard complaints for years, mostly from people who haven't won or weren't nominated. I chalked those up to sour grapes. In some cases there was a legitimate oversight on the part of David and steps were made to correct it in future ballots.

David runs this award by himself for the most part, and there's no way any one person could possibly keep up with every worthy nominee in every category. It is just impossible. So he relies on nominations.  It is well advertised that in order to get something on the ballot, a nomination needs to be made on the Classic Horror Film Board sometime in the preceding year. That gives folks an entire year to nominate or have someone else nominate their work. But still they don't and then complain they're not on the ballot.

Lately I've even heard griping from fellow hosts. They complain that the voting system makes this a popularity contest. Yet every one of them admits the three winners of "favorite" horror host - Svengoolie, Penny Dreadful (2-time winner), and Count Gore DeVol are all deserving winners. Oh, and I put the word "favorite" in quotation marks because that was changed to appease these same hosts. It's the only category that reads "favorite" rather than "best." Why? Because some hosts whined and didn't like the term best. Really? Doesn't seem to be a problem with "Best Writer," "Best artist" and so on. People need to grow a little thicker skin, that's ridiculous.

One horror host yesterday, I won't mention his name, said he is on the Rondo ballot but doesn't want to be, he is bigger that that and doesn't need it. He said don't vote for him, contests are for losers. But this same host was the very one complaining a few years back when he wasn't on the ballot and complaining about his show not getting the respect it deserves. He also won a Telly award - which means he forked out about $250 dollars to enter and get an award and statue. Kinda pricey for something that is for losers.

Multiple awards have sprung up in the past decade as a response to the Rondos, and just today I read about one that really made me say WTF!? The Horror Host Award - "The first ever award for hosts by hosts." The way it works is they're judging individual shows, not the hosts themselves, and the people who pick the winners are - get this - the nominees themselves. Really? So you're giving yourself an award?

That is lame.

The host I mentioned before said he'd be down for a contest between hosts in a heartbeat. Let me show my show is better than the rest. OK, let me be very clear here:

HORROR HOSTING IS NOT A CONTEST.

It is about creating the best, most entertaining and informative show possible. About building a fan base and connecting with them. About making a fun show that can teach a generation of kids what classic horror is all about, to build an appreciation of b-movies and all things schlocky rather than simply dismissing them as crap. Bottom line - I compete with myself every week - compete to get my show done on time despite working 40 hours a week, managing family crises, and all the other things that come up daily. Life gets in the way and sometimes it can be tough, but you know what? It's fun, so I continue. That's my competition. And if someone wants to reward me for my hard work, to say hey - you do a great job and here's a statue to say congrats, then that is terrific.

So for all the Rondos have done to spotlight all the talented artists, writers, filmmakers and yes, horror hosts out there, let me be the first to say thank you. It is a very nice gesture and David puts in countless hours - why? To reward folks in the genre and spotlight their work. And to all the detractors who want to complain about something done with the best intentions - go enter one of the countless sour grapes awards.

Reflecting back on 2011

 

As we move into the New Year I thought I’d take a moment to reflect back upon 2011. It was a real year of ups and downs for me. Professionally it was one of my most successful seasons to date, with some of my biggest achievements realized this year:

 2011 saw the DVD release of THE DREADFUL HALLOWGREEN SPECIAL through Alpha Video. This was collaboration with fellow horror host Penny Dreadful and her werewolf cohost/hubby Garou. It was a really neat project that began as a simple email question to Penny one day - “How would you feel about doing some kind of joint venture, a co-hosting project of some sort?” She liked the idea, we bounced ideas back and forth and took turns writing the script – I would write a segment, then send it to her, she’d write a segment then send it back, etc., until we had it finished. The finished project turned out to be something really special, and is available through ALPHA VIDEO here: http://www.oldies.com/product-view/1067D.html

We also had another successful Wonderfest appearance and screened The Dreadful Hallowgreen Special live Saturday night there. It was really neat seeing it in a group setting and the crowd really seemed to like it and “got” all the jokes. Cameron McCasland (my director and partner on the show) and I headed to Louisville and had a blast. Especially cool was the fact that we were able to incorporate my good friend Bob Burns into the live show once again, thanks in large part to my buddy J. Sorrels, who built the amazing Bob-Bot, a robot sidekick with a front plate on it that looked suspiciously like an ipad skyping Bob from his house in Los Angeles!  We’ve been doing these live shows since 2004 and it just wouldn’t be the same without Bob, so I was thrilled to include him and the crowd loved it.

We filmed another batch of PSAs this season, which turned out great. This year’s batch included one with the Wolf man talking about pet leash safety, one with the Frankenstein monster talking about recycling plastic bottles, and one with the Frankenstein monster and the Creature from the Nashville Lagoon talking about littering and proper trash disposal. They’ve gotten a lot of airplay on Nashville’s CW58 and best of all they were nominated for TWO Emmy’s – one in the PSA category and one for Cameron in  the writing category! AND speaking of Emmys, we were also nominated for a third Emmy for the Dreadful Hallowgreen Special in the entertainment category! We will find out in March if we win, so we’re all keeping our fingers crossed.

One of the most unique and amazing things that has happened since I started this horror host adventure occurred in 2011 when Dr. Gangrene appeared in the Dick Tracy comic strip (as Dr. Mean Green – name changed slightly for copyright reasons)! This was something I definitely never foresaw when I started this venture and it’s a real bucket-list type event for sure. I still kind of can’t believe it happened and thank writer Mike Curtis for including me in this historic strip!

Dr. Gangrene became a cover-boy this year when the Nashville Scene put me on the front of their magazine for their Halloween issue! I have wanted to get on the cover of that paper for years, and it was a real surprise when they asked me to do it. This was one of my goals I wanted to achieve but was never able to until now – Sir Cecil Creape, the Nashville host from the 70s, was on the cover of the SHOWCASE, a section of the Tennessean newspaper that was formatted similarly (square-bound with a color photo on the front). That section of the paper has been retired, and the closest thing that exists in Nashville nowadays is the Scene. PLUS the Scene is the hip Nashville paper that all the cool kids read, and they cover all the cool events in town, so any chance for some coverage there is always welcome. It was an honor to be featured on the cover and the shot they chose – me eating the pumpkin guts – definitely wasn’t the one I thought they’d choose from that photo shoot. It was a pleasant surprise to say the least!

In conjunction with the Nashville Scene appearance I hosted a 12-hour film festival at the historic Belcourt Theater called 12 Hours of Terror featuring Night of the Creeps, Abby, Squirm, Lady Terminator, Zombie, and Return of the Living Dead. Definitely one of the coolest lineups of films ever assembled, and I was there the whole day hosting the event. Good times!!  (Zombie on the big screen was a religious experience).

I also hosted the movie THE BURBS at the Nashville library this Halloween season. It was a great time and a good turnout. I also made appearances at the Nashville Zoo at Halloween to kick off their Ghouls at Grassmere event and the Nashville Horror and Comics Convention earlier in the month, too.

 This was by far my most prolific blogging year ever. I wrote 239 blog posts last year, including 100 posts on Vincent Price in celebration of the Vincentennial (Vincent’s 100^th birthday).

I also wrote a regular column for Scary Monsters Magazine, and this year I ran articles/interviews on:

·       Interview with Vincent Price collector Robert Taylor - issue #81

·       Hammer Films and Frankenstein - issue #80

·       Interview with the Count of Five (former Nashville horror host) - issue #79

·       Interview with Arch Hall Jr. talking about THE SADIST - issue #78

·       Interview with Count Basil (former Memphis horror host) - issue #77
   (technically Winter 2010 but it came out in 2011)

·       Interview with Dr. Creep – Scary Monsters Yearbook 2011

This year’s Horror Hootenanny was one of the best yet. We went back to a zombie theme this year and worked in conjunction with the Nashville zombie walk. We had a terrific turnout and great music all night from The Coffin Bangers, Alucard, Spookhand, The Creeping Cruds and my new favorites, Dead Dick Hammer and the TBA! We also had a ton of sponsors onboard this year who provided some fantastic giveaways – Unholy Apparel, Rue Morgue Magazine, Scary Monsters Magazine, Evil Pumpkins, Wicked Witch Productions, Terra Fossil Wines, Lone Wolf Body Art, the Coffee Pirate, and Unkle Pigors. Thanks to everyone who helped make this possible, as it takes a lot of work to pull it off - and special thanks to Jeano and Tanya Roid for everything they've done over the years to support Dr. Gangrene - the Horror Hootenanny was originally Jeano's idea, as a fundraiser for my show, and it's grown over the past 8 years to THE horror rock event in Nashville.

My band, Spookhand, also had a big year, and played quite a few shows including one in Dayton Oh with my good buddy A. Ghastlee Ghoul and his band SPLATTERTUDE. Thanks for all the hospitality, Ghastlee - that was some good chili! We also recorded a second EP this year (still gotta get that full length done some time) which we distributed at the Hootenanny. So it was a busy year for us! BTW - Special thanks to my good friend Mark Greenbaum for all his help throughout the year - he played along good-naturedly as the victim at the Spookhand shows, hopping onstage uninvited only to have a limb lopped off and spray the crowd with blood. Mark designed and built the fake hand/arm props, and also played a transvestite in The Dreadful Hallowgreen Special - now that's a multi-talented guy!!

I also did several interviews throughout the year including HORROR SOCIETY,  RESEARCH MY TRASH,  and the MONSTERS FROM THE BASEMENT podcast . I also appeared on Nashville’s local NPR radio talking about my predecessor Sir Cecil Creape, in a piece written by my good buddy and fellow Creape fanatic, Randy Fox.

Most importantly of all starting in September we got back on the Nashville scarewaves with a new weekly show called Dr. Gangrene Presents. It airs Saturday nights at 1am (Sun morning) - I’m really enjoying the new format (half-hour) and this has been the most fun I’ve had producing the show to date. I am fortunate to work with Cameron, and the shoots are effortless and fun. This is the closest to what I envisioned when I first started the show, and we’ve aired 14 shows to date. Sometime this month we plan to announce a new time change to a better slot – details TBA.

On the personal side things were a bit shakier last year. My favorite uncle passed away at age 54 from cancer. That is way too young. I also found out my father (biological father – I was raised by my stepdad but over the past couple of decades reconnected with my real father) has cancer and probably has less than a year to live, too. My wife had two family members pass away last year, too. Death visited way too often in 2011. I also saw several close friends who had marriages and relationships fall apart over the past year, which is always a sad event. And to top it all off my doctor informed me just before New Year that I have high cholesterol and he wants me to have a heart scan and I probably need to start watching my diet. Gotta love aging – but hey, it beats the alternative!

 So it was an up and down year for lots of reasons, as they all are – but this year the highs seemed just a bit higher and the lows a bit lower. Here’s hoping 2012 is a bit more even keeled, or at least has a few less lows and I don’t have to attend any funerals.

Wonderfest 2011Report

I'm back from Wonderfest this past weekend and the show was terrific. Saturday evening I hosted the Dreadful HallowGreen Special live with special guests Penny Dreadful, Garou the Werewolf, the BobBot and Bob Burns. Excellent time and the crowd seemed to really enjoy it. Afterwards I did a short Q&A with Caroline Monroe before they showed her movie STARCRASH.

Fun times - the pics below are taken by Tom StillaBower, and stolen off FB - Thanks Tom!!

Dreadful hallowgreen to show @ wonderfest

Just announced, the Dreadful Hallowgreen Special is going to be shown live @ the wonderfest convention, hosted by yours truly. I'm looking forward to presenting this collaboration with fellow horror host Penny Dreadful to the live audience in Louisville. ' have several surprises lined up for the evening, as usual, and look forward greatly to the event!

Rue Morgue Magazine #103 Horror Hosts spotlight

The August 2010 Issue of Rue Morgue Magazine (#103) featured an article on TV horror host Count Gore DeVol. Count Gore, played by actor Dick Dyszel, is one of the legends in the field - he has been hosting movies off and on since the 1970s. He currently hosts a weekly web program at http://www.countgore.com/.

Gore was, interestingly enough, the very first horror host I came in contact with when I began my show back in the late 90s. I had no idea there was anyone else doing this at the time, and Gore discovered me through the internet. We met in person a few months later and a struck up a friendship from that point on.

Along with the Count Gore article Rue Morgue also ran a page that spotlighted 6 of the top hosts working in the field today, besides Count Gore of course. I am proud to have been included in this bunch, and was glad to see my Dreadful HallowGreen cohort Penny Dreadful in there as well! Click to enlarge and read...

The Dreadful HallowGreen Special - trailer

here's the trailer for our upcoming Halloween Special - THE DREADFUL HALLOWGREEN SPECIAL. It is a crossover event between myself and fellow Horror Host Penny Dreadful! Coming Halloween Night across America.

Stations that will broadcast THE DREADFUL HALLOWGREEN SPECIAL
Airtimes and days vary – check local listings or go to: www.shillingshockers.com

CONNECTICUT:
New Haven,
West Haven,
Hamden:
Citizens Television Channel 27

New London,
Waterford,
Montville,
East Lyme,
Sterling,
Griswold,
Killingly,
Plainfield,
Putnam,
Niantic,
Jewett City, Danielson:
MetroCast Community TV Channel 24,

Norwalk,
Greenwich,
Stamford,
Darien,
New Canaan,
Wilton,
Weston,
Westport,
Easton,
Redding:
Cablevision Channel 77

KENTUCKY:
Southern section of the state: Southern region of KY -
Channel 58 on antenna & DirectTV, Channel 18 on Comcast

MAINE:
Belfast: BCTV Channel 2
Gorham: GOCAT Channel 2

Hollis,
Buxton,
Limerick,
Limington,
Standish,
Waterboro:
SRC-TV channel 2

Norway,
Paris,
Waterford:
NPC-TV Channel 11

Portland: Channel 5

South Portland: SPC-TV Channel 2

Washington County
(Eastport, Machias, Lubec and numerous smaller towns):
Washington County TV Channel 2

MASSACHUSETTS:
Abington: Comcast Channel 13
Andover: Comcast Channel 8
Athol, Orange: AOTV Channel 13
Attleboro: Comcast AACS Channel 15
Boston (BNN): Comcast BNN Channel 23 / RCN Channel 83
Brookline: BATV Channel 3
Cambridge: CCTV Channel 10
East Bridgewater: EBCTV Channel 9
Easton: Comcast Channel 9
Fall River: FRCTV Channel 95
Freetown/Lakeville/Middleboro: Comcast Channels 9 and 95
Gloucester, Rockport, Essex, Manchester-by-the-Sea: CATV Channel 67
Haverhill: HCTV Channel 22
Melrose: MMTV Comcast Channel 3 or Verizon Channel 39
Mattapoisett, Marion, Rochester: ORCTV Channel 9
New Bedford: NBTV Channel 95
North Adams, Adams, Clarksburg and Cheshire: NBCTC Channel 15,
North Dartmouth: Comcast Channel 95
North Reading: NORCAM Comcast Channel 10 and Verizon Channel 26
Peabody: PAT Channel 10
Plymouth: PACTV Comcast Channel 13 / Verizon Channel 43
Raynham: RayCAM Channel 9
Quincy: QATV Channel 8
Salem: SATV Channel 3
Seekonk: Channel 9
Somerset: TV9 Channel 9
Stoughton: Comcast Channel 9
Swansea: Channel 98
Taunton: TCAM TV Comcast Channel 15 and Verizon Channel 22
Wareham: WCTV Comcast Channel 9
West Brookfield: WBTV Channel 11
Westford: CAT Channel 8
Westport: Charter Channel 17
Winthrop: WCAT Channel 3
Woburn: WPMC Comcast Channel 9, Verizon Channel 42 & RCN Channel 3
Worcester: WCCA-TV Channel 13
Wrentham: Channel 8

MISSOURI
Kansas City: KCEN Channel 18

NEW HAMPSHIRE:
Amherst: ACTV channel 20
Bedford: BCTV Channel 16
Charlestown: SAPA-TV Channel 8
Chester: CTV Channel 21
Claremont: CCTV Channel 8
Derry: CTV Channel 17

Laconia,
Alton,
Belmont,
Bristol,
Deerfield,
Franklin,
Gilford,
Gilmanton,
Meredith,
Northfield,
Northwood,
Tilton: LRPA-TV Channel 25

Manchester: MCAM Channel 23
Newmarket, Durham: Newmarket Channel 13

Wolfeboro,
New Durham: WCTV Channel 26

PENNSYLVANIA:
York: WCRT Channel 18

RHODE ISLAND:
Throughout the Entire state on Halloween - Channel 13

plus

Providence & North Providence: Cox Channel 18 & Verizon Channel 39

Barrington,
Bristol,
Warren:
Full Channel Cable Channel 9

TENNESSEE:
Entire Middle section of the state on Halloween:
Channel 58 on antenna & DirectTV, Channel 18 on Comcast

VERMONT:
Burlington: VCAM Channel 15

Greater Northshire -
Arlington,
Dorset,
Manchester,
Peru, Stratton,
Sunderland or
Winhall:
GNAT-TV Channel 15

Hyde Park,
Johnson,
Morristown:
GMATV Channel 15

Ludlow,
Plymouth,
Cavendish,
Mount Holly:
LPCTV Channel 8,

Montpelier,
Waterbury,
Berlin,
Randolph:
ORCA Channel 15

Springfield,
Chester,
Weathersfield
& Reading:
SAPA-TV Channel 8

WASHINGTON DC
Possible Washington DC airings

WEST VIRGINIA:
Huntington: Comcast Channel 20

STREAMING ONLINE:
Alternative Realities TV on Halloween: ARTV

The Dreadful HallowGreen Special

This year for Halloween I'm proud to announce a special Halloween crossover event with New England's finest horror host, that wicked witch herself, Penny Dreadful. The Eerie Enchantress and Physician of Fright teamed up for an all new half-hour special called The Dreadful HallowGreen Special - Dr Gangrene and Penny Dreadful save Halloween.

It's science and sorcery combined to save the holiday of halloween in this all-new half-hour event.

Penny Dreadful and Dr. Gangrene Scare In New Halloween TV Special

For Immediate Release:Horror Hosts Collaborate For Hex-Cellent Halloween TV Special (10.05.10)

Hallowed horror hosts Penny Dreadful and Dr. Gangrene are teaming up to save Halloween in an all new half hour television special entitled “The Dreadful HallowGreen Special” premiering in October on stations around the country.

From his secret hidden laboratory on the mysterious Shackle Island Dr. Gangrene issued the following quote, “Penny Dreadful is a tremendous talent and her show is a really first rate program. Despite the fact she dabbles in such an unscientific area of study, it was my pleasure to collaborate with Penny on this Halloween special, combining science and magic to save the greatest holiday of all, Halloween! Now that’s what I call a mad monster party!”

The duo finds themselves readying for the upcoming Halloween season when suddenly all things go awry. It’s up to the physician of fright, Dr. Gangrene, and the eerie enchantress, Penny Dreadful, to set things right and save Halloween for everyone in a brand new television special.

While sipping hemlock brew from a smoking goblet Penny Dreadful related, "I was very hex-cited to join forces with that quack..er.. I mean esteemed mad scientist and horror host, Dr. Gangrene! Not only am I a fan of the Doctor's fine program, but we also happen to see eye to bloodshot eye on most subjects - especially the subject of Halloween. I hope this TV Special becomes staple All Hallows Eve viewing for monster movie fans both living and dead."

Penny Dreadful's Shilling Shockers, now in its 8th season, is based in New England and airs in over 150 cities. Penny Dreadful is portrayed by Danielle Gelehrter who, in 2007, was awarded the prize for Favorite Horror Host by the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards.

Dr. Gangrene's Creature Feature airs on its home station WNAB CW58 in Nashville TN. Dr. Gangrene is portrayed by Larry Underwood. The Good Doctor has been shocking the Scare-waves since 1999. His programs have won countless praise and have been nominated for two Emmy Awards for Public Service.

The Dreadful HallowGreen Special premieres Halloween weekend 2010 on finer television stations. Check local listings for show times. For more information on Dr Gangrene or Penny Dreadful please visit www.drgangrene.com and www.shillingshockers.com

13 Hosts - Horror Host Guidebook

I opened my scaremail this morning to find a creepy little package containing something I've been looking forward to for some time. It was a comic book called 13 HOSTS -  HORROR HOST GUIDEBOOK.

I was first approached by a guy named Brian Maze last year about this project. Brian is the brains behind this project, and it was his idea to do a comic book spotlighting various horror hosts. The title is obviously a play on words off the William Castle movie 13 GHOSTS. Brian wanted to know if I'd be interested in being one of the hosts spotlighted in the first issue, and I told him I'd be honored.

Brian is an amazingly talented artist - I LOVE his art. He has a cartoony style reminiscent of Bruce Timm that is clean and expressive. All the hosts' likenesses are captured perfectly, and the art is definitely the strong point of this project. In fact, the the full-length Dr. Gangrene caricature in the menu to the right of this blog is the drawing from my entry in this book.

The book itself is exactly what the title suggests, a guidebook to 13 individual horror hosts. Each host has one page dedicated to them, with a brief description of who they are and what their show is about. There are also several fake movie posters scattered throughout the book, along with two short one page comic strips and wrap around bookend pieces hosting the hosts, so to speak.

The cover features a woman in a tight red costume with dark hair holding a skull. I think this is a fictional horror host that Brian Maze created... but there is no mention in the book of who she is. Stranger still, she doesn't host the wrap around segments, which I found really odd. It would have made more sense to have the host on the cover host these segments too.

Each host has a number at the top of the page, starting with Penny Dreadful at #1 and ending with Count Gore DeVol at #13. My host page is featured on # 9, which actually suits me perfectly. I'm not really the superstitious type, but 9 has always been my lucky number - I was born September 9th (9-9) and that number just sort of seems to generally fall into place around me quite often. Kinda spooooky.

The final wrap up host bit is a two page instructional guide to how to be a horror host. It basically states that anyone can be a horror host and horror hosts have become the spooky equivalent of karaoke. Slap on a little makeup, pick a silly name and you too can be a horror host. I really couldn't disagree more. There is a lot more to horror hosting than singing along to other people's music. By making this comparison it basically cheapens all the hard work and hours and hours of writing, acting, editing, and producing a show that so many dedicated hosts put out there. .  I think this was intended as an inspirational pep talk for aspiring hosts, but they really missed the mark here. Totally discounts the part about talent, drive, dedication, and hard work and comes off kind of insulting, honestly.

This book is slightly smaller than a comic book and printed with a nice glossy cover. It has black and white interior art and a color cover, and overall turned out very nicely. It is definitely worth picking up for Brian Maze's art alone, and is the sort of unique project fans of horror hosts will really enjoy. There is possibly a second issue in the works, and it will be interesting to see which hosts it spotlights.

If you would like to order a copy go to:
www.monkeygoatboy.com