Dr. Gangrene's Tales from Parts Unknown

"Reads like a literary Tales from the Crypt" - RUE MORGUE MAGAZINE

Available now through AMAZON.COM - Dr. Gangrene's Tales from Parts Unknown, a new collection of horror stories introduced by the fiendish Dr. Gangrene and penned by his alter-ego, Larry Underwood. Here's what some of the critics have to say:

"Reads like a literary Tales from the Crypt" - RUE MORGUE MAGAZINE

"From the crossroad of inspiration and obsession to the furthest reaches of the Weird Wild West these tales will engage... and terrify."- Harold Sipe, Author of SCREAMLAND

"The wonderful thing about all Larry's work is its "visual" texture. I literally felt like I was "reading" episodes from some classic anthology program like The Twilight Zone or Ray Bradbury's Theatre."- Michael Smith, MIKE'S FILM TALK

"Larry Underwood delivers the goods with this horror story collection! When it comes to giving you chills, the Doctor [Gangrene] is in!"- Dan Johnson, Editor of CEMETERY PLOTS

"Larry Underwood continues to find ways to shock, delight, and ultimately entertain us with his unique and terrifying vision. A classic monster fan if there ever was one, Larry's stories harken back to the days of pulp comics, where evil lurks behind every crooked oak tree. There's a little bit of something for everyone in these collected works, and I highly encourage you to read them all behind the safety of four walls... because you never know what exists just beyond..." - Kurt Larson, STAY COOL GEEK podcast

Get you copy now at AMAZON.com  - available in both print and ebook format.

New Story published in SIREN'S CALL eZine

Issue #27 of the eZine THE SIREN'S CALL (June 2016) was released today, and I'm proud to announce my story, THE PROMISE, is among those featured in this issue, which was dedicated to horror.


Check it out for free at:


http://www.sirenscallpublications.com/pdfs/SirensCallEZine_June2016.pdf

Horror Hootenanny 13 Details Announced!

Ok Fright Fans, the gory details have been nailed down and it's my pleasure to announce that this year we are bringing Canadian horror rock legends FORBIDDEN DIMENSION back to the US for DR. GANGRENE'S HORROR HOOTENANNY 13!!


Joining them in the musical mayhem will be Nashville's own THE CREEPING CRUDS, and garage/surf rockers MUMMULA.


The action all takes place SATURDAY OCTOBER 1st at THE END in Nashville. So make plans now to kick off the Halloween season in style with Nashville's host with the most, Dr. Gangrene, The Creeping Cruds, Mummula, and Forbidden Dimension, and stay tuned for more updates and bloody details!!

About the Hootenanny:


Dr. Gangrene's Horror Hootenanny is Nashville's premiere rock and shock event. Since 2004 the event has brought horror music and madness to Music City, hosted by the Physician of Fright, Dr. Gangrene, and featuring a plethora of bands throughout the years including The Creeping Cruds, The Koffin Kats, Forbidden Dimension, Psychocharger, Dead Dick Hammer, Daikaiju, and many more. For more information and updates check out the facebook group https://www.facebook.com/horrorhootenanny/ or the blog at http://horrorhootenanny.blogspot.com/

Tales from Parts Unknown reviewed in new Rue Morgue Magazine

Great news - my new short story collection Dr. Gangrene's Tales from Parts Unknown was reviewed in the new RUE MORGUE MAGAZINE, issue #167 June 2016.


It got a great review in their Ninth Circle section! Check it out, on news stands now! thanks

Jim Ridley Honored at this Year's Nashville Film Festival

Sam Adams at INDIEWIRE.com posted the news yesterday that the Nashville Film Festival will hold an empty seat in every theater "from now on." Sounds like they mean not only this year but every year going forward, from that statement, which is a remarkable tribute to an equally remarkable man.

Jim's passing continues to stun and sadden me. Jim was always such a great friend and ally to all of us here, a true champion for all of Dr. Gangrene's creative ventures. He was so excited back when I first started my TV show, I remember him telling me how great it was that Nashville had a horror host again. He made mention of my events time and again in those early days of cable access zaniness.



 

I remember a couple years back I ran into him in Nashville one day shortly after I'd started my Fantastic Films of Vincent Price series. He was so excited to hear about it and told me one of his favorite Price films was HIS KIND OF WOMAN, starring Robert Mitchum, Jane Russell, and of course Vincent Price. It is a great film; zany, unusual, quirky and energetic - much like Jim himself. Makes total sense he'd love that one!

As editor, Jim was naturally the one who gave the go-ahead for a Dr. Gangrene cover on the Nashville Scene. I remember he had me come in for a photo shoot to accompany the article (written by Randy Fox), but instructed friends at the Scene (like Randy) to keep the fact I was going to be on the cover quiet, so it would be a surprise for me. And quite the pleasant surprise it was!! Time and time again he would write reviews or mentions of events we were hosting over the years, from live shows to movies, events and more -  and he'd even work humorous mentions of Dr. Gangrene into other folks' events, such as the following from Jan 22nd 2016, during a blurb for a Creeping Cruds show:

The Independents w/The Creeping Cruds & The Lonesome Town Drifters 

When: Fri., Jan. 22, 9 p.m. 2016
Price: $12

To non-fans, “horror ska” is redundant, but South Carolina’s The Independents are still skankin’ to wake the dead after almost a quarter-century of shock rock. Managed for a few years by the late Joey Ramone, an ardent admirer, founders Evil Presly and Willy B. have moved farther from the band’s early ska elements toward a punk sound that’s not as garage-y as, say, The Cramps, but still laden with references to black angels, corpses in the rain, and even the much-missed Rudy Ray Moore. Joining them are Nashville’s own psychotronic rockers The Creeping Cruds. If you plan your evenings around the chance of spotting horror host Dr. Gangrene, here’s a pretty safe bet. JIM RIDLEY

Too funny! That one I stumbled across totally out of the blue. But that's how Jim worked, making kind gestures like that without a second thought or expecting anything in return. He got a kick out of it, and I would have thanked him next time I saw him - to which he would naturally have shrugged it off as if it were nothing.

At last year's 12 HOURS OF TERROR festival Jim handed out stacks of paperbacks to the crowd for free.  He gave me one called THE SCREAM by John Skipp and Craig Spectre, which is a heavy metal horror (a favorive sub-sub genre of mine) novel. Jim raved about how much he loved Skipp and Spectre's writing. The book is fantastic, I need to do a proper review of it.

I'll leave you today with this shot of Jim from last year's 12 HOURS OF TERROR fest, where he  introduced THE EVIL SPAWN. Thank you again for your friendship and everything you did for us over the years, Jim. You rock, my friend.

Farewell Jim Ridley

It is with great sadness that I bid farewell to Nashville Scene Editor and friend Jim Ridley. I first met Jim in college at MTSU, and we stayed in touch over the years. He was always super-supportive of my horror host gig, and always more than happy to provide coverage for Dr. Gangrene events, and even allowing Dr. Gangrene to grace the cover of the Scene Halloween 2011. Over the past couple of years it seemed I kept running into him around town, at The Belcourt theater, some random event, or McKay Books, and Jim always had a huge smile on his face and wanted to know what I'd been up to lately. One of the friendliest, kindest and funny fellas you could ever hope to meet. Farewell Jim, you will be missed my friend.

This picture was taken by my son Luke at last year's 12 Hours of Terror film fest at the Belcourt theater. Pictured here is Jim (pointing at me), myself and Belcourt film guru Jason Shawhan. This was taken the morning after the fest, all of us celebrating having survived the overnight terrors. Jim was ALWAYS excited about the 12 hour festival, and always hand-picked a zany film to screen at the festival. If you looked at the lineup and there was one entry that was uber-bizarre and wacky, chances are it was a Ridley contribution to the lineup. I will always remember him enthusiastically pelting the crowd with candy midway through the event. I HATE that he won't be able to see the Belcourt theater in all its restored glory this summer. I know he would have loved and sung its praises in THE SCENE. This year's 12 Hours of Terror will not be the same without you. Farewell buddy.




BTW, there is a Jim Ridley memorial fund to help pay medical and funeral expenses and support his family in their time of need. Our thoughts go out to his wife and kids.

Update and Brains, Brains, Brains!

So good news! The powers that be over at SHOUT! FACTORY got wind of my recent posts and released their claim on my hosted version of  THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE. Woo hoo!

This is excellent news, and I'll be posting the entire episode here on the blog shortly.

Thank you to Shout Factory for the assistance with this matter!

Speaking of Shout Factory, I mentioned in the first post about this topic that they had released an impressive blu-ray edition of THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE. They did a new HD transfer, cleaned it up, and packed it with extras. Including new footage previously missing. There is also a nude scene alternate cut, not sure if it is on this release or not though. The Shout Factory version includes:

• NEW High Definition (1080p) Transfer From The Negative Restored To Its Uncut Version
• Mystery Science Theater 3000 Episode - The Brain That Wouldn't Die (Standard Definition)
• NEW Audio Commentary With Film Historian And Author Steve Haberman And Writer Tony Sasso
• Alternate Scene From The International Cut
• Theatrical Trailer
• Still Gallery

Who would honestly have ever thought this film would get that kind of treatment? THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE on Blu-ray? Gotta love it!!

BTW - For more information than you'd ever want to know about this film check out THE PROJECTION BOOTH podcast Episode 144 THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE. Host Mike White takes an amazingly in-depth look at this film, one of my favorite episodes of that podcast, actually.