The crew arrived, and Don and I escorted them to the room. Soon after, we had a visit from Nick Digilio, a popular podcaster and mainstay at Flashback Weekend. Nick is getting ready to publish a book and will be signing at the Midway Drive-In’s “Dusk to Dawn Horrorfest,” with select films playing all night long. The Drive-in is in Sterling, Illinois, and, as mentioned in my previous post, is managed by Mike and Mia Kerz, who run this convention to help support it. 

As with the previous evening, the first item on Svengoolie’s agenda was his photo-op, and a line of fans was waiting when we arrived. 

Svengoolie stood where he was told, and Nick took a photo with him to help promote the book; Sven’s alter ego, Rich Koz, was also kind enough to write the Foreword. After that, they took a few more shots, including one with Jim Roche, Sven’s Executive Producer. 

Soon the fans were ushered in one at a time. One funny moment was courtesy of Mayor Don, who warned the Svengoolie crew to watch out for a potentially overzealous fan. He pointed her out, and in walked a sweet old lady. “Um…I think we can handle this one,” Jim said dryly, and I almost cried from laughing so hard. 

After it ended, I took a selfie with Sven, and the photographer, Carter, came over and offered to take a free pro shot of us, which was awesome.

Before his scheduled signing, Svengoolie wanted to get some interviews done for his show and began with Tom Atkins. The two had spoken and interviewed before, as Atkins is a long-time Svengoolie fan. 

Next up was Pamela Susan Shoop – one of the nurses from Halloween II (1981). She’d already established herself as a Svengoolie fan the night before (see my last post) and told me that morning she really wanted him to stop by her table (see my next post). Ever the actress, Ms. Shoop made sure she looked her best before going on camera. 

While they were wrapping up, Jim summoned me to Sven’s signing area just outside the vendor room. Unlike previous years, when I’d photograph fans with Svengoolie using their own cameras, this time I got to sit at a table and sell merch while Jim and Don alternated with the picture-taking. My knees were very grateful! Instead of selling shirts, they offered buttons, hats, and Sven collector cards this year. Not having to flip through shirts looking for sizes was nice, too. This was all too easy compared to the previous couple of years.

After the signing, I had to run to the washroom, and by the time I got back, I’d lost the crew. Unfortunately, I missed Sven’s other interviews (I heard the William Katt one went really well), and I’ll have to watch them when they air on upcoming shows. The last item on Svengoolie’s itinerary was the annual Sinister Visions costume contest. And what a doozy!

Svengoolie was hilarious as usual. I sat a few rows in, next to someone I didn’t know. He and I never formally met or spoke a word to each other, but we constantly looked at each other and laughed out loud throughout the show. It was a great time. Despite his age, Sven has retained his quick wit, and whoever this guy was, we were both there for it.

The contest began as it always does. Svengoolie and Nick Digilio laid out the rules: after all the contestants had been seen, the winner would be chosen by a token of applause. First up was the children’s category.

Then it was time for judging…

Then it was time for the adults to take the stage.

One group of contestants recreated the dimensional doorway from the recent indie hit, “Backrooms.”

One contestant was unable to take the stage because they were in a bathtub! The woman was portraying Dana Newman from the movie Thi13en Ghosts (2001).

I’ve attended many costume contests in my day, but for some reason the only ones I’ve seen occasionally go off the rails are at Flashback Weekend. Like the time a little girl dressed as Captain Spaulding in the children’s division dropped an “F-Bomb.” Or when some guy who called himself “Stone Cold E.T.” took the microphone from Svengoolie and went on a tirade nobody could understand.

This year, a woman with “horns” decided to do a little impromptu singing. And by a “bit,” I mean she sang the whole damn song! It started out kind of funny. Sven asked her who she was, and she responded with something that sounded like “Silla Sin (if anyone knows what character she was, please let me know). Sven said he knew a good doctor who could cure that, but she wasn’t amused. She turned, stared at him, and then said, “Ah-h-h-h-h-h-h…”

This alone sent the other guy and me into a fit of laughter. Things literally turned on a sour note, however, when she started singing. I’m not sure, but it sounded like she was doing the “Phantom of the Opera” theme from that popular Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. 

At first, Svengoolie was going along with it, but as it kept going (and going), you could tell he’d ceased to be amused and was looking for someone to get a proverbial shepherd’s hook to get her off stage. More confusing was her escort, some guy who just casually stood next to her the whole time and made no attempt to nudge her off until Don finally showed up. But honestly, what could he do? She wasn’t going to leave until that song was over.

The contest ended, and the audience chose the winners by applause. When the horned lady came up, Sven called her “Cher.” After the voting ended, Cujo came in third, “Dana Newman” (Bathtub girl) in second (thanks to a bunch of guys hoping she’d stand up and bow), while Pennywise took the top prize!

I told Jim beforehand that I planned to leave right after, so I waved my “Goodbyes” and headed to my car. I went to my friend Jason Lucas’s place for pizza and to recap my experiences at Flashback, though it wasn’t over yet.

Coming Up…Meeting the Flashback Weekend Celebrities!

Dave