As I headed toward the autograph lines, I spotted a vendor selling vinyl and immediately stopped to flip through them. I ended up buying two: War of the Gargantuas (1966) from Waxwork and Terror Vision’s Fire in the Sky (1993).  The former was out of print and selling for less than it used to, and the latter was one I didn’t know about but really had to have. Fire in the Sky is my favorite film depicting alien abduction (even if it contradicts the story of the alleged victim, Travis Walton), and I had my Blu-ray cover for Henry Thomas to sign. Even though that Blu-ray had already been signed by D.B. Sweeney and Craig Sheffer, I decided to have Thomas sign the vinyl instead. As when I met D.B. Sweeney, I asked Thomas if he believed Walton’s story. “I believe in UFO’s,” he told me, “But I’m not sold on alien abductions.”

Next, I went to William Katt. I’d met him before over ten years ago in Massachusetts, and he was pleasant, if not a bit reserved. This time he was much chattier and seemed a lot more interested in talking with fans. During the last FREE COMIC BOOK DAY, they featured a “Greatest American Hero” comic book. I was going to bring my copy to see if he was aware of it but forgot to pack it. It turned out to be unnecessary, as there was a stack of them at Katt’s table along with a banner of the issue standing next to his booth. Today, I had Katt sign my Waxwork vinyl, and he commented how great a release it was. I told him I was hoping to have P.J. Soles sign it when I saw her at Fan Expo in a couple of weeks, and he said that their kids had all grown up together and went to the same schools.

Next up were the Halloween II folks. I had an original Halloween II vinyl that Alan Howarth had signed at Flashback Weekend 2024. My priority was Dick Warlock, whom I’d also met at a past event (no wonder they call it “Flashback”). Warlock had just published a book but, unfortunately, the copies he requested to bring this weekend for signing were delayed. He’s had quite a career, and I do want to read it. You didn’t have to read the book to know how diverse his career as a stuntman was. Just looking at the 8x10s offered at his booth you could see some of the other he’s done behind the magic of old Hollywood FX.

Though Warlock was no stranger to horror cons, this was a first time out for three of the actresses who played his victims in Halloween II. It was my understanding that Pamela Susan Shoop (Nurse Karen), Gloria Gifford (Mrs. Alves), and Ana Alicia (Nurse Janet) were all newbies to the convention circuit. There were definitely new to me, and I really wanted them all to sign my original Halloween II vinyl record. Ana Alicia hadn’t arrived yet, so I made my first stop at Ms. Shoop’s table. She saw my Svengoolie shirt and lit up. She’s a big fan of the show and got to tell Sven personally the night before. I asked if she was willing to do an interview with him and she said, “Tell him he better stop at my table.” That eventual interview, by the way, was touched upon in my last post.

The next person I saw was Gloria Gifford. Just ahead of me, a couple of fans had her sign a poster for D.C. Cab (1983). I knew of this movie but had never seen it, and I was surprised that this actress was part of the cast. She was surprised to see people at Flashback Weekend bring in memorabilia from it and mentioned how she had to do a quick search to remind herself what her character’s name was. Gifford was very pleasant to talk to, and I mentioned how when I was twelve and first saw this movie, I was as scared of her character (a stern nursing supervisor) as I was of Michael Myers. She was genuinely surprised. “Really?” she asked. “Why was that?” I told her it was because her character did not play games when it came to running her floor. I also conceded that, having worked in the healthcare industry and encountered many night nurses, her portrayal was pretty dead on.

By the time I’d finished up with Ms. Gifford, Tom Atkins was set up and ready at his table. I’ve met Tom many times before, and he’s always a great guy. On this occasion, he signed my 40th Anniversary Waxwork vinyl of John Carpenter’s The FOG (1980). His was the first signature on this piece, but more will be added at the Chicago Fan Expo two weeks later (same goes for my Carrie and Halloween II LPs). I wasn’t thrilled with the marker he used, but such is the plight of us fans.

The last person I met on Saturday was also the liveliest. Robert Brian Wilson from the infamous Silent Night Deadly Night (1984). It’s hard to believe, given all the killer Santa Claus movies that have come out since, but back then, this film was a hot topic. A lot of American parents (including my mom) were outraged by it, and I mean really outraged, not the term casually tossed around on social media today. Many parents objected to the grisly depiction of a beloved character like Santa Claus as a homicidal maniac and successfully got it removed from theaters. Unfortunately for them, it also made teenagers like me want to see it even more, and many of us later wore out the VHS copies at our local video store.

Wilson was a ball of energy, enthusiastically shaking my hand and encouraging discussion about the movie. We discussed how it differed from other ‘80s slasher films: it was essentially a well-executed slasher origin story. Wilson spoke affectionately of the veteran actors he worked with, especially Britt Leach (Mr. Sims) and the stern (to put it mildly) Mother Superior played by Lilyan Chauvin.

Another reason fans should try to meet Wilson is that he wants his signature to look its best on whatever he’s signing. I brought the Record Store Day Exclusive from Black Friday 2020. Wilson took a long look and asked, “What are we thinking for this one? Gold?” I agreed, and he wrote my name with a gold Sharpie but stopped before going any further. “I don’t know…” he said. “I feel like it could use something else,” I suggested, that he add the color red. “Good idea!” he said. “I don’t know where my red marker went…Hold on!” He jumped out of his seat and skipped off (presumably to another celebrity signing booth) and returned with a red paint marker. “Here we go!” he said triumphantly and resumed signing my vinyl’s dust jacket.

Ana Alicia still wasn’t available, so I decided she’d just have to wait until Sunday. I took everything I’d gotten signed and placed it on the hotel room’s couch, with my fan blowing on them to get them thoroughly dry.

The next day, I picked up my eldest son, Alex, and returned to the convention. This time around, I took my time with him, looking at all the vendor stuff.

I took my Halloween II vinyl over to Ana Alicia, and she was very friendly. She asked if Alex was my son and said that the thing she loved best about this weekend was seeing all the parents with their adult children. “I left acting to raise a family, and my kids and I are very close. My daughter is now an actress, herself,” she beamed. She said now that her kids are grown, she is looking forward to doing more events like these and interacting with Halloween II fans.

Flashback Weekend 2026 was a definite hit. I had fun assisting the Svengoolie crew while also achieving all my autograph goals. My Halloween II vinyl dust jacket looked great. But in just a couple of weeks, it would look even better.

Coming Up…My summer convention season ends at the best/worst of them all, Chicago Fan Expo!

~Dave