Who, Me? Part 4: Out Of The Black Void Of Sacramento, It’s Mr. Lobo! (And Dixie Dellamorto!)

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By: Jamie Lee Cortese

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After I met Count Gore De Vol, next up was Mr. Lobo.  It was time to put a face behind the name of the random person who had sent that e-mail to him.

He and Dixie Dellamorto had finished setting up their table right next to the Count’s, so I stopped over there to check out the merchandise and introduce myself.  After I told them my name, I could see the instant recognition so clearly in their faces, which really threw me for a loop, as I was not expecting them to recognize by my name along and remember me so quickly.

Who, me?

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Who, Me? Part 3: Horror Hosts Galore, Including Count Gore (De Vol)!

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By: Jamie Lee Cortese

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I entered “Horror Host Alley” on Saturday morning ready to meet some horror hosts, and overflowing with pure enthusiasm and excitement at the prospect.  What I wasn’t prepared for was for my energy to be more than matched by the hosts themselves, starting from the moment I stepped into the room.

When I first walked in, I couldn’t help but gaze around in complete awe of my surroundings.  Before I could take it all in, however, I heard someone suddenly greet me.

Who, me?

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The Real Horror Hosts of Southern California!

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We’ve mentioned the documentary, AMERICAN SCARY, many times on this site and for good reason. It has not only served as a road-map to those interested in learning their horror host history, but also provided introductions to some of its most notable examples. If left to cover ALL of the greats, however, the movie would have probably had a running time of approximately 72 hours!

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Who me/Jamie Lee Part 2: Preparing to meet the hosts at Horrorhound

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By Jamie Lee Cortese:
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Yes, faster than you can say, “Svengoolie”, I’ve found myself hopelessly entangled in the horror host web, and I couldn’t be happier! While I was doing exhaustive research on Svengoolie and Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, I found out about a documentary entitled American Scary that was all about horror hosts.  I found it online, and began to watch it.  From the very beginning, I was captivated.  I think my first clue that it was going to be amazing was when I saw none other than Neil Gaiman sitting in front of the camera.  Thanks to Mr. John Aranza of the Horrorbles store in––– you guessed it––– Berrrwyyyn, I was able to obtain a copy of it on DVD.  As I watched it again on my television, I remember making mental notes about the various hosts I saw that particularly impressed me and whom I might look into more, including Count Gore De Vol, Mr. Lobo, Dr. Sarcofiguy, and Professor Anton Griffin.

Tribute to Dick Von Hoene…Cincinnati’s Cool Ghoul!

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Dave F: Ohio is one of the most prolific states when it comes to churning out horror hosts. Therefore, it was not surprising that  several inductees to The Horror Host Hall of Fame would hail from there. One of these was Dick Von Hoene a.k.a. The Cool Ghoul!

Classic commercial horror hosts were also professional broadcasters and Von Hoene was no exception. In the early 1960’s, he worked on Cincinnati radio and was featured on a show called “Bob Smith’s Monster Mash.” It was there that The Cool Ghoul character was born, though it would not be until the latter part of the decade (after he moved from radio to television) that the character would be given its official “look.”

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