When Flashback Weekend reconvened in 2021, the number of contestants in its annual costume contest surged. I understood with all the extra time some folks had in lockdown why that year went nuts, but there’s been no letup in the two years that’s followed. In fact, the 2023 event had so many adult contestants they couldn’t fit everyone on stage for judging. In the end, three separate groups were judged before a fourth round would be dedicated to the finalists.
The second day of Flashback Weekend began before the convention doors opened, with my friends, Don and Bunny, waiting for me downstairs to discuss the previous day. While heading towards the elevators, a group of people wearing Svengoolie shirts began yelling at me from the opposite end of the hotel; seeing my own Sven shirt as a beacon of camaraderie. The most vocal of them was a tall, tattooed redhead who goes by the handle “Catbat.” This group was none other than Svengoolie’s faithful blog commentators; fans who transform his weekly posts into their own communications platform. Although I had no idea what they looked like in real life, I was quite familiar with their Saturday morning banter.
For the second time in about as many weeks, I headed up to the Hyatt Regency in Rosemont, Illinois for a convention. Whereas the previously covered G-FEST was a family affair, however, Flashback Weekend for me is all about friends and celebrating our mutual love of horror films and/or MeTV’s national horror host (and Flashback Weekend regular), Svengoolie. This year was even more momentous as it would feature my other favorite host, Shudder TV’s Joe Bob Briggs from The Last Drive-in show. This team-up alone sent my anticipation levels soaring while making the protracted journey to Flashback (courtesy of Illinois road construction) akin to torture.
If my memory is correct, we were in full Covid lockdown when I saw a documentary arrive on video-on-demand (VOD). Since I now had more time to watch movies, I decided to watch it and I’m glad I did because I loved it.
The documentary is called Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie! Unbeknownst to me, a few years back these young men released a film called Spring Break Zombie Massacre! This doc was about how that movie came to be. I rented it on demand and was so impressed I purchased the DVD.
Last Sunday morning, I made my way to the seaside town of Fall River, Massachusetts for my first visit to the MonstahXpo Halfway to Halloween horror event. Billed as the Ladies of Horror, it did not disappoint. This was their 4th event at this location, and I was excited to finally experience it!
Recently, I finally had the courage to do something I’ve wanted to do for years – delete my Facebook and Twitter accounts. It wasn’t to curb any addiction, since my posts were sporadic at best, and any “mindless” scrolling I indulged in scant achieved any dopamine hits psychologists speak of. Rather, I hung on because I didn’t want anyone to think I’d blocked them (hurt their feelings) when they couldn’t find me and I had this blog. As any content creator will tell you, social media is an important tool for getting your work out there. Although the number of folks who “Liked” my page was rather sparse (under 2,000), I appreciated each and every one of them because they were organic. I never have, nor ever will, pay for “likes” or “views.”
Terror from Beyond the Dave will start its lucky thirteenth year of existence this July. With over a decade of content floating around, I’m fortunate to obtain a steady number of views without having to write anything for months at a time. The ad revenue these views generate pays for my annual WordPress fees along with a little extra for a few Blu-rays if I’m lucky. However, with my social media accounts gone, and the pressure of getting people to “Like,” Subscribe,” and “Share” my content no longer of concern, I’m hoping to post more often and be more conversational while I’m at it. Hopefully, people will still manage to find me and stick around after they have.
Dave~
Terror from Beyond the Dave 