Horrorhound Weekend always has a special place in the hearts of we Daves. It was the 2010 convention in Indianapolis and its magnificent Vampira Tribute that inspired us to start this site and feature horror hosts as its cornerstone. By 2011, I would be joined by the “other” Dave, David Albaugh, for optimum coverage. We are both excited to be reuniting again for the upcoming Horrorhound Weekend in Columbus, Ohio and covering even more avenues of horror and, of course, its hosts!
I have always been nostalgic, especially when it comes to things that made me happy as a child. Whether it was the awesome toys put out by one of the leading toy companies of the time (Mego), awesome Saturday morning cartoons (which also including amazing live action shows by Sid & Marty Krofft) or even the cool ads in comic books (as covered HERE), I will always look back at these things and it will always make me smile. One thing I will never forget is that every Saturday, after the cartoons and professional wrestling were over, it was time for the Creature Double Feature, broadcast on UHF station WLVI Channel 56 out of Boston.
One of the more emotional and heartfelt moments of the Horror Host Hall of Fame ceremony that took place at Horrorhound Weekend convention in Indianapolis last March came with the induction of one of Indiana’s own. Captain Crypt and Fenriz Fatal were given the honor of inducting one of the country’s most prolific ghouls – Sammy Terry! The two hosts became visibly emotional while delivering their tribute and it was clear that, unlike many of the inductees whose awards were presented by hosts who didn’t have Clue #1 as to who they really were, these two clearly did. There is no doubt that the best folks to tributize any celebrity is the “fans” themselves and we Daves wished that could have been the case for all of them.
There is no shortage of guilty pleasures so far as 1980’s horror movies are concerned. Whether its one of the multitude of slasher films that helped define the decade or one of those goofy GREMLINS inspired rip-offs (CRITTERS, TROLL, GHOULIES, etc) you had plenty of “fun with fright” movies to choose from.
Today I’m going to call to your attention one of my favorite lesser known 80’s films, WITCHBOARD (1986). As soon as it came out on VHS (after a limited release in a paltry 15 theaters), I rented it from my local (and now all but obsolete) “mom and pop” video store. I didn’t have high hopes but, within the first few minutes of snappy dialogue involving a debate between party-goers regarding the existence of God and ghosts, this 16 year old horror fan was hooked!
Recently, while browsing through Amazon.com, looking for something to use one of my gift cards on, I came across an interesting book called “Mail-Order Mysteries: Real Stuff from Old Comic Book Ads!” by Kirk Demarais. Growing up in the 70’s I was addicted to comics, especially those put out by Marvel, and the colorful ads advertising the coolest stuff ever; a part of my childhood that I will never forget.
This past weekend I took my 7 year old son, Luke, to the “Discover the Dinosaurs” show at Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illnois. The venue was just across the street from The Crowne Paza Hotel where the quintessential Godzilla festival, G-FEST, takes place each July. Actually, the two have much in common as dinosaur fans and Godzilla enthusiasts are often one in the same. The Big G is, after all, a dinosaur that’s been mutated by atomic power (no, not an iguana, I’m not talking about the Tri-Star version).
Terror from Beyond the Dave 