There’s an old adage that says one should never talk about politics or religion while in a social venue. Kenosha Public Access host, Dr Destruction, on the other hand, can’t seem to get away from the former! Often espousing his own views via his weekly Crimson Theatre, Dr Destruction was even prompted to make his own run for Mayor some years back. While he would not win, he did make friends with many of his local politicians including the current Mayor of Kenosha – Keith Bosman.
I was standing in the lobby of the main hotel at FRIGHT NIGHT FILM FEST when a young man came up to me and asked if I was Dave from TERROR FROM BEYOND THE DAVES. Although I didn’t recognize him, it turned out that he and I had met before during a brief, but memorable, moment at Horrorhound Weekend last March.
I remember at the time, the other Dave (David Albaugh) and I were standing in line to see Barbara Steele. Nobody likes being idle when there is so much to do around you, so we passed the time doing what we do best under these circumstances- staring at folks! Yes, both David and I consider ourselves to be avid “people watchers,” a skill that, no doubt, is something one the develops during an introverted, shy youth and gradually hones over time. While most people think the best subjects can be found at Walmart (as illustrated by the numerous viral emails that go around depicting the less refined members of their clientelle) it really doesn’t matter where you are nor the socio-ecominic satus of your subjects. The fact remains that we people, on the whole, are pretty darn funny!
Shortly after the last Horrorhound Weekend in Indianapolis, I had a nice email exchange with J.D. Feigelson – writer of one of my all-time favorite films, DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW. Feigelson had treated both David and I like royalty after already honoring us by posting his positive feedback on a blog I had written last year. That piece was regarding the long-awaited DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW DVD release (see both original post & comment HERE).
Svengoolie autograph from the collection of Richard Church!
In 1970, the original Svengoolie hit the Chicago airwaves and the Windy city hasn’t been the same since! The vampire hippy, with his quick wit, rubber chickens, and hilarious commercial/song parodies made for a night of side-splitting entertainment in a region that had been starved of a horror host since Shock Theatre (Marvin’s) departure a decade before.
It was hot down in Kentucky for the recent FRIGHT NIGHT FILM FEST which saw the appearance of John Carpenter, Linda Blair, and Henry Winkler – along with a cache’ of independent films to be unveiled to an overheated (it was humid and like 100 degrees, I kid you not) horror audience. Among all these events and “A-list” horror celebrities was a small conclave of horror hosts who were invited by Horrorhound’s Jason Hignite to put on a LIVE show. While nowhere near the number of hosts seen at the Indy Horrorhound, FRIGHT NIGHT was visited by Midnite Mausoleum, Captain Crypt & Fenriz Fatal from Horror Dungeon, and The Count & Countess Gregula. Mr. Lobo & Dixie from Cinema Insomnia also made a stop through (to be covered in a future post) and I am pretty sure I saw Mel Praxis walking around too, but was on my way to the John Carpenter Q&A and never able to formerly meet him.
Let me share with you one of the more surreal moments I had at the 2011 FRIGHT NIGHT FILM FEST. It was Friday evening and I was just leaving the dealer’s room when I found myself standing face to face with actor Michael Biehn. Biehn will forever be loved by genre fans, like myself, for his roles in such hallowed films as TERMINATOR, ALIENS, and PLANET TERROR!
Terror from Beyond the Dave 