The 2015 Hearse Show was quite a ride!

11412416_1070023209693826_6578326249449411439_n

On Saturday June 13th I headed up to Lombard, Illinois to attend a Hearse Show. Not only did the event promise a collection of automobiles specifically designed to deliver you to your final destination but also live music and a visit from national horror host Svengoolie. As someone who firmly believes that Halloween is much more a state of mind rather than just a date on the calendar, an occasion such as this was just too darn fun to pass up! Joining me for the ride was my friend, Susan, a gal who also enjoys the macabre. Continue reading

The Terror Daves visit Svengoolie at the Studio Part 2!

1

Dave: Doug Scharf (a.k.a. Doug Graves) arrived at the studio and this was a big deal to me. I’d watched him accompany Svengoolie during his musical numbers since I was eight years old as well as participate in various skits and viewer mail segments. He settled in and I was particularly happy to see that he’d brought his horn with him which meant I’d get to see him play two instruments for two different numbers! As soon as he arrived, he and Sven hunkered down Sven to discuss their segments.

Continue reading

The Terror Daves visit Svengoolie at the Studio Part 1!

1

On Friday March 27th, we headed out to Chicago to do something we’d dreamt of doing since first becoming Terror Daves five years ago; being present for a Svengoolie taping at the studio! I’d been there before back in 2013 and had the honor of throwing chickens at him during the beginning & end sequences of The Leech Woman and Dracula along with getting to see some of my favorite props such as Tombstone, Durwood, & Kerwyn. At the time, the studio rules were pretty strict and I wasn’t allowed to share that experience on social media nor on this site which was pretty painful since I was so excited about it that wanted to shout it from the roof tops. Happily, I’ve now been given permission to do so as well as share our experiences during this visit (provided we waited until those shows aired and didn’t give anything away in terms of content). Here are some shots from my first visit in 2013…

Continue reading

Lions, Tigers, Bears…& Metaluna Monsters: Svengoolie appears at Brookfield Zoo!

1

After enjoying an afternoon seeing the animals at Brookfield Zoo, we headed over to their Discovery Center where my AAZK (American Association of Zookeepers) Chapter was hosting its annual Vital Ground fundraiser. It’s an all-you-can-eat spaghetti dinner with the money raised to be used for obtaining property out west in grizzly bear country. The buildings or lots purchased are then converted back to their natural state so the animals can use them for travel and aid in finding mates, food, etc. I’ve been going to these dinners long before I joined AAZK because they also feature an appearance by my favorite horror host, Svengoolie…the man indirectly responsible for bringing us Terror Daves together in the first place.

Continue reading

Twas a “Nightmare on Chicago Street!”

16

Hey gang, I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays and are looking forward to another year of horror, science fiction, super heroes, and monsters! I’m gonna kick off 2015  with a series of posts on an event that took place during the last Halloween season. Okay I know that isn’t very “New Year-ish”but I felt this story deserved to be looked at carefully and required some time that my Christmas (or Krampus had I been a local here in Elgin) season just didn’t allow. So let’s enjoy these ‘dead of winter’ days (with Dead being the operative word) and discuss an occasion that, while always amazing, is unique each year. Just curl up and forget those sub-zero temps that are plaguing a good portion of the US right now and go back to a much warmer evening WAY back in 2014.

Ah, it seems like only yesterday…

Continue reading