TERROR FROM BEYOND THE DAVES is pleased to welcome Sean Kotz as a guest blogger! Sean is co-founder of Horse Archer Productions. He and his partner, Chris Valluzzo, produced, directed and released their second horror host documentary in 2011 called HI THERE HORROR MOVIE FANS about legendary host, The Bowman Body. The film has been nominated for Rondo Award for Best Documentary of 2011.
Hall of Fame Logo design created by Basement Boy*
This year’s Indianapolis HorrorHound Weekend was noteworthy for featuring multiple events centered around the art of horror hosting. Perhaps the most significant of these was the addition of horror hosts to an actual “Hall of Fame” sponsored by “Ripley’s Believe It or Not.”
I’ve been a horror host fan for as long as I can remember. Thanks to syndication in the early 80’s, I was able to get my first glimpse of a host via the Son Of Svengoolie from Chicago (playing out of a station in Boston). I soon also became aware of Elvira: Mistress of the Dark but, during this period, this could only be accomplished late at night, weather permitting. On the rare event those rabbit ear antennas did draw the original Movie Macabre the picture was extremely snowy and virtually unwatchable (though I STILL did). With the introduction of cable television, I was finally able to enjoy such hosts as Grampa on TBS’s Super Scary Saturday, Commander USA on the USA Network, and Morgus The Magnificent on WPIX.
The company that produced VIRGINIA CREEPERS: THE HORROR HOST TRADITION OF THE OLD DOMINION is now working on a sequel of sorts on The Bowman Body. VIRGINIA CREEPERS was released in 2009 and after a month of release it was nominated for “Best Independent Production of 2009” at the Rondo Awards. It was selected by special invitation to the James River Film Festival in 2010 and one of only two independent film s selected at UVA’s academy qualifying Virginia Film Festival (see www.virginiacreepersmovie.com).
Terror from Beyond the Dave 