Monster Bash 2011 Recap

I managed to make it to the Monster Bash last Friday. Had a great time as usual. I was a little short on cash, but that's OK, I still bought some cool monster stuff. Here's my haul --

Horror Host Graveyard Trading Cards Series 1 and 2
Marvel Essential horror books --
Ghost Rider Vol. 2
Marvel Horror Vol. 1
Tomb of Dracula Vol. 2
Tomb of Dracula Vol. 3
Tomb of Dracula Vol. 4

Not too bad. I also got autographs from Dawn Wells and Caroline Munro. Later that night I attended a special screening of two horror related episodes of Gilligan's Island and a Q&A with Dawn Wells. It was really cool listening to Dawn's stories. She's very down to earth. But, the best part of the Bash was hanging out with Max the Drunken Severed Head. Max is a great guy and very generous. We walked around the dealer room and even went to his hotel room for some refreshments and great conversation. Thanks Max, I had a blast. I only wish I could have stayed longer. Make sure you follow Max on these sites --

Facebook
Famous Monsters of Filmland
Blogger

The only downside to the Bash was that they didn't have a t-shirt in my size. This is the second time this has happened. You'd think they would have XXL shirts. I saw a whole bunch of overweight monster kids walking around. Oh well, their loss. :)

Here's my pics --



Vampires in the hotel lobby.





Cortlandt Hull's The Witch's Dungeon




The lovely Dawn Wells





Me and the not-so-lovely Max




The also lovely Caroline Munro



Caroline Munro as Stella Star from the movie Starcrash. Now all I need is the Hoff's autograph.



Q&A with Dawn Wells.




Gilligan and the Skipper made a special appearance.

Gene Colan, R.I.P.

From Hero Complex --

Gene Colan, the comic-book artist best known for The Tomb of Dracula and his work with characters such as Daredevil, Batman, Iron Man and Howard the Duck, died Thursday in New York after battling liver disease and cancer.

The work of the Bronx, N.Y., native spanned 67 years and crossed multiple comics universes, with credits for Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Eclipse and even Archie. His moody, atmospheric style stood in stark contrast to, say, the cosmic bombast of Jack Kirby or the kinetic realism of Neal Adams.

Colan will be most remembered for an era-defining achievement in 1970s horror comics; he drew 70 issues of The Tomb of Dracula,” written by Marv Wolfman, creating the vampire-hunter character Blade that would lead to the first Marvel film franchise. (“Howard the Duck” also made history in 1986 as the first Marvel feature film, although its achievements beyond that are debatable.)

In 2009, Colan illustrated a Captain America issue titled “Red, White and Blue-Blood,” written by Ed Brubaker. The book won the 2010 Eisner Award for best single issue.

“Gene Colan was like no other artist of his generation,” said Jim Lee, comic-book artist and co-publisher of DC Comics. “His ability to create dramatic, multi-valued tonal illustrations using straight India ink and board was unparalleled. The comics industry has lost one of its true visionaries today.”

A post on Colan’s website said the artist was “a fighter to the end, making plans on leaving the hospice” and pricing a VW Beetle.

Writer Clifford Meth wrote about his friend Colan’s death on his blog.

“He was a gentle and deeply spiritual man, a bright light in every context, and those who knew him at any level were enriched by his warmth and generous nature,” Meth wrote. “He was exactly the type of man who should be drawing superheroes for young people to marvel at. Exactly and precisely.”

The Incredible Hulk vs. "The Green Frog"

From the inside front cover of Porky Pig #70. Enjoy!

Monster Bash 2011

It's almost time for the Monster Bash again!

This year's Bash is June 24-26 at the Days Inn Conference Center in Butler, PA. For the past several years I've made a compilation of monster music and themes to go along with the Bash. Well, I'm not making one this year. I've had a bunch of computer problems for some time now. I don't have any sound on my computer and my CD burner isn't working well. Also, I can't upload pictures from my camera. It really sucks. But, I'm too lazy/cheap to get it fixed.

A couple of my old compilations are still available for download --

Monster Bash 2007
Monster Bash 2010

This years guests include --

Robert Dix - He's appeared in scores of films including BLOOD OF DRACULA'S CASTLE, FRANKENSTEIN'S DAUGHTER, FORBIDDEN PLANET, The James Bond blockbuster LIVE AND LET DIE with Christopher Lee and Roger Moore, HORROR OF THE BLOOD MONSTERS as well as TV western classics GUNSMOKE, THE RIFLEMAN, RAWHIDE and DEATH VALLEY DAYS. Robert will be signing his book OUT OF HOLLYWOOD.

Ed Nelson - who came up through the Roger Corman school of classic horror and sci-fi. Ed's credits are stunning. He was in the Corman classic NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST which featured an alien vampire monster! Plus, get a load of this mere sampling of credits: ATTACK OF THE CRAB MONSTERS, INVASION OF THE SAUCERMEN, THE BRAIN EATERS, TEENAGE CAVEMAN, Four episodes of Boris Karloff's THRILLER (he acted with Karloff), THE TWILIGHT ZONE, SHE GODS OF SHARK REEF, A BUCKET OF BLOOD, THE ALFRED HITCHCOCK HOUR, HAVE GUN WILL TRAVEL, THE RIFELMAN, BONANZA, DEATH VALLEY DAYS, RAWHIDE, THE VIGINIAN, 77 SUNSET STRIP, THE OUTER LIMITS, COMBAT, THE FUGITIVE, GUNSMOKE, THE SCREAMING WOMAN, NIGHT GALLERY, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE, KUNG FU, ADAM 12, AIRPORT 1975, IRONSIDE, ROCKFORD FILES, CHARLIE'S ANGELS, 416 episodes of PEYTON PLACE....need we go on! There's a lot more to his credit! He'll have his book BEYOND PEYTON PLACE as well as stills and will be signing all weekend!

Dawn Wells - Mary Ann on the classic "Gilligan's Island" TV show from the 1960s. We all knew that she was the "one" over the "movie star!" Dawn makes her first Monster Bash appearance to sign autographs all three days and we'll have a super special Monster Bash event called "Gilligan's Horror Island!"

The star of THE RETURN OF DRACULA, Norma Eberhardt, played Rachel....the woman Dracula (Francis Lederer) had the eye (and teeth!) for. Norma also acted in many classic movies and TV shows, including: LIVE FAST - DIE YOUNG, SAILOR BEWARE, DRAGNET, HOGAN'S HEROES, THE WHIRLYBIRDS (with Kenneth Tobey) and visited Boris Karloff at his home too!

Hammer's Dracula Girls, Veronica Carlson - Yvonne Monlaur - Caroline Munro - The Dracula Hammer Girls are coming to Monster Bash in 2011. Veronica Carlson and Yvonne Monlaur sponsered by Kevin Flynn and Mark Piasecki. Plus, Caroline Munro!

West Coast TV legend John Stanley ruled the 1970s and 1980s with CREATURE FEATURES originated from the Bay Area in California. He picked up where Bob Wilkins (the show's original host) left off and took it into new weird dimensions for fans of the fantastic! He made monster movie TV fun and informative for the west coast crowd with interviews with Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing and scores of others! He also has the great CREATURE FEATURES movie guide books to his credit.

"Chilly Billy" Cardille - The host of Pittsburgh's Chiller Theatre from the 1950s through the 1980s on Channel 11, Pittsburgh, PA. This is the man who brought you spooky movies and made pizza partiies a way of life on Saturday nights for the city of Pittsburgh for three decades. Bill will only be at the Bash for a limited time. Make sure to get an autograph from this Pittsburgh icon. Appearng Saturday only.

Richard Gordon - The super horror-fan and producer and Euro importer of films like the vampire-based CAVE OFTHE LIVING DEAD, FIEND WITHOUT A FACE (the flying brains that attacked us in 1958), ISLAND OF TERROR, THE HAUNTED STRANGLER, CORRIDORS OF BLOOD and much more. He worked with Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff, Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing and many more!

Frank Dello Stritto - Author of VAMPIRE OVER LONDON - Bela Lugosi's work in England and many other books. Frank will be speaking at Monster Bash with a talk called MY SEARCH FOR BELA LUGOSI.

Tom Savini - Local "Monster Kid" done good! Visit Tom to see his great work in sculptures of classic monsters and talk about his work in horror films over the past decades. A renaissance man that has done it all: specal effects, directing, acting, writing...

The great Kerry Gammill will be at Bash! Kerry's new comic Bela Lugosi's TALES FROM THE GRAVE will be at his table and I'll bet he'll sign a copy just for you! Kerry is an artist and publisher. The stunning on-line MONSTER KID MAGAZINE is Kerry and you may know him from the comics you grew up with too. He's worked for Marvel and DC and graced comic books - SUPERMAN, THE INCREDIBLE HULK, X-MEN...oh, the list goes on and on!

Make-up and mask master Jesse Melchior will be providing live classic monsters that wil be roaming the halls of Monster Bash! Look for Kharis, Nosferatu, Wolfman, and various classic creepy creatures! Jesse will also be set-up with his unbelievably great masks and other monster gear.

One of the best documentary makers in the business today - Daniel Griffith. His company is Ballyhoo Productions. Daniel produces and directs amazing documentaries on classic and cult films. He's top-notch technical expertise is stepped up to masterful with his sense of humor and obvious love of his subject matters.

Daniel Horne, artist. Daniel rocks the Monster World with covers for MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT magazine, sculptures, models and masks.

The host of Cinema Insomia, Mr. Lobo. One of the most talked about Contemporary Horror Hosts on the Shock Scene! Make sure to check out his web site and videos.

Keyboardist and life-long silent film fan, Kevin Slick! Kevin will perform at this year's MONSTER BASH! Don't miss out on this live event.

Monster Bash stand-up comedy Saturday Night with Don Reese. Catch the man from Iowa at Bash and around the country through the year....check out his schedule on his web site....he might be near your area soon! RUN!

See you're favorite TV show personalities at Monster Bash! It's Vlad and Creighton from the Ghoul A Go-Go show. A twisted twisting monster -craze for kids of all ages. A retro kid's show that is a combination of Dick Clark's American Bandstand and The Addams Family.

Cortlandt Hull is the nephew of Henry Hull (the WEREWOLF OF LONDON) and Jospehine Hull (ARESENIC AND OLD LACE). Cortlandt, in his own right, is a sculptor and artist, heading The Witch's Dungeon in Connecticut. On display you'll see some of Cortlandt's life-size wax classic monsters!

Bill Diamond, who worked with Jim Henson's muppets, now runs MONSTER TV on the Internet! Plus, he'll be having his "Gorgo" introduce The Witch's Dungeon new documentary on Aurora Monsters at Monster Bash!

The horror host that rocks Cleveland through to its bones! Son of Ghoul will be back to put the scare on you. Make sure to visit him at Bash and if you're in Ohio, check your local listings for that SOG listing! Son of Ghoul will host Saturday Stooge Matinee at Bash.

It's a vampire Bash and a vampire Horror Host. Baltimore TV legend Count Gor DeVol joins Penny Dreadful and Mr. Lobo in the Monster Bash lobby as official welcomers to Monster Bash's classic horror host gallery. Get the DVD EVERY OTHER DAY IS HALLOWEEN and get ready to meet the Count at Monster Bash 2011.

Kyra Schon from the original Western PA classic - NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD! She was the little girl in the film with the unforgettable scene in the basement.

John Russo - Screenwriter and zombie from the original Western PA classic - NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD! And, a film instructor and director in his own right.

George Kosana - It's the sheriff....from NIGHT OFTHE LIVING DEAD! Don't mess with the sheriff! His iconic line: "They're dead, they're ll messed up!"

Penny Dreadful's Shilling Shockers - Back at Bash, it's Penny and the crew, including Garou. This Boston area TV creepy crew will be bringing their unique brand of horror and humor to Monster Bash. Plus, check out all the cool goodies they'll have at their table, includuding DVDs of their TV shows and scary movies! Kids, don't worry, Garou the wewrewolf doesn't bite, but he slobbers a whole lot.

Tom Weaver - Noted author of many, many books on the genre. Host of the Bash Braintwister Quiz live at Bash.

Richard Scrivani - Noted author of the book "Good Night, Whatever You Are!" An expert on the Universal horror films. He's also the host of the Forgotten Film Series at Monster Bash.

Lorraine Bush - Classic Monster portrait artist. She's also a cover artist for Monster Bash Magazine.

Robert Michael Cotter - Long time Monster Basher, author Bobb Cotter will be set up at Bash signing books and hanging with the Monster Bashers. Bobb's books for McFarland include A HISTORY OF DOC SAVAGE, THE GREAT MONSTER MAGAZINES, THE MEXICAN MASKED WRESTLER & MONSTER FILMOGRAPHY, and a forthcoming book on Hammer actress Ingrd Pitt! Also, don't miss him introducing our Mexican Movie Night at Monster Bash!

Spooky personalities, The Patient Creatures will be roaming the Monster Bash halls in search of a home....perhaps, yours! Our friends from the Netherworld will treat the kiddies to spooky stories too!