“We make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones.”

Traditionally, Fascination with Fear has done a month long blog-a-thon each October in celebration of the holiday season. But I feel it's important to let the few readers I still have the facts. This year has been a very difficult one personally, as my mother is very ill and it has been a serious challenge to find the time to write. In fact, she's just had another hospital admission this week and it's left me convinced that my time is just too strapped to consider any seriously wordy posts.

Hence, I've decided to adapt the "Wordless Wednesday" feature into "A Wordless October", where I will post some of my favorite creepy pics. Some of the pictures will be taken from previous posts here and there and some will be new to the blog.

First though, an explanation that may ramble off course but is as sincere as it can be.  This has been a very rough year, and going forward I'm unsure how much time I will have for one of my favorite escapes, which is writing, and in turn, this blog. But it will stay up and always be here for me to add to when I am able or feel compelled to do so.  I'm still watching horror and enjoying all the genre has to offer, especially this time of year. Horror has always brought me great comfort, which I know sounds insane. But when I've had an exceptionally trying day or week, nothing brings me more comfort than throwing JAWS or FRIDAY THE 13th in the Blu Ray player and settling in with some tea or a hefty glass of straight-up bourbon. The familiarity of hearing the same lines and watching the same scenes I've seen dozens of times somehow makes me feel like all is right with the world. I can escape from all the worries of the day.  Being horror fans, many of you can relate to this I'm sure.

Many times over I've been asked what does horror mean to you? Well folks, that's it: comfort.  It's something I've been coming to since I was a youngster watching Godzilla movies on Saturday afternoon or reading Stephen King under the covers with a flashlight when I should have been sleeping on a school-night. It's the joy of the terrifying written word and the bliss of the scary story on the screen, be it big or small.

This blog has been around almost a decade of my life.
I used to take great pains and spent countless hours trying to post at least every few days and at the blog's most prolific point was sometimes posting daily. When I would skip several days it felt like something was missing. I likened it to being a movie or rock star, if you don't keep making movies or singing, they forget you. Sounds stupid but it's generally a true statement. I HAD to keep writing.

When I started out back in 2008, there were several of us horror bloggers in it at the same time, names I became familiar with soon advanced into friendships, many of which I still cherish and have to this day. It was fun times! But as the years pass fewer and fewer of my friends were still hanging in there and writing on a regular basis. Some got other horror gigs that occupied their time, some found other things in life that became more important, some got married or had kids and literally had no time, and some quit all together. Some moved on to writing books or screenplays, some are acting and directing. A few even tired of the genre all together.  I miss the camaraderie of guest posting on each other's blogs, chatting on AOL (there's me dating myself) about horror, of emails and Facebook messages and just getting to know each other as friends. One by one, a lot of the blogs from that era have closed up shop. And I get it, I absolutely get it. I love writing about horror and am grateful for the opportunities that this genre has provided me. First of all, it's made me a better writer, editing and proofreading and growing as a writer just came naturally after all these years. I was even able to write for publications such as Fangoria and Paracinema. I received free films and books in the mail to review, I've met authors I respect and admire. I've even been nominated for Rondo awards. But most of all I've made lasting friendships.  And I want to thank all those horror pals for all they've written in the past for my and countless others' enjoyment. You guys rock, and continue to do so. Love you.

The thing is, and I feel it is the same with many of the other friends of mine in the horror community, life gets in the way. It goes on. It pulls you in different directions and swirls with the unexpected challenges we're meant to face to make us better. Other things take up too much time and we find ourselves struggling to find a few hours just to WATCH a film, let alone review it. It can take so much of the joy out of watching when you end up trying to concentrate on everything you want to write in your review. It's nice to just simply enjoy a movie as the entertainment it is. And unless we're actually getting paid as we are in our real jobs, it just becomes less important to document every detail for the twenty people that read your blog on a daily basis. There is life out there folks, beyond the Wordpresses and Bloggers of the World Wide Web.  Would I like to make a living writing about horror? Sure, I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't want that. But with a 40+ hour a week medical management job filling my days, it's just not possible to expend the energy necessary to keep up. I applaud those who can, I really do, but I'm just too fucking tired. And hey, I've actually found time to read again! It was always so hard to finish a book because I'd lay it down for days at a time so I could write on the blog. RIF, kids! Reading is fun!

My writing cohort, Marie, has gotten married and started back to school, so she is finding it equally as difficult to keep pace with what the world throws her, leaving little to no time to contribute anything either. Like I said, life gets in the way, sometimes unexpectedly, sometimes totally planned.

And you know, at first I thought it made me a failure-- for not finding the time to post reviews or lists or even just a random "Sunday Bloody Sunday". I worried that others were moving on to more important things: writing books, making movies, contributing to big name horror sites - some of them even making money doing it.  And that's all fine. But then I finally realized I could only be ME. I am who I am.  I didn't really want to move to Hollywood and be a screenwriter. I've no desire to make movies. I don't want to talk about the latest Funko horror toy to the masses. I don't even need to meet Kane Hodder or Robert Englund at the nearest convention to respect and appreciate their work. I just want to enjoy horror. To have that escape waiting for me at the end of a shitty day. To go to a horror flick on the third weekend and sit in a darkened theater alone - not to go to the crowded first weekend just to raise numbers. To sit quietly and read the new Stephen King novel without someone wanting me to hurry and critique it.
Life is too short not to just love yourself and do whatever the hell makes you happy.

So for now, please forgive the brevity of the posts coming at you this month. And enjoy it, as it might be a while till my next offering.
Thanks so much for reading.

*Quote used for the title by none other than Stephen King. 

Random Notes For A Late Tuesday Night

It seems like quite a long time since I've done one of these "random notes" posts, and I don't know why - because I always have ridiculously random thoughts running through my head. Especially at 3am when I am lying awake and can't sleep.
Anyway, I've got a little collection of stray contemplations to share.

*First off, I want to direct your attention to DR. TERROR'S BLOG OF HORRORS, who is currently celebrating another madcap week of Italian horror. It is a seriously unmatched conglomeration of awe-inspiring posts and articles completely focused on (wait for it.....) Italian horror.  There is so much goodness at this site this week (well, all of the time, really...but especially right now) that you simply must take the time to check it out.

Yours truly also has a few posts for your perusal over there as well, one of which has already posted and is a review of.....nope, not so fast...not gonna tell you. Click HERE to find out.  I do believe my other contribution will post tomorrow, so be sure to check it out too.

Your host, Jimmy Terror, works like a fiend to make this week the rousing success it most certainly is, so throw him a bone - and a few comments!  He has a great line-up of some of the best horror scribes among us and some giveaways to boot. So GO THERE NOW!

*Question: Who is going to see The Conjuring this weekend? Anyone seen it in advance?  I'm pretty much dying to see it, though I do have some reservations about any film that claims to be a "true story". While I agree some of the spookiest films claim that very truth, it's really hard to suspend my disbelief in stories like The Amityville Horror, An American Haunting, and The Haunting in Connecticut.  But I will say the trailers I've seen for The Conjuring certainly evoke a chilling vibe.  I do believe we will have a review of the film up soon, so stay tuned for our take on the James Wan spook-fest. It does seem to have a reliable cast, with Lili Taylor, Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson attached.  Time (and box office receipts) will tell.

*True Blood.  SEASON 7.  Yes!

HBO just announced the supernatural phenom that has been a staple on the cable network these last six years has just been renewed for a seventh gore-infested, sex-driven season.  As campy as it may be, I still very much look forward to my Sunday nights with Eric, Bill, Sam, Alcide, Jason....oh, and Sookie I guess.
Seriously though, isn't Pam the best?  She steals the show every damn time she's on the screen.
I am very nervous about the next few upcoming episodes though.  It's said that a MAJOR character dies this season, and I'm on the edge of my couch with worry hoping to hell it's not going to be Eric or Pam.
Unfortunately, this past week's episode put the two of them in a very precarious situation at the end. They are stuck in a brightly lit room, both armed with stakes and expected to fight to the (true) death.
Will it be one of them? Gah! I hope not!

*So. There is a lot of talk about a certain horror writer/journalist that took it upon herself to lift other people's work and pass it off as her own. It's called plagiarism. It's also a really shitty thing to do.
But in lieu of lambasting and persecuting this female any more than she already has been, I want you to instead click HERE.  BJ Colangelo of the stellar horror blog DAY OF THE WOMAN has written a list of horror journalists that deserve your attention more than someone whose career has just dissolved yet still seems to be getting an inappropriate amount of regard.  The horror community is on fire with all the particulars of the "crime" but I just really don't want to dwell. I want to move on, and you should too. Hence, BJ's article. Do check it out, and take in the array of writers that she highlights who are doing fine work to keep horror alive, and doing so with original ideas, hard work, and passion for the genre.
(On a personal note, I'd like to say thanks to BJ for including the likes of this humble writer with such an outstanding group of women.)

*Paranormal Activity 5 may be delayed and not released this Halloween!
Care factor: ZERO.

*Halloween is just around the corner. No, really!  A little over three months away, the favorite holiday of all us horror fanatics looms large in particular for horror bloggers, who always like to have something special lined up for the month.  Here at FWF we are no different.  Marie and I are hard at work, wracking our brain to come up with something distinctive and memorable. The last few years have had the very popular "Festival of Lists", which though we realize is great fun to read, it is not quite as enchanting to write.  Lists are part of this blog's bread and butter, but I have to admit that the pressure of coming up with a different list for every day of the month (and as the month goes on, the lists gets longer, coordinating with the day of the month) is mind-boggling.  It is with a heavy heart that I admit it is just not within my power to do it again this year. I've acquired a lot of family responsibilities in recent months, which doesn't leave me as much time to gather thoughts to make up such exhaustive lists.  But wait! That doesn't mean we aren't doing something special for the month of October. We will have something lined up, and in fact are currently working on just that. So never fear, Fascination with Fear will (hopefully) blow your mind again this year!
On that note, if anyone has a staggeringly great concept be sure to let us know. And by that I mean, if there is anything you'd like us to possibly pursue, drop us a comment or an email.  We're always looking to freshen things up and try new ideas.

*That's all for now. Just wanted to air some thoughts and let you know what's going on in the House of Fear.

Do You Have To Watch That Right NOW? (Or: Living with a husband who doesn't share a love of horror)

A while ago, I wrote this article for another website, but seeing as how it is still relevant today and I still have the same feelings on the subject, I decided to add it to the roster of posts here at FWF, for completeness' sake, though it's not exactly the same. I've done some tweaking...

I'm sure there are a whole slew of other horror fans who are in the same boat as I am.  So what IS it like to live with someone whose life does not revolve around horror? 

I started dating my hubby nearly twenty-seven years ago – longer than a lot of you have even been alive.  So what was popular in horror back in 1986?  Well, the good ones were films like Aliens, The Fly, Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, The Hitcher, even April Fool's Day. Nothing really earth-shattering though. But the bad? They were pretty damn bad. Like Sorority House Massacre, Poltergeist II, Spookies, Maximum Overdrive, and Vamp, among others.
Meh.
So instead of introducing him to my favorite genre in the way I could have, we were stuck seeing things like Platoon, Top Gun, Cobra, and Heartbreak Ridge. (Not that those are bad films, far from it. Just not horror.)

So when he finally found out about the major degree of my horror obsession, it was too late.  I’d already reeled him in.  Not that he doesn’t appreciate horror.  He’s just very much an action kind of guy.  Even though I try to explain how much action is truly in horror, he just wasn’t born to be a true horror fan.

Basically, he would never say he dislikes horror, and will often go with me to see the latest genre film.  He sat through Daybreakers and The Wolfman with me, but didn’t go see Let Me In or Sinister.   In that respect, he chose poorly.

His issues are random.  He hates anything black & white.  Out goes Carnival of Souls, The Phantom of the Opera, and one of my most favorite films, Psycho.  (Though he’s had to sit through Psycho and deal with it too many times to count.  He actually has an appreciation for that one now!)  This is a guy who finally watched It’s A Wonderful Life for the first time a few years ago, having always avoided it due to its monochrome.  Yeah, I know…
But he still gives me one of those heavy sighs or a big ‘tsk! when I slide Night of the Living Dead into the DVD player. (Even though he's watched it countless times and has even taken me to the actual NOTLD cemetery.)

He hates foreign films, claiming he cannot tolerate subtitled movies.  Personally I think that is because he doesn’t want to read while watching the action on screen, or perhaps he has ADD and can’t do two things at once.  It could be either.

Another gripe with foreign films for him is the plot.  Some of that may be due to, in various films, the fact that they are subtitled or speaking in another language.  But let’s face it, neither Fulci or Argento make for great narratives and while they may  look pretty (particularly in Argento’s case), they don’t always make a whole lot of sense.  So scratch Suspiria, Deep Red, The Beyond, and House by the Cemetery.
Matter of fact the first time he came home and I was watching The Beyond, I do believe he was so appalled at the poor quality of the film as well as the completely pointless plot that he just turned and walked out without saying a word.
He has in fact, watched Tenebrae though, and states it’s a “mostly tolerable” film (!)

So, moving on from  Italian horror, we attack the French.  Not literally, but that might be nice, right?  Anyway.  The hubby can get down with the French.  Mostly. Well, not really…
But while watching these films, he doesn’t really want to have to pay attention to the questionable plots, he’d rather just watch the violence.  As in High Tension.  Or Frontier(s).  But when he watched Irreversible he couldn’t stand the fact that it started from the end and worked towards the beginning.  He just despises that technique and is verbal about telling me so.

As for other foreign films, he sees no point in Asian films, as most of the so-called J-Horror has been remade as American films, which he will always prefer.  (Yeah, he’s one of those types.)  Didn’t even want to think about watching [.Rec] - he’d already seen Quarantine.  Yikes.  He didn’t mind the Norwegian slasher film Cold Prey too much, which is indeed a shocker.  But suffice it to say, if I’m putting on something with subtitles, he’s outta here.
For this reason, he has yet to see the fabulous Let the Right One In.  (But he's seen and enjoyed Let Me In on DVD. He just doesn't understand that it comes from a superior foreign edition.)

Gore.  Yeah, he likes it well enough.  But I like it more.  I think it has to again do with the sub-par plot lines of many of the most gruesome flicks.  He did like Hostel.  But what wasn’t to like?  Naked girls and lots of blood.  Ditto that with Hostel II.   So I guess you could say he’s a fan of Eli Roth, if pressed.
But something like Dead Alive or even Martyrs?  Nah.  Martyrs is a double whammy cause you’re adding in the foreign aspect.

Classic horror?  I’m sorry (and ashamed, for him) to announce he just doesn’t get it.  At all.  No doubt he’s seen most of the Universal pictures, I have most.   But again, when you combine the black and whiteness with the quality that was available back in the 30’s and 40’s, and he is one disapproving dude.  He does NOT want to watch Browning’s Dracula ever again.  Give him Bram Stoker’s Dracula, sure.  But not something from 1931!!
I have a special place in my heart for those films, but I watch them alone.

Same goes for Hammer horror.  He saw most of them back when he was a kid but laughs, no – cackles, hysterically at them now. I guess he just thinks they are pretty hokey.  And they are.  But again, they’re awesome, right?
And can we just forget Godzilla and everything associated with it?  I own the original Gojira, and when I watched it once when he was home, he sang the theme music out loud for three days in a mocking tone.

He's not completely irredeemable. He does like (maybe even love) a good ghost story.  He is a big fan of The Changeling (thank God), loves The Shining, enjoys Ghost Story and The Woman in Black (either version), was shocked by The Sixth Sense’s ending (like everyone else), and tolerates Haunted due to Kate Beckinsale’s nudity. Of course.

I’d have to say his favorite horror films are a lot like the films anyone else without an obsession or great knowledge of horror would be.  Halloween, The Exorcist, and Jaws. In other words, nothing off the wall or eccentric.
He does, however, have a great love of all things Jamie Lee Curtis – so movies like The Fog and Prom Night are always welcome on our flat screen.

We do agree on a few things.  The never-ending remakes are getting out of hand, 3D has worn out its welcome, hand-held camera flicks are nauseating, and most CGI is an overrated, obnoxious mess.  Oh! And we both love Kurt Russell.

All of that being said, how do I live with someone who isn’t as into horror as I am?  I mean, I most often live and breathe horror.  I spend hours on my laptop writing about it when I’m not watching it.  It can be really difficult for me to deal with the fact that even though I have an entire library of horror to choose from at any given moment, I may not be able to watch what I want when I want.   I can kind of understand, as if it were up to me, I’d watch nothing but horror.  And then where would I be?  Without great flicks like When Harry Met Sally, Rocky, Gladiator, Braveheart, Grease, Forrest Gump, The Breakfast Club, Sideways,  and The Godfather films– all of which both of us love.

So we have to have some conditions.
*I cannot rent exclusively horror from NETFLIX.  If he wants to see the latest Expendables or Transporter movie, what can I say?
*I don’t generally watch two horror movies back to back, unless he's asleep, isn’t home, or it’s October – all bets are off in the tenth month and he knows it.
*I don’t ramble on about horror to him 24/7, although I most certainly could.
*I try to appreciate things like Bruce Lee marathons, movies about gladiators, and dumb-ass inane comedies. Though I draw the line at anything with Chris Farley in it.  Just no.
* I have to forgo horror some nights to let him watch American Pickers, Pawn Stars, or any random VH1 show about the greatest hits of the 70's.
*And I promise not to spend all my time online, though sometimes that seems difficult.

He’s actually more than tolerant with my obsession.  He reads my blog and tells me mine is better than anyone else’s (of course he’s not only required to say that but to be honest he doesn’t read anyone’s but mine).  He understands my sincere and undying devotion of all things Norman Bates, and appreciates Jaws (almost) as much as I do.  He even helps me decorate for Halloween, and always is the official carver of the seasonal Jack-o-lantern.

He’s forgiving of my fixation with horror.  He gets me, and for that I’m thankful.  He sits through (and falls asleep through) a whole big heaping pile of horror.   Even enjoys some of it.
Often he knows I’m itching to re-watch Argento’s Opera and so he’ll retreat to the den to peruse eBay for a couple hours.  God, he’s tolerant.

So what I guess I’m saying is that I’m lucky.  I’ve got a guy who is able to deal with me watching all the horror I can get my hands on.  He doesn’t make me turn it off, he accepts that I cannot stop adding to my ridiculously large DVD collection.  He even endures listening to the over-abundance of horror movie scores I’ve accumulated. And he’s proud of my writing – not only for my blog, but all the other places I turn up.

But if I'm being honest, what I’d really love to be saying is that my hubby loves  to sit down with a glass of the red stuff and have a marathon of Evil Dead,  Zombi 2,  Friday the 13th, Profondo Rosso, and the 1977 version of Piranha, you know?  
But hey, marriage isn’t perfect  – I’ll take what I can get :)

Awards and Rules, FWF-style

A few weeks back my blogging pal Michele (of The Girl Who Loves Horror fame) bestowed an award on my blog, and a few days ago, my pal Jimmy (of Dr. Terror's Blog of Horrors) granted me the same accolade.  I know a lot of people balk at blog awards but I am always thankful that people read my blog and appreciate it enough to recommend it to others.  So to Michele and Jimmy, I say thank you so much. I read and love both your blogs, and am happy to see this thing through.... 

Rule Number One: Tell everyone something that no one else knows about you.

 Right off the bat that's a tough one.  I'm private, but I'm not that obscure. I could tell you all that I was reading at a ninth grade level when I was in the fourth grade and that I was in a special class for reading and spelling but not for the reasons you think.  It was because there were only four of us in the class that were reading and spelling at that level. Yeah, that's boring. SO. I'll tell you (and this is really no secret to those close to me) that I am an avid  erm...crazed...um...passionate oh hell...OBSESSED fan of thoroughbred horse racing. Running a very close second to horror is my extreme devotion to the sport of kings.  It probably came from my dad, with whom I remember watching the likes of Seattle Slew (my favorite horse and my namesake for emails and online names) and Affirmed win the Triple Crown in '77 and '78.  I love it for the horses, more than anything.  I'm not much of a gambler, truth be told.  I'm too cheap to really bet a lot.  I did, however, win almost $400 last fall at the Breeders' Cup and spent only $6 to do it.  And I've hit my share of Derby winners, some 50-1 long shots, which is always nice. I watch racing year round, and plan my schedule around the big races.  No one... I REPEAT... no one, interrupts or bothers me on the first Saturday in May. And no one would expect me to be present at any event they would have on that day or any of the Triple Crown races or on Breeders' Cup day. When my grandfather died in mid-May several years ago, I came home in between funeral home visiting hours to watch Smarty Jones win the Preakness Stakes (and I truly believe my grandpap would have understood!) See, I'm so passionate I can't quit talking about it....

Rule Number Two:  Link to one of the posts that you personally think best fits the following categories:
 
1. Most Beautiful Piece: 

When writing a horror blog, it's kind of hard to call things beautiful.  But this can be taken two ways.. for some, gore is beautiful, so for those folks, I say check out my on-going series "Sunday Bloody Sunday".
For me though, beauty is passion - and I don't think I've written more passionately than when I wrote "From VHS To Netflix: My Journey With Horror Rentals". It's nothing extraordinary - just a look back at my own roots of horror, and my experience from my teens to current with getting my hands on the films that shape my love of the genre.  Readers seemed to like this one.  Me too.

2. Most Helpful Piece: 

 "Halloween Festival Of Lists:  October 22:  Twenty-Two Non-Fiction Tomes Of Terror".  These lists from last fall just about killed me to write, it got overwhelming at the end.  But this particular list is an awesome checklist of superb books that cover nearly all aspects of the horror genre, from ghosts to monsters to horror movie survival guides.  You're bound to find something on there of interest.

3. Most Popular Piece:  

 Based on page-views, it would be "A Decade of Debauchery: My Favorite Films of the 2000's."  I've always done a lot of lists, but this one proved insanely popular.  It's gotten over 23,000 hits alone. That seems like a fair amount for this lowly blog.  I didn't list them chronologically, I went at it categorically, as in 'favorite monster film', 'favorite gore-fest', 'favorite anthology', etc. 


4. Most Controversial Piece

 Actually, I removed my most controversial piece.  There was this whole blow-out a few years back about a "Ms. Horror Blogosphere" contest. A fellow blogger had come up with the idea and it was all in fun but was taken waaay too seriously.  Things were taken out of context and people got hurt and blamed and pissed...and the post was my feelings on the matter.  I don't even recall what I wrote, but I defended my fellow female bloggers that were part of the "competition" and retained my position and eventually the whole thing blew over.  But holy hell. 
If you don't count what is no longer here, I'd have to say I was close to drumming up controversy with my post "Apparently, Dracula Is Losing To Twilight: Ranting On The Current State Of Youth & Genre Fiction", but everyone tended to agree with me, so there's that.

5. Most Surprisingly Successful Piece:


"Going Out On A Limb: Trees In Horror": My blog stats list this unbelievably high, and I'm not sure why.  While it's a decent list - creative even - it's nothing truly special. It took me all of a half hour to write it. You never know, do you?

6. Most Underrated Piece:

'Argento Films 101: An Interview With Author James Gracey":  This interview was posted in the middle of "Women in Horror Month" and that was a mistake because I think it lost the momentum it truly deserved.  It is a fascinating and lengthy look inside the films of Dario Argento and gave a sneak peak of Gracey's (now published) book. It's in-depth, intriguing, and informative. It was done craftily, since James lives in Northern Ireland and myself here in the states, and it took a while to come together. It also forged a friendship of like minds and kindred souls, so I'm most thankful for that. If you even remotely like Argento, read this post.

7. Most Pride-Worthy Piece

"Dancing Dwarfs And Damn Fine Coffee: Twin Peaks' 20th Anniversary" : This is probably my favorite post of everything I've written so far.  I was a huge, obsessive fan of TP, and still am.  This article took me a long time to write, but only because I savored in the memory of all things Peaks. It has twenty reasons to love the series, which means there are twenty reasons you should click on that link! 

 Rule Number Three: Pass this award on to seven other bloggers.I'm not much for pushing people into continuing these types of posts, so I will just list the blogs that I have on favorites on my iPod - which means I can check them at any time, on the go or wherever.
Whether or not they want to continue is up to them, so here goes:

Behind the Couch

The Horror Digest

Kindertrauma

From Midnight, With Love

Day of the Woman

The Deadly Doll's House of Horror Nonsense

The Lightning Bug's Lair

And two to grow on: 

Planet of Terror

Chuck Norris Ate My Baby

Slight breather...

Just wanted to say thanks so much to everyone who read and commented on my Halloween Festival of Lists!
It was a fun but exhausting thing to do, hence I need a slight break to catch my breath and catch up on some of the other fantastic posts that I have missed over the last month because I was so busy racking my own brain!
Additionally,  my DVR is full of a ton of great horror that I recorded throughout the month of October - so hopefully that will bring me some inspiration for the future.

Fascination with Fear will return on Sunday, Nov. 13th for another dose of Sunday Bloody Sunday. 
See you soon :)

Halloween Festival of Lists: October 20: TWENTY Random Horror Facts

 1) Stephen King's addiction to drugs and alcohol was profound enough that when he was finally clean in 1987, he found the manuscript for Cujo and had to re-read it to recall what it was about, as he literally couldn't remember much about writing it at all because it was written under the influence.

2) Edgar Allan Poe served two years in the Army but was court-martialed and promptly discharged.

3) George Romero had a cameo in The Silence of the Lambs as one of Hannibal Lecter's prison guards.

4) Bruce Campbell kicked Chuck Norris right in the balls once.  A week later, Chuck sent Bruce a fruit basket thanking him for the honor.

5) Rumor has it that Jamie Lee Curtis is a hermaphrodite (someone born with both male and female sex organs, usually has male organs removed and is raised as a female). She has never commented on these rumors, but someone with this condition apparently cannot have children.  Jamie and her hubby have two adopted kids.

6) H.P. Lovecraft died in 1937 but didn't have a headstone until 1977 when fans of his pitched in to buy him one.

7) John Carpenter named the character of Laurie Strode (Halloween) after his first girlfriend.

8) Alfred Hitchcock was honored with a U.S. Postage stamp in 1998.

9) Dario Argento's hands are almost always the gloved killer's hands in his films.

10) Vincent Price attended the opening night of the first production of Richard O'Brien's "The Rocky Horror Show", the stage musical that was the basis for "The Rocky Horror Picture Show".

11) Cassandra Peterson (a.k.a. Elvira, Mistress of the Dark) was badly burned by boiling water at age five and had several skin grafts.  Not that you can tell now!

12) Lucio Fulci was broke at the time of his death.  Dario Argento paid for his funeral.

13) After writing Jaws and realizing it painted the shark as a heartless villain, Peter Benchley became a huge advocate for the preservation and conservation of sharks, in particular the Great White.

14) When asked about education, Quentin Tarantino quoted:  “When people ask me if I went to film school, I tell them ‘no, I went to films.’”

15) It is said that Wes Craven worked in pornographic films as an editor, writer and director before he had success in horror.

16) Besides writing Psycho, author Robert Bloch wrote over twenty novels and hundreds of short stories. It is he, not Stephen King, who originally quoted "I have the heart of a little boy; I keep it in a jar on my desk."

17) Bela Lugosi was offered the part of the Frankenstein monster but declined it, paving the way for Boris Karloff.

18) Christopher Lee has been in over 275 films since 1947.  This is a Guinness book world record holder for most film acting roles ever.

19) Ruggero Deodato was arrested after his film Cannibal Holocaust was released, and was forced by a judge to produce the actors from the movie because they were feared dead.

20) Janet Leigh's body double for the shower scene in Psycho was ironically stabbed to death in 1988.

Random Notes For A Wednesday Afternoon

It's been awhile since I've done one of these random posts, but figured it was time to ramble on a bit about well...nothing in particular.

• I'm more than anxious for the start of the new show on F/X called 'American Horror Story', which seems to be a pretty strange combination of the sublime and the bizarre.  I'm thinking since it will be off the main five networks and on a station known to push the envelope (with shows like Sons of Anarchy, Justified, and in the past, Nip/Tuck), it's possible we horror fans could be in for a fun ride!  Coming Wednesday, October 5th at 10pm.  Check out the new trailer for the spooky opening credits for the show, over on EW.com. 

• 
  When faced with the decision to go to the movies, I almost always choose horror.  Generally it is because I am going by myself.  But sometimes a friend will ask me to go, and then I have to be a bit more choosey.  One of my friends will always go see period films adapted from classic literature with me.  That someone is not my husband, of course - but I can't be more grateful that there is someone to go see films like Jane Eyre with me.  I have a favorite uncle I've mentioned here before that goes to see horror with me, and when he can't go I'm all for heading to the theater alone.  I'm not afraid of the dark.  I don't go see ridiculous or raunchy comedies, so when the hubby actually does go with, he settles for horror or the latest Jason Statham action flick.  But yesterday I headed to the theater with a dear friend and had no idea what to recommend. She really isn't into horror. The last film we saw together was Secretariat.  Which was excellent.  But I couldn't pick a film this time.  I wanted to see Straw Dogs, Drive, Warrior, and Killer Elite...none of which I thought she'd like.  And the Sarah Jessica Parker film was a no-go.  I despise her.  So it was either Contagion (which I heard was snooze-worthy) or Abduction, with the kid from Twilight.  Abduction was filmed in Pittsburgh, so we figured at least we could point out the places we knew (and there were a lot, with the whole of the last act playing out at PNC Park, where the Pirates play).   Surprisingly, it wasn't a bad flick overall.  A little cliched, but Taylor Lautner held his own and it's possible he might be able to shed the werewolf image sometime in the future.  Let's just say I think his future in film may be brighter than a certain vampire's...
  
  

• Over at From Midnight, With Love, our pal The Mike is compiling a list of True Heroes of Horror, in which he is asking for help from everyone to shape the ultimate list up.  It should be rather awesome, as most of what The Mike does, is.  So if you're into lists like I am, read up on the specifics of being a Midnight Warrior.  Go here for details.  I for one, am having mucho difficulty narrowing my list down to just ten.  Damn you The Mike, for constraints!  I will be posting my list on here in a few days or so, and he can add it to the immense list I am sure he is gathering for our mutual enjoyment!
  
  

• Is anyone watching anything new this television season?  I have DVR'd the premiere of Terra Nova the other night, but haven't sat down for the two-hour (yawn!) premiere yet. Is it worth it? I've caught the show The Secret Circle, since it airs directly after The Vampire Diaries, which is my go-to Thursday night entertainment.  TSC, based on a book series by the same author of the Vampire Diaries tomes,  is kind of like The Craft mixed with equal parts Practical Magic and Charmed with a little dab of every other CW show produced in the last ten years.  It's geared towards teens and young twenty-somethings, so I'm robbing the TV cradle here, but fuck it - I'm a renegade.  I'm more than ready for some adult entertainment that I'm hoping the aforementioned American Horror Story will bring and the show I know will be this year's shining star, The Walking Dead (premieres October 16 at 9pm on AMC).  Somehow I doubt anything else will come close. 
  
  

• 
  I just picked up the entire season of Spartacus: Gods of the Arena the other day and didn't want to let the passing of Andy Whitfield (original star of Spartacus: Blood and Sand) go without a mention of how incredibly sorry I was to hear this.  I've watched Spartacus since it's inception on Starz, and Whitfield absolutely owned that role.  I understand obviously, the need to re-cast the role, which has been done and I believe the new season (entitled Spartacus: Vengeance) starts this January. I'm sure Liam McIntyre will be wonderful in the re-casted role, but damn... Whitfield was so easy on the eyes. And  for those who can't seem to figure out how the Spartacus series fits in to the horror genre - you have never seen even one episode.  Blood-soaked just doesn't describe it well enough. 
  
  
  
• 
  So...what is up with the new The Thing movie?  At first, I heard it was a prequel to the 1982 Kurt Russell version (which is near and dear to most horror-genre buffs such as myself), to which I thought: well, at least it's not a flat-out re-make.  But the trailers have been hitting the internet all over the place and now we're seeing continual TV spots and I really have to think:  Are they doing anything new?  What the hell are they bringing to the table now?  I had originally heard it would be about what happened to those Norwegians at the camp nearby the US outpost (which is right where the '82 version picks up).  But it sure seems pretty familiar to me. In many of the film's synopses it explains that a few Americans have joined the Norwegian team and when they un-earth the "thing" it replicates itself and everybody dies.  Hmm....  I ate here before.  Check, please!
  
  
  
• 
  I'm just going to put this out there right now.  I'm not looking forward to The Human Centipede (Full Sequence).  I tend to agree with my good pal, BJ-C over at Day of the Woman that it just seems trite, and fairly pointless.  She has the trailer up over there so I'll let you click over if you're so inclined.  As for me, I'll stick with the centipede at left, thanks.
  
  
• Just so you know, the previously awesome site, Fangirltastic, has morphed into the currently mind-blowing Planet Fury.  It's not up to me to explain the change, but just let me say the same excellent writing and impressive features have remained, and a few new surprises await!  You can read all about it here!  Onward, furious fans! 
  
  
• The new issue of Paracinema is out, and by all means you should get your collective asses over to Paracinema.net to purchase this wholesome goodness. 
  
  
  
  
  Well, maybe wholesome isn't the best word, but it's hard to describe the delight one gets when it arrives upon one's doorstep. This issue's cover is fanfreakingtastic, and the inside promises to be equally as excellent.  Quality speaks for itself, and this magazine roars.  Go there now!  While you're there, check out the blog content as well:  good stuff!
  
  

• Recently I had the pleasure of screening a new DVD documentary entitled "Dracula: The Vampire and the Voivode".  It is a fascinating look at the history of one of the greatest gothic novels ever written, Dracula; the story of its author, Bram Stoker; and the true history of Vlad the Impaler, on which bits of the novel were based on.  It separates fact from fiction and gives a good look at just what is truth and what is *ahem* bullshit.  And don't deny you're wondering what 'Voivode' means...
  Review forthcoming.
  
  
  
• For me, a good ghost story is truly my favorite sub-genre in horror.  However, it isn't easy to find said  "good ghost story".  I can probably count on two hands ghost story films that have actually chilled me to the bone.  That isn't saying much considering the vast amount of spectral tales out there.  When I saw the trailer for the new period chiller, The Awakening, I got goosebumps.  THIS is what I'm looking for.  The story tells the tale of a skeptical hoax-debunker who is sent to an isolated boy's school to try and discover the reason that the boys are all scared to death and telling tales of a ghostly boy wandering the huge estate.  It made me think of several of my favorite films such as The Orphanage, The Devil's Backbone, Haunted, The Others, and probably my favorite ghost story, The Woman in Black. 
  If it even has half the atmosphere of these films, I'm going to be giddy with excitement. 
  See what I mean?:
  
  
  
  
• Halloween is on its way.  Somehow I missed the entire summer and have spent the whole of September recuperating from surgery, so October is just days away and I couldn't be more thrilled! 
  I've been thinking of what to do for the blog for the Halloween month, and after much consideration, I've decided to do what I do best.  Lists.  So for each day of the month I will have a different list.  But the catch is that the lists will only be as long as whatever the date is.  So on October 1st, it will technically not be a list, it will be one item.  But by October 31st, you will have a list of 31 items.  Get it?  A hint at some of the randomness that will ensue?  October 8th brings us Eight Depressing Songs of Death. October 21st has Twenty-One Places No One Would Sleep Overnight In...you get the picture?
  I haven't decided on a clever name for this festival of lists, so it will be a surprise come October 1st.
  If anyone has any savvy ideas, feel free to comment...
  
  

Real Life Horror: A Rant About Xmas Shopping

Why do I do this to myself every damn year? I wait till the last minute, because life inevitably gets in the way, and then I am stuck at the godforsaken mall on the Sunday before Christmas.

I'm a relatively sane person. Most of the time. BUT... the holiday season gives me an anxious feeling in my gut starting about, oh..say, November 1st. They start pushing it down our throats at about 12:01 am and it doesn't end till the after-Christmas sales the second week of January. Black Friday should just be renamed 'the day we do not speak of' as far as I am concerned.

Thus this post, if you'll forgive me, is a peek into the horror I truly feel at dealing with the unenviable task of heading out to the mall. This, my friends, is real life horror - at its most reprehensible.

So I had a few things I desperately needed to get in order to have a Merry Christmas (well, in order for those around me to have a happy holiday - my relief was one-stop shopping at the liquor store!) and I found myself making the trek to the mall this fine afternoon. I had two goals: finish the damn shopping and make it home before the Steeler game came on at 4.
What happened from the moment I got in the car until I finally made it home (in time for kick-off, natch) is chronicled below. Bear with me.

People who take the carts out of Sears Grand ought to have their heads knocked off by those mall guards on the Segways. I do believe it says NOT to take them out of the damn store. But invariably some idiot with a couple unruly kids comes barreling down the small aisle in the literature section at Borders, one kid in the seat with his feet kicking his mom's crotch, the other standing up in the buggy section, pulling books off the shelves like cereal boxes. Why me?

And on that same note - what is up with those Segways anyway, I mean - seriously? How efficient would they be at stopping crime? I'm thinking I could probably out run any one of these yay-hoos if I had just snatched a purse or stolen a hot pretzel. What are the chances that the dude on wheels would actually catch me without running down some lady with a baby or a granny looking to buy a pair of crocs at the kiosk? They have to be the stupidest thing I've ever witnessed at the mall - and that includes all those Indian women trying to lather hand cream on my wrist. Gah!


A guy in front of me at a traffic light reached into his backseat and pulled out a flask (!) and took a swig. Um, DUI here he comes! (But you know, I was secretly thinking how warm and comforting a little swill of Jim Beam might have been as I waited for all the jagoffs in front of me to learn their colors - green means go, ass-munch!)
But I can only assume I'll see Mr. Johnny Walker alongside the road on my way home...

I witnessed an elderly woman get lost in Macy's. As I stood in line, I felt sick to my stomach as I watched her mill around near the women's sportswear, anxiously looking for...someone? She looked as old as God, with a long purple coat made of faux fur (as if there is a purple four footed beast out there in the hills of western PA somewhere), whisps of gray hair peeking out from under her black and gold (Go Steelers?) knitted cap, and a purse as large as a carry-on suitcase over her shoulder. She was wrinkly and sad, and finally took a seat beside the service desk without saying a word. I almost said something to her, but she shut her eyes so I didn't bother. Yes Grandma, we're all exhausted.


For those of you with kids, I apologize in advance.
It's certainly no secret that kids, in general, make me crazy. So when shopping, it's all I can do to avoid the toy section of every/any store in the lower 48. I just cannot tolerate looking at children's do-dads, novelties, and trinkets.
But here's the thing - many stores have surprise toy sections. As in, you'll be walking amongst the pots and pans, just looking for a 12 inch copper-bottom skillet, and wham! All of the sudden you turn the corner and are staring a display of Barbie dolls in the face. Ahhh! What the heck? Kids make me cringe, and never more than some snot-nosed little tot swinging a Barbie around by the hair whilst Mommy digs through her purse looking for that 15% off coupon.

Parents are, for the most part, less than stellar and pretty much let their kids get away with murder these days. They allow them to race through the aisles, open up the juice box or cereal they haven't even paid for, throw cheerios all over the floor, scream like wild banshees, and basically make everyone else - including myself - miserable. My mom would have given me shaken-kid syndrome if I'd have acted like that. Then she would have told me to wait till my father got home. Yikes.
Anyway, there were so many unruly children and so many tales to tell about this excursion that I don't have all day so I'll have to refrain altogether. Suffice it to say the little humans at the mall are my least favorite.
And don't even get me started about the line to meet and greet Santa Claus. That is an area to avoid at all costs.

Okay, so I know it's a cellular world and all that crap, but I did a little experiment when I went into the mall. I told myself I would try to find ten people who weren't either talking on, texting, or at least holding onto their cell phones for dear life and see how long it took me. Folks, I entered the mall at Borders and made it the whole way through the ridiculously busy crowds to the food court (a lengthy jaunt, probably a half mile at least) before I counted ten people NOT attached to their phone. This included the beast of a woman in front of me at the Hallmark store. (I did not, however, count mall employees - who if they could, I'm sure would have been on their cells chatting about how bawdy and uncontrollable the consumers were.) This woman had like, six Hallmark ornaments filling her arms as she still struggled to text someone. The line was like a football field long as it was (I'm exaggerating for effect) and she couldn't be bothered to move up in the line as it crawled forward. This irritated me so much that I almost threw down my cards and left. But I do have some heart left in my chest cavity and didn't want my elderly grandmother not to get her holiday greeting. I digress. Cell phones are everywhere. Which you already knew, as did I. But that's not what bothers me... it's how damn rude everyone is using them.

Traffic is utterly unbearable during the holidays, and today was no different. I am relatively lucky - it is a straight shot down a major highway to Pittsburgh Mills. Granted it is a boring 35 miles (!) but at least you can go 65mph. This is part of the problem though. I'm sure I'm not alone when I say I get a little nervous sometimes at people's driving habits. Not to mention the ghastly cell phone use we are all aware of, but what almost bothers me more is the tendency that some drivers have to ride up close to your bumper then back off. Like, I'm already going 75 mph (whoops!) - do you really NEED to go faster? Today I had a dude in a white Durango following me like a scene from Joy Ride or Jeepers Creepers. He kept showing up in my rear view mirror, taunting me into driving faster then backing off. He nearly had me convinced that he had me mistaken for some mob hit he was assigned to. Apparently upset that I continued to go faster than him and he couldn't get around me lest he drive twenty miles over the speed limit, he kept accelerating so much that I eventually caved and let my Jeep drop to 50 mph just so the bastard would pass me. Later when I turned off to the mall, I passed his car pulling into Smokey Bones (a rib joint). Guess he just couldn't wait to have that BBQ sauce. Prick. If it had been dark I'd have been totally wigged out.

Speaking of food, I had every intention of grabbing some delicious broccoli-cheese soup at Panera Bread when I set out. It never happened. I couldn't even bring myself to stop for a soft pretzel, I was so anxious to get out of there. It took everything I had just to get back to my car. I spoke with my husband and my friend Kristy (who talked me down from the ledge I'd climbed onto, so thanks for that, K) and drove away. Not before sitting in my car an extra three minutes just to piss off the lady in the Beemer behind me waiting impatiently for my parking space. Hey, I had to get a dig in somewhere!

I ended up scarfing down a steak taco at Taco Bell once I got closer to home and had calmed down. Best damn taco ever, I'm telling you.
But if that's not scary, I don't know what is.