To end our very busy “vacation” and our last report on it, we headed to PA for our last convention of the year. While Monster Bash didn’t start until Friday, Nov. 1st, since it is about an 8-hour drive for us, if we can, we try to leave Thursday and just take our time. It doesn’t take away from the long-ass drive, but at least we are not tired as hell come Friday night. It gives us time to unload and set up our booth a bit and just take our time. Honestly wasn’t too thrilled about driving 8 hours on Halloween day, but such is the con-life, you know?

Even though I had known about Monster Bash for years, we never came out for it, as vendors or even just attending, because of the distance. But back in 2015, I decided to give it a try because I was growing weary of the big autograph driven shows and had heard the Bash was smaller and more like the conventions of years ago. Now 10 years later, we haven’t missed one since and it has become one of our favorite shows, so much more relaxed and just plain old fun. Plus, it has one of the best dealer rooms around, at least for an old-school collector like me.

Normally, the fall shows in general are not as good. Not just this show, but typically all shows. But we were very surprised to see this turn out to be our best fall show at the Bash. Plus, I was able to add one more name to my Hammer Films: An Exhaustive Filmography book, when the lovely Pauline Peart was added to the guest list. She appeared in Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973), and even though only a small role, it still counts! Joining her with 3 other lovely Hammer ladies, Caroline Munro, Martine Beswick, and Victoria Vetri. I have met most of them several times before, but it is always fun to sit in on their Q&As since they always have great stories, even if you’ve heard them before.

Speaking of Hammer, one of the things I found while wandering the dealer room was a DVD box set of Hammer Noir, which contained 6 different Hammer films from the ’50s, for a whopping $10. Sure, these aren’t horror, but for a Hammer fan like me, and seeing names like director Terence Fisher or actor Andre Morell, it was a well spent $10 bill.

But one of the coolest things I saw, which was quickly sold before I could even inquire about the price, was this custom-made bottle (at least I think that’s what it was) of The Brainiac!!! This looked so damn cool and love the fact that someone took this little cult Mexican film and decided to create something so memorable. Just incredible.

Another guest that I hadn’t met before, was Ted Bogus, creator and co-director of The Deadly Spawn (1983), one of the greatest low budget monster flicks of the early ’80s that still holds up today! He was gracious enough to sign my Mexican lobby card and his book on the film that I bought right after it came out. Didn’t charge me a dime for the signatures either. I also got a few good stories about the film and the making of it. 

But honestly, the best part of any show, is getting to hang out with fellow monster fans and, as I always tell my wife, staying up until the wee hours of the morning trying to solve the world’s problems. In reality, it’s a great time to talk about movies, and really listening to each other and really discussing them. And meeting up with dear friends Richard Schellbach, Bob Hagerty, and Anthony Taylor is one of the best parts. While we might not solve all the world’s problems, we have a great time trying!

I almost picked up another model kit from Scott Kelly at Alternative Images, this time a bust of one of my favorite childhood memories, I Was a Teenage Frankenstein (1957). Scott did an amazing job painting it, as always, but since I had dropped several hundred bucks on two different tattoos within the last week, I just couldn’t see making that big of an investment. Now, if that piece is still there in June . . . 

In fact, there were a few pieces that he had that were really impressive, including the little companion piece for I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957). But besides Frankenstein, the one he had of The Invisible Man was just amazing. That is a character that, like the original Mummy, I’ve always liked the character more than the actual movies. The design and the look of poor Dr. Jack Griffin, with the glasses, the fake nose cover, and the bandages, is just a striking look. The irony of it all is that being you never know what he could look like under all those bandages, when in fact, you won’t see anything! And Scott’s paint job is just as stellar, with the snow covering him, you can almost feel the cold wind blowing!

Conventions are really different these days, at least the ones we attend on a regular basis. We used to go for the fun of it. Once we became vendors, the goal was still to have fun and hopefully make a few $$ as well. But once the bigger shows became more about autographs with outrageous prices, the fun came from just seeing and hanging out with friends that we only see at the cons. Maybe I’m getting too old but seeing some guests charging $100 for a simple autograph for those fans that have supported their careers, is just ridiculous. In turn though, stuff like that has completely changed the way I look at shows now. For the bigger ones, I don’t tend to even look at the guests list anymore, because I know I’m not even going to bother going to see them because of the cost. I know . . . that is just how things are these days, which really is unfortunate. 

But at least we have some shows still out there, such as the Bash, and Cinema Wasteland, that still try to run their shows like they used to be, before the “fanagers” and the money-hungry “talent”, when people were fans and not customers. Okay, enough of the old man rant. 

The whole point was to say there are still shows out there that continue to put on a fun event where the fans don’t have to get a second mortgage on their house before walking in the door. And the Bash is definitely one of them, and one that we will continue to come to and support as long as Ron Adams, the monster-man-in-charge, continues to hold them. See you there next summer!