Author Archives: Jon Kitley

Horror History: Abel Salazar

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abelsalazarAbel Salazar
Born: Sept. 24th, 1917  Died: Oct. 21st, 1995

In the world of the Mexican horror genre, Salazar was the equivalent to someone like Peter Cushing or Vincent Price. Okay, maybe he didn’t have the same acting chops as Cushing and Price, but he loved these films and not only appearing in quite a few of them, he also was the producer of many of them.

In the late ’50s and ’60s, he appeared in films like El vampiro (aka The Vampire, 1957), El ataúd del Vampiro (aka The Vampire’s Coffin, 1958), Misterios de ultratumba (aka The Black Pit of Dr. M, 1958), and my personal favorite, La maldición de la Llorona (aka The Curse of the Crying Woman, 1963). One of the most famous titles, though usually because it is laughed at, is El barón del terror (aka The Brainiac, 1962), which he starred as the title creature!

While some may consider these films a little silly, especially The Brainiac, most are filled with so much atmosphere and creepy sets, that if you’re a fan of the old Universal classics, I think you’ll love these as well.

Mystery Photo 2-17

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Hopefully everyone survived their Bloody Valentine’s Day! I know the wife and I spent it watching the wonderful new Blu-ray of it, which happens to be one of my favorites of the ’80s slashers. But I’m rambling. Let’s get to the important stuff, shall we? Our photo from last week was from a little obscure film called Face of Terror (1962) that came from Spain. Sort of a takeoff of Eyes Without a Face theme, but with a little twist. Congrats to the following for sending in the correct answer: Hoby Abernathy, Bob Hartman, Michael Shields & Alan Tromp. I don’t think this has gotten an official release over here in the states, which is a shame because it is a fun little flick.

Okay, lets get on with this week’s photo. This one might be a little easy, but we’ll see how much you’re paying attention. As always, please remember not to post your answers here so that others can have a chance at guessing. Instead, send your answer to me in an email (this is the best way for me NOT to forget you sent it in!) to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

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Kryptic Archives – 2003

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1-5-03  WELCOME TO THE NEW YEAR!

Yes, we are finally back, and did survive the holidays. Santa was very nice to us here at the Krypt, delivering not only one of those nice Cyberhome DVD players (the ones that are easily converted to a region free player) under our tree, but also a few nice DVD titles to add to our collection. What better way to spread holiday cheer around than to receive Zombi 3 and Zombi 4 on DVD? Continue reading →

Soundtrack Review: Color Out of Space

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color out of space cdColor Out of Space
Released by Milan Records, 2020
13 Tracks with a Total Running Time of 45 min.
Music by Colin Stetson

Let me start this by saying that I absolutely love the film Color Out of Space. So yes, this may make my review a little jaded, but I hope that you can at least understand why I think this score is an incredible piece of music when I’m done. So let us begin.

Watching the film, it really brings another world right in front of you, with strange and colorful things happening all around you. The music is right there giving you the audible angle to surround your ears with what your brain is seeing. It seems to just float around you while you’re listening to it, giving you a odd feeling of something… different. It may help when you have the volume cranked up! Continue reading →

Movie Review: The Vengeance of Lady Morgan

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VoLM banner

The Vengeance of Lady Morgan (1965)
Director Massimo Pupillo
Starring Barbara Nelli, Michel Forain, Gordon Mitchell, Paul Muller, Erika Blanc

There is something special about discovering a film that you had never heard of, especially when it came out over 50 years ago! Even better when it is an Italian gothic ghost story! At first, The Vengeance of Lady Morgan seems like your typical story about a ghost coming back from the dead for revenge, but it is quite different than what you’d expect from this genre, which for me, made it even more special. Continue reading →

Book Review: Taking Shape

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Taking ShapeTaking Shape: Developing Halloween from Script to Scream
Published by Harker Press, 2019. 439 pages.
By Dustin McNeill & Travis Mullins

The Halloween series, as a whole, is not one that I would say I’m a huge fan of. I love the original and really like its sequel. This might have something to do with it playing at the theater I worked at upon the sequel’s initial release, where I would get to see parts of it over and over and over again, seeing its effect on the audience time after time. And yes, I was one of those original haters on Season of the Witch, but have since gotten over that and realize the pure genius of that entry. But from then on, there was never a sequel that I got excited over, or was waiting for its release.

Sacrilege, you say? I just felt the sequels got dumber with each entry. When Rob Zombie took his turn, while I thought the first one was better than the last several, I still didn’t care for it. And I still am confused at the reaction to the latest one, when we saw the re-re-re-return of Jamie Lee Curtis, with fans acting like it was her first return since the 1981 film.

Now you might be asking yourself why am I stating how much I really don’t care for the Halloween series as a whole? Because even with all of that being stated, I devoured this book! Continue reading →

Mystery Photo 2-10

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A little late today with the new photo, but here we are. But before we get to this week’s, let us review last week! It was from Paul Naschy’s Human Beasts (1980). Kudos to the following to sent in the correct answer. They are: Hoby Abernathy, Troy Howarth, Todd Warren, and William Wilson. Well done!

Okay, here’s today’s photo. Pretty much how I felt leaving work today. Hmmm… coincidences? As always, please remember not to post your answers here so that others can have a chance at guessing. Just send them to me in an email to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

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Movie Review: Monster! Martians! Mad Scientists! Horror in the Atomic Age!

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Horror in the Atomic AgeI love documentaries on the horror / sci-fi genres, especially when you get to hear from the people that were directly involved with them. There are ALWAYS great stories that we usually never get to hear unless you catch one of them at a convention, or maybe an extra on DVD or Blu-ray. So when I first heard of this new 3-disc documentary called Monster! Martians! Mad Scientists! Horror in the Atomic Age!, it had my interests. When I discovered the price was only $15, I did have some doubts because it was so cheap, especially for 3 discs, but I figured at that price, it was worth taking the chance.

I’m glad I did!

The 3 discs are divided into time frame categories. The first one, entitled The Atomic Age, starts in the early ’50s and gives us a look back at that time and the films that were coming out. While this is about the movies, we get to hear and understand what was going on at that time period, with the constant threat of atomic destruction hovering over their heads, and how that effected the movies. The second disc, entitled A World Gone Mad, covers the second half of the ’50s with the big-bug movies, alien invasions, 3-D movies, and more. The last disc, called Fade to Red, covers the early ’60s and how times were changing, due to the Vietnam War, the Civil unrest, and how the films were reflecting that with more realistic gore and terror. Continue reading →

Robert “Bobb” Cotter – Rest in Peace

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Robert Cotter - RIPWriter and historian Robert “Bobb” Cotter passed away due to complications from a recent stroke. He was a regular member of the Monster Bash family, which is where I first met him, back in 2015, at our first time there. We talked for a few minutes while he graciously signed the copies of his books that I brought from my own library, chatting about Mexican horror films and how much crazy fun they are. You would always seen him one of the days at the Bash wearing his Carl Kolchak costume, tape recorder and all. While he might not been someone in front of or behind the movie camera, he was one of those behind the keyboard, working hard to help educate so many of us fans of the women of Hammer Horror, the Misfits, and of course, Mexican horror and masked wrestler movies.

mexicanmaskedwrestlersHis book The Mexican Masked Wrestler and Monster Filmography is an essential volume for anybody interested in that sub-genre. Anytime I’ve gone to write something on one of those films, I am always checking that book for information. That goes as well as this books on the ladies of Hammer as well.

The Mexican movie nights at the Bash just won’t be the same this year without him and it will be a sad time. But I want to say thank you to him, for helping not only me, but a ton of other fans learn through your hard work and generous fandom. Our thoughts go out to him and his family, and all of the Monster Bash family. His absence will be deeply missed.