Hammer fans have lost another familiar face, that of actor John Carson. He may have only made three appearances in a Hammer Film, as well as one episode of their TV series, every time he came on the screen, he made his presence known. Of course, my personal favorite of Carson’s performances was as the evil squire, Clive Hamilton in John Gilling’s 1966 film The Plague of the Zombies, where he is slowly taking control over this small village. The evilness just oozes from him. With his James Mason-ish voice, his presence is always authoritative and imposing, as well as damn entertaining to watch.
Author Archives: Jon Kitley
The Tale of Two 24-Hour Horror Movie Marathons…Part 2
The very following Saturday, on the 22nd of October, was when the other 24-hour marathon, called simply The Massacre, was being held at the Patio Theater. This is another old Chicago theater that is just beautiful. The lobby is just incredible, like stepping back in time. It thrills me to no end that someone is trying to keep this place open and alive. The theater itself is just huge, with plenty of seating for all the fans coming out to enjoy these movies. In the past, there had been issues with heat, either not having any or in the summer being just way too warm. Lucky for all of us, there weren’t any of those issues now, which was a great relief. Plus, I was not working this event, but was there just to sit back and enjoy the films, which was going to be a nice change of pace after the previous week. Since this time of year tends to be pretty busy for me, it’s tough for me to actually have time to sit and watch a flick every now and then. So this was going to be a great opportunity to do just that.
More Naschy Blu-rays!!!
To say the news of more Paul Naschy films hitting blu-ray is a bit exciting to me, especially when they are two titles that never even hit DVD, is the definitiion of an understatement. Earlier today, Mondo Macabro announced that they will be releasing both of these titles at some point next year. They haven’t said what the extras might be, but at this point, who cares. The fact that they are coming out is amazing and whatever extras they do come up with is just going to be icing on the cake.
Mystery Photo 10-31
Happy Halloween! And what better way to celebrate this day then with a little quiz to get your brain ready for the holiday, right? But first, I have to say that I was pleasently impressed with the correct answers that were sent in for our last photo. I thought it was going to stump everyone, but apparently not. So kudos goes out to the following: Sean Bell, Aaron Christensen, Ken Johnson, Anna Maurya, and Gavin Schmitt. Well done, indeed! The photo was from the 1968 Japanese film The Living Skeleton.
So let’s get to our special Halloween Mystery Photo. And no, it is not from one of the Halloween movies. Give me a little more credit than that. But the photo does feature a shot that could give one some nightmares or at least some late night sweats. So take a peek and see if the title comes to you.
As always, please remember not to post your answers here, but send them in an email to me at jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!
Need Some Music for the Holiday?
If you’re like me, horror movie soundtracks are a staple of my day. Each and every time I’m at work on my computer, I have a horror soundtrack playing in the background. Even now, I’m listening to Pet Sematary‘s score by Elliot Goldenthal. True story.
If you’re looking for a few scores to add to your collection, you may want to head over to La-La Land Records to take advantage of their Halloween sale that ends tomorrow. You can find some good deals for only $4 each! You can pick up the soundtracks for The Sender, Trick ‘r Treat, The Conjuring, and a few more for just a few bucks. For $10, you can get yourself copies of Friday the 13th (the original) and Evil Dead (the remake), Pet Sematary (the expanded release, which I just ordered), and a few more. Or for $15, you can get John Harrison’s Creepshow, which I have to say is simply a must for any collector of horror soundtracks. It is one of my all-time favorites. But in that same price range, they have Day of the Dead, Magic (which I also just ordered), and Monster Squad.
Hannibal for Dinner
While I’ve been known to have a few horror reference books in my library, my wife has a pretty impressive book collection of her own. Except those are cookbooks. So what better way to combine both of our love and passion for books than to create a cookbook where the recipes come from the darker side of life! Feeding Hannibal: A Connoisseur’s Cookbook is just that book.
Janice Poon is a food stylist and writer that had been hired to work on the NBC show Hannibal. Now she gives us a book that is a collection of recipes that were inspired by the show that are said to be “easy to follow”. Well, I leave that up to my wife and son. Otherwise, if I’m in charge, it could get real ugly. But each recipe is also accompanied with insider information and anecdotes, artwork, and behind-the-scenes photos of the stars of Hannibal. It’s 240 pages and is only $18.50 on Amazon. For a cookbook, that is a killer price.
I think this one soon might be part of our collection!
Demons Double Feature in NY
It’s times like this when I wish I was just a little bit closer to New York City. This Saturday, Oct. 29th, the Anthology Film Archives will be screening both Demons and Demons 2, both directed by Lamberto Bava & produced by Dario Argento. And to make it even better, the star of Demons 2, Coralina Cataldi-Tassoni, will be making a personal appearance there at the screening of Demons 2.
The Tale of Two 24-Hour Horror Movie Marathons…Part 1
When I tell some of my non-horror friends that I am going to a 24-hour horror movie marathon, a few might be slightly intrigued, while most give me that strange look of “why in the hell would you want to do that?” If you are a horror fan, then you know exactly why we’d do it. If you’re not, then I’m not sure I could explain it. It is something that each year I tell myself I’m getting too old to do them, but then the next year, I’m right back there for more madness.
Soundtrack Review: Bates Motel
Bates Motel
Released by Lakeshore Records, 2016
26 tracks with a total running time of 71 min.
Music by Chris Bacon
Ominous: portending evil or harm; foreboding; threatening; inauspicious.
Monster Party at the Chicago Toy Show
Even though I’m a huge horror fan and collector, I tend to stay away from the horror toys. Mainly because once you start down that road, not only does it go on forever, but has so many side paths and diversions, that your bank account will hate you forever, not to mention trying to find space for all of the stuff you start to find. But I do like seeing some of the stuff, especially the older items that I remember from my childhood, and even more so, seeing how much it is going for these days. That is the reason why I, along with my wife Dawn and son Nick, headed out to the Chicago Toy Show today. As it turns out, it was well worth the trip.
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