Author Archives: Jon Kitley

DtH Episode 107 – Making Monsters

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No matter what kind of horror fan you are, most likely you’re going to love the monsters. Whether it’s from the Universal Classics, Hammer’s colorful reinterpretations, the amazing creatures from Ray Harryhausen, to even Star Wars, they all showed us a variety of monsters. It’s one of the things that us horror fans rally around, and just love to discuss, from our favorites, how some are designed, their movements, and everything in between.

Oscar winning special makeup effects artist Howard Berger and author Marshall Julius have a new book out entitled Making Monsters: Inside Stories from the Creators of Hollywood’s Most Iconic Creatures, so we asked them to be on our show to talk all about monsters, and those special memories that we all have from the films we love.

Films mentioned in this episode:

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Mods & Shockers from We Belong Dead

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The fine folks from We Belong Dead have a new book out, Mods & Shockers: British Horror of the 1960s, which is available in 2 different covers. The one on the left is from Mark Armstrong and the one on the left is from Paul Watts. Edited by Eric McNaughton & Darrell Buxton, with a foreword by Ramsey Campbell, the book features articles on more than 150 movies, all from 1960s. I am honored to say that I have 2 articles in here, on The Frozen Dead and Island of Terror, both from 1966. As usual, the layout of their books is always a beautiful thing and I’m sure this one is no different. Yes, if you’re in the U.S., it will be a bit pricy, but I think that not only are they great books, but a damn good investment.

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Mystery Photo 10-13

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We survived our weekend at Monster Bash, and had one hell of a time, as usual, but there will probably be a post on that coming up. In the meantime, here’s a little pictorial puzzle to keep your mind buzzing. But first, our last photo was from the highly effective The Witch in the Window (2018). I caught this on Shudder a few years ago and it blew me away. Creepy and well done. Perfect for the Halloween season! Congrats to the following for sending in the correct answer: Hoby Abernathy, Aaron Christensen, Chris Dyer, Damien Glonek, William Wilson, and Greg Wojick. Well done!

Now on to this week’s pic. Take a look and see if you can figure it out, but don’t think too hard. Don’t want you to end up like the guy in the photo! Just remember to send your guess to me, in an email to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

2025 Kryptic World Tour Coming to an End

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This weekend, we are heading to our last real convention, Monster Bash, which is taking place in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania. They have a great guest lineup, including Gary Clarke from How to Make a Monster, Kathryn Leigh Scott and Sharon Smyth from the original Dark Shadows series, Barbara Wilson from Blood of Dracula, Invasion of the Animal People aka Terror in the Midnight Sun, and The Flesh Eaters, John Russo from the original Night of the Living Dead, and more. You can get all the info by clicking HERE.

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Cinema Wasteland – 25 Years Later

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“After several days of rest, we have finally recuperated from the Cinema Wasteland convention. Those of you who didn’t make it, you simply missed one hell of a show. As I’m sure everybody knew, the show was put on and run by Ken & Pam of Video Wasteland. These two have been dealers since the beginning of time, and have seen all the mistakes, screw-ups, and everything that can go wrong at a convention (and that was just at one Fangoria show). So, when doing this show, they wanted to make sure that it would be great for the dealers as well as the people spending their hard-earned cash at the show. And they did just that and more.”

That was the first paragraph of my review I posted on my website of the very first Cinema Wasteland show, back in September of 2000. The funny thing is that I could use that exact same quote for the show that I was just at over the weekend. And the one before that. And before that one. I don’t know of another show that has remained true to way they started from the very beginning. Ken Kish wanted to put on a show that wasn’t like the rest of the shows going on, and he has kept it that way. It’s small, especially compared to these huge shows where it takes hours just to get in the door, not to mention having to mortgage your house to meet a few celebrities. That is the charm to Wasteland. At Wasteland, you have a roomful of dedicated cinephiles that are more interested in the films themselves, and who made them, rather than the latest Funko Pop figure. I know that sounds a little mean-spirited, but it is the truth.

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Mystery Photo 10-6

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Welcome to October!!! We just returned from Cinema Wasteland, having a blast as always, and heading out to PA this weekend for Monster Bash! So needless to say… busy, busy, busy! But we wouldn’t have it anyway. Our photo from last week was kind of a trick photo. Not that it was doctored or anything, but more than a few people sent in Vault of Horror as their guess, mainly because of the famous shot in that film where the vampires are hanging up a victim with a spigot in his throat. But this show was actually from the Spanish film, Strange Love of the Vampire aka Night of the Walking Dead (1975), put out by Severin in their Danza Macabre Vol 3: The Spanish Gothic Collection box set. So, if you’re one that did send in Vault, don’t feel bad. You were not alone! Congrats on the ones that did send in the correct answer: Hoby Abernathy, Steve Archacki, Chris Dyer, and James Turner. Well done, indeed!

But on to this week’s photo. Going to try and stay in the theme of great films to be watching this month. Or at least, that’s going to be the plan. We’ll see how far it get! But take a peek and see what you can come up with. Just remember to send your answer to me in an email, to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck and enjoy the season!

Night of the Living Dead Book

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We all have those film titles that we personally think are classics of the horror genre. But George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead (1968) truly is one of them that very few would disagree. Not only did it create a whole new sub-genre of films, but close to six decades later, the film is still a powerful tale, hitting many different triggers for the viewer. Sure, it is a zombie film, but there is so much more going on within that 90+ running time.

Coming out this December from Titan Books and author Simon Braund, we are getting Night of the Living Dead: The Official Story of the Film. This book is the “official retrospective” of the film, giving the readers a look into how a small group of independent filmmakers created one of the most influential horror films ever made. Through interviews, we get to hear from different cast members and from the production crews on how it got made. From getting investors, finding locations, to even getting a bunch of people to appear as the title creatures, all outside of the normal Hollywood system, shows the talent and devotion these people had.

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Episode 106: Hammer’s Quatermass Films

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The Quatermass Xperiment (1955), Quatermass 2 (1957), Quatermass and the Pit (1967)

Everyone knows the name Hammer Films (at least, we hope they do!) but most people associate it with gothic horror, particularly their reimagining of the Universal classic Frankenstein in The Curse of Frankenstein (1957). Yet Hammer had been around long before Peter Cushing breathed life into that first stitched-together corpse. Founded in the 1930s as a distribution company, the studio gradually moved into producing films, often adapted from popular TV and radio series.

In 1953, the BBC aired a six-part serial, The Quatermass Experiment. Hammer quickly recognized its potential, adapted it into a feature film, and in doing so set itself firmly on the path toward becoming “the studio that dripped blood.” In this episode, we cover all three Quatermass films. While they lean more toward science fiction than Hammer’s later gothic output, they are steeped in horror… and we think they’re well worth your time.

Films mentioned in this episode:

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Horrorfest at Drive-Ins Near Me

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Regular followers of the Krypt know not only my affection for the drive-ins and these horror marathons that are held there, like I recently posted about our trip to the Midway Drive-In a couple of weeks ago. But not only are there other drive-ins out there, but a lot of them are also doing very similar things by hosting special horror film screenings throughout the month of October. Not sure where a drive-in is around in your neck of the woods? Have no fear. Just head over to Drive-In Near Me (by clicking HERE) and you can search for theaters by state and links to their own website!

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Sam Sherman – Rest in Peace

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This is definitely an end of an era, with the news of the passing of Sam Sherman. He was mainly known as a producer, one half of Independent International, working with Al Adamson, but his contributions to the horror genre is just massive. From his work with Jim Warren and Famous Monsters of Filmland, to working with Hemisphere Pictures, especially in their promotion department, then moving on to work with Adamson. While he was a very multi-talented man, it is his work in PR is what I loved about him. He knew how to sell a film and came up with some of the most beautiful and crazy advertising. Of course, Sherman was the man responsible for bringing Paul Naschy to the states, picking up the rights and releasing Naschy’s first picture, Mark of the Wolfman, though changing it to Frankenstein’s Bloody Terror, yet again with some really great ad campaign for it! Sure, there’s no Dr. Frankenstein or Frankenstein creature in the film, but we do get a WOLF-STEIN!!!

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