Category Archives: Misc. Ramblings

Curators . . . Not Collectors

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I’ve been a movie poster collector for over 30 years. The cost of what I will spend has gone up a bit over those three decades. In the past, the thought of spending $50 on a single poster was way too much for me to even consider. Then I saw an American 1-sheet for The Green Slime for $50. I bought it instantly. Now, I’m still not one of these big-time collectors, spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars on them, mainly just because of my budget. But what I will spend has increased to even dropping $175 for an Astro Zombies 1-sheet. I mean, it’s Ted V. Mikels!

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Last Chance for Rondos!

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In case you haven’t voted yet, the deadline for the 2023 Rondo Awards ends at midnight on Tuesday the 16th. Yes, I am nominated in few categories (Best Column, Best Article, and Best Podcast), and would love your vote, but more importantly, just vote. There are a lot of hard-working people nominated there, so it’s always nice to be recognized for that hard work. So, head over to the Rondo site (just click HERE) and take a few minutes to send off an email to them with your votes. It’s pretty simple. Just copy and paste the ballot, and mark who you’re voting for, and send it off to David Colton, the Grand Poobah of the Rondos!

Nightbreed Soundtrack Expanded!

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Almost 35 years since its release, we’re finally going to get the Danny Elfman’s complete soundtrack for Clive Barker’s Nightbreed. Needless to say, I’m more than thrilled. Say what you will about the film, whether it’s the theatrical cut, director’s cut, or any of the extended, bootleg, Cabal-cuts out there, I just love this movie, and have always loved the score.

Originally released by MCA which had 22 tracks and ran 46:42 minutes, it was pretty great. But now, thanks to fine folks at Intrada, we will now have the complete score which runs 75:19 minutes, in a special 2-disc release. The first disc has the complete score, while the second disc has the original release of the score, plus another 21:16 minutes of extra stuff, such as some alternate cuts, and 3 different versions of the song Country Skin, which no version of that is included first disc.

You can order it directly from Intrada (click HERE) or from Screen Archives (click HERE), where I get a lot of my soundtracks from!

Golden Age of Sci-Fi Soundtracks

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Sure, it might say Sci-Fi, but we know these films are really horror films! None the less, fans of these movies just might want to get their pre-order in for this new soundtrack release coming out next month!

Dragon’s Domain has announced Volume 3 in their Golden Age of Science Fiction series, which features the scores from Elmer Bernstein’s work on Cat-Women of the Moon (1953) and Robot Monster (1953), and Edwin Astley’s score for Devil Girl from Mars (1954). Each soundtrack also includes the theatrical trailer. The total running time for the release is 56:52 min, with about 16 to 18 minutes for each film.

There is a special note when ordering, that these recordings are taken from analog masters and music & effects tracks, so there are certain limitations from the source tapes. But they have worked hard to preserve them as closely to the original recordings as possible.

It’s Rondo Time!

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That’s right, folks, it’s that time of year again. The official ballot has been cast for the annual Rondo Awards celebrating 2023. I have been fortunate enough to have been nominated in 3 different categories this year, a personal best, I believe!

But before I get to all that gloating, I wish to congratulate everyone who has been nominated, and a special shoutout to my personal friends that were as well. They are Rod Barnett, Eric McNaughton, Darrell Buxton & the We Below Dead family, Christopher Wayne Curry, Anthony Taylor, John Bowen, Ron Adams, Richard J. Schellbach, Derek Koch, and my HorrorHound family: Aaron Crowell, Nathan Hanneman, Ernie Rockelman, Jessica Dwyer, and Jason Edmiston.

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HorrorHound 100th Issue!

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It was way back in April of 2006, when Aaron Crowell walked up to my vendor table at Cinema Wasteland and handed me a copy of this new magazine they had just started, called simply enough HorrorHound. While I did a thing here and there for them, I officially became a columnist for them with issue #16, which was in 2009. Now, here is it 2024 and issue #100 is about to hit the newsstands. Where the hell did the time go?

I grew up with horror magazines, being the starting point for my horror education. While there were the reference books, it was magazines like Fangoria, Gorezone, Famous Monsters, and Cinefastique leading the way, along with other titles like Rue Morgue, HorrorFan, Slaughterhouse, Monsterscene, and countless others that came out over the years, was where we learned about our favorite movies and those behind them. So, to think that at some point in the future, I would be a staff writer for one of the leading magazines out there now is pretty surreal.

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Do We Need Another Naschy T-Shirt?

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Of course, that answer is a big YES! Not only is it another Naschy shirt, but it is from my very first and still my favorite of Naschy’s work, Horror Rises from the Tomb (1973)!

Taken from an ad sheet for the film, Silk Screams have used that to create a brilliant looking shirt that really is a must for any fans of Paul Naschy. They are taking pre-orders now so if you’re interested, just click on the link HERE and get your own Horror Rises from the Tomb shirt! You can never have too many Naschy shirts. Trust me on this one! You can check out the rest of their stuff HERE!

New Stop-Animated Short from Adam Ciolfi

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Back in Jan. of 2020, I first became aware of the incredible work of stop-motion animator Adam Ciolfi when he sent me a link for his short Fifth (2019). I enjoyed it so much that I immediately checked out some of his earlier work and found it all amazing. The fact that this old school style of animation still exists just warms my demented heart, bringing back memories of Mad Monster Party and the likes. Now, Ciolfi has a new short done and posted, one that gives a little nod to the good old-fashioned monster movies, entitled It Came from Beyond the Drain!

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Happy Holidays from Us at the Krypt

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Just wanted to take a second to wish everyone the happiest of holidays. I hope you are enjoying the moment, and feeding those passions that make you happy, no matter what it might be. It is what keeps us young at heart and in mind. I hope that Satan Claws leaves you something nice under the Axemas tree and that you get to spend time with those that are special to you.

And remember, at least we don’t have Big G stomping through our neighborhood . . . so at least we got that going for us . . . which is nice.

Movie Plans for 2024?

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While I know we might be a little preoccupied with the upcoming holiday in a couple of days, or any end of year celebrations, but since it is also close to the start of a new year, has anybody thought of taking on a little movie challenge? One of the things that I hear some fans doing, which I have done myself, is to make a little checklist of a particular film series, or maybe a bunch from one director, or even a particular sub-genre, and make your way through them during the next year. There’s no time limit (unless you want to set it for yourself) other than trying to get them through within those 12 months.

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