Mystery Photo 7-2

by in Mystery Photo and tagged | Leave a comment

Seems like forever since our last photo, doesn’t it? Well let’s not waste anymore time and get right on it. Our last photo was a little tribute to the Monster Bash show we were going to be heading to, since Joyce Meadows was going to be there. Of course one of the films she is known for is where our photo is from, The Brain from Planet Arous (1957). Such a fun movie! Kudos to the following that sent in the correct answer: Hoby Abernathy, Gregory Avery, Dave Fronto, Troy Howarth, Charles Miller, Michael Shields, and Neil Wright. Well done!

Now on to this week’s photo. This is in tribute to all the seafood we ate while we were out in Baltimore last week! Granted, we didn’t tackle anything THIS big! Please remember not to post your answers here so others can have a guess. Just send your guess to us in an email to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

mp070218

Another Glorious Monster Bash!

by in Conventions and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Last weekend we spent in Mars, PA, for the Monster Bash Conference. This was our fourth year there and it is becoming one of our favorite shows to do. So much fun, each and every time. Ron Adams puts on one hell of a show, with plenty of stuff to keep any monster fan busy from the early morning to the wee hours of the next morning!

It’s not often that I get excited about a guest these days, but I was able to add one more Hammer alumni to my Hammer Films: An Exhaustive Filmography book at the show. That was Janina Faye, who played the young Tania in Horror of Dracula (1958). She is now the fifteenth person to add her signature from people that wrote, directed, or appeared in a Hammer film. Sadly, seven of the names in there have already left us. And since the original studio’s last movie came out almost forty years ago, well… none of us are getting any younger.

JaninaFayeHorrorOfDrac Continue reading →

The Omen Score on White Vinyl

by in Reviews: Soundtrack and tagged , , | Leave a comment

omenVarèse Sarabande has released a limited edition “demonic white vinyl” version of Jerry Goldsmith’s Oscar winning score for Richard Donner’s The Omen (1976). Talk about an iconic score! This release is only available on Varèse Sarabande website and each of the copies of this remastered LP will be hand numbered, as well as only having 666 units being released.

This is one of those scores that just listening to it can bring back the chills the film creates and has always been one of my favorites. This is a prime example when a score enhances what is happening on the screen so much, it truly is a masterpiece.

Continue reading →

Hammer Horror at the Super Monster-Rama!

by in Movie Events and tagged , , | 1 Comment

 

monsterrama2018banner

The Riverside Drive-In and DVD Drive-In have announced the titles for this fall’s Drive-In Super Monster-Rama and it is a Hammer fans dream! They will be screening four classic Hammer titles each night on Friday, Sept. 7th and Saturday, Sept. 8th. Each of the titles will be screened from a restored DCP presentation, with four of the titles being screened uncut at a drive-in theater for the first time! Here is the list of what is showing:

Continue reading →

Horror History: Robert L. Lippert

by in Horror History and tagged | Leave a comment

lippertRobert L. Lippert
Born Mar. 31st, 1909 – Died Nov. 16th, 1976

If you are a fan of cheap sci-fi/horror films of the ’50s and ’60s, then you’ll probably are familiar with the name of Robert L. Lippert. He is the man was named the “Quickie King” by Time Magazine due to his ability to crank out movies cheap and fast. Sure, they might not have been top-notch films, but they were usually entertaining. He was also the one that started to bring The Fly to the screen in 1958, before it was pretty much taken over by the studio and kicked him to the curb. But he still brought us fun titles like Rocketship X-M (1950) as well as Witchcraft (1964), The Last Man on Earth (1964), The Earth Dies Screaming (1964), and Curse of the Fly (1965).

Lippert had started in the film business working in a theater, starting his way at the bottom and moving his way up. He eventually owned a chain of theaters in California and Oregon. In the late ’40s, he figured out the easiest way to get movies to show in his theaters were to make them himself. He was also reported to be the man responsible for bringing popcorn machines into the theaters!

Monster Bash This Weekend!!!

by in Conventions and tagged , , , | 1 Comment

MB-Lobby-Card-2018

In just a few days, we’ll be heading off to Mars! No, we’re not a member of the new Space Patrol, but instead are going to Mars, PA for the Monster Bash Conference this weekend! This has become one of our favorite shows and have been looking forward to this for quite some time. Can’t wait to browse the amazing dealer room since I’m always finding some cool stuff to add to the collection. Plus, get to see some old friends, make new ones, and chat with some of our favorite guests and authors. Not to mention hopefully catching a few movies that are screening throughout the whole weekend!

If you’re coming out to the Bash, make sure you stop by our table and check out our goodies. We’ve got a lot of new inventory of great horror reference books just in so there’s going to be a lot to choose from, most only in single copies so don’t wait too long to come and check to see. Plus don’t forget that Troy Howarth will be at our table on Saturday with copies of his new book, Human Beasts: The Films of Paul Naschy, that he will be selling and signing.

For all the information about the show, just click HERE.

Convention tables

And to make this weekend even better, after the show we’re heading to Baltimore for a few days. Going to check out some (hopefully) amazing food places, maybe find some good old fashion book stores, see where Mr. Poe eternally rests, and who knows what.

If anybody has any recommendations, for restaurants, old fashion used bookstores, or anything other macabre and monstrous things in the area that we should check out, please let us know.

Book Review: Book of the Dead

by in Reviews: Horror Reference Book and tagged , , , | Leave a comment

 

2005 Edition
2014 Edition

Book of the Dead: The Complete History of Zombie Cinema
Published by FAB Press, 2005. 319 pages
Re-Issued by Titan Books, 2014. 376 pages
By Jamie Russell

There are tons of film books on the zombie sub-genre. When this title was first released in 2005, The Walking Dead TV show was still 5 years away from hitting the airwaves. Since that time, books on the zombie culture have flooded the fandom like walkers a Pittsburgh shopping mall. So when this title first came out in 2005, it was long overdue. Finally, someone had taken a very serious look into this sub-genre. But while zombies became really popular in the ’80s, from Romero’s Dawn of the Dead and Fulci’s Zombie, they have been around a lot longer than some might realize. That is where this book comes in.

Continue reading →

Mystery Photo 6-18

by in Mystery Photo and tagged | Leave a comment

Yeah, yeah…running a little late today. But better late than never, right! I will say that I thought for sure that I would stump everyone with last week’s photo, since it is a little obscure independent but I was proved wrong, by THREE people! The film is called Wendigo, or Frostbiter: Wrath of the Wendigo, that came out in 1995. If you like stop-animated monsters, than you’ll enjoy this one. This one is a prime title for a Turkey Day marathon and will be screening this November at ours. Kudos to the following for recognizing this little gem: Hoby Abernathy, Margaret Santiago, and Will Wilson. Well done!

Okay, let us get to this week’s photo. This one might be pretty easy, but there is a little reasoning behind it. Plus it’s a damn fun movie. So gave at the photo and hopefully you don’t end up like the guy in the photo!

As always, please remember not to post your answers here so others can have a guess. Just send your guess to us in an email, to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

mp061818

Book Review: Film Alchemy: The Independent Cinema of Ted V. Mikels

by in Reviews: Horror Reference Book and tagged , , , | Leave a comment

mikelsbookFilm Alchemy: The Independent Cinema of Ted V. Mikels
Published by McFarland, 2007.  220 Pages
By Christopher Wayne Curry

The name of Ted V. Mikels is one that is not that well known in the film community. Unless of course, you are a fan of cult movies. Then you are well aware of the name, and the man, and the movies that he has given us over the past 40+ years. Now thanks to author Curry, we are able to get a closer inside look at the man and his movies.

Mikels’ films can pretty much be the definition of “independent cinema”. Within these pages, Curry does an excellent job explaining and showing the readers just what Mikels has gone through to bring his productions from conception to creation. It’s not a pretty story in most cases. But as Mikels says in the book, “I always tell people at the beginning of my movies that if they’re not here to enjoy the making of a movie then they shouldn’t be here.” I think that statement perfectly describes Mikels. He simply loves to make movies.

Continue reading →

Horror History: Barbara Shelley

by in Horror History, Misc. Ramblings and tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

barbarashelley1Barbara Shelley
Born Aug. 15th, 1933

Barbara Shelley was a staple in the British horror cinema for about 10 years, starting in the late ’50s. The fact that she only made a handful of horror pictures during that time, and is so remembered shows the real talent that she was.

Starting with films like Cat Girl (1957) and Blood of the Vampire (1958), before appearing in one of the genre classics, Village of the Damned (1960). Then she would work with Hammer Films on her next four pictures, which shows some of her best work: The Gorgon (1964), Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966), Rasputin: The Mad Monk (1966), and Quatermass and the Pit (1967). Her performance in Dracula: Prince of Darkness, as the uptight Helen, once transformed into a vampire is one of the highlights of that film. Her last role for the genre was the 1974 film Ghost Story (aka Madhouse Mansion), and moved to working more in television, even having a small stint in the Doctor Who series.

So the next time you’re in the mood for a British horror film, and maybe even a Hammer Film, think about choosing one of the ones that feature the lovely Shelley and see just what she gave to the genre.