When I saw this news start popping up in my feeds, I was really thinking / hoping it wasn’t true, especially since it apparently happened almost two weeks ago and we’re just hearing about it now. But it apparently is true, that David J. Skal has passed away, and its truly a stake in the heart for us horror cinephiles.

Usually, the names I post here are the ones that we have loved watching on screen, or know they were the ones directing the film. But this loss is different. Skal spent his time writing and teaching us fans about the genre we loved. In fact, not only did I learn something from each one of his books I tackled, but it made me want to seek out and see or see again different films. Now there have been more than a few times when I’ve disagreed with some of his comments or points, but it no matter what, it makes us think. It makes us ponder different points of view that may not change ours, but at least lets you think and see it from another vantage point. And for me, that is why losing his voice is such a great loss.

But like the movies from the recently departed, that we’ll always have to remember them by, for Mr. Skal, we have plenty of books, audio commentaries, and documentaries that he had a huge part in, that will continue to make us fans, as well as the new ones coming into them, smarter and just a better fan. Thank you, Mr. Skal. Rest in Peace.