October!

We’re 7 days into the most wonderful time of the year, and I’ve barely addressed the fact that, you know, WE’RE SEVEN DAYS INTO THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR.

Precisely

Here at the Doll’s House, I have nothing overly exciting planned save for the usual weekly dose of genre (or awful, but this month, strictly genre) film reviews. While some exciting pumpkin-related shenanigans could still sprout up, I figured it was far more useful to share some links to a few of my rather talented pals’ far more interesting October projects.

Hitch up your haunted hayride and let’s roll!

-Over at The Lightning Bug’s Lair, good pal Zach (and guest host for our latest Single White Female/Obsessed episode of The Feminine Critique) is don’ting away with 31 days of covering movies with titles that include horror’s favorite contraction. Zach always makes October a truly delightningbugful time of year, and I’m sure this round will be no different.

-This being October, it’s the perfect time for you savvy e-reading bookworms (or e-worms? Is that more or less gross?) to check out a few great picks. First up is R. k. Kombrinck’s short story collection, These Lonely Places. Some of you might know the author as a barrel of laughs and Burger King hatred heard on Night of the Living Podcast, but his fiction is a far more serious matter. From giant spiders to horrifically twisted old people, Kombrinck’s writing is truly creepy, filled with surprising twists and plenty of scares.

-For those of you in need of some quality nonfiction, check out Bryce Wilson’s Son of Danse Macabre. Wilson is also the keeper of the fine blog Things That Don’t Suck (and thankfully, his writing doesn’t) and Son of Danse Macabre reads like a worthy sequel and followup to Stephen King’s 1981 book. Picking up where King left off, Wilson provides superb analysis of the genre (including video games and comics) of the last 30 years. For just $2.99, it’s a journey well worth taking.

-Get Rocked. Get Shocked. Get n’ed. All these things at Worcester’s annual horror (and music, whatever that is) convention. I’ll be taking a ride up there for the weekend of the 19th, so if any of you New Englanders are dropping in, be sure to let me know so we can say hi while wondering if Jordan Ladd would be honored or embarrassed if we asked her about her villainous role in Lifetime’s Murder on the 13th Floor.

-Gear up your ears for ShowShow, one of the Internet’s oldest and still most entertaining podcasts. Every year, the crew assembles for the Spooktacular, where they release one episode a day for the month of October. It’s a hard show to describe until you hear it, but with a bizarre collection of films on this year’s docket (George Kennedy vs. An Alf puppet supercat in The Uninvited, anybody?) and what I’ve been assured is a bottomless supply of alcohol, you can guarantee yourself a good time.

-More entertainment courtesy of the podcasting world: Outside the Cinema’s annual Halloween Throwdown, aka 16 hours of random and rare horror movies streaming live online. It's a surprisingly enjoyable way to kill a Saturday, so if you've long wanted to see films like Fade To Black and Mr. Boogedy, be sure to check it out.

-Plus, plenty of blogs over yonder on my right side blogroll will be doing truly seasonal coverage, from Chuck Norris Ate My Baby’s annual Chucktoberfest to Fascination With Fear’s Guilty Pleasures and Final Girl’s own version of SHOCKtober. 

Good things everywhere. GO GET THEM!

Rock Me! Shock Me! Paracineme!

Yo, Wuhstah! You know what goes down this weekend? 

Clearly all sorts of amazing things, if a still from A Nightmare On Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge is involved. So dig out your Revolutionary War memorabilia and Red Sox gear for Massachusetts' annual horror convention, Rock 'N Shock!*

*Yes, I've been told that Worchester is actually not near Boston, but what else does Massachusetts have going on that I'm supposed to know about?


The point is, if you're anywhere near the DCU Center & Palladium this weekend, come on over to meet the likes of Robert Englund, Lance Henrikson, Roddy Piper, Gary Busey AND his son, and the aforepictured Mark Patton or really, ME!

Don't worry. I'm no longer blond. Or sporting a Jareth bulge.

I'll be heading up with my GleeKast cohostess Erica, The Podcast Podcast's Fozziebare, and Buried In a Book Crypt's Ashlee to roam the floors on Saturday and Sunday.  Outside the Cinema will be streaming all weekend with an open chat room, so if you can't make the trip, pop on there to see the festivities. It's sort of like watching Joan and Melissa Rivers on the red carpet, but with clown makeup and rubber masks.

Which is sort of like watching Joan and Melissa Rivers on the red carpet anyway.


If you're heading to Rock 'n Shock, be sure to say hullo or else once I find out you were THERE and didn't, I'll fear that I fell into a Silent Hill-esque alternate dimension that will forever keep me away from Sean Bean. No one wants that. 

Stop by the Outside the Cinema table or shoot me an email (deadlydollshouse at gmail.com). Now that I have an iPhone, I can know about the Interverse when not connected to my computer. Although I also just upgraded my settings and will probably not actually be able to work it so if nothing else, look out for the short brunette with the loud voice and Merrell Sneakers.

Greatest shoe design of all time.

But juggalo sighting and bootleg DVD shopping isn't all you have to look forward to this weekend. Over yonder at Paracinema, the makers of the greatest genre magazine of our time are feeling awfully generous. If you purchase any issue between today and Sunday (October 16th) you'll be entered to win a free (and awesome) t-shirt! THIS ONE!

I own one myself, and it's comfy AND kickin'. Plus I also own A LOT of Paracinema magazines and they're smart, funny, informative and fascinating. Head to their website and skim through back issues for one that catches your eye, or pick up the new one complete with writeups on Inside, Bela Lugosi, censorship, Turkish ripoffs and much much more. Travel back in time to The Women's Issue (#11), composed entirely of writing by females (including my own take on George Romero's misplaced feminism). Issue 8 is a Tommy Wiseau fan's own bouquet of roses, while Issue 10 has perhaps the writing I'm personally most proud of, my article on Victor Salva's Clownhouse. Browse your choices and pick your raffle ticket, or get an actual subscription to keep you clothed and smart for years to come!

Excitement! 

Oh My October!

You have no idea how horrified I am to realize that we're FOUR DAYS into the greatest time of the year and I haven't done a thing to acknowledge it. Sure, there are candy corn crumbs dripping out of my mouth and slowly eroding my teeth as I type and yes, I've crunched through some fall leaves and tightened the scarf around my neck but my office is nowhere near being appropriately decorated, my costume not remotely decided, and my annual viewing of Halloween III far from sil-VER sham-rocking its way onto my television.

You might say I'm a tad stressed.

This silly thing called LIFE, you see, has been trick or treating its way into daily and weekly being like it has some right to exist or something. There are these things called 'best friends' who have the nerve to do this thing called 'getting married,' and as a result I have to, can you believe it, do actual STUFF that takes away from such life-affirming medicine as watching and writing about horror movies. For shame, me. For. Shame.

Luckily the world will slowly return to its natural status, meaning my feet will be freed from those torture devices known as high heels and my fingers will surrender their grasp on wine glasses long enough to instead work hard at typing (or just clutching a pumpkin beer). October here at the Doll's House will mostly be a month like any other (i.e., filled with talk on the good and tragically bad of cinema) but note that other bloggers are working harder at capturing the true essence of orange and black. The esteemed Mattsuzaka returns with Chucktober over at Chuck Norris Ate My Baby, while the venerable Vicar of VHS tackles a film a day over at Mad Mad Mad Mad Movies and my good pal Zach tackles the devil himself THIRTEEN TIMES over at The Lightning Bugg’s Lair. On the audio end, ShowShow is gathering up the coffee and Ritalin for another round of the Spooktacular, wherein Miles, Katie & Co. put out a podcast EVERY DAY. Stay tuned for what will be their epic discussion of a few Doll's House favorites, including the unofficial winner of February's Attack of the Shorties, Unborn Sins!

Oh and there are MOVIES! A few of my favorite new independent films are hitting DVD shelves near you (or your computer). Barbara Stepansky's fine feminine ghost story (of sorts) Fugue is now available for purchase from iTunes, Amazon, or the film’s official website. I reviewed it last year for Rogue Cinema and found it to be absolutely excellent all around with strong performances and unique storytelling. You can learn more about director Stepansky by reading our interview from last year or take the audio route by listening to my good pal Cortez the Killer’s Planet of Terror Podcast, where Ms. Stepansky guested on Episode 4.

Also on its way is Seve Schelenz’s SKEW, an eerie found footage saga with some truly chilling moments and breezy streaming availability on Netflix. I also reviewed SKEW for Rogue Cinema a few months back and found it had an effectively chilly atmosphere that would work quite well on a crisp autumn evening. For more info, take a gander at my interview with Mr. Schelenz or just add it to your queue and save it for a quiet night.

Lastly, this being October, it's my annual chance to remind you all that the time has come to clear out some weekends for the convention circuit! In two weeks, Rock 'n Shock hits Worchester, MA, which means so do I. Expect to see such luminaries as my GleeKast cohostess Erica, The Podcast Podcast's Fozziebare, Buried In a Book Crypt's Ashlee, and the Outside the Cinema team roaming the floors. As always, I can't wait, then I get sad when it's over, but then comfort myself with the knowledge that one month later, I get the massively epic HorrorHound Weekend to invade Cincinnati. If you're planning on attending either convention, shoot me an email for some coordinated dance-offs.

So while that doesn’t get me any closer to knowing who or what I’ll be in 27 days, it’s a start. After all, there’s only...

27 Days Til Hall-o-Ween

Hall-o-Ween

27 Days Til--

You get my point.

Life Is Good, And Not JUST 'Cause of Bacon Bread (though that accounts for a huge part of it)

This might be all you need to know that Horror Hound Indianapolis 2011 was a magical place.

The fact that I now own this is further proof:

Most importantly, I got to spend three days with truly wonderful folks from across the country and Interwaves. I’ve been to my share of horror conventions (because I am indeed THAT cool) but believe me when I say there is something truly magical in the air at Horror Hound, maybe because it’s some sort of positive Pontypool contagion being spread by Night of the Living Podcast. Who can be sure? The point it, those who were there, I adore you and those who weren’t were indeed missed. Please do your best to fly, teleport, hitch, or commandeer a late Veterans’ Day parade to Cincinnati come November for the next event. 

We'll be waiting.

Okay fine, there is one thing better than the spectacular wonderful snuggable pals I shared beers and karaoke verses with, and that would be Bacon Bread. For those who don’t know, breakfast buffets are great places that sometimes offer vats of bacon to their guests. 

There’s a lot of grease in bacon vats. Grease that would be wasted were it not for something to collect it, something absorbent and edible. Something that will, with enough time and liquid, turn into a treat more delicious than anything you have or will ever taste. Bacon Bread makes life worth living, although the downside is that once you eat it, you increase your chance of immediate death by 88%. So pace yourself with your Bacon Bread, savor each juicy bite but pull back once the palpitations kick in. We need you to last at least until November.

Gone Houndin'

Indy style. Hope to see you there!

You Ain't Nothing But a HorrorHound Dog, but that's a lot to be

Sorry if the action has been a tad slow here at the Doll’s House, but it apparently takes me about a full week to truly recover from the land of great supermarkets and people, aka Cincinnati HorrorHound Weekend 2010! 

Oh yeah. I was there with friends or as I like to call them, Kickass Internet SuperStars (aka the new KISS, sans pesky cake makeup)

I mean, look at that gang of sexy powerhouses! Among the talent inside that hotel lounge (which we totally trashed/left a few beer bottles in like the rock stars we are) are naughty Night of the Living Podcasters Amy, Freddy, & Andy; Movie Meltdown(ing) Marlena; my movie swap blogging cohort T.L. Bugg and his lovely wife; Family Movie Night's Doctor J; the gentlemanly Will & Sam U. Rai of The Gentlemen's Guide to Midnight Cinema; camp director extraordinaire/Internet Fairy Godfather Randy; new pals Ken & Justin; Paracinema-niacs Christine & Dylan; Canadian superhero Vishnu; and the man the myth the baby-eating legend, Mattsuzaka.

And speaking of this particular cool cat, remember to follow my top sidebar link to vote EVERY DAY for him and his kidney donating superlady to win a dream wedding. It's easy. It's breezy. It's karmatically rewarding and your duty as a human being.

I don't quite know where to start (or did I already do that?) in recapping such a fabulous trip, so let's let the pictures tell the story...

There was cheese shaped like monkeys and parrots...

Dean Cameron's eyebrows

Unidentifiable animals dressed like Elvis

A camera-ready Jason and a Glee foam hand

A mushy faced killer klown and a mushier faced me

Both of whom were seen shopping at the Classy Flea Market

(like all the cool kids)

and of course, the greatest band since The Beatles

Also, some of us got haunted

Even in the PAST!

Elsewhere in Ohio, I learned that waitresses are fabulous, separate checks are miraculously standard, Meg Foster is really tan, Linda Blair is still really tiny, tasers are ineffective but also annoying when they amass crowds in crowded rooms, and doorways are smeared with a magical concoction that wards off evil, just like in Demon Knight. As a downside, the doorways in Ohio are incredibly stinky. 

Billy Zane, on the other hand, remains superior.

Thanks goes to all the lovely people mentioned above, plus the lovely Ashlee of www.buriedinabookcrypt.blogspot.com for being my roomie and surviving both my sleep ramblings and snores.

For those who care about the actual convention-ing, let me recommend HorrorHound's show. It was incredibly well-run, with a nice selection and placement of guests and film screenings. I was lucky enough to spend a little time at Cincy's own Night of the Living Podcast booth (complete with the secret Mystery Date door) where I got to record a few minutes of rambling with the lovely Amy. Download their extravaganzarific special episode for our chitchat on everything from The Brady Bunch to bucket lists and an additional 3 more hours(!!!) of interviews with other roaming HorrorHounders.

Next show is in March in Indianapolis, with a supreme guest list already posted (lots o' Killer Klowns, Boondock Saints who are nowhere near worthy of sharing a room with Killer Klowns, and some weird looking Italian dude who looks like the incestuous son in Burial Ground). 

You know the one.

In closing, thank you to all the HorrorHounders for making this weekend one of the biggest blasts (in a good way) I've ever had. Those who weren't there were missed. Those who weren't there are ordered to be so next fall. Until then, hearts, hugs, kisses, and slaps in the face if you don't go here to vote for Matt & Liz.

Gone HorrorHoundin'

Should my plane crash, there's pumpkin ice cream in my freezer.

Don't let it go to waste.

HallowStuff

During this Best Month Of the Year, many fine and ambitious bloggers load up on the energy-high-ifying candy corn pumpkins and produce a post a day, which is impressive and near impossible when your fingers are growing as chubby as candy corn pumpkins by eating, well, so many candy corn pumpkins.

Once again, I'm nowhere near organized enough to truly put together a huge October plan, but I'll do my best to attempt to produce Halloween-themed content, be it a review of Satan's Little Helper or an announcement of my costume plans (tick tock, tick tock, tick shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit).

But in between stressful candy corn gorging in the hopes of formulating a Halloween plan, I've been busy elsewhere, namely Rogue Cinema. This month, you can find two new reviews of intriguing short films, including Joel Reid's Death By Death, Tyler Cathey's 5ive,  plus an interview with The Absent's writer/director, Sage Bannick

Head there for a batch of other interesting musings on film criticism, indie flicks, and Grindhouse goodness (and badassness).


Also this week, GleeKast! A new episode featuring Stamos drool, ultimatums, and inappropriate sexual activities in the library. You know you want to dance along, so download and enjoy...bitch.

Oh oh! And remember dear Eastern Americans (or as I like to call, Eastericans), should you be in or anywhere NEAR the Wuh-ster area of Massachusetts next weekend (October 15th-17th) you BEST be stopping by the annual Rock 'N Shock horror convention. Guests include some dude with a ponytail named George, Bill Esprestin Esquire, Ruggero "The Barbarian" Deodato, and more. More importantly, I'll be hanging out all through Saturday and Sunday with GleeKast cohostess Erica, plus a bunch of other supercool Internet people. So really, unless you're a Yankees fan or have some other allergy to New England, we'll see each other soon, yes?

I Said Brrrrr! It's Cold In Here. There Must Be Some Chiller Theatre In the Atmosphere

No, I shouldn't even try a fake cheer. Just know that this past weekend was the biannual Chiller Theatre Convention in New Jersey so naturally, I put on my best pair of sneakers to troll crowded vendor floors and tiptoe around celebrities I wanted to ogle without paying.


This installment was by far one of my favorite experiences, and only part of that involved the toasted coconut pancakes eaten twenty minutes before entering the elegant halls of the Parsippany Hilton. Highlights, plain and simple:

1. Telling Ruggero Deodato that I loved The Barbarians, and hearing his enthusiastic response that the film is finally going to be available on DVD in the near future. Also, I think I referred to Cannibal Holocaust as "beautiful." Thankfully, he did not respond by offering me turtle meat.

2. Telling his table buddy Sergio Martino that I loved Hands of Steel  (I'm sure he gets that ALL the time) and finding out that his next film is supposed to shoot somewhere in Pennsylvania. For some reason, that disturbed me.

3. Buying these:

One of which stars a wrestler from G.L.O.W. (Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, for those uninformed), one of which is post-apocalyptic and involves rollerskating, and finally, a film I can't believe I didn't know existed, The Refrigerator, something I'm sure will put Death Bed: The Bed That Eats to the napping hall of shame.


4. Having a strange interaction with Lou Ferrigno (at the urging of Dear Friends Erica and Lisa) where we got a Polaroid photo (taken by a stranger just wandering the room) with the Hulk then spent about 20 minutes trying to decipher what he actually signed. Theories include "Lou the Hulk," "Love the Hulk," "Lou something Hulk," and "Lou Diamond Philips." Either way, I got to tell him that I loved his work in ...And God Spoke, and he smiled.

5. The highlight, by far:

Now obviously, Killer Klowns From Outer Space is in the treasure chest here at the Doll's House so the idea of meeting Grant Cramer (aka Mike Tobacco) evoked all sorts of inner swoons. What really creamed my pie, however, was how gosh darn nice a dude he was. This was apparently Mr. Cramer's first convention outing, and he seemed to be having an enjoyable time, or at least he tolerated my gushing, theorizing, and explanation of why Killer Klowns and The Happening should never share the same sentence. Best of all, my head nearly exploded when I learned that the Chiodo Brothers and Mr. Cramer have been developing a--hold your breath--SEQUEL to what is, quite simply, the definitive cult film of my generation. It seems a ways off but something that actually may indeed hopefully maybe yes indeed I hope I said I hope will get made someday. Sadly, it's not based on my idea for Klowns In Space , but hey, after 22 and counting years, I'll take anything.

So that was my lovely Sunday, capped by the debut recording of a lil cupcake called the gleeKast . Looking forward, I now order you to mark your calendars for the August 20-22, when Monster Mania mashes into Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and I attempt to befriend special guest Tim Curry via my own reenactment of the entire plot of Clue.