Zombos' Closet of Horror

It's Not Halloween Yet But It Will Do Anyway 3rd Annual Halloween Contest!

Foaming at the mouth in anticipation of next month's festivities? Already chowing down on candy like it's Halloween Night in preparation for the big event? Restless like a zombie because you're just dying to wear that costume you've been eying in your closet all year long? Then I've got a contest for you!

Thanks be to the Big Honkin' Promotion God (that would be Sylvia at Big Honcho Media), two lucky people (that could be you, and maybe you, too--yes,  you, the one stuffing Cheetos up her nose for YouTube.)

Just email me with your mailing address and I'll enter you to win The Evil Dead and Hatchet on Blu-ray! So don't just die of boredom waiting for Halloween; now you can die of anticipation! (Did you catch my mention of BLU-RAY!)

Hurry! Contest ends September 7th.

2 Winners will each receive:

• The Evil Dead on Blu-ray
• Hatchet on Blu-ray

EVIL DEAD Blu-ray available on the shelves August 31

Two brand-new hi-def transfers personally supervised and approved by Sam Raimi and an all-new audio commentary featuring Sam Raimi, Robert Tapert and Bruce Campbell.  Includes Limited Edition DVD packed with 3 hours of original bonus features!

Special features include:

• On the Blu-ray:
  • All-new audio commentary with writer/director Sam Raimi, producer Robert Tapert and star Bruce Campbell
• On the special-features DVD:
  • One By One We Will Take You: The Untold Saga of The Evil Dead
  • The EvilDead: Treasures from the Cutting Room Floor
  • The Ladies Of The Evil Dead Meet Bruce Campbell
  • Book of The Dead: The Other Pages
  • Discovering The Evil Dead
  • Unconventional
  • At The Drive-In

HATCHET Blu-ray available on the shelves September 7

Unrated director's cut, features an all-new audio commentary with writer/director ADAM GREEN and Victor Crowley himself - KANE HODDER!

Special features include:

• Audio commentaries:
  • Co-producer/writer/director Adam Green and Star Kane Hodder (new)
  • Adam Green, co-producer/cinematographer Will Barratt and actors Tamara Feldman, Joel David Moore and Deon Richmond
• The Making of Hatchet
• Meeting Victor Crowley: An in-depth look at the creation of a new horror icon
• Guts & Gore: Go behind the scenes of Hatchet's special makeup and prosthetic effects
• Anatomy of a Kill: Witness the "jaw-breaking" birth, design and execution of a death scene
• A Twisted Tale: Writer/Director Adam Green recounts his decades-long friendship with "Twisted Sister" front man Dee Snider
• Gag reel
• Theatrical trailer

Blogging Around: Lovecraft

HPL eternal lies, but always roams, and never dies...

Larry Latham investigates why Lovecraft is Missing. Clues can be found in his webcomic, along with tentacled monsters and more...

Chris Perridas explores H. P. Lovecraft and His Legacy. 1908: Not a good year for Lovecraft. 1907 had started off terrific - he met Percival Lowell! - and then as he was heading for 18, he derailed somewhere along the way. No college. No career. Just sadness for a long time.

David Kidd asks What's Mouldy and Shadowy and Full of Dim Rumours? The H.P. Lovecraft news wire. Here, you'll find an aggregation of news and bits and pieces about, or derived from, his works and legacy, including fiction, art, interviews, film, comics, games, and more.

An antiquarian of questionable pursuits leans precariously over the edge to catch Papers Falling From An Attic Window. I’m a librarian and the author of the Cthulhu Mythos Encyclopedia and, with John Wisdom Gonce III, The Necronomicon Files.

Justin Woodman listens to sibilant Whispers From the Ghooric Zone. Whilst the thick, gloopy strands of Azathothian entropy have entangled us further and drawn us deeper into the unreflective depths of cosmic ennui, we at Ghooric Zone are still making the occasional attempt - as the mood takes us - to pass on our reflections on Lovecraftian popular culture.

Even Yog-Sothoth will have His say. Yog-Sothoth is devoted to Lovecraftian games and media, as well as the works of Jazz Age author, H.P. Lovecraft and those he inspired.

Wrap your Tentaclii around HPL. An occasion literary and visual arts blog on the famous author.

 

Richard Matheson on Screen From McFarland

Matt Bradley informed me about his upcoming book from McFarland on Richard Matheson's filmed works.  A book worth reading, given the extent of Matheson's extensive television and film scripting. It should be available in the Fall.

 

Richard Matheson on Screen:
A History of the Filmed Works
By Matthew R. Bradley
Foreword by Richard Matheson

 

Though innumerable biographies have been written about novelists, playwrights, and poets, screenwriters are rarely granted this distinction, even ones as prolific and successful as Richard Matheson. Beginning with The Incredible Shrinking Man in 1957, Matheson has occupied a unique position in writing for television and cinema for more than fifty years. This biography documents his rise to prominence, his literary influences, and the role he played in the horror and science fiction renaissance. The narrative examines each of Matheson’s works in chronological order with an index indicating where each can be found, from his early work in the 1950’s through I Am Legend in 2007.

About the Author
Matthew R. Bradley is a widely published authority on the work of Richard Matheson. He has written articles, interviews, and reviews for Fangoria, Mystery Scene, VideoScope, The New York Review of Science Fiction, and Cinema Retro. A lifelong resident of Connecticut, he is currently the Copy Specialist for MBI, Inc., in Norwalk.

He is creator of the Internet film-related blog Bradley On Film.

Monsters U.S. Poster

"Six years ago NASA discovered the possibility of alien life within our solar system. A probe was launched to collect samples, but crashed upon re-entry over Central America. Soon after, new life forms began to appear and grow. In an effort to stem the destruction that resulted, half of Mexico was quarantined as an INFECTED ZONE. Today, the American and Mexican military still struggle to contain the massive creatures... Our story begins when a jaded US journalist (McNairy) begrudgingly agrees to find his boss’ daughter, a shaken American tourist (Able) and escort her through the infected zone to the safety of the US border."

MONSTERS premieres in theaters on October 29^th

Fan on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/monstersfilm

Official Website:
http://monstersfilm.com/

Fincher Goes 20,000 Leagues

David Fincher to direct '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'

By Matthew Belloni and Borys Kit (sent by Scott Essman)

Captain Nemo and his Nautilus are surfacing again.

Months after deep-sixing a McG-helmed version of "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea," Disney is in negotiations with David Fincher to direct, and hot "Bourne Ultimatum" scribe Scott Z. Burns to write, a new take on the classic Jules Verne story.

The project came together after Fincher approached Disney's new production head Sean Bailey a few weeks into his job this winter. The Oscar-nominated helmer wanted to tackle a four-quadrant tentpole movie, somewhat of a departure from the dark, R-rated dramas such as "Fight Club" and "Zodiac" (or even "Curious Case of Benjamin Button") that he's done in the past. 

The project was being developed under the radar as Bailey settled into his position under new studio topper Rich Ross, then gained steam in the past few days with Fincher and Burns entering talks for deals.

First published in 1869, the classic science fiction novel is in the public domain. But ever since Disney's Kirk Douglas-starring version was released in 1954, the studio and the Verne story -- about a group of men who encounter a vengeful scientific genius and his warlike submarine -- have been linked in the public's mind. Last year, Disney was fast-tracking a $150 million "Leagues" that would have served as an origin story for Nemo. But the project was the first of several to be sunk by Ross when he took over the studio from Dick Cook in the fall (ironically, given Fincher's involvement, the dark tone of the McG version was a concern for the new regime).

It's not surprising that Disney would revisit "Leagues." Ross has said his mandate is to make wide-appeal, pre-branded entertainment. And while plotlines are being kept submerged, the Fincher/Burns take on the material is described as being in the vein of "Star Wars" or "The Empire Strikes Back." It will aim to be visually dazzling. 

Burns, who penned Steven Soderbergh's latest "Contagion" as well as "The Informant!," will begin writing immediately. That should give Fincher, who is in post on "The Social Network" for Sony, time to direct another movie (possibly "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," also for Sony, but his name has surfaced in connection with a host of projects) before jumping into "Leagues."

American Vampire Contest Winners

Okay, I'm back...time to announce the American Vampire Issue One, signed by Scott Snyder, contest winners!

And the winners are:

Rhonny Kachur in Ohio, William Agy in Maryland, Tracey Dent in Maryland (that's two for MD!), and Jeanette Jackson in Canada.

Congratulations! Your issues are on the way!

HorrorBlips Widget Needed for Followers/Following

While I've been doing a bit of spring cleaning on my blog, after adding the Networked Blogs and BlogCatalog followers widgets, I thought how super it would be to have a HorrorBlips widget that would do the same thing.

Those of you using Blogger's followers widget know what I'm talking about. Typepad recently added one, so I've started using it, too.

You can see these recently added widgets in my right column. How about it HorroBlips?

Robot 13 Contest Winner!

Congratulations to Steve MacDonald of Massachusetts!

Issues 1, 2, and 3 of Robot 13: Colossus! are rushing toward you!

And a big thank you to all those who entered.

and Falling, Fly Contest

I'm wrapping up my review of Skyler White's and Falling, Fly, so in a nutshell, I recommend it, and I also thought a contest would be in order. For a chance to win a copy of and Falling, Fly, send me your mailing address (my email's in the About page).

As always, your contact information is kept until the end of the contest, then deleted from my inbox. Only I see it. Scary, I know.

So send me an email with "and Falling Fly Contest" in the subject line before the end of April. I'll announce the winner in May.

You must be 18 or older to enter, by the way. Hey, she's not just drawn that way on the cover for nothing you know.

Good luck!

Typelizer: Now I'm a Doer

Back in 2008 I submitted my blog to Typelizer's personality analysis. It analyzed me as a mechanic (the independent and problem-solving type). I was interested to see if a few years would make a difference in its assessment. They did. I'm now a Doer! Doers are:

The active and playful type. They are especially attuned to people and things around them and often full of energy, talking, joking and engaging in physical out-door activities.

The Doers are happiest with action-filled work which craves their full attention and focus. They might be very impulsive and more keen on starting something new than following it through. They might have a problem with sitting still or remaining inactive for any period of time.

Oddly, I tend to be lacking energy most of the time, I'm more of a listener, and I engage as little as possible in out-door activities that require sweating or excessive movement. I am happiest, however, when demanded by work and blog to surmount challenges, and yes, I usually start things much more than I finish them (but don't most of us?). And boy, do I really hate to sit still and be inactive. I hate taking vacations (unless it's spent in a large theme park or doing something adventurous or exploratory), and I find people who insist on taking vacationers, to do nothing (like frying on the beach all day), painfully boring to be around; especially when they tell me to relax, it's a vacation.

Considering how quickly Typelizer assessed my personality through my blog, I'm not sure how accurate it is. Back then, at least, I looked like manga-mechanic-boy. Now I look like the final girl in a horror movie. Maybe I'll try it again in another two years to see if I change again.