Universal Monsters Illustrated Insert Poster
This 11×17 inch promotional mini-poster came in the shipping box for the Topps Universal Monsters Illustrated Deluxe Trading Cards (1994).
My Halloween: Mr. Lobo
Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o’Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…with Mr. Lobo…up all night at Cinema Insomnia…
Why is Halloween important to you?
For the world it’s a time when adults can give themselves permission to act like kids. And kids are able to dabble in the adult arts of overindulgence and masochism. On a personal level, it’s more economic. Mr. Lobo tends to eat better around Halloween. As a working genre personality/ horror host, it’s our “bread and butter” time–Well, “brownie and peanut butter cup time”. Not only does Mr. Lobo have more work, we also like to hit the sales the Day After Halloween to do my yearly shopping for –Well-Everything…clothes, kitchen wares, pantry items, birthday-X-mas-Valentines-Mothers Day-bereavement gifts! It’s the only time I can buy amenities and necessities that suit Mr. Lobo’s demanding tastes and at deep discounts.
Describe your ideal Halloween.
The season begins with an experiment where we mutilate gourd-like squash of the genus Cucurbita and let them rot on my front stoop. Not having dental insurance, this is the time of year Mr. Lobo likes to prepare and eat Carmel Apples–to remove any loose are damaged teeth or inferior dental work. It’s always a hoot to make embarrassing or cumbersome costumes for my children out of recyclables. Mr. Lobo is a workaholic–so ideally we will host film shows, make misunderstood movies, and as a legal reverend, marry a Goth couple or two. And Finally, as Mr. Lobo does every “Devil’s Night”, we soap windows, TP the CVS, smash and destroy early Christmas decorations at major department stores, crank call my mother, and set fire to television stations and sponsors that have wronged Mr. Lobo or CINEMA INSOMNIA in the past 10 years of the show.
What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?
The cheap 49 cent glow in the dark vampire teeth—the kind that come in a little sealed plastic bag and the tops and bottoms are connected with excess plastic: They make you drool like a teething Saint Bernard and they cut your gums so you’re leaving steamers of crimson slime at everyone’s front porch.
I’ve found that that a lot of Elvira dolls are badly made, it goes to prove how hard it is to capture her combination of sexy, silly, and scary…I have one with a witch hat and broom made by Figures Toy Co. that looks like a drag queen with Down Syndrome.
I also like to collect spooky Pez dispensers and those flimsy vintage Halloween treat bags that can maybe hold like 6 and a half pieces of penny candy. Even though they are maddeningly impractical—Mr. Lobo loves the kitschy artwork!
When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?
That would be three years ago. It was OK.
Just Kidding. Y’know, it was great when it all began. Mr. Lobo was a regular Frankie fan. I had a Don Post Frankenstein Mask when I was 5 or 6 and I remember wetting it in the sink to make the cut on his forehead look real.
Also, at a school contest I made a classic cardboard box/ tinfoil/ dryer hose robot costume and won a free ice cream at Baskin Robbins–or what I called it: “31 Flavors”. I also remember the belly aches and thinking I would die after consuming Pop Rocks and Coke.
What’s the one Halloween question you want to be asked and what’s your answer?
Great. Now I get to do YOUR JOB!
I have some novelty songs on iTunes including one called “HALLOWEEN CANDY” and I also have over 20 full length CINEMA INSOMNIA episodes on YOUTUBE on our “CINEMAINSOMNIATV” channel including several HALLOWEEN SPECIALS. So I suppose a question I wished someone would ask would be…
Q: Isn’t it amazing that your song “HALLOWEEN CANDY” is the most downloaded song in history, easily eclipsing THE MONSTER MASH and that more people watch CINEMA INSOMNIA episodes at HALLOWEEN than anything else in all of media?
A: Yes, it is amazing.
Halloween Jack in the Box Kid’s Meal Bag
Universal Studios Monsters
I've had this Jack in the Box kid's meal bag for ages. Great illustrations on front and back and the premium Universal Monster toys that came in it were fantasticly designed. You remember those days, don't you? When Halloween and Universal Monsters were inseparable? Now it's all Freddy, Jason, and Scream. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Shame on you Universal.
Halloween Animated Dancing Grim Reaper
This animated Halloween Grim Reaper dances and sings Another One Bites the Dust. Another cool toy spotted at Walgreens, though probably available in other venues, its eyes and face light up brightly as he puts the moves on your wallet. Like death, you know you're gonna get it.
My Halloween: Amy Grech
Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o’Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…with author Amy Grech…
Why is Halloween important to you?
Halloween is the most magical time of year when adults and children can transform themselves into anyone or anything they like! It’s a day to embrace your darkest imagination and put it on display for the world to see.
I have quite the sweet tooth, so even now as an adult, I raid the candy bowl for childhood favorites: candy corn, Necco Wafers, Smarties, and Tootsie Rolls.
Describe your ideal Halloween.
A clear, crisp day with brown, yellow, orange, and red crunching under foot, as my friends and I, dressed in full costume, head to the annual Halloween party at a mutual friend’s house.
A few years ago, I splurged on a life-size Tootsie Roll Costume and won funniest costume! Plenty of food and drinks; a good time had by all!
What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?
I begged my parents to let me get a foam pumpkin with a life-like, frightening expression at a toy store. I still have it to this very day!
When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?
I was 5; I remember going to kindergarten as Little Bo Peep, wearing a fancy, aqua dress. My father made me a staff out of cardboard and my parents took my brother, dressed as a hobo, and me trick or treating after school; we got tons of candy because we were so cute!
What’s the one Halloween question you want to be asked and what’s your answer?
Q: Are you ever too old to celebrate Halloween?
A: No!
Amy Grech has sold over one hundred stories and three poems to various anthologies and magazines including: Apex Digest, Fear on Demand, Funeral Party 2, Inhuman Magazine, Needle Magazine, The Flash Fiction Offensive, The Horror Express, Space & Time, The Brutarian, Zombie CSU, and many others. Damnation Books published her second collection, Blanket of White.
She has a story in the upcoming Beat to a Pulp: Hardboiled. Amy is an Active Member of the Horror Writers Association who lives in Brooklyn. Visit her website: http://www.crimsonscreams.com.
Halloween 2011: Monster Mash
Spooky Sounds Book
Bobby Pickett's 1962 Halloween song The Monster Mash makes a great read for the younger set, especially with spooky sounds and kooky illustrations for each monstrous scene. I saw this Hallmark display at Walgreens, but I'm sure you can find it just about anywhere books are sold.
My Halloween: Gavin Goszka
Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o’Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…with Gavin Goszka of Midnight Syndicate…
Why is Halloween important to you?
I think I’ve always felt drawn to the historical significance and meaning of Halloween. It marked the dividing point between the light and dark halves of the year: a time of transition where the veil between worlds was at its thinnest. It also marked the beginning of the Celtic New Year. It was believed that at this time, the dead could travel between worlds and communicate with the living. I think there’s an undeniable sense of mystery about it, and many people feel much more in touch with the unseen. Autumn is my favorite time of year in general – it’s great to enjoy the scenery and traditions that come along with it.
Describe your ideal Halloween.
I’ve always enjoyed decorating for the holiday, so that’s definitely a big component. I’ll usually set up most of my decorations early in October, but there are some nicely-elaborate surprises that get put out on Halloween night as well. I’m also an amateur ghost hunter and try to plan some kind of investigation for Halloween night: it’s just too perfect for that!
What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?
I don’t have a lot of collectibles from my childhood, but I did keep this set of cardboard glow-in-the-dark ghosts. They’re not incredibly scary, but they always bring back some great memories of growing up.
I think one of my favorite props is a wireless talking skeleton I picked up a few years ago, however. It has a speaker inside, moving jaw, and light-up eyes that are triggered when you talk through a microphone. My house has a large porch that I’d set the Halloween candy out on, and when the kids would come up to get it, I’d have the skeleton “talk” to them. It was great because I’d be a few feet away behind a window that I left open a crack so that I could hear them. They couldn’t see me, but I could respond to them in real-time and address them by name. That always gets some priceless reactions!
When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?
I don’t remember my very first Halloween, but I do remember setting up these makeshift ‘haunted houses’ in our basement, using old sheets, ropes, and whatever props I could make or scavenge. I used to plan them out weeks in advance and just had a blast setting it all up and watching my friends’ reactions as they went through them. I’m sure my parents were none too thrilled at the prospect of not being able to use their laundry room for a few days, but they were always very, very awesome about it, which still surprises me.
What’s the one Halloween question you want to be asked, and what’s your answer?
Q: Do you believe in ghosts?
A: Although I have yet to find concrete proof myself, I have seen and heard some strange things and do believe in the possibility that there’s a lot more to the world around us than we’re aware of or can perceive.
My background is in science and although I tend to rely on critical thinking and analysis to explain a lot of things, I try to keep my mind as open as possible. I actually think that quantum mechanics may hold the key to explaining many paranormal phenomena: it will be interesting to see how these fields intersect in the future.
Halloween 2011:
Freddy Animated Candy Bowl
I don’t think you’ll have many kids reaching into this Nightmare on Elm Street Freddy Treat Bowl for candy. Yikes. Which is good if you’re running low. Walgreens’ also has a 6 foot hanging Freddy and a shrunken head Freddy. Take your pick. Looks like the copy editor for the packaging was scared away, too, or maybe they’re going for a stuttering-fear effect with “reach into to the bowl and Freddy comes to life.”
How sweet it is.
My Halloween: Edward Douglas
Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o’Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…with Edward Douglas of Midnight Syndicate…
Why is Halloween important to you?
It’s the one time of the year when everyone feels free to explore their fascination with things that go bump in the night. Imaginations run wild and that’s a great thing. Even though many decorations are quite cheesy it’s wonderful to be surrounded by the imagery and themes I like to surround myself with year-round. It’s also an opportunity to spend time with family, friends, and neighbors. I have kids, so to be able to pass down the traditions and watch them experience the things that made Halloween special for me is very cool. I get a kick out of watching them use their imaginations and get excited over their “haul.”
Over the years Midnight Syndicate’s music has worked itself into the holiday so it’s also an important time of the year for us as a band – an exciting one as well as it’s the one time of the year when we’re likely to hear our music in public places (haunted houses, stores, radio). That’s always great.
Describe your ideal Halloween.
My ideal Halloween would be: Do a big setup in our yard, take the kids trick-or-treating in our neighborhood and then to the neighborhood I grew up in, head up to Chardon Square for cider and donuts, hit a haunted house, then have friends and family over for fresh-roasted pumpkin seeds, German Oktoberfest beer, and Thirsty Dog Pumpkin Ale.
What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?
I wouldn’t say they’re collectibles but the decorations from my early childhood are things I hold on to. Every year I’d get out the paper skeletons you can pose, the glow-in-the-dark ghosts, and a big poseable paper scarecrow. Nothing terribly fancy but it signaled the beginning of the Halloween season and that was always exciting as a kid. I don’t hate any collectibles because everyone has their own way of celebrating the season. If folks have them or have them up on display then they probably have some sort of connection with them. I’ve recently come across Halloween postcards from early 20th-century. I’m thinking of starting a collection of those.
When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?
I think I was a pumpkin or a clown and most of my memories from that are through photos although I do remember my cousins coming by for trick-or-treating. I definitely remember my first time going through a haunted house. I was pretty young. It was set up in a building on our townsquare and run by the library or the Jaycees. The haunt was really small but I still remember the creeper guy on the floor hidden under a pile of leaves, Frankenstein’s laboratory in strobe lights, and then, the ultimate climax for a haunted house….? an “ultra terrifying” light sabre battle between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker from the new hit movie “Star Wars.” I thought it was so cool!
What’s the one Halloween question you want to be asked, and what’s your answer?
Q: Why is Halloween important?
A: I feel it’s not only healthy but a good release for folks to have at least one night where they can be a kid again and have the opportunity to pass down traditions (or make their own) to their family or friends. There’s no pressure – no gifts, no decorations (unless you want to), and no mandatory parties (again unless you want to). It’s all JUST about having fun and letting your imagination run wild. I think we need that especially during these challenging times. I’d like to think that too, in a way, the holiday also helps build communities a bit. Whether it’s that house on the corner with the killer decorations that you go to every year, waving to your neighbors while trick-or-treating, I just think it’s a great, great holiday.
Halloween 2011:
Hidden Screamer Skull and Cat
I picked these up today at Halloween City. There’s a suction cup in back. You stick them in places like a drawer, cabinet, tool box–any place where sudden light can trigger the screaming. Nothing like the old sneak up and scare approach for festive Halloween fun, I say. I like the cat the most, but the skull’s sinister enough.
Book Review: Vacation
Zombos Closet: Good
There's a little of Soylent Green and C.H.U.D mixed in with the greens in Matthew Costello's Vacation, where zombies are replaced by humans gone cannibalistic bonkers as global warming and blight bring food shortages and dietery change. Costello's clippy writing style–lots of one-sentence paragraphs– is often too lean where it needs to thicken in detail and depth. The basic premise provides ample opportunity for action, but it's hard to shake the notion you're reading yet another zombie-that-is-not-zombie gimmick; and Costello doesn't exploit those opportunities to pile on the action or terror, which is surprising given the subject matter potential.
Can Heads are what the human-chompers are called. They're fast, smell bad, crazed, and nearly unstoppable in their one goal: dine out often. Jack Murphy's a cop in the 76th Precinct on Union Street in Brooklyn. Things aren't going well for cops: the can heads are eating their way through the boroughs, leaving the city a no-man's land of dwindling hot and cold running safe places to live. An attack on an apartment building late at night–can heads only come out at night–leaves him hurting. His captain recommends a vacation before Jack rethinks his job status, and Paterville Camp in the Adirondacks is the ideal destination.
Jack, his wife Christine, and their kids pack themselves, along with lots of fire power and C4, into his Ford Explorer and head upstate. The New York State Thruway is fenced off, manned by checkpoints, and relatively can head free. A brief pee-stop at the equivalent of a qwik-e-mart provides brief action. The rest of the trip is uneventful. I've had more action traveling the NYS Thruway myself, rest stops included.
Traveling through a few small towns to the camp provides even less action, although Costello's staccato paragraphing keeps you asking 'are we there yet?' in anticipation. When they reach Paterville Camp, which is filled with rustic cottages and surrounded by the mountains, they're greeted by Ed, the camp director, and Shana, his assistant. It's all smiles and handshakes and Jack fixating on Shana's girlish figure. Jack, being a cop, is also fixated on seeing if the place is all it's cracked up to be. Another family, the Blairs, introduce themselves, and while Christine and the kids hit the lake, Jack goes exploring.
The electrified fence, the hidden cameras, and the service road he's not allowed to use start him wondering what Paterville Camp is hiding. All that firepower he brought along comes in handy, providing the most action-packed camp activity in the novel. When the camp's secret is finally revealed you won't be surprised, but Costello supplies enough action to keep you from being disappointed.
Vacation is a snack not a ful meal, but it will tide you over until the next zombie gimmick is served up.