My favorite "Garbage Pail Kids" sticker

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With a foot of snow coming tomorrow, I'm REALLY wishing I was on a beach right now!

My cool new banner!

My new banner was made by my friend Bobby Beeman, from stickers that he scanned from his collection. These stickers were part of the 1974 Topps Monster Initials series of trading cards. Like me, Bobby is a fellow soldier in the Universal Monster Army, a gathering place for collectors of vintage movie monster memorabilia and fans of classic monster movies. I recommend you enlist there.

I also recommending visiting the website I-Mockery, a very entertaining place full of articles, trivia, cartoons, games and even a forum. They even have a monster initial generator so YOU can spell out your initials with ones from the trading card series! Ain't that swell?

I know you're headed over there now, so I might as well just end this post here.

Strange shot glasses

For a strange drinking man--er, head--like me, strange bar equipment is essential. That's why I snatched up these '50s-'60s vintage shot glasses, when I found each of them for sale--they're silly and creepy, rather like your humble blog host.

Notice that the eyes on the faces on these glasses FOLLOW you:

Now I need to find a taxidermied moose head that does the same thing, to hang over my bar...

In Chicago this Friday the 13th?

If YOU will be in the Chicago area this Friday, Nov. 13th, check out the sale at HORRORBLES! It's the coolest store in Berwyn, Illinois! (A better compliment is to mention that it's the official sore--I mean STORE!--of Fangoria Entertainment!) It's Illinois' best-known horror and sci-fi memorabilia shop!

This Friday HORRORBLES will be open thirteen hours (11:00 AM to the bewitching hour of midnight!) and everything will be 13% off!

And at 11:00 PM, HORRORBLES will be showing Friday The 13th (1980) and Friday The 13th VII (1988) in their Galerie Theatre! $5 gets you popcorn and soda, and there's only 16 seats in the theatre, so call the store or stop in to reserve your spot!

HORRORBLES sells autographs, prints, t-shirts, toys, masks, movies, models and magazines! And more! (Oh, the only models they sell are of the "plastic, glue together" type--none of the "Elle Macpherson" type, sadly.) They are located at:

6729 W. Roosevelt Rd.
Berwyn, IL.
60402
Phone # (708)-484-7370

Countdown Day 31: Halloween with Raymond Castile

Raymond Castile, a journalist in Missouri, has quite a list of Monster Kid bona fides. He is the creator of the website The Gallery of Monster Toys, a moderator at the Universal Monster Army message boards, the only other actor besides Jose Mojica Marins to play the Brazilian cult horror character "Coffin Joe," and the 2007 Rondo Award honoree as "Monster Kid of the Year".

He's also a long-time friend, I'm proud to say.

We recently talked about his Halloween experiences by e-mail. Here's me asking Raymond about his All Hallow's Eve impressions.
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Max: I'll start with Halloween treats. What were your most and least favorite candies to get trick-or-treating?

My favorites were Snickers and Peanut Butter Cups, and least favorite was toffee wrapped in black and orange paper.

What were some of the costumes you remember wearing as a kid?

I dressed up in various Ben Cooper costumes when I was younger, then more homemade stuff when I was older. Over the years, I dressed as Frankenstein, mummies, ape men. I don't know where the childhood photos are now, but in a couple childhood pictures of me on Halloween, I think I'm dressed as a skeleton in one and maybe Batman or Spider-Man in the other. When Imagineering came out with "The Face" makeup kits, I started using those to the exclusion of other masks. I loved painting and gluing on my own foam appliances.

What decorations and Halloween "gear" do you recall?

I remember paper decorations hanging on doors and windows. I especially liked the ones with fuzzy surfaces. I remember lots of honeycomb and accordion crepe tissue witches and scarecrows.

Did you trick or treat on your own or with others? Did you play tricks on anyone?

I went trick or treating with my dad and brother, sometimes with neighbor kids. But no, never played a trick.

Describe this year's Bash for me--how was it decorated?

The decorations are not really important where this party is concerned. But I had some impressive stuff on display, such as a giant devil and a giant spider, both very scary. When the kids walked in the door, the giant spider was the first thing they saw. It got some enthusiastic comments. But the activities are the main attraction at this party. The kids could play a bunch of games, eat cookies and cupcakes, romp around, get their faces painted and show off their costumes. We had cake walks every 10 minutes and two costume contests, and a magic show. We gave away tons of candy and prizes. For music, we're still using the old spooky songs you sent me a few years ago, interspersed with modern songs.

Any severed heads there?

A hanging severed female vampire head.

You sent me pictures of a charitable Halloween event from last year. In one photo, you appear to have some spooky groupies. Who are those bewitching ladies with you?


The ladies are members of the Community Council of St. Charles County. The event was called "Fright for Food". I hosted it, told ghost stories, showed a Powerpoint about the paranormal, all in my costume. Admission was a can of food. We donated the food to a local pantry.


You're a monster mensch, Raymond! Do you celebrate at work in any way? I dressed up as a robot recently at the supermarket where I work, and was given the task of giving treats to the kids in the store.

I have some Halloween garland that hangs around my cubicle all year round, along with a big El Santo blow molded action figure, a rubber Boglin tied to my telephone, the rubber Mothra you gave me last time I was in Pittsburgh, and a stuffed Mr. Mucus toy. The most prominent toy on my desk is an 18" talking Mini-Me doll wearing an anti-smoking T-shirt and Mardi Gras beads. I need Mini-Me to assist me in carrying out evil deeds.

In my desk drawers, I have "emergency monster toys," including the recent Cast Away Mego-style figures of the Devil, Witch, Grim Reaper and Ghost. I keep them in the desk, within easy reach, just in case they ever become necessary. You never know when you might need an emergency monster toy.


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Below: Two pictures of Raymond in Bigfoot costume.




Read an earlier interview with Raymond here.

See Raymond's short parody film, The Blind Date of Coffin Joe, here.

I got terrible head on my birthday from a friend!

Oh, it's not what you're thinking, perv. No, I got TERRIBLE HEAD on my birthday last Wednesday:

I don't know what YOU were fantasizing when you read the subject line, but I was fantasizing the style! Because nothing is so stylish as a cigarette-smoking skull with crossbones!

Hey, his eyes light up and his jaw opens and shuts in maniacal laughter:


Not surprisingly, it was made in China; it seems to be a late '80s or early '90s Halloween item.

It also has some mild Engrish as an amusing bonus:

The "voice control" actually means "sound activated."

It has flashing lights--but doesn't make a good "flash light".

And it doesn't make "produce sound", either, dammit. Not once have I heard the noise of celery snapping coming from the thing, or heard it make the sploosh of a watermelon crashing to the floor, or even the wail of a head of lettuce screaming in pain.

Still, it makes me make "hahaha" sounds when I turn it on--it's so wonderfully tacky!

Of course, you could it see as an educational toy with a noble message: "Don't smoke or you'll wind up a skeleton!"

A wonderful present from a thoughtful, loyal friend--Raymond Castile. Thanks, Raymond!

My Stuff Saturday: Spending time with Linda

Above is a clock that is on the wall next to my computer. I cherish it, because it was painted by my late friend Linda Miller. She did a magnificent, detailed job.

Every character on the face was someone Linda and I (two classic horror film fans) mutually considered a "friend" if entertaining folk from the fictional film universe can be considered "friends." Do you recognize all the characters, and can you name all the actors behind the roles?

Birthday of a severed head!

Above: I was one lucky drunken severed head the year Coffin Joe (or is it Coffin Ray?--I can never remember) helped me celebrate my birthday!

As today is my birthday, I feel free to post on anything I feel like sharing. Well, I feel like sharing photos I took on a window-shopping outing I took last June--though it wasn't on my birthday. Among other places, Jane and I went to Mars and visited a costume shop! (Click on the pics below to enlarge.)

Mars, Pennsylvania, that is--and the surrounding area. Here's the front of the costume shop we visited:

Here's the side:

A sign on the door that made me laugh:

Cool costumes, props, toys and masks awaited inside.

A severed head greeted us:


Below: Boney McPirate screams, "Avast, ye mortals!" (Or is that "'alf-assed, ye mortals"?):

The same picture is more dramatic with the flash off:

Legal aliens:


Jane the Voodoo queen finds a toy to play with!

Some very lonely-looking Frankenstein Monster masks from the movie Van Helsing:

After the costume shop, we went back to Pittsburgh and visited Big Lots, where I took a photo of a cool monster figure that I successfully resisted buying:

We saw a giant leprechaun on the way back. Thank God he had his gold (and a few mellowing beers), or else he might have been dangerous in the high traffic area:

Then we saw a giant eggman (John Lennon would have been pleased):

Once we reached Pittsburgh, we drove around, and saw buildings that made us think even more of giants:


Across the street, an axe for a rockin' 50 foot woman:

And next to the credit union, a closed and forlorn, possibly abandoned warehouse for a wholesale toy and novelty company, with interesting but lonely faces in the windows:



I went to the front door, which was painted over, mostly:


But I got the camera up against a hole in the paint and found, amongst piles of junk, a mysterious message written on a column:


All of this would have been enough to make my day great, but waiting at home was a package from my good friend Jim Bertges. Inside, an old Aurora guillotine model with a figure that had my face on it! Good for hours o' head-choppin' fun! Hoo-hah!


Today can't be any better than that day. But with the great birthday wishes I've already seen posted online, and with ones sent to my e-mail inbox, it's gonna be just as good. I couldn't be happier!

Happy birthday wishes to anyone out there born on this date, and happy non-birthday wishes to everyone else!

My Stuff Saturday

Among the collectables I value are my Sideshow movie monster figures. And I'm especially charmed by my Wolf Man figure. He's so lifelike, it's uncanny! I mean uncanny in the strictest, sense--I can't figure out how it moves, but somehow it does. Fortunately, it never gives me trouble, really. It's easy to feed--

Though sometimes he's not too discriminating where he drinks--


And I've caught him doing things he oughtn't--


Things like that have sometimes scared my other monster toys, like my Cruickshank Phantom Doll--



He's had to jump up onto a table to keep away from Wolfie. But in spite of all that, I love my Wolf Man. Do you love yours? HEY!-- Now THERE'S something to say to strangers that'll keep 'em on their toes! (Knock knock) "Hi. I love my Wolf Man. Do you love yours?"

It'd be fun to watch their faces go through seven or eight expressions tryin' to figure out what the hell you mean!

Before they close the door, ask 'em if you can leave a pamphlet on the Wolf Man. If they say "yes," you can probably get a few bucks if you hold out a empty can. You can use the money to buy more Sideshow figures...

My stuff Saturday

This bloggin' habit is a bit tricky. It doesn't pay anything, so you don't want it to become too much of a chore. On the other hand, if you only post when the spirit moves, you sometimes don't post often enough to get people to visit regularly, and your audience dwindles. (And God knows I need an audience.) Well, ya can always post movie reviews, but, hell, everyone does that. SO, I'm gonna share fantastic factoids on Thursdays, and posts about about weird stuff I own on Saturdays. And post on everything else at other, unscheduled, times. (Like the recent, first-time Dracula Con in Winber, PA, more on Wonderfest in Kentucky, and a trip to a costume shop.)

One thing in all "my stuff" is a full set of 1979 Alien bubblegum cards. I love having them. I was very young in 1979, and Alien scared the crap outta me. It's still one of the most atmospheric, claustrophobic, and suspenseful films I've ever seen. I rushed to buy the cards when they came out. I wanted to preserve those amazing images, in those days before most people had access to a vcr, to remind me how I felt watching the movie.


The photos above are ones I borrowed from someplace on the web years ago. My cards are all now in an album, although the stickers, gum, and wrappers are long gone. (Wish I still had the stickers and one wrapper.)

You can imagine how excited I was to meet the movie's title monster at the recent Wonderfest con! He was shopping in the dealer's room, but when he realized I'd recognized him (his sunglasses didn't fool me!), he left. I caught up with him in the display room and asked for his autograph, and THIS is how he responded:


In case you can't tell what he's doing, he's flipping me the bird:

Guess some celebrities still cop an attitude, even when they aren't a box-office draw anymore. Jerk. I bet none of the other stars from that film act like that toward fans, even though none of THEM have worked much in recent years EITHER!

I hear the alien from Mac and Me gladly signs autographs.