Small Screen Treasures: Two Gems of Seventies Horror Television
In my previous post I focused on a classic horror film of the 1970s, and in this post I shift to commentary on horror television from the same decade. Last weekend I watched a series of VH1 programs that looked back at various aspects of the 1970s. Although I was born in the mid-1960s I […]
The Legend of Hell House as Neglected and Eclipsed Classic
Of course, there are a variety of factors that contribute to the success or lack of success in films as they are received by viewing audiences. Sometimes a film that is not well received is poorly written, acted, or directed, and sometimes all of these aspects are well done, but other factors related to the […]
Timothy Beal: Religion and Its Monsters
Timothy K. Beal is Florence Harkness Professor of Religion and director of the Baker-Nord Center for the Humanities at Case Western Reserve University. He has published eight books, including Roadside Religion: In Search of the Sacred, the Strange, and the Substance of Faith (Beacon, 2005), which was a New York Times Book Review Editor’s Choice […]
Beowulf: Anti-Christian Bias, Nordic Jesus Christ, or Mistaken Interpretations?
Steve Biodrowski of Cinefantastique Online asked me if I had seen Beowulf, and whether I had an opinion on allegations he has heard that the film contains anti-Christian bias. Although the film looked intriguing because of its high-quality computer animation, I had not seen the film and was not able to form an opinion, but […]
I Am Legend: Alternative Ending on DVD Provides Food for Thought
Cinefantastique Online recently noted that FirstShowing.net has posted the ending originally intended for I Am Legend which will be included on the DVD for the film to be released in stores March 18. If you have already seen the film I would encourage you to watch the alternative ending to see how it compares to […]
Arnold Kunert and the 50th Anniversary Edition of 20 Million Miles to Earth
Arnold Kunert is the friend and agent of Ray Harryhausen, the legendary stop-motion animator and special effects wizard. In the past Arnold was interviewed here in general on Ray’s work and career. In the following interview Arnold made some time to talk specifically about the colorized 50th anniversary edition of Ray’s classic film 20 Million […]
30 Days of Night and the Oppositional Reconstruction of Vampire Symbolism
Over the weekend I had the chance to watch several films that have recently been released on DVD. I was especially looking forward to taking a look at 30 Days of Night given that it is vampire film (one of my favorite movie monster icons), I enjoyed the graphic novel by Steve Niles upon which […]
Marc Scott Zicree: Rod Serling and The Twilight Zone Companion
“You’re traveling through another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind; a journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That’s the signpost up ahead – your next stop, the Twilight Zone!” If you have spent much time at all watching classic television from the late 1950s […]
HomeHauntNews: E-Zine for the Increasing Number of Home Haunters
The haunted attraction industry is growing with our culture’s increasing interest in Halloween, a phenomenon noted in books like Jack Santino, ed., Halloween and Other Festivals of Death and Life (University of Tennessee Press, 1994), and Nicholas Rogers, Halloween: From Pagan Ritual to Party Night (Oxford University Press, 2002). The popularity of the holiday has […]
Ben Chapman’s Passing: The Loss of the Man Behind an Iconic Cinema Creature
I received an email announcement from Rue Morgue Radio announcing that Ben Chapman, the actor who played the Creature from the Black Lagoon in the land-based scenes from the film, passed away this morning. As I have mentioned previously, this film was the first horror film I saw as a young boy that both frightened […]
