Tonight’s a special night. Not just because I’m going to write about a seriously cool thing I did last weekend, but because I’m actually going to write about a seriously cool thing I did last weekend, and not 3 months ago. Retro Ghouls is actually up to date…for once!
Last weekend was the Days of the Dead horror convention in Charlotte and ol’ Deej made the scene. Days of the Dead is well established, but this is their first time setting up camp in Charlotte. The first pleasant thing I found was that it was at the Sheraton, which is the former home of the Mad Monster Party, so it’s an old familiar stomping ground of mine. I’ve spent many a weekend walking that long hallway, surrounded by monsters and fans. The name of the con may not be the same, but it was nice to see some familiar faces (both famous and not), and even some of the same staff. From what I hear, The Sheraton will no longer house the Mad Monster Party, but will be the home of Days of the Dead for the next few years, so it’s a win for the fans either way. Personally, I don’t care what you call it. Fill the place with cast members from my favorite slasher flicks, make the vibe fun, and just take my damn money already. This just means I get TWO horror cons in Charlotte every year. Double win!
Let’s get down to business. I arrived around noon and was starving, so instead of making my usual straight shot to my favorite celebs’s table, I went to the bar to inhale a fantastic burger. Just look at this thing.
Unfortunately, while the food was totally worth the money, the drinks weren’t. Later in the day, I was treated to a $12 “whisky and ginger ale”, which basically amounted to a $11.00 cup of ginger ale with maybe $1.00 worth of a tiny splash of whisky. I paid almost as much for that as I did for the burger. So, lesson learned: Find alternative ways to booze it up unless you want all your autograph money to go down the drain at the bar.
Back to positives. Time for Heather Langenkamp! This isn’t the first time I’ve met her, but she still remains my all-time favorite scream queen, so she’s worth a second autograph. And I’m not a multiple autograph kind of guy. At this point, she and almost the entire cast of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3 were at a panel that was letting out in a few minutes, so I just hung out in the newly formed line at her table, waiting for her to show up. She must have gotten held up though, because that wait lasted for nearly an hour.
It did provide a little entertainment though. I chatted it up with some other horror nerds that were around me, as well as Linnea Quigley, who I love to death, and who I’ve had the pleasure of meeting before. I told her about how I play stuff from the Return of the Living Dead soundtrack on my show all the time, and we talked about Trash and some other projects she’s been part of. She’s another one who is incredibly gracious to her fans. Can’t say enough good things about her.
Also, Thom Matthews (Tommy Jarvis from Friday the 13th Part VI) was signing nearby, and that’s when I spotted this bit of trouble brewing. Ummm…
Finally, Heather showed up, we chatted for a bit, and I congratulated her on the Days of the Dead Hall of Fame award that she’d received on Friday night. Here she is with Tommy Faircloth, the other recipient of the award.
Tommy and I run in the same circles and he’s a solid guy. He’s a Columbia, SC based filmmaker and also organizes the Crimson Screen Horror Film Fest, which is happening this weekend in Charleston. This festival is absolutely cursed though, I’m convinced of it. I’ve missed it every single year it’s been on and it looks like I’ll have to miss it again this weekend. But, I’ve got SO MANY THINGS happening this summer that it nearly makes up for it. I’ll barely have a free weekend from now till September. I’ve mentioned him before on RG as being the director of Family Possessions, which features Felissa Rose. He recently cast her again in his new film, A Nun’s Curse, for which he’s launched an Indiegogo. So go check that out and maybe throw him a few bucks if you can.
Heather and I did the whole autograph/picture thing and also talked about Hellraiser: Judgment (she has a cameo!), which I’ll be reviewing soon. I’ve seen it and believe me, I’ve got things to say. Best off, I finally scored this copy of her documentary, I Am Nancy, which I’ve been dying to see forever:
All the rest of the Dream Warriors were set up nearby (except for Patricia Arquette), so I went down the line and met EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM.
First up was Penelope “Welcome to primetime, bitch!” Sudrow, aka “Jennifer”. She’s actually the only one I didn’t get a picture with, only because after talking to her for a while, I honestly just forgot. Got the autograph though, as you’ll see in a bit…
Next up is one of my favorites, Ira “The Wizard Master” Heiden, aka “Will”. He was just as cool to talk to as you would imagine, and luckily no one else was at his table at the time, so we talked for quite a bit. Pretend that I Photoshopped Emperor Palpatine lightning coming out of our hands. It’s getting late.
Next up was Bradley “The Human Puppet” Gregg, aka “Phillip”. We didn’t have long to talk, but he was kind enough to record a promo for my show. Cool guy! Luckily, they didn’t seat him near any windows.
Rodney “The Quiet One” Eastman, aka “Joey” was next. He was wearing the raddest scarf in the building. Is it just me, or did Joey have the easiest gig in this movie? Dude said like two lines of dialogue and then got into some bondage play with a hot, topless poster girl. I mean, as far as ways to go out, it beats getting turned into a roach.
Next up was Ken “It’s time to stop guessin’ and start messin’” Sagoes, aka “Kincaid”. Speaking of dialogue, if you don’t think Kincaid got the best lines in this movie (maybe even better than Freddy himself), you haven’t paid attention.
And finally, that brings us to Jennifer “Beautiful and BAD” Rubin, aka “Taryn”. She’s still lovely after all these years, and was incredibly sweet. And TALL. Granted, being taller than me isn’t exactly that hard to pull off… This is one of my favorite pics of the day. Needle glove! And best of all, Rodney Eastman was the photographer.
What about the autographs, Deej? This is now the most expensive piece of glossy photo paper I own. Trust me, it was not an easy decision, choosing between getting all of these or getting the professional group photo with the cast (yes, that was a thing), but I’m happy with which way I went. It was costing a pretty penny either way. WORTH IT.
That’s it for now. Check out Part 2 coming soon, where I meet two of the nicest guys in horror (one for the second time), and add more to the radio show promo collection. There’s no bigger thrill as a fan than awkwardly shoving your phone in a famous monster’s face and convincing them to read for you. See you soon!
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