Classic Horror Ads From Comic Books, Magazines & Newspapers

I recently came across this great collection of vintage horror ads from Cult Movies Magazine & TV's Facebook page (and thanks to Johnny Thunder and Hauntcast for posting this!). I can remember seeing a few of these crazy ads filling the back pages of horror magazines and comics as a little kid. I wanted to send a dollar to each, although even back then I knew I would receive a silly, cheap trinket in return. But wasn't that part of the fun??

Monsters! Vampires! Ghosts! HORROR! These ads pushed the creative limit, each trying to outshock the rest as they all fought for your attention (and your money) within the back pages of magazines and comics. They remind me of those great old haunted house ads that battled for my attention as I flipped through the local newspaper's Friday insert. Only the boldest and most shocking ads would be considered for a weekend visit! What a great time it was to be alive!

Enjoy this really great collection of the hilarious and crazy ads of the past!

Image courtesy of Flickr.

Image courtesy of House Of The Unusual.

  
  

Hangin' Out At Closed Casket Studios

I'm always reminded of how cool it really is to live in Ohio in regards to all things Halloween. A rich history of famous haunted attractions and a top-notch group of prop builders that all call this area home.

But having one right in your own back yard (okay, technically we now live 20 minutes apart since we both moved to new locations, but still!) is definitely one of the coolest!

This year, as things continue to get back to somewhat normal, I again got the chance to go hang out with good friend of the Cemetery, Dave Shonk at Closed Casket Studios, where we got to kick back with some special pumpkin beverages, talk about all things Halloween, and most importantly get a special sneak peek at all the new prop heads and masks to be unveiled at this year's Transworld Halloween & Attractions Show!

And now that the show is officially underway, I can show off his absolutely killer work. Thanks, Dave, for letting me come hang out and get some much-needed Halloween energy from your cool shop!

And if you happen to be in the St. Louis area, do yourself a favor and go hit Dave's booth to check out his incredible work. Closed Casket Studios is at Transworld booth #407.

Check out that old novelty Halloween Sounds of Horror cassette! Wouldn't it be cool to be able to hear the wonderful sounds of that old "spooky sounds" cassette again??

(And thanks for the swag! You KNOW I'm a sucker for old Haunted Schoolhouse & Laboratory memorabilia!!)

Be Mine...

Happy Valentine's Day!

More vintage monster Valentines here.

 

The Original 1954 "Godzilla" Film Score

Death Waltz Recording Company does it again, this time with Akira Ifukube's score to the original daikaiju classic, "Godzilla" from 1954. And for a limited time, you can listen to the entire score, courtesy of Empire Magazine.

Listen to the classic score in its entirety here.


 

Classic Monsters Linocut Book Project

Recently, I was digging around in my mom's basement and I found an old art project that I had done while I was a student in college. It was a book of three linocut prints done for a printmaking class in about 1996. I decided to do a book on classic movie monsters.

I started with the cover, which was completely covered front and back in black fur (I was in a black fur phase, because I also used it to cover a CD packaging cover project as well as a lowrider bicycle seat around the same time - I only got a C on the cd project, but I still have that sweet bike in my basement)...

The first spread was dedicated to my all-time favorite, Boris Karloff as Frankenstein's Monster!

The second spread was Count Dracula, although I'm not sure why I went with Hammer's version, played by Christopher Lee. I guess I had something against Bela Lugosi back then? But I love Bela Lugosi, so Christopher Lee must have been the only reference material I had handy for a project that I was surely running late on...

And the final spread goes back to Boris Karloff, this time as The Mummy. And yes, I did glue real sand to the edges of the pages...

For each spread, I ended up doing a linoleum cut of each monster, printing each color sequentially. I then did the background spread for each, adding the printed pages for each, cutting out the print, and then assembling all the pieces together to form each page spread. I don't recall what grade I received on this project, but it must have been okay because I ended up getting a minor in printmaking. 

I spent many hours in the printmaking studio, including many hours of making screenprints of band shirts that we sold on the side to make money. Maybe I should have also gotten a minor in business!!