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Wow Christmas is here soon. Just this weekend, all the holiday cheer will be here. Family and friends coming together exchanging gifts and eating some goodies. I hope you enjoy yourself this holiday season and sit back enjoy some horror host Christmas specials. Look back soon next week for a year end review for the horror host community and this blog. Thanks for all your support this year and looking forward to giving even more.
Every Thanksgiving there is some fun turkey day cheesy movie marathon that Joel from MST3K fame. This year it is happening again thanks to Shout! Factory. This year will be a special one because Joel will not be hosting alone he will have a special guest Jonah Ray. Jonah Ray is important guest host because he will be taking over as host on the New MST3K revival. The marathon will stat 9 am PT/ 12 ET tomorrow. The marathon will contain six MST3K episodes. You can watch the entire marathon on the shout! Factory website. Link to the Marathon
I got this information last minute yesterday. Yesterday was the funeral of John Zacherle. It was at 2:00 pm at the Plaza Jewish Community Chapel. The Chapel is located at 630 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY 10024, USA. I hope it was a proper and many attended to honor him. His remains have been cremated and will be cared for by his family. Their was a live stream on the chapels site for the service. Which is interesting never heard about that before.
It seems like their is a public tribute to be planned at the Chiller Theater Expo in April if 2017. if you like updates you can click on the Expo website about the weekend long tribute event. Chiller Theater Expo website I will keep you update on more information comes available.
R.I.P Zacherley. Your legacy will live on in the many horror hosts that continue the tradition of horror hosting to this day. Each of them have gained some ind of inspiration from you and use it to continue the legacy. If you would like more updates you can also check his website out Zacherley's website
People are still sadly reeling from the news of Zacherley passing. He was a true legend in the Horror host community. If there was a Mount Rushmore of horror hosts he would be on it. I wanted to honor Zacherley in some way. So I decided to ask horror host and other folks What did Zacherley mean to them? Each person may have a different meaning to what he was to them. He may have been a friend, their first horror host, or just a legend. It is interesting to see how much one person can inspire so much in different people. I hope this honors him and help keep his legendary career going.
I thought I would be the first one to answer the question. The meaning of Zacherley to me is a person who was given an opportunity to continue the legacy of horror hosting mantel after Vampira. And boy did he run with opportunity to create a wonderful long career. He helped to bring life to those old classic movies and laughs to his audience. Basically in a nutshell Zacherley meant to me was the true embodiment of a horror host. He hosted those wonderful classic cheesy movies, made you laugh, entertained you and just generally cared for his fans. And that to me is an ultimate template for a great horror host. He will be missed and his legacy shall be remembered.
In the next section is some of the horror hosts that wrote about what Zacherley meant to them.
Uncle Vlad from Uncle Vlad's House of Horrors:
Sadly, since I am only 21 years old, I never had the opportunity to witness Mr. Zacherle's greatness, and I never got to meet the man, however, he inspired other horror hosts that followed, like Count Gore De Vol and Svengoolie who served as my main influences so with that, I owe a debt to him for being a pioneer in this field.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Count Gore De Vol from Count Gore De Vol's Creature Feature:
What can you say about one of the first generation of
Horror Hosts who set the bar high for all future hosts. He was the
epitome of the horror host. I only spent one wonderful afternoon with
him and learned so much. He was gracious, generous, talented
and...SCARY!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sicko - Psychotic from the Sicko - Psychotic Show:
Zacherley was an incredible entertainer who's work and talent stands the test of time. He made us laugh up to the end, and that is a wonderful gift he shared with us all. I am touched by the many fans who payed tribute to him while he was alive and I think he passed on knowing his legacy would continue to be honored and respected.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Bobby Gammonster from Monster Movie Night:
What did Zacherley mean to me? Growing up I saw his picture in Famous Monsters Magazine, the article talked about him being a Horror Host, I did not know what a Horror Host was at that time, I thought he was a movie star and so equated Horror Hosts with being stars just like the actors in the movies they had on their shows. I tried to find all I could in picture form about Zacherley, he was to me the ultimate monster actor and showed a monster way of life that started me on the road I followed and continue to do . He showed me that monsters were not only scary but fun and that it was fun to be scary. He is and always will be the father of all Horror Hosts. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Vincent Grimmly from Night Chills Theatre:
Not only is Zacherley the grandfather of all horror hosts (as Vampira is our grandmother), but for me, he was also the king of the great monster boom in the mid-20th century. When I think of Aurora models, I think of Zacherley. When I think of "Famous Monsters of Filmland" I think of Zacherley. When I think of the countless TV shows, novelty songs, books, comics, and toys that came out in that period of time, I think of Zacherley. His spirit loomed above all and for me it always will. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Roxsy Tyler's from Roxsy Tyler's Carnival of Horrors:
He inspired generations of horror hosts including myself but most importantly, hosts that came before me and inspired me the way he inspired them. I feel like he's our Grand Daddy especially to me because of his Philadelphia roots. He was an icon and now he's a legend. Rest In Peace, Cool Ghoul. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Lord Blood-Rah from Lord Blood-Rah Nerve Wrackin Theater:
Zacherley was the father of horror hosts. A complete package of great talent: amazing baritone voice, great look and wonderful sense of humor. Truly an original all horror hosts admire and aspire to.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Needles Gravedigger from Mausoleum of the Macabre:
Zacherley aka the Cool Ghoul has been highly influential on many horror
hosts including myself. He is an icon, someone that helped bring the
horror host into the pop culture canon. I saw him at Chiller Theatre a
few years back and he still brought that energy and charisma to the
place. He was in his 90's! It was amazing. He is an inspiration to all
horror hosts. He will be missed! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eric William from Saturday Fright Theater:
When I look back through the rich history of the Horror Host I can only
think of one King that started it all, and that’s John “Zacherley”
Zacherle. To try and put into words what he meant to the genre is very
difficult, but I feel confident in saying that without the efforts of
Zacherle none of us (Horror Hosts) would be here today. I grew up in
Northeast Ohio with the likes of Ghoulardi, Hoolihan, Big Chick and
Little John, but soon discovered the trailblazer, the King, Zacherley.
The moment I saw him come to life on my television I knew that was what I
wanted to do in life; I would become a horror host.
Without Zacherley leading the way there wouldn’t have been the influx
of Horror Hosts in the late 50’s and early 60’s. Drawing the viewer in
and making them feel like they were watching a movie with an old friend
was part of the charm, and magic, of Zacherley. It was that feeling
that became my inspiration. For the last 20 years, I have told people
at shows, and conventions, that Horror Hosts are all just descended from
the greats. We’ve all had our influences in life through the years,
and depending on where they live geographically they have a story about a
horror host that holds a special place in their heart. For me it all
goes back to the beginning. Without Zacherley leading the way there
wouldn’t have been a Ghoulardi, or a Hoolihan and Big Chuck Show, or a
Big Chuck and Lil’ John Show. Which means there would have been a
Saturday Fright Theater. For me all roads lead back to the one, and
only, John “Zacherley” Zacherle. Thank you Zacherley, thank you for
everything.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Screaming Soup crew from Screaming Soup:
One of the most influential horror hosts of all time, Zacherle blazed
unforgettable trails with his innovative humor and marketable persona
future hosts will always try to emulate. You will never be forgotten!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Veronique Von Venom from Veronique Von Venom on OSI 74:
Zacherley meant class. He reminded me of a Halloween-loving uncle who
wanted to share his collection of horror movies with me. It always felt
cozy watching Zacherley do his thing. Rest In Peace, uncle!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Halloween Jack from Haunted Theatre:
What Zacherley meant to me was Horror Hosting. He was the first Horror Host I knew of, the first Horror Host I ever met and he was the first Horror Host that, well made me know what a Horror Host was.
I can't say we were great friends, but I would like to believe we were friends all the same. Over a 20 year period, I saw him at least twice a year at the Chiller convention, I did have coffee with him once, did visit his apartment once and in the thrill of a lifetime, got to film with him on his set and listen to his wonderful stories.
Funny part is as often as I would see him in costume, he barely remembered me, but out of costume he would greet me with a warm smile, a smile of recognition and remembrance. He would shake my hand and say "ahhh, it's the lad with the Welsh name." In a sense it befuddled me that he couldn't remember Halloween Jack, but then made me feel good that as myself, I was more memorable to him.
Unfortunately because of both our health issues, I had not seen Zacherley in 5 years and that is something that I deeply regret. I knew he wouldn't live forever, no matter how much I had hoped that would be possible, but I had hoped he would be around a little longer so I could see that warm smile one more time. But I don't dwell on that, I think about how fortunate I was to have the time with him I did. And how fortunate
I am, because not everyone gets to meet their idols.
R.I.P. friend.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Count Gregula from Count Gregula's Crypt:
Zacherley held a very macabre meaning for me. He vas a pioneer in horror hosting. Having met the man made me know that being humble is an important trait to keep in this business. Ghoul things come to those that vait and vork hard. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wolfman Mac from Wolfman's Mac's Chiller Drive-in:
You know, I've always said that Zacharly was one of our best, most
classic horror hosts. Everything from the atmosphere on his show to his
campy music, was unique, schlocky, and perfectly creepy. He's exactly
what I always wanted to be when I grew up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Slash from Graveyard Tales:
To me he was a trend setter and brought a lot of diff unique styles
To the whole horror hosting itself. As one of the few pioneers him Vampira and Sammy Terry there longevity that has lasted for decades in the genre itself as well as the sub culture and pop culture speaks a ton for the mark he left on the horror hosting community. He will be missed! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I decided to open up to fans besides horror hosts to answer the same question. Here are their answers below.
When
I woke up this morning and read of the passing of John Zacherle I had
to stop and think how much horror hosts have had an impact in my life. A
local horror host was a TV friend for a gawky ten year old when real
ones were in short supply.
My
thirty year journey with Zacherle began in 1986 on a trip with my
mother to Montgomery Wards. We had bought our first VCR some two years
before and were taking it in for maintenance when I came across a bin of
discount VHS tapes. While browsing through the stack I came across a
tape called “Horrible Horror” hosted by Zacherley. Who was Zacherley and
what was I about to discover?
Once I
got home I shoved down two servings of french bread pizza and popped
the tape into the VCR. I loved what I saw. I connected with Zach's humor
and antics immediately. But I loved his glorious laugh the most. So
much of what I had seen on my local horror host show was present here,
pioneered by the cool ghoul himself. What a wonder!
I
followed Zacherley through his Archives release as well as his CD
output so he has never been far from my thoughts. Today when I
co-produce our live Robo-Cat Horror Theater show with The Great Razooly
is Zacherley's standards that I strive for and his sense of fun. It is a
pleasure to do these shows and introduce a new generation to the horror
host. Zach set the bar high. We will carry on in his grand tradition.
Thanks for the memories Zach!
- Robert Hindman - California
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ First
heard of him back in early 70 s after hearing dinner with drac on an
old k tel album called looney tunes that my dad had. Few years later I
realized he had a show that hosted old horror movies. Little did I know
at the time he was KING of the horror hosts on the east coast while the
QUEEN vampira was on the west coast. Rip Zach you've touched us all - David T. Janasiak -Wisconsin ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I would just like to thank everyone who participated in this tribute. It was appreciated and great to read what everyone thought of this horror host icon. And shows for sure that his legacy will be remembered for years to come. R.I.P Zacherley.
Well Halloween came this week in all it's glory. The costume kids were running around sugared up on their candy hauls, Jack-O lanterns put out for the final time, and monsters partying the night away. Hope all your Halloweens were safe and fun. Also wondered did anyone watch some fun horror host specials? If the answer is no than just check out some below. What else can I say in this opening oh yeah Christmas Christmas go away come back when your suppose to.
Well let's get rolling with some horror host news updates. This week is a special addition it is chocked full with Halloween specials.
The first Halloween Special comes from Dr. Paul Bearer II. It features some zombie jinxes.
The next one is The Night Chills Theater by Vincent Grimmly. Vincent Grimmly and a special guest of the vampire variety goes all MST3k style on this Halloween special.
Another Horror host special was done by Bobby Gammonster. In this episode he hosts the creepy movie The Ghost.
The trailer:
The full episode:
The next one is more of an interview than a Halloween special.The House of Bone Halloween Special interview with Mr. Ghastly. Covers multiple of topics that comes with Halloween.
The next special is done by Colonel Graves. The special is called, "The Public Domain Drive-in Presents The Haunted Radio Halloween Special." It a mix of audio and visiual fun. With some classic audio tale and some Halloween videos.
The next one is a not really a Halloween Special but Count Gore De Vol decided to feature night of the living dead as a classic to get you through Halloween. Check it out below with some really interesting facts by Gore. It is in three separate parts so I'll post the link below so you can check it out in it's full glory.
If I missed any specials please comment below and tell me. I am sure I did. I will also be adding more if I come across any more.
It's horror news time. Not too much this week. I have a side project I am working on for the blog so wanted to mainly focus on getting the horror host Halloween specials up. But their was one special item I wanted to report on.
It was Godzilla's birthday on November the 3rd. He is 62 and doesn't look bad for his age that crazy old lizard. He has seen some facelifts and changes recently with the new American Godzilla in 2014 and Shin Godzilla this year. I am hoping to see him come back even more in the upcoming years. Just a side note I do say he when I am talking about Godzilla. I like to think of him as a dude lol but who knows. Any way happy birthday Godzilla and let's hope for many more years of destruction in your future.
All rights going to artist.
Just rocking out on his birthday.
rights to artist.
Here is a classic to celebrate his birthday for your viewing pleasure. Godzilla Vs. King Kong (1964).
I thought it was cold the other week but it is even getting colder. There are also even more leafs on the ground and everywhere else. But sadly instead of soaking up all that Halloween goodness it seems like everyone is already jumping to get ready for Christmas. At this point of time, I am trying to get my horror movie marathons done, pumpkin craving, and eating some treats. I know it is early but I would like to wish everyone a Happy Halloween and I hope you get a treat and not a trick.
Last week, horror host news covered some horror host Halloween specials and some other updates.This week will be the same but also mixed with some other horror host goodness. Check it out below.
This weekend will be a fun fest that happens every year in Cleveland, OH. It is the The Big Chuck and Lil' John Ghoulardi Fest. The dates for the fest will be October 28,29, and 30th.The fest celebrates the history of Cleveland horror hosts. The event also features themes of Sci-Fi, Horror, Comedy, and Nostalgia. The guests at the fest will include horror hosts from Cleveland's past and present. The hosts that will be at the fest are Big Chuck, Little John, Son of Ghoul, Grimm Gorri, Janet Decay and many others. The event will also include pizza fights, Ghoulardi Shock theater, costume contest, scaryoake contest, and so much more.
The official location of the fest is the La Villa Party and Conference Center 11500 Brookpard Rd. Cleveland, OH. It looks like it will be another historic event. If you would like more information you can click on the link below that will take you to the fest homepage.
Last week, I reported that The Mummy and the Monkey was going to be having the Halloween Special coming out this week. It was officially released on the October the 25th. The special is entitled, "The Mummy and The Monkey's Pumpkin Spice Halloween Special 2." As stated last week it was filmed at the 7 Floors of Hell in Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds in Berea ,Ohio. In the episode it looks like the two are up to all there old tricks. There are skits and some movie madness with the feature "Horror Hotel." I will post the special below for your viewing pleasure. And if you want even more Mummy and the Monkey fun you can always see them this weekend at Ghoulardifest.
The special:
Next in horror host news is all about Sammy Terry. He is going to be having a busy schedule coming up. The Full schedule will be posted below. But one of the events I want pull out is the October 31st. Halloween Day Birthday streaming special. Which will be featuring"Night of the Living Dead" in the episode. It will be streamed on his show webpage. The link will be featured below.
Looks like Elvira is going to be in horror host news again this week. She will be again featured on TV. This time on AMC Comic Book Men. Comic Book Men is a show that features the comic book shop that Kevin Smith that director of Clerks, Red State, and many other classics owns. The shop is called,"Jay and Silent Bob's Secret Stash" located in New Jersey. And the show basically follows the employees of the shop and some of the interesting items that come in the shop each week. In Episode 2 of Season 6, the guy at the shop plans a blood drive and they get help from Elvira Mistress of the Dark. Also in the summary of the episode, it says that during the episode the guys talk about the joys of Mystery Science Theater 3,000. So it looks like a packed horror host episode. It will be on this Sunday at midnight.
Below is a preview for the episode and some promo photos from the episode.
Elvira in her throne at the shop.
Promo poster for the new season
If you can't get to Ghoulardifest and still want meet a horror host than you can have the chance by meeting Penny Dreadful on the 29th. She will be at Harvest of Horror located at 394 Old Meeting House Rd. East Falmouth, Massachusetts. The event will run 6:30 PM to 9:00 PM. At the event she will be meeting fans and selling her DVDs. Have some scary fun and meet a host while you are there.
One last item, I must post and it is hard to post. It was reported that Zacherley the cool Ghoul or Roland to others hap passed away on October 27. Not much more information is know about what happen or when the funeral will take place. Check back here in the weekly updates or I will be doing separate postings about it. He will be missed especially around this Halloween. I thought it was interesting that one of his last news update on his website talked about Halloween coming up and Chiller Theater. Both were big parts of his life. With the ending of this week horror host news update I will leave with the last news update by zacherle.
Hello, hello, and Happy Halloween. It’s
time for the little ghouls and goblins to dress up and run around from
house to house for the Gimmee, Gimmee, Gimmees! Make sure you give them
lots of gooey goodness to keep your local dentist in business. Who
knows? You may need him in an emergency!
For those of you attending Chiller Theater, my old stomping grounds,
this weekend, have an extra laugh on your old friend, Zacherley! Enjoy
the show! Tell Kevin Clement how much fun you had! He’s a good boy.
I will be spending a quiet weekend in the old castle tower with a few
friends I dug up on a recent walk through the local cemetery. While I do
miss Chiller Theater I do find that retirement keeps me busy.
Well, off now! Enjoy the night, whatever you are! - Zacherley
That seems to do it this week for horror host news. sorry for ending it on a sad note this week.
It's horror news time.
I reported on many of horror icons in the horror news updates such as Micheal Myers, Chucky, Freddy, and Ash. I had a little article that focused on Jason from Friday the 13th but nothing about his own franchise and what is going on with it. It was one of the most talked about topics on the morning of October 26th on Facebook. It seems the production of Friday the 13th newest installment has found a filming location and a start date. Earlier this year it was reported by many media sources that Friday the 13th franchise could get a new movie or even a TV show on the CW network. But those fleeting nightmares of a new movie and show was soon dashed. The movie was release date was pushed back due to rewrites and other items. And the CW show was shelved due to reasons unknown.
This left many to wonder will there favorite hockey mask machete wielding slasher favorite will be on the big screen again. Well just this week it was reported in an interview with Brad Fuller and Andrew Form that they are indeed continuing with the production of the movie. The casting for the movie will start in December. And the big news is that it will start filming in Atlanta this Spring. And the film will be released on October 13, 2017. This is some exciting news to actually see some kind of traction going on with this film and it actually will be going somewhere. below is the full interview if you like to see it.
Over the past weekend, millions tuned into the walking Dead wondering who would be the latest victim out their favorite characters. When it was who was it brought some fans to tears and ruined their day. But it seems the Walking Dead might be ruining something else.
In a recent interview with IndieWire George Romero talked about how The Walking Dead and World War Z has ruined him to do new installment of his zombie franchise. Romero stated that, "the success of The Walking Dead and World War Z as a major reason why I can't pitch Socioplotical zombie films with a modest budget. I used to be able to pitch them on basis of the zombie action, and I could hide the message inside of that. Now you can't. The moment the word 'zombie', it's gotta be 'Hey, Brad Pitt will be paid $400 million to do that." It is really kind of disheartening to hear that. He was one of the people to help push zombies through the decades. He may have not come up with the initial ideas of zombies or ghouls but he shaped it to be what it is now. And he might be left out of the sub genre totally because of the new direction it is going in.
He also stated more in the article about how The Walking Dead has affected him making future zombie movies. Here is what he said," Then all the sudden, here came, The Walking Dead. A zombie film with that had any sort of substances could not be made. It had to be a zombie film with just zombies wreaking havoc."
I can understand where he is coming from he is about the zombies causing havoc but he wants to have an over all underlying social theme to it. And at times with zombie movies it is just no substances zombie action or become too much of a soap opera. When it comes to The Walking Dead I am biased I do have to admit. I enjoy the comic books more than the series and think at times to do it full justice they would have to go to a paid channel such as HBO or Showtime because the comics are so much more darker.
Also I believe the zombie genre at this point and time is so burnt out. When Hollywood get a hold of something that works they will run with it until there is nothing left. Some zombie movies at this point have become as mindless as the zombies themselves. I think it may be time to let the genre rest a little or come out with fewer a year. If your a zombie fan than this is your time. I do hope George will make one more film of the zombie proportion before he is officially done directing.
* Some of this is my personal opinion and may not have much backing but you can always tell me what you think.
Well after I left you with that George Romero bomb shell of hating The Walking Dead and halting him from making more Zombie fun. I think I will leave you with his original classic the Night of the Living dead for your viewing pleasure.There coming to get you Barbara.
That does it for this weeks update and I hope you all have a happy Halloween. Until next time stay Creepy.
This morning around four, I was at work and came across that Zacherley had passed. I was just hoping it was a rumor. It couldn't be true. Just like his character I believed he was going be around forever as a stable in the horror host community. But that is just me being greedy. It was great to have him for 98 years to entertain us as the true ghoulfather of horror hosts. Vampira may have started it all off but Zacherley picked it up from there and became an icon. This is both shocking and sad to read. I may have not got my chance to meet him personally. But last year I did a big write up on him, and all the research I did I felt like I got to know him in some way.
That smile of his and his laugh is just contagious and makes me laugh so bad. He will sadly be missed in the community by fans and horror hosts a like. My prayers goes out to his family and friends. I am sorry this is such a raw write up but I wanted to definitely post this to share this sad information to everyone. So they could pay their respects to this great legend. In the coming weeks I will be working on paying my respect to him the best I can.
If you like to read more about his passing you can check out his show. click the link below. Zacherley website
