In 1990, six of the horror world’s leading figures dined together for Horror Cafe. Hosted by Clive Barker, this discussion features guests John Carpenter, Roger Corman, Ramsey Campbell, Lisa Tuttle and Pete Atkins. You can watch the full show below. Enjoy!
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In the early 1990s, a documentary narrated by Melvyn Bragg aired on TV called The Fantasy World of Clive Barker. Below is the documentary in its entirety. Enjoy!
Clive Barker, a master of horror across numerous mediums, is celebrating his 70th birthday with the release of a new book this October: Dark Worlds. Read on for the full official announcement.
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Halloween season is upon us, so let’s take a look back at the October 2020 issue of Fangoria magazine. Watch my video below for a preview of everything in this issue of Fangoria. Enjoy!
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Based on “The Forbidden,” a short story in Clive Barker’s Books of Blood, the 1992 film Candyman was a commercial success, spawning two sequels, and its central figure, played to perfection by Tony Todd, was seared into the collective consciousness of a generation, making us wonder — What would happen if I said Candyman five times while looking in the mirror? Nearly 30 years have passed since the release of that iconic cinematic masterpiece, and a direct sequel to it has been unleashed upon the world by Nia DaCosta, Jordan Peele, and Win Rosenfeld. Is it a blood-splattering good time? Read on for my thoughts.
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On August 18, I met one of my horror idols: Clive Barker. A multi-talented artist who has mastered numerous mediums, Clive is a playwright, an author, a director, and a painter. He created, wrote and directed Hellraiser, his most famous work, and he’s also known for Candyman and Nightbreed, as well as more than 20 novels, hundreds of incredible paintings, and so much more. Stephen King once said, “I’ve seen the future of horror, and his name is Clive Barker.” That’s the highest praise one can get in this genre, and Clive lived up to that prophecy and then some.
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Meeting Freddy Krueger himself, Robert Englund.
This past weekend I went to Monster-Mania 27, a horror convention in Cherry Hill, NJ. This was my second Monster-Mania and I had a good time. My main reason for going was to meet Robert Englund, a terrific actor best known for playing Freddy Krueger in seven Nightmare on Elm Street films and Freddy vs. Jason. While it took six hours for me to meet Englund, I was able to check out the rest of the convention during this time because of a virtual queue the organizers put in place. They did this to prevent people from having to waiting in line all day. As long as you had your ticket – they limited it to 400 people – you were set. I found this to be an efficient way to deal with the demand to meet this horror icon.
During my time waiting to meet Robert Englund I looked at all of the merchandise available – everything from masks to t-shirts, to paintings, to movie posters. Then I walked through the autograph room where the majority of the stars were stationed, including Ernie Hudson from Ghostbusters and Tony Todd from Candyman, as well as various cast members of The Walking Dead. I abstained from spending money on anything other than Robert Englund and food because I’m heading to WrestleMania XXX in a few weeks, so I’d rather spend my money there.
Spending time with a Freddy look-a-like before meeting the real deal.
When it was my turn to go upstairs to meet Robert Englund, I headed up the stairs to the second floor of the hotel and was told to wait in a room with approximately 50 people. Then one of the convention volunteers told us that Robert Englund’s agent wouldn’t allow people to take a photo with him – we could only take photos of him, which to me was extremely disappointing because that was my whole reason for going. When I was led into the room with Robert Englund, there were about 100 people sitting in chairs and he was on the far end of the room against the wall. Row by row, people were ushered to the front where they turned in their tickets and paid $40 for an autograph. There were photos available for Robert to sign or you could have an item that you brought with you signed. I opted to have him sign the sleeve of my Nightmare on Elm Street Blu-ray collection.
Despite being told I couldn’t get a photo with Robert, I had the girl in front of me take of photo of him and I with my phone. I couldn’t go around the table for the photo because a bodyguard was there, but I made the most of it and I think the photo turned out quite nice. When we were posing for the photo, Robert said, “Tell me when to look up” as he was autographing my item. The girl taking the photo said, “Look up” and Robert jokingly said in his Freddy Krueger voice, “Take the picture, biotch!” When we left she was on cloud nine that he spoke to her in his Freddy voice and we both laughed hysterically about what a cool moment it was.
Robert Englund speaking with fans after his Q&A.
I closed out the night by watching the 1994 film The Crow, one of many movies being shown throughout the day. I hadn’t seen it since the mid-1990s, and I’m glad I stuck around for it because it’s a great movie. From the cinematography to the impressive acting, it’s clear why this film still resonates with people 20 years after it hit theaters.
If you’re a horror fan in the South Jersey area, I highly recommend you check out Monster-Mania. It’s a well-run convention that’s well worth the price of admission. You can learn more details by visiting the official Monster-Mania website.
