After a long and busy Saturday at Horrorhound Weekend, Brian and I relaxed and ordered dinner in our room. While it’s rarely a positive experience for any Chicagoan to order pizza outside of city limits, this was the perfect food choice when one planned on following it up with copious amounts of alcohol. Saturday nights at Horrorhound were notorious for their raucous all night gatherings…and this year I was determined to join their party! Afterwards, I headed outside for some air and met a guy in the lobby who pulled out a mason jar that looked as if it were half full of motor oil. “Want some moonshine?” he asked.

I smiled but hesitated. It had only been the week before on St. Patrick’s Day when I’d indulged in another home-made concoction with my fellow pod-caster, Jason, resulting in a drunken argument between us. I’m batting a 1,000 with friends these days, folks! Please check out the “Podcast” link at the top of this page to hear our first (and possibly final) eight episodes of Terror on Tequila!

Photo taken just hours before “The St. Paddy’s Day Massacre”

At the same time, it wouldn’t hurt to get the party started before heading over to the Crown Plaza where the REAL action was. I no sooner took a swig of the jar’s contents when I felt my body temperature rise and my head involuntarily convulse. Needless to say, after chasing it down with some soda, I was looking at a whole NEW Horrorhound Weekend!

A friend of Brian’s showed up at the room and the two of them took off to chat. Brian text’d that we’d leave for the party after he returned but, not wanting to lose my buzz, I decided to walk over by myself. I no sooner entered the Crown Plaza’s lobby when I saw the bright orange of Halloween Jack & Jacqueline , once again alerting me to a gathering of horror hosts (Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer ain’t got nuthin’ on these two).

I chatted a bit with Count Gore De Vol in his civilian clothes before encountering Wisconsin PA host,  Dr. Destruction.

Dr. Destruction: ”Dave, I can’t stand seeing you like this! You’ve gotta cheer up, man!”

Dave: (rolling eyes) “Dale…I’m fine.”

Moments later, orange was followed by green as yet another Wisconsin host, Freakshow Peterson from Madison, arrived at the hotel and said “hello.” He also generously shared one of his custom beers named after his favorite classic horror host, Mr. Mephisto.

No Wisconsin Host would be complete without their own beer!

My friend, Russ Wrangler, joined me soon after and immediately kicked things into high gear!  We left the hosts and hit the bar to order some potent vodka and cranberry juice (easy on the juice).

With Russ Wrangler!

As we approached the bar, Tony Todd a.k.a. Candy Man, walked past us while telling eager fans that he wouldn’t stop for photos as he was ”just looking to have a drink and relax like everyone else.” This was a request he could easily afford to turn down as he was doing so well at the event, his booth ran out of stills and his assistant had to run out and print new ones!

Trust me, the guy with the blue hat is Tony Todd…

I walked over to the other side of the bar intent on getting a picture of Russ with Tony Todd nearby (above). I’d have gotten a better shot if not for this annoying drunk guy, standing on my right, who kept tapping me on the shoulder and talking to me just as I’d be ready to snap the picture. “I’m from Texas,” he said.

“Great!” I responded. “I’m from Chicago.”

“Oh…,” he replied. “I like Chicago.”

That goofy, inebriated smile on his face, coupled with the way he enunciated, reminded me of that kid from A Christmas Story. You know, the one that Ralphie encounters while waiting in line to see Santa? I half expected him to follow things up with, “I like the Wizard of Oz…”

Russ and I finally got our drinks and schmoozed around while taking more pictures. Though the conditions were rife for seeing “pink elephants,” we started seeing gorillas instead; pink, purple, red, blue, and green ones! A group of technicolor primates casually strolled into the lobby, prompting Russ to grab my arm and ask, “Dave, are we seeing the same thing or am I drunker than I thought!?”

Russ is one of those people that talks to everyone…especially if you’re a gal. This made him the ideal scout, of sorts, as he could gain their attention while I collected costumed photos.

Unfortunately, Russ didn’t quite understand that the goal was to photograph women IN COSTUMES ONLY, and just about had some poor civilian gal grab her mace when he approached her and said, “You look like Marilyn Monroe, can I take a picture with you?” She looked frightened, but agreed.

Needless to say, I felt like the biggest pervert taking their picture and, even if this particular night I was being the biggest pervert, that’s beside the point! By the way, that Marilyn line would backfire on Russ again when he’d later ask a woman (who actually was done up like a vintage bombshell) for a picture. After telling her how much he loved Marilyn Monroe, she curtly replied, “I’m supposed to be Jane Mansfield!!!” before storming off…

Concerts were going on throughout the night and we decided to check one out. We walked in and saw Dead Dick Hammer performing (whom I’d met earlier that day) and the crowd seemed to love them. Although from Kentucky, they’d performed up in my neck of the horror woods last October during The Nightmare on Chicago Street event (covered HERE). I had to miss them that night since it interfered with my responsibilities as a Svengoolie-stalker, but they were kind enough to give me a free CD! Dr. Destruction was ripping on them all night saying he’s tired of these monster/rock acts stealing what he’s been doing for years…

…and then after they were done performing asked me if I thought they’d be willing to be guests on his radio show.

Throughout the weekend, Russ and I had a running joke concerning a couple of ladies who were staying in a room near his (#603 to his #608). When he and I first met up the day before, they walked past us and tried coaxing Russ into joining them after hours, yelling, “Hey 608! Come on over later and see us!” Whenever there was a lull in the partying (which wasn’t often) we’d say, “Well, there’s always the girls in 603!” We’d also joke that their room was to The Crown Plaza what #237 was to the hotel in the movie version of The Shining. Somehow the drunker we got, the funnier that became and the laughs would continue a couple of weeks later when they managed to find Russ on Facebook (look for a “We Love Russ Wrangler” Facebook page coming soon!).

What Happens in 603 stays in Cincinnati…

We wanted to pay a visit to the pool party taking place next door but they wanted $15 a head so we decided against it. The energy level was high (like a lot of folks at this party) and the female fans were getting lots of attention no matter what their body type was, nor how bloody they’d made themselves up to be. A few gals were even going around topless in favor of body paint, like the two women at the top of this blog (Aw, go ahead and scroll back up…I’ll be here when you get back).

Everyone was having a great time and I was feeling pretty darn good myself!

With Diva of the Dead!

I bumped back into Dr. Destruction who was conversing with Woody the Clown before seeing me and immediately using the opportunity to, yet again, address my going solo…#3,786 section C!

Dr. Destruction: “Dave! There’s no need to be so sad. I’ve got a friend named Dave who has nothing to do but sit in front of a computer all day and would be perfect for your site!”

This was something I’d been getting a lot of lately. Messages from people saying, “I have a friend/cousin/neighbor named Dave” and apparently assuming that’s the only criteria for joining me on this site. I even had someone start auditioning themselves by saying, “Did you know my middle name is David?”

Dave: Dale, I do appreciate your concern but I’m not sad nor looking to find a new Dave. Anyone is welcome to contribute to my blog whether their name is Dave or Carmichael but I’m The Terror Dave from here on out and I’m cool with it.

With Dr. Destruction and a more jovial Woody the Clown

Russ rescued me from the situation by asking if I’d head up to his room so he could whip up some cocktails for us. In 2010, I attended my first Horrorhound Weekend with the aforementioned Jason. When traveling with Jason, he’s always good for bringing along a big vat of strong margaritas and an arsenal of his signature jello shots to keep us smiling throughout the weekend. Russ, it would appear, could give Jason a clear run for his money…

He not only created his own bar (with a bottle of just about every hard liquor imaginable) but had it complete with olives and celery stalks for garnishment! We downed a couple of high balls (that were so strong we may as well have been drinking them straight) before returning downstairs.  The elevator was loaded with people and some smart-ass pushed EVERY button on the console. So basically if you wanted to get to the main level (like we did) you had to stop at every floor on the way up and down.

Standing next to me was Eric Austin from the HMA who was visibly two-shades to the wind. “Da-a-a-a-ve….” he said, while putting his arm on my shoulder.” I like you a lot but you shhhaid shhhomething in your blog I didn’t like….”

Just as hammered as he was, I put my arm on his shoulder and said, “Really? Well you shhhould tell me what it issssh…I want my friendsssh to be honesssht and you can tell me anyfffing you want…”

Apparently Eric mistook one of my pre-Horrorhound posts where I mention I’m never attending another Horror Host Hall of Fame again as me saying I’d never do another Horrorhound Weekend. I assured him that I was JUST referring to the “Hall of Fame” (and, come to think of it, can we pretend I wasn’t at THIS years) but assured him that, YES, I would definitely do another Horrorhound convention.

He no sooner said he was glad to hear it when the elevator opened (for what seemed like the 50th time) on what appeared to be an abandoned floor relegated for penthouse suites. Eric grabbed his girlfriend and said, “We’re gonna check thisssh out!” and the two of them took off…ahem…as the elevator door closed behind.

After finally making it to the main floor, we found Dr. Destruction decisively more drunk and having trouble keeping balance. Apparently he’d gotten a hold of that guy’s moonshine which the man had brought over to share with his female friend, a tall model dressed in a bloody nun’s costume named “Bella Demente.” The guy later told me he was offering his brew to Bella before it got snatched away by Dr. Destruction. Dr. Destruction’s version? “That damn 7 foot nun messed me up with that moonshine of hers!!!”

Bella Demente (Photo courtesy of Brian Maze)

Whichever the case, the end result was the same and managed to transform the host from Dr. Destruction to Dr. Destroyed! Unfortunately, the alcohol did nothing to improve his disposition and as soon as he laid eyes on me, they flashed red!

Dr. Destruction: “Dave you F*CKER!!! SNAP THE F*CK out of it!!! So you lost your best friend…WHO CARES!?! Friends come and GO! Quit WHINING like a baby and GROW THE F*CK UP or I’ll knock you flat on your Svengoolie ASS!!!”

Not wanting to get knocked on my “Svengoolie Ass” (still not sure exactly what that’s supposed to mean), I immediately left the area while hearing him yell to someone behind me, “Hey! Tell Mr. Svengoolie Junior to get his ass back here!!!”

Russ is a BIG fan of the Subspecies films (he dropped over $200 at their table the night before) and was happy to see cast/crew members partying with everyone else. They were also more than happy to take photos with us…no doubt due to Russ being their “Customer of the Year!”

With Anders Hove & Denise Duff from the Subspecies series

Director of the Subspecies films and Terrorvision, Ted Nicolaou

Another great encounter was via Daniel Roebuck whom I’d been searching for since the event began. I was finally able to relay messages to him from my friend, Elizabeth Haney, as well as Count Gore De Vol. Roebuck was wearing pajama pants and seemed like he needed to relax. Good thing he was headed to the hotel restaurant bar for a refreshment…and good thing he was wearing PJ’s so he could take a nap during the time it takes those nitwits to fix a drink!

With Daniel Roebuck!

Throughout the night we saw Asia & Anders Eriksen. This latest time, they said they’d visited the pool party but it wasn’t for them and gave Russ and I their entry bracelets. Talk about luck! Russ and I wasted no time and headed over to the pool expecting it to be the party of the century.

With Asia and Anders Eriksen!

Actually it ended up being pretty lame and much less exciting than what was going on in the hotel. There were big water slides with rapids and I’m sure my kids would have loved it but, unfortunately, I was expecting Spring Break ala’ Piranha 3D with lots of boobs and fake blood. What a disappointment!

I saw my friend Aaron Christensen (who recently beat me in the Rondo category of “Best Article” which he absolutely deserved) but, since he was walking around half naked, I felt awkward in approaching him. Brian joined us in the pool area and we all sat at the cabana and had another drink. Russ and I decided to use the opportunity to get a snack so we headed over to the concession area where we met a gal that Russ had apparently talked to before (which narrows it down to 95% of the women at Horrorhound). He asked if he could take a picture with her and she demurely hesitated. Further coaxing from Russ, however, made her go from shy to downright crazy!

She liked Russ…

…she liked me more!

The whole thing was surreal and, amid the hazy cloud of alcohol, I’m pretty sure her boyfriend was watching the whole thing! Meanwhile the guy running the concession (seen in the above photo’s background) grabbed his buddies from the kitchen and wanted me to show them the pictures as they didn’t believe him when he told them what was going on (and neither did I for that matter). I was suddenly reminded of that famous Mae West line, “When women go wrong, men soon follow”…and there were LOTS to follow at Horrorhound!

Our mid-life debauchery continued as we drunkenly ran around acting like rowdy teenagers. Is this something I should have been doing or be proud of? Well, probably not. Do I have any regrets about it? Hell NO!

Even Jesus seems to appreciate my temptation

We returned to the hotel where there was a big hula-hoop contest going on and we drunkenly wooted and cheered for Midnite Mausoleum’s Robyn Graves and Sasha Mullins! “Boy, that Robyn is a great gal!” I said. “Yeah,” said Russ. “She’s so sweet I feel like a protective uncle.”

“Right!” I responded. “Just like an uncle.” (We both looked down on the floor in shame).

Rockin’ Robyn!

Sasha Mullins!

Soon I lost Russ in the crowd and never saw him again for the remainder of the weekend. To this day I’m trying to get him to admit he gave in to temptation and headed up to room 603 but, so far, he’s staying mum.

Brian and I stumbled back into the hotel room and cracked each other up with imitations of Dr. Destruction’s Kenosha accent while pretending he was having a conversation with Frances McDormand’s character in Fargo. By the time we crashed it was after 3am.

The whole night seemed a blur…but a welcome one.

Coming up…2013 Cincinnati Horrorhound Weekend concludes with Marilyn Munster & Christine!

Dave Fuentes~

Today is also the 67th Anniversary of United Nations Day. Here at Heaton Party we wish you all A Happy United Nation Day 2012.

Terror from Beyond the Daves is pleased to share a recent interview with our friend, Ohio Horror Host – A. Ghastlee Ghoul…

DAVE: Did you grow up with a Horror Host and who/what were your macabre influences?

A. GHASTLEE: Grow up??? Perish the thought! Nah, seriously, I site three main influences or, as I call them, my ‘illegitimate step-daddies.’ First, of course, was our own local legend, Dr. Creep (Barry Hobart). I still vividly remember exactly where I was when his first episode aired. It was New Years Day evening 1972. The parents had gone to bed, no doubt nursing hang-overs from the night before, leaving me alone with the old B&W TV. There wasn’t much on late night back then. I was flipping through the three channels, when, there he was…the scary guy with fangs staring back at me! Yes, Dr Creep was SCARY in the beginning! I was hooked from his signature ‘Hoo-hah-haaahh!!!’ and watched religiously every week from then on, seeing him develop from that initially fearsome character to a funny, loveable party animal of sorts, ring-mastering a wild cast and making you feel a real part of the happening. Things would go wrong and he would groan, shake his head and laugh it off. It was all part of the charm. Later, he would also host the afternoon kiddy show “Clubhouse 22″ in addition to his late night duties. Everyone loved The Creeper.

I first got to meet him when I went on his show to promote our haunted house in 1980-81, and when he would make personal appearances at the haunt. He even gave us an idea for a scene one year that we surprised him with when we built it the following year. Barry was the first guest I had on when I started my own show, and I sat there in awe the whole time, the little kid inside jumping up and down with glee! After that we became great friends, he appearing on my show and me on his New Shock Theatre. It was my great honor to induct him into The Horror Host Hall of Fame, sadly posthumously, in 2011. He was a wonderful person. I miss him every day.

Jason Hignite & A. Ghastlee lament their beloved Dr. Creep

My second exposure to hosts was The Cool Ghoul from Cincinnati, Dick Von Hoene. We could pull in the signal from Channel 19 if you adjusted the tin foil on the rabbit ears to the south and held your mouth just the right way. He was a manic hippy character in a fright wig and raggedy, brightly colored clothes. He had this signature ‘Blllllaaahhh!’ noise he made with his tongue…that unfortunately doesn’t translate well into print! A lot of my own manic manner of hosting came from The Cool Ghoul. In 2003 I was working on getting him as a guest for my Scary Camp Convention, where I’d hoped to bring all three of my ‘illegitimate step-daddies’ together under one roof (Ah, the little kid inside of me jumping for joy again!). He sadly passed away before I could do that, but I carry those great memories of his show around in Ghastlee. As a side note; there is another Cool Ghoul in northern Ohio (George Cavender) who is happily alive and carries on with that name.

The Cool Ghoul (Von Hoene)

Lastly, but far from leastly (leastly???), in the late 70′s we finally got cable, and I was introduced to my buddy, Timothy Francis Herron, a.k.a. Baron Von Wolfstein. His show ran on Indianapolis’ WTTV Channel 4, during the year that Sammy Terry wasn’t on. Tim’s show was SO different than any horror host I’d seen before. Wolftsein was, obviously, a werewolf character, but a very poised one who spoke eloquently in a Karloff-esque accent. The show was more cerebral than slapstick, the sketches wry and situational, while the production was downright psychadelic. Tim played several characters on the show besides the Baron, including Robin Graves and Carlisle the Invincible Wizard. For a time I had the choice of watching Saturday Night Live or Saturday Night with the Monsters, and I naturally had to choose the monsters. Tim moved to Dayton for a while in the early 2000′s, and in a fun twist of fate, was my roommate.  During that time he made numerous appearances on my show as the Baron and a host of other characters, and we co-produced a short ‘dracumentary’ called JOE NOSFERATU: HOMELESS VAMPIRE that also featured a bunch of our horror host buddies from around the country in cameos.

A Pre-Terror Dave Fuentes with Baron Von Wolfstein at 2010 Horrorhound Convention

DAVE: Tell us how you came to be A. Ghastlee Ghoul. What made you decide to become a host?

A GHASTLEE: Well I always wanted to be Captain Kangaroo as a kid, and used to hang around the basement pretending I was hosting my own kid’s show (yeah, I was that geeky kid!). Then I saw Dr. Creep and knew I wanted to be THAT guy! When his original Shock Theater show went off the air in 1985 I thought someone needed to fill that void. I began creating Ghastlee and the show concept then and even did some test footage on 8mm film, but never followed through with pitching the idea to a station. About that time I’d begun doing stand-up comedy. A bunch of comic friends and I created a group showcase program for cable access called The Underground Sideshow. The Ghastlee Movie Show was one sketch I did on there; basically a parody of a horror host, a guy who really didn’t want to be a host but was sort of drafted into the job. In one of those odd occurrences of life imitating art, eventually the other guys didn’t have time to work on the show anymore and I expanded the sketch to take over the entire time slot.

The Terror Daves with A. Ghastlee & Suspira

DAVE: How long have you been a Horror Host?

A GHASTLEE: In October 2012, it will be 23 years!

DAVE: How did you meet Suspira and what was it like getting married at Cinema Wasteland?

A GHASTLEE: Another incidence of Dr. Creep changing my life. He came on my show in 2001 saying ‘Ho, ho, ho! I brought you something!’ and introduced me to this beautiful, sardonic little vampire. Little did I know things would really click between us. Two years later Creeper was the Best Man at our Horror Host Wedding. It was one of the most special days of my life. Over 30 hosts were on hand along with family and many other friends. Carpathian and Kuzibah from the storytelling troupe, The Patient Creatures presided over a beautiful, funny and sometimes tear-jerking ceremony, while Grim (from the same group) drove us around in a Hearse Limo. Part of the wedding is featured on my DVD of AMERICAN SCARY. Mostly the weepy part! My mascara was running!

DAVE: Tell us about your background as a musician. Do you incorporate your music with your hosting?

A GHASTLEE: I started playing guitar when I was 14 and have been playing in bands since 1980. My love of horror always crept in. In the late 80′s I began using the Ghastlee name onstage, though most of the time minus the make-up. I was playing, singing and writing original music and lyrics in a band called “No One Cares.” The other guitarist in the band, Neal, kept trying to get me to wear the make-up onstage but I only did it a couple of times around Halloween and a “Dr. Creep for President” show.

After that I was in a band called “Global Tango” with my current drummer/sidekick Louu the XXXmas Devil. When that project went south, Louu and I teamed up with a bassist named Jas for a sort of metal-jazz instrumental trio called “Ratt Sass.” We played a show at the Neon Movies here in Dayton where we performed a “Live” soundtrack to the silent film HAXAN a.k.a. WITCHCRAFT THROUGH THE AGES. I wore the make-up and hosted the evening, and Jas and I would switch instruments in the middle of songs. It was a real blast, and we even got a standing ovation at the end. About 8 years ago we started our current band, “Splattertude,” with Suspiria and Mayhen Zann. That grew out of acoustic jams we would do at my A. Ghastlee Nite at the Movies show at Cinema Wasteland. When the band went electric I decided to play bass with a bunch of effects on it instead of guitar and that began to define our style and sound. Since we were/are the de facto house band at Wasteland we were already wearing make-up and costumes, so we kept doing it at other gigs and the horror crept into the music as well. The band is definitely an extension of The Ghastlee Movie Show since we are all on the TV show as well, though when people call us a horror band I say I prefer to call it “Prog-Punk” – two things that shouldn’t go together!

Splattertude!

DAVE: What projects does A. Ghastlee have in the works?

A GHASTLEE: I’ve been working with my buddy, The Mod Ghoul, on the online program Weird Web Theater lately, among other things. Recently I started making creepy dolls I call “Ghastlee’s Ghouls.” I’ll be using them in another of my “Slayzoid Studios” shorts tentatively title BABY DOLL OVERKILL. and hosting that on the show. we also do an Internet radio show called “Splattertude Radio” (check that out by clicking HERE).  Of course we are always at Cinema Wasteland twice a year too, playing music and hosting our drunken night of interactive games and sketches on Saturday nights.

Mod Ghoul, Jamie Lee Cortese, David Albaugh, & Suspira!

DAVE: The BEST movie you’ve seen at the theater lately is _______.

A GHASTLEE: I loved THE AVENGERS! We still have drive-ins here and Suspiria and I went to see that on a double bill with HUNGER GAMES. Stirred up that little kid again!

DAVE: How did you end up writing “Underpants of the Dead” and do you have any plans for more writing projects?

A GHASTLEE: I was writing a weekly column for Count Gore DeVol’s Veekly Veb show, and my pal, C. W. Prather (produces of The Spooky Movie TV Show and The Spooky Movie Film Festival in the D.C. area) was writing a funny, serialized piece he called “The Blog of Alberstein.” One week we thought it would be fun to switch jobs and not tell anyone. He wrote my column and I threw in some really weird twists into his story for him to deal with later. It was fun, so we proposed to Count Gore that we write and serialize a comedy, zombie novel for his site. He gave it his official “Whatever!” and we were off and running. It was really tough keeping up with it sometimes because we had to have a new chapter each week. C.W. would write something and send it to me, and vice-versa, then we’d write curve balls in to keep one another, and the reader, guessing. People seemed to like it, so when that first draft was done online we decided to go back and rewrite (and rewrite…and rewrite) it and see if we could get it published. We were still rewriting, overwriting and editing when C.W. passed a copy along to a publisher at The Horrorfind Weekend convention  in Baltimore.  Lo and behold, it was in print! we have enough ideas for, and have started writing, several sequels in the saga of the town and characters of Olsome, Ohio. Hey, maybe in another few years we’ll have it done!

With Dr. Destruction

DAVE: What’s your favorite movie monster?

A GHASTLEE: I was always partial to THE WOLFMAN growing up, but my favorite is probably the house in THE HAUNTING.

DAVE: Outside of getting married of course, what was your favorite A. Ghastlee Ghoul moment?

A GHASTLEE: Oh wow! So many. I’d have to say my Scary Camp convention in 2003. So many friends and fans all together under one roof. I just stood back at points and thought, ‘Look what I did!’ The local papers covered it thoroughly, and Dr. Creep and I were doing “Live” remotes on the local news. On Saturday night we had a party suite and Sid Haig hung out with us until 4:30am (Hey, we had to be up at 7am, but would you tell Sid it was past his bedtime?). On Sunday Morning we held a ‘revival’ on the stage in the convention center mezzanine, handing out pudding pies and shots of bourbon in exchange for people’s ‘confessions’ of their worst hangover stories. A Southern Baptist church was holding services on the same floor and the staff made us quit! Ha-HAAA! It was almost as funny as the Catholic High School graduation parading through our area on the way back to the parking garage! Oh, the HORROR! Too many great memories to recount them all, but definitely a real high point in the life of this horror host!

TERROR FROM BEYOND THE DAVES would like to thank A. Ghastlee Ghoul for this entertaining interview and be sure to visit his site by clicking HERE!

Dave Fuentes~

The 8^th annual Dr. Gangrene’s Horror Hootenanny was held Saturday October 8^th 2011 at THE MUSE in Nashville, TN. This year’s event was a huge success, and a ton of fun. The Daves asked me to give a report on this year’s event, which I was happy to do!

The Horror Hootenanny originally began as a fundraiser for my show, Dr. Gangrene’s Creature Feature. At that time I was buying airtime from the local UPN station to air my program, and selling sponsor time to cover the cost. It was an ongoing struggle to sell ads and collect money, on top of shooting and producing a weekly show, and I was getting worn out, honestly. Jeano Roid from the Creeping Cruds came up with the idea of a “benefit” show featuring several bands to raise money to keep us on the air. It went over well, was a success with all the bands, and became an annual event everyone looked forward to. Over the years my show changed stations and I no longer needed to buy commercial space, so we switched the Hootenanny from a benefit show to an annual entertainment event and were able to start paying out of town bands more. All of which is a long-winded way of bringing you up to date on the hootenanny and what it’s all about.

Setting the stage for Dr. Gangrene’s annual Hootenanny!

I got to the Muse around 4pm and met Jeano there to start decorating. We strung Halloween lights throughout the place along with a full assortment or Halloween props: spider webs, a full sized skeleton, severed body parts, skulls, etc. I also set up a video projector this year and had horror trailers and movies playing throughout the event. I had a handful of posters from Rue Morgue Magazine that I hung around the place too. We finished decorating about an hour before doors opened. Boomer, drummer for the Creeping Cruds, and I drove and grabbed a quick bite to eat and got back before the doors opened. I made a quick costume change, put in my contacts, slapped on a little makeup and I was good to go.

The Darker side of Gangrene…

For the Hootenanny and other music events (including when my own band plays) I don’t usually dress as Dr. Gangrene. The main reason is I like to keep everything separated, so I don’t get too burned out. It gives me a nice release from the Dr. Gangrene gig, and a different creative outlet. It’s fun to dress in different outlandish costumes and this year I decided to channel a combination of Alice Cooper and Screaming Jay Hawkins and went with a bit of a witchdoctor getup, including carrying a staff with a skull on the end that I named HANK (in tribute to Screaming Jay’s skull on a stick named Henry).

Screamin Jay Hawkins!

This year’s hoot was a Zombie themed event. We worked in conjunction with the Nashville Zombie walk and held the Hootenanny the same day. The walk was at 4 and the doors to the Hootenanny opened at 7. We added an extra band to this year’s lineup – making it a total of five bands. The first band to play was The Coffin Bangers. They’re a new band, so they haven’t quite refined their sound yet. But they have good energy and got the show started with a bang. Afterwards there was a bit of excitement as the sound guy disappeared and I later learned he’d gone to break up a fight in the parking lot. But we got him back and the show continued without too much interruption.

Between each band I gave away prizes from my sponsors, which this year included Unholy Apparel, Rue Morgue Magazine, Scary Monsters Magazine, Evil Pumpkins, Wicked Witch Productions, Terra Fossil Wines, Lone Wolf Body Art, the Coffee Pirate, and Unkle Pigors. The way it worked was with every ticket sold at the door a person was given a raffle ticket they wrote their name on and dropped in a witch’s cauldron. Every time they bought something at the bar they also got a ticket. I randomly selected winners on stage before each band and handed out the goodies.

The second band to play was Alucard. These guys have been around for a couple of years now and they’re a really good band. A three piece vampire themed horror band, they always put on a good show. They’re a prolific band, as they’ve already put out something like 3 cds in 2 years, if I’m not mistaken.

We had a Zombie photo booth set up this year to document some of the creepy costumes. Almost everyone in attendance came in costume, as they got in for only $3 if they were dressed up. Lots of folks took advantage of the free Photo Booth and we got some terrific pics.

Next up was our band, Spookhand. The crowd was really great by the time we went on and the room was full. The sound wasn’t quite as good as I’m used to there, as far as what I can hear onstage. But we played through it and honestly played one of our best sets ever, despite sound issues.  We played a trio of Misfits covers toward the end, which the crowd went nuts for: 138, Night of the Living Dead, and Brain Eaters. I incorporated a little shock rock antics to my set, and lopped off the hand of an unfortunate victim with a chainsaw, spraying blood into the audience. I then drank blood from his severed hand for my next song, I DRINK BLOOD. Good times.

Before the next band we crowned a zombie King and Queen and pulled them onstage to dance to the Prom Night theme. Was pretty silly, fun, and we had a special handmade trophy from Evil Pumpkins for the King and queen.

The Creeping Cruds played next and tore the place up. The crowd was at its largest at this point, and the Cruds scored extra points by coming out in drag and opening with the song SWEET TRANSVESTITE, which totally ROCKED! They were great as always and played several new tunes. A new Cruds CD may just be in the works soon, which is long overdue.

The Creeping Cruds!

Before the next band we chose a Best Zombie, and gave out special prizes to the winner, including a $150 dollar gift certificate to Lone Wolf Body art in a custom made coffin from Wicked Witch Production, along with a handmade trophy from Evil Pumpkins. Sweet!!

DEAD DICK HAMMER finished out the night and let me tell you, these ghouls rock! If you ever get a chance to see them do yourself a favor and do so. Part punk, part rockabilly, part rock n roll, all evil! DDH is another three piece band from Kentucky, and the nicest bunch of ghouls you could ever hope to meet. They rocked the house and finished out the Hootenanny in style.

Everyone seemed to have a really great time and I’ve heard nothing but good reviews about the evening. We’re already planning next year’s event, and are working on bringing in 45 Grave if things work out right. They had hoped to play this year but are in the studio at the moment working on a new CD! We are even planning an event for this coming January too, as a year is just too long to wait between horror rock events. Nashville is a growing hub of horror rock, getting bigger all the time, and I aim to keep that trend growing!!