Some thoughts and links...

I wanted to add some thoughts on my post from yesterday regarding H.P. Lovecraft, As I sort of feel like I didn't properly explain my love for his works.

As I said yesterday, Lovecraft is, in my humble opinion, one of the greatest writers from the 20th century; and quite possible one of the greatest horror writers to have ever laid blood soaked pen to paper. Lovecraft was a writer from Providence RI who contributed heavily to the early horror and sci-fi pulps of the 20's, 30's, and 40's. Such great classic magazines as Amazing Stories and Weird Tales were graced by his eerie, fantastic tales. Most of today's horror writers, including Stephen King, Ramsay Campbell, Dean Koontz, and Clive Barker have all espoused a love for Lovecraft's works; as well as honest admissions that he has been an undeniable influence on their own fiction.

I first discovered the deliciously horrible worlds and creatures of Lovecraft in high school. I was in a health class in the ninth grade, reading a copy of Tolkien’s The Hobbit when this large guy next to me saw it and freaked out. He was excited because he had found another geek like himself. You see, we geeks have a way of sensing one another. It’s like there’s some strange geek pheromone that causes us to seek one another out. The guy’s name was Sean and he would become one of my best friends (and a man I still consider a brother to this day.) He asked me if I’d ever role-played. I shrugged, saying I’d done some basic D&D in junior high school, and had wanted to play more, but the guys I played with weren’t at all serious about it.

Sean thumped a meaty hand on his desk, wrote down his address and phone number and immediately invited me over to his house to play a game called Call of Cthuhlu. I asked him what the heck it was and, more importantly how in the hell one spelled Cthulhu. He said it was an awesome game and gave me an explanation about monsters, and twenties and thirties pulp fiction, and cults that quite frankly went over my head. The next day, Sean slid me two photocopied stories. One was The Hound of Tindalos by August Derleth, and the other was The Doom That Came To Sarnath, by H.P. Lovecraft. Even then I considered myself a writer and I can remember the giddy thrill upon reading the archaic, yet beautifully written words of Lovecraft. I went on that weekend to play Call of Cthulhu.

It was there that I met my other brothers - Jason and Curt - and it was in Sean’s attic; sitting around a scarred and tilted rattan table, the flicker of candles dancing on the ceiling, and whilst drinking Cherry Coke and eating Cool Ranch Doritoes; that I fell in love with role playing and the works of Lovecraft.

I still have a deep love for the works of the great Howard Phillips Lovecraft. In fact, I so love Lovecraft that I’m torn between using his works for either my Master’s or Doctoral thesis.

If you've never read anything by Lovecraft, Doctor Zombie commands you to click this link and begin reading the wonderous words and chilling evil that is H.P. Lovecraft. Don't make me pull out my mind control ray!

IA! IA! CTHULU PHTAGN!

Some other thoughts/news:

I've been contacted by Anchor Bay Entertainment again and asked to do a review of a new direct to video movie for them. There's a banner for it on the left there. It's called The Tooth Fairy. Once I receive a copy. I'll review it and let you know if it's worth seeing...

Here's an update on Night of The Living Dead 3-d. I've got to say, I'm starting to get kind of excited about this...

Also, another movie that shows I am a complete and total nerd has begun production! Dragonlance: The Movie. And yes, I spent an entire summer in high school role playing this at my buddy Sean's house. Seriously. My other friend Rich ran Dragonlance as an Ad&D campaign and we started playing in April or May. We spent the entire rest of the year living in Krinn. We would seriously go to Sean's on Friday night; load up on Cool Ranch Doritoes, Pork Rinds, Bar B Q Pringles, Root Beer NY Seltzer, and Cherry Coke; play all night; get a few hours of sleep; go to our high school jobs; and go back to Sean's to repeat the process. We'd come home sunday night to the anger of our parents, gassy and bleary from lack of sleep. God I miss that...

Since when did collecting body part become wrong?!? Damn PC police...

Here you go, the perfect anti-zombie set up, ready to go and assembled. Fortunately for Dr. Zombie and my undead minions it's really, really expensive!

Check out this site! For all your pirate needs, it's Billy Bone's Pirate Locker. Remember, all little boys want to be pirates... and we never really outgrow that when we become men! Besides, I absolutely love that intro page pirate song! Arrrr!

And finally, this is allegedly a list of most of the zombie movies ever made. It has some obvious and recent films missing, but it is a valiant effort. If anything, it would be a good source to cross check with in my quest to own and see every zombie film ever made...

That's all for now, dear reader. I must shamble back to the Theater of Terror and check on some of my more recent experiments. They've been waiting for me to return. Ahhhh...the smell of blood, and death, and terror is like the smell of warm cookies in the air...