The Darker side of Social Networking

Many of our readers are familiar with the Horror Society website, which has evolved from your run-of-the-mill message board/forums to a full-blown blog/news site for independent (and sometimes mainstream)horror films.

Well, Mitchell Wells -- Horror Society's master of ceremonies and dear friend of WildClaw -- has just unleashed his HORROR SOCIETY NETWORK, think of it as a sort of Facebook for horror fans -- and based on his more recent posts there are more features on the way.

Based on the number of people I know who have gotten bumped off of FB for questionable content, perhaps Mitch (a.k.a. DrGore) is onto something here? Is a more sinister version of a Social Networking site something that entices you?

casting call... yes, another remake

I know Superman is not necessarily a horror flick, but many of our horror fans are big comic fans as well -- and since this is a blog from a theatre company, i thought it was appropriate to let our readers & fellow thespians know that Yahoo News has reported an Open Casting Call for background actors & actresses. "The casting call will be held at Chicago Academy of the Arts, 1010 W. Chicago Ave., from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 25 . They are looking for men, women, and children, all ages and sizes, as well as twin infants."

All other details, as well as the author's insight as to what one can expect from your typical casting call can be found in the article. So who wants to go try out?

True Blood Tarte Makeup

True Blood starts soon (cannot wait)...but in the meantime, you can get all vamped up with this True Blood inspired collection by Tarte Cosmetics.  This is a great brand fyi.  I am very very tempted to get the lip stain...You can find it at sephora...

Wildclaw Fashion Watch: Dead Red Scarf

I covet this beauty....I am a big fan of this Brooklyn boutique and it's amazing accessories, adorable swimsuits, and positively stunning scarves.  This would like mighty fetching worn with a little black dress at our upcoming Benefit or Deathscribe 2011!

Use the code SUMMERLOVE to get an extra 25% off before June 30th, 2011.

Free Movie Passes for Attack of the Block

 


















From the producers of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, ATTACK THE BLOCK follows a gang of tough inner-city kids who try to defend their turf against an invasion of savage alien creatures, turning a South London apartment complex into an extraterrestrial warzone .

·        This film was written and directed by Joe Cornish; Nira Park and James Wilson produced, and Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) is an executive producer on the film.

·        ATTACK THE BLOCK won the midnight screening audience award at this year’s SXSW film festival.

·        ATTACK THE BLOCK opens limited in theaters on July 29, 2011 in the following cities: Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Austin, Seattle, and Toronto.

Days of the Dead - Indianapolis has been warned!

Horror fans will be invading Indianapolis this coming holiday weekend (July 1 - 3) for Days of the Dead to drool over their favorite stars -- some old faves as well as some new blood! Some highlights of the events list include a Costume Contest, a Fangoria film fest, and a Scream Queen panel (including NOES2's Mark Patton!!!) Military personnel and kids under 10 are free!

Things kick off on Thursday night (June 30) with a concert (bands featuring guests Reggie Bannister and Ari Lehman) on Thursday night before the fest starts.

Do you attend the conventions yourself? Are you a big autograph hound? If so, who are you just DYING to meet?

The Horror of Politicis: Indecision 2012: ‘The Awakening’ from ‘Daily Show’ Correspondent John Oliver

Indecision 2012: ‘The Awakening’ from ‘Daily Show’ Correspondent John Oliver

Yet another clever clip from those scamps at the Daily Show. But I love the horror bent of this one...

Deathscribe Submissions...Open for business! Submit!

Accepting Submissions for WildClaw Theatre’s

DEATHSCRIBE 2011

June 15, 2011:  WildClaw Theatre’s DEATHSCRIBE 2011, the Forth Annual International Festival of Radio Horror Plays, is accepting radio script submissions, to be will be presented at The Mayne Stage, 1328 W. Morse Avenue, on Monday, December 5th.  The deadline for DEATHSCRIBE 2011 Submissions is September 15, 2011.

We are looking for 10-minute radio scripts that are genuinely scary, imaginative, chilling, intelligent, suspenseful, horrific, or downright grotesque.   There are no restrictions as to content or tone, but keep in mind that WildClaw is a Horror Theatre.  We take our horror seriously, and so should you.  We want stories about serial killers, insects, distorted squirrels, cannibals, deep ones, plagues, demonic possessions, dogfish howlers, werewolves, vampires, zombies, aliens, and of course, the monster within.

Calling all twisted tales, bone-chilling nightmares and horrific urban legends - WildClaw’s Deathscribe 2011 needs you!

Visit http://www.wildclawtheatre.com for submission rules, regulations, and recordings of previous shows.  This festival is open to all, and there is no fee for submission. Students are welcome and encouraged.  Submission deadline is September 15, 2011.

Shape your fear into a 10-minute radio play and send it to WildClaw at deathscribe2011@gmail.com.  5 finalists will be selected, and their scripts performed live at Chicago’s Mayne Stage, on Monday, December 5th.  The author of the best of the festival will be awarded the coveted Bloody Axe award.  It is one-night-only extravaganza of original short radio plays, written by horror enthusiasts from around the globe, produced by some of Chicago’s finest actors, directors, musicians, sound effects artists, and special guest stars, plus a celebrity panel to judge the best of the fest!

Please visit http://www.wildclawtheatre.com for submission rules and regulations.  Please feel free to pass this information along to any interested party.

Just got a call from Ryan Oliver. The man behind some of our favorite moments in The Great God Pan:



And the absolutely spectacular head shots in The Revenants.

Here's a trailer for his latest film project

Air Conditions Teaser 1 from Ryan Oliver on Vimeo

And here's an interview of him done by Lost Souls magazine, and a link to the beautiful hideous video for Lair of the Minotaur, Evil Power.

He's a good guy.

You Don't Need a Pulse to Live

To be clear, I'm not a scientist. Or a magician. But I *think* I know scientific magic when I see it. Or, rather, hear its hum...

What I don't understand, and can't get from NPR's article, is what happens to the pumps when the body dies. Like I said, not a scientist. Do they need to be removed from the corpse? If they're controlling the blood flow but the brain is controlling body function, do they keep pumping after the brain tells the rest of the body to give it a rest? Can blood flow through the veins of a pulseless, brainwaveless body?

I guess what I'm asking is, has science made zombies real? And if so... is Dick Cheney a zombie?

Cool.

7 Billion Needles

Over at Tor.com they have a nice article on 7 Billion Needles. It takes Hal Clement's 1950 scifi classic, Needle, and retells the story as Manga Body-Horror.

Are you a fan of Manga Body-Horror?

HheeEELLPPP MMEEEEE!!!
I'm one of Wildclaw's newest members, and there's still a lot for me to learn about horror. Case in point: I know who Fay Wray is because of my life-long love of -ahem- Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Next week I'm going to start a little self-education. And I need your help! What are the Five Essential Horror Films you think I need to watch asap?

the dead are walking... in Chicago

This Saturday at 3pm, the dead of all ages will walk the streets of downtown Chicago courtesy of the folks at Chicago Zombie. More details can be found on their Facebook page. They've had a huge turnout for the last 3 years, and I can only guess with the nice weather we're expecting it will be another success.

Have any of you taken part in this (or other marches/pub crawls) in the past? Id so, do you have any tips for first-timers?

Wolfman hit by Gamma Radiation?!?

So, word on the street, or at least on MovieHole is the there is YET ANOTHER remake in the works for Universal's Wolfman. Apparently what began as a sequel to the Benicio del Toro flick is being reworked into a new story altogether. This just reminds me of the whole Hulk thing when they remade/retold/re-imagined the film only a few years apart from each other.

*steps up onto soap-box*

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of remakes, and it bugs me to no end that in the US at least, Hollywood, with all it's $$$, can barely come up with anything original these days and that a good portion of the movie-going public just kinda eats it all up. Don't get me wrong, I'm just as big of a consumer whore & impulse shopper as the next person -- you throw enough eye-candy in a flick and i'll be one of the first in line -- but sometimes a girl has got to have standards ;)

*steps down from soap-box*

So what is your take on this possible remake? Were you a fan of the Benicio del Toro version?

Re-Animator: The Musical

Stuart Gordon was recently interviewed on the TV show, Last Call with Carson Daly, where he spoke about turning H.P. Lovecraft's Re-Animator into a piece of musical theatre, Re-Animator™ The Musical. They wouldn't let us embed the interview, so check it out here.



What do you think about the cult classic movie? Would you want to see it as a musical?

McFarlane Walking Dead Toys

McFarlane Toys has brought out their figures for The Walking Dead. Check 'em out over at Entertainment Earth.

What do you think? Something you would part with your hard-earned dough for?

Exorcist III

While suffering a debilitating cold / allergy attack this weekend, Mr Morlock was consoled by an afternoon on the couch with Lady Morlock and Inspector Bill Kinderman. A few nights before we'd seen They Might Be Giants (awesome!!!), so we'd had George C. Scott on the brain.



Golly, I love this film. No greater insight to offer, really. Just love this damn film.

Sure, the exorcism tacked on at the end by the studio is a little bit out of step, who cares? It's psychedeleriffic.

And here's a swell little nugget about William Peter Blatty from wikipedia:

Blatty appeared on Groucho Marx's quiz show, "You Bet Your Life" (1950), posing as an Arab sheik with so many wives that he could not recall how many he had. Groucho was completely taken in. When Blatty revealed that it was a hoax after a couple of minutes, he told Groucho that he did it because George Fenneman had said that Groucho was an expert at spotting phonies. Groucho replied, "That is incorrect, because I've had Fenneman in my employ now for 14 years." Blatty won $10,000 on the show, and when Groucho asked what he intended to do with the money, Blatty replied that he was going to take a year off from his job and write a novel. That novel was "The Exorcist".

school's out -- or is it?

(i know Summer School is a comedy flick, but if you're reading this site, you will appreciate the clip.)

although school may be out for most kids, some are sadly going to be stuck in summer school. we all know how difficult it was (or still is) to fit in during the regular school year... giving up a chunk of your summer while dealing with the fears of fitting in and possibly losing touch with friends who aren't there with you has got to be even tougher.

having never been to summer school myself (though if Mark Harmon were teaching i probably would have flunked my classes on purpose), the only thing i can liken it to is my first trip to a horror-convention -- my friend and i walked in shy, timid, unsure of ourselves or whether we'd even fit in (luckily we had each other to cling to), but by the end of that first day we had a whole slew of freaks to call friends and a place to call home!

ok, so maybe that's a stretch and summer school is not going to be as nearly amazing as a horror convention, but it's definitely not something to lose any sleep over -- heck you may be wishing you can do it again & again!

so... do YOU have any summer school horror stories?

from dusk til dawn...

... well, maybe not til dawn, but now that summer is upon us, here in Chicago, you don't have to watch your scary movies indoors!!! Motel Bar and the Chicago Park Districts have you covered.

Creepy highlights of their schedules
Motel Bar double features:
07/18 American Psycho and Shining
09/19 The Shining and Carrie

Chicago Park Districts:
07/12 Jaws (at 63rd Street Beach)
07/22 Twilight; Eclipse (at Meyering Park)

Anyone outside of Chicago, do you have have anything similar taking place in your neck of the woods?

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies Script

The Pride and Prejudice and Zombies script gets a cleanup from Marti Noxon. Noxon was a writer and producer on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.