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Author: Sue Granquist

Goth Chick News: The Night of the Living Dead VR Game You Didn’t Know You Had to Have

Goth Chick News: The Night of the Living Dead VR Game You Didn’t Know You Had to Have

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Goth Chick Night of the Living Dead

Having self-determined I have been extremely good this year, and figuring Santa (or maybe Krampus in my case) may be a tad light in his technical knowledge, I took the liberty to gift myself with an early holiday pres. The custom-built computer which I christened “Winston” (aka the “Computer of Destiny”) is comprised of a liquid-cooled 16 thread CPU with an AMD Ryzen1800 x 8 core, an AMD Vega 64 8GB video card with Corsair 32GB Vengeance memory, 2 x 16GB, and that’s just getting started.

Yes, can’t help it… I’m bragging.

Even the lovely gents at my day job who gleefully stuffed the biggest and fastest everything into the smoked-glass, neon lit housing wanted to know what the heck I was going to do with the beast they were building. To which I had three words…

Virtual reality gaming.

I want the ultimate in high-tech, I want total emersion, I want the freakin’ Enterprise-holodeck-with-Data-riding-shotgun of gaming experiences. Why? Because this is nothing less than the next generation of geek-nirvana.

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Goth Chick News: Spending an Interesting Day at Days of the Dead

Goth Chick News: Spending an Interesting Day at Days of the Dead

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Ripley and Newt

As another “season” winds down here in the Windy City, Black Gate photog Chris Z and I once again find ourselves at one of the most interesting, yet largely unheralded shows of the year which has never failed to turn up some notable tales to tell.

Days of the Dead is touted as a “by the fans, for the fans” convention which had its inaugural show in 2011, and which currently tours through Atlanta, Charlotte, Indy and Louisville, wrapping up the year here in Chicago in November. According to their site, the con’s primary goal is to bring back the idea of the genre convention being a welcoming communal gathering of like-minded friends and fans. Each event is tailored to the local audience with an active after-hours scene of horror themed parties, along with a robust guest list of celebrities, artists, and up and coming independent film makers.

Which makes it a Goth Chick News perennial favorite.

Forgiving the fact that the suburban hotel where the Chicago event is held, has a bar that doesn’t open until lunchtime – meaning our standard show Fireball shots have to wait until midday, Days of the Dead is smaller and more intimate than the mega-cons like C2E2 and ComicCon. This allows for actual conversation with the attendees without the crush of too many sweaty people in spandex. However, its size doesn’t stop it from attracting some very interesting celebrities. Past years have seen us chatting with the likes of Sid Haig (The Devil’s Rejects), Sandahl Berman (Conan the Barbarian), William Sanderson (Blade Runner) and Heather Donahue (The Blair Witch Project).

A-listers? No. Interesting? Absolutely.

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Goth Chick News: King Kong Goes to Broadway

Goth Chick News: King Kong Goes to Broadway

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King Kong Alive on Broadway

Hot on the heels of Universal putting an end to the whole concept of reinventing their classic movie monsters via a Dark Universe, one larger-than-life character seems to be enjoying a fairly successful renaissance.

Kong: Skull Island, which was released in March of this year, was considered a moderate box office success and generated enough revenue to keep plans on track for follow-on films. Universal also added a new attraction to the Orlando theme park in the form of Skull Island: Reign of Kong, which as of October when I visited, still required a fast-pass to avoid a nearly 2-hour wait. And it was awesome.

So far, so good.

But the most exciting news is coming out of the city which is most famously associated with the big guy himself, in the form of King Kong: Alive on Broadway.

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Goth Chick News, New Treasures: Demon Freaks by J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison

Goth Chick News, New Treasures: Demon Freaks by J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison

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Demon Freaks-small Demon Freaks-back-small

As a huge fan of Grady Hendrix’s My Best Friend’s Exorcism, and since I was trying to figure out what to do with myself now that I’ve binge-watch Stranger Things 2… twice… I was particularly excited to open up the latest intriguing book release from my pals over at Wunderkind PR.

First, the author’s name is J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison, and whether that’s a joke or not, it’s funny, at least to me – like he wanted to outdo John O’s buddy George R. R. Martin by one “R” and see him a “J.” Next, Hardison’s bio is rather amusing, as well as impressive:

Jim has an epically silly career. He’s been a movie producer (The Creature from Lake Michigan), an animation director (UPNs Gary and Mike), a screen writer (Popeye’s Voyage, SeeMore’s Playhouse) and a graphic novelist (The Helm). He even appeared on the NBC show The Apprentice as an expert adviser on brand characters. This is his second novel following his epically silly fantasy Fish Wielder.

Last, according to the additional information Wunkerkind shared, Jim would love to entertain interview questions concerning why horror films often feature bands as his current novel does.

Do they? I mean, Jennifer’s Body did, but that’s the only one I can think of off the top of my head, but okay.

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Goth Chick News: In Hollywood, Dead Is Sometimes Better…

Goth Chick News: In Hollywood, Dead Is Sometimes Better…

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Stephen King of the World

As we have observed for many years now, what’s old is new again: for movies, TV and most assuredly for Mr. Stephen King.

King is enjoying a massive renaissance that started with his first post-addiction novel Doctor Sleep in 2013 then juggernauted straight into his detective novels (The Bill Hodges Trilogy) and seems to have culminated in King now taking over both the big and small screens.

The elder statesman of horror is back with a serious vengeance.

In the wake of IT floating into theaters this summer, interest began swirling around reimaging almost all of King’s novels for the screen, but specifically around refreshing his 1983 novel Pet Sematary, previously adapted by Mary Lambert in 1989. We learned this week from Deadline that Dennis Widmyer and Kevin Kolsch, the writing/directing duo behind 2014’s fantasy-horror flick Starry Eyes, have been tapped to bring Pet Sematary back to life in theaters.

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Goth Chick News: Twisted Christmas Cards Are My New Everything…

Goth Chick News: Twisted Christmas Cards Are My New Everything…

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Chas for Christmas

As you know if you come here often, the more off-beat and strange something is, the better I like it. I mean, anyone can do poser-weird: just walk into your local Spirit Halloween store any day in October and you’ll see a plethora of merchandise meant to temporarily convert an average suburbanite into a rampant Samhain-alian, if only for one night.

But it takes a special sort of twisted talent to create the truly and perpetually unusual, and those are people we are always on the lookout for here at Goth Chick News. Therefore, it is no surprise that we’ve decided to permanently cyber-stalk artist Charles M. Kline and forever affectionately refer to him as “Chas” – whether he likes it or not.

I first became acquainted with Kline’s art back in 2014 when I received his most recent work, Edgar Allan Paws and the Tell-Tale Tail Adapted From “The Tell-Tale Heart” By Edgar Allan Poe packaged in a coffin (yes, you read that right). You can learn more about that seminal incident here, but suffice to say I’ve been a rabid fan ever since.

Most recently Kline has brought his special brand of weird to bear on the holidays in the form of his first hardcover book, The 12 Frights of Christmas, which covers everything from “Mistletoe Mishaps” to “Egregious Eggnog.” Kline combines his unique drawing skills with an offbeat sense of humor that, while being rated PG, still has an undertone of commentary that I find hysterical. Especially in light of his latest holiday offering.

Christmas cards.

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Goth Chick News: Mars Sneaks Bite Size Horror Into Our Trick-or-Treat Bags…

Goth Chick News: Mars Sneaks Bite Size Horror Into Our Trick-or-Treat Bags…

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Mars Bite Sized Horror

Tricks for unsuspecting viewers and a delicious treat for us horror fans.

If you’ve watched various Fox networks over the past couple of weeks you may have been visited by strange and chilling advertising just in time for Halloween. Mars candy brands (M&Ms and Skittles to name a couple) have collaborated to give up-and-coming horror directors the opportunity to make disturbing short films — which have been running in their entirety during Fox commercial breaks.

Four “Bite Size Horror” flicks (they are all two minutes long) have rolled out so far. The one that’s gotten the most attention is Floor 9.5, presented by Skittles, written by Simon Allen and directed by Toby Meakins. (Allen and Meakins previously worked together on the Vimeo staff pick horror shorts Breathe and LOT254.) Floor 9.5 ran during a Yankees-Indians playoff game on FS1, and judging by the Twitter reactions, it clearly freaked people out.

Actually, it kind of freaked me out…

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Goth Chick News: That Time We Drove 350 Miles for Haunted Houses and Gothic Music

Goth Chick News: That Time We Drove 350 Miles for Haunted Houses and Gothic Music

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Cedar Point and Midnight Syndicate

Cedar Point Amusement Park… the final word in destinations for rollercoaster enthusiasts.

The three hundred and sixty-four-acre attraction, located on a Lake Erie peninsula in Sandusky, Ohio opened in 1870 and is the second-oldest operating amusement park in the United States. Known as “America’s Roller Coast,” Cedar Point features a world-record 71 rides, including 16 roller coasters.

But is this the reason Black Gate photog Chris Z kept texting me the words “road trip” at least twice a day for a month since March?

Nope.

It goes back to our last road trip to St. Louis to attend the Haunted Attraction Association show where I spend time every year fan-girling out over my goth-boy-band crushes, the musical group Midnight Syndicate.

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Goth Chick News: If You Like Your Horror Victorian Style…

Goth Chick News: If You Like Your Horror Victorian Style…

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The Lodgers poster-small

If you enjoy your scares draped in black velvet and crinolines, ala Guillermo del Toro’s period ghost story Crimson Peak (and I certainly do) then we’re both going to love a new film by Epic Pictures Group that debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) earlier this month.

Entitled The Lodgers (no relation to David Bowie’s classic Berlin-era album of a similar name), the film offers up a chilling ghost tale with in a rich, Victorian setting. The movie was directed by Brian O’Malley (Let Us Prey), and features performances by Bill Milner (X-Men: First Class, Locke), Charlotte Vega (The Misfits Club, Another Me), David Bradley (Captain America: The First Avenger, Harry Potter, Game of Thrones), Eugene Simon (Game of Thrones, Ben Hur), and Moe Dunford (Vikings, Patrick’s Day).

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Goth Chick News: All Hail the Scream Queen, Back for Halloween #11

Goth Chick News: All Hail the Scream Queen, Back for Halloween #11

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Jamie Lee Curtis Halloween-small

First, a moment of fan girl squee’ing…

Okay, here we go.

Second generation scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis is returning to play her iconic character Laurie Strode in what Universal Pictures promises will be the eleventh and final installment of the Halloween franchise. Curtis’ character will have one last confrontation with Michael Myers, the masked figure who has haunted her since she narrowly escaped his killing spree on Halloween night four decades ago when the original movie opened in October, 1978.

John Carpenter will executive produce and serve as creative consultant on this film, joining leading horror producer Jason Blum, who’s behind The Purge and Paranormal Activity franchises. In case you forgot (and who really could?) the Halloween films were launched by Carpenter from his own original script; it and the nine films that followed have grossed nearly $400 million worldwide.

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