Holmesburg Prison, Philadelphia, Terror Dome (1896-1995)
“Ghost Stalkers,” now on Thursdays on Destination America, proves to be classic-worthy with its visit to the infamous Holmesburg Prison. We can speculate from now until sunrise, but what this show does well, it does very well. The chemistry between John E.L. Tenney and Chad Lindberg carries over smoothly with each new mission. The paranormal activity spikes with their visit to the abandoned Holmesburg Prison in Philadelphia. They confront spirits and they confront back.
This is Part One which equals six pages. As I go to check-in at Hotel Max, I have three more parts to complete. The story thus far: We meet Max and Lucia and already there is intrigue. Who, or what, are these two? There’s a supernatural vibe going on here. Max is part of Seattle. Lucia is part of Portland. Both of them find themselves attached to certain things. Max, at this point, finds himself attached to Hotel Max! In this story, we will get to know Max and Lucia. We will come to see that the Seattle monorail acts as a portal for both of them and allows them easy access to their relatively long distance relationship. Quite frankly, they aren’t totally sure who or what they are. They feel like they live in a dream and yet they manage to function day to day. This is part of a bigger webcomic that will unroll in the coming months. We will see how things develop in the coming year for “SEA/PDX,” that is the umbrella title.
What would you like to learn about Max and Lucia? Where will our story take us? Stay tuned!
Denis St. John is just the sort of cartoonist it is a pleasure to champion. Here’s the thing, there are many, many, many cartoonists who deserve a thoughtful review, especially early in their careers as they are working towards establishing themselves. I support art for art’s sake but I’m most interested in cartoonists creating ambitious work on some level. It doesn’t come down just to issues of craft and narrative. It comes down to issues of vision. Overall, the comic can have a shaggy dog quality to it but if it has that spark, then let that shaggy dog howl! And that’s what we have here with this collection of horror comics, “Amelia: A Monsters & Girls Book.” I say more power to Denis St. John!
“On the Odd Hours” is part of the NBM ComicsLit collection of Louvre-inspired comics. Eric Liberge not only gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the grand museum from the perspective of museum guards. He’s created quite a fanciful story. What if the Louvre was haunted by all its great works and it’s up to one particular guard, in the odd hours of the night, to pacify the spirits?
Paul Tobin is a comic book writer who is known for his work with Marvel Comics, among a full roster of other works. With Dark Horse Comics, Tobin has worked, with his wife, Colleen Coover, on BANDETTE; with Joe Querio on THE WITCHER; and with Juan Ferreyra on COLDER as welll as PROMETHEUS: FIRE AND STONE. For this interview, we focus on the writing in The Witcher and chat a bit about the Aliens Predator Prometheus crossover event.
From THE WITCHER by Paul Tobin and Joe Querio
Based on the popular book series of the same name by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, The Witcher is an action role-playing video game developed by CD Projekt RED and published by Atari, Inc. Selling millions of copies, the short stories by Sapkowski feature a fantasy world inspired by Polish folklore with supernatural themes. The next game release is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, set for February 24, 2015, and it will make the perfect companion to the trade paperback release of The Witcher graphic novel.
Look for the trade paperback of The Witcher Volume 1 to come out on September 24, 2014. For more details, visit our friends at Dark Horse Comics right here.
As Tobin explains, he breaks everything down by panel while making sure not to crowd the artist. Panel by panel breakdown is essential in many ways, not to mention continuity. We take a close look at some panels that set up an important plot point: the introduction of the character, Marta, hovering in the distance, who Jakob is inextricably linked to.
From PROMETHEUS: FIRE AND STONE by Paul Tobin and Juan Ferreyra
And we talk about Tobin’s Prometheus: Fire and Stone. It was Editor-in-Chief Scott Allie’s brilliant idea to bring together all the writers on the crossover event. While each writer had a separate stand-alone book to work on, getting together allowed them to share ideas and actually make each other’s work better.
Tobin acknowledged that he’s a very private writer but he loved this format with ideas flowing back and forth in a supportive environment. It will make reading all the books that much smoother. This blockbuster crossover event begins with Tobin’s Prometheus: Fire and Stone.
Look for the first issue of Prometheus: Fire and Stone out on September 10, 2014. For more details, visit our friends at Dark Horse Comics right here.
Happy Friday the 13! You are likely in a good sinister mood and so consider checking out this devilish and delightful series of horror radio shows for the digital age!
TALES FROM BEYOND THE PALE, SEASON 2 LIVE!
Launches with FREE streaming of THE CRUSH by Glenn McQuaid and CAPER by Larry Fessenden
Featuring the voice talents of Sean Young, Mark Margolis, James Le Gros and the regular TALES stable of audio artisans.
All 8 episodes available for download at TALES FROM BEYOND THE PALE right here and on Audible, iTunes and Amazon
(NEW YORK, NY—September 13th, 2013) Yearning for something suitably sinister to do this weekend? Well look no further. Prolific production outfit Glass Eye Pix (I SELL THE DEAD, STAKE LAND, THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL, THE LAST WINTER) is pleased to present season two of the cult favorite TALES FROM BEYOND THE PALE, audio tales for the digital age. And to mark the occasion, they’re streaming a double bill of terror — right now, for free!
This weekend check out Glenn McQuaid’s crime suspense shocker THE CRUSH and follow it up with Larry Fessenden’s phantasmagoric heist tale CAPER in a new online listening room at TalesFromBeyondThePale.com. All eight explosive tales are also available for download in the online store and are coming this weekend to Audible, iTunes and Amazon.
Inspired by the classic radio shows of Alfred Hitchcock, Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre, and Orson Welles, each TALES FROM BEYOND THE PALE is chillingly brought to life by the extraordinary vocal talents of Sean Young, Vincent D’Onofrio, Mark Margolis, James Le Gros, Michael Cerveris, Kate Lyn Sheil, and Jonny Orsini, to name just a few.
Hosted by Glass Eye Pix CEO Larry Fessenden, each thirty-minute episode is written and directed by one of today’s horror auteurs including Joe Maggio (BITTER FEAST), Clay McLeod Chapman (HENLEY), Jeff Buhler (THE MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN), Ashley Thorpe (THE HAIRY HANDS), Kim Newman (ANNO DRACULA), Glenn McQuaid (I SELL THE DEAD), Simon Barrett (YOU’RE NEXT), and Larry Fessenden (BENEATH).
Conceived during a fog-drenched car ride by Fessenden and frequent collaborator Glenn McQuaid (I SELL THE DEAD, V/H/S), TALES continues the mission at Glass Eye Pix to celebrate and elevate individual voices in the arts and to bring the vast palette of moods that comprises the horror story to fans everywhere.
For more information and the latest news, please visit http://www.talesfrombeyondthepale.com Follow on twitter: @talesbeyond
“Beautiful Creatures ” available on Blu-ray Combo pack, DVD and Digital Download 5/21
“Beautiful Creatures ” available on Blu-ray Combo pack, DVD and Digital Download 5/21
“Claim yourself!” is the cry that goes out to all teens in the supernatural romance, “Beautiful Creatures.” Don’t listen to your mother. Don’t listen to the others. Just follow your instincts. It is the best advice that the lead character, Lena Duchannes (played by Alice Englert) could ask for.
What is a supernatural romance without some romance? Well, the chemistry between Alden Ehrenreich and Alice Englert is utterly unmistakable. It happens naturally, sweetly and quickly. And we have an interesting twist to young adult tales. This one is told with a nod to the boy’s point of view. We begin with an intriguing scene that establishes Ethan Wate (played by Alden Ehrenreich) as not only the young man with big dreams of becoming a writer but with a possible supernatural connection. He has this recurring dream of a mysterious beautiful young woman but strands of her hair keep blocking her face from view. There are hints of the Civil War. A violent death, his own, always ends the dream.
Alden Ehrenreich and Alice Englert
Life in Gatlin, South Carolina will never be the same when, at the start of his junior year in high school, Ethan Wate first meets the new girl in town, Lena Duchannes. For Lena, it is nonstop torment from the other girls who suspect the worst about Lena. They’re convinced that she’s some kind of witch. Everyone in town knows, or thinks they know, about Ravenwood mansion and the strange goings-on surrounded with that place and the reclusive Macon Ravenwood (played by Jeremy Irons) who owns most of the town. No one can understand why his niece would suddenly show up and start going to the local high school. Only Ethan takes the time to be friendly to Lena and it’s not long before he’s smitten. It’s that book she’s reading that triggers the connection: “You Get So Alone At Times That It Just Makes Sense,” by Charles Bukowski. Ethan asks if it’s any good. Lena asks him to define “good.” Ethan, once he starts in on a copy of his own, concludes that Bukowski is a god.
Jeremy Irons, Alice Englert, and Alden Ehrenreich
And what is a supernatural romance without the supernatural? There’s plenty to find here and it creeps up on you. Primarily, it’s all about the characters. Lena is in a major crisis. On her 16th birthday, Lena will learn her true fate. As for her being a witch, that’s yes and no. As she corrects Ethan, the preferred term is “caster.” If Ethan was ignorant to the supernatural before, he quickly picks up on it. There is no end to what people in his life can teach him: Amma, (played by Viola Davis) who has raised him; Mrs. Lincoln, (played by Emma Thompson) who is determined to control him; and Ridley Duchannes, (played by Emmy Rossum) who is determined to destroy him. Only Macon Ravenwood means the boy well by keeping him as far away from Lena as possible. It’s up to Ethan and Lena to find another way.
“Beautiful Creatures” has a texture and authenticity about it that raises it high amongst the rising crop of supernatural young adult movies. It’s as if it is working in its own world on its own terms not concerned with trends. Of course, people pick up on that and they love it. Screenwriter and director Richard LaGravenese (“Water for Elephants,” “P.S. I Love You”) has captured the spirit and essential details of the novel by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. The stage is certainly set to move forward with a franchise and bring to the screen the rest of the series. That can surely happen. There’s such a sturdy foundation to work from with strong characters and a thrilling story.
“Beautiful Creatures” is available on DVD, Blu-ray Combo Pack, and digital download starting on May 21 from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group. And keep in mind that the Blu-ray Combo Pack includes 30 minutes of Bonus Features: Book to Screen, The Casters, Between Two Worlds, Forbidden Romance, Alternate Worlds, Beautiful Creatures: Designing the Costumes, ICONS by Margaret Stohl (Book Trailer), Deleted Scenes, and Theatrical Trailers. The Bonus Features are well worth it as you get some in-depth observations from the cast as well as the director and the authors of the novel. Plus, there is a healthy amount of behind-the-scenes discussion on special effects and costume design. Also, on specially marked Blu-ray discs, DVDs and Digital Downloads, you will find UltraViolet, which allows you to create a digital collection of movies and TV shows on a wide spectrum of devices.
Dan Dougherty is an accomplished cartoonist and illustrator who can handle anything from humor to horror and, believe it or not, a mashup of the two. His latest project takes a decidedly dramatic and intriguing tone, a tale about a woman with a most disturbing version of the Midas Touch, now available at Beardocomics.com.
In his own words, Dan provides the details:
I’m proud to announce an exciting new project: Touching Evil. It’s the first comic book I’ve fully written since Cyclone Bill and the Tall Tales. It’s also the first time that I’ve had my illustrations colored by a professional. Wesley Wong has done color work for years, most notably on the Marvel Masterworks series. He inked and colored Touching Evil, and has really taken my work to a new level that I couldn’t reach on my own.
So what is Touching Evil? The quick pitch is this: “An unsuspecting single mother stumbles upon an ancient curse. As the bearer of the curse, she can kill anyone simply with the touch of her hand – provided that the person is evil.”
If that piques your interest, that’s only the beginning! For not only does she have the dilemma of being a defense attorney, she is also completely unprepared to carry something so powerful. And power has a funny way of attracting those who want it. And those who want it tend to do whatever it takes to get it.
The first story arc of Touching Evil will be five to six issues in length, and – if it is successful – will be the basis for an ongoing series. As you can imagine, this idea is ripe with possibilities.
But before I get too carried away with it, I need to begin at the beginning. And I’m hoping you’ll join me for the ride. Issue one of Touching Evil is now available on my website, http://www.beardocomics.com/store. It’s only $5 plus shipping, and if you order it, I’ll throw in a copy of issue one of Cyclone Bill and the Tall Tales, which is long since out of print.
If you DO order it, follow the prompts on the order form. Once you see the screen that gives you your order number and says, “Your order has been correctly sent and will be processed as soon as possible,” then just scroll to the bottom of the screen and click on the “Buy Now” button that will take you to Paypal. You don’t need a Paypal account to pay, it will take a credit card.
I’ve attached the cover image (done by Stephen Bryant) for issue one to show you the kind of quality that went into this book.
