A Very Pagan Christmas: The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus
I’m sure you all know the story of Santa Claus, right? Of course you do. Everyone remembers how when Santa was an infant he was abandoned in the woods in a snow bank till the
An Immaculate Fix: A Junky’s Christmas
It was Christmas Day and Danny the Car Wiper hit the street junksick and broke after seventy-two hours in the precinct cell. It was a clear bright day, but there was warmth in the
Thou Doth Protest Too Much: The Silent Night, Deadly Night Controversy
Picture this: the year is 1984 and you are an impressionable youth watching an episode of Three’s Company or Little House on the Prairie when during a commercial break this comes on the TV:
Christmas in Patagonia
Christmas Day, 1999. Twenty years ago. Was I at home in New York, a gentle snow falling outside, while inside blazed a warm fire in the fireplace, with presents under the Christmas tree that
Happy Life Day: The Star Wars Holiday Special
Author's note: This was written nearly six years ago and I must admit my opinion of the Star Wars Holiday Special has softened a bit. Oh, I still think it's awful don't get me
A Merry Little Alternative Xmas
Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. Sure, that’s a given. People seem to enjoy the colored lights, the slowly dying tree in the living room, and the glitter. Oh, and the gifts.
The Missing Child
I wake in darkness to find my child gone. The realization comes slowly. Half-awake I reach out a hand to the opposite side of the bed. Grasping, slowly at first then faster, palm flat and
My Favorite Things to Eat: A Former New Yorker Talks About Food
What are my favorite things to eat? Good question. Thanks for asking. Bagels. Mozzarella. And what are the two foods I loved most in New York that I can’t find now that I live
The Worst Guy to Have Dinner with in Ancient Greece
Once upon a time there lived a guy named Tantalus who was, for reasons that will become clear, a rather unpleasant fellow. Tantalus was the king of a place called Sipylus and had a
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
“The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” has for a long time been my favorite “ghost story,” not solely because of how well it is told, but also because it is, for me, a “local” tale, in
The Blood Elevator: Its Meaning & Symbol
The blood elevator scene, sometimes called the ‘river of blood’, from Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining is a horrifying and disturbing image in a film full of horrifying and disturbing images. Upon watching it the scene
Blood Rush (A Short Story by Guest Author Tessa Lee Carr)
We shared our first kiss under the cherry blossom tree. It was perfect, like a scene from the movies. I stared into her eyes and brushed her soft hair from her delicate face. I saw
I Mistrust My Own Judgement: Dracula (Monster Memories)
Tod Browning’s 1931 adaptation of Dracula is the granddaddy of them all, the film the launched the Classic Monster films of Universal. The Universal cinematic universe if you will. I try not to judge
Things I Like: Longbox of Darkness
There are three things I like quite a bit: comics, horror, and podcasts. So imagine my surprise and delight when I discovered someone combined all three! The Longbox of Darkness is a podcast covering horror
I Dislike Being Touched: The Mummy (Monster Memories)
The Mummy from 1932 is a classic. A flawed classic for sure, but a classic nonetheless. There are parts of this film that are truly brilliant and there are parts that are…well…not. To be honest
Even a Man Who is Pure in Heart: The Wolf-Man (Monster Memories)
By 1941 Universal had been making monster movies for over a decade. It had now become a well-oiled machine and while not quite formulaic just yet was well on its way to becoming so.
Reckoning Upon God: Frankenstein (Monster Memories)
Frankenstein is one of the few classic monster movies that I did not see on a Saturday afternoon on a UHF channel. No, this film was played in prime time. It was a special
Even the Moon is Frightened of Me: The Invisible Man (Monster Memories)
An invisible man must be one of the more bizarre choices for a monster. First of all it’s not really a monster, not in the classical sense anyway. He is, after all, just a
Fruit Flavored Terror: Monster Memories
As a kid I loved monsters. Not the ones that hid under the bed or lived in the closet obviously - those were terrifying and nightmare inducing if one actually managed to get to
All Hallows’ Eve Month is Here! A Month of Classic Horror
October has arrived - the most wonderful time of the year. There is a nip in the air, the leaves are changing and the smell of pumpkin pie surrounds us. It’s time to wear flannel
I Can Hear the Fireworks Up & Down the Line: 4th of July Memories
It is Independence Day. There is red, white and blue bunting hung from porches and windows. The air has the scent of smoke; it’s there in the background but always present. You almost don’t notice it...
That Time I Didn’t Notice When Night Became Day
A long time ago, way back in college, I had an apartment two blocks off Height Street in San Francisco. It was a nondescript thing just a box on the third floor where the “rooms”
All That Road Going: Kerouac & A Driving Beat
On my 16th birthday my brother gave me a copy of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road and it changed my life forever. Not really. It would be nice if it did, if it worked that
Things I Like: Liking Things
I like things. Many things, all kinds of things. I like movies and books. I like television shows and radio broadcasts and podcasts. I like fine food and comfort food and fine wine and champagne.