TV Horror Hosts.

[John Battles]

WHO ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE TV HORROR HOSTS , WHETHER THEY'RE CURRENT , BEFORE YOUR TIME , OR SOMEONE YOU GREW UP WITH AND HAVE FOND MEMORIES OF(And , I hope most of you heeded the advice of KING GHOULARDI , and never quite grew up.). Any good stories about meeting any of them , in or out of character? I'll catch up , later. My original thesis was deleted. iT WAS A BAD FIRECRACKER , GROUP , IT DID'NT GO BOOM BOOM.

[Rockin Rod Strychnine]

I guess...Zacherlie for before my time and Elvira while I was growing up.  There's one guy I enjoy watching currently either on MeTV or AnttenaTV (I'm not sure which) but his name escapes me.  He has a beard and wears a tophat and has Alice Cooper style mascara.  And he's on Saturday nights.

[Matt]

Sammy Terry's Nightmare Theater! It was a local program that aired in Indiana. I thought that he would have been forgotten about, but a quick search proved wrong, thankfully. There are also tons of clips on youtube of his show. This is the opening scene to his show http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwCIHqW3QSo

This is so great, I'm glad you brought this this up. I bet his name hasn't entered my mind in close to a decade. I loved this show as a kid. Like Elvira, he just did corny banter before and after movies and sometimes around commercials. The movies were your classic horror films, b films, slasher flicks and so on. Much like Elvira, whom I also loved as a young boy!!

So, if you notice from the clip (if you watched it), Sammy Terry has yellow gloves on. I got a chance to meet him at the Boys and Girls club when I was 10 (?) or so. He was super cool, I thought. He had his pet spider George with him, which was a delight. After he did a little presentation, kids could go up and get autographs and shake his hand. When I went to shake his hand, I noticed he and my mother had the same gloves, only my mom used hers for doing dishes. A bit grounding at the time. Not that I thought he was a real ghoul, but I was a bit disappointed that he used dish gloves. Anyway, it was a cool experience and I made my mom buy me dish gloves for the next year or so as to be authentic as possible when I dressed up like a ghoul or zombie.

[MikeL]

Here in Pittsburgh, we had a Saturday afternoon show on our independent station, Channel 53 (before it became a Fox Affiliate), called "Thing Theater," and it was hosted by a creepy old man named Scorpio.  All I can say is that he was old and creepy, because a lot of the details about him now escape me.

[Howie Pyro]

i love zacherley as he is even now at 94 (i think) so accessible to his fans...i called him recently & even though he had no idea what i was really asking he played along & was such a perfect host to a voice on the telephone (i was asking him to do an ID for my radio show, but to call me back and say a bunch of stuff into my voicemail which made no sense to him, haha) wonderful man. Vampira was also so nice...there's a great gallery show up right now on La Brea in hollywood at High Voltage (well next door, this is Kat Von D's Tattoo shop & she opened a store/gallery next door) of loads of unseen Vampira photos & cool stuff like her handmade wooden bat sunglasses...Ghoulardi is so amazing...(and don't get me started about The Mad Daddy, the wildest weirdest radio dj ever, along with Mad Mike from Pittsburgh...). I have a great collection of horror host rock n roll 45's, some with amazing picture sleeves...it seems the 2 went hand in hand & sooo many of them made weird cool records...

[Jamie]

Elvira was always a personal hero of mine (even in childhood!) and I was always frightened/yet intrigued by the Crypt Keeper from Tales from the Crypt. 

[Mike Humsgreen]

I'm the first to get Out There in, along with Eurotrash and the Eurotica season on channel 4 this opened my eyes to a world of crap outside that what was typically British. With hindsight Eurotrash did suck unless you were 12 years old.

[Rockin Rod Strychnine]

Svengoolie.  That's te name of the host I was trying to remember.  He's current and on MeTV on Saturday nights.

[John Battles]

A Chicago boy ? Put 'er there. Or , maybe you get Me Tv (The only reason to have a TV , from where I stand.) somewhere else....You don't have to say where....Svengoolie was originally played by Chicago and Cleveland DJ , Jerry G. Bishop. He had Ernie Anderson's permission to do a character based on Ghoulardi , though with a more Hippie bent. He was great , there's cool clips on You Tube , inc. one with Tempest Storm !!! But , Richard Koz replaced him as "Son OF sVENGOOLIE" , I think , in the late 70's. He was off the air for several years , but , came back , doing the same act , as just "Svengoolie".  Bishop was way funnier , BUT , Koz is keeping it alive , and the kids love him , which is great.
 
Rockin Rod Strychnine said:

Svengoolie.  That's te name of the host I was trying to remember.  He's current and on MeTV on Saturday nights.

[John Battles]

 Hey , thank everybody for all the  feedback. I will be back , shortly , I do want to comment on the hosts you've all mentioned. AND if you had a good show that did'nt have a Horror Host , please talk about that , too. Now , it's time ...For Dinner With Drac. HA HA HA HA HA HAAA....

John.

[John Battles]

Very cool , low budget Cormanesque spooky atmospherics on this Sammy Terry clip. It says he's back on the air , too? He's kind of a ham , but , we love it.
 
John Battles said:

 Hey , thank everybody for all the  feedback. I will be back , shortly , I do want to comment on the hosts you've all mentioned. AND if you had a good show that did'nt have a Horror Host , please talk about that , too. Now , it's time ...For Dinner With Drac. HA HA HA HA HA HAAA....

John.

[John Battles]

Sorry MikeL , I'm not able to reply directly to your comment , it seems. "Thing Theatre" , so cool. Maybe there's something about Scorpio on Google (Yeah , I know , the answer to everything!). Any movies you remember seeing?
 
John Battles said:

Very cool , low budget Cormanesque spooky atmospherics on this Sammy Terry clip. It says he's back on the air , too? He's kind of a ham , but , we love it.
 
John Battles said:

 Hey , thank everybody for all the  feedback. I will be back , shortly , I do want to comment on the hosts you've all mentioned. AND if you had a good show that did'nt have a Horror Host , please talk about that , too. Now , it's time ...For Dinner With Drac. HA HA HA HA HA HAAA....

John.

[John Battles]

Zacherley always seemed like everything you said , and eternally youthful. Did he eat so many gherkins , it pickled his internal workin's? If you can't find any footage from back in the day , friends , seek out "Zacherley's Horrible Horror " on Goodtimes ("Trademark of Quality") , tons of great clips , outtakes , trailers and promotional bits , hosted by the man (?) himself.  Of course , before Bobby Bare became a Country star , he recorded the great spooky Rockabilly love song to Vampira , one of many Horror Host / Rock'n'ROLL tie - ins , as YOU MENTIONED. MORGUS tHE MAGNIFICENT , OUT OF NEW oRLEANS , recorded a self - titled rocker , too.  iT'S VERY COOL THAT YOU GOT TO KNOW MAILA NURMI (VAMPIRA.), there were some great pictures of her with Elvis on her website. One where Elvis is pretending to CHOKE her (See "Tickle Me" for Elvis' only connection to Horror , and some damn good mid - period songs , plus possibly his most stunning leading lady. I said POSSIBLY.).  oF COURSE , GHOULARDI IS THE KING , AND , FORTUNATELY , A WHOLE CD OF MAD DADDY BROADCASTS HAS SURFACED , THO' , as great as the two "Mad Mike " comps on Norton are , they're light on Mad Mike DJ spots.  These people LIVED it. It's ALL Rock'n'Roll , from where I stand.

I met a few , but not the super - greats .....Marvel Comics Artist , Kerry Gammil , did a stint as a Horror Host , "Professor Cerebrus" , in the Dallas / Ft. Worth area. He had Uncle Creepy , The Wolfman , Frankenstein's Monster , The Fly and others in his cast. I moved to Arlingfun (sic) , Texas , six months too late to see his program , but , I did see him do a live monster show with most of his cast. It was GREAT !!!!!! I met Gammil , still in character , then , met him , another time , portraying himself. I did'nt know the two were one and the same for about 30 years. His show "Nightmare " went off the air , I think , in '75 , but returned a few years later , sans a host. This was where I first saw "Dracula Vs. Frankenstein" , "Frankenstein's Bloody Terror " (Twice !) , and "It! The Terror From Beyond Space" (A favorite of Johnny Ramone.).

Best of all , a good friend's Dad , earlier on , in Kewanee , Illinois , was a Horror Host out of the Quad Cities area. His real name was Ken Gibson , and he played an Edwardian vampire , with moderately long hair and badass sideburns , called Vincent Hedges. Actually , the host and the namesake of the program was the SPONSOR , Chuck Acree, who owned a home improvement business.....Hedges / Gibson offered comic relief , doing silent movie - inspired routines , with not only no soundtrack , but they were often shot in broad daylight ! The filters used to create the illusion of darkness were expensive , but , COME ON ! 

I also met Ron Sweed , "The Ghoul" , Ghoulardi's successor , by chance , and he told some great stories about Ernie Anderson , whose shoes he could never fill , but , he was doing the character with Ernie's blessings. I think he's still around(?).

BUT , HEDGES , AND FOR THAT MATTER , ACREE , BECAME VERY POPULAR ON "ACREE CREATURE FEATURES" IN THE 70'S , AND AGAIN , IN THE 80'S. GIBSON WAS A HERO WITH THE KIDS IN KEWANEE , WHERE HE LIVED , NOT FAR FROM ME. HE WAS THE COOLEST ADULT I'D EVER KNOWN. ALWAYS QUICK WITH A JOKE , AND SENDING OUT THE MESSAGE WE NEEDED SO BADLY - GROWING UP IS OVERRATED !!!!

HE PUT ON SPECTACULAR HAUNTED HOUSES FOR THE MARCH OF DIMES  , DURING THE HIGH HOLIDAYS. HE EVEN HAD AN ALL - MONSTER BASEBALL TEAM THAT PLAYED EXHIBITION GAMES FOR THE MARCH OF DIMES. THE OTHER PARENTS SHOULD HAVE LOVED HIM , AS WE KIDS DID.  NO !!!!!!

GIBSON OPENED A TEEN AND PRE -TEEN AFTER SCHOOL HANGOUT CALLED "VINNIE'S HIDEAWAY". INSTEAD OF HANGING UP YOUR COAT , YOU THREW IT IN A COFFIN !

THERE WERE BLACKLIGHT POSTERS , PINBALL , SOMETHNG NEW CALLED AIR HOCKEY , AND SOMETHING EVEN NEWER CALLED PONG !!!!! THE KILLJOY PARENTS CHASED HIM OUT OF HIS CASTLE OF COOL , WITH STAKES , ROCKS , PITCHFORKS AND TORCHES. THEY DID'NT LIKE US YOUNG KIDS CONSORTING WITH THE TEENS.  IN REALITY , I GOT MORE SHIT FROM THE BIGGER KIDS AT THE MOVIES , OR EVEN THE YMCA , WHERE WE WERE LEFT UNSUPERVISED , UNLIKE GIBSON'S PLACE......He resufaced , later , with a family restaurant under the same name. 
 
Howie Pyro said:

i love zacherley as he is even now at 94 (i think) so accessible to his fans...i called him recently & even though he had no idea what i was really asking he played along & was such a perfect host to a voice on the telephone (i was asking him to do an ID for my radio show, but to call me back and say a bunch of stuff into my voicemail which made no sense to him, haha) wonderful man. Vampira was also so nice...there's a great gallery show up right now on La Brea in hollywood at High Voltage (well next door, this is Kat Von D's Tattoo shop & she opened a store/gallery next door) of loads of unseen Vampira photos & cool stuff like her handmade wooden bat sunglasses...Ghoulardi is so amazing...(and don't get me started about The Mad Daddy, the wildest weirdest radio dj ever, along with Mad Mike from Pittsburgh...). I have a great collection of horror host rock n roll 45's, some with amazing picture sleeves...it seems the 2 went hand in hand & sooo many of them made weird cool records...