Update 10/19

I got a Covid booster Thursday night, I always get the whim-whams from vaccine shots and this time was no different. I spent most of Friday and Saturday in bed, slept a lot. When I wasn't sleeping I wished I was sleeping. I started feeling better Saturday night and had some soup and crackers and watched a few movies, mostly 70's no-budget weirdo stuff I'd never heard of before, THE HEADLESS EYES, HELP ME...I'M POSSESSED and MISS LESLIE'S DOLLS. Combined with my headache and diminishing chills it was an experience.

I'd just started reading the book Nightmare USA: The Untold Story of the Exploitation Independents, which is a big-ass hardcover that covers regional independant exploitation movies made in America between the years 1970-1985. That's where I learned about Headless Eyes, which is an early 70's piece of grimy NYC business about a deranged artist who scoops his victims' eyes out with a spoon and uses the ousted orbs in his work. I found it on Youtube and the playlist it was on included Help Me...I'm Possessed (nutbag mad doctor shenanigans in a desert castle asylum) and Miss Leslie's Dolls (four dumb young people spend a night in the house of an occultist whackjob who has a room with a collection of lifesize "dolls" that are obviously women unable to remain frozen in place).

The book is pretty amazing, I'd been looking for a somewhat affordable copy for a while and finally bit at one a few weeks ago. The eBay seller didn't ship it immediately so it didn't arrive until the other day. The book features rundowns of a number of films along with interviews with the filmmakers, which makes it pretty invaluable if you're into movies like MESSIAH OF EVIL, THE DEADLY SPAWN, DON'T GO IN THE HOUSE, ALABAMA'S GHOST and DEATH BED: THE BED THAT EATS. There's also write-ups on films such as LET'S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH, PHANTASM, MANIAC, THE CRAZIES, SOLE SURVIVOR, MALATESTA'S CARNIVAL OF BLOOD, THE SLAYER, NIGHTBEAST, FIEND and MARTIN, among many others.

The book opens with an extended chapter on the history of the subject, covering the rise and fall of the exploitation, grindhouse and drive-in eras, the regionally-made movies thrown on those screens, and the people behind the films. It's pretty terrific. I don't always agree with author Stephen Thrower's film opinions but that's the way things are supposed to go, and anyone who champions Phantasm, Let's Scare Jessica To Death, Sole Survivor and Messiah of Evil is way okay by me. I was suprised that I knew most of the movies in here, but there's obviously a bunch I have yet to see, or endure, as the case may be.

Anyway, the last few days have been a semi-hallucinogetic mix of sickness, sleep aids and scuzzy cinema, and I might have to reread passages of the book because I wasn't exactly all there much the time I spent with it.

Here's the Youtube site where I found the three 70s movies, if you're interested in schlock: https://www.youtube.com/@filmixmovies

In Work-Related News:

• Before I became bedridden I did a run through the lettering on the "Necronomicon" story that will be in CATACOMB OF TORMENT #5. It looks good, I hope folks get a kick out of it when it comes out November 19th. I am still set for a signing at JHU Comics on Staten Island on that New Comic Book Day.

• Reminder that this Saturday, October 25th I will be signing at the Halloween event held at Four Color Fantasies in Winchester, VA, from 10 am until 5 pm. I'll be happy to sign anything I worked on, and I'll be doing cheap sketches for anyone who asks (as well as quick free ones). Copies of the Beasts of Burden Omnibus should be available, along with some of my other books. I'm a little nervous about it, to be honest. Mostly about the drive, I haven't driven anywhere longer than 45 minutes in a very long time, and I haven't gone out of town by myself in years. My social and overall anxiety has started to kick in. Even so, I'm really looking forward to doing my first non-local signing in...I don't know how long it's been, that's how long it's been. Hope to see a few folks there. The shop can be found online at https://www.facebook.com/FCFComics/

• I've started doing some work on my thrid script for the EC revival from Oni Press. This ones called "Death Groove" and involves an independant record-pressing outfit. I don't know if it will be scheduled for Catacomb of Torment or another EC title.

• Did I mention I've been invited to a convention for late 2026? It isn't set, but hopfully things will come together.

• I've been working on the near-legendary very late commissions. They will be done.

• I drew a new Hacktober drawing for Octobe 30th. I'm going to try to get another done for the 31st. Only took years to get the month done. Sheesh.

• Reminder that the next Tear Them Apart livecast is scheduled for October 30th on Youtube. Co-host Paul Yellovich and I will be hanging out and talking horror movies with our guest Scott Dorward of the Good Friends of Jackson Elias podcast. We'll be taking questions and comments during the livecast, hope you can join us. If you miss it, the livecast will be added to the podcast archives.

  Link to the livestream on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/live/asAUdh_Ghnk

  Link to The Blasphemous Tomes/Good Friends podcast: (https://blasphemoustomes.com

• Nothing's moved an inch on any of the "NDA potential projects". Which is to be expected.

I can't think of anythin else. I can't think of much of anything at all. I should eat soemthing.

More soon, later.