HorrorHound 2014: My Un-Conventional Family

To most of us residence here on Elm Street, horror conventions are about as good as life gets. Packed to the brim with merchandise, quick food, and your favorite actor from that once new movie that will always be near and dear to your heart, a horror con can please just about any of my fellow deadites that adore the genre we love so dearly. So when the opportunity presented itself to attend HorrorHound Indianapolis last weekend, I jumped in the old Ford Taurus and put that four wheeled metal machine into maximum overdrive.

Once I arrived, dragging my non-horror loving but cinema infatuated buddy along for the two hour drive, I was relieved to find that the event was fully staffed and strikingly organized. Often the oiling applied to the cogs by the ones producing the event can turn a horror fans excitement on a bloody dime. After a quick check-in, it was time to purchase some merch and meet a few people from the genre. I rushed to find my Crystal Lake princess; Adrienne King was the one thespian I was going to meet or I was turning Indiana into Texas and going full Leatherface. I was fully prepaid to make Gunner Hansen proud.

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I found her almost immediately, and once I saw the beautifully aged defeater of the once vengeful Pamela Voorhees, all I could think of was taking my con money and reopening Camp Blood; I had found my head counselor. Upon approaching King’s table, pictures of the original Friday covering the table like some brilliantly made table cloth, I was immediately relieved that this woman wasn’t a counselor at all. She was a camper, just like you and I. After introducing myself and sharing my tradition of not working on any Friday the 13th, honoring the series with a marathon that would make Mrs. Voorhees’ baby boy sweat, we exchanged pleasantries.

She told me about Sean Cunningham throwing his production notes away, how she retrieved them with a feeling that these would be special, and eventually producing limited posters featuring the almost forgotten gem. We also spoke about her wine company. I told her I was a recovering alcoholic, she gave me a warm and truly comforting hug, and I knew in an instant that this would always be one of the greatest moments of my life. We said our goodbyes as I tried almost unsuccessfully to hold back tears. Being told by one of my all-time favorite people that she was proud of me and my sobriety was a true gift of life, but I couldn’t stay in that state forever. I had a horror con to cover for you guys.

Once I gained my composure, I made my way through nicely organized tables full of horror related figures, posters, and other various items. I made a few purchases and then returned to cover more celebs in hopes for any stories I could share with my fellow Elm Street residences. I’m pleased to report the stories came in full force and was a truly amazing time.

Alex Vincent, who played Andy in Tom Holland’s truly great Child’s Play, shared that director Holland has a bit of a sailor’s mouth and the producers knew to remove the young actor once Holland was about to burst into a cursing rant. Michael Berryman, while having him sign Rob Zombie’s masterpiece The Devil’s Rejects, confused actor Jonathan Banks on my Breaking Bad shirt with Sid Haig.

I filliped, as I’m a beyond huge fan of the show, then it turned out that he was mistaken. He didn’t seem embarrassed; I suppose that’s the true superpower of a working actor.

Peter Barton, the almost realized 80s heartthrob who played Doug in Joe Zito’s stellar Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, spoke with me about politics for a good ten minutes. I won’t go into details but he was awesome guy and I would easily meet him again at a future convention. I also met Dee Wallace, optioning to get Wes Craven’s amazing The Hills Have Eyes signed, and she was a blast. She told me she needed a strong glass of wine. The irony washed over me and as I left the table my lips began to create what people could only call a smirk.

Other actors I met included Judie Aronson, Tim White, Quinn Lord. There were other I would have liked to meet, but I’m not paying $40 bucks to meet a human being; especially not a busily working actor. I’m not knocking the actors, I just can’t do it. There is a limit as to what I will fork over, or I wouldn’t have much to put on my forks at home. I did however meet Mads Mikkelsen, because my buddy spent the money, but he was a generally nice guy. I told him I really enjoyed his work and took a picture for my friend.

HorrorHound Weekend Memories

In all, HorrorHound Weekend Indianapolis was honestly the best convention I’ve ever been too. This being was my eighth con or so, and I’ve been to some bad ones, it was awesome to find that when you attend a convention presented by Horrorhound magazine you are in for a treat. The two merchandise halls were well organized and all my fellow horror fans were mostly extremely respectful. My buddy actually commented on the fact that horror fans seemed to be the most respectful attendees of any convention he’s ever been to. So the next time there’s a Horrorhound convention you’re thinking of attending, don’t think twice. Go, and with the quickness, or ill send Dr. Herbert West to your house and have him Re-animate you if need be.

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