That’s right folks, conventions are coming back and just in time for the 30th anniversary of the goddamn greatest gore-fight game of all time-MORTAL KOMBAT!
Fan Boy Expo is a traveling convention popping up in cities from Las Vegas to Orlando bringing the hype of fandom of all types of pop-culture enthusiasts. Whether you’re a fan of anime, gaming, or film/tv, chances are you’ll find your favorite artist or actor hanging out at the expo ready for a Q&A panel or signing autographs. And one of those events, in particular, is a 30-year celebration of a fan-favorite game, Mortal Kombat with the very actors/actresses appearing IN COSTUME from the nostalgic films and games we all know and love!
Fanboy expo has partnered with retail pop-culture collectible staple, IT CAME FROM PLANET EARTH to make this possible and will be holding gaming tournaments all weekend on Twitch hosted by Kevin Fair and Keith Burgess in a 5,000 SQ FT room dedicated to Arcade Games, Classic Console Games, and Table Top Gaming. MK royalty will be signing autographs and taking selfies in costume with patrons Saturday and Sunday of the show!
Fanboy Expo
The guest list is as follows:
Brian Glynn-Shao Kahn
John Turk – Subzero Unmasked- Sub Zero
Chris Casamassa – Scorpion
Kerri Hoskins – Sonya Blade
John Parrish– Jax
Lia Montelongo – Sindel
Dana Hee – Mileena
Photo Credit: Fanboy Expo
Fanboy Expo Las Vegas will be held at the Rio Hotel and Suites from April 22-24, 2022. You can pick up your tickets, and exclusive VIP ticket packages by clicking here, with kids 5 and under free of charge to the events with a paid adult ticket.
The Mortal Kombat 11 Gaming Tournament begins on Saturday, April 23rd, 2022 at 2pm (pre-registration begins at 930am) in the Gaming Room.
Now GET OVER THERE and grab your tickets. No 90s fan is going to want to miss this!
It’s been 30 sad years since the Horror Hall of Fame Awards aired for the third and final time and I need some closure. While The Horror Hall Of Fame III wasn’t exactly on par with the previous two award shows years before, presumably because 1992 was sort of a weaker year for the genre, I respect the fact it happened goddammit and I wish the tradition had continued for years to come.
Brought to you by Butterfinger, Speed Stick, and a grainy VHS recording (but also grateful to have it) of the 1992 ceremony, let’s revisit the 1992 Horror Hall Of Fame!
In a world where national treasures of the horror genre like Child’s Play 3 and The Addams Family can’t get an ounce of respect from the cinematic awards world, we had the Horror Hall of Fame with Robert Englund hosting along with a hilariously gory illusion act from the late Vegas staple, The Amazing Johnathan in between inductee segments following with pesky Gremlins annoying the audience.
It goes without saying that the annual event held at Universal Studios, Hollywood was a complete cheese-fest. But, for someone like me, it was the most delicious piece of cheese to this ten-year-old. It wholeheartedly felt like an award show catered to young horror fans such as myself year after year, and the third chapter of the horror event was no exception. Although this ceremony in particular felt a little less jazzy than the two prior, maybe it was the absence of the co-hosting Crypt Keeper this year, it’s still a fun watch. Especially that Monster Mash dance with Bobby “Boris” Pickett and Beetlejuice that exemplified what the Universal Studios park once was back in the early nineties. Seriously, I have a fantastic recording of that daily Universal Studios Beetlejuice show on a Polaroid VHS somewhere. I really need to dig that bad boy up.
Anyway, the awards show opens up with a ceremonial tribute to Frankenstein’s mate and the James Whale film that was just as great, if not better than its predecessor. Followed by fellow inductees Alien, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Night of the Living Dead. For the third and what would be the final time, we got another fun segment of Scare Tactics from master of effects Steve Johnson with Linnea Quigley serving as his guinea pig showing how to make up some monster teeth, and gap wounds for Halloween.
The inductees and awards for this year were as follows:
Film- Bride of Frankenstein
Film- Alien
Film- Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Film- Night of the Living Dead
Publisher- Famous Monsters of Filmland
Publisher- EC Comics
Production Company- Universal Studios —- I mean, why not give it to themselves, right?
Nominees for best horror film were Gremlins 2: The New Batch, The Lawnmower Man, Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare, Child’s Play 3, Alien 3, Pet Sematary 2, and The Addams Family who took home the win for Horror Film of the Year.
In what had sadly turned out to be the final year of The Horror Hall of Fame, even though host Robert Englund said they would be back for the Horror Hall of Fame 4, it brought with it a bit of a sadness to young horror fans such as myself who had become accustomed to this, albeit short, an annual celebration of the best in the genre when we realized it wasn’t making a return as 1993 came and went. As we come to the end of Horror Hall of Fame memory lane, let’s grab some Butterfinger BBs and an Ecto-Cooler, and watch this partial home-recorded version aired in 1992 thanks to YouTube uploader Doug Tilley! Of course, it’s missing some segments mentioned above but hey, it’s better than nothing folks!
Welp, it’s Oscars season folks and you and I both know, for the most part, deserving horror films worthy of such an honor get the almighty snub. Albeit, the snooty Academy has thrown us horror fans a bone via recent years with at least acknowledging that the genre is more than blood and guts, there’s still no excuse to snub a perfectly deserving film to appease what Hollywood deems as true art. Given their stance on the subject, it’s even rarer when a horror movie sequel gets that kind of recognition. But, as a matter of fact, that did indeed happen 35 years ago at the 1987 Academy Awards when the horror genre, two of them a sequel and one a remake, were all competing forthe Best Visual Effects Oscar!
Although the visually terrifying film didn’t take home the win, it’s a bit of a breath of fresh air to know it was even considered, as this sequel to the Hooper/ Spielberg classic is gorgeously shot and beautifully terrorizes you in all the right places- mostly thanks to Julian Beck and his portrayal of the malevolent reverend, Henry Kane.
Alongside the Boss Film Corporation of effects team,(Richard Edlund John Bruno, Garry Waller, and Bill Neil) the Swiss magician of horror imagery H.R. Giger was the key designer for ‘The Great Beast’ version of Kane, and it most certainly stands out as an unholy bundle of nightmares from the film alongside the slithery worm that protrudes from Steven’s projectile vomit from the movie. Although it’s been noted in interviews that Giger was for the most, displeased with the end result of the monster creations, it just goes to show that even Giger’s less than impressive standards according to him, are still some of the best horror visual and practical effects that we’ve seen in the wonderful decade of ’80s monster magic. And hey, the Academy board thought so as well, so that’s something I guess.
Early design of The Great Beast by H.R. Giger
Little Shop of Horrors
Nominees Lyle Conway, Bran Ferren, Martin Gutteridge had some stiff competition up against not one, BUT TWO H.R. Giger-inspired designs in the effects department. However, the Audrey II mechanical puppet in itself is a monumental accomplishment more than worthy of being in said company and if anyone was gonna take that sort of threat on, it was going to be master muppet-men Jim Henson and Frank Oz.
The movie utilized multiple animatronic versions of Audrey II, ranging from a tiny bud to the enormous version for the climax. Though not an official Creature Shop production, many of the same designers and technicians worked with Oz on the film. As Jim Henson stated in a 1987 interview, he didn’t have a hand in the puppetry for Little Shop, but “I was very close to some of the people in that production.” These included Jim’s own children Heather Henson, in a bit part as a dental patient, and Brian Henson, who served as a principal puppeteer on Audrey II.
If anything Audrey II should have won an Oscar just for those one-liners.
AND THE WINNER IS…
ALIENS!
When someone like Stan Winston is involved in a H.R. Giger design, we may as well just hand that Oscar on a silver platter. Along with effects specialists John Richardson and Suzanne M. Benson, the trio took home the naked-man gold for their marvelous efforts on Ridley Scott’s Aliens.
Aliens featured extensive use of miniatures and puppeteering, redefining the whole aspect of special effects. Queen Mama Alien was incredibly complex, requiring anywhere between 12 to 14 different operators in order to get the puppet to function properly. It’s been stated by the crew in numerous reports that James Cameron’s ability to shoot the Queen without capturing all of the wire riggings that were present, is a testament to his directorial capabilities.
The alien facehugger samples, which the marines find suspended in glass tubes early in the film, were also brought to life through puppetry. Interesting to note, A Spydor vehicle, which was part of the He-Man toy line, was purchased and used as a model to serve as a visual example of how the facehuggers should walk.
So, can we get an Oscar nod for the Masters of the Universe toyline?
For the most part, I hate the Oscars. But every season when it comes snaking it’s Hollywood ass around the corner, I like to remember that in one point in time, the horror genre absolutly destroyed the special effects category.
