New Jersey Horror Con April 2022

I had not been back to New Jersey Horror Con, since my first time there, back in 2019, so I was super pumped to make my return on the weekend of April 9th, 2022. I went there with my friend, and Master's Minion, Freddie, but we were only there on that Saturday. Which was more than enough time to meet all the awesome celebs we wanted to. And, holy shit was the guest list ever stacked and fucking awesome!!

The first person I met is the still beautiful Lynn Lowry. Being a huge fan of her and many of the films she starred in, particularly I Drink Your Blood, Cat People, Debbie Rochon's Model Hunger, and David Cronenberg's Shivers, made her one of the people I was most pumped to meet. In person, she is incredibly sweet and friendly and has such a truly warm and kind demeanor to her.

Next up, for me was the gorgeous Catherine Mary Stewart, of Night of the Comet, Nighthawks, The Last Starfighter, and more. She is friends with a friend of mine, Bobby, who was sitting with her at the con. Now, I hadn't seen him in I don't remember how long. So, he asked how me how I was doing, being he'd seen my posts on Facebook, in regards to all the pain I felt at the passing of my doggy, Zoey.

This, then, led to me explaining to Stewart, what had happened to my dearest Zoey, but try as I may I couldn't hold back the tears. Honestly speaking, even simply writing this part makes me tear up. Well, she got up and gave me a big, warm hug and was legitimately sweet to me. I don't think my words could do justice to how kind she was. She's amazing and if you ever have the chance to meet her, you need to do just that. As, she is truly beautiful inside and out.

Being a huge fan of Chopping Mall, Kelli Maroney, who also starred alongside of Stewart in Night of the Comet, was the person I was most excited to meet. Having followed and interacted with her on social media and seen her on recent appearance on The Last Drive-In, only made me wanna meet her more. Much as she comes off on those, she is incredibly sweet and bubbly in person. She is also still a total hottie!

Speaking of The Last Drive-In, I once again met Joe Bob Briggs and the beautiful Darcy the Mail Girl. Both of them are always so fucking awesome to their fans! We talked AEW wrestling this time around, and it was especially cool when Darcy threw some shade at WWE! That kinda made my day.

The last person that I met on my own, was the lovely Jennifer Banko. Banko played both of the little girls in Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood and Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III and the teen punk girl in Barb Wire, among other projects. Let me tell you, she is one of the coolest, most fun, and lively guests, I have ever met a con! It was a blast to talk to her. She even took a pic of her and me for her Instagram (the two below)! She rules! 

The next celebs, are the ones that I met with my friend Freddie. They are:

Actor and signer Corey Glover of hard rock/ metal band Living Colour. He was so friendly and down to earth in person! We talked mostly about touring and CM Punk. 

Up next was the absolutely gorgeous Patty (Frankenhooker) Mullen, who fucking rocks in person! She talked to us for a good bit, about the Misfits and more. She is so lively and fun to be around. This is actually my second time meeting her, and she's always awesome as fuck!

We also went up to Cathy Moriarty, who has starred in a ton of great flicks like Raging Bull, Matinee. Soap Dish, and more. Talking with someone who has worked with such legends as Stallone, De Niro, Schwarzenegger, and more was fucking awesome! She was really cool and friendly to converse with.

Last but not least there was Barry (The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Slay Belles) Bostwick. I know I sound like a broken record, but he, like everyone else at this con that I met, was so nice, talkative, and friendly.

Also, there was a lot of cool cosplay on that day, and here are some of my favorites that I saw:

Here is a pic of that doggy above meeting another one.

These are the autographs that I got on this day, all are movies from my collection. The autographs are (left to right):
Catherine Mary Stewart: Nighthawks
Lynn Lowry: Cat People (on the slipcover)
Kelli Maroney: Chopping Mall

Jennifer Banko: Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III

Finally, these are the only things, that I actually bought at the con, Tromeo & Juliet on Blu-ray from the Troma booth and a Super7 Beavis and Butthead the Great Cornholio ReAction figure:

In all this con was a blast, especially when it came to the celebs. Were any of you guys there? If so who did you meet? Any other highlights for you? Let me know in the comments section below.

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I DRINK YOUR BLOOD (Review)

Title: I Drink Your Blood
Writer/ Director: David Durston
Cast: Bhakshar Roy Chowdhury, Jadin Wong, Ronda Fultz, George Patterson, Riley Mills, John Damon
Year: 1970
Min: 83


A devil-worshiping hippie cult, led by the deranged and charismatic Horace Bones (Bhakshar Roy Chowdhury), are conducting a Satanic ritual. A pretty girl named Sylvia (Iris Brooks) witnesses it from behind the trees. When she is spotted the cult grab, attack, and beat her savagely. She is found wandering on the roadside by Mildred (Elizabeth Manner-Brooks), who runs the local bakery, and Sylvia's own younger brother, Pete (Riley Mills). They take Sylvia home to her grandpa Doc Banner (Richard Bowler). In the meantime, the hippie's van breaks down and causing them to stay in the  town. They move into a rat infested, abandoned building.

When Doc learns that Sylvia was attacked by the hippies he goes to confront them, but only gets his own beating and drugged with acid. He gets let go, when Pete goes over to the hippie house. After seeing what happened to his grandpa he decides to take a shotgun to exact revenge. But, he encounters a rabid dog instead, shoots, and kills it. He later decides to take the blood from the dog and injects the rabies filled blood into pies that Mildred made. He convinces the hippie cult to have those pies. 

The hippie cult begin to show signs of being infected. They try to kill each other and soon others, as they forth at mouth and become increasingly violent. One of the cult members, the sexy Molly (Rhonda Fultz), gets scared and runs away. She meets up with some construction workers, who she has sex with. Eventually, the rabid madness sets in, and she bites and attacks one of the men. Soon the construction workers become rabid, too. And, the mostly deserted town is overrun by both killer, rabid hippies and construction workers.

I Drink Your Blood is a cult classic that came out in 1970. Inspired by the Manson murders, writer/ director David Durston made this bloody flick for legendary exploitation producer Jerry Gross. Upon its release the movie got a X-rating, prompting cuts to earn an R-rating. It would famously play on a double bill with the truly awful I Eat Your Skin. Over time, I Drink Your Blood garnered more and more of a cult following and increasingly positive reviews. To the point, where today it has a whopping 99% on Rotten Tomatoes! And, much of this praise is rightfully deserved.

Durston crafts an immensely fun, grindhouse splatter flick. Admit ably the first 30 min or so a little bit uneven. But, it as it goes on, it really gets better. It's a wild and over the top film that is laced with dark humor. The site and the idea of a kid contaminating meat pies with rabies in the name of revenge is wonderfully wild one, as are the Satan-worshiping rabid hippies. I mean, come on, those two statements sell the movie all by, themselves!

The acting ranges from bad (the kid is so terrible, that he is awesome!) to pretty good, but no matter on what spectrum they fall under the cast is a hoot to watch. Particularly amazing is Bhakshar Roy Chowdhury, here simply Bhakshar, gives a completely unhinged performance as the Manson-esque leader. Cult horror fans will love seeing the lovely Lynn (Cat People 1982) Lowry, as a mute member of the cult.

The ultra-violence that helped this classic earn it's infamy, and aforementioned X-rating, is certainly graphic. A lot of it is also on the cheesy and fake side. It, at times, hits H.G. Lewis quality. The grue includes graphic, multiple stabbings, gunshots, bitings, amputation, ax hacking, a patently fake decapitation, and more! There is also lots of skin, including full frontal nudity, from both cast member you want to see nude, and some you may not be as excited to see naked. It all helps to add to the flick's enduring quality.

While, the whole aspect of killer hippies can be seen as a comment on then post-Manson murder hysteria, it is also perfect exploitation fodder. That it also touches on drugs and predates other infection movies like The Crazies, Rabid, and, of course, the 28 Days Later movies, only helps to solidify its place in history.

I Drink Your Blood is a complete blast. A great mix of ultra-violence, dark humor, and exploitation, this movie is one of the best pieces of early 70s grindhouse cinema. As a matter of fact, it is one of the finest, if not the finest killer hippie movie, not directly based on Manson. The movie is currently streaming on Shudder and can be bought on DVD and Blu-ray from Grindhouse Releasing (the most recent company to release it on home video). No matter how you see it, make sure you view this killer classic!

4 out of 4

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Model Hunger (2016) Review

My latest review for HorrorFreak News is up! It's for Debbie Rochon's directorial debut Model Hunger, and you can read it here: http://horrorfreaknews.com/model-hunger-2016-review/10905

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