I take a look at the debut issue of Hearteater, a NSFW erotic pirate adventure comic. It can be read here.
HP Lovecast Podcast
A new episode of HP Lovecast Podcast is also online!
We have a returning guest, David Rose, on the show talking about his short story collection of Lovecraftian military fiction, Monsters in the Bush. The episode can be streamed at the HP Lovecast Buzzsprout page, via the embedded player below, or through your podcast app of preference.
The February Scholars from the Edge of Time vidcast is now online.
Michele and I start our retrospective of the peplum films of Bella Cortez with Vulcan, Son of Jupiter. I’ll be typing up my notes as a “Peplum Ponderings” article later this month.
The episode can be watched on YouTube. Stay tuned in March for the next Bella Cortez film we tackle which will probably be The Tartars (1961).
I’ve also started annotating Emmanuelle scholarship and posting it here at my website so other scholars have a nice bibliographic resource. The bibliography and annotations can be found hereand it’s a major WIP.
Miscellaneous Tidbits
Recent Peplum Acquisitions
I never heard the term “spear and fang” before as a genre, I just kinda called them “prehistoric peplum,” but alas, it’s a term and it has its roots in a Robert E. Howard story of the same name (story found here).
Coincidentally, at the same time of learning about “spear and fang” I had ordered such a film from Amazon. I never heard of it before, but it is called Alpha (2018). I learned of it while researching my In the Name of the King 2: Two Worlds write up in that both films star Natassia Malthe).
I’ve never seen it, but it looks tough. I also know the poor pupper is not going to make it.
In the mood for some new peplum music to write to I plucked up off discos the soundtrack to the Conan TV series of the 90s.
This was a series that was greenlit to capitalize on the success of the Hercules/Xena shows. Conan managed to slip by me growing up, so I’ll have to hunt down the boxset of it to watch (but it’s way OOP). It does star Ralph Möller who is always bad ass, from Universal Solider to Gladiator. He looks like a good Conan on the cover of the album.
The music is fun – great background music to write to.
On the subject of Möller and music, I’d be remiss if I didn’t bring up his guest appearance in the E Nomine song “Schwarze Sonnne” which has Möller wielding a sword in a post- apocalyptic city while fighting tech ninja. The song slaps hard:
Next up is In The Name of the King 3: The Last Mission.
After seeing Two Worlds, I felt obligated to complete the trilogy. I hope in this one they actually lean into the modern day soldier/merc doing stuff in Medieval times. If you want to read my thoughts on In the Name of the King 2: Two World, click here.
Also procured is Damon and Pythias (1962), another classic era sword and sandal I have not seen.
I’ve been trying to get the Warner Archive releases of sword and sandal films when I can. I heard scuttlebutt that Warner was going to wind down their production of physical media, which would be a shame because they actually took care of their films so their peplum releases actually look decent on home video.
I don’t know how I stumbled across it, but it was random on Discogs, but I had to have a copy of Inferno’s The Roman Empire.
Someone on a Sword and Sorcery Discord I go to said the cover looks like Encarta barfed all over it (they’re not wrong!). I am going to try to hunt down all the pictured that where used in the collage work on this album. I’ve identified one: The chariot and horse scene near the top left is from the Hercules Unchained poster (see bottom right):
The music is early 90s Eurodance style. It’s campy, but kinda catchy and fun. If I can find more image sources I’ll do an article proper on this album.
Michele and I recapped a majority of our accomplishments and projects on the last episode of the H. P. Lovecast Podcast, however I’d like to do a personal breakdown here.
Publication Accomplishments
Honoured to appear in five physical publications this year:
Links to all podcast appearances can be found on the Podcast Index page. Sincere thanks to Bernie Gonzalez, Peter Charbonneau, Hercules Invictus, and Sherri Nunn for having me be a part of their programs.
Conference Accomplishments
Michele and I attended CoKoCon 2023 and ere on two panels. It was also our first time ever vending at a con. Thank you to Hal and Dee Astell for having us.
2024 Looking Forward
I am hoping that 2024 will be as successful as 2023 was. This year will see a decade of me writing (since the publication of my first essay in James Bond in Popular Culture).
On the podcast front, Michele and I already have the first half of 2024 planned for H. P. Lovecast. We’ve also already recorded a few episodes with the folks at Fan2Fan Podcast, so expect those episodes to drop throughout 2024.
My essay on peplum cats, currently titled “Hic Sunt Leones: Peplum Strongmen and the Nemean Lion Legacy” was accepted last year by editor Simon Bacon for his collection, Cats: A Companion. The manuscript was sent to the publisher in early December, so hopefully this book winds up being published later this year! Nice to have a publication already on the docket.
I still have a pile of reviews I want to get done that have been piling up. I also have a list of essay ideas I have approval on, I just need to write and get out the door. It’s been a while since I’ve submitted to Exotica Moderne, so hopefully I can get an essay or two to them this year.
The main project for 2024, however, is the Emmanuelle Legacy book. On my timeline I have submit a manuscript to the publisher in October, which will be here before I know it. I have an intro and an essay to write, along with editing other folks’ essays. I’m super excited to try and realize this project, so it’s going to be nose to the grindstone for this one.
Thank you to all the folks who support me and my endeavors. You are sincerely appreciated!
Horror Literature.. Review
The collection, Horror Literature from Gothic to Post-Modern: Critical Essays, that Michele and I edited has just gotten a new review from the Journal of Ecohumanism, and it is a very positive one!
The review (along with the rest of the journal) can be read in its entirety here.
New Episode of H. P. Lovecast Podcast
New episode to kick off 2024! We kick off the new year interviewing Pat Shand about his three issue comic book miniseries I Summoned Cthulhu to Fund my Kickstarter.
The episode can be streamed at the HP Lovecast Podcast Buzzsprout site, via the embedded player below, or through your podcast app of preference.
HPLCP Transmissions – Ep 28 – Pat Shand and I Summoned Cthulhu to Fund my Kickstarter –
H. P. Lovecast Podcast
H. P. Lovecast on BlueSky
H. P. Lovecast is now on Blue Sky. If you’re using that social media please consider giving us a follow there! The username is: @hplovecast.bsky.social .
I’ve also started annotating Emmanuelle scholarship and posting it here at my website so other scholars have a nice bibliographic resource. The bibliography and annotations can be found here and it’s a major WIP.
Miscellaneous Tidbits
The Neverending Streamer Substack
My friend, Travis Lakata, has started a Substack called The Neverending Streamer. Give him support and subscribe – check it out here: https://travislakata.substack.com.
Rest in Peplum Jennell Jaquays
Fantasy artist Jennell Jaquays passed away last week. She did lots of fantastic work. Her covert art for the Dragon Mountain boxset is probably one of the most iconic pieces of 90s 2nd Edition Dungeons and Dragons.
My copy of the box proper hasn’t survived the 30+ years, but the contents have! Here is book 1 of the module which sports the legendary red dragon.
Legends of the Lance Newsletter
While digging through my old Second Edition stuff I happened upon these five issues of the Legends of the Lance Dragonlance newsletter. Apparently these are extremely rare! I love how they look though and the art on them is aces.
Endless Armies Jeff Grubb Autograph
For this roundup of autographs, since I was going through my D&D stuff, figured I would show of my copy of Endless Enemies autographed by Jeff Grubb.
Way back in the 2000s my comic book store was Spy Comics in Federal Way. Apparently that was also Jeff Grubb’s comic book store to go to as well. The owner, Richard, arranged an in store event with Jeff Grubb who was on hand to autograph stuff he wrote. I got a few things signed by him, Endless Armies being one of them. Somewhere there is a photo of the event, I hope I can find it!
For the month of October we have the honor to interview filmmaker Jesse Terrell about his Lovecraftian short film, Sights Unseen. The episode can be streamed via the embedded player below, at the HP Lovecast Buzzsprout website, or through your podcast app of preference.
In October Michele and I appeared on two episodes of Scholars from the Edge of Time.
First, for our typical 4th Thursday of the Month, we talked about the classic Mario Bava sword and sandal film Hercules in the Haunted World (1961), perfect for the Halloween season. That episode can be found on YouTube.
Next, on the 5th Tuesday, Michele talked about the neo-peplum film Centurion (2010) and I talked about Mondo Balordo (1962).
And finally, I made a good and forgot to share September’s Scholars from the Edge of Time episode. I flew solo on this one and talked about Ironmaster (19830. Here is its YouTube link.
I’ve also started annotating Emmanuelle scholarship and posting it here at my website so other scholars have a nice bibliographic resource. The bibliography and annotations can be found here and it’s a major WIP.
Publishing Recap
Below is a recap of my publishing endeavors so far in 2023.
Published in February, this collection contains my essay “Dance or Dēcēdere: Gladiator and Industrial Music Sampling.”
Published in late March, the first issue of the zine Footage Fiends, contains my essay “Analisi Della Cosa: Found Footage in Caltiki and Italian Theater Going Practices.”
Published in early August, Dark Dead Things #2 contains my essay “Correlating the Contents: Mimetic Desire in H. P. Lovecraft’s ‘The Call of Cthulhu’.”
Thomas Simmons’ titanic graphic novel, I Am a Barbarian is on Sale for $49.95 through the month of November.
I had the honor to interview Simmons and artist Mike Dubisch about their graphic novel which can be read here. Check out the interview if you want to know more about the comic and if you are interested in purchasing, contact Simmons at cedar.run.publications@gmail.com.
Samson at Bible Films Blog
Matt Page has a new article on a Biblical peplum film at his Bible Films Blog!
A new episode of our monthly HP Lovecast Podcast is online!
Angela Sylvaine returned to the podcast to talk about her debut novel, Frost Bite. The episode can be streamed at our Buzzsprout website, via the embedded player below, or through your podcast app of preference.
Later this month we will be discussing Mimic 3 on the podcast, concluding our year tradition of diving into the Mimic franchise (Listen to Mimic and Mimic 2).
McFarland Horror Sale
My publisher, McFarland, is having a sale this month on their horror titles. If you use code HALLOWEEN2023 during check out you’ll get a 25% discount on the horror tiles. An entire list of eligible titles can be found here.
Numerous books I’ve been a part of are included in this sale. If you want to pluck something up I’ve either co-edited or contributed an essay to, now is a good time!
Published in late March, the first issue of the zine Footage Fiends, contains my essay “Analisi Della Cosa: Found Footage in Caltiki and Italian Theater Going Practices.”
Published in early August, Dark Dead Things #2 contains my essay “Correlating the Contents: Mimetic Desire in H. P. Lovecraft’s ‘The Call of Cthulhu’.”
Michele is teaming up with Sean Woodard to do an edited collection on The Mummy series. They have a CFP listed at UPENN, but I am also sharing a copy below.
Essays sought for an edited collection focused on Universal Pictures’ The Mummy franchise.
The 1999 Universal reboot of The Mummy, starring the indelible duo of Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz, remains a tentpole of ’90s popular culture and cinema. Not only did The Mummy launch two sequels, a spin-off series, and a reboot, but it has lived on as a cult film, loved by fans for its mixture of horror, action/adventure, and humor. The film has also developed a strong meme culture on social media — one of the most viral examples contains a photo of a car bumper sticker proclaiming: “Honk if you’d rather be watching the 1999 cinematic masterpiece ‘The Mummy’ starring Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz.”
While academic research has been focused on various releases of The Mummy (1932, 1959, 1999, and 2017), there has not been a singular scholarly text devoted to the film franchise. The recent “Brenaissance” in Fraser’s film career and the film’s anticipated 25th anniversary in 2024 make it an appropriate time to celebrate and re-evaluate the film.
The purpose of this edited collection is to place The Mummy into a cultural and theoretical context, as well as critically analyze the franchise, its connections to other genre films, and its continued influence.
We seek proposals for chapters that approach the subject matter with theoretical concepts that will appropriately meet the rigorous expectations of an academic work, but through a prose style that shall be accessible for both an academic audience and a general readership.
Topics may include, but are not limited to:
Resurgent interest in Brendan Fraser/“Brenaissance”
Stephen Sommers as an auteur
Representation of Egypt in popular culture and early filmic representation
Eastern mythology/culture/religion
Exoticism of non-western cultures
Post/De-colonialism
Heroic representation
Body horror
Eco-horror/Ecocriticism
Gender representation
Toxic depictions in film
Queer/LGBTQ+ representation
Meme/GIF culture
Psychoanalysis
Generational nostalgia
Element of music/film scoring
Genre hybridity
Film cycles/reboots/retcons (such as The Scorpion King, The Mummy animated series, Universal Classic Monsters, Hammer Studios, Dark Universe, etc.) and related adventure/archaeological-driven films (such as Ark of the Sun God, The Sphinx, The Librarian franchise, etc.)
Please send abstracts of 300 – 500 words with a working title and five (5) keywords, accompanied by a short third-person author bio (100 words max), to mummybookproject@gmail.com as a Word document. Final essays should be 6,000 – 8,000 words in length, including endnotes and bibliography, and be formatted according to the Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition. The collection is being considered by a leading academic press.
Proposed Timeline
October 1, 2023 thru December 15, 2023 — Call for Papers
January 15, 2024 — Notification of abstract acceptances sent to authors
January 15, 2024 thru June 15, 2024 — Book chapters drafting period
June 15, 2024 thru July 15, 2024 — Initial editorial review of submitted chapter drafts
August 1, 2024 thru October 1, 2024 — Double-blind Peer Review Period
October 1, 2024 thru November 15, 2024 — Contributor revision period
December 1, 2024 — Final editorial acceptance decisions
December 1, 2024 thru January 15, 2025 — Layout design, indexing, and proofing stage
January 15, 2025 thru February 15, 2025 — Copies of chapter proofs sent to contributors for copyediting review
March 1, 2025 — Final manuscript submitted in hard copy and digital formats to publisher
Here are some of the autographed treasures I shared on social media these past two weeks.
First up is my copy of Nightmare of Ecstasy: The Life and Art of Edward D. Wood Jr. signed by longtime Wood collaborator, Conrad Brooks.
In the latter 2000s I contacted Brooks via his website and he reached out to me via phone. He actually thought I was a lady, probably because of my less-than-masculine voice. He let me send him all my Ed wood stuff for him to autograph (this book included) and he also sent me back some of his movies he directed himself and released via Alpha Video. He was a charming dude and we talked on the phone a few times, but I lost contact with him after we moved to California. I was sad to find out he died, one of the last vanguards of singular era of exploitation films.
Next, following along with classic exploitation, is The Complete Night of the Living Dead Film book, signed by John Russo.
Back in the latter 2000s Michele and I lived in Federal Way and our comic book shop was Spy Comics owned by Richard Spychalski. Richard was the man and we go to his shop every week to pick up our orders we made from Previews and stay well after the shop closed, talking with him and petting his dog Ollie. The bulk of my comic book collection was bought from Richard during this time.
This book popped up as something to order through Previews. The book is actually from 1985. I suspect Avatar Press, which was publishing some NOTLD comics, probably got a box of these books from Russo who has them sitting in his garage and asked for the publisher to sell them. Slap an autograph on them and a certificate of authenticity and voila! Anywho, I liked NOTLD well enough so I ordered this book with one of my previews orders and Richard was able to get it in for me.
I really, really miss having a local comic book store.
To go with my Mike Nelson autographed copy of Plan 9 From Outer SpaceI shared on 8/27, here’s my copy of Carnival of Souls signed by the MST3K alumni.
I bought this way back in early 20004 while living in University Place. This was an era I was hungry for more MST3K stuff, and at the time only Mike Nelson was doing anything like it. This version of Carnival of Souls was the first time I ever seen the cult film. It’s a great one – a very slow burn one.
#HorrorGameOctober
For #HorrorGameOctober I’ll be (well, am currently) playing two games: The Evil Within and The House of the Dead Remake.
There’s a theme to these two games: they both have lenticular covers!
Michele bought me The Evil Within as a yuletide gift way back in 2015. I played it for a bit, but something stopped me from getting too far in it. Something wasn’t jiving? I got distracted by another game? I’m not sure, but here I am 8 years later giving it a legit go.
The House of the Dead I used to play when I was a teen in the arcade at the Three Rivers Mall in Kelso. I never got far. The game was for sale dirt cheap on Amazon this summer so I plucked it up. I was able to beat it a few times, something I would never think I would do! The game made me feel very nostalgic. I’m going to give it a few more play throughs this month and score a few more Xbox achievements.
I am going to try and fit in a proper write up about these two horror games before the month ends.
There’s been an uptick in work being cited lately and I am here for it!
Firstly, my essay “Lost Nights and Dangerous Days: Unraveling the Relationship Between Stranger Things and Synthwave” from Uncovering Stranger Things has been cited in the essay “‘Dad, every serial killer is somebody’s neighbor!’ The Problem of White Supremacy in Summer of ’84” by Erika Tiburcio Moreno and published in the edited collection The ’80s Resurrected: Essays on the Decade in Popular Culture Then and Now.
The book was published by McFarland in March earlier this year. More info can be found on the book’s product page at the McFarland website.
Next, Hannah Mueller’s essay “Male Nudity, Violence and the Disruption of Voyeuristic Pleasure in Starz’s Spartacus” from The New Peplum has been cited by James K. Beggan in his essay “Why is he there? Male presence in a sexually explicit magazine geared towards heterosexual men” that was published in the Porn Studies journal.
Cover art for The New Peplum
If you have access the essay can be read at the journal’s page at Taylor and Francis.
New Episode of HP Lovecast
A new episode of our monthly Transmission program is now online.
For July we interviewed Chelsea Pumpkins, editor of the horror anthology AHH! That’s What I Call Horror: An Anthology of ’90s Horror. The episode can be streamed via our Buzzsprout page, the embedded player below, or through your podcast app of preference.
The schedule for CoKoCon 2023 is starting to take shape! You can find Michele and I on the following panels:
Saturday Sept 2 9pm – Fiesta Ballroom 2: From EC Comics to Shudder: Horror Comics That Excite and Scare Us
Sunday Sept 3 6pm – Coronado: Creepy, Crawly, Otherworldly Bumps in the Night, or Cosmic Horror Films
Monday Sept 4 1pm – Coronado: 1pm: Weird West in Popular Culture
I’ll be on premises the entire con, so feel free to hunt me down to say hi! Michele and I will also have a table we were sill be selling and signing books.
Publishing Recap
Below is a recap of my publishing endeavors so far in 2023.
Published in February, this collection contains my essay “Dance or Dēcēdere: Gladiator and Industrial Music Sampling.”
Published in late March, the first issue of the zine Footage Fiends, contains my essay “Analisi Della Cosa: Found Footage in Caltiki and Italian Theater Going Practices.”
Kino Lorber just had a summer sale on their Blu-rays so I took the opportunity to pluck up some Italian films for the library.
The Last Hunter I already had on DVD, from Dark Sky Films. In fact, here is my copy autographed by Antonio Margheriti’s son, Edoardo Margheriti:
I did a presentation on The Last Hunter at the Southwest Popular/American Culture Association conference waaaaaaay back in 2010. Not my best presentation and still very green at being an academic, but the text of it can be read at my Academia.edu account.
Ironmaster I have not seen. It sounds like an Italian sword and sorcery flick, but in a prehistoric age. I am a fan of Umberto Lenzi’s work so this should be a fun watch.
Lastly is Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, which I also have not seen. I’ve seen the iconic image of Sophia Loren slipping off her stockings that I feel like I’ve seen the film. I always think of Mastroianni from Divorce, Italian Style.
Pasolini’s The Gospel According to St. Matthew Commentary
Matt Page, author of 100 Bible Films, has recorded a commentary for Paolini’s 1964 Biblical peplum, The Gospel According to St. Matthew. The commentary and be streamed from YouTube. Criterion Collection recently released a Pasolini boxset that contains this film.
Call for Papers
Michael Torregrossa has a few CFPs out there. I’m sharing them here to help get the word out. Check them out and consider submitting!
Beowulfs Beyond Beowulf: Transformations of Beowulf in Popular Culture (Panel)
Sponsored by the Association for the Advancement of Scholarship and Teaching of the Medieval in Popular Culture and the Monsters & the Monstrous Area of the Northeast Popular Culture Association
Organized by Michael A. Torregrossa, Richard Fahey, Carl Sell, and Benjamin Hoover
Call for Papers – Please Submit Proposals by 30 September 2023
55th Annual Convention of Northeast Modern Language Association
Sheraton Boston Hotel (Boston, MA)
On-site event: 7-10 March 2024
The Old English epic Beowulf remains an important touchstone for connecting us to the medieval past, yet it also has continued relevance today through its various transformations in cultural texts (especially works of popular culture). Our hope with this session is to expand our knowledge of these works and assess their potential for research and teaching.
Please visit our website Beowulf Transformed: Adaptations and Appropriations of the Beowulf Story (available at https://beowulf-transformed.blogspot.com/) for resources and ideas.
Over a millennium old, the story of Beowulf is disseminated primarily through its editions and translations and its transformations. These three types of Beowulfiana represent a massive corpus of over 1000 works according to the Beowulf’s Afterlives Bibliographic Database; though, as medievalists, we tend to focus on the first two categories rather than the last concentrating on scholastic pursuits rather than entertainments. Consequently, many are often surprised by the variety and vitality of this corpus and its vast potential for research and teaching.
New versions of the Beowulf story feature in all forms of modern mediævalisms, yet (as is true with most medieval texts) research continues to focus primarily on depictions of Beowulf on screen (about 100 examples according to the Internet Movie Database). We hope in this session to expand our view of Beowulf’s reception by creators and look more deeply at the text’s wider use.
We are particularly interested in explorations of the adaptation and/or appropriation of the text, its characters, and its themes in works of fiction (at least 250 examples according to the Internet Speculative Fiction Database and much more recorded by the Beowulf’s Afterlives Bibliographic Database) and comics (at least 380 examples according to the Grand Comics Database), as well as their representations in new and neglected works on screen (including film, television, entertainment consoles, and the Internet). Additional versions of Beowulf can be found in works of creative, performative, and visual arts that also need more attention.
We hope to make our conversation productive. Therefore, we request that submissions highlight the ways the new text transforms the old (for example as interpretations or appropriations of the poem or as an intertext for another work) as well as its value in furthering the Beowulf tradition rather than focusing solely on any perceived defects.
Please see our website Beowulf Transformed: Adaptations and Appropriations of the Beowulf Story (at https://beowulf-transformed.blogspot.com/) for a growing list of ideas, resources, and support.
All proposals will also be considered for a themed issue of the open-access journal The Heroic Age: A Journal of Early Medieval Northwestern Europe.
All proposals must be submitted into the CFPList system at https://cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/20596 by 30 September 2023. You will be prompted to create an account with NeMLA (if you do not already have one) and, then, to complete sections on Title, Abstract, and Media Needs.
Notification on the fate of your submission will be made prior to 16 October 2023. If favorable, please confirm your participation with chairs by accepting their invitations and by registering for the event. The deadline for Registration/Membership is 9 December 2023.
Be advised of the following policies of the Convention: All participants must be members of NeMLA for the year of the conference. Participants may present on up to two sessions of different types (panels/seminars are considered of the same type). Submitters to the CFP site cannot upload the same abstract twice.(See the NeMLA Presenter Policies page, at https://www.buffalo.edu/nemla/convention/policies.html, for further details,)
For more information on the Association for the Advancement of Scholarship and Teaching of the Medieval in Popular Culture, please visit our website at https://MedievalinPopularCulture.blogspot.com/.
In this episode we interview Tom Starita about his new horror novel, Delta, and Beth Cato about her new chef/swashbuckling novel, A Thousand Recipes for Revenge. The episode can be streamed at the H. P. Lovecast Buzzsprout website, the embedded player below, or through all major podcast apps.
For May’s Scholars from the Edge of Time episode Michele and I discuss the 1955 Howard Hawks film Land of the Pharaohs. It can be viewed on YouTube.
We also did another episode a week later, with Michele talking about the white cat in Mummy (1999) and me talking about cats in strongman sword and sandal films of the late 50s/early 60s. Also on YouTube.
Publishing Recap
Below is a recap of my publishing endeavors so far in 2023.
Published in February, this collection contains my essay “Dance or Dēcēdere: Gladiator and Industrial Music Sampling.”
Published in late March, the first issue of the zine Footage Fiends, contains my essay “Analisi Della Cosa: Found Footage in Caltiki and Italian Theater Going Practices.”
I shared this on Twitter the other day and since it is peplum related I thought I would share it here.
Here is my DVD copy of Mel Brooks’ History of the World Part 1 signed by November 1980 Playboy Playmate Jeana Keough (Tomasino).
Aside from her Playboy spread, Keough is probably best known for her appearances in various ZZ Top music videos of the 80s and in The Real Housewives of Orange County series. She only had a cameo part in History of the World Part 1 during the Roman Empire segment. I had the honor to meet Keough at a Glamourcon convention way back in 2010:
Jeana Keough (Tomasino) – Glamourcon 2010
Aside from autograph my copy of History of the World, she also autographed an 8×10 of one of her Playboy pictures for Michele and I:
Jeana Keough Playboy picture with super stockings.
Mighty prolific last two weeks with articles, podcasts, and other projects. It’s also three consecutive weeks of me publishing an article at this website, and I have another one queued up this Wednesday. Feeling good!
Buzzworthy Book Review
I have a new book review up at my website. I return to the world of Jennifer Croll’s homage cocktails. Previously I did a review of her Art Boozel.
Croll’s newest book, Buzzworthy, was published earlier this month, and holy smokes in a rare instance of me being timely, I had a review of it written up and posted. Not to brag, (but I will), I think one of the things I do when I review cocktail books that other websites don’t do is actually make some of the cocktails inside. Anywho, my review of Buzzworthy is online, check it out and consider plucking up Croll’s newest release.
Claus Larsen Interview
Next up I return to my roots of music journalism! I have not really written about/interview anyone since my Heathen Harvest days, so I thought it would be fun to dip back into penning an article on something industrial.
Claus Larsen’s EBM act, Leæther Strip, recently released a new album and I enjoyed it throughly. I reached out to Larsen to ask if I could ask him some questions about it and he said sure! So, here is my mini-interview with Larsen about his newest album, Last Station.
New H. P. Lovecast Podcast
Happy three year anniversary to the resurrected H. P. Lovecast Podcast! Back in 2020 when the pandemic had really started, Michele and I brought the podcast back and have done quite a bit since: read some good (and bad) works, interviewed lots of cool people.
On this episode we discuss the 1970 AIP adaptation of The Dunwich Horror. Arrow Video did a restored release of the film on Blu-ray this past January and we had hoped to do an episode then, but house stuff and other projects got in the way. So, a little late but here is our episode. It can be steamed at the HP Lovecast Buzzsprout page, via the embedded player below, or through your podcast app of preference.
Princeton University Press recently published the book, Helen of Troy in Hollywood, by Ruby Blondell (a super expert on classics and Helen of Troy canon).
Very flattered to see essays from The New Peplum cited in this tome! Unfortunately I don’t have a copy of the book so I am using preview pages from Google Books to deduce what has been cited. From what I can tell:
Steven Sears’ afterword
My introduction
Haydee Smith’s “Queering the Quest: Neo-peplum and the Neo-femme in Xena: Warrior Princess“
Valerie Estelle Frankel’s “Hercules, Xena, and Genre: The Methodology Behind the Mashup”
Paul Johnson’s “Adapting to New Spaces: Swords and Planets and the Neo-peplum”
I love to see The New Peplum continued to be cited and used in new scholarship. More information about Helen of Troy in Hollywood can be read at the Princeton University Press’ product page for the book.
Fan2Fan Podcast Appearances
The cool kids at the Fan2Fan Podcast are doing a series of episodes about folk’s favorite theme songs from TV shows.
Michele and I are on an episode talking about ours which can be heard at the Fan2Fan Libsysn, on your podcast app, or via the embedded player below. Sincere thanks to Bernie and Pete for having us on.
A side note, one of the shows I mention is the theme song to Mission Hill, which is an edited version of Cake’s “Italian Leather Sofa.” It’s one of my favorite cartoons ever and I talk about why on the episode.
But, for fun, here is my autographed copy of the Mission Hill DVD signed by Brian Posehn. I met him at an Emerald City Comic Con way back in the late 2000s.
Emmanuelle / Black Emanuelle CFP
The Call for Papers for Emmanuelle, Black Emanuelle, and Emmanuelle derivative films is open until the end of this month (April 30th).
Emmanuelle the Private Collection Soundtrack.
The CFP can found on this page. If you know other scholars who would be interested in this project, please share! I’d be super appreciative to get the word out.
Publishing Recap
Below is a recap of my publishing endeavors so far in 2023.
Published in February, this collection contains my essay “Dance or Dēcēdere: Gladiator and Industrial Music Sampling.”
The Bram Stoker Preliminary Ballot has been published and like last year on the podcast we are looking to spotlight some of the authors on the list and help get the word of their works out and entice readers to consider their works. Because of this, we are also flipping the order of episodes this month: Transmissions in the first half, normal episode at the end.
For this special episode of Transmissions Michele and I interviewed David Aquilone about Kolchak the Night Stalker: 50th Anniversary and Donna Lynch about Girls from the County.
The episode can be streamed via our Buzzsprout website, via the embedded player above, or through your podcast app of preference. Give it a listen and consider checking out Aquilone and Lynch’s works.
Scaredy Cats Podcast Appearance
Back in 2021 I had the honor to be a guest on the Scaredy Cats Podcast to talk about the influential slasher film, The Slumber Party Massacre (episode link here).
Host Sherri invited me back on the podcast, along with co-host of the Schitt’s Simply the Best Podcast, Katie, to talk about the 2015 meta-horror-slasher film, The Film Girls. It was a lot of fun to watch the film and then discuss it.
The episode can be streamed at the Scaredy Cats Buzzsprout page here or via your podcast app of preference. Sincere gratitude to Sherri for being asked on.
Emmanuelle / Black Emanuelle CFP
The Call for Papers for Emmanuelle, Black Emanuelle, and Emmanuelle derivative films is open.
Severin DVD (left) vs Full Moon Blu-ray (right) of Emanuelle and the White Slave Trade.
The CFP can found on this page. If you know other scholars who would be interested in this project, please share! I’d be super appreciative to get the word out.
A Hero Will Endure Preorder
A Hero Will Endure: Essays at the Twentieth Anniversary of Gladiatoris available for preorder at the Vernon Press website.
This collection contains my essay “Dance or Dēcēdere: Gladiatorand Industrial Music Sampling” and is slated to be released later this month.
Miscellaneous Tidbits
New Edge Sword and Sorcery Kickstarter
The Kickstarter for New Edge Sword and Sorcery is now live!
The Kickstarter campaign can be found here. The project is currently (evening of 2/12) at 71.77% funded with 19 days left. Consider backing it!
Miss Corsair Debonair YouTube Channel Launch
Pinup/stockings model Miss Corsair Debonair (who I interview for Exotica Moderne issue 14) has launched a YouTube channel (found here).
Her first video (which can be found here or in the embedded player above) has her showcasing a vintage pair of tan RHT stockings. One of her kitties makes a cameo! Check out her video, consider subscribing so you can see her next stockings/nylons/kitties video.
The second issue of the neo-peplum comic Born of Blood was released late 2022 by MERC Publishing.
I’ve done a write up of the issue which can be read here.
Emmanuelle / Black Emanuelle CFP
The Call for Papers for Emmanuelle, Black Emanuelle, and Emmanuelle derivative films is open.
Personal copy of Emmanuelle 4 signed by Brinke Stevens.
The CFP can found on this page. If you know other scholars who would be interested in this project, please share! I’d be super appreciative to get the word out.
New Episode of H. P. Lovecast
A new episode of H. P. Lovecast is now online. This episode was recorded last month, but with all the moving and getting settled, we are publishing it now. It’s a recap episode where Michele and I talk about accomplishments of 2022, personal projects, and goals for 2023. Check it out at our Buzzsprout website, at the podcast player below, or via your podcast app of preference.
A Hero Will Endure Cover Reveal and Table of Contents
A Hero Will Endure: Essays at the Twentieth Anniversary of Gladiator has a (draft) cover reveal and a table of contents! Here is the cover (might be slightly changed):
Draft cover.
And here is the table of contents:
Introduction: On Comets, Cakes, and Toys – Marking ‘Gladiator Days’ for (More than) Two Decades – Rachel L. Carazo
Chapter 1 “A Vital and Adrenalized Contributor”: DreamWorks, Gladiator, and the Establishment of a Movie Studio – Kimberly A. Owczarski
Chapter 2 ‘Wailing’ and ‘Moaning’: Gladiator’s Music Phenomenon and Legacy – Matthew Hodge
Chapter 3 “What We Do in Life, Echoes in Eternity”: An Ecocritical Reading of the Scenery and Landscapes in Gladiator – Stefano Rozzoni
Chapter 4 Maximus – The Twenty-First-Century Hybrid Hero: The Bridge Between Traditional and Counterculture Hero Archetypes in Gladiator – Kristen Leer
Chapter 5 “Father! I would butcher the whole world, if you would only love me…”: The Character of Commodus, between Historical Reality and Cinematographic Representation – Livio Lepratto
Chapter 6 “Commodus is not a Moral Man”: Nemesis, Narrative Construction, and Historical Reconstruction in Gladiator – James Shelton
Chapter 7 Games for the Throne, the Thread of Love, and Women and Heroes: Mythic Gendered Arenas in Gladiator and Game of Thrones – Loraine Haywood
Chapter 8 “…But Not Yet”: Reflections on Juba, the Spirit Guide and “Eternal Echo” of Gladiator – Ashley Weaver
Chapter 9 Ecce homo heroicus! The Enduring Maximus, Twenty Years On – Peter Burkholder and Krista Jenkins
Chapter 10 Roman Religious Figurines that “hear you […] in the afterlife”: Maximus’ Lares, His Vilica, and the Pomerium of Elysium in Gladiator – Rachel L. Carazo
Chapter 11 Dance or Dēcēdere: Gladiator and Industrial Music Sampling – Nicholas Diak
Chapter 12 Gladiator and Contemporary Roman Customs: The Myth of Maximus on the Roma and Lazio Soccer Fields – Antonio Valerio Spera
The collection is set to be published this February by Vernon Press which has a product/pre-order page.
Matt Page has a review of the newly resorted 1948 Biblical peplum film Queen Esther starring Ottilie Kruger (in her only non-stage acting role per IMDB) as the titular character (from the Book of Esther).
This past Friday the 13th turned out to be a lucky day for me because I received not one, but two! Joseph S. Pulver. Sr. edited Lovecraftian anthologies that contain Nick Mamatas autographs.
The first is The Leaves of a Necronomicon which Nick Mamatas graciously autographed to me. Copies can be ordered via this link at Books Inc.
Next is the Dreamlands anthology New Maps of Dream. This anthology was actually released back in 2020, but the edition with autograph pages from the contributors was delayed due to the sheets being lost in the mail. However, this edition is now released and can be purchased at PS Publishing.
HPLCP Transmissions – Ep 09 – Kaaron Warren, Christine Morgan, and Matthew M. Bartlett –
H. P. Lovecast Podcast
Emmanuelle à la Crepax
Italian erotic comics artist Guido Crepax has been having his body of work republished by Fantagraphics. At the tale end of 2022 the publisher released The Complete Guido Crepax: Erotic Stories 1 which contains all of his Emmanuelle adaptations:
I had trade paperback editions of Emmanuelle 1 and 3 but missing 2, so having this collection released was an excellent surprise.
Of course, if anyone wants to write about sequential art versions of Emmanuelle, I happen to have a CFP open…..
Funko Toga and Sandal Homer
Michele gifted me this rather adorable Toga and Sandal-themed Funko Homer Simpson named Obeseus.
It’s not shown in this picture, but he’s holding a drumstick. I love it!
Xiphos – The Rise and Fall of Athens
The Rise and Fall of Athens is the debut album of the martial/neo-classical outfit Xiphos.
As can be seen from the cover and title, the neo-peplum album is about Ancient Greece. Two of the members of Xiphos, Miklós Hoffer and Troy Southgate, and also a part of the neo-classical outfit H.E.R.R. who have an album called XII Caesars that explores the same subject matter.
Hoffer was gracious to autograph a copy of the album to me. Copies of the limited edition digipack can be ordered by PayPaling 11.99 euros to mgahoffer AT hotmail.com
As with 2021, 2022 was a crazy year. Lots of life stuff: got a new job after 16 or 17 years at my previous job, and bought a house – first house ever! It’s been quite a process and these last few months busy with cleaning, packing, and moving. However, that is all done (well, except unpacking and furnishing) and Michele and I get to start 2023 off in a home with our cats.
I did a 2021 Accomplishments List and looking back on those, I actually got most of them done! Some projects have been delayed, and of course I have items and reviews on my to do list that have been pending for a while.
Now that I’m all settled in in the new house, with my own office, and library of research material close at hand, I look forward to taking a big bite out of 2023!
I’d like to give a shout out to the following folks who have given me platforms to share what I’ve been working on or given me venues to contribute to:
Bernie Gonzalez and Pete Charbonneau (Fan2Fan Podcast)
Hercules Invictus (Voice of Olympus Network)
Ken Holewczynski (Exotica Moderne)
James Chambers, Carol Gyzander (Galactic Terrors)
Jonathan Maberry (Weird Tales)
Kevin Wetmore (Twilight Zone book)
Hal and Dee Astell (CoKoCon)
Michele Brittany (partner in crime)
You are all greatly appreciated!
2023 Projections
Three days into 2023 and projects are already lining up. Some are carryovers from 2022. Some have been legacy to dos. Some will be brand new. We’ve already been in touch with folks for future episodes of H. P. Lovecast, so expect lots of cool stuff there. I got some looming deadlines for essays for anthology editors, so time to get to work!
Things to look forward to in 2023
Publishing of the debut issue of the Footage Fiends zine which contains my essay on the Mario Bava cosmic horror/exotica film, Caltiki: The Immortal Monster.
A Hero Will Endure: Essays at the Twentieth Anniversary of Gladiator is slated to be published this February. This contains my essay on industrial bands that sample the film. This book has been a long time in coming, so I am extremely excited to see it published!
My CFP for the Emmanuelle / Black Emanuelle project will be open until the spring. Submit, submit, submit!
Essay to be published in Weird Tales. Proof was done and turned in.
New episodes of H. P. Lovecast Podcast
Appearances on the Fan2Fan Podcast
Appearance on the Scaredy Cats podcast discussing the film The Final Girls.
Being on panels for CoKoCon 2023.
Projects I’ll be starting in 2023
Projects I anticipate to be starting/working on in 2023:
Essay on peplum cats for a project for Simon Bacon about cats in cinema (due early spring!)
Essay on the Front Line Assembly album Implode and how it samples the films Mimic and Event Horizon (passion idea project)
Crossing fingers – get enough submissions for the Emmanuelle project to procure a publisher and get that book off the ground
Turning my Acylum/Vikings presentation in a journal article
And other legacy items on my to do list…
Thank you to everyone who has been with my on my academic journey, who has read and shared my material or given me platforms. You all rock socks!
