Posted: 03/10/2009

Fangoria Weekend of Horror’s Convention 2009!

(2009)

by Gary Schultz

The Fangoria Weekend of Horror’s Convention in Chicago.
March 6th, 7th, & 8th, 2009.
Happy 30th Birthday Fangoria.

Fangoria is the most celebrated horror magazine of the past 3 decades and is the single name that ties all things horror related together. Fangoria represents every facet of horror, horror movies of all varieties, horror comic books, novels, scary art, fandom, anything you can think of horror related. I’ve been to several “Weekend of Horrors Conventions” and I ask you if you love scary movies of any and all kinds and you have not been to a Fango Con what the hell are you waiting for? Seriously stop saying you’ll go next year. You are completely missing out.

The Fangoria Convention is a horrific 3 day event. The Weekend of Horror’s was programmed and championed by Fangoria Editor In Chief Tony Timpone and his amazing staff and featured George A. Romero (Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead), Herschel Gordon Lewis (The Gore-Gore Girls, She-Devil’s On Wheels), Lloyd Kaufman (Toxic Avenger), Ruggero Deodato (Cannibal Holocaust), Lamberto Bava (Demons) and FX artist/director Sergio Stivaletti (Mother of Tears). And that’s not even half of the weekend’s line-up. Doug Bradley (Hellraiser), Tom Savini (Grindhouse, From Dusk Till Dawn), Tim Towles(House of 1000 Corpses) and Bill Mosley from “The Devil’s Rejects” plus Marilyn Burns and Caroline Williams from “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” fame all were in attendance. This year also featured live music by Mushroom Head and Fashion Bomb.

Only at the Fangoria Convention can you attend lectures and Q & A’s with nearly every horror icon in attendance. You can meet and get autographs and pictures with everyone. And if you’re an independent filmmaker it’s a chance to network with like-minded individuals. I spent several minutes talking with Herschel Gordon Lewis the Godfather of Gore. I even gave him and copy of my own short film, “Hellcat and Tala”. Only at Fangoria can you meet, talk and get some even-if-brief-straight forward advice from legendary directors and writers.

Another completely cool thing is this year Fango had at least a half dozen tattoo artists set up. People were lined up all weekend getting inked. There were a lot of artists this year selling unique and limited horror themed prints. One of my favorite parts of Fangoria is the Dudgeon, held in the basement where you can meet and greet the underground of aspiring artists and filmmakers and it is here where you just may discover the next John Carpenter or Lloyd Kaufman. Fangoria is exceptionally interactive with its fans. They want to know who you want to see at future conventions and constantly ask the crowd for feedback. This is cool because it gives the audience a true voice. For the first time this year I attended the Fangoria Auction on Sunday and watched them auction off everything. I mean everything, shirts, posters, a guitar, and the very banners on the stage. That was a lot of fun.

My notes for Fangoria are as follows, I would love to see Rob Zombie, Robert Englund, and Jack Hill at a convention. My girlfriend would like the vendors to sell more shirts for women and I was astonished to find that not a single vendor had a copy of John Carpenters “They Live” available because I’m still looking to replace my ancient VHS copy. See you at next Year’s Weekend of Horrors Convention!

This convention is the first event planned for FANGORIA magazine’s 30th Anniversary 2009 Tour. Other cities will include Los Angeles April 17-19 at the Los Angeles Convention Center and New York City, June 5-7 at the Javits Center.
For further information, call Creation Entertainment, 818/409-0960 or visit our website at
www.fangocon.com.

Gary Schultz Review of fangoria’s Weekend of Horror’s Convention in Chicago, IL.

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