On the heels of Rue Morgue's Phantasm companion announcement earlier this month comes word from Italy that publisher Weird Books have debuted their own Phantasm tome. Titled Phantasm: l’Universo di Tall Man, the book is authored by Luigi Boccia, Lorenzo Ricciardi, Giada Cecchinelli, Nicola Lombardi, Fabio Giovannini and Dustin McNeill (yes, yours truly!). My contribution is a small piece in tribute to the power and legacy of Angus Scrimm's performance as the Tall Man ("Tribute to a Tall Man.") Phantasm: l’Universo di Tall Man spans 162 pages and is entirely in Italian. The book features new interviews with Don Coscarelli, David Hartman and Reggie & Gigi Bannister. It is available for purchase now from the publisher's website. For those of you who speak Italian, the official description reads: "L’unico libro in Italia che racconta la saga di Phantasm. Un’analisi lucida degli incubi di Don Coscarelli nella società in subbuglio degli anni Settanta: la nascita del Tall Man e del suo inferno privato, l’influenza della Nuova Hollywood e il cinema degli zombie, l’universo distopico e il primo supervillain del grande schermo. Tra morte e stregoneria, profanazione dei simboli e terrore delle invasioni aliene, l’esperimento registico di Coscarelli reinventa la concezione di “genere”, portando il germe di una nuova scienza che precederà di trentacinque anni gli sforzi cinematografici dell’avveniristico Interstellar."
Get ready for the creepiest thing you're likely to see today. The Scary Closet company is now offering ten hand-crafted Tall Man puppets for sale, each measuring four feet tall and hand-signed by Angus Scrimm himself. The price tag is a little hefty ($2,495), but the craftsmanship on display in this piece is as chilling as it is breathtaking. You can order your own Tall Man puppet here. Whatever you do, make sure you watch the embedded video below. The picture to your right, while terrific, just does not do this thing justice. Description from the Etsy listing: This product is a high-end handcrafted by top professionals in the FX industry puppet size doll using production stills and over 100 screenshots from the film to bring this life like over sized puppet doll to collector’s hands.
The size is approx. 48" inches from top to bottom (4 feet)
This will make the ultimate Christmas gift to any horror/Sci-Fi fan but please try not to be to scared as this Tall Man figure when left alone at times has been known to yell out in the middle of the night BOYEEEEE!!!!!!
Meticulously high-end custom hand made puppet as are all from The Scary Closet, we included a very hard to find custom made and matched vintage tie tack with ruby stone as worn by Angus Scrimm aka The Tall Man in the Phantasm film franchise.
So much attention to detail was spent on this project that took us more than a year to complete. If you will notice the detail on the hands and head were painted with age spots and veins and hair was a very long 2 part process to achieve. The body is not a cheap plush doll body but a custom made 20 pound PVC with resin joints held together by industrial strength eye hooks and over 50 individual pieces and comes dressed in his popular black suit.
These 10 are works of art as the paint was done by famed artist and co-creator of the 1980's cult classic: Killer Klowns from Outer Space: Charles Chiodo.
And here you thought Mondo's Christmas Ornament was going to be the best Phantasm news of the week. Rue Morgue has just announced that they are releasing an Authorized Phantasm Film Companion in February! Dig that wild cover artwork to your right and read on for the details. "Step through the gates of Morningside Mortuary with Rondo Award-winning Rue Morgue columnist and lifelong Phan John W. Bowen for a tour of the Tall Man's domain, personally guided by Phantasm series mastermind Don Coscarelli and friends.
One of the horror genre's most beloved film franchises, Phantasm, comes to life with the first-time participation of Don Coscarelli. Features exclusive interviews with Coscarelli, stars Angus Scrimm, Michael Baldwin, Reggie Bannister, Bill Thornbury and more.
Plus! Never-before-seen photos from Coscarelli's private collection, a blow by blow breakdown of the films in the series, music, stunts and lots more!
Also features Oscar-winner Roger Avary on the Phantasm sequel that never got made and a foreword by Don Coscarelli.
132 pages, perfect bound soft cover." That the book is being authored by Rue Morgue's own John W. Bowen is fantastic news. Phans should recall he most recently penned last year's Phantasm Ravager cover story for the genre mag. Looking forward to this one! Pre-order yours here for the low price of $14.95 with free shipping to US and Canada!
From the "How many years have we been waiting for this?" Department comes news that Mondo Tees is set to release an officially-licensed Sentinel Sphere Christmas ornament! The balls are a co-venture between Don Coscarelli, Mondo and Middle of Beyond (who offer some fantastic ugly Christmas sweaters). The Mondo store is currently taking pre-orders, which are slated to begin shipping out in January. Their cost? A surprisingly economical $15. Phantasm and Mondo... a match made in heaven. Let's hope the good folks at Mondo have more goodies up their sleeve for the coming year!
