Angus Scrimm on TMZ!!

In a really weird turn of events, everyone's favorite Tall Man turned up on the front page of celebrity gossip website TMZ this morning as part of their "Memba Him?" photo series. The goal is apparently to contrast current photos of celebrities with older photos from their career. Even decades after first donning the Tall Man's suit, Angus still looks smashing and mighty fearsome if I do say so myself.

Was anyone else kind of hopeful he might have made the front page for sphere-drilling Miley Cyrus or embalming Kim Kardashian? Now THAT would be a great TMZ article. Special thanks to Kristy Jett for the head's up on this one!

Rock out to "Morningside Cemetery"

There's nothing better to follow up a Phantasm rock tune with than with another Phantasm rock tune! On the heels of my posting Scotty Bootz Georgeson's theme cover last week comes another fantastic phan creation - this one by singer/songwriter Matt Martinek. It's an original song featuring a new riff on the Phantasm theme called "Morningside Cemetery" and, unlike most Phantasm songs I come across, actually has lyrics inspired by the films. As the opening suggests, "Take a walk through Morningside..."

Matt stopped by Phantasm Community recently to share his song and writes "Long live the Tall Man." Hear, hear.

Hailing from Johnstown, PA, his artist biography reads: "Multi-instrumentalist Matt Martinek cannot really be lumped into one genre specifically. His interest in different kinds of music is apparent, as he infuses pop, metal, blues, country, folk, and even some rap into his musical creations. When asked about his differing styles, he replies "It all goes with my mood. If I'm feeling heavy and rude, I write it. If I'm feeling lovely and caring, I'll throw it out there. My musical footprint as a whole cannot be classified. I do not care for limits, so I break them as often as I can".

Expand this post to hear and download "Morningside Cemetery."

Incredible One-Man Cover of the Phantasm Theme

The internet is rife with covers of the classic Phantasm theme, many of them very good. Few are as impressive or as unusual as the recent one performed by guitarist Scotty Bootz Georgeson in the YouTube video you see below. Scotty began by dividing the Fred Myrow/Malcolm Seagrave theme into four parts and next recorded himself playing each separate part. When he combined these four performances into one video, the result is powerful!

And apparently I'm not the only one that holds that opinion. Don Coscarelli himself posted Scotty's theme to the official Phantasm Facebook page on August 7, prompting a whopping 866 likes!

I actually had the surprise pleasure of meeting Scotty at Chicago's Flashback Weekend this past summer. He started to bring up his theme cover, but I was one step ahead of him! I had actually already ripped an MP3 from his video and uploaded it to my phone for my long drive to Chicago. It is pure Phantasmic goodness!

Expand this post to see and hear Scotty's cover!

Phantasm Exhumed headed to New York City

Scrimm Photo by Casey Tejavej

Next month, the New York City Horror Film Festival will honor actor Angus Scrimm with their prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award for his work on the Phantasm franchise and in numerous other genre classics. Previous recipients include Rob Zombie, Lloyd Kaufman, Robert Englund and Wes Craven. Even better, the Tall Man himself will be on hand to receive the award at a special presentation!

Yours truly will also be in attendance signing copies of PHANTASM EXHUMED with the Tall Man and series crewmember/book photographer Kristen Deem! The festival is also honoring Norman Reedus, better known as Daryl Dixon from The Walking Dead. Reedus will also be signing copies of his new book THANKS FOR ALL THE NICENESS.

More details available on the Fangoria website. I look forward to seeing some "phans" in the Big Apple!

Phantasmic Pumpkins for Halloween 2014

Halloween is near, which means it's time for Natalie Tomaszewski to grace us with another batch of her famous Phantasm pumpkin creations! Natalie first carved the Tall Man in 2011 followed by Jebediah Morningside in 2013. This year, she graces us with multiple characters - Jebediah Morningside, Mike Pearson and the Lady in Lavender. Even cooler, her Lady in Lavender is carved from the character's depiction in the upcoming Phantasm: Ravager!

Lavender herself (actress Kat Lester) comments on Natalie's pumpkin: "That's amazing! XoxMeow! I love it, Natalie!"

Click here to see Natalie's pumpkins!!