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GUEST OF HONOUR
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BRUCE CAMPBELL
The Evil Dead
Evil Dead II
Army of Darkness
Bubba Ho-Tep
Bruce Campbell began his lustrous film career making Super-8 movies with legendary director Sam Raimi back in 1975. Three years later, the pair would create a Super-8 short film called "Within the Woods" which would later be made into the full-length film called THE EVIL DEAD, an instant cult classic praised at the Cannes Film Festival by Stephen King. Campbell and Raimi's creative union was crystallized with the two classic sequels to the Evil Dead: EVIL DEAD II and ARMY OF DARKNESS. Additional Campbell/Raimi collaborations include DARKMAN, CRIMEWAVE and the SPIDERMAN films. A cult film staple, Campbell has also been seen in other notable genre films, including Don Coscarelli's BUBBA HO-TEP, John Carpenter's ESCAPE FROM L.A., MANIAC COP, INTRUDER, and many more. His extensive television career includes roles on XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS and HERCULES: THE LEGENDARY JOURNEYS. Bruce is also the author of the book IF CHINS COULD KILL: CONFESSIONS OF A 'B' MOVIE ACTOR and writer/director of the recent films MAN WITH THE SCREAMING BRAIN and MY NAME IS BRUCE. Rue Morgue is proud to present Bruce Campbell as 'Guest of Honour' to the 2009 Festival of Fear.
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FEATURED GUEST
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ROGER CORMAN
The Masque of the Red Death
The Tomb of Ligeia
A Bucket of Blood
Roger Corman's amazing influence on modern American cinema is as incalculable as it is legendary. Corman began his involvement in cinema in 1953 as a producer/screenwriter, making his debut as director in 1955 and turning out five films in just one year. In 1957, Corman directed the horror-cult classic A BUCKET OF BLOOD; in 1960 he gave the world the original THE LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS. Through the 1960s Corman made a series of now classic adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe stories starring Vincent Price. These included THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM, co-starring horror icon Barbara Steele, HOUSE OF USHER, THE HAUNTED PALACE, THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH, THE TOMB OF LIGEIA and THE RAVEN co-starring Peter Lorre and Boris Karloff. The prolific director also boasts one of the most extensive resumes as producer, having realized classic films like NOT OF THIS EARTH, THE DUNWICH HORROR, DEATH RACE 2000, PIRANHA, HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP, GALAXY OF TERROR, and many, many more. In 1990 Corman retired from directing to concentrate on production and distribution through his company New World/Concorde Pictures, making exploitation films and using profits to distribute distinguished art films. Among the world-class names who were employed by him in the early days are Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, James Cameron, Joe Dante, Robert DeNiro, William Shatner, and many others. Rue Morgue is proud to present a rare public appearance by Roger Corman to the 2009 Festival of Fear.
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SPECIAL GUESTS
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UDO KIER
Andy Warhol's Frankenstein
Rob Zombie's Halloween
Mark of the Devil
Udo Kier was born in Cologne, Germany, during World War II. While learning English in the UK he took acting courses and was eventually offered a role by director Michael Sarne in the film ROAD TO ST. TROPEZ in 1966. His first hit film was in 1970 with the banned horror classic MARK OF THE DEVIL. Kier then met director Paul Morrissey who offered him the lead role in the film FLESH FOR FRANKENSTEIN, a film that solidified Kier as a cult icon. Kier later took the lead role in Morrissey's masterpiece BLOOD FOR DRACULA; both films were so beloved by Andy Warhol that he attached his name to them. In the 1970s Kier's work included THE STORY OF O and Dario Argento's SUSPIRIA. As he gained more visibility in America his breakthrough role was in MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO in 1991. The remainder of the 90's included roles in the cult favorite BARB WIRE, Lars Von Trier's BREAKING THE WAVES, and the action vampire flick BLADE. Kier can be seen more recently in ROB ZOMBIE'S HALLOWEEN, Quentin Tarantino's GRINDHOUSE and John Carpenter's MASTERS OF HORROR episode. Rue Morgue is proud to present a very rare public appearance by Udo Kier to the 2009 Festival of Fear.
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BARBARA STEELE
Black Sunday
Pit and the Pendulum
Dark Shadows
Barbara Steele was born in Cheshire, England and is loved for her dark mysterious beauty. She is considered the most beautiful star of the greatest horror masterpiece of Italian film, Mario Bava's La Maschera Del Demonio (1960), also known as BLACK SUNDAY. After the film's success, Steele was brought to America to star in Roger Corman's PIT AND THE PENDULUM alongside Vincent Price. By now Steele was a horror film superstar and in 1962, she answered an open-casting call and won a role in Federico Fellini's groundbreaking 8 1/2. In 1963 she started work on her next horror movie, THE HORRIBLE DR. HITCHCOCK. Many more horror films followed including THE SPECTRE, CASTLE OF BLOOD, ANGEL FOR SATAN and others. Her horror fans were delighted when she showed up on TV in Rod Serling's NIGHT GALLERY and the new episodes of DARK SHADOWS. Steele has developed a relative fondness about her horror queen status which was evident in her appearance in the Clive Barker documentary A-Z of HORROR. Some of her additional films include CEMETARY OF THE LIVING DEAD, CAGED HEAT and SILENT SCREAM. Rue Morgue is proud to present a very rare appearance by Barbara Steele at the 2009 Festival of Fear.
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*CANCELLED* TOM SAVINI
Planet Terror
Day of the Dead
Creepshow
Over the decades Tom Savini has established himself as the Beethoven of Special FX. Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Savini was always fascinated with movie magic and was notably attracted to another horror film pioneer: Lon Chaney. Savini's wartime experience in Vietnam spurred his move into special effects where he worked closely with George Romero throughout the latter's career. First came MARTIN in 1977; a year later he was working with Romero again on DAWN OF THE DEAD and then DAY OF THE DEAD in 1985. In 1990, Savini directed a striking re-make of Romero's original NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. Savini has also worked alongside such horror gods as Dario Argento, Tobe Hooper, Quentin Tarantino, and Robert Rodriguez. Some of his other well known projects include special effects, acting, and/or stunt work in the films FRIDAY THE 13TH, CREEPSHOW, THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2, MONKEY SHINES, FROM DUSK TILL DAWN, LAND OF THE DEAD, and recently LOST BOYS: THE TRIBE.
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JAMES DUVAL
Donnie Darko
May
Doom Generation
James Duval is an American actor and heart-throb most famous for his roles in the Gregg Araki trilogy, TOTALLY FUCKED UP, THE DOOM GENERATION, and NOWHERE, in addition to being the man in the eerie bunny rabbit suit in Richard Kelly's DONNIE DARKO, Blank in Lucky McGee's MAY, and Singh in the film GO. Duvall's other notable horror work includes MAD COWGIRL, THE CLOWN AT MIDNIGHT, and recently EVERYTHING WILL HAPPEN BEFORE YOU DIE. James also plays guitar in his music group Antoneus Maximus & The Nuthouze Band.
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MAX BROOKS
World War Z
The Zombie Survival Guide
Max Brooks is an Emmy Award winning television writer, author, and actor who also happens to be the son of film legends Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft. Max attended film school at American University in Washington, DC, and went on to write acclaimed sketch comedy for SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, and create the best selling satire book THE ZOMBIE SURVIVAL GUIDE. Most recently, Paramount Pictures have acquired the screen rights for Max's WORLD WAR Z: AN ORAL HISTORY OF THE ZOMBIE WAR, the follow-up to ZSG which will be a major motion picture slated for release in 2010.
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LINDA HAMILTON
Children of the Corn
The Terminator
Linda Hamilton is a multiple Emmy and Golden Award nominated actress is best known for her unforgettable role of Sarah Connor from THE TERMINATOR feature films. She is also beloved for her portrayal of Catherine Chandler in the BEAUTY AND THE BEAST television series from the late 1980s opposite Ron Perlman. Some of her other television appearances include FRASIER and HILLSTREET BLUES. Primarily a film actress, Hamilton starred in a string of successful movies including CHILDREN OF THE CORN, BLACK MOON RISING, KING KONG LIVES, and DANTE'S PEAK. Hamilton has also lent her talents to voice over work in animation where she provided the voice of many well known animated characters in projects such as BATMAN BEYOND.
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ALSO APPEARING
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*NEW* JACK KETCHUM
The Girl Next Door
Offspring
Jack Ketchum (a.k.a. Dallas Mayr) published his first novel in 1980 titled OFF SEASON, a version of the notorious Sawney Beane story. The novel was condemned by the Village Voice as "violent pornography" and set the stage for Ketchum's ouvre, which has become some of the most controversial material coming out of the genre. Three of his most powerful novels have recently been turned into films, including THE GIRL NEXT DOOR, THE LOST and RED starring Tom Sizemore and Robert Englund. In 1990 Ketchum published OFFSPRING, the sequel to Off Season which has recently become a full length feature film starring Art Hindle and directed by Andrew Van Den Houten. Ketchum's other notable works include SHE WAKES, COVER, ROAD KILL, ONLY CHILD, LADIES NIGHT and TRIAGE (with fellow writers Richard Laymon and Edward Lee). 2009 marks Ketchum's second appearance at the Rue Morgue Festival of Fear.
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*NEW* ART HINDLE
Black Christams
The Brood
Offspring
After being inspired and touched by a Toronto Workshop Productions play, Hindle made the commitment to leave the stock market for theatre. His first big role was in a biker movie THE PROUD RIDER, spawned by the popularity of Easy Rider. To prepare for the role, Hindle actually worked with a real motorcycle gang, the Satan's Choice. But it was a film by Bob Clark called BLACK CHRISTMAS, followed by David Cronenberg's THE BROOD that made Hindle into a horror film star. Recently, Hindle can be seen in the new horror film OFFSPRING written by acclaimed author Jack Ketchum.
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LLOYD KAUFMAN
The Toxic Avenger
Poultrygeist
Lloyd Kaufman is the certifiable granddaddy of low-budget, lowbrow splatter comedies stretching back to the early '80s. He is a director, producer, actor as well as the president of Troma, which has done much to influence independent filmmakers the world over, including Peter Jackson, Quentin Tarantino, Kevin Smith, and Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Kaufman achieved new levels of success with his 1984 breakthrough movie THE TOXIC AVENGER, which spawned three sequels, an animated series for kids and even a cereal. He has also directed the Troma faves TROMEO & JULIET, TERROR FIRMER, POULTRYGEIST and many more.
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LEN WEIN
co-creator Swamp Thing
Wolverine
Len Wein is an American comic book writer and editor best known for co-creating DC Comics' SWAMP THING and Marvel Comics' WOLVERINE character, and for helping revive the Marvel superhero team the X-Men including the co-creation of NIGHTCRAWLER, STORM, and COLOSSUS. Additionally, he was the editor for writer Alan Moore and illustrator Dave Gibbons' influential DC miniseries WATCHMEN. Len Wein was inducted into the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2008.
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KELLEY ARMSTRONG
(author)
Bitten
The Summoning
Kelley Armstrong has been telling stories since before she could write. If asked for a story about girls and dolls, hers would invariably feature undead girls and evil dolls, much to her teachers' dismay. Today, she continues to spin tales of ghosts and demons and werewolves, while safely locked away in her basement writing dungeon. She's the author of the NYT-best selling WOMEN OF THE OTHERWORLD paranormal suspense series, BITTEN, and the DARKEST POWERS to name a few. Kelley's current books and short stories include THE SUMMONING, ZEN AND THE ART OF VAMPIRISM, and LIVING WITH THE DEAD.
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*NEW* ANDREW VAN DEN HOUTEN
Offspring
Headspace
Andrew van den Houten began his career in front of the camera as a child actor, performing in commercials in his native New York City. He founded the production company Modernciné during his junior year of college and, after graduation, returned to New York where he produced and directed a number of award-winning short films and television commercials. In 2005, he directed HEADSPACE, an official selection of the Brussels International Fantasy Film Festival, a multiple award-winner at the New York City Horror Film Festival, and winner of the Best Monster Movie at the World Horror Convention in San Francisco. Van Den Houten also produced Jack Ketchum's THE GIRL NEXT DOOR and recently directed OFFSPRING, also based on a novel by Jack Ketchum.
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*NEW* BILL ZEBUB
Assmonster: The Making of a Horror Movie
Before Jackass and Steve O, there was Bill Zebub, who began the journey into film when he and various friends filmed their spree of public stunts at local malls and public hang-outs in low fi netures like CRUCIFIX OLYMPICS. Eventually Bill Zebub began steering away from the public stunts in favour of absurd skit compilations called THE UNDERGROUND. Since that time, he has released about 30 movies direct to DVD and he has no shortage of ideas for future projects. His notable films include, ASS MONSTER: THE MAKING OF A HORROR MOVIE, THE CRUCIFIER, THE WORST HORROR MOVIE EVER MADE, and many more.
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*NEW* BRETT KELLY
Attack of the Giant Leeches
My Dead Girlfriend
As an actor, Brett Kelly has over a decade of experience, having studied theatre at the University of Ottawa and Television Broadcasting at Algonquin College. As an actor/director, he has completed THE BONESETTER, THE FERAL MAN, FINAL CURTAIN, SPACEMEN, GO-GO GIRLS AND THE TRUE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS , THE BONESETTER RETURNS and MY DEAD GIRLFRIEND with more projects on the way. Kelley has also worked in Television as the programming director and station manager for TV ZOOM.
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JOSHUA HOFFINE
After Dark, My Sweet
Joshua Hoffine is a world renowned horror photographer whose work frequently deals with childhood fears. Hoffine stages his photographs like small movies, with sets, elaborate props, fog machines and special effects make-up with the help of his family and friends. His photographs have been featured in dozens of publications around the world, including Rue Morgue, The London Times, and Russian Playboy. Joshua is based out of Kansas City, where he lives and works with his four young daughters.
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*NEW* VINCENT MARCONE
My Pet Skeleton
Johnny Hollow
Birthed in printmaking, weaned on digital design, Vincent Marcone has become his own unique creation and the dark architect behind an electronic temple that now attracts converts from all over the world. Marcone made his debut with MY PET SKELETON, a digital art slideshow of whispy phantoms, lonely scarecrows and insects trembling in a world of rust and stained paper. Marcone followed up with Johnny Hollow, a multi-media musical project for which he contributes electro acoustics and vocals. He has also directed music videos for such bands as Mushroomhead and Jackalope. Recently, Marcone teamed up with Rue Morgue president Rodrigo Gudiņo for the 2009 Genie Award nominee THE FACTS IN THE CASE OF MISTER HOLLOW.
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PSYCHO CHARGER
Horror Rawkillbilly
Possibly New Jersey's most dangerous band, Psycho Charger is a witches brew of psychobilly fire, cold industrial steel and distortion surf punk served up with horror movie sound bites. Spewing hymns from their very own dark gospel of murder, zombies and rednecks, PSYCHO CHARGER will damn your soul in a cyclone of vocal distortion and menacing guitar twang. PSYCHO CHARGER makes their Canadian premiere with an exclusive live performance at the official party of the 2009 Festival of Fear on Saturday, August 29 in celebration of their new record MARK OF THE PSYCHO released in June 2009.
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*NEW* MIKE AUSTIN
Austin Tattoos
Mike Austin made his debut on the artscene at the Fanshawe College in London, Ontario in the mid-'80s while still in his teens. After college, Austin was offered a job working for the Malin brothers at BLUE DRAGON TATTOO in 1987. In 1992, he opened his own studio, and since then has won countless awards and acclaim on the international tattoo scene. Austin's undeniable talent has pushed the envelope from that day forward to eventually become a world renowned power producer of original and custom designs praised by the likes of Guy Aitchison, Bob Tyrell and Paul Booth, to name a few. Austin has numerous other artistic and freakish endeavours on the go including drawing, pastel and painting, along with a taste for funerary antiques, horror and mythological memorabilia. Austin recently had the honour of illustrating a series of dark and brooding books on Inuit Mythology of which several prints has appeared in the prestigious artshow CIRQUE DE LA LUNE held at the Arts Project in London, Ontario. Rue Morgue is proud to present Mike Austin as the exclusive working tattoo artist of the 2009 Festival of Fear.
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*NEW* DR. KIM PAFFENROTH
Apocalyptic, Zombie Horror
Kim Paffenroth is Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Iona College, and the author of several books on the Bible and theology. He has received degrees from St. John's College (Annapolis, MD), Harvard Divinity School, and the University of Notre Dame. His contributions in the field of horror writing include Gospel of the Living Dead: George Romero's Visions of Hell on Earth (Baylor, 2006) - WINNER, 2006 Bram Stoker Award; Dying to Live: A Novel of Life among the Undead (Permuted Press, 2007); History Is Dead: A Zombie Anthology (editor; Permuted Press, 2007); Orpheus and the Pearl (Magus Press, 2008); and Dying to Live: Life Sentence (Permuted Press, 2008). He lives in upstate New York with his wife and two children.
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DR. ELIZABETH MILLER
Canada's Vampire Expert
Elizabeth Miller is recognized internationally for her expertise on Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula - its origins in folklore, literature and history, and its influence on the culture over the centuries. She has lectured throughout Canada as well as in the United States, England, Ireland, Germany, Poland and Romania. Dr. Miller has been interviewed by major media including the BBC, CBC, the New York Times, the Globe & Mail, the Los Angeles Times, and the Wall Street Journal. Her publications on Dracula include dozens of articles and six books, including REFLECTIONS ON DRACULA, DRACULA: THE SHADE AND THE SHADOW, and DRACULA: SENSE & NONSENSE.
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SUICIDE GIRLS
Wizard of Gore
Suicide Girls are part alternative cult community, and part pin-up girl showcase for close to one thousand fantastic tattooed and pierced bad girls, from Finland to Columbia and beyond. They are a throwback to the glamorous days of retro poster vixens when models were beautifully imperfect but stunningly hypnotic. Suicide Girls are artistically bent emo, goth, and punk rocker women, and an international sensation. A selection of the SG damsels can be seen in Jeremy Kasten's remake of the H. G. Lewis horror classic THE WIZARD OF GORE.
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The RUE MORGUE FESTIVAL OF FEAR is the country's largest horror expo, attracting an average of 40,000+ fans to the heart of downtown Toronto over three days in August. This powerhouse event is an extravaganza of celebrity guests, autograph signings, parties, Q&A sessions, seminars and workshops, and a colossal selection of movies and movie memorabilia, including books, comic books, toys, video games, trading cards, posters, anime, manga, and tons more.
Visit the Official Site
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