American Scary (2006)

American Scary is a look at the nation's tradition of horror hosting, from Ghoulardi to Ghoul-A-Go-Go. Follow this American folk art form from its glamorous beginnings, through repeated ... See full summary »

Director:

John E. Hudgens

Writer:

Sandy Clark

Stars:

Forrest J Ackerman, Douglas Agosti, Ernie Anderson

Cast

Credited cast:
Forrest J Ackerman	...	Himself
Douglas Agosti	...	Himself / Dr. Shock
Ernie Anderson	...	Himself / 'Ghoulardi' (archive footage)
Curtis Armstrong	...	Himself
Bob Beidman	...	Himself / 'Carpathian'
Terry Bennett	...	Himself / "Marvin" (archive footage)
Bob Billbrough	...	Himself / "Hives the Butler"
Jerry G. Bishop	...	Himself / 'Svengoolie'
John Bloom	...	Himself
Ken Bramming	...	Dr. Lucifer (archive footage)
Nicole M. Brooks	...	Herself
Bob Burns	...	Himself
P.D. Cacek	...	Herself / 'Moira the Banshee'
Bill 'Chilly Billy' Cardille	...	Himself
George 'E-Gor' Chastain	...	Himself

Storyline

American Scary is a look at the nation's tradition of horror hosting, from Ghoulardi to Ghoul-A-Go-Go. Follow this American folk art form from its glamorous beginnings, through repeated waves of popularity, to its scrappy resurgence and survival in the age of cable access and the Internet.

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Plot Keywords:

author | san francisco california | philadelphia pennsylvania | television production | 1980s | 

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Taglines:

It's about that favorite show you forgot you loved ...

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Genres:

Documentary | Comedy | Horror

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Details

Official Sites:

Official Site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 October 2006 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

POOB Productions, Z-Team Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Color:

Black and White Color

User Reviews

Inspiration to a New Generation

Many, many years later my childhood memories of Milwaukee horror movie hosts Dr. Cadaverino, Shirley the tarantula and Tolous NoNeck often rivals my memory of the movies themselves.

Though none of my childhood horror hosts were included in John Hudgens shockumentary (no surprise considering the hundreds of hours of footage squeezed into this precious 90-minute film), American Scary still brought back a cavalcade of warm memories from my childhood in Milwaukee to watching Son of Svengoolie with my wife and my own children in Chicago.

All-in-all, American Scary is a very entertaining and inspiring look at a uniquely American phenomenon: the late-night horror movie hosted by the big kid who never grew up and seems to have forgotten that Halloween only comes but once a year. The inspiration of my local horror hosts has never left me and apparently neither has it left all the others who, inspired by their own local childhood horror hosts, continue to host those same low-budget, z-grade sci-fi and horror movies on cable access TV and on the web; carrying the torch to a new generation.