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| ©2003-2007 CreatureScape ISSN: 1546-6140 |
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John P. Stevenson . . . The Unimonster |
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What do you get when you combine a perpetually 10-year old, comic book-reading, Universal horror-loving Monster Kid with a sarcastic, acerbic, opinionated old man, stuff them into one somewhat rotund 43-year old body, with access to a computer keyboard? You get The Unimonster, that’s what. |
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| From my earliest days, I was destined to be a fan of genre movies. I can clearly remember watching the Star Trek episode “Miri” when it first aired in 1966, and have been a hard-core Trekker ever since. I lived for Halloween, loved ghost stories, and never missed a monster movie. I can remember the first movie to give me nightmares (THE NAVY vs. THE NIGHT MONSTERS), and the first time I heard Colin Clive scream “It’s alive!” I can still recall the experience of lying in front of the car at the local drive-in, watching NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD for the first time, while nervously scanning the treeline beyond the screen, waiting for the sight of shambling zombies to emerge. | |||
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As I grew older, I discovered that I was not alone in my love of monsters and horror. I found thousands of ‘cousins’, and a kindly old uncle named Forry, in the pages of Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine. I learned that there was a wide and diverse world of genre films that awaited my eager interest, and I learned that monsters might be as close as the ocean waters, less than 20 miles from my home, that I swam in as often as possible. | ||
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One movie in the summer of 1975 changed
all that, and became the single most terrifying film I’ve ever seen.
That’s the summer I saw JAWS for the first time… and haven’t swum in
the ocean since. A lot of years, and a lot of movies, have passed since I was that Monster Kid, and things changed as they must. One thing that never changed, however, is my love of horror films, and genre movies in general. And when I decided to become serious about my writing, it was natural that I wrote about what I know and love—horror. Thanks to the editor, and others, who recognize that what I may lack in talent is more than balanced by an authentic love of and enthusiasm for the genre, I’m able to share that Monster Kid’s love and enthusiasm with monster fans everywhere. Editor's Note: John "The Unimonster" Stevenson, the most prolific writer CreatureScape has, arrived in November of 2005 and has never looked back . . . except for the occasional zombie. John writes essays, opinions and rants in his "Crypt of the Unimonster" columns and DVD reviews in his "Creatures Featured" columns. |
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Monster Toys and
Ghoulish Goodies by John P. Stevenson (June 07) "As
dedicated monster collectors will attest, there is no shortage of
horror collectibles on the market today, and most of them are truly
superb in terms of quality and faithfulness to their subject. . . . |
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Give Me Those Old-Time Vampires,
They’re Good Enough For Me… by John P. Stevenson (May 07) Vampires shouldn’t live in ritzy, million-dollar Manhattan condos, or travel around in executive helicopters. They certainly shouldn’t need Glock 23’s in order to deal with their foes. Did Lugosi ever feel the need to slip a Chief’s Special into the pocket of his tuxedo? I think not. Read more here. |
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Movies With No Name: Ten “Diamonds in
the Rough” that are Worth the Effort to Track Down by John P. Stevenson (April 07) Everyone has their favorite horror films, and I’m certainly no exception. I have my favorite vampire films, my favorite giant bug movies, my favorite Euro-horrors… well, you name the horror or sci-fi genre, and I’ll have a list of favorites ready for you. Most of you, I’m sure, have similar lists of your own. (Read more here.) |
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Aurora’s Monster Models by John P. Stevenson (April 07) "Anyone who was a regular reader of Famous Monsters in the ‘60’s and ‘70’s will remember the ads for these kits . . . Dracula and Frankenstein, the Wolf-Man and the Mummy, the skeletal Prisoner of Castle Mare chained to the section of dungeon wall, even a scraggly-toothed, wart-nosed witch, hard at work stirring a bubbling cauldron." Read more here. | ||
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When Science Attacks—The Sci-Fi Horror of the 1950’s by John P. Stevenson (March 07) Whether the threat was an invading alien, a mutated insect, or an evil scientist, the threat struck at the American way of life, embodied in a variety of forms. The location might be in an arctic research station, the New Mexico desert, or a Coney Island amusement park, but it was Americana under attack, and the indomitable American spirit was always equal to the challenge. Read more here. | ||
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Universal’s Unsung Monster: The Mummy Kharis by John P. Stevenson "The Kharis films have a quality common to all of the Universal horror films of the 1940’s… they are incredibly fun movies." Read more here. | ||
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2006 in Review--The Best and Worst of 2006 in Horror, Sci-fi and Fantasy by John Stevenson It was a year of ups and downs in the genre, but generally, we leave 2006 in better shape than we entered it, which is always a good thing. Join John as he dissects the year that was, and get us ready for the year that will be. | ||
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