General

THE HORROR ANTIQUARIAN

By Matt Cowan

What is an antiquary? This question came to mind when I saw the title of M.R. James’ collection of short stories, Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (originally published in 1904).

As it turns out, an antiquary is someone who is either an expert on, or collector of antiques, or both. You have heard the saying, “Write what you know.” That is exactly what Montague Rhodes James did by making most of the main characters in his ghost stories people who would fall into that category. They would usually be someone in search of ancient items or knowledge and would accidentally come into contact with some hideous spectral entity as a result of their antiquarian tasks.

One horror podcast just isn't enough is it? Inspired by the success of The Horror!, I've decided to create yet another audio extravaganza featuring great old time radio horror episodes. Vintage Horror Radio will be coming very soon!

This show is going to focus on the radio adaptations of classic stories from horror authors, as well as the performances of horror icons like Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Boris Karloff and others. The show won't stop there...we'll see what else it morphs into!

Stay tuned!

ECHOES FROM BEYOND

WEIRD RIPPLES

BY MATT COWAN

If you throw a small object into a still lake, it can create a ripple that goes on long after that object has sunk to the silt at the bottom. I’ve heard this analogy used many times in my life, and I can think of no better example of this than that of the old pulp magazine, Weird Tales. It was first published in March of 1923, and was the first to focus on tales of horror and fantasy fiction exclusively. During its run it published many stories by people who would eventually become icons of their respective genres. Greats such as H.P. Lovecraft (The Call of Cthulhu), Clark Ashton Smith (Averiogne), Robert E. Howard (Conan), August Derleth (Someone in the Dark), Fritz Leiber (Smoke Ghost) and Robert Bloch (Psycho), all had stories published in Weird Tales. Many of those stories are now considered masterpieces of horror and are some of the founding blocks that modern masters build on today.

Well, I've got a start on the old time radio series information. Click on the "Behind The Screams" link in the menu, and prepare to be astonished. You'll see the Horror On The Air link which will take you to the series info. Soon you'll find Horror On The Screen, and Poison Pens to cover horror films and spooky stories.

I hope to get things loaded up over the next few days, in time for the unofficial Halloween launch of this site. Yes, I'm overstating the whole launch thing. But there will be more stuff to come!

This site is a spin-off/second home of The Horror! podcast. The Horror is one of many old time radio shows I produce for Relic Radio. And it's quickly becoming my favorite!

I wanted a place to bring more information about the series featured in the show like Lights Out and Dark Fantasy. Background information giving the who, what, where, and when of these shows, some produced over seventy years ago! Then of course there are the episodes adapted from stories by Poe and Lovecraft and other authors known to horror fans. This site will try and bring it all together.

Oh, and of course we have to include those great old horror movies as well. There will be more to come as the "plan" develops...