The Horror Host Hotel Proudly Presents:
Ghoulapalooza TV Sends Old-Fashioned Shivers Over The Internet
by John Alsedek
"Why not show bad horror/sci-fi movies all the time?" - Guy Incognito, writer/director/producer of Ghoulapalooza TV
In 1961, then-Chairman of the FCC, Newton Minow made his famous ‘Vast Wasteland’ speech, in which he noted (fairly enough) that, while there was a great deal of worthwhile TV programming, not everything was up to snuff…
"But when television is bad, nothing is worse. I invite you to sit down in front of your television set when your station goes on the air and stay there without a book, magazine, newspaper, profit and loss sheet or rating book to distract you -- and keep your eyes glued to that set until the station signs off. I can assure you that you will observe a vast wasteland."
So one might wonder what Mr. Minow would make of the words spoken by Guy Incognito back in September 2005 that led to one of the most unique web-based television stations around, Ghoulapalooza TV. “Well, I believe Mr. Minnow is still alive, so it wouldn’t be accurate to say that he’d spin in his grave”, notes Incognito. “But, given Ghoulapalooza TV’s content, it seemed somehow appropriate anyway.”
The concept behind Ghoulapalooza TV came about simply enough, according to Incognito. "A friend of mine- comedienne Jennifer Blaine- and I had been talking about doing a project together for a while, when I hit upon the idea of doing a one-off live show for Halloween called 'Ghoulapalooza'. We'd show a couple of cheesy old films, while Jennifer handled the horror hostess duties in between." But Incognito had an epiphany in late September- instead of doing a one-time live show, why not start an Internet TV station devoted to much-neglected old television programs and movies? Blaine loved the idea, and Ghoulapalooza TV was born.
Incognito, a writer who’d grown up watching endless hours of grainy old black-and-white horror/sci-fi programming (“During the summer when I was a kid, I’d be up till 2 am watching ‘The Twilight Zone’ and ‘Boris Karloff’s Thriller’”), started figuring out the nuts-and-bolts of doing Internet TV. He had some experience in website design, and also a little in television production; still, this was very much unknown territory. So he asked questions. Lots of questions. Fortunately, Central Pennsylvania- where Ghoulapalooza TV is located- has a thriving independent filmmaking community, so answers were easy to find.
In terms of the programming, Incognito drew on his childhood television experiences and decided on a decidedly retro feel. Part of that was practicality- older films/TV shows are more likely to be in the public domain (i e, free to use). But it had more to do with the romanticism of old-time television, filmed in gloriously grainy b/w. So, with that in mind, the search began for decent copies of half-century old programs, a search that has paid off in a collection of several hundred vintage TV shows, as well as an equal number of films, ranging from genuine classics like ‘Metropolis’ to, um, somewhat less classic fare like ‘Mesa Of Lost Women’.
But just showing ‘moldy oldies’ wasn’t quite enough. So the crew of Ghoulapalooza TV (which has now grown to nearly 40 people) decided to create their own programs in a similar vein. There are three programs in production…
· ‘Monster Beat’, a 30-minute (more or less) parody of 1950s B-movies featuring cub reporter Dani Dean, who finds that even the most innocuous of assignments lead her into dire supernatural peril.
· ‘Don’t, Miss B. Have!’, a 5-minute (again, more or less) parody of 1950s educational films, starring Miss B. Have, a pixie who ostensibly helps teens with their troubles, but who tends to land them in hot water instead.
· ‘Ghoulicious Drive-In Doubles’, a movie double-feature show hosted by Ghoulicia, queen of her own fiefdom of undead, who is condemned to watch the films shown at the haunted drive-in next door to her graveyard.
Says Incognito of the original productions: “They’re the result of first-rate acting, an inexperienced but enthusiastic production crew, absolutely no budget, and writing that…um…err…well, writing. Definitely writing.” Most of the cast & crew consist of high school & college students, with a few older hands involved as well. ‘Monster Beat’ just made its premiere on May 26, with the other two shows set to enter the schedule over the next 2-3 weeks
A typical week’s programming on Ghoulapalooza TV looks like this…
· One episode of ‘Lights Out’
· One episode of ‘Tales Of Tomorrow’
· One episode of ‘Science Fiction Theatre’
· One episode of ‘One Step Beyond’
· One episode of ‘Space Patrol’, ‘Tom Corbett, Space Cadet’ or ‘Rocky Jones, Space Ranger’
· One episode of ‘The Veil’ or ’13 Demon Street’
· One episode of some real rarity, such as one-off pilot programs
· One episode of ‘Monster Beat’ or ‘Don’t, Miss B. Have!’
· A movie double-feature program (NOTE: double-features films are running now; the Ghoulicia features will begin in mid-June)
One additional movie, the ‘Monster Island News Movie of the Week’ (courtesy of Monster Island News; www.kensforce.com)
All programming is free to the public, without any strings attached- no hidden charges, no registration, no spam. Each show/movie has its own page, which is accessible from the home page via a ‘Now Showing’ menu. The platform used is Windows Media Player (no problems encountered by Apple users), and the WMV files available on the website are of sufficient quality to allow full-screen viewing. A new block of programming goes on the air at midnight Friday night/Saturday morning, with the previous week’s shows going back into the ‘vault’ until they turn up in reruns.
Go check out Ghoulapalooza TV at www.ghoulapaloozatv.com. Unless you’re…AFRAID!!!!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!
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