Monster Bash 2000!
This summer's Bash was
an unqualified success! Held at the Four Points Sheraton
in Greensburg, the Bash has finally found a home spacious enough
to suit its
needs. The accomodations were downright luxuriant, and nobody got
that "salmon
swimming upstream" feeling in the dealer's room this year.
My wife, son, and I
felt very relaxed as we browsed the dealer's tables in a room big
enough to house an
airliner, and I got some of the best deals on rare monster items
I've ever found anywhere.
A big highlight of the Bash for my son, Max, was his meeting with
Ben Chapman, the
original Gill Man from The Creature from the
Black Lagoon--one of Max'es favorite
fright films. Mr. Chapman was a delightful conversationalist who
kept Bashers entertained
with his many interesting anecdotes about filming The
Creature from the Black Lagoon.
He was a very friendly guy, who happily
signed autographs and posed for the cameras of fans.
Max with Ben Chapman, the
original Gill Man.
Ron Chaney, grandson of
Lon Chaney, Jr., and great-grandson of Lon Chaney, Sr., showed
a "teaser" for his own recently filmed werewolf movie.
We all caught a glimpse of something
truely mythical in its significance: Ron Chaney himself made up
as a werewolf! And so another
Chaney makes the fantastic appear real on the silver screen! This
was a wonder-filled moment
for all of us. Later in the Bash, Ron shared some memories of his
legendary ancestors to an
attentive crowd of Bashers.
Me and Max with Ron Chaney.
