CELEBRITY GUESTS FOR FLASHBACK WEEKEND 2009
LANCE HENRIKSEN
NEAR DARK, ALIENS, PUMPKINHEAD, MILLENNIUM, DAMIEN: OMEN II
Upon graduation from the Actor's Studio, Manhattan-born Lance Henriksen spent nearly two decades playing villains. An agreeable-looking fellow offscreen, Henriksen portrayed dark and, often, legendary characters on screen. In interviews, Henriksen claimed to "live" his parts while portraying them, which, he admitted, was a self-defeating practice. Henriksen is a close friend of director James Cameron, who saw to it that Henriksen was cast as a heroic android in his 1986 film Aliens.
In the years that followed Henriksen gained a reputation as an actor who could bring compelling nuance to even the most mundane of roles. Moving into the 1990s Henriksen made many films that left an impression on audience with remarkable zeal. From his menacing role as the head of a tribe of nomadic vampires in Near Dark to a tortured portrayal of a vengeful father in Pumpkinhead, Henriksen's colorful characters consistantly elevated what may have been dismissive, two-dimensional players in the hands of a lesser actor.
In 1996 Henriksen made quite an impression on television audiences as the lead character in producer Chris Carter's X-Files spin-off Millennium. As a former FBI profiler with a unique gift for peering into the minds of some of the nation's most feared criminals, Henriksen gained his most notable exposure to date and longtime fans ate it up.
Henriksen continues to delight his fans in regular genre film roles and appearances.
JENETTE GOLDSTEIN
NEAR DARK, ALIENS, TERMINATOR 2
Jenette Goldstein is a true chameleon. She is so effective as an actress, it is nearly impossible to recognize her from role to role. To hone her craft after high school, Jenette studied at London's Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, and at Circle in the Square Theater in New York City, mastering drama theory, physicality, dialects and the classics.
It was in London, while performing in local theater productions, where Jenette answered an audition request for American actors with British Equity cards. Thinking it was another play or a small film, she read for a tough, macho Latina character named 'Vasquez' and shot to fame in James Cameron's iconic film Aliens (1986), where she rounded out an ensemble cast that included Lance Henriksen as the android Bishop. Cameron was so pleased with Jenette's creativity and strong work ethic, he cast her as 'Janelle' in Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) and a cameo role as the loving 'Irish Mother' in the epic Titanic (1997).
Private Vasquez is now a legendary sci fi/horror character, and Jenette followed up the following year with another - Near Dark's vampire outlaw Diamondback, the "mother" of the vicious tribe of nomadic vampires. Near Dark saw her once again starring alongside Lance Henriksen (the tribe's "father").
In addition to film, Jenette has made several appearances on the small screen, & has continued working in theater throughout her career, appearing in plays in New York, London and Los Angeles.
GINGER SNAPS REUNION
KATHARINE ISABELLEGINGER SNAPS 1-3, FREDDY VS. JASON Born in Vancouver, BC, Canada Katharine was probably used to the television and film production lifestyle as her father, Graeme Murray has been responsible for special effects on shows such as The X-files. Like so many others, Katharine broke into acting at an early age winning parts on films such as Cousins, Cold Front and shows like MacGuyver. As time went on Katharine won bigger roles which would eventually build up to a lead role in Ginger Snaps. Whilst living in Vancouver, Katharine has built an ever-growing resume, not only on Canadian film and television but also with some of Hollywood's big names. In 2002 Katharine appeared in Insomnia, and in 2003 she had one of the more memorable roles in Freddy vs. Jason. Katharine and Emily have also appeared together in Insomnia and Another Cinderella Story. |
EMILY PERKINSGINGER SNAPS 1-3, STEPHEN KING'S IT A native resident of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Emily Perkins began her professional acting career at the age of 10 and made her feature film debut in 1989's Small Sacrifices. The following year, she was recognized with a YTV National Youth Achievement award in acting and landed key roles on the television series Mom P.I. and the films Anything to Survive and It, an adaptation of the bestselling novel by Stephen King. |
TONY TODD
HATCHET, FINAL DESTINATION 1-3, CANDYMAN, DARK REEL,
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1990), THE CROW
Perhaps best known for his chilling performance as "Candyman", the charismatic
6' 5" actor Tony Todd has consistently turned in compelling performances since his debut in the motion picture Sleepwalk (1986).
Todd's extensive genre credits exemplify his versatility. Besides his numerous horror and sci fi film credits, he has had prominent guest star roles in numerous genre television series, including Angel, The X-Files, Masters of Horror, 3 Star Trek series (playing a different species in each show), Xena: Warrior Princess, Andromeda, Babylon 5 and others. Non-horror fans will currently know him best from his recurring roles on Chuck and 24.
MERCEDES MCNAB
HATCHET, ANGEL, BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, THIRST, DARK REEL, THE ADDAMS FAMILY, ADDAMS FAMILY VALUES
Who knew that the sanctimonious Girl Scout Amanda Buckman in 1991's The Addams Family would grow up to be one of TV's most beautiful bad girls?
The scourge of the Addamses eventually became the scourge of do-gooders everywhere a decade later when she joined the cast of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and, later, Angel) as Harmony Kendall, arguably the funniest vampire either series produced.
Mercedes has kept close to the horror genre since Angel ended, with occasional guest spots on shows like Supernatural and Reaper, and films like Hatchet, Thirst and Dark Reel. She currently stars in the upcoming film Medium Raw.
JASON PAUL COLLUM
OCTOBER MOON, NOVEMBER SUN
Writer, Director, Producer, Actor Jason Paul Collum is best known for his film work in the horror and thriller genres.
He is the writer/producer/director of JULIA WEPT (2000), the Showtime aired documentary SOMETHING TO SCREAM ABOUT (2004), one of the first gay-thrillers OCTOBER MOON (2005) and its sequel NOVEMBER SON (2008).
Also working as a journalist, Collum published the book "Assault of the Killer B's: Interviews with 20 Cult Film Actresses" (McFarland & Co., 2004), contributed to the books "Attack of the B Queens" (Luminary Press, 2003), "Creating a Christian Lifestyle" (St. Mary's Press, 1996), and "Dreams Alive" (St. Mary's Press, 1991). His writings have also appeared in magazines such as Fangoria, Alternative Cinema, Instinct, Video Business Weekly, Independent Video, CFQ and Femme Fatales. He was an Assistant Editor for Femme Fatales Magazine and Editor for Cinefantastique magazine.
He has also worked as an Assistant Director and Production Coordinator for indie filmmaker David DeCoteau. Through Rapid Heart Pictures, the two worked together on 5 films (ANCIENT EVIL: SCREAM OF THE MUMMY, THE BROTHERHOOD, THE BROTHERHOOD II: YOUNG WARLOCKS, FINAL STAB, THE FRIGHTENING).
Collum continues to work a variety of acting/production jobs for other filmmakers such as J.R. Bookwalter (DEADLY STINGERS), Danny Draven (HELL ASYLUM), John Treacy (BAD MOVIE POLICE), Jason Satterfield (THE LEGEND TRIP) and most recently Don Adams/Harry James Picardi (DOZERS).
In 2009 Collum stepped away from the horror genre to direct the dark comedy SHY OF NORMAL.
LOCAL GUESTS FOR FLASHBACK WEEKEND 2009
SVENGOOLIE
Appearing Saturday October 24, 2009
Every year at Flashback Weekend we look forward to the annual visit from Chicago Television Legend "SVENGOOLIE". Rich Koz portrays the popular character each week on "The U!" with his cast of "Doug Graves" the laid back musical sidekick, and Tombstone the talking skull. In addition to the popular musical numbers and commercial parodies Svengoolie has always been known for, each show features a segment of the movie produced in Svensurround with added sound effects, dubbed-in dialogue and visuals. This technique was first done by both Koz and Bishop in the 1970's - before the advent of "Mystery Science Theatre 3000."
Svengoolie's hard work and comic genius continued to pay off and "Svengoolie - The First Year" a look back at Svengoolie's first year on WCIU was rewarded with a Chicago Emmy for Best Entertainment Program - Special. He currently has received 7 regional Emmy Awards, and was inducted into the prestigious Chicago Television Academy's 2004 "Silver Circle" for outstanding contributions to Chicago television.
Svengoolie will be signing autographs, posing for photos, and will take to the Flashback Stage for a Q & A and to MC the costume contest on Saturday 10/24/09. Get your costumes ready!
DANN GIRE
Flashback Weekend Master of Ceremonies
Daily Herald film critic Dann Gire has been a member of the Flashback Weekend cult since the very beginning. He serves as the president and founding director of the Chicago Film Critics Association, and has won the prestigious Peter Lisagor Award for Arts Criticism six times. (His mentor/rival Roger Ebert has won it only four times.) Gire has also been an adjunct faculty member in William Rainey Harper College’s English and Journalism departments since 1984, teaching courses in drama, film & literature, journalism, short stories & novels, mass communications and feature writing. He put both Zack Snyder's remake of "Dawn of the Dead" and the family feature "The Incredibles" on his top 10 list of best movies of 2004.
NICK DIGILIO
Flashback Weekend Co-Host
Talk Show Host/Film Critic for WGN Radio. Nick has been reviewing movies for over 23 years on WGN Radio in Chicago. He also hosts a highly-rated weekend talk show on 720am that covers everything pop culture and news related. He has also written, acted in and directed over thrity plays in and around the Chicago area including the horror classics "Among the Dead" (in which he played an insane?redneck who killed zombies) and "Operation Infiltration: An Experiment in Terror" (which was a salute to great genre films like Romero's "The Crazies" and Philip Kaufman's "Invasion of the Body Snatchers"). He has LOVED horror films for his entire life and is incredibly excited to be co-hosting the Flashback Convention for yet another exciting year.
Top Five Horror Movies of All Time:
- John Carpenter's HALLOWEEN
- George A. Romero's DAWN OF THE DEAD
- Dario Argento's SUSPIRIA
- Don Coscarelli's PHANTASM
- Tobe Hooper's THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE
(but, of course, this list changes constantly depending on his mood).
STEVE (CAPONE) PROKOPY
Flashback Weekend Co-Host
Steve Prokopy is the Chicago Editor for Ain't It Cool News (www.aintitcool.com), where he has contributed film reviews and filmmaker and actor interviews under the name "Capone" since 1997. In 2005, he also joined the staff of the Chicago-based media outlet GapersBlock.com as the site's Friday film critic with his Steve@theMovies column. Steve has been a horror fanatic since he was a youngster, and was even suspended from high school for a day after a presentation he gave his classmates on his hero, make-up master Tom Savini. He has been a Flashback Weekend co-host since it began in 2002 and is thrilled to be back again this year.
Top Five Horror Movies:
- Sam Raimi's THE EVIL DEAD
- George A Romero's DAWN OF THE DEAD
- John Carpenter's THE THING
- Wes Craven's A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET
- Herschell Gordon Lewis' BLOOD FEAST
CHAD SAVAGE
Chad Savage has been drawing and painting disturbingly beautiful things his entire life, and his love of all things dark & spooky has become a career unto itself. His dark visual design company Sinister Visions inc. has spawned a series of genre sites including ZombiePinups.com and the DarkChicago.com. series of sites. Savage has run art shows for Convergence, the World Horror Convention, Flashback Weekend and HorrorFind Weekend, is a Board Member of and the Web Committee Chairman for the International Association of Haunted Attractions and the Marketing Director for Flashback Weekend, the annual Halloween Art Exhibit and The Zombie Army.
Savage has created art, graphic branding and websites for hundreds of genre notables, including HorrorFind.com, HauntedHouse.com (2005), HauntedAttraction.com, Van Helsing's Curse, Fangoria, Anne Rice's Vampire Lestat Fan Club, authors David J. Schow, Poppy Z. Brite, Douglas Clegg and Brian Keene, the International Association of Haunted Attractions, HAuNTcon, the Midwest Haunters Convention, over 50 haunted attractions and too many more to list here.
SInister Visions inc. is an official sponsor of Flashback Weekend, and will host/sponsor the Costume Contest and Zombie Pinups Beauty Pageant on Saturday at 2009's Flashback Weekend - details HERE!
To learn more about Chad Savage and his work, visit SinisterVisions.com.
Celebrity guests subject to change without notice
due to unforseeable filming/scheduling conflicts.
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