Re: Phantasmagoria Magazine - Tribute to Charles Black

[David A. Riley]

I am pleased to announce that the latest issue of Phantasmagoria magazine, due at the end of February, includes a tribute to Charles Black close to the 4th anniversary of his death, with contributions collected by me from Stephen Bacon, Mike Chinn, Kevin Demant, Kate Farrell, Paul Finch, Craig Herbertson, Paul Mudie, Thana Niveau, Reggie Oliver, Marion Pitman, John Probert, David A. Sutton, Anna Taborska and David Williamson.

It was while I was at Charles's funeral I was told by Kevin Demant that Charles had told him he had intended to start a regular anthology of swords and sorcery stories like the Black Books of Horror. Unfortunately ill health and his death prevented him from ever doing this - which is why I created Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy and why each volume is dedicated to him.

[dem bones]

Out now; includes interviews with Graham Masterton & Karolina Mogielska and Butch Patrick; articles on The Prisoner, Supernatural, a band inspired by the pulp fiction of HP Lovecraft, and "A Resurgence in Gothic Horror and - please, no! - Vampires"; fiction by Lionel & Patricia Fanthorpe, Mike Chinn, Masterton & Mogielska, David A. Riley, Marion Pitman, etc., and, as mentioned above a tribute to Charles Black by various Black Book of Horror & Vault Ad Cal types. Well done to Trevor Kennedy for the timing (it's the 4th anniversary on 16th March) and to David A Riley for collating the piece. TOC below.

Trevor Kennedy [ed.] - Phantasmagoria #22 (TK Productions, March 2023)

Dave Carson, Vampyre

Trevor Kennedy - Editorial Notes
Trevor Kennedy - Polish Myths and Legends with Graham Masterton and Karolina Mogielska: interview
Tori Borne - The Sandman and the Artful Adaptation
David L. Tanarim - Munster Mash: An Interview with Butch Patrick
Barnaby Page - Audrey Rose: A Forgotten “Evil Child” film of the 1970s
Dave Jeffery - A Head Full of Paul Tremblay: interview
David Brilliance - "Be Seeing You!": The Prisoner (1967–1968)
Trevor Kennedy - The Music of Cthulhu: interview with Dwayne Boyd of The Ziggurat
David A. Riley with Stephen Bacon, Mike Chinn, Kevin Demant, Kate Farrell, Paul Finch, Craig Herbertson, Paul Mudie, Thana Niveau, Reggie Oliver, Marion Pitman, John Llewellyn Probert, David A. Sutton, Anna Taborska and David Williamson - A Tribute to Charles Black
Trevor Kennedy - Who the Hell is Noel K. Hannan?: interview/feature with Noel K. Hannan
William Bove - The Renaissance: A Resurgence in Gothic Horror and Vampires
Owen Quinn - Supernatural (2005–2020): The Finale

PHANTASMAGORIA FICTION:

Graham Masterton & Karolina Mogielska - Mr. Nobody
Lionel & Patricia Fanthorpe - The Cottage of Destiny
Mark Howard Jones - The Midnight Makers
Marion Pitman - Remember Lizzie?
David A. Riley - Romero's Children
Mike Chinn - Twilight on a Dying World
C.M. Saunders - mydarkside(dot) com
Josh Strnad - Mr. Perfect
Neal Sayatovich - Final Sunset Over Eden
Noel K. Hannan - The Selflings
Eugene Johnson & Paul Moore - The Cove
Evangelia Papanikou - Safe Haven (Parts IV and V)
Frank Coffman - Spectral Zones


Phantasmagoria Reviews
Phantasmagoria Fans' Euphoria: readers' comments and feedback
Acknowledgements

Interior artwork: Jonny Boyle, Randy Broecker, Dave Carson, Stephen Clarke, Peter Coleborn, Allen Koszowski, Ivan McCann, Reggie Oliver, Jim Pitts, Andrew Smith and "The joey Zone"


Available via;

Am*z*n.uk

Am*z*n

Phantasmagoria

[dem bones]

It's Charlie's anniversary today. First outside of the three founders to register with Vault (in fact, he beat Franklin), a loyal, inspirational and very dear friend. I just read through the tribute piece again, and it really is as lovely as it is deserved. Haven't made a start on rest of #22 (waiting on a hard copy) so all I can tell you is that the artwork is impressive as ever.

[samdawson]

That article was easily worth the purchase price alone. A more emotional read than I had expected

[David A. Riley]

I know a hard copy is on its way to you, Dem, courtesy of Trevor Kennedy.
I was pleased with the reaction from everyone I contacted about the tribute to Charles, about whom no one has ever, to my knowledge, said a bad word. I feel privileged to have been included by him in the books he edited and published. I just wish he had received more recognition for his contribution to the horror genre by organisations like the BFS than he did. If ever there was a justified award winner it would have been his Black Books of Horror.
Fittingly, my story in this issue of Phantasmagoria was first published by Charles in his Seventh Black Book of Horror.

[dem bones]

Andrew Smith: Mr. Nobody

Graham Masterton & Karolina Mogielska - Mr. Nobody: "Grandma, how could I have gone wrong so much? Not only did he hit me, but also cheated on me! With some teenager! He keeps on drinking, he runs up never-ending debts, his mother insults me all the time, his ex-girlfriend haunts me all the time, calling me a 'sleeper!' I cannot stand it any more! I just can't!"

Marriage to Pawel has worked out nothing like he promised, driving a heartbroken Anna to confide in beloved Grandma Janka, the gravedigger's widow. Turns out Janka had a near identical experience as a girl, her first love deserting her with imminent child for a richer prize. The old woman agrees Pawel deserves punishment and advises she call on Dziewanna, Lady of the Wild Creatures, and her daughters, the Rusalki (see also Anna Taborska's For Those Who Dream Monsters). Contemporary horror with nightmarish fairy tale imagery. My pick of the issue's fiction by a distance.

Lionel & Patricia Fanthorpe - The Cottage of Destiny: Jim and Elaine rent a holiday cottage on the North Norfolk coast. From Roman days, Charter Cottage was home to the Cetarius family, who, several centuries hence, incurred the hatred of their neighbours by taking in a vagrant orphan. Can there be some connection between this "vampire" girl and the evil-smelling coffin in the attic? A case for Matthew Johnson, best-selling author, Rector of Blakeny, and renowned psychic investigator.

C.M. Saunders - mydarkside(dot)com: Freddy Myers winds down with a smoke while surfing internet horror sites. Tonight he's hit on a real sick one, seems to be promoting a meat cleaver snuff porno. Better still, it's interactive.

Josh Strnad - Mr. Perfect: Lynn invests in a hunky android love-slave. Best friend, Marsha, disapproves, so that's the last we'll hear from her for several hours.

Marion Pitman - Remember Lizzie?: Narrator grows increasingly desperate to find out what became of a member of her Morris Dancing side. Beth so hopes she didn't do something bad to Lizzie during her dark years ...

Of the non-fiction read, I like Graham Masterton & Karolina Mogielska on domestic abuse, folklore and magical beliefs of the Świętokrzyskie Mountains, and how they wrote Mr. Nobody which combines both; Butch Patrick on being Eddie Munster, child stardom, meeting the Monkees, not meeting the Beatles, getting sober after a forty-year party, dragsters and his multiple on-going projects; an annotated episode guide to The Prisoner. There's also an interview with the founder of "Mythos Metal Titans," The Ziggurat ....

TBC

[dem bones]

David A. Riley - Romero's Children: (Charles Black [ed.], Black Book of Horror, 2010). Mankind discovers to his catastrophic cost that an elixir of life has unpleasant side effects. David Riley was writing class flesh-eating zombie fiction long before it became fashionable and continues to do so now the bandwagon has rolled on to folk horror. You can read this particular example here: Vault Advent Calendar 2016.

Neal Sayatovich - Final Sunset Over Eden: Herb Moses, a particularly appalling Televangelist, addresses a rally at a condemned Methodist Church in Western Virginia. Main attraction; four public executions in the guise of blood sacrifice to summon forth angels. It works. Fans of the high body count will appreciate this one.

Eugene Johnson & Paul Moore - The Cove: A widower is lured to a watery doom by the cycloptic, half-devoured corpse of his drowned wife (or something masquerading as it). Very gloomy. One half of the writing team edited Fantastic Tales of Terror anthology.