In Memory of John Zacherle

John Zacherle, also known as Zacherley, the "Cool Ghoul" has passed away.

Zacherle was one of the pioneering horror hosts who was most famous for his work on "Shock Theater" in the late 50's and early 60's.  Taking on the stage name Roland and later Zacherley, he not only introduced (and sometimes interrupted) the monster movies, but created a memorable crazed ghoul character, performing macabre skits infused with campy dark humor and gore.  He famously took advantage of the program being filmed in black-and-white, using Hershey's syrup as a cheap, but very effective stand-in for blood.

The monster/horror craze was at a fever pitch when Zacherle hosted "Shock Theater" and the actor amassed a cult following.  He was so popular at the time that he actually had a stint on the record charts (Top Ten Novelty Rock) for his song, "Dinner with Drac" in 1958.

Beyond his role as horror host, Zacherle worked on a variety of other television programs, radio, and voice work in movies.  But his work as Zacherley was to be his most famous role, and he apparently relished it.  Zacherle attended conventions and even got back into character time and again for various programs and events well into his 90's!

Beloved by Monster Kids everywhere, Zacherley will be greatly missed and certainly not forgotten.

Monster Magazine Ads

During the late 50's and up into the early 70's, it must have been a great time to be a fan of monsters!

At this time a subculture centered around the science fiction and horror genres captured the imagination of adolescents across the United States.  While it is difficult to pinpoint what exactly set off such rabid fandom, two contributing factors have their place at the epicenter:  "Shock Theater" and "Famous Monsters of Filmland".

"Shock Theater" was a package of over 50 classic Universal horror films distributed to television networks for syndication in 1957.  Airing during the late night hours on the weekends, local television would broadcast movies such as Dracula and Frankenstein.  Such programs were typically presented by flamboyantly spooky "horror hosts" such as Vampira and Zacherly.  Later film packages that further stoked the flames included "Son of Shock" and "Creature Features".

Coinciding with this resurgence in the interest in horror movies and the like was Forrest J. Ackerman's fan magazine "Famous Monsters of Filmland".  First printed in 1958, this publication consisted of articles about the "sci-fi" (Ackerman is credited with creating this term) and horror films old and new.  Interviews with filmmakers and special effects wizards gave many their first exposure to what goes on "behind the scenes" of their film fantasies.  The magazine was also unique in its devotion to its readership.  Famous Monsters would regularly feature fan-made artwork, movies, costumes, and other creations.

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I'd better stop myself here to keep from writing an in-depth history lesson on the Monster Kid phenomenon  (although I think I'd like to do just that some time in the future), and revert back to the original topic I set out to present...

Seeking to further capitalize on this craze for all things monster, companies rushed to flood the market with monster and horror-related merchandise including masks, model kits, vinyl records, and other products. Primarily designed to appeal to juveniles, the back pages of these magazines such as "Famous Monsters" were filled with advertisements seeking to deprive young monster lovers of their hard-earned paper route and allowance money.