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READER THANKS ED TUCKER FOR DR. PAUL BEARER INTERVIEW
Dear ED,
I just wanted to give you thanks. My dad was a
supervisor at Cypress Gardens for years and I am sure you know
the old WGTO radio station was on that property and Mr. [Dick]
Bennick (AKA, TV horror host, Dr. Paul Bearer --N) had a position with them…I do not think it was on air,
think it was sales but I was just a kid then. Anyway…my dad
hooked me up with the gig of mowing his yard out past the
Garden Grove area…excellent man…. Always gave me photos to give
to friends and his garage was full of his self-made props…he
had several colors of “white out” so he could do his sugar
frosted snakes and such. He was such a huge part of my
Saturdays growing up. His satire and wit was phenomenal.
Having been born in 1969, I was hitting prime boyhood when his
show was at its peak and I never missed it unless I just had
to.
I was probably 21 or so last time I spoke to him although
he saw my dad from time to time. I have been scanning the
internet for a Bela Lugosi pic to be used for a classic
monsters tattoo pictorial on my arm and I stumbled across
the crazedfanboy website somehow with the tribute to Paul
Bearer and your words. You guys are great.
Sorry to be so long-winded or sound sappy, but I really
want to thank you for refreshing those memories for me. With
TV and entertainment where it is, there is currently little
place for a Dr. Paul Bearer to keep kids occupied on
Saturdays for a few hours anymore. But there was a time and
I was part of it. So, thanks.
Take care.
Dan Wallace
ED TUCKER REPLIES:
Dan,
What a really nice letter, thank you so much. I am only a
couple of years older than you so I know exactly where you
are coming from. I think the Monster Memories piece got my
point across that Dr. Paul Bearer was my friend long before
I ever met him. In the days before VCRs, a show like
Creature Feature was a gold mine to young kids starved for
horror and science fiction films. Dr. Paul Bearer was the
icing on the cake with his bad jokes and goofy products. I
agree with you completely that they just don't make them
like that any more. By the way, I remember that garage, too.
I almost fell over when I was there for the interview and
he walked out there and opened up a trunk with his Famous
Monsters magazine collection in it. I am sure he kept them
out there for reference material when making his props. You
are most certainly welcome.
- ED -
VINNIE BLESI VS SPLASH PAGE
Nolan,
I am currently reading in astonishment at the ludicrious and shallow piece, the "blackification" of our society. It is truly sad that people in George Bush's America are so polarized and living in a bubble that they have no awareness of their very own culture and society.
Comments such as "Skin color does matter" are just blatantly racist and ignorant. I hate to give you a reality check, but there is a whole new generation of young Americans, as well as young people all over the world, that have no problem with mixed race couples. While you have been sleeping there is a new Urban Culture that supercedes race. It is very feasible that one of your children will one day be with an African, Indian, Middle Eastern or Asian partner. OMG, that would probably just destroy your tiny brain and its faux family values.
Shaking his head in disbelief,
Vinnie Blesi
Ironically, Splash Page writer Brandon Jones' comments were a response to what he saw as a racist remark I supposedly made in PCR #312, under "This 'N' That" regarding the planned re-make of Welcome Back, Kotter, this time starring rapper Ice Cube. In it, I called Hollywood on the carpet for their fascination with the "blackification" of movie or TV remakes, a practice I find derivative and demeaning to both the original players and the new ones. It's a cheap and obvious angle that almost never works. I did not bother to point out the rare cases that worked well in the past ("The Nutty Professor", for example), but I think I made my point without racism. No one wrote to complain except Brandon, which he found appalling. I do not believe the original statement I made was racist and I stand by it. --Nolan
To send an email to Letters to the Editor write to: Crazedfanboy1@aol.com. Any emails sent to this address will be assumed intended for publication unless you specifically instruct me not to. I can and do respond privately, if that is your preference. Frequently, it's both ways.---Nolan
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