HORROR 101 with Dr. AC – Details, episodes & analysis

1970 was a breakthrough year for vampire cinema — sexier, bloodier, and bolder than ever before. In this episode of HORROR 101, Dr. AC and his panel explore five iconic films that redefined the vampire mythos for a new era:

• COUNT YORGA, VAMPIRE (USA) – A modern bloodsucker stalks the streets of Los Angeles.

• HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS (USA) – Barnabas Collins goes full Gothic on the big screen.

• THE VAMPIRE LOVERS (UK) – Hammer Horror leans into eroticism with Ingrid Pitt as Carmilla.

• COUNT DRACULA (Spain) – Jess Franco directs Christopher Lee in a rarely faithful take on Bram Stoker’s novel.

• THE NUDE VAMPIRE (France) – Jean Rollin’s surreal art-horror vision blends sci-fi and sexuality.

🎙️ Featuring special guests: Chad Hawks, Barry Kaufman, Alan Tromp, and Bobby Zier.

If you're into classic horror, cult cinema, or just love a good vampire flick, this one’s for you.
New episodes every Friday night!

REPULSION (1965) d. Roman Polanski (UK)

Co-written and directed by Roman Polanski, Repulsion (1965) is a landmark psychological horror film that explores the mental disintegration of a young woman, Carole (expertly played by Catherine Deneuve), living alone in London. Polanski's first English-language feature—and the first in his iconic “Apartment Trilogy,” followed by Rosemary’s Baby and The Tenant—Repulsion dives deep into themes of isolation, sexual repression, and psychological trauma. When Carole’s sister leaves her alone for two weeks, paranoia and terrifying hallucinations take over her world.

Polanski masterfully uses the apartment setting (designed by Seamus Flannery), Gil Taylor’s surreal camerawork, and Stephen Dalby’s eerie sound design to visualize Carole’s descent into madness. Cracking walls, grasping hands, and nightmarish shadows blur the line between reality and delusion, all set to Chico Hamilton’s moody jazz score.

Join AC and his panel of horror enthusiasts (Dodd Alley, Matthew Amador, Thomas Puhr, and Elena Romea) as we analyze Repulsion’s lasting influence, its place in horror history, the complicated relationship between art and artist, and why it remains one of the 1960s' most disturbing and enduring works.
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DODD ALLEY is an author (Gamers and Gorehounds: The Influence of Video Games on the Contemporary American Horror Film) and has a Masters in Film Studies from Ohio University, where he taught courses on Cult Cinema and Hollywood Reflexive films.

MATTHEW AMADOR is an actor and owner of Matador Behavioral Health, where he utilizes narrative fiction as a means to process trauma and anxiety through psychotherapy.  www.MatadorChicago.com 

THOMAS M. PUHR's writing has appeared in Bright Lights Film Journal and the Los Angeles Review of Books, among others. His book, Fate in Film: A Deterministic Approach to Cinema, is available from Wallflower Press. He is the co-host of Gut Punch, a new film podcast from Beneficial Shock! magazine.

ELENA ROMEA is the creator behind SpanishFear.com and Horror Rises from Spain. A researcher in literature and cinema, she holds a Ph.D. in Spanish Studies with a dissertation about the filmmaker José Val del Omar. Her work explores themes of estrangement, horror, myth, and cultural conflict.
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Keep Searching, Keep Exploring, and, most of all, Keep Sharing the Scare!

THE MUMMY'S HAND (1940) d. Christy Cabanne (USA)
THE MUMMY'S TOMB (1942) d. Harold Young (USA)
THE MUMMY'S GHOST (1944) d. Reginald Le Borg (USA)
THE MUMMY'S CURSE (1942) d. Leslie Goodwins (USA)

Tonight we unwrap the 1940s Universal Mummy films! Leaving behind the melancholy tone of the 1932 Boris Karloff original, we were introduced to a new mummy, Kharis, a shambling and bandaged silent avenger played first by Tom Tyler in 1940’s The Mummy’s Hand, celebrating its 85th anniversary, and by Lon Chaney Jr. in three subsequent sequels, The Mummy’s Tomb, The Mummy’s Ghost, and The Mummy’s Curse.

Though often overlooked next to Dracula or Frankenstein, the Mummy series has its own weird and atmospheric B-movie charms, with each film picking up—at least loosely—where the last left off, transporting the action from Egypt to small-town New England to the swamps of Louisiana, all while ignoring the passage of time in any realistic fashion.

With brief running times and minimal budgets, these creature features found a formula that worked: moldy murders by moonlight, duplicitous high priests, and lots and lots of tana leaves, while also conjuring unique traits for every installment.

Join AC and his extraordinary panel of classic horror lovers (Barry Kaufman, Frank Merle, Michael Weber) as we pay our long overdue respects to this unfairly maligned franchise, the one that made the mummy a true monster icon in the Universal canon.
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FRANK MERLE is a Los Angeles-based filmmaker originally from Chicago, IL. He has written and directed several award-winning and critically-acclaimed films, including The Employer (2013), starring Malcolm McDowell and Billy Zane, and From Jennifer (2017), starring Derek Mears and Tony Todd. Next up is Namaka, a dark fantasy starring Jamie Kennedy and David Howard Thornton.

BARRY KAUFMAN has been committed to spreading the gospel of obscure horror and science-fiction cinema since writing the fanzines Monsters of Japan and Demonique in the 1970s and 80s. He ran All-Horror Video out of a house in the woods in Homewood, Illinois through the 1980s, followed by his shop The House of Monsters in Chicago from 1996 to 2007. He now vends at genre related shows and programs festivals in the Chicago area featuring his inconspicuous film favorites.

MICHAEL WEBER is an actor, director, and currently the Artistic Director of Porchlight Music Theatre. A Chicago native, his fascination with classic horror began with WGN's legendary Creature Features and The Son of Svengoolie. He is an avid fan of the Golden Age of Radio and the author of the play, WAR of the WELLeS (about Orson Welles’ infamous radio broadcast.) 
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Keep Searching, Keep Exploring, and, most of all, Keep Sharing the Scare!

THE TERROR (1963) d. Roger Corman (and others) (USA)
TARGETS (1968) d. Peter Bogdanovich (USA)

1963’s THE TERROR, celebrating its 60th anniversary, is a legendary curiosity item from producer/director Roger Corman, more famous for its origins than the finished product. According to legend, when Corman wrapped shooting on The Raven ahead of schedule, he took advantage of Boris Karloff’s two extra contracted days to slap together this tale of a reclusive baron with a dark secret.

With the sets for the previous film being torn down around the actors’ ears, Corman and others shot all of Karloff’s scenes back to back, then composed the rest of the movie to fit. Relative novice and Raven co-star Jack Nicholson stars as a Napoleonic officer whose beachside encounter with a beautiful young woman leads him to reclusive Karloff’s castle sanctuary and the ghostly haunts that lie within.

Five years later, those mysterious two extra days that Karloff supposedly owed Corman showed up again when the latter approached neophyte writer/director Peter Bogdanovich with a proposition of using 20 minutes of footage from The Terror, shooting 20 minutes of new footage with Karloff, and filling out the rest with… whatever else Bogdanovich could come up with. Against all odds, the rookie auteur spins a fantastic yarn with TARGETS, juxtaposing the real-life horror of a Charles Whitman-like assassin against Karloff’s fading brand of Gothic frights, with the 80-year-old veteran rendering one of the finest roles of his long career.

We've assembled another fantastic panel (David Lee White, Jon Kitley, Gavin Schmitt) primed to chat about these two examples of environmental filmmaking (i.e. reduce, re-use, recycle), so bring your popcorn and enjoy the conversation about these excellent Karloff showcases, especially since Film Masters has just released The Terror to Blu-ray!

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Jon Kitley has been running his website, Kitley's Krypt for 25 years. He's a columnist for HorrorHound magazine, a co-host on the Discover the Horror podcast, and attends multiple conventions and all-night horror movie marathons at the drive-in theaters!

Gavin Schmitt is a criminal historian, podcaster, and the author of many books, including a biography of Karl Freund. But most of all, he loves chili dogs.

David Lee White is a playwright and performer based in New Jersey. His plays "Slippery as Sin" and "Ways to Be Happy" have just been published by Next Stage Press.
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Keep Searching, Keep Exploring, and, most of all, Keep Sharing the Scare!

HEREDITARY (2018) d. Ari Aster (USA) 
MIDSOMMAR (2019) d. Ari Aster (USA)
BEAU IS AFRAID (2023) d. Ari Aster (USA)

From his Sundance smash debut, Ari Aster has been a rising star in the "elevated horror" firmament, challenging audiences with features packed full of adult themes, metaphor-laden subject matter, superlative performances, and gorgeous attention to production design. Polarizing as his works might be, there's no denying that he is a filmmaker who deserves and demands our full attention and stamina. (Three-hour running times, amirite?) 

Tonight’s episode is entitled, “We Have to Talk About Ari Aster,” and AC is joined once again by another outstanding panel of film fans: Owais Ahmed, Dominic Conti, and Mariana Reichman.

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Owais Ahmed is a Chicago based Actor and movie lover. Aside from movies, Owais loves biking, cold plunges, and being a dreamer. You can catch him onstage at Northlight Theatre in Selling Kabul: Jan 25th - Feb 25th.

Dominic Conti is a Chicago-based writer and actor. His first novel, Your Book Club, is now available. (Orders can be placed at dcontimail@gmail.com, or you can just say hi.)

Mariana Reichman has lived in Chicago for the last 6 1/2 years. She has a two-year-old Supermutt from Puerto Rico named Parcha that she is obsessed with. Mariana enjoys being active, trying new foods, and watching movies. (Even scary ones.)

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Keep Searching, Keep Exploring, and, most of all, Keep Sharing the Scare!

GREMLINS (1984) d. Joe Dante (USA)
GREMLINS 2: THE NEW BATCH (1990) d. Joe Dante (USA)
GHOULIES (1985) d. Luca Bercovici (USA)
GHOULIES 2 (1987) d. Albert Band (USA)

The early 1980s were a magical time for fans of horror, sci-fi, and fantasy fare at the cinema, with genre fare being cranked out by the fistful and practical effects ruling the day, making viewers gasp, gag, gawk, and greedily gobble up all they could find. Tonight, we’ll take a look at two franchises birthed by two mighty masters of the art form, at different points on the budgetary spectrum.

Please join AC and his awesome panel of guests (Dodd Alley, Kevin Matthews, and Derrick Carey) for a lively discussion about these two rubber monster franchises from the 1980s! YUM YUM.
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DODD ALLEY is an author (Gamers and Gorehounds: The Influence of Video Games on the Contemporary American Horror Film) and has a Masters in Film Studies from Ohio University, where he taught courses on Cult Cinema and Hollywood Reflexive films.

DERRICK CAREY has worked in front of and behind the camera for almost 30 years, as a director, producer, editor, sound man, colorist, and actor. He is also the driving force behind the Astro Radio Z podcast. https://linktr.ee/AstroRadioZ

KEVIN MATTHEWS posts a movie review daily on the For It Is Man's Number blog, and is one quarter of the Raiders of the Podcast team who have been putting out weekly episodes for over six years. https://linktr.ee/raidersofthepodcast
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Keep Searching, Keep Exploring, and, most of all, Keep Sharing the Scare!

WOLF CREEK (2005) d. Greg McLean (Australia)
WOLF CREEK 2 (2013) d. Greg McLean (Australia)
WOLF CREEK (2016-17) d. Tony Tilse/Greg McLean (Australia)
HOSTEL (2005) d. Eli Roth (USA)
HOSTEL: PART II (2007) d. Eli Roth (USA)
HOSTEL: PART III (2011) d. Scott Spiegel (USA)

Tonight, we’ll be discussing two films that helped change the face of horror when they hit screens in late 2005, both from young and hungry writer/directors who wanted to make a splash… or splatter, as the case might be: Wolf Creek from Australian Greg McLean and Eli Roth’s Hostel.

Based loosely on real events in the Outback, Wolf Creek traded supernatural scares for realistic terror, introducing the relentless villain Mick Taylor, played unforgettably by longtime character Ozploitation character actor John Jarratt.

Meanwhile, Hostel shocked audiences with its raw depiction of human trafficking and sadism in Eastern Europe, playing upon Western tourists’ worst fears and pushing boundaries that mainstream horror had rarely crossed.

Together, this dastardly duo helped pivot horror from an era of self-aware slashers and J-Horror remakes to something darker and more visceral. Ultimately, Wolf Creek and Hostel redefined what horror could show—and how far it could go.

Join AC and his gore-loving gang (Cati Glidewell, Ciara Wylie, Anna Ceragioli, Dominic Conti) as we celebrate 20 years of severed Achilles tendons, heads on sticks, and unsafe travels!

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ANNA CERAGIOLI is a Chicagoan who lives for horror movies. From throwing horror-themed dinner parties, playing Monster Bash in her pinball league, or chilling with a Goblin vinyl, it’s all horror all the time for her.

DOMINIC CONTI is a Chicago-based writer and actor. His first novel, Your Book Club, is now available. (Orders can be placed at dcontimail@gmail.com, or you can just say hi.)

CATI GLIDEWELL (aka The Blonde in Front) is a Chicago-based film critic, lifelong cinephile, film festival jury member, and a member of Chicago Indie Critics since 2020. You can find her on all social media platforms, as well as Post Mortem radio and Radio of Horror on YouTube.

CIARA WYLIE is a lifelong horror fan and co-creator of Deep Cuts Horror Trivia in Chicago, IL. In her free time she can be found screaming into the uncaring void about Final Destination 3. 
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Keep Searching, Keep Exploring, and, most of all, Keep Sharing the Scare!!

THE BODY SNATCHER (1945) d. Robert Wise (USA)
ISLE OF THE DEAD (1945) d. Mark Robson (USA)

Producer Val Lewton, the master of atmospheric horror, collaborated with legendary actor Boris Karloff on two memorable films: The Body Snatcher (1945) and Isle of the Dead (1945). Both films showcase Lewton’s signature blend of psychological tension and poetic visuals, while allowing Karloff to deliver some of his most nuanced performances. They remain standout entries in both men's careers and in the horror genre at large.

The Body Snatcher, directed by Robert Wise, is a chilling adaptation of a Robert Louis Stevenson story. Karloff plays the sinister cabman John Gray, who supplies cadavers to a medical school through increasingly dark means. His menacing and strangely sympathetic portrayal perfectly embodies Lewton’s predilections for morally ambiguous characters and subtle horror.

Isle of the Dead, directed by Mark Robson, is set during a plague outbreak on a quarantined island during the Balkan Wars. Karloff plays General Pherides, a rigid military man who gradually succumbs to superstition and fear. The film explores themes of death, isolation, and psychological unraveling, with haunting visuals that reflect Lewton’s artful low-budget storytelling.

Join AC and his panel of classic-loving fanatics (Steve Archacki, Jon Kitley, Mike Mayo, Tyler Pistorius) as we discuss how Lewton and Karloff elevated horror beyond monsters and gore, focusing instead on dread, atmosphere, and the fragility of the human mind.
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STEVE ARCHACKI is a connoisseur and collector of all things EuroTrash (especially Italian/Spanish gothic and giallo films and anything Hammer Horror). He also identifies as an avid vinyl soundtrack collector, lapsing metalhead, direct mail marketing guru, and to this day, still harbors perpetual crushes on Rosalba Neri and Dagmar Lassander.

JON KITLEY has been running his website, Kitley's Krypt for 25 years. He's a columnist for HorrorHound magazine, a co-host on the Discover the Horror podcast, and attends multiple conventions and all-night horror movie marathons at the drive-in theaters! https://kitleyskrypt.com/

MIKE MAYO has written several books about film and popular culture, among them VideoHound’s Horror Show and American Murder. He is also the author of the Jimmy Quinn historical suspense novels set in Prohibition-era New York. https://www.mike-mayo.com/

TYLER PISTORIUS is an actor, screenwriter, and producer living in Chicago. His recent works include Death is Business and A Missed Connection, and is currently in development on a new project.
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Keep Searching, Keep Exploring, and, most of all, Keep Sharing the Scare!

THE STEPFORD WIVES (1975) d. Bryan Forbes (USA)
REVENGE OF THE STEPFORD WIVES (1980) d. Robert Fuest (USA)
THE STEPFORD CHILDREN (1987) d. Alan J. Levi (USA)
THE STEPFORD HUSBANDS (1996) d. Fred Walton (USA)
THE STEPFORD WIVES (2004) d. Frank Oz (USA)

Sexy and funny, inflammatory and spooky, director Bryan Forbes and screenwriter William Goldman’s adaptation of Ira Levin’s bestseller The Stepford Wives is that rare animal: a socially relevant yet thoroughly entertaining sci-fi/horror thriller.

Frustrated NYC photographer Joanna (Katharine Ross) moves with her family to the idyllic Connecticut suburb of Stepford. Before long, the liberated lass observes that the local female population is a submissive, domestic lot, unnaturally preoccupied with fulfilling their husbands’ every passing desire. 

Cautionary women’s lib tale? Nail-biting conspiracy yarn? Satire on sexual politics? Science fiction or social fact? Audiences of the day saw all of this and more, sparking controversy and heated discussions and it is a testament to all the artists in front of and behind the camera that it still packs a wallop today. 

Join AC and his brilliant panel of guests (Kait Astrella, Joe B., Anna Ceragioli, Dino Clark, Nicola McCafferty) as they celebrate 50 years of better living through robotics, The Stepford Wives! 
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KAIT ASTRELLA is a librarian, archivist, and indie book publicist working in New York City. Find her posting about printed books and strange fiction on Instagram @kastrella2.

JOE B. is a dad, a social media luddite, a mediocre bass player, and a devoted consumer of burritos. He teaches high school English as his day job, and he loves talkin’ books and movies.

ANNA CERAGIOLI is a Chicagoan who lives for horror movies. From throwing horror-themed dinner parties, playing Monster Bash in her pinball league, or chilling with a Goblin vinyl, it’s all horror all the time for her.

DINO CLARK has been a horror fan since I was wee lad, after my parents bought our first VCR in the mid-80s. Born and raised in Chicago, love attending horror cons & chatting about my fave horror films with fellow fans! Human Resources for most of my career, which can be a mini-horror movie at times.

NICOLA MCCAFFERTY is a PhD candidate in the department of Radio, Television, and Film at Northwestern University. Her research looks at screen representations of nonhuman women such as mannequins, dolls, robots, and aliens in order to deconstruct the overlapping categories of whiteness, humanity, and femininity. Outside of grad school, Nicola has a few stray bylines at Dread Central, has seen every Kristen Stewart movie, and runs an Etsy store (https://www.etsy.com/shop/vvitchroom/?etsrc=sdt) where she sells enamel pins, stickers, and prints inspired by horror and cult films from the 1960s to today.
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DEEP RED (aka PROFONDO ROSSO) (1975) d. Dario Argento (Italy) 

🔪 Join us for a deep dive into Dario Argento’s haunting giallo masterpiece! 🎬 Tonight, we dissect one of the most iconic films of Italian horror cinema.

Deep Red isn’t just a slasher—it’s a symphony of style, blood, and mystery. With brutal kills, dreamlike visuals, and an unforgettable score by Goblin, Argento blends murder and art like no one else.

Join AC and his blood-loving panel of horror enthusiasts (Derek Botelho, Darren Callahan, Kristy Jett, Bryan Martinez, Larry Sternshein) as we explore the film’s themes of trauma and perception, its jaw-dropping set pieces, and how Deep Red capped the 1970s giallo heyday. Mirrors, Murders, and Music, we’re pulling apart every detail.

Whether you’re a die-hard Argento fan or new to the world of Italian horror, this discussion uncovers what makes Deep Red such a lasting influence—from its visual storytelling to its shocking final twist.

👁️ Who’s the real killer?
🎵 What makes that Goblin score so spine-tingling?
🎥 Why does Deep Red still cut deep 50 years later?
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DEREK BOTELHO is an author, film journalist, playwright, and visual effects artist. Not one to rest on his laurels, nor do much about them either, he is currently writing his first novel. His book, The Argento Syndrome, is topically relevant and will only enhance this listening or viewing experience!

DARREN CALLAHAN is an award-winning writer, director, and composer who has written drama, fiction, and non-fiction for many major outlets, mostly focused on the horror genre. He has also released nearly 100 records, from pop to noise to ambient to film soundtracks.  His website is darrencallahan.com and his IMDB is http://www.imdb.me/darrencallahan.

KRISTY JETT, faithful horror nerd of 40+ years, resides in Buffalo, NY and is the mother of nine cats. She remains now and forever the world's biggest fan of the film Popcorn (1991). 

BRYAN MARTINEZ is a super cool cat, lives in the home burg of Svengoolie (BERWYN), and runs The Giallo Room (now stalking your favorite social media platform).

LARRY STERNSHEIN is a lifelong movie fan in Colorado and host of the movie memories podcast "Reel Early." Not only does he love talking about horror and action cinema, but is also a big pro wrestling fan.
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Keep Searching, Keep Exploring, and, most of all, Keep Sharing the Scare!!