Guest Presentation on NAZI ZOMBIES

This Friday night I'm giving a 20-minute multi-media presentation at NERD NITE in NYC.

It promises to be an exciting evening.

SHOCK WAVES: or How I learned to overcome zombie fatigue and love undead monster movies

(NOTE: The following post first appeared on the SF Signal website, when editor-in-chief John DeNardo asked me the question: What was the last science-fiction film that surprised you in a good way?)  

An optimist might say that we’re experiencing a zombie renaissance, with zombie-themed TV shows, literature, flash mobs and conventions.

A pessimist would point to the cliché novelties, crossover comics, books, gimmicky poetry, etc., as though the undead-merchandize is a zombie plague in itself, with mindless products walking (or running) across the multi-media landscape.

Having suffered from “zombie fatigue”, I was surprised and delighted by the movie SHOCK WAVES. (1977).

We’ve seen adaptations of “Tales from the Crypt” (anthology movies, feature films and the HBO series) but SHOCK WAVES is like a "WEIRD WAR TALES" movie!  The film’s faux-documentary opening sets the tone nicely:

Apes on Covers (seen at KEVIN GEEKS OUT ABOUT MONKEYS)

At last week's KEVIN GEEKS OUT ABOUT MONKEYS we shared a popular story of how in the late 1950's DC Comics Editor Julius Schwartz discovered that gorillas-on-covers = SALES.  Eventually all the comic editors wanted apes on the cover.  But Schwartz didn't want to kill the goose (or gorilla) that laid the golden egg; he said only one gorilla cover each month.   Since then, gorillas have been a staple of comic artwork.  Below are some of those covers. (Story continues after the jump.)

NOTE: Just before the show began, I was rehearsing with M. Sweeney Lawless, who did this segment with me.  Some guy saw the color copies and introduced himself as a DC Comics editor.  (weird, right?)  We asked, "Is gorillas-on-covers true or an urban myth?"  He said "It's true. Gorillas sell."  There you have it.