HAPPY 144th BIRTHDAY, BELA LUGOSI!

 Several of my books, stories, and articles revolve around the legacy of Bela Lugosi. For example, my most recently published short story, "They Creep in the Dark," can be found in EXPERIMENTAL FILES: AN ANTHOLOGY OF TALES INSPIRED BY "EXPERIMENTAL FILM" BY GEMMA FILES (published by Weird Fiction Quarterly), an all-new collection of cinematic horror stories edited by Elizabeth Mitchell and Sarah Walker. This hefty anthology also includes hand-made illustrations drawn by Gemma Files herself.Lugosiphiles will appreciate the peculiar connections between this tale and William Beaudine's cult classic 1943 horror film, THE APE MAN. (Please note that all profit generated by this anthology will be donated to autism research efforts.) You can buy your copy of EXPERIMENTAL FILES right HERE!  

Mitchell and Walker's cinema-centric anthology pairs well with my latest nonfiction book, HOLLYWOOD HAUNTS THE WORLD: AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE CINEMA OF OCCULTED TABOOS (2025), in the sense that both obsessively explore the profound mysteries hidden within the esoteric language of popular films, including a number of key Lugosi vehicles such as Robert Florey's MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE (1932) and Joseph H. Lewis' INVISIBLE GHOST (1941).

You might also want to check out my Rondo Award-nominated novel BELA LUGOSI'S DEAD (2021), the ideal read for Spooky Season! A five-star Amazon review described BELA LUGOSI'S DEAD as "perfect reading for October." Who am I to disagree?  

And if you're not completely Lugosied out by that point, why not check out the Rondo Award-nominated nonfiction book I co-authored with Gary D. Rhodes, BELA LUGOSI AND THE MONOGRAM NINE (2019)? This is an in-depth analysis of the nine Poverty Row films in which Lugosi starred during World War II. You can hear Gary and I discussing this book at great length during the October 22, 2019 episode of Roejen Razorwire's PROJECT ARCHIVIST.

As if all that weren't enough, Gary Rhodes will be delivering a Halloween-centric lecture at Manly P. Hall's Philosophical Research Society on the night of October 28th. (Hall was, of course, one of Lugosi's closest friends for decades. In fact, Hall appears as a character in BELA LUGOSI'S DEAD.) This lecture will focus on Gary's most recent book, WEIRDUMENTARY. You can buy the tickets right HERE.

By the way, you can hear Gary and I chatting about WEIRDUMENTARY (and related matters) on the 7-26-25 episode of Seriah Azkath's WHERE DID THE ROAD GO? Here's Seriah's description of the episode...

This is a fun conversation with Gary Rhodes, and I invited one of his best friends, Robert Guffey, to join us! 

Weirdumentary: Ancient Aliens, Fallacious Prophecies, and Mysterious Monsters from 1970s Documentaries is a 2025 book by Gary D. Rhodes that explores the genre of pseudo-documentaries from the 1970s, such as Chariots of the Gods and The Man Who Saw Tomorrow, which popularized topics like ancient aliens, prophecies, and cryptids. The book provides a history of these films, individual entries on over 45 movies, and features images from the era, making it a resource for fans of pop culture, cinema, and the paranormal. 

You can listen to the entire WHERE DID THE ROAD GO? interview on YouTube...