ATLRetro

1) HELLRAISER REUNION! The sinister Cenobites may be masters and mistresses of inflicting a puzzling kind of pain, but we’ve met the actors who play them and can attest they are nastily nice. See Pinhead himself Doug Bradley, Valentina Vargas, Barbie Wilde, Nicholas Vince and Simon Banford together on one stage at noon on Saturday and signing all weekend.

2) ANGUS SCRIMM! Yup, it’s PHANTASM‘s one and only Tall Man. Hear him talk at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

3) RIFF RANDELL! Don’t tell Principal Togar but the one and only P.J. SOLES is back. Yeah, she’s been in HALLOWEEN, THE DEVIL’S REJECTS and other screamin’ festures, but to us she will always the rebel with a Ramones of a cause of ROCK N ROLL HIGH SCHOOL (1979). Oh, wait what the hell, Togar herself is going to be at Days of the Dead, too–yes, the amazing Mary Woronov. We are not worthy! Please send us to Detention now.

4) THE DEVIL’S REJECTS!  Sid Haig, one of those rare B-movie icons and character actors whose career spans the decades from Jack Hill’s blaxploitation films of the 1970s to the chaotic, creepy Captain Spaulding. Quite frankly you and Bill Moseley scared the sh-t out of us in Rob Zombie‘s best neo-exploitation flick THE DEVIL’s REJECTS and since we’re not easily scared, for that we salute you both! Together again with fellow REJECTS William Forsythe, Leslie Easterbrook, Ginjer Lynn, PJ Soles, Mary Woronov, Duane Whitaker, Dave Sheridan and in his first son appearance Michael Alcott all on one stage at 1 p.m. on Saturday and signing all weekend.

5) BUTCH PATRICK 50Th ANNIVERSARY APPEARANCE. Yes, it’s really been 50 years since THE MUNSTERS debuted on American TV. Little Eddy Wolfgang Munster himself is back.

6) DAVID NAUGHTON! KANE HODDER! TONY TODD! COREY FELDMAN! JAMISON NEWLANDER! JOHN DUGAN! JOHN KASSIR! MORE! The guest list just seems to go on and on with Retro-horror goodness including the original AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, our favorite Jason Voorhees, the man who mixes it with love and makes the world taste scary, the Frog Brothers that sucked it up to THE LOST BOYS, a certain “Granpa” with a Texas chainsaw, and the man whose voice creeped us out so many times hosting TV’s TALES FROM THE CRYPT, and more stars of horror now and then.

6) SPOOKTACULAR SHOPPING  Horror cons are the perfect place to stock up on both macabre movie memorabilia, cult classics on DVD and creepy clothing, costumes and accessories. Vendors include Kool Kat Kyle Yaklin, master of the Creature From the Black Lagoon mask and suit.

7) MACABRE MAKE-UP, CREEPY COSTUMES, CREEPY CARNEY ACTS AND PHANTAMAGORIC PARTIES!! Check the schedule for make-up demonstrations, VIP parties, Monsters Among You Wicked Costume Showdown Saturday night at 10 pm followed by the Monster Ball. On Friday night, learn SFX make-up and costuming from elite level costumers at the 9 p.m. Monsters Among You: Origins panel, followed by a frightening Friday Night Party featuring Circus Envy and the Deadly Sins, the sideshow antics of Captain and Maybelle, karoake with celebrity guests Felissa Rose (SLEEPAWAY CAMP) and prolific scream queen Tiffany Shepis, who also recently starred in ATTACK OF THE MORNINGSIDE MONSTER, made by Kool Kats Jayson Palmer and Chris Ethridge.

8) FRIGHTENING FILMS! Lead actor Dave Sheridan hosts an exclusive sneak preview of zombie comedy THE WALKING DECEASED with cast & director Q&A and free giveaways at 6 p.m. on Saturday. Throughout the weekend from 5 p.m. Friday through 4 p.m. Sunday, the JABB 48-hour film festival  ranges from a shorts block on Friday to 1980s Saturday morning cartoon favorites to acclaimed, hard-to-see indie horror features such as Ryan Lieske‘s ABED (Sun. 3 p.m.), awarded 2013 Best Feature at Atlanta’s Buried Alive Film Festival and based on the Elizabeth Massie zombie short story.

Days of the Dead main con hours are Fri. Feb. 7 from 5 to 11 p.m.; Sat. Feb. 8 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; and Sun. Feb. 9 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with parties going late into the night on Friday and Saturday. For more info, visit https://www.daysofthedead.net/atlanta/.