Ace Frehley (Paul Daniel Frehley), the original lead guitarist, occasional songwriter, and space-man for the band Kiss, is dead at the age of 74.Frehley played with the band from its inception in 1973 until 1982, and then again during their 1990s revival. After he left the second time, they recruited a new “Ace” with the same make-up, because his extraterrestrial image had become integral to the band.
Author Archives: JD DeLuzio
Toronto Fan Expo 2025
I returned after a few years to the creative chaos that is Toronto Fan Expo, but only for one day….
Superman (2025)
We went to the drive-in on a perfect summer night, which is always an experience in and of itself. They lean into the retro, the graphics pure 1957 and ambient music pre-1980. We watched kids clamber in the playland under the screen, and the sun set in the sky to our left, just before the projector started. Trailers included one for the 50th Anniversary return of Jaws to the big screen. I might have to see that.
We came, of course, for Superman, another piece of the past fighting to remain part of the culture.
Free Comic Book Day, 2025
Free Comic Book Day came and went. What were your picks?
Happy 2025!
Movie Review: My Old Ass (2024)
One of the most-streamed movies of autumn 2024 is a comparatively understated coming-of-age film with an SF/Fantasy premise. It also features Aubrey Plaza, and, despite positive reviews, has ignited a side-controversy.
TV Review: The Penguin (Season One)
The first tie-in with The Batman shows that DC can create an interesting cinematic universe, at least when it involves Gotham City.
October Countdown: Sleepaway Camp
…a good slasher movie doesn’t have to be well-acted, believable or suspenseful. It’s quite enough that it keeps you entertained, includes several good, violent set pieces, and leaves you shocked. Robert Hiltzik’s Sleepaway Camp is a perfect example of such an effort. It’s an exceptionally bad movie but a very good slasher.
—Bartlomiej Paszylk, The Pleasure and Pain of Cult Horror Films: An Historical Survey. McFarland, 2009.
This 1983 slasher did not fare so well in the shadow of better-known examples of the genre, but it gradually developed a cult following. It’s one of three films we will be reviewing this October 31.
October Countdown: The Last Voyage of the Demeter
Last weekend, we looked at a couple of family-friendly witch-themed Halloween movies. This weekend, we review two recent vampire films, neither made for little kids.
The first one brings history’s most famous bloodsucker back to the screen, and attempts to restore the horror once associated with his name.
October Countdown: Humanist Vampire Seeks Consenting Suicidal Person
Our second vampyreview for this final weekend before Halloween, 2024 and the horrors that may follow, takes us into the vampire romance genre…. but it’s not like any vampire romance you’ve ever seen (or avoided watching) before.