Greetings and welcome to the 1st edition of the Great Kaiju Hunt. My Wife, Kim and I decided to enjoy the near 90 degrees, hot summer day by riding around in a car, traveling over to New Jersey and visiting local nerdery toy stores and bringing you along for the fun.
Since we live in Pennsylvania, we figured we wouldn't drive out too far and would start relatively close. Our 1st destination would be House of Fun in Oaklyn, NJ.
I've actually been to House of Fun a few times and always seem to grab something. Obviously since this is the "Great Kaiju Hunt" we were looking for Kaiju, but they have TONS of everything. Vintage to new, Star Wars to Transformers, they have it all. I'm a fan of Tokusatsu, Sentai and Kaiju, so for me they have enough to keep me coming back, spending $30-50 a week for the next 5 years. The store is a collectors dream. They have one glass display that is specific to Kaiju with plenty of Godzilla, Ultraman and more.
Gamera I wanted :(
As soon as Kim walked in and I showed her the display, she instantly started to decide what to get..haha..it didn't take any time at all. I started to eye up a Gamera while she went for the S.H. Monster-Art 1995 Godzilla from Godzilla vs Destroyah. Recently, I've started to fall in love with Gamera, specifically the design from Gamera 3. The suit, the look, absolutely love the overall scheme of design. Sadly, we lack a Gamera presence here at the Ole' Dimension collectors bin so we are in need of some Gamera, but today, Kim had other plans.
They also have a great variety of T-shirts including Marvel, DC and my main man, Big G. Since I've been losing a little around the waistline, I need some new shirts and lucky, they had my size! Once Kim made up her mind on what to grab, we were all set and took a few new shirts and the 95' Godzilla home...sorry Gamera, you'll be mine....soon.
A small example of the madness!
Next we stopped for lunch, I opted for Salad Works while Kim continued to eat horrible...she's the devil when you're on trying to eat good. After about 30 mins on the road, we finally arrived to It's A Toy Store and it's overwhelming to say the least. As soon as you pull up, you realize it's something special.
You have to understand that this is literally a house full of toys. No room is empty, the entire house is filled to the brim of vintage to current toys, comics and collectibles. It's incredible for any toy fan. Again, you have to go slow, take your time and really look at everything or you will miss items. Kim and I took our time and probably spent and hour and half in this house. It's 2 levels of pure childhood happiness.
Sadly, they did lack Kaiju items (only a handful) but we did happen to find a small set of Godzilla figures that caught Kim's eye. These were similar to Gashapon but were from China and obviously a knock off. Most are translucent with a few highlighted colors with a few additional foes. It was a 10 piece set and well worth the $20 we paid. I've stopped collecting everything else besides an occasional Horror item or two and just seeing this place was well worth the trip. We are both so glad we went.
Our loot!!
After all was said and done, we gathered our loot, only to come home to a few more items we had ordered, so the day was topped off by my Robocon shirt I ordered from Thailand, the BluRays of Vampire Girl vs Frankenstein Girl and Samurai Princess (to keep up with my current viewing trend). Needless to say Kim and I are both super happy with our purchases and as soon as we finished with the v-log, Kim tore open the 95' Godzilla...haha..such a kid at heart.
Enjoy the v-log, please subscribe and spread the goodness. We will start doing this more often! Happy hunting!!
Hey gang, just figured I'd check in and share this past weekend's Monster-Mania experience. First off, let me start by saying this Monster-Mania is definitely in my top 3 of experiences. Ive attended 28 Monster-Mania's as an attendee, a vendor and then, as a guest and I'm always blown away by the fandom and how great everyone is. Dave Hagan and family put on a fantastic convention and I am always thankful to be there.
Kim and I arrived Friday to start setting up our table, luckily she's the brains in this operation as she always does a great job setting up and honestly, I typically walk around and talk to people I only see every 6 months. It's truly become our family. I wander around, check out the things I'm gonna grab before the con even starts and I'm typically broke before the con opens..haha.
Our main agenda, for those who know us, was to meet the Japanese guests, collectively who played
Godzilla and Ultraman. Kim, since we've been married has become a HUGE Godzilla fan. So much so, that we literally saved money for this con and knew we would have a lot of opportunities to grab what we wanted. She was like a kid in a candy store and smiled from ear to ear.
This weekend was also the release of our newest film, Mortimor Tromblay. This is our 5th film, not including the Journey documentary and for a change, we opted for a dark comedy. Matt, unable to be there, was again back on board for this project and we all were ecstatic. What we all really enjoyed was the fact that we felt some sort of freedom to make and create exactly what we wanted and had no real restrictions. Our main goal, as team was to make something to be proud of, we all feel we succeeded.
On Friday, Kim couldn't wait to get in line for Harou Nakajima (original Godzilla), Tsutomu Kitagawa (mostly know as Millennium Godzilla), Bin Furuya (Ultraman) and Shinji Nishikawa (concept artist and designer for Godzilla). She immediately wanted Nishikawa-san to sketch her favorite Kaiju, Little Godzilla. I, on the other hand wanted Millennium Godzilla (Godzilla 2000 is my favorite design and suit) and I would never forgive myself if I opted to go without asking for a sketch of Booska. Booska is a playful character that I fell in love with when my daughter was younger. I was able to grab some VHS's of Booska and we would sit, watch and laugh. Booska will always hold a special place for me, as it means great memories for my daughter and I.
Next, we stopped by the Vampire Robots booth and had to grab our Limited to 200, CCP Burning Godzilla vinyl exclusive. Then I noticed that Michael (the owner) had the exclusive Booska and Chamegon set. My jaw hit the floor and instantly, I knew I HAD TO OWN these vinyls. Once Kim saw them, she knew that money was as good as spent. I plopped down my duckets and then included a Hedorah vinyl to cap off our shopping event. Sigh...so many vinyls to buy, so little cash.
On Saturday, I was set to host a few Q&A's including Mitch Pileggi, Denis O'Hare and the Halloween 4 panel with Danielle Harris and George P Wilbur. Again, as a horror fan, this is always an amazing opportunity and I love the opportunity. This time around the Denis O'Hare, known recently from American Horror Story, really blew me away with his open discussion on acting and the way he approaches playing characters. Absolutely crushed it and it felt like an actors studio and I sat like the student and took in all he said. Of course Danielle Harris is really all Horror fanboys crush and really a testament to Scream Queens of yesteryear. She takes it serious and really is always a delight to talk with. So much fun. I also was fortunate to catch the Kaiju actors panel and just loved it. This is where the fanboy in me shows...I'm sure I was smiling quite a bit.
A few years ago Dave asked if I wanted to help judge the costume contest and its quickly become a very fun part of the convention. This year was jammed wall to wall with all kinds of creatures of the
night. From kids, to ordinal and creative to the sexy...they have a bit of everything. I'm always taken back by the amount of effort that some put into this event. Most often, the non typical designs and outfits are winners. It's a fun evening to close out Saturday night (at least for me).
Sunday afternoon's at Monster-Mania have become something very special to me the last 7 years as I'm host of the Yorkies auction. This is where you can see how much promoter Dave Hagan cares and dedicates space for this auction that is the con's best kept secret. Marilyn and her team from the Yorkie rescue go above and beyond and have shared stories about how much their rescue really helps families save these pups. When I first started we would be happy to raise a few hundred dollars, this past convention, we raised over $5,000. Without your support, we could never do this, so I thank you for being there and offering your hearts.
Kim and I, in closing that everyone who stopped by our table, grabbed our newest film. Those who asked about our son, Curt Robinson's recent surgery and wished him well. It's amazing to me that people actually care, maybe it's cliche but I am always thankful that you all care about us, our projects and want us in their lives. Thank you.
Our con haul!
Below is a video blog we did that takes you along for the weekend and see it through our eyes!
BAGGAGE Diary (4/13/13) "baggage" gets funded!! Where do we go from here?
Earlier this week, my next short film titled "baggage" was fully funded. With a budget of $3,000, we were able to reach this goal with true believers and people's generosity. I am humbled, truly touched and thankful beyond words that people intrust me to create within the Horror genre. It's an overwhelming feeling.
So, this leads to...where do we go from here?
This past week, I met with Director Jeremiah Kipp, Cinematographer Jeffrey Gould and assistant Cinematographer Steve Adams with our final preparations for our scheduled 4 day shoot. We are filming in Long Branch, New Jersey and the surrounding areas. This meeting allowed us to finalize our locations, tie up any loose ends from the script and get a better idea of lighting, based on time of day, for the outside scenes.
We started off very early on Wednesday and headed to our first location. Let me say this before I write any further, I really believe I have the best problem solvers and visionaries I could ask for on this project. Every shot was looked at a several times, every position is approached and it's 100% serious business. This project has taken on a life of it's own.
(I realize to others, this project will seem small but I can say, inside of this creative bubble..it's enormous)
We went from location to location, even being stopped by a representative of the Chamber of Commerce to let us know how excited they are we chose Long Branch. We walked around the neighborhood and were greeted by numerous business owners offering their assistance. It's the best feeling in the world. All of the locations were secured and we enjoyed a nice lunch that was spend discussion movies and shot ideas that we all are fans of.
When you make film with true film lovers...life stops, even for a lunch, while everything focuses on one goal..to make great film.
Even though we are fully funded, we are still looking for people who would like to help with donations. This allows more breathing room to do more, take more risks and make the best film we can. We are still keeping the perks open until May 15th. This allows someone who would love to be an extra, to do so. Filming weekend for extras will be May 18 and 19. Again, thank you to all who have taken interest, shared the vision and given to the goal. This film is happening, because of YOU.
Good morning monday morning armchair bookers...if you're reading this, there is a great chance you spent your hard earned money on Wrestlemania last night and you're probably bitching. I am writing this as your voice of reason to help you feel better and look at the real side of WWE.
First and foremost, if at any point, you look at last night's show and want to mention "it was booked wrong" or "they didn't let them work"...well, then you're already too smart for your own good. WWE is not about booking!! When they hire "writers", t9 times out of 10, they have 0 wrestling background. Also, let's look at Dusty Rhodes, who was a noted booker for NWA and/or Dutch Mantell who booked in Puerto Rico for several years as well, are both back stage, plus guys like Steamboat and Anderson...do you think those guys, collectively could not book the the most amazing show ever? Hell, you have Paul Heyman right there...this guy made wrestling fun again...he get's it, they all get it..but you don't?? Let it go!!
What ever hope you're believing with hopes that John Cena will "go heel" (even though he sells more merchandise than ANYONE and grants more "Make a Wish" wishes than anyone EVER) or that CM Punk will beat the streak of a guy who people have talked about for more than 25 years (do you think Punk will have any validity in 25 years?) then you might want to either head to the Independents or quit watching. I feel bad for the Independent companies..they try to offer you old school booking, yet you shit on it and claim it's dated, but they turn on the "Entertainment" button and you shit on that too. 80,000 people attended that show last night and Millions bought the PPV...if you aren't happy..don't watch and don't go! Your seat will be taken by someone else, I promise.
I am your wake up call. WWE is entertainment, just like a movie or TV show. They base they're "push" on ratings...your opinion doesn't matter. You have every right to bitch if you were unhappy about Wrestlemania but let me ask you this - Was the "show" that bad? Or was it because they didn't "book" to your liking? The presentation was amazing (from the pictures I saw). They offered the greatest fan experience they could. They have a Hall of Fame ceremony (which some are based on entertainment draw also). They put on one hell of a show.
I get so tired of seeing people complain, yet they watch every week. For what??? To see if they're gonna start "your booking mentality"?? Hahaha...come on...be better than that. Either watch for the fun of it and let go of "wrestling" concept and accept "Entertainment" or simply turn it off. If you sold 80,000 seats for an event and generated MILLIONS, would you change??? Me either.
Being middle aged (I'm 41, eat bad and hate working out...so reaching 80 is a stretch) the days of visiting the classic arcades is something I miss a lot. Walking into dim lit happiness, the sounds of quarters dropping and the joyful shots being fired by Galaga are memories from yesterday...or so I thought!!
I had caught wind of an arcade in Burlington, NJ (which is about 30 minutes from my house) made this a journey of EPICNESS. On Friday, I grabbed Kim (@KimDimension) & good ole' Broccoli Rob (@BroccoliRob11) and set forth on any gamers destiny to High Scores Arcade...to become one with game (cue Star Wars Imperial March music).
High Scores Interactive Arcade is nestled in a very nice business district, amongst rows of small, personable businesses. The place is small, so driving by, you can miss it, but honestly...it's perfect. Upon walking in, I hear Star Wars Cantina disco remix, I'm thrust instantly back to my early teen years and my pocket that is holding my $6 in $1's, feels the need to find the change machine.
I snoop around a bit, while Kim heads directly for BurgerTime and Broccoli Rob looks for Donkey Kong in hopes to dethrone the likes of Billy Mitchell or Steve Weibe. I seek the owners and meet Shawn and Meg, who are extremely nice and genuine. They give me the tour, showing my some of these treasures, while my mouth waters, plus..what I enjoyed, was how each game had a personal story behind it. Shawn, see's Broccoli Rob's interest in Donkey Kong and offers him a lesson, which was awesome. He explained the levels, insider tips and gave him some hope. Meg, was showing off her skills at Star Wars, saying she was "pretty good, but some of the best players in the world have mopped the floor with her scores".
This is the part I enjoyed the most...in today's economy, it's important to find some entertainment that is fun, cheap and has something to offer everyone in the fmaily. High Scores Aracde is just that...very family friendly. The games are classic, at classic prices...25 and 50 cents per play. The staff is friendly, knowledgable and make you feel at home. For our family...we spent $20 total and played for 2 hours. You simply can not beat that...it was a blast. Such a blast in fact, we went back on Saturday night and played another 2 hours.
We are extremely honored to be able to screen The Wrong House at our 1st group session. Shawn French and Sue Stevens were kind enough to allow us to watch their film, which just recieved distribution. We were also told, we will have give-a-aways!!! What?? Yep, you heard me....Give-a-ways!!!
The Wrong House synopsis - An isolated house in the woods looks like an easy mark to a group of friends camping in the Maine wilderness. The thieves haul away several ounces of pot and hallucinogenic mushrooms in the heist. But when the homeowners track them down, the thieves learn too late that there are some people you just shouldn't mess with... and that they picked The Wrong House.
Remember, this is a FREE event, on Thursday, July 21, 2011 at 7pm. Our group will meet at Capes and Cowls Comics in Bensalem, PA. This is FREE...like horror? come join the fun.
We will also be discussing the films Dead Snow (2009) and Shock Waves (1977). One is a cult classic, the other takes the Nazi Zombie genre in a whole other direction. We wanna know what you like about each and what you dont...so let's tawk horror.
Still more details to come..so make sure you visit us at PA/NJ Horror Club 101
Thursday July 21, 2011
Capes and Cowls
527 Bristol Pike # A
Bensalem, PA 19020-6336
(215) 604-4060
Please, Thank Capes and Cowls for giving us a Home!! Stay Tuned!!!
