If you're a gore geek like me or even just the general lover of the Horror genre, you're going to want to clear your schedule because the Southwest's premier Horror event, Texas Frightmare Weekend, is about to jumpstart its chainsaw and rip through the DFW Hyatt Regency.
Every year, the three day event promises you the opportunity to not only see some of the latest, greatest fright flicks but also the chance to meet your horrific heroes with such legends as John Carpenter, George Romero, and Tobe Hooper having been in attendance. This year pallbears a Carrie retrospective (featuring Piper Laurie, Nancy Allen, P.J. Soles and Betty Buckley), a Q&A with the cast of The Walking Dead (hosted by yours truly), and much, much more!
Now in its 7th year, TFW founder Loyd Cryer started the hybrid con/film fest citing "the total lack of any event of this kind in Dallas as well the surrounding area" as his Frankenstein-like inspiration. He went on to elaborate, "These events used to exist on the east and west coast only until we started ours in 2006. It's an extension of my love for the genre and for the fantastic horror fans in the south who never got to experience a horror convention."
That's a love that many fans in Texas, not to mention the world, share. People come from all over for these three blood-soaked days in May, making it arguably the biggest event of its kind...so much so that this year, it has moved from its previous home at the Sheraton Grand Hotel in Irving to the Hyatt Regency at DFW Airport, which Cryer says "has about three times the venue space" to accommodate all the boys and ghouls that attend. Hard to believe it all began in the tiny Grapevine Convention Center less than a decade ago!
So what is Mr. Cryer most looking forward to this year, being such a Horror connoisseur himself?
"Our They Live reunion is going to be really special with appearance by the cast including Rowdy Roddy Piper, Keith David and Meg Foster. Plus, Mondo has issued a limited edition poster featuring elements of They Live and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It was all drawn by "Ghoulish" Gary Pullin. We've only printed 250 of them and they are incredibly beautiful!"
Fingers crossed that Piper and David reenact their 7 minute fight scene live on stage! Guess we'll see come Friday. I'll see y'all out there...it's going to be a bloody good time and promises so much fun it's scary!
Frightmare weekend runs from Friday, May 4th through Sunday May 6. You can purchase a one-day or three-day pass here. Also, make sure you check out the full list of daily events and screenings, here.