Robert Ginty starred as vigilante John Eastland, the title character in the violent 1980 thriller The Exterminator. Seeking revenge for a murdered friend, he brought death to his villainous prey in a variety of gruesome ways. He reprised the role in a sequel four years later, Exterminator II,  where he continued his imaginative crusade of… [Continue Reading]

PATRICK SWAYZE was a charming cinematic rogue who starred as Sam Wheat in the romantic fantasy Ghost (1990). He portrayed the murdered lover of Demi Moore, who was able to communicate with his wife through a psychic, played by Whoopi Goldberg in an Oscar-winning performance. Swayze was born in Houston, Texas, on April 18, 1952…. [Continue Reading]

PAUL BURKE was a leading actor from the 1950s and the star of the 1957 horror film The Disembodied. He starred as Tom Maxwell, an author and adventurer who runs afoul of voodoo queen Allison Hayes when he becomes part of a romantic triangle with the queen and her older husband while on an expedition… [Continue Reading]

FRANK `JUNIOR’ COGHLAN began his career as a child star in the silents, but was best known for his role in the 1941 Republic serial The Adventures of Captain Marvel. By shouting the magic word Shazam! young Billy Batson would instantly transform into the powerful super-hero Captain Marvel (played by Tom Tyler). Coghlan was born… [Continue Reading]

Sheldon ‘Shel’ Dorf was the founder and long-time chairman of what became the massive San Diego Comic-Con in the early 1970s. Dorf was born in Detroit, Michigan, on July 5, 1933. He studied art and worked as a freelance commercial designer.  He was a fan and collector of comic strips and comic books, and helped… [Continue Reading]

Dr. Hugh Morgan Hill was a performance artist and storyteller who was a familiar presence around Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he was known as Brother Blue.  He was featured as Merlin in George Romero’s 1981 film Knightriders, providing a mystic voice to a roving band of motorcycle riding Medieval reenactors, who jousted at state… [Continue Reading]

Carl Ballantine was best known for his role as PT Boat sailor Lester Gruber in the 1960′s television series McHale’s Navy, but had a long career as a stage magician, and comic actor in films and television. He was born Meyer Kessler in Chicago, Illinois, on September 27, 1917, and became interested in magic at… [Continue Reading]

Lorissa McComas was an actress and model in softcore films and layouts who was a decorative presence in a numerous low-budget sci-fi and horror films from the 1990s. She worked frequently for director Jim Wynorski on such films as the Blair Witch spoof (2000), and the prehistoric action thriller Raptor (2002). She was born in… [Continue Reading]

Christopher D’Oyly John worked in production on the classic British science fiction series Doctor Who from 1966 to 1977.  John began working in television as an assistant floor manager for the William Hartnell Doctor Who episode The Ark in 1966.  He served as a production assistant on the Patrick Troughton episodes The Macra Terror and… [Continue Reading]

Al C. Ward scripted the additional footage for the 1956 U.S. release of the classic Japanese monster movie, Godzilla. The new footage, directed by Terry Morse, incorporated Raymond Burr as newsman Steve Martin into the original 1954 Toho film. Ward was born on September 24, 1919. He began working in television in the early 1950s,… [Continue Reading]