Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Help! I'm trapped...

... in the Skull & Pumpkin's 50th post!

Fifty posts since the end of June, not terrible for a small pub with lots of heart.

I thought I might bring some classic monsters to the ol' S&P for my Frightenin' Fiftieth Post.

The poor fella up top is detail from the base of the classic Aurora Phantom of the Opera model kit, which was originally released in 1963:
I know, I know -- his hands have been missing since the Northridge Earthquake of 1994. I have had an unbuilt Monogram Phantom reissue from the late 90's waiting to donate its hands to my much older figure, but it languishes on the model shelf unopened; for some reason I find the handless Erik unique and cool... a sort of badge of courage for having survived the big bad quake.

Of course you can't post just one picture of your model kits, lest anyone think 'Gee, great 50th post, loser!' so I've tossed in a few more.

The Aurora Universal Monster kits are legendary and have been around in one form or another off and on since 1962, when their pioneering Frankenstein kit was first released and immediately vanished from hobby store shelves.
This is my Frankie. He's been around for a long time. Survived quakes, moves and even a total collapse of a model shelf in the basement some years back. Nary a scratch (perhaps a scar or two on his head or hands, but... how do you tell?). You can't keep a good monster down.

Next we have (possibly) my favorite Universal Monster ever:Actually it's tough to say who (or what) my favorite monster is at any given moment. But when I was kid, the Big Three were The Wolfman, King Kong and The Fly; their positions on the roster changed often, but Wolfy tended to hit #1 more often, and stick around there longer.

You'd love to think the above Creature kit is blurry, but really, it's the underwater effect of my astonishing photographic skills.

To round out this one, the classic Aurora 'Bela Lugosi'-like Dracula, which looks more like Claude Akins to me but I love this kit, always have.
The bats are supposed to be hanging upside down, I think. I made this one a long time ago, and apparently felt bats should only be hanging upside down if they're sleeping. Open wings mean upright attack mode.

I have a few more, but it's dangerous to bring them all out at once, especially in a pub. One over-boisterous patron's elbow and *smash*!

Well, except for Frankie. He seems fairly invincible at this point.

Happy Fiftieth Post, you old Skull & Pumpkin you.

1 comment:

  1. Here's to the Next fifty and the fifty after that: DUMDUMSHREKPOP!!!!

    Keep up the good work, my friend.


    Dave
    (Fester)

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