On top of boasting a list of celebrities, DOTD also brought the Tattoo Expo to Louisville for a second year!
This past weekend Days of the Dead invaded Louisville and showed them why they’re where horror comes to party!
by Adam Holtzapfel
Last week Days of the Dead had taken over the Crowne Plaza by the Louisville Airport to host their second event in Derby City.
Kicking off Thursday with a pre party at the Taj with BBQ by Bourbon Bent BBQ, DJ Goast, and live painting by Ryan Case, fans were treated to a special surprise with John Dugan showing up to do a signing during the event. While DJ Goast played several punk and metal jams, fans were tossing back horror themed cocktails (Candyman, The Crow, and The Crystal Lake) created just for the event.
Friday started off kind of slow due to bad weather. Unfortunately that led to a first for DOTD, the William Butler panel was canceled due to attendance. As the evening went on attendance picked up with Dead Bodies in 223 and She Was So Pretty being screened in the film room, panels with Ernie Hudson and Tony Todd in the Black Track room, and the Blue Track hosting the Eugene Clark transformation into Big Daddy, as well as the Indie Filmmaker Panel. As the events wound down fans were treated to the 2nd DOTD Hall of Fame Ceremony where East Coast Horror Group’s own Michael Exler gave a touching tribute to George A. Romero, James Downing inducted fan favorite PJ Soles, and DOTD work horses Harry Bean and Scott Medjesky were inducted. The evening ended with Scaryokee going into Saturday morning.
The Black Track is full of must see panels!
As Saturday started rolling, fans were treated to films from Etheria Film Festival, Diary of a Deadbeat, Victor Bonacore’s documentary about James Van Bebber, Nite Owl Theater and more! Panels consisted of The Crow, Halloween, Jason, and on the Blue Track we had A History of Horror Comics, Zombie Make Up with Tish DeLano, Sideshow In Horror, and more. Into the late afternoon early evening The Chaostume Contest and FX MakeUp Competition showed fans why DOTD is more than celebrities.
Chris “Suicidal” Blair hosting the FX MakeUp Competition. Four contestants with a box full of unknown goodies to use their skill to win!
As events wrapped up Saturday fans were treated to Drude and Stonecutters. If you’re into heavy riffs these are two bands not to sleep on. In between bands Captain set the record for longest sword swallowed at 24 inches as part of the Captain and Maybelle side show act. Fans were also treated to Zubaz headbands by the truckload.
The Zubaz Nation invaded Louisville with headbands, pants, and more! (Photo from Jen Lara)
As Sunday came the show was winding down. The filming room was screening Sunday Shorts with several short films from all over the world. The Black Track treated fans to panels with genre legends Sid Haig and Bill Moseley while the Blue Track had discussions regarding Copyright Laws and Haunt Acting.
The Blue Track is your source for all things spanning the horror community!
Boasting a roster of celebrities (none of which canceled) that were great to the fans, vendors that were always busy, and events that were sure to please fans, DOTD brought a killer Tattoo Expo. Scott Medjesky has molded the tattoo portion of the show into a monster to be reckoned with.
Louisville, I know you’ve been burned by other conventions before, but this is hands down one of the best shows around. Show up, check out the panels, see some films, meet some celebs, and buy stuff from the vendors. I can’t state enough that DOTD is the show I look forward to the most during convention season. If you come here and you don’t have fun you definitely didn’t do it right.
Also, you don’t have to wait for next year for your next fix. Their Chicago show is right around the corner and you don’t want to miss it!
