HELLO, FRIENDS…
ABOVE: Jim O’Rear with his favorite undead ballerina.
Paranormal Scarefest came to Murfreesboro, Tennessee! I had appeared as a guest at this show in Indiana a few months ago and had a great time so I was looking forward to giving it a go in another state. Although this first-time Tennessee show was not extremely well attended, it was a loaded weekend of fun.
ABOVE: Jim takes every opportunity to show off his banner designed by the multi-talented Billy Tackett (www.BillyTackett.com).
Realizing that this was going to be the first show I had done in a long time that zombie artist Billy Tackett was not appearing at, as well, I slapped on the black-straw hat so that I could represent and headed out the door to set up.
ABOVE: James Hampton (SLING BLADE, TEEN WOLF), Jim O’Rear, & Ken Sagoes (NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3 & 4).
Arriving at the show, I was immediately greeted by legendary actor/director James Hampton (SLING BLADE, TEEN WOLF, F-TROOP) and NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET alum Ken Sagoes. I had appeared at shows with these guys before but never had the opportunity to really talk to them for any length of time. I was glad to see that we were all sitting together so that we could spend some time chatting. Also sitting with me was UNDERGROUND ENTERTAINMENT co-creator Bryan Wilson (whom would be working with me at the convention on filming more footage for UE: THE MOVIE) and the fine folks from MACABRE MANSION (www.MacabreMansion.com).
ABOVE: Daniel Emery Taylor (RETURN OF THE SWAMP THING) assumes his “Blister Taint” personality alongside Bryan Wilson.
Seated on my other side was my good friend and always hilarious Daniel Emery Taylor (RETURN OF THE SWAMP THING) and his lovely wife Ami. It didn’t take long for Daniel to slap on the patriotic mullet and shift into his crazy “Blister Taint” personality for some painfully funny moments of comedy. Of course, James Hampton… also an extremely funny actor… took every opportunity to join in the hijinks. These guys had me rolling on the floor with laughter.
ABOVE: Jim O’Rear, paranormal investigator Brian Henry, and Bryan Wilson try to act like tough guys.
There were a ton of other guests, too, ranging from filmmakers (George Demick, Joshua Hull, Jim Dougherty, Tom Berdinski, & more) to horror hosts (Dr. Gangrene, Midnite Mausoleum, & more) to paranormal investigators (SyFy’s Keith Age, Paul Browning, & more) to independent film actors (David Polk, David Ross, DJ Mincy, & more). I’m sure I’m leaving people out… there were many and my aging mind is getting feeble!
ABOVE: Director George Demick (DEAD START), Bryan Wilson (UNDERGROUND ENTERTAINMENT), Pixie Schwartz, our favorite “Elf” Juliette Vincent, Jim O’Rear, & Chris Pezzano hang out.
The weekend was filled with multiple film screenings, educational panels, costume contests, and paranormal investigations… just to name a few things. In between all of the events, Bryan Wilson and I also shot more footage for UNDERGROUND ENTERTAINMENT: THE MOVIE and GHOSTS OF TENNESSEE.
ABOVE: Jim O’Rear & Jim Dougherty discuss their new film BEVERLY LANE.
ABOVE: Jim O’Rear prepares to host a panel with cast and crew of the new zombie comedy BEVERLY LANE.
I was super excited to spend some time over the weekend with the gang from BEVERLY LANE, a new zombie comedy movie coming out next month from director/writer Joshua Hull. I moderated a panel about the film and it was as fun and wacky as the movie, itself. This is a really great group of people that I look forward to spending more time with in the future.
ABOVE: Bryan Wilson (UNDERGROUND ENTERTAINMENT), paranormal investigator Paul Browning, and Jim O’Rear taking a break.
Since my friends from MACABRE MANSION were in the house we also fit in some new interviews for their website. These are always a lot of fun, as well. This time around, Bryan Wilson and I discussed the upcoming UE: THE MOVIE and GHOSTS OF TENNESSEE documentary that we are producing and Daniel Taylor and I sat down to talk about his new film FAT CHANCE. Of course, as usual, the interviews were fun and irreverent.
ABOVE: Bryan Wilson & Jim O’Rear discuss UE: THE MOVIE for MACABRE MANSION.
ABOVE: Daniel Taylor is interviewed by Jim O’Rear for MACABRE MANSION.
Other fun over the weekend included jumping in the Spiderman bouncy room with zombies, shopping for cool stuff from the multiple vendors, and a surprise appearance by the Trinity Of Pain.
ABOVE: Taken just moments before Bryan Wilson’s throat was torn open. Yes, it’s gonna leave a mark.
The event concluded with an overnight paranormal investigation of the haunted Walking Horse Hotel in Wartrace, Tennessee. Several convention attendees joined myself, Daniel Taylor (ROAD TRIP), Ken Sagoes (NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET), and SyFy Channel’s Keith Age for a full evening of spooky fun. Did we have any paranormal experiences? Indeed we did… but, that’s another story altogether. Here are a few photos from the investigation:
ABOVE: Ami Taylor, Jim O’Rear, and Brandon O’Rear get some strange activity in the basement.
ABOVE: Daniel Taylor (sporting his GHOSTBUSTERS equipment backpack) and Brandon O’Rear investigate activity on the 4th floor.
ABOVE: Daniel Taylor & Jim O’Rear experience some unusual activity inside the Walking Horse Hotel.
ABOVE: Brandon O’Rear, Bryan Wilson, Keith Age, Jim O’Rear, and Daniel and Ami Taylor take a break from the investigation.
Needless to say, Paranormal Scarefest Tennessee was a blast. I hope the limited number of attendees does not discourage them from doing this event again in the area. As with all first-time shows you start small and grow and I hope to see this one continue to grow in the future.
ABOVE: Daniel Taylor practices his “spooked” look for the next investigation!
Thanks for reading,
Jim
www.JimORear.com
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