You Love Horror Comedies, You Just Don't Realize It (Saturday the 14th)

 

Don't scoff. You love horror comedies. You do, admit it. Maybe you don't even realize it. Perhaps you don't recognize a horror comedy when you see one. It could be that you haven't found the right fit for your tastes. Could it be you're afraid you might lose your horror cred if you laughed at the macabre. I'm here to tell you, you can admit it: Horror Comedy is great!

Of course dark, brooding, eerie, moody horror is your thing. Nobody is going to take that from you. No need to point your chin up at the occasional funny movie that plays in your sandbox. They can co-exist in blood-soaked harmony. No harm, no foul. Take a break. Have a laugh and then get back to all the brooding and bludgeoning. That's what life is all about.

You already like at least one horror comedy flick. I guarantee it. Almost certainly you've enjoyed Tucker and Dale vs. Evil, a movie that has the best time having fun with all the tropes you love. Then there's What We Do In The Shadows, pairing classic horror movie monsters with the reality television format. There are the mainstream ones that you might not even realize qualify as horror comedy like Gremlins, Ghostbusters and Beetlejuice. The Addams Family and The Munsters, too! Perhaps the modern granddaddy of the horror comedy movies, Shaun of the Dead? Its an out and out lampoon of the tried and true zombie horror movie we've been watching since Romero set the ghouls out to get Barbara.

Speaking of granddaddies, have you heard of one of my favorite horror comedies of all time? Saturday the 14th. It was released way back in 1981 starring Richard Benjamin and Paula Prentiss and features a young (and still balding) Jeffrey Tambor along with the likes of Stacy Keach and Michael Berryman to name a few.

Saturday the 14th is a spoof of sorts. But, not on the movie named for the day before this flick. This is more of a fun homage to classic Hollywood horror monsters. A typical suburbanite family inherits their dead uncle's house. The house contains an evil book of magic unbeknownst to the family but totally beknownst to the vampire (Tambor) who want to run the family off and get his hands on the book himself. Of course, the son find the book before Dracula. When he opens it up and starts reading the pages inside he sets loose a panteon of movie monsters on the unsuspecting family (and on Dracula Tambor). There's a werewolf and a mummy. There's a creature of a dark lagoon (or in this case, a bathtub.) There's even an exterminator named, you guessed it, Van Helsing, who's hired to get rid of the bats in the attic.

Saturday the 14th shows its age. But, its not a movie that needs its good looks to prevail. This is a movie about having fun with movie monsters. When I first watched this as a kid, there were parts that scared the bejesus out of me but it was the laughs that kept me glued to the TV and got me through it. This is the movie that made me love horror. And yes, its a horror comedy that made me love horror. See, horror comedy is horror.

You're not going to discover this as a kid. But you should still check it out. As of the the release of this blog, you can find Saturday the 14th streaming free on Tubi, Peacock, Roku Channel and Amazon Prime Video. There's no excuse not to check it out.

And if you find you love horror comedy like I do, why not check out my horror comedy books, inspired by movies like Saturday the 14th. You can find them on Amazon, Kindle & Kindle Unlimited. Or you can buy signed paperback copies direct through my web site at frankedler.com. Use the coupon code: BUY3 at checkout to get any three books for $30. 

Open For Business

Want book mail? Wanna stick it to the man? Want to but more than just a book? Well  I can help you out with all of those things. And it's easier than ever to do.

All you have to do is visit https://frankedler.com for you one-stop-shop for all things Mr. Frank. I've combined my online book store with my blog feed and Insta posts into one seemless experience.

ALL books at frankedler.com are just $12 each and 3 for $30 (Use Code BUY3 at checkout). All books can be signed and personalized and always come with bookmarks and stickers!

Everyone loves finding book mail at their door. Experience the thrill of doing box opening videos on YouTube, Insta or TikTok. Share all the cool books you're going to be reading. Douse them with all that FOMO. Not being the cool kid on the block with titles like DEATH GETS A BOOK, BRATS IN HELL and EXPLODING BEARS sucks. Order your Mr. Frank books today at http://frankedler.com 

Don't give Amazon all your money. Buy books direct from Mr. Frank. You can't get signed books at the big box stores. But you can at frankedler.com Everyone wins when you buy direct from the author.

Mr. Frank's Avalanche of Audio

 I've got three announcements of an aural nature. Excited? I knew you would be. 

(Hey! Let a guy dream.)

First and foremost, DEATH GETS A BOOK is now an audiobook available on Audible. I decided it was time to get some of my work out there in audiobook format. I didn't expect the task of finding the right narrator for the job as daunting as it turned out to be. The process made me realize how much I value my work and when placing into the hands of someone else to care for, I wanted to be sure I had the exact right voice for the job. 

Well, I failed at that. What happened was I connected with a voice talent that exceeded my expectations. Ron Gabaldon, the narrator for DEATH GETS A BOOK audiobook, owned the story. He didn't just read the story, he owned the story. I don't hear him narrating the book so much as performing the story. DEATH GETS A BOOK is a vocal performance, entertaining from the first word to the last.

If you are an active audiobook listener, you need to check DEATH GETS A BOOK out. I'm confidant you'll be whisked away to the land of Grim Reapers I've created and Ron Gabaldon has brought to life. 

*(A special offer to those who read this blog: The first 5 interested parties to email me (frankjedler at gmail) will receive a free download code (US and UK) for DEATH GETS A BOOK at Audible.com)

The other two audio presentations I have for you are recent podcast appearances.

First, I found this great new horror focused podcast called The Horror Frequency whose host, Anthony, is a young, curious talent who produces a fun sounding show. You can check out my appearance on The Horror Frequency on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Radio Public and more. We talk about A DEATH IN TOLEDO, creepy places in New Jersey, unlikely books two horror guys are into and great kaiju movies.

And last, but not least, I made my triumphant return to Arm Cast, Dead Sexy Podcast. I have a fun conversation with Armand Rosamilia about why it was time to write a new Death book, adventures in marketing, what I'm doing to sell books in the pandemic era and I even coax a "Nice" out of Armand which is essential to claiming a great appearance on the show. 

There it is. More audio pleasures than you can shake a stick at. And, I don't know about you, but I can shake a stick at quite a bit of audio pleasure. Happy listening!

A

Podcast Killed The YouTube Star

SCATTERBRAIN is out running wild in the book world. That means it's time for me to start my media blitz. As you may or may not already be aware, I host my own podcast, Bizzong! The Bizarre and Weird Fiction Podcast on the Project Entertainment Network. But to get the word out about the new book I have to cast a wider net.

As you may or may not have noticed, I've appeared on several different podcasts recently. So let this entry serve as your one-stop-shop as your own personal Mr. Frank Radio Network launch pad. I'll give you the skinny on all the shows I've made appearances on recently.

The NEW Panic Room Radio Show:  The Panic Room airs live Thursday nights via BlogTalkRadio. You can listen to hosts Xtine Marie and James Longmore as they chat with writers from all walks of life and you can also listen back as a podcast after the show airs. One of the few live shows that do it right.

The Sample Chapter Podcast:  A great new book related podcast that I've really been digging on. The Sample Chapter Podcast is hosted by Jason Meuschke who conducts a short interview and then allows the feature author to read a sample chapter from one of their published books. You can listen to hear a sample from SCATTERBRAIN here.

The Lunch Ladies Book Club Podcast: The Lunch Ladies Book Club, hosted by Shelly Rosamilia is an audio book club. Shelly (along with occasional special guests) does a deep dive into the books she has been reading. On this episode, I join Shelly to discuss John Wayne Comunale's DEATH PACTS AND LEFT HAND PATHS. Did we like the book? Listen to find out!

Bizzong! The Bizarre and Weird Fiction Podcast: No matter what you do make sure to check out my podcast, Bizzong! where I interview everyone who is anyone that writes, eats and breaths bizarre and weird fiction. Every Monday, exclusively on the Project Entertainment Network.








You can also hear become a patron of the Project Entertainment Network to listen in to the new episode of NOT Bizzong! A Patreon Exclusive Podcast of the Project Entertainment Network where I pull back the curtain on your favorite network podcasts to find out what makes them tick. Consider becoming a patron now for as little as $1 a month.

Thanks for listening and make sure you check out the new book, SCATTERBRAIN. Available for Kindle eBook and paperback. Also available to subscribers of Kindle Unlimited.

South of the Bratwurst

BRATS IN HELL premiers Tuesday, May 30th. Touted as "The WURST Book Ever Written", the latest release from Frank J. Edler is being marketed with a fondness and nostalgia for travel along the I-95 corridor between New York and Florida.

You've never SAUSAGE a book! Brats In Hell, my latest release, is the story of Otto Van Der Noodle and his award winning bratwursts. The bratwursts that taste so good, he influences the power balance over the forces controlling Hell. When it came time to start promoting BRATS IN HELL, I focused in on the bratwurst theme of the story. How do I promote a book about bratwursts?

The answer was simple, because from my childhood forward I traveled along Interstate 95 between New York and Florida more times than I could possibly count. Those who've traveled along I-95 will instantly know where I'm going with this. Those who haven't, let me clue you in.

There is a tourist attraction that people love to hate in the town of Dillon, South Carolina. It's called SOUTH OF THE BORDER. It's called that because, well, its just south of the border between North and South Carolina. It's that kitschy, clever type of pun that gives the place its loathsome charm. But half the fun of South of the Border is getting there.

There are said to be something in the neighborhood of 275 billboards up and down I-95 advertising SOUTH OF THE BORDER. The tourist trap itself features a motel, restaurant, fireworks shop and other shopping facilities and attractions. Each billboard either advertises a specific area of the complex or simply lure you in with something funny, eye-catching and a tease of how much further you have to go until you get there. It's the perfect distraction from the long drive to keep an eye out for Pedro and his billboards.

My absolute favorite were the ones that had a gigantic three dimensional hot dog on them that would read, "You never SAUSAGE a place!" So when it came time to promote my book about sausages the only logical conclusion was to take a cue from the experts of marketing, SOUTH OF THE BORDER billboards.

And just like that magical moment when you finally see the giant sombrero along side of I-95 in
Dillon, South Carolina, you can pick up your copy of BRATS IN HELL after having suffered through miles of my cheesy advertising and hold it proudly like a cheap souvinier and say, "I've made it to the WURST book ever written." and love every rotten moment of the pun.

For more fun information and facts on South of the Border and it's billboards, check out these cool web sites:

South of the Border History

South of the Border on Wikipedia

DWMorrison's Fun Facts of South of the Border

And of course, you can read BRATS IN HELL on Kindle, Kindle Unlimited and Paperback.

Check it out here.