Nick Kelly's Blog

Book Review: Halloween Magic, Mystery and the Macabre

A Wonderful Collection of Scary Stories from a Variety of Veteran Writers 

October is the perfect time to stock up on all the spooky things. Every streaming service, network channel, comic book publisher, and amusement park embrace the season. For those who like to read, it’s a great time to catch up on horror anthologies. 

Halloween Magic, Mystery and the Macabre is one of those collections that pull from all the realms of possibility. Editied by Paula Guran (Once Upon a Time: New Fairy Tales), MMM features many celebrated authors of all ages and backgrounds. It has an incredible international feel.  

Published in 2013, MMM is full of frights and fun from cover to beautiful cover. It includes nearly 20 stories of varying lengths. They include plenty of supernatural and unexplained scares, along with several happy endings and tales of transformation. One of the greatest aspects of the book is the world-building. Many of the authors create scenarios from colonies to neighborhoods just for these short stories. Others tap into worlds that they have already built but add in a new flavor of frightfulness just for the occasion. 

Naming any of these stories a highlight depends entirely on the reader’s mood and interests. Stephen Graham Jones opens the anthology with Thirteen, which is focused on a dare that taunts movie-goers at the old Big Chief Drive-In Theater. Norman Partridge follows with a mummy’s memoir in The Mummy’s Heart. Other gripping tales include a werewolf assassin, doppelgangers, zombies back from the war (or others who never left town), and more witches than anyone could shake a broom at. 

Several of the stories are airy and mysterious while others are up front and visual, but never to the point of unnecessary gore. This collection is all about entertainment with a macabre twist, not pushing the envelope in terms of gore or violence. There are meta stories where the characters celebrate their own love of horror, Halloween and even Hammer films. In these tales, it feels like the reader is right along with them for the ride. 

The collection of awards and nominations among these authors is plentiful. Many have dozens or even hundreds of stories published. The writing is consistently high-quality and will introduce readers to worlds and nations they may never have explored. 

Halloween Magic, Mystery and the Macabre runs 384 pages. The stories are short enough to enjoy one at a time, or all at once. It is available in print and ebook on Amazon. 

Book Review: Halloween Nights

Halloween Nights: Tales of Autumn Fright is a wide-open Halloween-themed anthology featuring a ton of talented authors. Published in 2021 and edited by James A. Moore, the book includes stories from a variety of worlds and points of view. Where other anthologies might put some guide rails in place, Autumn Fright just lets the authors build and journey through their own playgrounds.  

In addition to editing, Moore contributes several of his own stories and they are riveting. Kettle is a particular standout because the visuals and the characters make the reader feel as if they’re right there in the graveyard. This recipe includes some scared children, a dare that no one should fall for, and a story with an iconic villain.  

Moore’s other story, The Cemetery on Blackwell Road, rolls in slowly. It follows a young man named Eddie whose memories and dreams tend to blur. He is fixated on a young girl who has disappeared in his neighborhood, and he sees her memory imprinted on all the lives she touched. This becomes an obsession that soon overtakes all his other distractions until he has a chance to make a sacrifice in her name. 

Other highlights include the short but hysterical My Favorite Halloween Memory by Jeff Strand and Night Boy by Errick Nunnally. Like many Halloween-themed short stories, these authors build worlds, introduce characters, set up conventions, and knock them down with expert precision. I’m Not Gonna Make It by Christopher Golden and Brian Keene taps into the generational challenge and stubbornness of modern social norms. The authors pivot from lead character Jimmy’s stubborn internal monologue and some forces he couldn’t even conceive. 

Some of the writers use the set up only to bring in the big twist ending. What’s wonderful is that the stories are never thin enough to rely on simple shock value. They each have depth. Reading the book is like treating friends to a random night of horror movies chosen just for the cover art. They might feature a quick glimpse of a slasher or torturer. They might cover centuries of legends surrounding witches and the occult.  

Halloween Nights is formatted in the perfect fashion. Readers might want to bite off one story at a time or dig in and devour the entire anthology. Either way, they will be delighted, scared, angered, saddened, terrified or tickled, depending on the author’s mood.  

The book is 246 pages long and includes some wonderful artwork from Daniel Brereton. It’s a delightful read during the titular Halloween season or an absolute treat any time of the year. 

The Mortuary Collection

Horror anthologies are everywhere in 2020. Shudder has its own share, as do Hulu, Netflix and other streaming services. With The Mortuary Collection, Shudder releases a fresh take on a crowded market. Fortunately, writer/director Ryan Spindell has some great stories, and a magical cast led by Clancy Brown and Caitlin Custer. 

Throughout the course of the movie, Montgomery Dark, the funeral home director played by Brown, tells several stories to Sam (Custer.) There are four stories in all, ranging from a simple lesson in keeping out of other people’s business, to more complex issues like upholding marriage vows. The stories are connected by Sam and Montgomery touring the funeral home.  

Spindell’s writing is excellent and consistent. His love of horror is evident. This is, after all the director of The Babysitter Murders and We Come in Pieces. He has plenty to work with in this project as the cast is super talented. Poor Jacob Elordi (The Kissing Booth) goes through hell in his story, though it is completely justified given his character. Christine Kilmer (Shameless) is amazing in a story she plays solo. Ema Horvath (What Lies Below) is the perfect parasite. 

The Mondo Boys soundtrack provides a pulp flavor to the movie. The special effects work, led by Simon White, is visually delightful. It supports the supernatural elements of the stories without ever pulling the viewer out of it. Spindell brilliantly mixes in some amazing stuntwork when it’s least expected, adding another layer to Custer’s absolute brilliance. 

The Mortuary Collection is a great mix of storytelling, visuals, acting and sound. It’s a love letter to horror as a genre. It hits everything from Lovecraft to serial killers with a huge twist ending. Definitely worth the time if you don’t mind a little violence and gore.  

Interview: Diego the Podcaster

The Host of Let’s Find Out Sits Down to Answer Some Questions

Diego is a man who does not fear the unknown or unexplained. He turns and faces it, regardless of the situation. Host of Let’s Find Out with Diego, he often interviews those who touch the fringes of the supernatural. In over 100 episodes, Diego’s guests have included the hosts of Spirit Xperience, Bone Jawson (author of The Legend of Crick Foot), The UFO Paradox author Keith Thompson, paranormal investigator Robin Strom-Mackey, UFO witness Chris Evers, and many more.

In 2025, Diego authored a mini-memoir about experiences throughout his lifetime that remain unexplained. The book, titled I Remember the Crib (yes, it’s as terrifying as the title) details audio, visual, and physical phenomena that Diego remembers from infancy to his adult life. He was kind enough to sit down and answer a few questions about his book, his podcast, and the endless search to explain that which defies explanation.

NK: Diego, welcome! Thanks for joining me and taking the time. I have to say I found I Remember the Crib to be an absolute page turner. Some of these memories were really wild. What made you decide to launch the podcast and to share these memories also?

Diego:  My friend, I appreciate the kind words about my book and for the invitation to join you on this interview. Honestly, writing a book wasn’t in any of my plans, but these stories have been living in my mind for so many years. I’ve done many interviews on Let’s Find Out with Diego, and all the stories and experiences my guests have bravely told on my show are very important. As the years passed by, I sat down in the studio and just started writing my experiences down just to see how much I could remember. Turns out that there were plenty to choose from. The podcast was born around 3 years ago shortly after another podcast (2020 to mid 2022) I was doing with a former partner came to an end. The prior podcast was mostly about pro-wrestling and other types of subjects. I started looking to add more stories about paranormal and cryptids to shake up the format a little. But once the old show had its last episode, I took a couple of months to regroup and start the current one. With Let’s Find Out with Diego, it is a great mix of Paranormal, Cryptozoology, UFOIogy and other types of high strangeness.  From time to time, I veer off and do other subjects, then I started another podcast late in 2024 called Bonus Overdrive Wednesday. It goes down more covering music, movies, and other things in the entertainment side of things.

NK: Some of these are physical. Others are visual. One that tripped me out was the story of the house across the street and ABBA’s Chiquitita. I had never heard it before, so I tracked it down immediately. I can’t imagine that song for hours. Have you heard it since, and what was that experience like?

Diego: I haven’t heard that since 1982 and to be on the up and up, I really don’t care to listen to it again. Don’t get me wrong, the song is good and I don’t dislike ABBA, but from that experience I had when I was a very young child, it will forever live in me. If I were to hear that song again, I would consider it some sort of warning from a spiritual force long ago. I don’t qualify ABBA or that song to have any sort of supernatural backstory or origin, and I don’t think that the band had that sort of reputation, at least not that I know of.  I tell you what, I do love that Dancing Queen song though.

NK: So many of your stories are also stories about the places you lived at the time. Your stories about being a child in Rio Piedras, or your early years in Virgina really reflect the evolution and industrialization of those areas. Is there one place that you’ve mentioned where you would choose to live if you could?

Diego: With the locations of the stories, it started out in Puerto Rico, then they followed me to Virginia. I moved out of Virginia about 6 years ago and moved to West Virginia where the experiences still happen in the present day. Most likely, I will live out the rest of my days in WV. 

NK: Based on your West Virginia home, put to rest some questions that the skeptics will ask. How much of these things are structural, or just those normal things that happen to a homeowner? How many just defy explanation?

Diego: That’s a great question, as with many of these types of stories, it’s poor judgment to just label something “paranormal” and let that be the end of it. There are many factors that come into play that may have the appearance of the supernatural, but it may just be a whole lot of nothing too. There were plenty of moments in this house that were just normal home noises and nothing out of the ordinary. As I stated earlier, not everything is paranormal no matter how much you want it to be.  I’ll say this my friend, I don’t go looking for the paranormal, it comes looking for me for whatever reason.  I’m naturally a skeptic, and in doing 100’s of field interviews in my prior line of work, I take that same strategy to see what qualifies or if the math doesn’t add up.  In the book, I only write about what I identify as being paranormal or highly strange. I invite the reader to determine that for themselves, and I don’t make it a point in convincing anyone. 

NK: There are several instances you mention when you were young, single, hustling to make it in sports entertainment, and there are others where you mention your wife and your family. How has your perspective changed if you compared those periods in your life?

Diego: I tell you what, if I were still involved in that lifestyle and in sports entertainment things would have for sure turned out differently for me. Not for the better but for the worse. There’s only so much of that Uncle Charlie life you can live until it’s time to pay the devil his due. It works for some, but for me that all ended in December of 2010. It’s no longer just about me and getting my time in the spotlight, those days are way over. My wife is on this crazy ride with me now and man that’s about the most awesome thing. 

NK: Are there any stories you omitted from the book that you would include now if you could?

Diego: 100% yes. There are just a couple of stories that I didn’t add, one that happened just last year in January of 2024. Life changing event, one that maybe MUFON can explain.  With that being said, that experience is so detailed, so personal that I would need to tell it to someone and they would have to write it down for me. Some unfortunate circumstances and events from that experience have changed my life forever both mentally and physically. I’ve only shared that story with 2 people, one being my wife and another one with a Shaman friend of mine. I wouldn’t even know how to write it all down by myself, but I hope to one day share it, if not in a book, then it will be on the show.

NK: I know you don’t frequent other channels when sharing the things that drive you. It can be considered a commoditized market of those who want to market the paranormal, but I think your stories are raw, unedited, and very personal. Thanks for sharing your stories and your ongoing investigation into the unknown. Would you like to share any upcoming news, appearances, events, or guests coming to Let’s Find Out?

Diego:  I have several events that I will be in later this year. My good friend Snarly Yow puts on some great events, this year I will be at Cryptid Halloween in October and Christmas with Krampus in December, and both will be in Hagerstown, MD. I invite everyone to visit my socials if they’re interested in coming out and not only supporting the show, but all the other hard working vendors, authors, investigators and artists.  Please check out https://linktr.ee/diegothepodcaster and it will take you to all the different sites and socials on which you can find information about the podcast.
I really appreciate the support, and for having me in this interview. Thank you for taking this journey with me!

Best regards,

Diego “Raf”

Host of: Let’s Find Out with Diego & Bonus Overdrive Wednesday

https://linktr.ee/diegothepodcaster

Movie Review: Novocaine

An Unlikely Hero with a Wild Condition

Nate (Jack Quaid) is a quirky dude. He is an assistant manager at a bank, but he rarely interacts with his co-workers. His social isolation is challenged when Sherry (Amber Midthunder) is hired. She is the girl of his dreams, and eventually gets him to come out of his shell a bit. At lunch, she gets him to disclose his condition. Nate hesitates when offered solid food. His condition means he cannot feel pain. In this case, he turns down eating cherry pie because he fears biting his tongue off. 

By the end of this story, biting his tongue would have been the least of his physical woes.

Sherry and Nate spend the night together after she turns the table on a creep who went to middle school with Nate. This is where his nickname “Novocaine” is introduced. She calls him a superhero, which he denies. As it turns out, she’s a pretty darn good actor. 

It’s the holiday season, and the next day the bank is robbed by a trio of Santas. They kill the manager and take Sherry hostage. Nate, clearly infatuated with her, decides to chase them down. This is the moment that the rom-com becomes a comedy action flick. It’s also the moment that the writers get to come up with novel and creative ways to make Jack Quaid (appear to) suffer.

In interviews, Quaid said he had to basically unlearn everything he’s ever learned as an actor in his stunt work. Despite over-the-top physicality in roles like The Boys, Heads of State, and Logan Lucky, Quaid had a different lesson. Nate feels no pain. He has no instincts for self preservation. He has to simply take the punches, kicks, knives, and much, much more. The writing room has a grand time figuring out ways to torture the protagonist. Act Two’s interaction with the mammoth Zeno (Garth Collins) is a particularly fun ride.

The supporting cast is incredibly well-written. Sherry has her own character development. The three Santas have wildly different personalities, including Simon (Ray Nicholson) and his California vibe persona. Matt Walsh (Veep) and Betty Gabriel (Get Out) play the well-meaning cops trying to catch the robbers. Throw in Jacob Batalon (Spider-Man: Homecoming) as the wingman, and you have a wonderful chemistry among the cast.

Novocaine has just the right amount of plot to support the action and make viewers root for the characters. It’s a great exercise in “what are we willing to put our guy through in the name of love”? It’s similar to the Jason Statham 2006 movie, Crank, in the main character’s condition. The difference is this film isn’t littered with misogyny. Nathan Caine is a true everyman; an underdog who goes further than he ever thought because he feels something he’s never felt.

Novocaine got overlooked in theaters in a crowded early 2025. It’s worth the watch if viewers don’t mind some gore. In fact, viewers who celebrate creative kills (like the Leslie Vernon post-hole digger or Sleepaway Camp’s curling iron moment) will enjoy the heck out of it. It’s currently streaming on Amazon Prime or Paramount Plus. At 1 hour and 50 minutes, it’s the perfect short, funny, romance/comedy/action movie with one of Hollywood’s most “Aw, Shucks” actors.

(Editor’s note: P.S. – This showed up in my feed next to Mickey 17, Nobody, and Suicide Squad if you want an idea of what you’re in for, or if you want some more to watch along these lines!)

TV Review: Horror’s Greatest

Some Great Behind the Scenes of the Many Horror Sub-Genres

We here at nK know that the folks at Shudder love love love their horror movies. The Horror’s Greatest series is proof of that. Started in 2024, this docuseries dedicates each episode to a theme or scenario of horror. The episodes feature clips from movies interspersed with interviews from actors, producers, writers, reviewers, directors, and fans. 

Director/writer Kurt Sayenga has a long, storied history of loving horror. He produced or executive produced series like Eli Roth’s History of Horror, The 101 Scariest Horror Movie Moments of All Time, and Microkillers. He knows what makes horror fans tick. Sayenga brilliantly centers the first episode around Tropes and Cliches. The episode covers killer rednecks, creepy houses, and final girls. Some filmmakers lean into them while others take on the challenge of subverting them.

Other episodes include Giant Monsters, J-Horror (truly brilliant episode), Horror Comedies, Horror Movie Scores, Animal Attacks, Killer Dates, Hidden Gems, and Space Horror. The episode on Stephen King Adaptations is wonderful. The interviewees don’t shy away from the fact that some adaptations are amazing, while many miss the mark. Of course they do. The movie makers have to show you something. Readers interpret the same scenes through theater of the mind, and that is hard to outdo, even in IMAX.

Sayenga isn’t alone. Everyone interviewed is a horror veteran, devotee, or both. The cast includes David Dastmalchian (Late Night with the Devil), Kate Siegel (The Fall of the House of Usher), Joe Hill (The Fireman), Tananarive Due (Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror), Jeffrey Reddick (Final Destination), Alex Winter (The Lost Boys), Jenn Wexler (The Sacrifice Game), Dana Gould (Stan Against Evil), The Boulet Brothers (The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula), Chelsea Rebecca (Dead Meat), Tom Holland (no, not that one (Fright Night)), and Steve Niles (30 Days of Night).

This series is a great companion to the docuseries In Search of Darkness, which focuses on a time period instead of genres. Each provides nostalgia for movies that many of us rented on VHS and DVD. Many of these films were produced years or decades before streaming. It’s inspiring to see that the love of these movies is timeless. There are still champions out there bringing these movies to the modern generation. The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs has published almost 200 episodes. Sites like Fangoria are still going strong. There are mega-fans who still cosplay movies that were direct to video. The Alamo Cinema and Drafthouse shows horror films from every decade in their theaters. 

While we reminisce, emerging filmmakers are building new horror films and franchises. Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Danny Boyle, and James DeMonaco have all introduced us to new terrors. Others like Jennifer Kaytin Robinson are taking on reboot duties like I Know What You Did Last Summer as Macon Blair brings back The Toxic Avenger. Other interesting 2025 standouts include Zach Cregger’s Weapons, Michael Shanks’ Together, and Joseph Kahn’s Ick.

Horror’s Greatest doesn’t just replay the best scenes from many movies. It digs into the reasons why we are both drawn to horror, and shy away from it. There is a psychological deep dive into how we pair horror and comedy, why we fear what we fear, and how the genre takes the illogical and envelopes it in a story. Viewers have reactions to both the everyday (Arachnophobia) and the impossible (Child’s Play). Whatever triggers your emotions and makes you cringe, Horror’s Greatest has you covered.

Check out Horror’s Greatest on Shudder or through Amazon Prime today.

Movie Review: Ballerina

An acrobatic and hard-charging revenge tale told in the John Wick universe

Eve is a young girl living with her father when armed men come to their home and kill him. Their leader (Gabriel Byrne) says that he tried to take her away from their “family.” He fights valiantly enough for them to escape, but succumbs to his wounds. She is met in the hospital by a strange man named Winston (Ian McShane) who promises to bring her to her real family. She is chosen by a woman known as The Director (Anjelica Huston) and recruited into the Ruska Roma family of assassins.

The film stays true to the John Wick formula. The first act establishes Eve (Ana de Armas) and her backstory, leading up through her training and her first contract. The second act is her going off on her own to find those responsible for her father’s murder. The third act is the absolute violence and mayhem that defines the “Gun Fu” action style synonymous with the franchise.

De Armas is great as Eve. Most of the supporting cast will be familiar to viewers, as characters like Winston, The Director, and Charon (the late, wonderful Lance Reddick) have roles in the film. Even The Continental plays its part. (Ballerina takes place between John Wick 3: Parabellum and John Wick 4.) Some new faces join the cast like Norman Reedus’ Daniel Pine, Juliet Doherty’s Tatiana, and Ava McCarthy’s Ella.

Ballerina isn’t a copycat of John Wick. The fight scenes are different, as Eve is (rather heavy handedly) told to fight like a girl. Her fight style is as chaotic but slightly more controlled than Keanu Reeves’ Wick. Where the movie finds its stride is in some of the signature stunt work (much of which de Armas did hereself). Katana swords, ice skates, flamethrowers, butcher knives, and plenty of firearms are involved in the over-the-top action. The film contains some of the most creative grenade kills around.

Ballerina is adapted from a standalone screenplay by Shay Hatten, and directed by Len Wiseman. There were reports of extensive reshoots from producer Chad Stahelski (who directed the John Wick movies and sought to protect the franchise from any bad reviews. Stahelski (who was Brandon Lee’s stunt double on The Crow) and Reeves are the faces of the John Wick brand.) Despite its sometimes frenetic pace, Ballerina never suffers from super quick shots, and never feels like a two-hour music video.

One standout of the film is the Tyler Bates/Joel J. Richard soundtrack. Tchaikovsky and Vivaldi are heavily spotlighted, but rock songs from Evanescence and Halsey add to the mix, along with Ashnikko and Le Castle Vania. 

Reeves can’t play Wick forever. These movies take a terrible toll on all of the stunt performers and Reeves has filmed his Gun Fu for over a decade. Ballerina’s exotic cars, fantastic locations, and signature stunts give it a stylistic set of visuals reminiscent of James Bond. If the torch is getting passed, de Armas is well equipped to carry it.

Ballerina is in theaters and is available on Amazon Prime.

Movie Review: M3GAN 2.0

The killer robot is back, this time with competition

2022’s M3GAN was a self-aware, tongue-in-cheek outright thriller about a companion robot that went rogue and started killing. It followed a slasher formula, not attempting to invent anything too new, but still keeping things fresh. Viewers knew what to expect and the filmmakers delivered exactly that.

In 2025, writers Akela Cooper (Malignant), Gerard Johnstone (Housebound) , and James Wan (Saw) have their universe already created, and they have free reign to do with as they choose. M3GAN 2.0 takes the murderbot and places her at the center of the modern day debate on Artificial Intelligence (AI).

We won’t get into the merits, politics and dangers of AI here. (This site is for reviews, interviews, (and getting you all to buy my books, after all)). But, we will share that all the players are represented in this movie. There’s the anti-AI activist (Aristotle Athari), the tech “genius” who wants to make billions (Jemaine Clement), the militia man who wants to weaponize it (Timm Sharp), and those trying to use it for good (Jen Van Epps and Brian Jordan Alvarez).

Dragged into all of this is inventor Gemma (Allison Williams) and her niece, Cady (Violet McGraw), three years removed from the events of the first film. M3GAN appears later, but she isn’t the only killer robot in this one. She’s not even the first we see. Nope, that honor is held by A.M.E.L.I.A. (Ivanna Sakhno), who is deployed on a mission to rescue a hostage from captivity. She goes rogue, killing the hostage (and his captors) and stealing bio-weapons.

This embarasses the colonel running the mission (Sharp playing an absolute doofus to the extreme), who drops in on Gemma and Cady, accusing Gemma of selling the original M3GAN technology to a state-sponsored attacker. Once Cady is asleep, Gemma gets a visit from M3GAN through the various smart home technologies in the house. 

M3GAN hatches a plan to stop her counterpart, but after nearly being killed by her creation, Gemma is understandably hesitant. M3GAN gets her first body and she and Gemma are off to infiltrate the party held by tech giant Alton Appleton (Clement). A.M.E.L.I.A. beats them to the party, and begins the first of her tech takeover moves.

The story moves to a bunker, an AI conference, a tech headquarters and a vault, each act seeing a new iteration as M3GAN improves. The sets are incredible. The costumes are elaborate, and the tech designs are creative. Each iteration of both bots feel unique, but maintain a consistency throughout their designs. For instance, M3GAN never loses her slightly oversized eyes that give her charm and empathy.

Williams anchors the cast, moving with ease from stoicism to anger to the dry wit that represents Gemma. McGraw is a little older, a little wiser, more mature, and much stronger than when she was an innocent nine year old. The combination of Jenna Davis’ voice and Amie Donald’s movements bring back everything viewers loved when they first met M3GAN. Sakhno plays A.M.E.L.I.A. as calculating and strategic. Viewers will be kept guessing if she is controlling herself, or being controlled. She’s synthetic but not robotic. Alvarez and Sharp are the clear comic relief, embracing their characters’ ineptitude. Clement plays Alton as a man who believes his own hype.

M3GAN 2.0 is to M3GAN what Aliens was to Alien. It keeps some of the horror aspects, but this is an action movie. It felt at times like a Bruce Lee movie. It doesn’t preach or condemn the role of AI in the world. Instead, it asks the question “what would happen if we dropped a killer, singing, dancing girlbot in the middle of today’s AI landscape?” It’s a redemption story that maintains all the charm and comedy of the original, while greatly expanding the scope and the stakes.

M3GAN 2.0 hit theaters on June 27, 2025.

Book Review: I Remember the Crib

A collection of unexplained experiences by a man dedicated to investigating it all

We’ve all experienced things we can’t explain. But how many of us have ever dedicated ourselves to investigating how they happened and what (or who) caused them? That’s the mission of Diego the Podcaster, host of Let’s Find Out with Diego.

The podcast explores the many phenomena that defy explanation. This includes paranormal investigation, seeking unidentified flying objects and unexplained aerial phenomena, hunting cryptids and more. Guests vary from every field and level of expertise, from UFO witness Ronald Kinsela to Bigfoot investigator Jason Kenzie to author and filmmaker Linda Eastburn. The show has over 100 episodes and is going stronger than ever.

In 2025, Diego penned I Remember the Crib (which is as creepy as it sounds), a mini-memoir of his unexplained experiences throughout his life. It’s a collection of bite-size memories from his time as an infant through his adulthood. Some may seem benign, others are decidedly malignant. Many defy explanation.

What makes this book stand out is Diego’s willingness to position himself at the points in his life when these events occur. His life is essentially a three act play. The first phase is an innocent and impressionable youth. The second is early in career, where he holds down hairnet jobs while trying to build his career in sports entertainment. The third is his current role as loving husband and family man who is trying to explain that which defies explanation.

I have known Diego through several of these chapters of his life, but many of these stories are as new to me as those who are reading this review for the first time. I found myself fascinated with these stories, and with Diego’s willingness to share with you, the public, some challenging, difficult, and terrifying memories he has never shared before. 

You can find Diego the Podcaster anywhere you find your podcasts. Grab your copy of I Remember the Crib today.

PS: Please read about the Missing Time phenomenon.

Movie Review: In Search of Darkness Part III

The final love letter to 80’s horror

Friends who know me know that I spent over a decade writing reviews and interviews for the wonderful Horrorview website. That site is long gone, but the torch has been passed to plenty of fantastic writers, content creators, and podcasters. One of the most dedicated displays is the movie trilogy from CreatorVC, In Search of Darkness. (I reviewed the first film HERE).

There are now three of these fantastic deep-dive movies, each clocking in around five hours of interviews and footage and behind-the-scenes looks at the rise of horror movies in the 80s. This was the time of slashers. This was the expansion of horror comedy. The most famous franchises of all time were launched in the 80s. Yes, Halloween was technically in the 70s, but Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Hellraiser, Puppet Master, and Evil Dead became beloved franchises during this time.

This decade gave us the rise of home video. Movies came home. Horny teenagers could watch characters get it on and get stabbed, chopped, slashed, and bitten to their hearts’ content. Movies like Black Roses, The Video Dead, Intruder, and Hobgoblins were available. Sequels no one expect to movies like Sleepaway Camp and Fright Night emerged. International movies became available. The earlier films that targeted adult audiences like The Exorcist, The Omen, and Psycho gave way to slasher franchises with gratuitous sex and even more gratuitous violence.

Just as the earlier installments, the third film interviews a ton of iconic actors, directors, and filmmakers. These include Cassandra Peterson (Elvira), Robert Englund (Freddy Kruger), Adrienne Barbeau (Swamp Thing), Dee Wallace (Cujo), Alex Winter (The Lost Boys), Tracie Thomas (Death Proof), Heather Langenkamp (A Nightmare on Elm Street), Diana Prince (The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs), Kane Hodder (Friday the 13th), Joe Dante (Child’s Play), and Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator). 

I didn’t go into watching Part III thinking that I needed another five hours of documentaries about the movies that I grew up loving. I was wrong. This film was an incredible mix of movies I hadn’t thought about in decades, movies I want to still introduce to the next generation of fans, and yes, movies, I hadn’t actually seen. 

CreatorVC deserves all the credit in the world for yet another wonderful installment of this series. Other projects that they have put out include similar ventures into sci-fi and video games. They also have deep dives on Aliens (and one coming up on John Carpenter’s The Thing). 

In Search of Darkness Part III will appeal to hardcore horror fans, those new to the genre who would love to know how we got here, and anyone remotely nostalgic for the days of Blockbuster, Erol’s, and your local video store.

Find out more about this movie and the others from CreatorVC here.