Destree Fun Trip 2014: The Monster Bash

After hanging out in Holland, we drove up to Mars, Pennsylvania to go to the Monster Bash. Rick's dad is a huge monster movie fan and planned for us to attend the classic monster convention. The Monster Bash is part film festival, part classic monster & science fiction movie convention 

From the Bash website: 

The Monster Bash Movie Convention is even more. It's a state of mind. A place, like Skull Island, where our imaginations were ignited and still burn behind our everyday jobs and life. The Bash is Forrest Ackerman's classic monster magazine, the local TV Horror Host, the Aurora monster models, the monster toys of all shapes and plastics.... It's a place when Halloween was eagerly awaited. It's the horror and science fiction paperback collections, and most of all it is...the movies.

Creature Car

Damn, son! Look at all these monsters!

Rick, making friends 

BOGUS! 

Joel Hodgson, talking about how he got his start. His panel was super inspiring, even if you're not into comedy or ventriloquism. 

He used a slideshow to share pictures from his childhood and early adulthood. 

Posters that Joel & his team made and put up around town before the Monster Bash

Another Poster

Face timing with my bro while in the cemetery where they filmed "Night of the Living Dead"

Headstones

We took a little side trip to the Evans City Cemetery

Evans City Cemetery

"They're coming to get you, Barbara". 

Night of the Living Dead Museum

Grandpa Munster's Coffin Car

After coming off of the high of Denver Comic Con, I didn't really know what to expect from The Monster Bash. Was it going to be big and packed, or really small and specialized. The convention was smaller than I expected it to be and much more specialized. The dealer floor had more variety of sellers than I thought there would be and I was pretty impressed by everything that we saw. The only panel I went to was the Joel Hodgson panel, but that alone was worth the charge of admission. They showed monster films late into the night and all weekend. There were several cosplayers, but there were only a handful, so the people who dressed up really stood out.

For a novice monster fan like me (I grew up watching monster movies and I really like monster/science fiction movies, but I can't name every actor/actress/director ever), I think a lot of the guests and events were lost on me, but it was definitely a good time and something to see. I always think it's super interesting to see a sub culture you don't generally interact with.

My only regret from this leg of the trip is that we didn't get to see any of Pittsburg. We stayed primarily in Mars & Evans City and didn't venture into the city at all.  I have always wanted to visit Pennsylvania, and we really didn't get to see much of the state.

 I guess that just means that we'll have to go back!