East Coast Horror Members

Mike Exler
Co-Founder
East Coast Horror Group

My love of horror starts out at an early age when my brother Chris forced me to watch the Poltergeist with him. From that point on I was looking for that next big scare. I found it several years later in the original Tobe Hopper classic, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. After that film I knew I loved to be scared and set out to see every possible horror movie I could get my hands on. It didn’t matter the sub genre, I wanted to see it all and become as knowledgeable as I could on what has no become my passion. I was fortunate enough to have friends that were interested as much as I am in the horror genre. Now those friends and I have created a place for us to cover horror conventions, interview horror celebrities that have been my idols for years and review horror films. Most importantly I get to talk with fans from all over about our common passion, horror! My only real claim to fame is I share my birthday with the one and only George A. Romero (Feb. 4th) My top 5 horror films are as follows and in no particular order: The Exorcist, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Shining, Hellraiser and Friday the 13th (Especially Kane Hodder as Jason). Thank you for reading about me and lets keep horror alive. Stay Scared – Mike

Drew Seidler
Co-Founder
East Coast Horror Group

There is nothing better than the rush you get from being scared. I imagine I’m drawn to it the same way others are inclined to skydiving or roller coasters. I remember sneaking to the door of my room as a child upon hearing that classic theme from Tales from the Crypt followed by the startled feeling I would get from hearing John Kassir’s infamous Crypt Keeper cackle, hoping to catch a glimpse before my parents told me to get back into bed. I of course wasn’t allowed to watch the sex and gore presented on that show at such a young age, it was forbidden, which made it even more intriguing. From then on I knew I was hooked. Staring at the box art of those classic 80′s exploitation films and slasher flicks before my parents drug me away drove the obsession even deeper. I remember my first big scare watching Candyman, I couldn’t look at a mirror for months. As I grew older and became more aware and desensitized to the sex and violence, my love was focused on the fact that these movies weren’t understood by everyone. Horror is like a three legged dog, it takes a special person to really love and embrace it. People don’t understand the reason we laugh when Bruce Campbell cuts off his own hand, or why we cheer when Jason spears two teenagers having sex, but we do, and we are what makes this genre so successful. My top 5 favorite horror movies in no particular order are: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), The Hills Have Eyes (1977), Evil Dead, Eraserhead (What other genre would you consider this?), and Night of the Living Dead (1968).

J.C. Ciesielski
Main Correspondent
East Coast Horror Group

When you grow up as a child of the 80′s, you were forced by your parents and Nancy Reagan to be aware of the real horrors in the world. Drugs and alcohol on the playground, white vans snatching kids off the street, the Iran Contra, nuclear winter, Alf). If you had awkward periods in your life growing up (parents fighting, a family member passing away, going through puberty early and all of the other fifth graders wondering why you have the weird “growth” towards the top of your leg under your pants and having to shave), horror was an escape. Not only did it snap your mind out if reality and a bit of bladder juice through your underoos, it created a world beyond what was truly troubling. In my family it taught us how to get each others goat. Once said goats were returned, we would emulate our favorite characters to scare the bejesus out of each other. I have memories of this more crystal clear that any Pepsi product ever created. My father taking metallic tape, forming “blades” around the fingers of a leather glove and wearing a brown fedora, hiding around the corner of the house, scraping the place down the corner of brick house as I came home from school. What a jerk. Mwahahaha! This diabolical trait was passed on from one sibling to another. Wearing Halloween “ghoul” gloves and a St. Patty’s Day green plastic top hat and waiting under my sisters’ bed whispering, “I wants me gold!” I think each of us have a little sparkle of mischief in us all. Not to terrify (permanently) other people, but to give them momentary escape from the mundane and what bogs us down in our daily routine. Just a quick wink and a nod of the macabre, a noise in the middle of the night, having to take a glance over your shoulder to see who’s or what’s watching. By the way, nice shirt. My top 5 scariest movies of all time are Beaches, Bridget Jones Diary, Sleepless in Seattle, Dirty Dancing and Grease. That being said, my top 5 favorite horror movies are The Thing remake, (because Kurt Russell kicks ass), Night of the Creeps, Killer Klowns from Outer Space, It and The Shining. A special shout out goes to Crispin Glover for being so awesome and to one of my favorite teachers in college and horror icon, John “The Vamp” Amplas. I’m kicking that nick name off John right here and now. You’re welcome. P.S. world, vampires don’t sparkle, take a stand. Join me in Team Martin, The Original teen vampire. Much love to the horrorphiles out there. Keep the nightmare alive or undead. Which ever floats your corpse.

Autumn Dies

Horror News, Music and Art Coorespondent

East Coast Horror Group

Horror became a part of my life at a very young age, My mother and her amazing collection of films she recorded eased my sister and I into the greatness that horror movies can bring. We had watched the exorcist a million times and freaked out friends that would come over in 6th grade, simply since their parents weren’t horror fans the boys weren’t used to films like this they couldn’t finish watching it. I even remember seeing pet cemetery at the drive-in with our parents ,They always thought we would be asleep by the time the horror movie would come on. But I would never miss a moment. Thinking back to when we found the tape that had sleep away camp on it ,and then the image of Angela at the very end was forever burnt in my mind. There’s seriously so many movies I have experienced over the time of my youth that just made my mind have a fondness for the dark and scary, although one thing i have to admit is that I have the hugest love for some of the most cheesiness and humorous movies out there. Such as Motel hell, Alice sweet Alice, Killer clowns from outer space, Frankenhooker, Clown House(I was actually afraid of clowns for a bit as a child after seeing this),They live, Night of the comet, Gingersnaps just to name some cause of course there are so much more. As I look back I see more and more that horror movies have always played a role in my life, such as with my art, which had been super demonic stuff as a teen(a teacher once left me a note on a project saying beautiful art but the subject worries me) ,but also Horror movies affected things I wanted to get into such as working at a haunt and actually scaring the hell out of people( volunteered 10 yrs in a row to work at our Fright night house It was amazing I have seriously missed it over the last 2 years since FN shut down but i still pop out randomly in dark shadows scaring anyone in my path ha!!) To me Horror movies are just one of those amazing things it hits you makes your heart pound, Or it can make you laugh or kinda cringe, I love all the moments when you feel yourself cringe but you cannot bring your self to look away. My top five horror movies not in a particular order would have to be, Night of the Living Dead (1968), Freaks (1932), Taxidermia (2006),Dawn of the Dead (2004),Murder Party (2007) if only the list could be bigger i could go on forever!