Comedy-Horror Films

Bruce G. Hallenbeck is a film director and contributing writer for such publications as Little Shoppe of Horrors, Cinefantastique, Femme Fatales, and many others. His films include The Drowned, Vampyre, Fangs and London After Midnight. He works at the New York State Library in Albany.

“commendable…comprehensive…a strong frame of reference…interesting information and insights…exceptional analysis…diversity of titles…any general fan of movies will benefit from this book, as will libraries and film research centers. It is most highly recommended”—Rogue Cinema; “a great fun filmbook and one of the best reads of 2009”—Little Shoppe of Horrors;“Hallenbeck knows his stuff, so the history lesson is engaging one for film fans”—www.bookgasm.com; “a fun read...a cool book”—Horrornews.net; “anyone studying film will find this book useful and any filmgoer who is a fan of the genre will enjoy it”—The Art Book; “essays are well-written”—Scarlet; “comprehensive...a historical and often humorous look at these great films...provides wonderful anecdotes...film buffs will want to add this book to their library”—The Gouverneur Times; “an unabashed love letter to a hybrid genre that has been hiding in plain sight since the earliest days of cinema...a breezily entertaining survey driven by the author’s abiding affection for the subject matter”—Peter Hanson, author of The Cinema of Generation X.

• Table of ContentsAcknowledgments      Preface      Introduction      1. The Silents: Unheard Punchlines and Subtitled Screams      2. The Thirties: Old Dark Houses and Gorilla Suits      3. The Forties: Killer Zombies and Comedy Teams      4. The Fifties: Elderly Monsters and Black Humor      5. The Sixties: Gothic Castles and Cleavage Galore      6. The Seventies: Naked Vampires and Young Frankensteins      7. The Eighties: American Werewolves and Toxic Avengers      8. The Nineties: Screams and Cemetery Men      9. Comedy-Horror in the New Millennium      Afterword      Appendix A: A Chronological Checklist of Films      Appendix B: Selected Short Subjects      Bibliography      Index