Red carpet zombies at the Eyegore Horror Awards.
The star-studded 6th annual Eyegore Horror Awards kicks off Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights.
How can you not love an event that has a live jazz combo playing splashy lounge versions of horror film theme music from, say, The Exorcist or Nightmare on Elm Street while four huge video screens surrounding the room show a montage of the most memorably terrifying scenes from the very same movies?
How about if it also includes an awards ceremony for the 6th annual Eyegore Horror Awards at Universal Studios Hollywood theme park honoring actors, directors and writers for major achievements in the horror film genre?
Still not impressed? Okay, okay– how about a batallion of servers swarming the room with trays piled with toothsome hors’d’ouvres and an open bar?
This year’s Eyegore Award honorees included Julie Benz, the actor from Showtime’s Dexter and the upcoming Saw V, and Tobe Hooper, director of Poltergeist and Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Also honored with awards were actors Bill Moseley, the famous “Choptop” from Texas Chainsaw Massacre II and star of Rob Zombie‘s House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil’s Rejects, George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead and the upcoming Repo! The Genetic Opera, in which he stars opposite Paris Hilton; and Gunnar Hansen, who created the Leatherface character in Texas Chainsaw Massacre and stars in the upcoming Escape of the Living Dead.
Warning: Disturbing photo after the jump; NOT for the squeamish!
Tobe Hooper talks about the Texas Chainsaw maze at Halloween Horror Nights.
Presenters included the legendary horror master Roger Corman, director of The Wasp Woman, The Little Shop of Horrors, The Terror, Bucket of Blood; to name but a very few.
Corey Feldman, star of Lost Boys, and the Friday The 13th films and A & E’s The Two Coreys, served as this year’s master of ceremonies.
After the awards, attendees drifted out into the park to take in the opening night of a staple of the season in Los Angeles, Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights. Walking through the belch of fog machines shot through with flashing light and blood curdling screams all around, I was glad I had taken full advantage of the open bar. Creatures and ghouls appeared out of the mist and got right in my face before slinking off in search of hopefully more sober thrill seekers.
A delicious irony was seeing signs throughout the park touting the “green” awareness of the theme park juxaposed against the numerous faux maniacs touting (fake) chainsaws with (real) gasoline-powered engines spewing (real) fumes. WTF, Universal?
But never mind, because strolls through the Friday The 13th and Texas Chainsaw Massacre mazes were Grand Guignol-esque tours of the most grisly scenes from the horror film series re-enacted by real actors. It was really gross and probably did more to shorten my life than inhaling any of those silly carcinogens.
Lines were long for The Simpsons ride and others so after ogling the naughtily girating “Freddy Girl” go-go dancers we scurried down the mountain of escalators and found there was only a five minute wait for The Mummy, an indoor, dark roller coaster that blasted the aforementioned murderous scenes right out of my head.
And what night of horror is complete without a sprint through Universal CityWalk? In the end, I found myself at Abercrombie & Fitch, spraying every fragrance they had up and down my arms until my nostrils were in flames as my date tried on several pairs of steeply discounted board shorts.
“What’s that smell?” he asked as we stood in line to pay for his next-summer’s beach wardrobe. “It’s me,” I said, “I was testing cologne.” His reply said it all: “Horrifying.”
