[Spats]

Today we lost an icon, and the timing is bitter.
Those of you who trip the dark fantastic, who live not in the sunlight world of normalcy but reside instead in the midnight of horror, will know the name Zacherle.

He died at the age of 98, and the graveyard is quiet.

For those of you not in the know, John Zacherle (or Zacherley, depending on preference) was also known as the Cool Ghoul, Roland. He was the host of Chiller Theater in NYC and Philly in the 50s and the 60s, and was one of the inspirations for Peter Vincent, Vampire Killer. He was massively successful, and even released a few novelty records, such as "Dinner with Drac".

The Age of the Horror Host has passed, and today we've lost one of its pioneers.

 

[Gym Whourlfeld]

As a 10 yr. old kid I sent my $2.98 away and had a life-sized black& White poster come to my door (In Illinois ) I never really knew who or what he was at that time, but the poster was printed on what seemed to be a movie screen with sparklies in it!
I nailed it to the inside of a basement door for my basement haunted house.
He startled me SO MANY TIMES!
Out of the corner of my eye I would see him standing there!
Our 2 or 3 TV Channels never featured him, but I knew him.

 

[Ghost of Spookie]

Thanks for mentioning this. He had such a great face for the horror scene and had picture perfect expressions that just sent chills down your spine. In part I feel sad he died before halloween. The NYT did a nice article about him a few years back. My brother and I grew up watching Chiller Theater as little kids while he was still on. He, Svengoolie, Elvira and others were always fun to watch introducing those old horror flicks.

 

[Dinosaur1972]

RIP, John Zacherle

We've lost one of the great ones. Zacherley, The Cool Ghoul, has passed away. He was 98 years old.

https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/197076/rest-peace-john-zacherle-aka-zacherley-cool-ghoul/

 

[ravenworks69]

The only vote that mattered this season...RIP Zacherley

 

[Dinosaur1972]

To celebrate Zacherley, here's a recording of his Halloween radio Special from 1988. Besides the seasonal songs, you just get a whole lot of Zach's hearty laughter, jokes, and even traffic reports.

 

[RCIAG]

OH man....he almost made it to Halloween. I had one of his albums & I had to keep it covered because his face scared me.

 

[Wolfman]

Who says "only the Good die young"? 98 years young, goes to prove, laughter IS the best medicine...

 

[ChrisW]

He was an original and the best. I was fortunate to get an autograph and picture with him at the Famous Monsters convention held in Crystal City, VA. He had a great sense of humor and an infectious laugh.
Besides the gigs that Spats mentioned, he also was the inspiration for (and gave a blessing to) Dr. Shock, who followed him on channel 17 in Philly. Although he was a local Horror host (albeit in two of the largest metro markets) his friendship with Forry Ackerman, and subsequent coverage in Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine, made him a national celebrity - at least to us Monster Kids who read such stuff!

Ravenworks - I have that Zacherley for President kit as well. When I heard about his demise, I texted a buddy and told him we can stop campaigning for Zach now.

 

[Gym Whourlfeld]

I DUNNO? Zak might be a good candidate, as the Dark-horse Write-in.
The Secret Service wouldn't have to worry about guarding him, and if the Oui-Ja board is warmed up we could have him run the country.