Just in time for Halloween, Corey Taylor has his eyes on bringing back some monsters - Famous Monsters that is. In a new interview with Rolling Stone, the Slipknot frontman divulged about buying the rights to the vintage fanzine, originally called Famous Monsters of Filmland, which published from 1958-1983.
It was a favorite of many horror fans like Taylor and The Misfits who used the magazine's stylized logo font on their albums and merch, and of course had an album called Famous Monsters that came out in 1999. Taylor also shared how the magazine and his love of the horror genre influenced the genesis of Slipknot.
News of Taylor's acquisition along with business partner Eben McGarr (behind Mad Monsters magazine and convention) broke at the Son of Monsterpalooza convention in Burbank, California on Friday Oct. 14, according to Rolling Stone. In addition to giving life again to the magazine, Taylor and McGarr plan to use the brand for producing films (possibly using some of Taylor's own scripts), making a toy line and possibly even for festivals in the future.
Rolling Stone also reports that the business partners secured rights to Captain Company, a Famous Monsters retail point that once "sold rubber masks and sea monkeys." Their first move with the acquisition will be to digitize all the archived copies so fans can read them online for free and then relaunch it officially in a TBD annual or biannual edition.
Then, Taylor said, he wants to relaunch a convention to bring fans together and pay homage to Famous Monsters creator Forrest Ackerman and original publisher Jim Warren. His idea would be to make it a regular, touring event, "almost like the Super Bowl or WrestleMania," he told Rolling Stone. A possible Famous Monsters music cruise may be coming too.
Taylor shared with the publication his desire to purchase the rights to the brand, and said, “Our job is to build a foundation to bring Famous Monsters into the modern age, while also honoring the legacy that came before. It’s the whole reason that we were fans to begin with.”
He added, "It was the first real place where we, as horror nerds, could feel safe and feel connected feel like we weren’t alone. The internet has made it easy for us to connect, so I want to kind of make this another viable place for them to come."
