NEWS: Movie Maniacs

7-23-00 through 8-31-00

8-31-00

Series 3 Showing up.

Our good friend TOM got his today and from here on out they should gradually start showing up. To hear what Tom had to say

CLICK HERE.

Meanwhile the new WORKSHOP is up featuring mine and others choices for Series 4. Check it out!

Also, the PRICE GUIDE has been updated.

Todd Signs Again

Todd McFarlane will sign free autographs for fans at the San Francisco Tri-Star Collectors Show, Saturday, Sept. 2, 2:15 PM, beginning at 2:15 PM. He will be at the show which also features, sports and entertainment stars, with the McFarlane Collection of Homerun Baseballs.

Reminder to 'Turn Ben Stein On,' TONIGHT!

Don't forget to turn on Comedy Central tonight, Thursday, Aug. 31, at 10:30 PM to "Turn Ben Stein On," as host Ben Stein and Todd McFarlane discuss the truth behind the super powers that people have in real life and those that are fiction, according to the show's publicity blurb. "Turn Ben Stein On" airs on the cable network each Thursday. More than just an "over and out" movie plug vehicle, "Turn Ben Stein On" offers the best of "salon conversation" where bright and clever people talk about their favorite subjects and personal interests in a relaxed yet spontaneous atmosphere. For more info on the program, visit http://www.comcentral.com/bstein/.

Finally, here is a recent quote from Todd, on collectibles such as the Movie Maniacs line:

"As I've hung around the toy business longer and longer I see that there are areas that we're kind of neglecting. One of them is making cool product for older people at a reasonable price. It seems like as soon as you become an adult you have to buy a bronze statue or a car or a $3,000 stereo system - that's what our toys are."

8-29-00

Angelo's Ash's

Actually he just has the one, but I couldn't resist making the pun.

Anyway, our good friend Angelo who gave us the great news about Pinhead has a great shot of his Ash Autographed from a recent signing from Todd McFarlane. The scan is very clear and detailed so if you haven't got a decent look at the real deal yet, just click the above pic to see it.

We must ask though that you do not take the pic and use it for any sort of personal or business use. It's Angelo's pic and it should stay that way.

for those of you who want to check out the rest of Angelo's Autographed McFarlane Toys CLICK HERE.

8-28-00

New and Recent DVD releases.

Well, I got my Limited Edition Evil Dead 2 today in the mail and it is quite nice. The Tin it comes in alone is worth the price, but the Disc also has some nice extras as well.

Also, today marks the release of the Universal Monsters Boxed set, which is a great collectors Item for any true Horror fan. There are 8 DVD's in the set, including all the big ones.

Last week the individual Nightmare on Elm St. Films were released for the first time separately.

Also released this week is the Deluxe Limited Edition of T2 Terminator 2, with 3 versions of the film and loaded to the gills with extras.

And coming up next week are Edward Scissorhands, The Fly/Fly2, The Craft, and Men in Black.

You can buy all the above DVD's at the best price on the net by clicking the banner below. Pre-order for next weeks now to save even more!

8-25-00

Pinhead Lives

Well, I have finally returned from my much needed excursion and what great news to come home to. It looks like the Toddster has come through again and finally locked in the much desired license for the PINHEAD figure for Movie Maniacs Series 4. Here is Angelo again with another great report.

I just got back from the signing at Coopers'town and this time I asked "Who will be in [SERIES] 4?" He replied "Well, you will see Pinhead in [Series] 4." Trust me its true!

Longtime readers of the page may remember Angelo for bringing us almost the exact same kind of scoop a while back when Todd did another signing and revealed key members of Series 3. This guy is not only very lucky to see Todd so much, but he is definitely on his game! Thanks man, can't wait to see the pics.

It has also been reported that Todd mentioned that an Exorcist figure is still in the works so you Reagan fans don't give up hope yet.

The signing sounded like a cool event with fans getting freebies and getting to meet Todd and Alice Cooper. As if that wasn't enough, some Series 3 figures were given away as prizes. All in all it sounded like a cool day.

Well, since it is my first day back, and I don't want to waste everything, I will fill ya in on trip details and maybe some cool pics in the coming week. Needless to say, I saw plenty of cool stuff, even some related to the Maniacs.

Thanks to you guys for help keeping the News updated and to Chamber for updating for me while I was gone.

Glad to be back guys, Hope ya missed me!

8-20-00

The Russ Man Weds! News at Board!

The founder of this very website was married this weekend and is now spending the new week on his Honeymoon! Way to go Russman! You picked yourself a good one. You know, that we both, have wive's that could do better than us! Anyway, if you want to make sure you get the latest news head over the site's message board. Fans there will keep all other fans up to date! Feel free to post messages and wishes to Russ. Also, when he returns Thursday ask him if he watched Becker this week!

8-18-00

Spotlight on Series 3

Several people on the board discovered that today, Spawn.com updated their features section with some great in depth coverage of Series 3.

Included are never before seen promotional photos as well as concept and design shots. They did a great job and every fan should check it out.

Just CLICK HERE to head over and see them. There are also links posted on the DISCUSSION BOARD.

8-17-00

Ask the 8-Ball

Because it is probably the best chance of actually finding out when these darn figures will actually arrive in stores.

The latest word from McFarlane is Mid September, although I hope they show before then. No reasons are known for the delay at this time.

In other news you can catch Todd McFarlane on Comedy Central's talk show "Turn Ben Stein On" on August 31'st where he and Stein will discuss the truth behind the super powers that people have in real life and those that are fiction, according to the show's publicity blurb.

McFarlane will meet up with Alice Cooper Sunday August 20th in Phoenix, Arizona following the Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Chicago Cubs game, to sign autographs and debut the newly-released Alice Cooper action figure. Before the game, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., fans at Alice Cooper'stown, 101 E. Jackson Street in Downtown Phoenix, will get a chance to see the latest from McFarlane and Spawn.com, including a newly-released Alice Cooper action figure, plus get a chance to win Spawn.com giveaways. Following the game, from approximately 4 to 6 p.m., Cooper and McFarlane will sign autographs at the restaurant. For more information please call Alice Cooper'stown at (602) 253-7337, or visit www.spawn.com or www.alicecooperstown.com.

8-16-00

Cesare the Sleepwalker

Well, yesterday's search didn't turn up any Maniacs but I did find another great addition to the Silent Screamers Line.

Cesare the Sleepwalker is one of the most popular members of the line, and we have your scans right here. Check out the scans of this awesome figure by CLICKING HERE

To read the details of yesterday's search and Russ's thoughts on the Silent Screamers line, as well as news on Austin Powers figures, check out the DISCUSSION BOARD

8-15-00

Is today the day?

Today is the date projected for Movie Maniacs Series 3 to begin hitting stores. Will they or won't they seems to be the question on everyone's mind.

The date comes from the computers of EB, who is known for getting collectables in first because they pay to have their merchandise drop shipped to the stores which bypasses a warehouse and cuts some major time out of the equation.

I wouldn't rush out to all the stores looking today, but maybe call, or if you're in the area, check out your local EB, Software etc., Babbages, Hot Topic, or Spencer Gifts. You never know.

I will post as soon as I have word they have been spotted. May be today, may be 2 weeks, but I will have it as soon as they do.

8-14-00

3 of a Kind

Well, as I was Out on my Birthday looking around as I will be for the next few weeks, I came upon this nice little boxed set of the new Headliners Super Poseables at my local Media Play.

This set contains Jason. Freddy, and Leatherface, and is exclusive to Media Play, Suncoast, On Cue and Sam Goody Stores, corporately referred to as the Musicland Group.

At Media Play it was priced at a very reasonable $9.99. Although I am not positive, I think that the Boxed set is the only thing exclusive. The figures should also be available on individual cards at other locations.

Click HERE or the Pic above to check out the scans.

Thanks to Starjerk for notifying us on this.

ASH has breakfast with SPAWN.

Bruce Campbell recently sat down with the folks from Spawn.com and had a nice little interview.

He commented on his Characters, His Career, and His new figure.

To check out the interview CLICK HERE.

8-12-00

Valley of the Dolls

We have finally compiled a page featuring Spencer gifts line of Horror Dolls.

It still needs some fine tuning so please forgive any errors, they should be repaired within the day.

The Good news is, that Until August 18th Spencer Gifts is offering a 25% discount to all online purchases, they have the majority of the dolls and headliners, plus the Ghostface Doll is on sale for only $9.99. Just click the link on the doll page to head to the site and use the code featured on the same page to get your discount.

CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE PAGE

8-8-00

Movie Maniacs Month Begins

Well, here we are just 7 days away from the projected release date of Series 3, and things are really heating up! With the recent surfacing of carded pics and all the great talk and speculation on the message board, the excitement is really beginning build, so I thought I would add a couple of interesting things that have come to light recently.

First off, a surprise accessory with the Ash figure, no not a cursed hand, no not a deadite, it's a...FORK! Yes, the Ash figure will include a tiny fork for the mini Ash to poke him with as seen on the films poster. GREAT attention to detail!

On the disappointing side, it seems the Norris creature from the Thing will be much smaller than originally anticipated. It makes more sense now that he comes with the Spider head.

On the good side though it seems that the Fly figure is MUCH bigger than expected. It totally changed my outlook on this figure, it will be truly impressive.

In other things to look forward to, we will have a new contest soon that will be ongoing and interactive, we are still working on the details but we can tell you that you have to be a member of the Discussion board to play so if you haven't already SIGN UP NOW!!!

Lastly, we are desperately trying to retool the page. If you have any web skills and have a great idea, please E-mail us if you would like to help out!

8-5-00

Carded Pics of Series 3

CAGE wrote in to let us know of a link he found on a message board to a Japanese company that has carded pics of Series 3

they are good shots that let us in on what we have to look forward to.

CLICK HERE to check them out and then head over to the DISCUSSION FORUM to join in the conversation.

8-2-00

More Answers from Todd McFarlane

The Waterboy wrote in today to let us know some more of Todd McFarlane's thoughts from his recent postings. Today Todd talks about the upcoming Clive Barker and HR Giger lines and shares his personal thoughts on how the public views Horror fans, which I am inclined to agree with. Here's what Todd had to say.

" We are working on the deal with Clive Barker that we hope to make an official announcement of product in the near future. I can tell you that Clive and I do see eye to eye on the horror side of life. Mainly because we enjoy it as entertainment and not a way of life. Critics have a tendency to think that those who do dark stuff are also warped themselves. This is commonly known as 'judging a book by it's cover without seeing the cover'. Makes people look foolish. As for the H.R. Giger line this too will be a line that uses existing images of his art and new concepts in the future. "

If you would like to check out more of Todd's thoughts and answers CLICK HERE.

8-1-00

Silent Screamers Hitting Stores

I have decided to throw some attention to a new and impressive line from newcomer Aztech Toys.

The Silent Screamers are the Movie Maniacs of Old, featuring characters from the very first Horror films made during the Silent Movie days.

The Initial Line features figures from Nosferatu, and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligeri.

They are sculpted by the talented guys at Art Asylum and look every bit as impressive as they should.

Special thanks go out to Doug for providing the great scans of the Graf Orlok figure he got. Hopefully Doug will send over the others when he finds them.

For now though Check out The Scans HERE

Pumpkinhead released on DVD Today

Another Maniac DVD is released today and is a great one to check out if you have never seen it before.

Pumpkinhead is the story of a man who summons a revenge Demon to pay back the careless teenagers who accidentally kill his son.

It's original, well done and quite creepy. It stars cult favorite, Lance Henriksen of the TV series Millennium, and many feature films such as Aliens. Scream 3, and Near Dark.

7-31-00

Fans Take Action

Some of the regulars over at the message board have gone petition crazy and decided to try and make their voices heard on wanting certain figures made. I have decided to help out by linking to their petitions. I am sure these will be the first of many, so if you see a figure you think you would like, then click the link and sign the petition so McFarlane can know.

Click Here to sign the Dr. Sam Loomis from "Halloween" petition.

Click Here to sign the Gecko Brothers from "From Dusk til Dawn" petition

A Scary Little Contest

Dimension films is apparently very grateful for the success of Scary Movie because they are sponsoring a nice little contest for fans that you can enter by going to SCARYMOVIE.COM.

Just answer a few questions from the flick and you could win one of the great prizes. There are also entry forms at your local theater so knock yourself out either way.

CLICK HERE TO ENTER

7-30-00

Updates straight from Todd McFarlane

Todd made a rare appearance over at the Spawn Message board this weekend. to update fans on the status of upcoming lines, including the Movie Maniacs.

Here is what he had to say:

Good day everyone. This is Todd posting a note here to bring you up to date on some of the product lines that are in various stages of the game. I'm sorry I haven't posted in the past few weeks, but I'm sure you've all heard about my little run in with the law. That unfortunately took up some time but I'm now back to overseeing some of the message boards again.
What I want to write about is the new product that I've gone over in the past week to let you know the different stages that each one of them is in. (And let's leave any lawyer or trial talk for another day. Believe me it really is boring stuff ).
Okay let's go......

MOVIE MANIACS 3:
Again, just received a case of them in the finished packaging. This means that production of these has just begun because all aspects of these toys have been finalized. A few minor paint revisions will be made on the fly but nothing of any great note. Edward Scissorhands is my favorite figure of the bunch so far.

18 inch FREDDY and MICHAEL:
These things are big enough to use as baseball bats. I've approved the figures in final paint form and just saw the packaging separately. The next step is to put the two together and then begin the launch of production. Both characters also come with a motion detector that triggers a sound chip very specific to each. I always envisioned them as Halloween products that you set by the front door on October 31 to scare the snot out of some little kids.

KING KONG:
This figure was just delivered to me yesterday in final packaged form. It comes in a big box that contains KONG standing on a huge steel platform with chains having just being busted. There is also a small female character that comes with it to give a sense of scale. Any one that was or is a fan of the old black and white film should take a look at this one. For me, I was just a kid when I saw this movie in the late sixties and thought it was the coolest thing I had seen up to that point in my life. That is why this toy exists. It's one that I've always liked personally.

12" CROW:
Another exclusive that will be sold at TOYS R US. This is the beginning of an experiment to see if some of the key figures also have an appeal at a larger size.

A CLOSING NOTE:
As you have just read my company is moving in many different genres. Fantasy, games, music, sports, books etc. It has never been my attempt to have any one buy all my product nor would I be foolish to assume so. What I instead want is to give some of you who are already fans and those who may become ones a simple CHOICE of product. It doesn't mean that I am abandoning any of you hardcore fans or I am getting soft in any fashion. It just means that I have many interests in my life and hope to share some of those with you. Nothing more or nothing less. People who know me will tell you that monsters and sports are two things that I love but realize that they are also two entirely different groups. Terrific. Then pick and choose the figures that I make the YOU personally like and let me get your feedback as to what others in that category you would like to see more of. In the meantime my company and I will strive to give you the very best that we are capable of no matter what the subject matter. Thanks for listening and remember I'll be watching. TODD

Todd also let out a slip that their may be Jason X figures in the works. He mistakenly mentioned a Jason 18" figure and said it was because he had been dealing with New Line Cinemas on the Jason X movie, which is now in post production.

All in all, some great news and great to hear from the man himself.

Todd also commented on several other upcoming lines. To check out all his news CLICK HERE.

NEW CRYPT

We have logged all the past months news into the new 9th edition of the Crypt.

Check the menu out over to your left if you missed anything.

7-25-00

Reagan gets Exorcised

Lots of news up today at the McFarlane Toys message board, the most shocking of which is that we may not see Reagan from the Exorcist, not only in Series 4, but possibly at all!

Here is the quote from McFarlane's Steve Hamaday.

"Let me put it this way, they wanted us to make her look like a cupie doll. All of our concept drawings were turned down, sighting they were waaaaaaay too edgy. Rather than sell out, we backed out. Unless there's a major turnaround, you won't see her."

Very disappointing, but I have to admire McFarlane's persistence and willingness not to compromise the integrity of the product..

In other news, there was apparently some Drama with the King Kong boxed set going on behind the scenes at McFarlane. When a fan wrote in asking why the Fay Wray figure at the SDCC had black hair, when both Wray and Jessica Lange had blonde, Steve first let us in on the problem saying that because of licensing difficulties, the figure would not be included. I am guessing the hair change was to try and get around that , but the good news is that thanks to Todd McFarlane, the figure is back in and all should be going according to plan.

7-23-00

New Series 3 pics from the SDCC

Well, McFarlane was absent from the San Diego ComiCon this year but that didn't stop Series 3 from showing up at Diamond comics' Previews booth.

Below are some shots of Series 3 and their poster stands from our good friends at RTM and brought to our attention by Mason Verger.

Enjoy the pics and stop by RTM to check out the other new toys coming your way soon from all your favorite companies.