FANGORIA #296 just exploded on newsstands and mailboxes everywhere, and that September issue boasts my first Fango cover story in seven years—a set-visit article on the upcoming RESIDENT EVIL: AFTERLIFE. In my 25 years as a masthead fixture, I’ve only penned three other cover stories: Fango #51’s HOUSE (January 1986), #58’s THE FLY (September 1986) and #227’s KILL BILL VOL. 1 (October 2003). (If I’m missing any, let me know and I’ll send you a gift.)

Things are crazy in Fangoland. Everyone is running somewhere in the days ahead, as work is pulling us all across North America in pursuit of various genre happenings or keeping our editorial panties in a knot. It seems like everything is coming to a head in the genre universe beginning Monday.

Would you believe that ECLIPSE, part three in THE TWILIGHT SAGA, will likely gross around $175 million by the end of the Fourth of July holiday? That the film franchise alone has taken in over a billion dollars so far? Like it or not, the horror genre (if you want to fit TWILIGHT in there) has not seen anything like it before.

A recent article in industry trade Daily Variety talked about how 50 percent or more of the upcoming big-studio release slates are filled with tentpole franchise movies: remakes, sequels, comic book or video game adaptations or movies derived from old TV shows. With the average movie budget topping $100 million and marketing costs about half that, film companies, more profit-driven than ever in a faltering global economy, are taking less chances than ever when greenlighting new films.

You’ve probably been following the plethora of news items on this website in regards to our FANGORIA FrightFest program (see initial announcement here). Right? If not, please do. I gave up my job—editing the mag for nearly 25 years—to help bring these horror movies to you. The FANGORIA FrightFest is our version of After Dark’s 8 Films to Die For and Ghost House Underground. Luckily, as I’ve found out, there are plenty of good genre films to go around.

Today, May 28, marks the national theatrical unveiling of writer/director George A. Romero’s latest zombiefest, SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD. “National” may be stretching it a bit, though, as SURVIVAL is only playing in 20 theaters or so across the country, quite a step down from Universal’s summer launch of LAND OF THE DEAD in 2005 at over 2,000 screens (a record for a Romero film). Then again, if SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD doesn’t come to your town today, it will be rolling out in more venues through July 2. Or, you can watch SURVIVAL via video on demand, Amazon, Xbox Live and other digital platforms, where it slipped in a month ago (see listings here).

Though we only worked together for maybe five weeks or so, former ’80s FANGORIA editor David Everitt, who passed away May 7 at age 57 from Lou Gehrig’s disease (see item here), affected my life in so many profound and wonderful ways. Fresh out of college, he showed faith in me that not even I had in myself when I started at FANGORIA as a lowly editorial assistant in July 1985.