FANGORIA’s bloody tendrils have touched generations of horror-loving weirdos—and we say this lovingly. People who have either thrilled to our rag since issue #1 first appeared on stands in 1979, or taken up the torch years later, become obsessives who haunt comic shops and online auctions to complete their collectible quest. Omer Sheriff Patel (a.k.a. Snake Eyes), 35, falls somehwere in the middle. Check him out…

FANGORIA: When did you start collecting the mag?

OMER SHERIFF PATEL: Hmmm… I probably started reading FANGORIA when I was about 11 years old, 1986.

FANG: Did your mother approve?

PATEL: Well my parents used to run a video rentals shop back in the 1980s, and horror films were very popular. My mother knew I read Fango, but she didn’t mind. I think she saw it as a kind of “market research” ‘cause I’d always be giving her the heads up on upcoming films after I’d read about them in the magazine.

FANG: Was Fango freely available where you lived or did you have to search for it?

PATEL: Initially, only a few select newsagents would stock them, but eventually I started going to comic shops where they were easy to find.

FANG: How many issues do you own?

PATEL: At the moment, 128 issues. Over the years, many of my back issues were lost or damaged. It was only recently I got serious about completing the collection and it’s been fun tracking down all the copies I can find.

FANG: What is the Holy Grail of your collection?

PATEL: FANGORIA #1, of course!

FANG: Which one is your “white whale”?

PATEL: I’m missing quite a few. The first 20-odd editions and the stuff from the mid to late ’90s are proving somewhat difficult to locate, but I’m confident I’ll have the whole collection soon as I’m constantly scouring eBay and various other sources.

Got an impressive collection of Fangos and a tale about your obsession that you want to share? E-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for consideration in a future FANGORIA Fans web column.