We began this adventure into single-topic issues of FANGORIA Presents in the storm-lit laboratory of a mad scientist last November, tracing the electrifying birth of modern horror that brought us Dr. Frankenstein and his creature. And while there are a few remaining copies in our online shop, we’ve now set our sights on the lore of an older, bloodier, and more thematically versatile monster. You can now pre-order FANGORIA Presents: Vampires, officially shipping June 19. Consider this your portal to the underworld, exploring vampire origins, Dracula, and beyond.
For lovers of bloodsucking folklore as well as those ravenous for undead legends of modern times, this 100-page collector’s edition FANGORIA Presents chronicles the complete evolution of the vampire across literature, film, television, and pop culture. Whether you’re a fan of the refined classics, a lover of ’80s vamp punks, or just a devoted horror historian and Fango completionist, this magazine is a must-have.
This special edition, curated by FANGORIA Magazine’s Editor-in-Chief Phil Nobile Jr., brings together some of horror’s most interesting journalists, editors, and authors to connect our living obsession with the undead and explore the human condition from classicism to primal desire. “I was excited to present a diverse mosaic of vampire depictions from some of the smartest writers working today,” says Nobile. As he says in the publication's introduction, “Vampires have always been full-blooded representations of our vices, our weaknesses, our sins… But keep digging, and you’re likely to unearth a vampire tale that maps to just about every aspect of the human condition. Class struggles. Sexuality. Fame. Geopolitics. Childhood. Adolescence. Old age. Comedy. Tragedy. Lust. Life. It’s all in here.”
Indeed, FANGORIA Presents: Vampires starts at the dawn of time itself, as author Grady Hendrix pathologizes the origins of the undead romantics in “In the Beginning: Vampires Before Dracula,” and the surprisingly medical and biblical roots of the lore. Tom Weaver celebrates a century of Bram Stoker’s immortal creation in “Dracula: The First Hundred Years,” chronicling the trial and error (and occasionally insane off-roading) of perfecting a beautiful monster. Nobile revisits the gothic phenomenon of Dark Shadows that not only invited, but welcomed vampires into the suburban homes of the 1960s. You can also sink your teeth into erotic vampires, the transformative legacy of Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire. the stylish bloodsuckers of the 1980s, the endless appeal of vampire comedies, and the enduring impact of Buffy the Vampire Slayer nearly 30 years later.
Not all Dracs are dapper, but they are consistently enigmatic, alluring, and othered. This edition also examines these irresistible qualities through less ventured angles in features like “Blue-Collar Bloodsuckers” from screenwriter and director Michael Varrati, and “In the Shadow of the Cross: Vampirism and Blackness” by film critic Richard Newby. The book closes with “The Thirsty Thirty,” our Fango certified ranking of the top 30 vampire movies ever made from former Editor-in-chief, the legendary Tony Timpone.
More than just a celebration of vampire media, this limited-edition one-shot examines why the undead endure. Across centuries, vampires have embodied fears of plague, sexuality, addiction, class, disease, aging, and corruption while remaining one of horror’s most endlessly reinvented monsters.
Pre-Order here.
Featuring:
“In the Beginning: Vampires Before Dracula” by Grady Hendrix
“Dracula: The First Hundred Years” by Tom Weaver
“Daytime Vampire: Dark Shadows” by Phil Nobile Jr.
“Sexy Exsanguinators: A Guide to Erotic Vampires” by Todd Gilchrist
“The World Changes, We Do Not: The Legacy of Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire” by BJ Colangelo
“Fangs for the Memories: ’80s Vampires” by Dan Whitehead
“A Funny Vein: Vampire Comedies” by Todd Gilchrist
“She Alone Will Stand: Buffy the Vampire Slayer” by Meredith Borders
“Blue-Collar Bloodsuckers” by Michael Varrati
“In the Shadow of the Cross: Vampirism and Blackness” by Richard Newby
“The Thirsty Thirty: Top 30 Vampire Movies” by Tony Timpone
