Marking one year of "Forbidden Thrills" - Aloha!

Now this is some "Forbidden Thrills"

Cheers!

This past April I celebrated 14 years of Thrillville at my not-so-new-anymore "home base," Forbidden Island Tiki Lounge in Alameda, where, as of this month, I've been hosting a monthly Monday night cult movies 'n' cocktail series, sort of Thrillville 2.0, AKA "Chillville," AKA "Forbidden Thrills," for a whole year. This downshift in logistics proved to be an upswing vis a vis my attitude toward continuing my "career" as a B movie impresario in a public setting. After 13 years of hosting the cult movie cabaret that was Thrillville - B movies, bands, and burlesque - 12 years at Speakeasy Theaters, one more for the road, I was ready to hang up the fez hat and smoking jacket for good. And I did. Only I traded them for a shiny suit and a skinny tie, reinventing my public persona as "Will the Quill," Pulp Fiction Author, who also presented a movie nite in a tiki lounge once a month. Being a Movie Host no longer dominates my time, energy or (hopefully) image, since I find most of my creative fulfillment in my writing, my original dream and true professional love. I even shot the book trailer for the Thrillville Pulp Fiction Collection at Forbidden Island. It's a good fit - scaled back, but like the original show, customized to suit the venue : smaller screen, but much better booze, plus the usual prizes, free popcorn, and no cover! The Thrillville stage show was created specifically for the Parkway and later the Cerrito, so it was an awkward fit when I took it to other theaters after Speakeasy's spectacular crash and burn in 2009. "Road Thrill" was a fun ride while it lasted, but meantime, I rediscovered my literary roots, and then there was no turning back. I didn't want to invest any more energy in Thrillville as a stage show, but as a launching pad/cyber-headquarters for my novels, both my backlog and my future endeavors in the fiction field. "Forbidden Thrills" has allowed me to retain my rep as a "movie guy" while pursuing my main artistic goals. There's even a special menu inspired by my books, "Will the Thrill's Pulp Cocktails. " It's been a great year and I look forward to many more. Aloha.

Autographed photo from B movie goddess Jeanne Carmen, here with the Monster of P.B.

To mark the occasion, on Monday, June 20, 7:30, I'm throwing a FORBIDDEN THRILLS MONSTER BEACH PARTY featuring THE BEACH GIRLS AND THE MONSTER (1965), a silly but fun Horror of Party Beach knockoff (with Frank Sinatra Jr.!) which I've never presented before, and THE MONSTER OF PIEDRAS BLANCAS (1959), one of my favorite "creature features," which I did show in a beautiful 35mm print years ago at the Parkway - and even the producer's daughter showed up! Those were good times, but I'm having an equally good time with this "spin-off" series. Here's the updated schedule. Hope to see you there. Aloha, Will

With the Shatner Butt Girls at another hit SHATFEST, May 23

With Molokai Mike and Suzanne Long at the spectacularly successful SHATFEST last month

Sellin' my books: this is what it's all about now