Probably my most anticipated book of the year, XEROX FEROX: THE WILD WORLD OF THE HORROR FILM FANZINE by John Szpunar—one half of Barrel Entertainment and self-described “slop culture journalist”—makes its debut this fall at Fantacon (Albany NY, Sept 14-15) courtesy of Headpress (who will also be bringing us Joseph Ziemba’s BLEEDING SKULL! A 1980S TRASH-HORROR ODYSSEY).

From the back cover:

The titles were as lurid as the films that they covered. Gore Gazette. Deep Red. Sleazoid Express. Before message boards, before blogs, before the internet itself, the fanzine reigned as the chief source of news and information for horror fans worldwide. Often printed on the cheap and sold for the price of postage, madcap mags like Slimetime, The Splatter Times, and Subhuman traveled the globe, creating a thriving network of fans and professionals alike.

Xerox Ferox traces the rise of the horror film fanzine, from the Famous Monster-starved kids of the 1960s to the splatter-crazed gorehounds of the Fangoria generation. Featuring in-depth interviews with over 50 writers, editors, and industry pros, Xerox Ferox is the final word on an era that changed the world of fandom forever…

The book, which includes comments from Fango's Michael Gingold on his review 'zine SCAREAPHANALIA, features cover art by legendary illustrator Stephen R. Bissette, who will also appear at Fantacon in support of the launch!

While we’ll bring you more coverage of the book as the launch gets closer, in the meantime, the XEROX FEROX Facebook page has been filling up with teasers and treats, including this video filmed at a FANGORIA Convention in 1990—featuring Brinke Stevens and the sadly departed fanzine titan Chas Balun.

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