Hobby Hoedown: Stuart West's Passion for Bad Movies

Welcome YA author Stuart West to Hobby Hoedown. His hobby is finding and actually watching over-the-top bad movies. Have you ever met anyone else with this hobby? Me either. 

Howdy-do, JQ, and thanks for having me on your hobby hoedown!

Yee-haw, Stuart. Happy to have you as my guest. Congratulations on your new release in your series, Tex and the Gangs of Suburbia, available July 26. I have to admit this is one of the most unusual hobbies, so far, that has graced the pages of the J.Q. Rose blog! Tell us all about it!

I’m author Stuart R. West and I have a confession to make. Several weeks ago, Erin Albert shared her passion for running. I aim to take you back inside, plant you firmly on the couch, and draw the shades tight. Things are about to get lazy. And ugly. For you see, my passion (my wife calls it a sickness) is a true love for bad genre movies.

Wait! Before you go back outdoors running, let me explain! I’ve always loved films, dating back to when I was a child. While my friends were playing outside every Sunday, I’d hunker inside, searching the three channels available (I know, right?) for that rare piece of cinematic oddity. It was a tough life, but someone had to do it.

When the advent of videotape happened, celestial chords opened above. Now I could see the elusive treasures I’d read about for years. Finally! But it wasn’t enough. Like the worst sort of addict, I needed more. I needed films that would truly expand my mind, full of hidden treasures and strange context.

Then something terrible happened. Two words: Adam Sandler. Most of my peers found his comedies riotous. I couldn’t stand his films, never saw anything funny about them or any of the comedies made in the past thirty years or so. Film comedies were dead to me.

I mourned until one Sunday afternoon in 1993. Looking through the dusty racks of the local Mom and Pop video store (anyone remember those?), I came across a ginormous, oversized video box with the alluring title, “The Rats Are Coming! The Werewolves Are Here!” With shaking hands, I brought this strange, enticing video grail to the counter. The woman eyeballed me, grimaced, and rang me up.

Placing the videotape into the player, I settled back, not knowing what to expect. I hadn’t laughed so hard since the days of watching the Marx Brothers as a child. Pitched at a level of hysteria higher than the worst sixties soap opera, the sordid horror tale unfolded before my unbelieving eyes. A werewolf family curse! Cruel mother figures! Hunchbacks with pet rats! Family betrayals! Cheap cardboard sets! Dialogue to make you cringe! Comedic Nirvana!

I soon sought out the other works of “auteur” Andy Milligan. And trust me. For the novice bad movie buff, Milligan makes Ed Wood look like Orson Welles. Themes developed. There were always hateful mother figures and hunchbacks. And even though Milligan’s budgets never soared past a couple hundred bucks, he insisted on making costume melodrama/horror films. But it was his universe. A true vision from a warped mind. Are his movies good? No, not in the least. Are they funnier than modern day comedies? Believe it.

Next, I discovered other crazy low-budget directors. I couldn’t believe the outlandish plots or foot fetishes of Doris Wishman (who’d plant a camera on a lamp while actors spewed dire dialogue). How about the cheap, ridiculous tales of the “Godfather of Gore,” H.G. Lewis?  The surprisingly psychologically-sound films of low budget erotica king, Joe Sarno. Then there’s the small, but much valued output of filmmaker/star Renee Harmon, whose accent was nearly as strange and indecipherable as her outlandish horror plots. So many treasures to discover.

The golden age for these films is roughly the sixties through the early ‘80’s. There’s no pleasure to be had in the Sy-Fy Channel’s newest piece of dreck of the week, “Shocktopus Versus Croconado.”  Nope, stick to the “classics.” Otherwise, how would I have ever discovered the world’s most hilarious film, “Winterbeast (wherein the hero’s facial hair actually changes within the same scene!).” Trust me, seek it out. I give it “five amazeballs.”

There you have it. My obsession, hobby, sickness, what have you. Have I gained anything valuable by watching so many bad films? Yes. I’ve learned how not to write bad dialogue (although some may disagree). But more importantly, laughter’s good medicine for the soul.

ABOUT STUART WEST:  

After working as a graphic and production artist for the last 23 years, the company for which I labored shuttered its doors in July of 2010, finally allowing me the time and mental energy to tackle something I'm passionate about.   Um, that would be writing.

I'm married to a professor of pharmacy (who greatly appreciates that I now prepare dinner for her). And my daughter just turned twenty-one! (Uh-oh.)

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I’ve written a YA paranormal, suspense, murder mystery, comedic romance series all dealing with topical teen issues. Tex,The Witch Boy was released in January, 2013. 

The second, Tex And The Gangs Of Suburbia is out on July 26^th. 

Tex And The God Squad , the final book is due in December, 2013. Many more books to come.

BLOG: 

FACEBOOK: 

TWITTER: @StuartRWest

TEX, THE WITCH BOY Trailer

Camping Trip to Shipshewana, Indiana and What's Coming UP

Beautiful flower-filled wagon at the Essen Haus shops in Middlebury, IN

Happy Monday Morning! What a delight to finally have some relief from the HOT weather. Talk about hot. We were in Shipshewana, Indiana last week camping in the campground next to the enormous flea market there. Yes, the campground is just an alley way away from this 900 booth monstrosity of a market. Makes it convenient to take a break from the crowd and shopping and enjoy all those delicious bakery goods at our camper with a cup of fresh-brewed coffee.

It was truly too hot to stay at the flea market which is open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays every week from May until mid October. We were there right at 8 a.m. and left at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday...too hot to stay any longer. Also a shortened visit on Wednesday morning. We came back at 9:15 a.m. Evidently the vendors were too hot on Tuesday so most of them weren't even open on Wednesday.

I thought I would share a few of the photos from the summer trip. This area in Indiana is famous for its Amish influence from farms to food to hand-crafted items. We enjoy just driving through the country and seeing the Amish farmsteads, the folks and the precious children dressed in their Amish attire, and the old-fashioned ways of farming with horses and wagons and old machinery. 

If you are into quilting, you need to experience ALL the quilt shops in the area. Fantastic works of art for you to purchase as well as a variety of fabrics to make your own keepsake pieces.

 Yoder is an Amish name and there are a LOT of Yoder stores. We especially enjoy shopping at the hardware and clothing store located in the Yoder Department Store in downtown Shipshewana. (The Air Conditioning in the store was a big draw too!)

 I wish I could drive you through the rich farmland, but these pictures will have to suffice until you can go yourself.

I get a kick out of seeing the children.

This horse and buggy are passing a phone booth. Yes, the little white structure houses a telephone shared by the neighbors. The Amish church does not believe in being connected to the outside world (hence, no electricity from the power company) so phones are not allowed in homes. Residents told me the young people are now carrying cell phones.

Traveling through the area, we had to be careful of buggy traffic.
See the cute kids looking at us from the back of their vehicle?

Wheatfield put up in shocks.

It was interesting to watch the farmers rake their hay fields with the horse pulling the rake
and to see the shocks of wheat put up this way. 

We had a good time in Indiana. We visited with friends who live in the area and ate too many bakery goods, ice cream, cheese, and bread. If you want to escape into the past, go to Shipshewana!

We were grateful for our air-conditioned truck and camper as we traversed the roads between Michigan and Indiana. Can you imagine driving across the entire United States in 1909 in the hot summer time with no air, no radio, no fast food, and only 152 miles of paved road in the 3800 mile trip? Alice Ramsey was the first woman to do it. Read about her summer road trip on the Girls Succeed blog.

Join us on Thursday when Author Stuart West shares his passion for Bad Movies. That should be interesting!! Yee-haw!!