PopCult

Our final entry this week in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide is a new series of collections of a classic comic strip that I first mentioned in our second-ever Gift Guide twenty years ago. Clover Press has created and curated an exciting new format to reprint the original Chester Gould Dick Tracy comic strips.

These are the perfect gift idea for fans of Detective Fiction, classic comic strips, or the esteemed Detective Tracy himself. I’ve been a fan for as long as I could read, and now you can find out why.

Dick Tracy Collection
by Chester Gould
published by Clover Press
eight volumes (so far) $29.99 each from the publisher
Bunbles of four volumes, $110
Also available from other booksellers and comic book shops.

Way back in 2006, when plugging an earlier reprint series, I wrote, “These are masterpieces of twisted fantasy police adventures, with gruesome villains and sharp detective work. One of the greatest comic strips of all time. ”

Now, Clover Press and The Library of American Comics’ have developed a new deluxe softcover slipcase series, collecting all of Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy newspaper strip.

Every volume collects a full year of newspaper strips, from January 1 through December 31. Each book is printed in an 11” x 8.5” landscape format softcover book that slides into a vertically oriented die-cut slipcase.

The books are easy on the eyes, and easy to handle. I love collections of comic strips, but when you get a hardcover collection with over 600 pages, it can be a physical chore to read. These new collections present the art in a very readable size. Sunday pages are included and you won’t pop a hernia trying to lift them. The slipcovers, with great art by contemporary artists and die-cut features, look great on a bookshelf, but the softcover books within are so easy to read and enjoy.

This series is not presenting the books in a strict chronological order. They’re releasing them in groups of four consecutive years at a time. Eventually the entire series will be collected, but this way they can jump around and draw in fans of different eras.

The first collection kicks off with every Dick Tracy strip published in 1941. That year began with a wintery chase that had Tracy hot on the trail of the murderous Krome. Elderly Mrs. Depool will do anything to keep the cops away from her criminal son, including taking on Tracy all by herself. Then, a crooked casino owner is on the lam after killing his girlfriend in a violent car crash. And finally, Little Face gets too close to the fuzz while trying to eliminate evidence of his delinquent activities. In the middle of all this, we get the return of Steve the Tramp.

That’s all just in one volume. Every book in this series is an action-packed gem with amazing action as Tracy matches wits with the greatest Rogues Gallery in comics (sorry, Batman).

Cover artists include Jerry Ordway, Stewart Kenneth Moore, John K. Snyder III, Juan José Ryp, Cat Staggs, Brent Schoonover, Daniel Hillyard and newly-minted Dick Tracy comic strip artist, Howie Noel.

The best thing about giving books from this series as gifts is that they’ll be coming out with new volumes for quite some time. If the gift is a hit, then you can just run on autopilot and get the new volumes as they come out.

You can order these books directly from Clover Press (who have lots of other great comic strip reprints and graphic novels in their catalog. Single volumes arre $29.99, but they have bundles were you can save a few bucks.

Clover has also reprinted the first six volumes of IDW’s Dick Tracy reprint series, in a new, larger format. These were the books I recommended 20 years ago.

You may also find these volumes, possibly discounted, at other booksellers, but you’ll get them faster if you buy them from Clover Press. I Kickstarted the second batch of four books, saved twenty bucks, and I already have them all, even though two aren’t officially published yet (but you can get them if you buy the bundle).

Get these and teach someone on your shopping list that crime doesn’t pay!

Our second pick today in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide is the 49th Anniversary boxed set of Elvis Costello’s 1977 debut album, My Aim Is True. This is the perfect gift for fans of (this particular) Elvis, fans of New Wave Music and anyone who enjoys clever songwriting with intelligent lyrics.

This also ties into today’s 2023 encore episode of Sydney’s Big Electric Cat, at 3 PM EST on The AIR, where Sydney Fileen assembles a mixtape of Mr. Costello’s New Wave era classics. You can find the full playlist and other details on that show HERE (scroll down a bit past the stuff about HBO Max).

My Aim Is True (49th Anniversary Edition) 5CD Box Set
by Elvis Costello
Universal Music
$109.98 from Amazon and some independent record retailers

My Aim Is True (49th Anniversary Edition) tells the origin story of how Declan MacManus became Elvis Costello. This expansive 5CD box set features 104 tracks, 52 of them unreleased songs, demos, outtakes, and live performances.

The collection also includes a 72 page liner essay by Elvis Costello, with unseen photographs, handwritten lyrics from his notebooks, and diary entries from 1976 as he was making My Aim Is True.

One important thing to keep in mind, and the detail that makes this both a bit of a holy grail and a trivial curiosity is that, on his debut album, prior to assembling The Attractions, Costello was backed by members of a San Francisco country-rock band called Clover. After working with Costello, that band broke up, with several members either forming, or writing songs for Huey Lewis and The News (Lewis was not on My Aim Is True, but he was in Clover at the time).

The fifth disc in this set is a live recording of a 2007 charity concert performance of My Aim Is True, with Costello backed by the reunited surviving members of Clover that performed on the album.

The story is told across 5 CDs:

CD1: My Aim Is True (2026 Remaster): Remastered from the original 1977 analog master tapes
CD2: The Blue Print: Acoustic recordings and demos recorded before My Aim Is True
CD3: The Stranger In The House: How Declan MacManus became Elvis Costello in 28 songs
CD4: Becoming The Attractions: As they took charge of the My Aim Is True songs and then went mad
CD5: Covered In Clover: The first and last time Costello and Clover played My Aim Is True live in 2007

Tracklist:

CD1 My Aim Is True (2026 Remaster)

1. Welcome To The Working Week – 2026 Remaster

2. Miracle Man – 2026 Remaster

3. No Dancing – 2026 Remaster

4. Blame It On Cain – 2026 Remaster

5. Alison – 2026 Remaster

6. Sneaky Feelings – 2026 Remaster

7. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes – 2026 Remaster

8. Less Than Zero – 2026 Remaster

9. Mystery Dance – 2026 Remaster

10. Pay It Back – 2026 Remaster

11. I’m Not Angry – 2026 Remaster

12. Waiting For The End Of The World – 2026 Remaster

13. Watching The Detectives – Single Version

 

CD2: The Blue Print

1. I Turn Around – Hope & Anchor Studio

2. Losing You – Hope & Anchor Studio

3. Leverman – Hope & Anchor Studio

4. Citizen Junction – Hope & Anchor Studio

5. I Hear A Melody – Pathway Studios

6. Poison Moon – Bedroom Recording

7. Wave A White Flag – Bedroom Recording

8. Mercury Wings – Ms. Dore’s Tape

9. Jump Up – Hope & Anchor Studio

10. No Star – Hope & Anchor Studio

11. Walk On – Hope & Anchor Studio

12. Radio Soul – Hope & Anchor Studio

13. Clean Money – Hope & Anchor Studio

14. Don’t Put A Levy On My Love – Hope & Anchor Studio

15. Play It Safe – Hope & Anchor Studio

16. Imagination (Is A Powerful Deceiver) – Hope & Anchor Studio

17. I Can’t Turn It Off – Hope & Anchor Studio

 

CD3: The Stranger In The House

1. Radio Sweetheart – My Aim Is True Outtake

2. Cheap Reward – Bedroom Recording

3. Mystery Dance – Bedroom Recording

4. Stranger In The House – My Aim Is True Outtake

5. Running Out Of Angels – Hope & Anchor Studio

6. Just Like A Jukebox – Hope & Anchor Studio

7. I Don’t Want To Go Home – Pathway Studios

8. Blame It On Cain – Bedroom Recording

9. Blue Minute – Ms. Dore’s Tape

10. Pay It Back – Bedroom Recording

11. Exiles Road – Flip City – Hope & Anchor Studio

12. Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door – Flip City – Hope & Anchor Studio

13. Sweet Revival – Flip City – Hope & Anchor Studio

14. Pay It Back – Flip City – Hope & Anchor Studio

15. Imagination (Is A Powerful Deceiver) – Flip City – Hope & Anchor Studio

16. Living In Paradise – Hope & Anchor Studio

17. Welcome To The Working Week – Pathway Studios

18. Miracle Man – Bedroom Recording

19. Miracle Man – Pathway Studios

20. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes – Ms. Dore’s Tape

21. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes – Pathway Studios

22. Waiting For The End Of The World – Pathway Studios

23. Living In Paradise – My Aim Is True Outtake

24. Call On Me – Pathway Studios

25. Watching The Detectives – Pathway Studios Trio Version

26. No Action – Pathway Studios Trio Version

27. Poison Moon – Ms. Dore’s Tape

28. Stranger In The House – Ms. Dore’s Tape

 

CD4: Becoming The Attractions

1. Alison – What’s On Granada Reports

2. Introduction By Dave Robinson – Live, The Nashville Room

3. Mystery Dance – Live, The Nashville Room

4. Pay It Back – Soundcheck, The Nashville Room

5. Radio Sweetheart – Soundcheck, The Nashville Room

6. Sneaky Feelings – Soundcheck, The Nashville Room

7. Crawling To The U.S.A. – Soundcheck, The Nashville Room

8. Lip Service – Pathway Studios

9. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes- with Introduction Top Of The Pops

10. Interview No. 1 – Good Afternoon with Mavis Nicholson

11. Watching The Detectives – Good Afternoon Broadcast

12. Interview No. 2 – Good Afternoon with Mavis Nicholson

13. Hoover Factory – Good Afternoon Rehearsal

14. I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself – Live Stiffs, University of East Anglia, Norwich, U.K.

15. Whole Wide World – Live Stiffs, University Of Leicester, Leicester, U.K.

16. KSAN Intro – Old Waldorf, San Francisco, CA

17. Pump It Up – Old Waldorf, San Francisco, CA

18. Lip Service – Unknown Field Recording

19. Mystery Dance – Winterland Ballroom, San Francisco, CA

20. Blame It On Cain – Winterland Ballroom, San Francisco, CA

21. Less Than Zero (Dallas Version) – Warner Theater, Washington D.C.

22. Waiting For The End Of The World – The Agora Ballroom, Cleveland, OH

23. Miracle Man – Warner Theater, Washington D.C.

24. Watching The Detectives – Winterland Ballroom, San Francisco, CA

25. I’m Not Angry – Winterland Ballroom, San Francisco, CA

 

CD5: Covered In Clover

Welcome To The Working Week (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Miracle Man (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

No Dancing (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Intro to Blame It On Cain (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Blame It On Cain (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Alison (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Intro To Sneaky Feelings (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Sneaky Feelings (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Intro To Red Shoes (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Less Than Zero (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Mystery Dance (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Pay It Back (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

I’m Not Angry (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Waiting For The End Of The World / Gloria (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Watching The Detectives (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Mr. Moon (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Intro To The Love Trilogy (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Love Has No Pride (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

Love Is Gone (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding (Live – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – November 8, 2007)

This is a terrific archeological dig into the early origins of one Elvis Costello. Die-hard fans will love all the extras, demos and the booklet, and the two discs of live recordings, which are separated by about four decades, are fascinating to compare. This is sold out from the label and Costello’s website, but it can be found at Amazon and other record retailers.

Today’s first pick in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide is a deluxe slipcover presentation of the movie, 54, which dramatizes events around Studio 54, the legendary Disco hotspot. Tying into this pick today’s episode of Mel Larch’s MIRRORBALL, on The AIR, which re-presents her tribute to Studio 54. This is, of course, the perfect gift for the Disco lover on your holiday shopping list.

54
Deluxe Slipcover 3 Disc Edition
CINÉMATOGRAPHE/Vengar Syndrome
$42.99, only avaliable from Vinegar Syndrome

This special limited edition J-card MediaBook slipcase is limited to 4,000 units and is only available from Vinegar Syndrome. Absolutely no major retailers will be stocking them.

The story: New York City, 1979: working class Jersey City teenager Shane (Ryan Phillippe, Cruel Intentions) becomes infatuated with Studio 54, a lavish Manhattan nightclub known for decadence. Shane’s time at 54 introduces him to a cast of characters including real life nightclub owner Steve Rubell (Mike Myers, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery), busboy Greg (Breckin Meyer, Clueless), coat checker Anita (Salma Hayek, Traffic), and actress Julie (Neve Campbell, Scream).

Written and directed by Mark Christopher, 54 was originally heavily re-shot ahead of its theatrical release in 1998 before being re-assembled in a long awaited director’s cut in 2015, with over forty minutes of different footage used.

Anchored by an impressive, star-making, performance from Ryan Phillippe along with a bombastic, period appropriate soundtrack, 54 is an essential ode to old New York that’s ripe for re-discovery.

Cinématographe is proud to present the definitive release of 54, including a new 4K restoration of the 1998 theatrical version (on both the 4K and blu-ray discs) as well as the 2015 director’s cut (blu-ray disc only), offering an exemplary case study in how drastically different a film can be between two different edits.

The package includes a 3-Disc Set: 4K Ultra HD + Region A Blu-ray x 2; 40 page booklet; and the following bonus content:

New audio commentaries with writer/director Mark Christopher, moderated by Cinématographe’s Justin LaLiberty, on both cuts of the film
New audio commentary with filmmaker and writer Drew Burnett Gregory on the theatrical cut
Archival audio commentary with Mark Christopher and director of photography Alexander Gruszynski on the director’s cut
I’m Dead – a new video interview with Mark Christopher
Nothing Is for Certain – a new video interview with editor Lee Percy
54-ness – a new video interview with producer Dolly Hall
Awesome Party – a new video interview with associate producer Jonathan King
Let’s Do the Work – a new video interview with director’s cut editor David Kittredge
In the Trenches Together – a new video interview with Alexander Gruszynski
Finding Yourself – a new video essay by film historian Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
If You Could Read My Mind…The Making of 54: The Director’s Cut – an archival featurette from 2016
Deleted Scenes – including footage not found in the director’s cut
Never before seen B-roll from the production
BTS photo gallery
Photo galleries from festival premieres and the director’s cut re-release in France
BTS footage from the director’s cut mixing sessions
New text essays by writer Sean Abley, author of Queer Horror: A Film Guide; film programmer Alex Gootter and Dan Mecca, editor of The Film Stage

You can order this directly from Vinegar Syndrome (or drive to one of their stores, like the one in Pittsburgh, where we got Mel’s copy).

Tying into this pick is an encore of Mel’s Studio 54 episode of MIRRORBALL, which you can hear today atrt 2 PM EST on The AIR, with repeats at different times over the next five days.

Friday at 2 PM The AIR transports you back to the Golden Age of Disco with a very, very special episode of Mel Larch’s MIRRORBALL.  This just happens to be episode 54 of Mel’s Disco showcase, and Studio 54 happened to be the most famous Disco of that classic era.  Piling another coincidence on top of things, back in April, 2022, when we went to see The Minutes, on Broadway, it was actually playing at The Studio 54 Theater located at the former location of the world’s most famous Disco.

We had just debuted the 50th episode of MIRRORBALL, and were aware that we were just a few weeks away from episode 54.  We decided that it’d be cool for episode 54 of MIRRORBALL to present most of the classic album, “A Night At Studio 54,” one of the best-selling Disco LPs of all time.  Knowing this, and aware of Studio 54’s policy of not allowing recording devices to be used inside the theater, we decided to record Mel’s intro on the street, right outside Studio 54, at 254 West 54th Street, New York, New York!

We put Mel’s script on her phone, and recorded her audio using our Kodak Zi8, with me trying my best to be a human windscreen and block Mel from wind and traffic noise.

A Night At Studio 54 was a double album, with its music segued between tracks by disc jockeys Marc Paul Simon and Roy Thode for continuous playing, just like they did at the nightclub itself. Despite going Gold, and almost Platinum on it’s original release, the album has been out of print for decades, since the demise of Casablanca Records, the label that released it, and was never officially issued on CD.

You can read the full notes on that show, including the playlist HERE.

The PopCulteer
November 13, 2026

We just have a few short items for The PopCulteer this week. Our schedule got more than a bit disrupted by doctor appointments and internet outages, so we need to get our footing and get back on track.

Gift Guide Notes

Because of the disruptions this week, I wound up scrambling a few things in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide, just in order to maintain a regular posting schedule.  Because of this, I’m going to be playing catch-up a bit. Sunday, our regular Sunday Evening Video feature will double as a bonus Gift Guide entry.  Then every weekday next week you can expect three or four Gift Guide entries, with some of them tied to programming on The AIR.

I’ve got a killer list of gift suggestions this year, and I don’t want to have to drop any of the cool things I plan to plug.  If all goes according to plan, I’ll have three entries going live later today.

What’s Going On At The Glass

Short answer: I don’t really have much of a clue.

I’m always going to have a warm spot in my heart for The Empty Glass, the world-famous dive bar on Charleston’s East End that is an awesome venue for live music. Mel and I had our first kiss there. I rehearsed the band Three Bodies there the day before we went into the studio to record demos. Just a few weeks ago I got to see Ann Magnuson’s Bongwater Cabaret debut there.

Currently there’s a controversy.  Popular bartender/soundman, Greg McGowan and his partner were fired. And a ridiculous number of people have come to me looking for answers.  I simply don’t know enough of what happened to offer anything of use.

I don’t know the new owners.  While the Glass had been a second home to me for a long time, for the last decade, since I was diagnosed with MG, I haven’t been there much. I got old and need more sleep these days.

I do know that Greg is one of the most respected and talented sound engineers and record producers around, and in a bigger city he’d be in such demand as a record producer/engineer that he wouldn’t have time to work in a bar. I can absolutely understand why people are upset that he was fired.

I don’t know why, and can’t offer any explanation.

I’ve seen talk of a boycott, and not knowing what’s happened, I really have no opinion on that. I would hate to see one of Charleston’s few remaining legacy bars that doubles as a music venue fall by the wayside, but again, I’m on the dark about the whole thing.

So…you folks can quit flooding my DMs with questions.

The Bar Scene In General

This whole thing has made me worry about the state of live music in Charleston.

I come at this from the perspective of somebody who never drank, so it’s weird that people ask me about the bar scene in the first place.

Charleston has lost a lot of great music venues that served alcohol in recent years.  The fate of The Blue Parrot, one of my favorite places to shoot video of bands back in the day, is still unknown. The Levee/Boulevard Tavern went down years ago when “The Wolf of West Virginia” tried to turn it into a pro-gun testosterone-heavy idiot bar, and I don’t know if anything is in that building now. The Sound Factory dropped live music around fifteen years ago and is now some kind of drinking/dancing establishment that I have zero interest in.

There are some bright spots. The Roq, below The Quarrier Diner, offers live music from a variety of styles.  Folklore Music is one of my favorite places to hear music when I make it out in Charleston these days. Pumzi’s is a great new “sober curious” venue, which is something we sorely need in this area.  The New Brickhouse, in Saint Albans, is taking the same tack and has put on some killer hard rock shows.

And those last two venues are something that Charleston has been lacking for decades. For more than a generation we haven’t had a good all-ages venue that’s stuck around long enough to introduce kids to the joy of hearing live music and developing a real scene. Everything has to be tied to drinking.  That means that kids don’t really get the chance to hear live music on a regular basis until they turn 21 (or get a fake ID).

The saying is that the best music in the world is whatever you’re listening to between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five. Imagine how difficult it is for kids who can’t legally get in to hear a band perform live for the first six years of that period.

Having the music scene in town intrinsically tied to drinking has always been a recipe for disaster.

And of late, that disaster seems to have come in the form of all the breweries, distilleries and the like that have sprung up in recent years, many founded with generous tax incentives. These new places, in my limited experience, aren’t great music venues. The acoustics generally aren’t very good, if they even bring in live music.

But they do siphon off the folks who go to bars just to drink. And that dilutes the demand for bars, which in turn hurts the bars that bring in live music disproportionally because they’re not the bright-shiny-new drinkin’ spots, and they have a hard time competing with the novelty factor combined with the hardcore beer and whiskey fans who don’t care about live music.

This hurts the bars that are primarily live-music venues, because, to be honest, the live music doesn’t bring in nearly as much money as the alcohol.

Until we can build up live music venues that don’t depend on alcohol sales to stay in business, Charleston’s music scene is going to be in a precarious place.

STUFF TO DO

With me being swamped this week, I’m only going to plug one event, and it’s down in Huntington on Saturday. You can read all about it HERE.

For much more comprehensive guides to things you can get into in our region, check out these two wonderful resources:

Cristen Michael has created an interactive calendar that is way more comprehensive than this list of STUFF TO DO, and you can find it HERE. Just click on the day and the event and you’ll be whisked away to a page with more details about loads of area events.

Mya Ross at Status Quo does a much better job of compiling a list of local events than I do, and you can find the WTSQ guide to events HERE. Toss ’em a donation while you’re over there.

You can find live music in and around town every night of the week. You just have to know where to look.  Keep in mind that all shows are subject to change or be cancelled at the last minute.

Among the notable music venues in town are The World Famous Empty Glass Cafe, Live at The Shop in Dunbar, Louie’s, at Mardi Gras Casino & Resort, In Huntington, there’s local institution, The Loud (formerly The V Club),  The Wandering Wind Meadery is on Charleston’s West Side, Plus there’s music in Charleston at The Blue Parrot, Sam’s Uptown Cafe and Fife Street Brewing. Plus there are free concerts almost every weekend at Taylor Books.

You might also find cool musical events at Folklore Music Exchange in Charleston.

To hear music in an alcohol-free enviroment, see what’s happening at Pumzi’s, on Charleston’s West Side.

For cutting-edge independent art films, downstairs from Taylor Books you’ll find the Floralee Hark Cohen Cinema by WVIFF. Each week they program several amazing movies in their intimate viewing room that you aren’t likely to see anywhere else.

And I need to get my nose back to the Gift Guide grindstone. That is this week’s PopCulteer. Check back for our regular features and The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide.

Today’s final pick in the Optimum-outage-afflicted 2026 PopCult Gift Guide is a book we first told you about back in June, and it’s the first of two books by Anthony Taylor in this year’s Gift Guide. Look for the second one (a solo effort) next week. This book is the perfect gift for lovers of cult and niche cinema and independent filmmaking.

JACKsploitation!
The Films of Jack Hill
Edited by Anthony Taylor, Preface by Beverly Washburn Introduction by Jack Hill
Headpress Books
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1915316561
$24.95

JACKsploitation! is a collection of essays devoted to the work of Jack Hill, an unjustly overlooked filmmaker who may be THE auteur of the B-Movie. Saddled with low budgets, but largely free of studio meddling, Hill wrote, directed or produced some of the most influential genre films ever made.

He apprenticed with Roger Corman, and worked alongside a young Francis Ford Coppola, and along the way he worked with film legends like Boris Karloff and Jack Nicholson, and discovered and championed  cult movie legends Pam Grier and Sid Haig.

The essays in the book are written by an A-team of film scholars and genre experts, and they focus on the individuality of Hill’s works, celebrating his technique, his relationship with his actors and the remarkable level of craft he was able to maintain with limited budgets.

Each essay takes on a different film, or group of films, in Hill’s canon, and they all bring terrific insight and perspective to their subjects. Taken as a whole, we see that Hill was an artist who did not let the label “exploitation movie” define him or his work.

Standouts in the book include Stephen Bissette’s (yes the comic book artist, who is also an expert on horror movies) who explores the zeitgeist of post-war horror that made Hill’s once-hidden classic, Spider Baby, possible, and how it fits in to where the culture was at the time.

Phoef Sutton dissects Switchblade Sisters, the favorite film of Quenten Tarantino, and shows how a premise, that in lesser hands could have simply been a gender-reversed gang warfare flick, tackles serious socio-political themes with a Shakesperean flair.

Other essays study his pioneering Blaxploitation films, and his work in other genres, and together they fit together for a jigsaw-puzzle look at a truly amazing career.

The book is curated and edited by Anthony Taylor (disclosure: a friend of your humble blogger) and was inspired by a chance meeting that led to Hill making a 2024 appearance at Monsterama, a convention in Atlanta organized by Anthony.

I remember back when that was happening, and it’s no surprise that a book project came from it.

I love reading about moviemaking, but I’ve found that I’m far more intrigued by stores of low-budget films. Books about major Hollywood blockbusters tend to just be catalogs of which agent contacted which producer how they managed to get their schedules to line up.

When you’re reading about the low-budget filmmakers in the 60s and 70s, they had real challenges. They’d have to build worlds with hardly any money for sets or special effects, and their talent pools tended to be made up of actors who were either at the very beginning or the very end of their careers.

When they managed to craft an absolute gem of a film under such grueling conditions, it’s truly a thing of beauty.

Jack Hill managed to do that more often than not.

JACKsploitation! is a wonderful Valentine to the 93-year-old director, who happily has lived long enough to enjoy the acclaim he deserves.

You can purchase JACKsploitation! directly from the publisher, or from  any bookseller, by using the ISBN code.

Our picks in the 2026 PopCult Gift Guide have been delayed today due to last night’s widespread Optimum outage.  Because of that, we’re scrambling the line up and today we’ll focus on items that I reviewed earlier this year.  Our first entry, slightly updated, is for a reissued series of some of the coolest model kits ever made. They are a perfect gift for the aging (or young) “monster kid” on your holiday shopping list, or for anybody who like figural model kits or just cool, spooky stuff.

Monster Scenes Model Kits
Made by Dencomm
Prices ranging from $18 to $25 dollars
Available from CultTVMan and other dealers who carry figural model kits

I was eight or nine years old when I first saw the ad.

It ran in comic books, and it was for a new line of snap-together model kits from Aurora called Monster Scenes. These were a combination of figure kits and diorama scene kits that could all be fitted together to create an endless number of cool story scenes.

Among the eight initial kits were one licensed from Universal (Frankenstein), one licensed from Warren Publications (Vampirella, which was a shock to the system to see her advertised in a DC comic book) and six “original equity” creations that were created by Aurora.

But I saw this full-page ad…here it is…

…and it was instant toy lust. I wanted them, but I knew it’d be damned near impossible for me to get these model kits.

My mom was a little too picky about what we, as kids, were allowed to enjoy entertainment-wise.

Now, she wasn’t a complete hardass. I was the third of four kids, and my older brother, Frank, was a first-generation Monster Kid, so she had been de-sensitized to much of the classic horror stuff that us kids found so cool. We could watch anything we wanted on Chiller on channel 13 because she couldn’t stay up late enough to tell us not to watch it. But she tried her best to protect us from the brain-rotting influence of popular culture.

At one point she was cool with us reading Casper the Friendly Ghost, but Hot Stuff, the devil boy was just a little too demonic for her tastes.

I knew that, if I really wanted to get these, I’d have to bide my time and wear her down.

Continue reading

Our final pick today in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide is a high-ticket item, with some high-ticket add-ons, but it’s the perfect gift for the intergalactic conspiracy-minded model train enthusiast on your holiday shopping list.

I remind you again, this is NOT CHEAP!

Area 51 Train Set
by Lionel
Very expensive directly from Lionel
Cheaper, but still expensive from Walmart,  Amazon or Trainworld

Yes, it costs a lot, but it’s really, really cool!

This is a fun and ridiculous O-scale train set, based on the top secret Military Base, Area 51…you know, the place where they take all the UFOs and Aliens.

The track set included is basic, with an oval of track, a wall plug, a branded Area 51 remote, and all the usual Lionel features.

The train itself, all branded in cool alien-hunting livery, includes an Electric locomotive controlled by LionChief remote or Bluetooth LionChief app. There’s an On/Off switch for sound, which is the RailSounds RC sound system with diesel revving and background sounds, horn, bell, and user-activated announcements. You also have Lionel Voice Control (LVC) so you can run your locomotive by speaking commands into your phone via LionChief App. The engine also has an operating directional headlight, two powerful maintenance-free motors, operating couplers and an illuminated cab interior.

Three pieces of rolling stock are included: Damage Control Lighted Boxcar; UFO Recovery Derrick Car; and a Sky Survelliance Searchlight Caboose. There are light features on the Boxcar and the Caboose.

Here’s what Lionel says about this set…

Did you see an unidentified flying object fall from the sky?

Area 51’s brave operatives will head to the scene by rail with a Recovery Derrick Car capable of hoisting a downed vessel, a lighted damage control car to transport any friends they meet along the way, and a searchlight caboose to search the skies for incoming UFOs – this set has everything you need to handle the job.

Additional add-on rolling stock includes a helicopter to assist and a maxi-stack to haul any debris!

Those additional add-ons, found HERE and at other train retailers, are pretty cool in and of themselves. Once you buy some more track to accomodate them, you can add a Radar Car, Missile Launcher Car, a MaxiStack, a Crane Car, a handcar (with one human and one alien providing the motive power), a pick-up truck, a decontaminaion unit car, a tank car accident structure, an area 51 Quonset Hut, a set of 2 Aliens and 3 “Men In Black” Humans, a Trolley and more…all branded with Lionel’s Area 51 livery. Some of these items are pre-orders, and you may have to check different retailers to get them all. You might also want to check local train and hobby shops.

So, it is indeed one of the coolest toy train sets ever produced, and it is pretty pricey. The basic set ranges from $330 to nearly $500, depending on where you get it. The add-ons aren’t cheap either (although the set of five figures can be found for thirty bucks), but this one of our high-ticket picks, so you knew it was going to cost a lot.

My favorite part is that nearly everything is branded “AREA 51,” which is delightfully absurd for a train based at a secret government facility.

Recommended for fans of toy trains, aliens, Roswell, Area 51 and friends of Braxxie.

Our first pick today (of only two because I have a routine check-up for MG) in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide is a softcover collection of work that master cartoonist, Alex Toth, originally did for Creepy Magazine.  This is the perfect gift for fans of horror comics, fans of Toth, or anybody who loves quality graphic storytelling.

Creepy Presents Alex Toth
By Alex Toth and various
Dark Horse Books
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1506753201
$24.99 (discounted at Amazon)

Alex Toth was a genius comic book artist. He famously passed away of a heart attack at his drawing board at the age of  77 in 2006, but his legacy had been cemented for decades. He’s primarily known today for his work in animation, where he designed classic Hanna Barbera cartoons like Space Ghost, The Herculoids and Super Friends. His comic book work is far more impressive, but it’s sadly overshadowed by his more famous animation work.

There are several books on the market that present detailed looks at his life and career, but Creepy Presents Alex Toth lets his work do the talking, and his work stands on his own as some of the most innovative graphic storytelling in the history of the medium.

Creepy Presents Alex Toth collects all of the stories Toth drew for Creepy and Eerie Magazine during three stints working for Warren Publishing. His first work for the company was done under the editorship of Archie Goodwin, who still ranks high on most people’s list of the greatest writer/editor in comics. By this point in his career Toth had hit his stride and distilled his artwork to a deceptively simple-looking style that combined the austerity of animation design with the grand tradition of adventure comic strip art and highly innovative layouts that recal and surpass the experimental work of comics pioneer Will Eisner.

Eight of the twenty-one stories in this collection are written by Goodwin and feature Toth at his peak form. The short-story “mystery/horror” form is perfectly suited for Toth’s moody style and his work here is worth the price of the book by itself.

His mid-1970s work in this book is no less amazing. Working with a variety of Warren’s writers like Bill Dubay and Rich Margopoulos and Steve Skeates, Toth turned in incredible work, and also provided four stories that he scripted himself that are among the best work of his career. In particular the story, “Kui,” which features a splash page that reportedly took several days to draw.

Most of Toth’s work during his final stint with Warren saw Toth inking over other artist’s pencils. The results are novel and fascinating. In particular, the story “Jacque Cocteau’s Circus of the Bizarre,” written by Roger McKenzie and pencilled by legendary DC Comics artist, Carmine Infantino, looks nothing like the work of either artist. If anything, it looks like the more experimental work of Love and Rocket’s artist, Gilbert Hernandez.

Creepy Presents Alex Toth belongs in the library of every person who considers themself an educated fan of comic book art. His layout, rendering and lettering are among the best that comics have ever seen. In this day of cookie-cutter house-styles and heavy Manga influences, any student of the form should be studying Toth to see what comic books can be.

This new softcover edition of Creepy Presents Alex Toth should be available to order from any comic shop or bookseller, or you can get it for a discounted price at Amazon.

Our second entry in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide will be a very cool high-ticket item, and it will be published late this afternoon.

Today’s final entry (with three gift ideas) in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide is the perfect gift for fans of classic old-time Rock ‘N’ Roll, Legacy Texas roots music and die-hard fans of the subject of today’s third hour of Radio Free Charleston, the Westside at Midnight Buddy Holly Mixtape. 

Charles Hardin Holly, better knwn as “Buddy,” was born just over 90 years ago in Lubbock, Texas, and his imaginative take on early Rock Music was key to its evolution into the cultural force that would steer the sound of the world for decades following his tragic death in 1959.  It’s clear that his insanely short career was a major influence on The Beatles, and he cast a shadow that shaped many of the top musicians with his sophisticated songwriter, clever arrangements and killer pop hooks.

When Jon Raider asked if we could spotlight him in Jon’s Westside at Midnight feature in RFC, I didn’t hesitate for a second. That inspired me to feature three Buddy Holly-themed gift ideas for the old fan, the new fan, or the person who hasn’t had the joy yet of hearing Buddy Holly for the first time.

Vintage Rock Presents Buddy Holly At 90
by Anthem Publishing Ltd
Vintage Rock
$20.99 from Amazon

This is a “bookazine,” that you might still find locally on newsstands or at grocery stores. Billed as an “Essential Guide to the Rock’n’Roll Icon: Featuring Exclusive Interview with Maria Elena Holly, The Crickets, 40 Greatest Recordings & Life Story,” This is a great overview of Buddy Holly’s life and career.

I’ll just share the publisher’s blurb here…

To mark what would have been his 90th birthday year, Vintage Rock Presents Buddy Holly at 90 – the definitive tribute to one of music’s most influential and cherished trailblazers. From his humble beginnings in Lubbock, Texas, to his meteoric rise to global stardom, this special edition magazine explores the life, sound, and lasting cultural legacy of the man who redefined popular music in the 1950s.

Inside this special collector’s issue, we trace Buddy Holly’s extraordinary journey through in-depth features, classic photography, and exclusive insights. We sit down with his widow, María Elena Holly, who offers an intimate look into Buddy’s life behind the iconic horn-rimmed glasses. We also speak with close friends, collaborators, and contemporaries who knew him best, charting his creative evolution from early studio sessions in Nashville to his work with The Crickets and his memorable musical partnership with Waylon Jennings.

In addition to exploring his greatest hits, this comprehensive guide revisits the tragic story of the fatal plane crash that shocked the world, taking a respectful, detailed look at the fateful day the music died. We also take readers on a virtual tour of the Buddy Holly Center in Lubbock and countdown our picks for his 40 greatest recordings of all time. Whether you are a lifelong fan or discovering his genius for the first time, this issue is your essential companion to a true musical legend.

Vintage Rock Presents Buddy Holly At 90 is a great overview that will spur memories in longtime fans, and fill in the blanks for newbies.

The Buddy Holly Story
starring Gary Busey
directed by Steve Rash
Available on DVD or streaming from Amazon
Blu ray from Walmart

This 1978 classic Rock biopic put Gary Busey on the map and garnered a few OSCAR nominations. While not exactly completely accurate, it’s a good introduction to Buddy Holly’s story, and has some great acting.

Let’s go to the blurb…

Gary Busey gives an electrifying, Oscar nominated performance (Best Actor-1978) as Buddy Holly, the musical genius from Lubbock, Texas, who changed the tune of rock n’ roll history.

With a groundbreaking combination of country music and rhythm and blues, Buddy Holly and the Crickets (Don Stroud, Charles Martin Smith) catapulted to national stardom in just three short years with such hits as “That’ll Be the Day,” “It’s So Easy,” and “Peggy Sue.”

By the age of 22, Holly had it all: chart-topping singles, a beautiful wife, and international acclaim until tragedy ended a brilliant career but not his music. In an Academy Award winning score adaptation, Busey sings Holly’s greatest hits in thisdynamic tribute to one of the most influential rock n’ rollers of all time and the legacy he left behind.

The Buddy Holly Story is a fun movie, and a good intro to his legacy.

Buddy Holly Platinum Collection
Color vinyl, Triple vinyl
Not Now Records
$41.77 from Amazon

This is the real deal. You get 47 original tracks by Buddy Holly spread across three white vinyl discs. Reviews praise how well-curated this collection is, with a mix of hits, rarities and deep-album cuts.

Look, you just can’t go wrong with the music of Buddy Holly.
Track listing:
1 Everyday
2 Heartbeat
3 Peggy Sue
4 That’ll Be the Day
5 Words of Love
6 Rock Me My Baby
7 It’s So Easy
8 Maybe Baby
9 Oh Boy!
10 Real Wild Child
11 I’m Gonna Love You Too
12 It Doesn’t Matter Anymore
13 Not Fade Away
14 Well… All Right
15 Raining in My Heart
16 True Love Ways
17 Rave on
18 Peggy Sue Got Married
19 Ready Teddy
20 Rock Around with Ollie Vee
21 Think It Over
22 Lonesome Tears
23 You’ve Got Love
24 You’re So Square (Baby I Don’t Care)
25 Blue Days, Black Nights
26 Crying, Waiting, Hoping
27 Learning the Game
28 Valley of Tears
29 I’m Changing All Those Changes
30 Listen to Me
31 Early in the Morning
32 Fools Paradise
33 Don’t Come Back Knockin’
34 Love Me
35 Mailman, Bring Me No More Blues
36 I’m Looking for Someone to Love
37 Tell Me How
38 You Are My One Desire
39 Look at Me
40 It’s Too Late
41 Last Night
42 Send Me Some Lovin’
43 Reminiscing
44 Midnight Shift
45 Moondreams
46 Ting-A-Ling
47 What to Do

Also available on CD.

The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide continues tomorrow.

Today’s first pick in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide is featured on Radio Free Charleston today, with tracks from it opening the first and second hours of the show.

HEXED
by The Big Bad
Horror Hound Records
Vinyl-only release
$30 Available only from The Big Bad website, or at live shows

What we have here is a great, long-awaited album by West Virginia’s The Big Bad. It’s local, it’s on vinyl, and it’s music that has not been released before.

It’s a perfect gift for anybody who wants to support local artists, or anybody who loves horror-infected Rockabilly, or anybody who just enjoys great, independent music.

And, I can’t really be objective about it because I’ve been friends with these guys for a long time. The Big Bad were on the RFC video show many, many times, and on this album, my wife an I are among the guest musicians.

Mel was invited to a recording session to be part of a local all-star choir for one song, and while there I was drafted to contribute backing vocals and handclaps (along with Mel) on the title track. We had great fun hanging out at Crow’s Nest Studio, and it was wild making my singing debut on a record with no warning.

I was not expecting that, but it was fun, and I don’t think I hexed the recording session or anything.

However, that song is the title track, “Hexed,” and the recording session happened in 2019, with the record just now coming out, so I can’t promise that my participation didn’t curse things.

Seriously, though, the band has been through many line-up and life changes in the COVID horrors that followed the recording session, and for now, this is a vinyl-only release. CDs and downloads will happen after additional mastering sessions take place, but right now you can get the primal, vinyl mix of this killer album directly from the band.

And you should. There are loads of killer tracks on the album, and there’s even a mystery bonus track on side two…which is not to be confused the mystery bonus tracks on RFC. 

If you tune into the episode of Radio Free Charleston that debuts November 10, you can hear “Hexed” open the show, and “The Storm,” with the choir, open the second hour. The third hour features an artist who will be the basis of our next entry in The 2026 PopCult Gift Guide.