By CRYSTAL GUILLORY

Hello again HORROR-WOOD readers!

My, my, its that time of year again isn't it? The time of year where thoughts turn from the black and orange to red and green (or, rather, the lack of green).

Yes, I know we have Thanksgiving between those two holidays, but looking at the decor in the stores, one would not think that. It is an odd thing to see Christmas items alongside the Halloween items in some stores, gives one a sense of being in a scene from The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Be that as it may it is time to do something truly scary--try to find that right gift for that guy or ghoul who has everything (or at least thinks so). There are lots of interesting gifts on the Net for the horror fan in your life. If you are the horror fan, feel free to show this article to those wondering what to give you this holiday.

I would think with the amount of DVD players being sold for reasonable prices, that DVDs would be a popular gift this season. With all the new DVD owners getting DVD copies of their favorite movies, it would make sense to go to the good people of Creepy Classics.

They have a great selection of DVDs with new titles coming most of the time. If one has no idea which DVD to get one can buy  gift certificates or a membership to the 2003 Monster Bash (an excellent convention if I say so!). One could even purchase a holiday tee shirt such as Holiday Frankenstein. I can't think of better festive wear than that myself!

Another unique group of DVDs is the collection of German horror classics (Cabinet Of Dr. Caligari, Nosferatu, The Golem and Waxworks) that is available from Kino. Their restoration of the classic film Metropolis has been receiving rave reviews on its multi-city tour and it should be available on DVD sometime in the near future.

For the Bela Lugosi fan on your list, the officially sanctioned DVDs, such as The Devil Bat would be a good choice. Or you could get them the DVD Lugosi: Hollywood's Dracula, which is a documentary of the classic horror actor. This disk also includes deleted scenes of the documentary, some scenes of Bela's Hungarian films as well as other rare items.

For those who are Mystery Science Theater fans, there are DVDs available on the info club Website. The item of interest is the four-pack of DVDs with titles such as Bloodlust, Catalina Caper, The Creeping Terror,
and The Skydivers. (Also on this Website are various amounts of fun items for your favorite MSTie.)

Another DVD of interest to those who like comedy with their horror is the Hammer and Roger Corman Poe series spoof by the Mistress of the Dark herself, the horror hostess Elvira. In Elvira's Haunted Hills, the genre films are lovingly spoofed with a plot lifted right out of the gothic films.

In order to have time to see all the DVDs, one is going to have to forgo sleep and one way to do that is to drink lots of coffee. I can think of no better coffee to give a horror fan than the coffees from The Coffee Shop of Horrors. This unique company has diverse flavors such as Zombie Dirt, Witches Brew and my personal favorite, Burial Grounds. Any coffee lover as well as horror fan would love this
twisted java.

If you need a cool mug to go with this hot coffee, do check out this site (check out the gift shop under coffee lovers). You could also check out this  this charming site to shop for that perfect mug as well (yes, I am sucking up to my editor here).

Count Gore De Vol (the Horror host of the Internet) has many gifts to choose from this year. For starters the handsome Count has a tee shirt this year for his fans here, which is printed on both sides. (I have one of my own and trust me this tee shirt looks great!)

Another item the Count has are videos of his past shows on television. The videos have received raves from the fans who have purchased them, so you can't go wrong for giving one (or all three) as a gift this season. Oh but wait…there is more! Count Gore also has his own poster suitable for framing and is reasonably priced at $4.

On the subject of posters, the good fiends at Monster Mania have a great assortment of posters of interest to the horror fan. This site also provides a variety of gift ideas for the monster fan, such as Hammer Horror memorabilia, Creature from the Black Lagoon items, action figures and models, and some fang-tastic classic monsters snow globes.

Another great place to acquire models for the monster fan you know is the Monsters In Motion Website. I mean, where else could you find a model kit for the Killer Shrews or (on the other side of the spectrum) the Abominable Dr. Phibes? This Website has a treasure trove of items for the monster kid in all of us!

Another popular gift choice is dolls. What little ghoul would not thrill to having her own living dead doll? Why, look at the adorable faces of Sheena, Lilith, Posey, and Deadbra Ann--don't you want to give them a home or rather a tomb? This would be perfect for the Wednesday Addams type of girl in your family (doesn't just about every family have one of those?).

The Dracula Toy Theater is a replica of the Tony award set design Edward Gorey created for the Broadway production. This handsome package includes the three stage sets, the furniture, the cast and a synopsis of the play. Hmm, I wonder if this includes miniature spiders and flies for the Renfield figure? There are other gifts with the unique Gorey style on this Website that would bring a smile (or a grimace) to a friend.

The gift of music is another great choice. There are plenty of interesting bands that any youngster or youngster at heart would live. For starters, I will talk about the CD from the House Band Of  the Chiller convention, The Dead Elvi. The Dead Elvi play music which they call "rot and roll" and have a definite style. A selection of their music is on the Monster Crash the Pajama Party Spook Show Spectacular DVD.

Another group that has an interesting musical slant on the horror genre is the group, Ghoultown. This group is a dark blend of Mariachi, traditional western and punk music which some call "Gothabilly." This group has acquired many fans as a result of the live performances at DragonCon and other venues since its start in 1999. On this Website this group is also selling the comic book that they have created as well.

Another interesting group to look into is Midnight Syndicate, which makes appearances at some horror conventions. If the holiday of Halloween had an official soundtrack, Midnight Syndicate would be on it! No haunted house (or non-haunted house for that matter) would be complete without one of their CDs. Their music provides hours of terror-filled listening for the horror fan. Their latest CD "Vampyre" is a triumph of the darkest kind in my opinion.

Then again, if the tastes run a little more conservative, one should go to Scarlet Street for their collection of soundtrack CDs which should delight any fan of classic movies.  There is always a possibility that the person in question may not want a musical CD, but they would enjoy comedy. If that is the case, the CD from stand-up comic and classic monster fan Don Reese should be for you. Don has gained fans from his appearances at clubs around the country and at Monster Bash.  I can personally tell you that my throat was sore from laughing so hard at his routine at this year's Bash.(Do check the Website for his dates and go see
him live!)

Another good gift for some people is wine, which makes for a nifty hostess gift as well. It is only appropriate that I talk about Vampire Wine of Transylvania now.  Okay, all together let's recite that line from Dracula: "I do not drink…wine" Got that out of our systems? Good!

Getting back to vampire wines, there are a variety of styles to choose from here. One can get a deep Merlot,  a Chardonnay, a cabernet sauvignon or a pinot noir, depending on your tastes. I don't think there are any side effects such as baying at the moon, but who knows? If however you really don't drink…wine there are alternatives such as Dracola and Vamp energy drink. I am sure the energy drink will really make you a night creature!

Now some of you reading this may be thinking: "Ah, great suggestions, but what shopping might I do for my ghoul?"  Well, fear not dear reader, for I have a suggestion to those who have to buy something for their lady fiends. As you all know, there is nothing a ghoul loves more than to soak in the tub using some fancy smelly soap. Well imagine the look on her face when you give her the gift of these herbal soaps!

I dare say she will be speechless with the thoughtfulness of your gift, or maybe she will be just plain speechless!

Well, if you are still clueless about what to give, I have one word for you: Subscriptions. A gift subscription to genre magazine makes for a great year round gift. Giving a subscription to genre magazines such as Scary Monsters or the aforementioned Scarlet Street would be good choices. There are other genre titles such as Rue Morgue that covers current horror as well as classic horror and Monsters From The Vault with its emphasis on classic horror.  Any of these would make great gifts for your favorite monster fan.

So there you have it, my gift guide for 2002, and I do hope it helps you. Now if you don't mind I am going to get to my shopping. After all, after all these years I have finally pulled Renfield's name for gift swapping.  Now to find the right gift for the man who has made me watch such classics as The Worm Eaters, Bela Lugosi Meets A Brooklyn Gorilla, and They Saved Hitler's Brain.