The Keene Sentinel, Monday, July 24, 2006:

Oh, the horror of watching television

Cheshire TV has some movie fun

By PETER J. CLEARY
Sentinel Staff

    Meet Scarewolf.
    Colleagues call him a "surprisingly well-groomed" werewolf with an excellent knowledge of film and menswear.
    On television he's been referred to as possibly bionic or possibly Episcopalian, though no one's really sure of his true background, according to colleague Isaac J. Kennell.
    "At this point, nobody quite knows what Scarewolf is or where he's from," Kennell said.
    But part of the reason he's in the Monadnock Region is clear. Scarewolf is the tuxedo-clad host of one of Cheshire TV's first public-access cable shows - "Saturday Fright Special."
    Scarewolf was unavailable for an interview, but his colleagues agreed to meet with The Sentinel last weekend to discuss the show, which airs Saturdays at 10 p.m. on Time Warner Cable's channel 8.
    The two-hour show, which features a different horror movie each episode, is peppered with commentary by Scarewolf as well as commercials and public-service announcements.
    The premiere showed "Shriek of the Mutilated," a horror film from 1974.
    The selection of movies on "Saturday Fright Special," as well as the way they're presented, was inspired by horror-show hosts its creator and producers grew up watching. Producer Mark A. Nelson calls the show "a love letter to late-night TV of our youth."
    Cheshire TV offers the opportunity for area residents to produce and air their own television shows. In addition to "Saturday Fright Special," the public-access station airs locally produced "Keene Karaoke Idol" and "Keene Komic."
    The horror show's quartet of producers had been talking about the show for years, Nelson said. And when Cheshire TV went live they seized the opportunity.
    Kennell, who is the show's creator, purchased a dozen horror movies last fall, and more recently he and his horror-movie friends have been working to put the show together. All movies they use are in the public domain.
    Cheshire TV put a mature content warning on the first show, but the producers say they design the shows to be appropriate for younger audiences. They hope kids will stay up late and watch "Saturday Fright Special" just like they themselves did with other horror host shows when they were younger.
    The first film's premise was murder and cannibalism, and though the film itself was poorly made, there were a few gruesome scenes.
    The quartet of producers spends about 30 hours putting together each show, which involves filming segments with Scarewolf, selecting commercial breaks and assembling it all on Nelson's computer.
    Like the movies, the commercials are old and some are humorous.
    And part of the reason they're included in the show is so people will make it through the full movie without getting so bored they shut it off, the producers said.
    But along with the bad, they vow to show good movies featuring actors and directors they respect, said producer Richard J. Trottier.
    Adding to the mix of mid-movie diversions, Scarewolf will soon be visited by guest hosts. They include Santora the Honduran Grappler and Tae Kwon Dunk, who producer Timothy R. Hulsizer describes as "like Bruce Lee's less-talented brother who has a basketball for a head."
    They said they hope kids will start dressing up like Scarewolf and friends for Halloween.
    Part of the production includes deciding where to place commercial breaks - something the producers clearly have fun with.
    The first commercial - a public service announcement about sexually transmitted diseases - has a cheery theme song with a chorus of "VD is for everybody."
    Another shows three hot dogs in buns described as "sizzling hot dogs bursting with juicy goodness." That description follows a shot of a severed leg in "Shriek of the Mutilated."
    The show's Web site says it will show the "best and worst of public domain horror movies," and Nelson acknowledges the premiere movie may sway toward the worst. The title, "Shriek of the Mutilated," makes it out to be "horribly disgusting when actually it's horribly boring," he said.
    As the movie ended Saturday night, Scarewolf returned to the screen with a pitch for the next episode of "Saturday Fright Special," saying its movie will be better.
    But then he adjusts that statement.
"Good is relative," he says.

Peter J. Cleary can be reached at 352-1234, extension 1409, or pcleary@keenesentinel.com.