Dark Lady

"She Dealt Two Cards, A Queen And A Three..."
Chrissy Teigen 

"Dark lady played black magic 'til the clock struck on the 12

She told me more about me than I knew myself" - Cher, Dark Lady  

So's here's Chrissy Teigen out and about in Los Angeles attired head to toe in black, naturally. Well OK, not perhaps naturally per se, but looking good.

For some reason the the song Dark Lady by Cher sprang to mind when I saw this photo. 

I mean seriously, couldn't you see Chrissy in New Orleans fortune telling with cards in this outfit? I sure can and perhaps she has a black cat for effect.

Hold on I'm getting a vibration from looking at Ms. Teigen, it says you are all going to seize the day and make it yours.

Dark Lady indeed!!!

Chrissy on IG -

https://www.instagram.com/chrissyteigen/?hl=en  

Go Horror or Go Home! With Author M. E. Franco

Jack Skellington Says: "Eat Me!"
M.E. Franco

Alright Minions, it's here. Every Halloween Season I get with M.E. Franco author of the popular supernatural Dion book series and ask ten questions about our favorite time of year. It's our Halloween tradition, what's yours?!

MS: OK, let's start off by addressing the elephant in the room. On a scale of 1 - 10, how bummed are you that we have to wait until next year to see Halloween Kills?   

ME: I was so disappointed. I didn’t realize how much I was looking forward to it until it got postponed. By the looks of the trailer, I think it’s going to be worth the wait though!

MS: Which female horror icon is your Woman Crush?  

ME: Kate Beckinsale as Selene in the Underworld movies. More action than horror, but she was mesmerizing. 

Marie Laveau's Resting Place 

MS: Name your favorite cemetery that you have visited. 

ME: I was actually able to do a tour of the cemeteries in New Orleans. It was really interesting to see the crypts that they use, since they can’t bury people underground.  Cemetery #1, where Marie Laveau is entombed, was probably my favorite. Would have loved to go back there after dark. 

 

Regan MacNeil

MS: You have three doors to choose from, door number one has Pennywise behind it. Door number two has Regan MacNeil (in her possessed state) behind it. Door number three has Donald Trump behind it, which door would you choose and why? 

ME: Door number three because I could totally take him in a fight.

The Book That Started It All...

MS: Any plans to do a fourth Dion book?   

ME: I hadn’t planned to initially. I did write a few chapters for fun, but I didn’t really have a plot. I eventually came up with an interesting idea for a story line, but finding the time to write is tough.

MS: Spill on what you consider the lamest costume you have worn for Halloween.  

ME: One year I was really busy, and Halloween was on a weekday, so I actually wore one of those lame shirts that say “This is my costume.” 

MS: The Tell-Tale Heart is under your floorboard, what do you do?   

ME: Time to move!! Don’t want to get caught.

Seance, Seance!

MS: Your having the old fashioned version of a Kiki, a Seance. Name three famous people you whose spirits you would call upon to appear, and of course why damn it!   

ME: I’d ask Elvis for a song, Mark Twain for a chat, and Patrick Swayze for a dance.

MS: Losing weight is a bitch. Do you choose a gypsy woman's curse, or blood sucking leeches in your quest to shed pounds?   

ME: After the lockdown pounds, I’d probably be desperate enough for a curse!

MS: OK, last but certainly not least. What are your special plans for everyone's first pandemic Halloween?  

ME: Eat the candy I bought for the kids who can’t trick or treat and look for a good gypsy woman.

Want more M.E.? Of course you do! Get scary with her at:

https://www.facebook.com/MEFrancoAuthor/

https://www.amazon.com/M.-E.-Franco/e/B008NAKQW6

https://twitter.com/mefranco1

https://mefrancoauthor.blogspot.com/?m=0  

Countdown To Crawfish

Aaron Neville

New Orleans Returns to New Jersey as the Best of the Big Easy’s Music and Food Arrives for Milestone Weekend Celebration at Sussex Fairgrounds in Augusta

 Tickets on Sale NOW!

Watch the highlight reel

 A New Jersey tradition will be marking its milestone 30^th anniversary celebrating two of New Orleans’ greatest traditions – music and food – with Big Easy backyard authenticity, when the likes of Aaron Neville, the Marcus King Band and over 20 other great Crescent City acts go “head to tail” with 10,000 pounds of specially imported crawfish and more at MICHAEL ARNONE’S 30^TH ANNUAL CRAWFISH FEST, May 31-June 2 here at the Sussex County Fairgrounds.

Tickets are on sale NOW for the three-day festival, which annually draws close to 20,000 people for a unique weekend experience featuring the best music and food that New Orleans and all of Louisiana has to offer. The music spans Bayou-based Cajun, Zydeco, Delta Blues, New Orleans R&B, Brass, Gospel and Jazz across three stages, while the food highlights assorted other south Louisiana delicacies such as fresh Boiled Louisiana Crawfish trucked in alive, with Jambalaya, Crawfish Etouffee, Alligator Sausage, Po-boys (oyster, shrimp and catfish), Char Grilled Oysters, Southern Fried Chicken, along with the Louisiana chefs who prepare it all. 

Marcus King Band

Also scheduled to appear are Neville Jacobs, Rebirth Brass Band, Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience, Cowboy Mouth, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Walter “Wolfman” Washington and the Roadmasters, Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie, Bishop Gunn, Cory Henry and the Treme Funktet, John Papa Gros Band, Jonathon Long, Flow Tribe, Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes, Nathan and the Zydeco Cha-Chas, Darcy Malone and the Tangle, Amanda Fish, The Iceman Special, Jesse Lege and Bayou Brew, Tony Smith and the You Know How We Do Crew, and Big Mamou.

Festival goers can purchase 2019 Crawfish Fest Single Day, 2 Day Combo, Group, onsite 4 day/3 nights Camping/ Admission, and King Crawfish Krewe Tickets (main stage pit passes). Advance tickets start at $35 for adults (free for children under 14 with parent), and are available through the official website, www.crawfishfest.com.

“The great thing about this festival is its incredible authenticity,” says festival creator-producer and Louisiana import Michael Arnone. “It’s so real that for everybody who’s moved up North from Louisiana, everyone who’s homesick, this is like going home for a few days. The Louisiana atmosphere, the crawfish, the jambalaya, it’s all there. I tell people the music brings them, but the food keeps them.”  

Monday Motivation

All That Jazz
Katy Perry

This weeks Monday Motivation takes on the shape of Katy Perry showing her jazz love at what else? The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, naturally.

Katy went all out in her, dare I say awesome, unique and completely original choice of outfit. Ms. Perry is going big, as you can see, living her best life as it were.

"Yes" now you are seeing where I am going with this piece of Monday Motivation - live your best life, you only have one damn it, so just do it!

For example today I am hitting the yoga mat, as it does my body and my twisted soul good. Thus I am doing something that is making my quality of life the best it can be. Yeah, it's that simple people, do something that is good for you, buy something that makes you smile or engage in an activity that makes you feel good if you get my drift (wink, wink, nudge nudge)

Even if it means wearing something like Ms. Perry, whatever it is, if it makes you happy, it can't be that bad...can it???

Katy Perry on IG -

https://www.instagram.com/katyperry/?hl=en

Remembering Johnny Thunders -

Room 37: The Mysterious Death Of Johnny Thunders

on Blu-ray and DVD on May 24th

Madrid Memory on DVD / CD on April 5th

Room 37: The Mysterious Death Of Johnny Thunders is inspired by true life events surrounding the mysterious death of the legendary guitarist Johnny Thunders. 

Johnny Thunders arrives to New Orleans to begin a new chapter of his life by following a new musical sound, and staying clean from drugs in order to see his kids again. After he settles into the St. Peter's Guest House Hotel, things go awry. 

His room is robbed which contained the last of his money and his only methadone supply. Johnny's journey to recovery quickly turns dark when he takes desperate measures to get better, all which propel Johnny deeper in chaos that ultimately leads to his unexplained mysterious final hours.

Trailer: https://youtu.be/mG1pFksTaUU 

Pre-Order: https://mvdshop.com/search?q=room+37 

Madrid Memory features a long lost live concert performance from The Heartbreakers explosive 1984 reunion world tour that included fellow Dolls Sylvain Sylvain and Jerry Nolan plus Billy Rath.

Filmed for TV broadcast at La Edad De Oro in Madrid, Spain, this concert captures powerful performances of songs from throughout Thunders's amazing career including "Personality Crisis," "Too Much Junkie Business," and "Born Too Lose."

Trailer: https://youtu.be/MWBNOUFokXc 

Pre-Order: https://mvdshop.com/search?q=Madrid+Memory 

1 Guy, 1 Beer & A Balcony

There Is Nothing Like A Beer
Lance Bass

It's another Manic Monday peeps time to dust yourself off and begin the countdown of another week on the 2017 calendar.

This image caught my eye and even though it screams completely relaxed and enjoying ones self,hardly how most beings associate the beginning of the work week, I thought to myself "visualization" when I saw it.

Here is Southern Boy Lance Bass vacationing in New Orleans showing us why he loves it there, drinking a beer on the balcony of where he is staying. Having been to New Orleans I can relate to this and even if you haven't you can too because who does not get chillaxing? 

So file this in your memory bank with the caption "chillaxing" visualize it in your mind when you get stressed, and I am sure it will help get you through your Monday and the rest of the week too for that matter.

Michael says: Relax! 

Lance on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/lancebass/ 

Chelsea And Sandra Do Mardi Gras

Sandra Bullock & Chelsea Handler: Beads-A-Plenty!

Flashing expert and raconteur Chelsea Handler took to the streets of New Orleans on Fat Tuesday during the city's renowned Mardi Gras celebration displaying two of her many talents, her boobs.

Yep, in the tradition of many women who have come before her, Cheslea set her girls free for Mardi Gras! 

Joining Chelsea for the festivities were Sandra Bullock, Whitney Cummings, Michael McDonald and Kerri Kenney-Silver.

 Of course Handler tweeted the photo of herself with her shirt up, bra down and nipples completely out for the world to see. 

"Merry Christmas" Early From Chelsea Handler

Chelsea wished everyone a "Merry Christmas" to accompany the image. 

Merry Christmas to you Chelsea Handler, I'm sure you are the woman with the most beads at Mardi Gras. Werk it grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrl!

If you aren't already - this is proof you need to be following Chelsea Handler on Twitter at:

https://twitter.com/chelseahandler

For A Good Cause: O.A.R. & Phillip Phillips

O.A.R. and Phillip Phillips give it up for a great cause, Habitat for Humanity International. Keep the love flowing..

Rock band O.A.R. and singer Phillip Phillips announced today their joint summer tour will benefit Habitat for Humanity to support the organization’s mission of providing safe, decent, affordable housing in partnership with low-income families.

“Home means everything to us. It’s our DNA. It’s who we are,” said Marc Roberge of O.A.R.  “We had the chance to meet amazing people building Habitat for Humanity homes in LA, pouring love and sweat into the foundation, taking pride in the work they were doing, alongside the Habitat partner family, and it was an honor to be a part of that. Words can’t properly describe the positive swell that brought to our hearts. We hope the donation from our tour will help families, like the ones we met, achieve their dreams of homeownership.”

The 24-city joint tour kicks off in St. Louis on June 12 and wraps up in Atlanta on July 26. For every ticket sold, O.A.R. and Phillip Phillips will donate $1 to Habitat. The tour will also host online auctions for a VIP experience in each city, including two premium tickets and an opportunity to meet with the artists. Proceeds from the auctions will go to local Habitat affiliates.

“My team has personally seen the incredible impact Habitat for Humanity can have on lives. We have worked on builds from the Musician's Village rebuild in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina to local neighborhoods in my community,” said Phillip Phillips. “Habitat's roots stem from my home state of Georgia but their reach is now worldwide  I am honored to partner with Habitat for Humanity in carrying out their mission - to build homes, communities, and hope."
 
The artists will also donate 10 concert tickets to the Habitat for Humanity affiliate in each tour city, for use by Habitat volunteers and staff, as well as Habitat partner homeowner families, who they will meet at each tour stop. Habitat affiliates will be provided with space at each venue to raise awareness about their affordable housing work within their communities.

“O.A.R. and Phillip Phillips share our passion for helping low-income families realize the dream of homeownership,” said Colleen Ridenhour, deputy director of Corporate, Foundation and Institution Relations for Habitat for Humanity International. “We are honored to be recognized during their summer tour and are grateful for their generosity in helping raise funds to create safe, decent, affordable housing.”
 

O.A.R. – Phillip Phillips joint tour dates:

June 12:  Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO                                                      
June 13:  Crossroads, Kansas City, MO
June 14:  Red Rocks, Morrison, CO                                        
June 15:  Stir Cove, Council Bluffs, IA
June 17:  LC Pavilion, Columbus, OH                                     
June 18:  Stage AE, Pittsburgh, PA
June 20:  Jacobs Pavilion Nautica, Cleveland, OH                              
June 21:  FirstMerit Pavilion at Northerly Island, Chicago
June 22:  Freedom Hill Amphitheatre, Sterling Heights, MI           
June 23:  Frederik Meijer Gardens, Grand Rapids, MI
June 28:  Riverbend Music Center, Cincinnati, OH                             
July 2:    Art Park, Lewiston, NY
July 6:    Foxwoods Resort Casino, Mashantucket, CT      
July 10:  Blue Hills Bank Pavilion, Boston, MA
July 11:  Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, Wantagh, NY   
July 12:  P.N.C. Bank Arts Center, Holmdel, NJ
July 13:  Red Hat Amphitheater, Raleigh, NC                     
July 16:  Uptown Amphitheatre at the NC Music, Charlotte
July 18:  Festival Pier at Penn's Landing, Philadelphia, PA              
July 19:  Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD
July 20:  NTELOS Pavilion, Portsmouth, VA                                          
July 24:  Innsbrook Pavilion, Glen Allen, VA
July 25:  Family Circle Tennis Center, Charleston, SC      
July 26:  Chastain Park Amphitheatre, Atlanta, GA

About Habitat for Humanity International


Habitat for Humanity International’s vision is a world where everyone has a decent place to live. Anchored by the conviction that housing provides a critical foundation for breaking the cycle of poverty, Habitat has helped more than 4 million people construct, rehabilitate or preserve homes since 1976. Habitat also advocates to improve access to decent and affordable shelter and supports a variety of funding models that enable families with limited resources to make needed improvements on their homes as their time and resources allow. As a nonprofit Christian housing organization, Habitat works in more than 70 countries and welcomes people of all races, religions and nationalities to partner in its mission. To learn more, donate or volunteer visit habitat.org.

The Horror: Michael Shinafelt, Satan In Disguise

When Satan Met Me

The above title is the LAST time I will refer to myself in the third person during this post, to me that is more creepy than a Satanic Ritual...

So my fellow writer and horror fan-atic author ME Franco and I had so much fun with my Halloween questions to her, that she decided to ask me some, from one horror loving writer to another, oh but I have taken my love of horror to the next level, that's right, I have acted in a horror film as well as another one due in 2014.

OK, ME I'm all yours!

ME: Being a horror movie lover, I have to say you get major respect points from me for being in one. I watched the trailer for"The Summer of Massacre,"and I can't wait to watch it. What character did you play and how did he die?

MS: The Summer of Massacre is an anthology and I am in the segment "Son of the Boogeyman" I play a cop pursuing the Boogeyman and I start shooting him in the head and he just won't die, you know those Boogeymen, and he grabs my skull and crushes it in, it was awesome seeing my death on a 50 foot screen!

Me and  Scott Barrows Who Played "The Boogeyman" at 'The Summer of Massacre" Premiere

ME:. If you could star in the remake of a popular horror franchise, who would you want to be?

MS: Oh God, OK let me start by stating my ultimate horror role would be Satan, some people already think that about me anyway, ha! But in an existing franchise? Norman Bates from the "Psycho" franchise, I would give him my own spin, but what a fascinating character.

ME: What movie made you a horror fan?

MS: My Dad and I used to watch all the monster movies like Dracula, The Wolfman, Mummy etc. on Sunday afternoons, but it was the first slasher film that he ever took me to, and the only one that has ever scared me that made me a fan. The original "Halloween" I used to see Michael Myers face in the yard outside when it was dark for years.

ME: You do a lot of interviews. Who would you like to have on your blog for a chat - Freddie, Michael Myers, or Jason?

MS: Michael and Freddy are pretty much open books, I would have to go with Jason, try and find out more about the man behind the monster.

ME: Which witch would you not want to make an enemy of on American Horror Story this season?

MS: That's easy, Marie Leveau, I visited her grave site for real in New Orleans once when I went for Halloween, "Yes" I went to NO for HW once.

ME:. What candy do you have in your trick or treat bowl?

My Favorite "Dracula"!

MS: Mini Snickers bars.

ME: Love that more horror shows are coming out on television. What show are you most looking forward to this season?

MS: I'd have to go Team Dracula with this one, when I was a kid I used to want to be a Vampire when I grew up.

ME: Classic monster fight between Dracula, Frankenstein, and the Mummy. Who would you put your money on?

MS: Frankenstein is strong, but not too bright, the Mummy what's he going to do. put a band aid on it? I'd say Dracula, intelligent, supernatural powers and sex appeal, a winning combo.

ME: Do you have any plans to star in more horror movies?

MS: I shot another one this past summer that is due out in 2014.

ME:. If you could sit down and have a beer/coffee with anyone involved in the horror genre, real or fictional, who would you choose?

MS: Hmmmmmmmmmm....Miriam Blaylock from "The Hunger" that would be an interesting conversation, and encounter.

ME: Last question: What's your zombie apocalypse weapon of choice?

MS: The biggest shot gun I could find. It would be awesome to make their living dead heads explode!

Follow Me On Twitter at: https://twitter.com/MShinafelt

Check Me Out On IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4466735/?ref_=fn_nm_nm_1

Find Out More About ME at: https://www.facebook.com/MEFrancoAuthor

American Horror Story: Coven

In honor of this time of year I always post about the current season of "American Horror Story" or as I used to call it prior to this season; "The Jessica Lange Show".

Well "AHS" has upped the acting/diva ante this year with the addition of two other acting legends: Kathy Bates and Angela Bassett. Along with a trio of talented young actresses Emma Roberts,
Gabourey Sidibe and Taissa Farmiga, yeah say those names together three times fast.

Seasoned acting divas vs. young acting divas! Of course while the veterans are the most interesting but the young ones hold their own in what so far is working itself out to be an interesting entry into the "AHS" anthology now in it's 3rd season.

Kathy Bates & Jessica Lange

Two episodes in I feel like the season is really just getting started and we are in for something that is going to blow our collective cauldrons off!

One of the cool things is how "AHS" pays homage to other horror films with a wink and a nod, yet makes it their own. My personal favorite so far? The well deserved tribute to my favorite vampire film of all time, the late Tony Scott's "The Hunger". All of you "Hunger" fans know the scene of which I speak the one with First Lady Jessica Lange in the laboratory with the experimental aging drugs on a monkey, oh yes!

The demented Kathy Bates and her love of pancreas blood from her slaves to keep her young and Ms. Angela Bassett so good as a fictionalized version of Marie Laveau, the Voodoo Queen of New Orelans, whose grave I have actually been to, Marie's not Angela's.

Angela Bassett as "Marie Laveau"

Yes, you are engaging with one hardcore horror fan, someone who is so much one I visited the location of this seasons story, New Orleans, LA for Halloween one year, make of it what you will, or be well and carry on.

That being said fictionalized Marie Laveau so far is the scariest of the witches to me, even Bassett's line delivery of: "She done messed with the wrong witch" sends chills up my spine. Kathy Bates making a Minotaur out of one of her Black slaves that slept with her lily White daughter is pretty unnerving too.

But Ms. Lange takes the top prize as usual as her eternal youth seeking and sucking "Fiona" who will stop at nothing in a cocaine induced rage to get her some, Fountain of Youth, that is...

Emma Roberts as a half assed actress "Madison" who killed someone on set with a hanging light because he told her to hit her mark, takes top prize as my favorite of the young Witches, not to mention her destroying a whole bus of fraternity boys who gang raped her, way to go "Madison"!

Gabourey Sidibe takes best line of the season thus far for referring to one of her only witch role models growing up as "Sabrina, The Teenage Cracker" - love it!

Gabourey Sidibe: "Sabrina The Teenage Cracker"

And Taissa Farmiga as the Witch who has a "vagina that kills" gotta love a Killer V!

Interestingly enough the show really brings horror into a realm where the last two seasons have gone, but more so, it makes horror an estrogen game. Most horror is male dominated, but every season of "AHS" has really made the female characters the powerful ones, the ones who have driven the story, not the passive victims they are in standard Hollywood fare.

That, for me as a huge horror fan has always been one of the more interesting things about "AHS" - it really is all about the estrogen...can't wait for more of "Coven"!

Go "Coven" at: http://www.fxnetworks.com/ahs/