I know, I know—I write SF and romance. Why would I go to a horror convention?

Two words: Jeffrey Combs. See, I found out from a friend that JC would be appearing at Texas Frightmare Weekend this year with his costars from RE-ANIMATOR (it’s the movie’s 40th anniversary this year and the con wanted to celebrate it). Since 1) I still have the Poe Nose Jeffrey gave me back in 2009 and wanted to get the shadow box in which it resides signed, and 2) I wanted to give him a copy of A Most Malicious Murder since it’s dedicated to him, I decided to get a day pass for today and head over to Las Colinas.

Whoo-ee. Texas Frightmare is a big con. A little smaller than A-Kon, but not by much, and it had an absolutely great vibe. The dealer’s room was packed, a lot of people had kids in tow, the costuming was fantastic, and despite the fact that it hit 94°F here today I did not smell body odor once (which gives it major points over an SF con).

After getting my day pass wristband I wandered around for awhile admiring the costuming and the dealer’s room wares, eyed the humongous signing line for Bruce Campbell, and mentally prayed that Jeffrey’s wouldn’t be as long. It wasn’t, but it was still sizeable. I got the chance to chat with some young RE-ANIMATOR fans while I waited (and yes, I may have admired him from a distance. I once told him on Twitter that he would still be hot when he was 90, and he’s proving me correct).

I finally got up to the desk and pulled out the Poe Nose shadow box (for those who don’t know or remember the story, I flew out to LA numerous times in 2009 to watch him perform as Edgar Allan Poe in the one-man show Nevermore…An Evening with Edgar Allan Poe. I wound up making a 1:12 scale reproduction of the set, including a doll of him dressed as Poe, and gave it to him on Halloween. In return, he gave me the nose he wore on stage that night, and I mounted it in a shadow box when I got home). Bless him, his face lit up and he asked, “Where did you GET that?” I explained the exchange we did and he immediately said, “I still have your shadow box! I so appreciate that you made it for me.”

We talked about Nevermore for a bit, then I then gave him a copy of A Most Malicious Murder and explained the provenance. He seemed touched and said that he’d read it. I assured him that he didn’t have to, he could just put it on his shelf as egoboo (not everyone enjoys mysteries). Then he signed my shadow box, shook my hand, and I left. Such a nice man.

And no, I didn’t get a selfie or professional photo op with him because I already have one next to my desk. But it was lovely to get a chance to speak with him again, and I may wind up going back to Texas Frightmare next year just for the fun of it.