Slipknot’s Corey Taylor Buys Famous Monsters Brand, Will Relaunch Magazine and Produce Festivals, Toys, and More
Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor and his business partner, Mad Monster owner Eben McGarr, have acquired the Famous Monsters brand and plans to relaunch the iconic horror magazine, as well as produce festivals, toys, and more.
A longtime horror obsessive, Taylor made the announcement last Friday (October 14th) at the Son of Monsterpalooza convention in Burbank, California.
“Our job is to build a foundation to bring Famous Monsters into the modern age, while also honoring the legacy that came before,” he told Rolling Stone. “It’s the whole reason that we were fans to begin with.”
Taylor first encountered the Famous Monsters of Filmland fanzine when he began collecting horror zines as a kid. Famous Monsters would influence countless other horror magazines in the years to follow, undergoing numerous iterations and re-brandings since its first issue in February 1958. Aimed at pre-adolescents and teenagers, the original zine promoted science-fiction and horror culture during an era when older films of the genre began to disappear from television, making its content new and exclusive to readers.
In addition to the Famous Monsters brand, Taylor and McGarr also acquired the rights to Captain Company — the Famous Monsters “store” that originally sold rubber masks and other ephemera — and the life story of Famous Monsters founding editor Forrest Ackerman.
Among Taylor and McGarr’s many plans for the brand include digitizing every issue of Famous Monsters, curating a traveling festival/convention, creating films, and even launching a horror cruise — which the Slipknot singer said he would perform at.
“I would perform,” Taylor said. “I would get some of my friends who lean into that side of it. And really put something cool together.”
He added: “There’s something cool about a scary movie; there’s something cool about a monster. There’s something cool about the underlying metaphor of, ‘It doesn’t matter sometimes if you aren’t the strongest one, you can win and conquer your fears.’”
As for Slipknot, they just wrapped up a North American tour in support of their new album, THE END, SO FAR, which arrived on September 30th.