Page 18 THE VILLADOM TIMES I & II • April 18, 2012 Celebrities, fans ready for April Chiller Expo by Dennis Seuling Whether you are looking for an interesting day out with the kids, a chance to meet a favorite movie or TV star, an opportunity to check out scores of dealers and their oftenrare memorabilia, or marvel at the custom-made models of movie and fantasy monsters, Chiller Expo will be a treat. Now in its 22nd year as New Jersey’s most prominent and successful fan convention, Chiller Expo has grown tremendously since its modest beginnings at the Rutherford Center for the Arts, when the guest celebrities were former TV horror host Zacherley and actress Dyanne Thorne, best known to moviegoers as “Ilsa, She Wolf of the S.S.” These days, there are far more guests at each bi-annual show. Headlining this spring is actress Cathy Moriarty, who made an auspicious movie debut in Martin Scorsese’s “Raging Bull,” considered by many critics to be one of the best films of the 1980s. Moriarty portrayed Vikki LaMotta, the wife of Robert DeNiro’s Jake LaMotta, and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. In 1981, she appeared in “Neighbors,” but a 1982 car accident resulted in several back surgeries and she did not appear in another movie until 1987. Some of her 1990s films include “Kindergarten Cop,” “Soapdish,” “The Mambo Kings,” and “Cop Land.” In 2002, she reunited with De Niro in “Analyze That,” in which she portrayed Mafia boss Patti LoPresti. Also appearing at the Chiller Expo is actor Dean Cain. A promising football player in high school, Cain was offered 17 athletic scholarships and decided to attend Princeton, where he set an NCAA record for the most interceptions in a single season. He signed with the Buffalo Bills, but a knee injury ended his sports career. He turned to screenwriting and then to acting, snagging his most famous role -- Clark Kent/Superman -- in the TV series “Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,” co-starring Teri Hatcher. The show ran for four seasons. He produced and hosted TV’s “Ripley’s Believe It or Not,” and starred in several movies before returning to TV as Scott Peterson in the fact-based flick “The Perfect Husband: The Laci Peterson Story” and taking on a recurring role on the series “Las Vegas.” He also appeared in a Season 7 episode of “Smallville” as Dr. Curtis Knox, a villain from the DC Comics universe. Butch Patrick, best known for the role of Eddie Munster on the TV sitcom “The Munsters” (1964-1966), appeared in many other ‘60s shows, including “Mister Ed,” “My Favorite Martian,” “The Monkees,” “Gunsmoke,” and “Adam 12.” In the early ‘70s, he starred in the Saturday morning fantasy program “Lidsville.” In 1983, he recorded the autobiographical song “Whatever Happened to Eddie” to “The Munsters” theme. With backup instrumentalists, the group was known as Eddie and the Munsters featuring Butch Patrick. The expo’s nearly 90 celebrity guests will also include Linda Blair (“The Exorcist”), New Jersey’s Danny Aiello (“Do the Right Thing”), Parker Stevenson (“The Hardy Boys,” “Baywatch”), John Astin (“The Addams Family”), Michael Constantine (“My Big Fat Greek Wedding”), boxing Hall of Famer Jake LaMotta, rock musician Alice Cooper, Luciana Paluzzi (“Thunderball”), pro wrestler Gred “The Hammer” Valentine, and Lynne Stewart (Miss Yvonne from “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse”). Zacherley (actor John Zacherle), now 93, will also be on hand. He has been at every Chiller Expo since the first. If you are of a certain age, you will remember Zacherley as the host of various TV fright movie shows, including New York’s WPIX “Chiller Theatre,” the inspiration for the convention’s name. In 1958, Zacherley recorded “Dinner with Drac,” a novelty single. Zacherley often filled in for Dick Clark on road touring shows of “American Bandstand.” Clark gave him the nickname “The Cool Ghoul.” Zacherley even ran for president in 1960. In 1986, he hosted the direct-to-video “Horrible Horror,” reprising his comic bits between showings of clips from public-domain horror and sci-fi horror films. He also served as DJ for a number of radio stations. Cathy Moriarty, star of ‘Raging Bull’ and ‘Analyze That,’ is one of several movie, TV, sports, and music celebrities who will appear at Chiller Expo. The brainchild of longtime horror/fantasy fan Kevin Clement, Chiller Expo began as Horrorthon. As a youngster, Clement watched all the horror and science fiction movies he could find on the small screen, and was especially enamored of the classic Universal horror movies starring such genre giants as Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, and Lon Chaney Jr. His love of fantasy cinema gave birth to the now twice-yearly shows, which bring together not only horror fans, but also aficionados of mainstream show biz, classic TV, sports, and model craftsmanship. One of the always well-attended exhibits is devoted to models, some made from kits, others made from scratch, by artists who take painstaking care with details of costuming, props, and poses to duplicate the look of a particular (continued on Crossword page)