GoreZone was the short lived bi-monthly horror magazine from the publishers of the Iconic Horror / Sci-Fi publication Fangoria. Spanning 27 issues over five years. 1988-1993. Price range retail went from $3.50 to $4.95 over that span. Horror was hot. GZ was a bit more splatter heavy than Fangoria.
Issues 1-7
Some great covers wouldn't you say? Easy finds at bookstores around Charleston SC back when. Not as easy to come across while at App State. Late '87, early '88 I began to shift a bit. Away from comic books and over to movies. Especially Horror during that time. Kinda wish I'd paid more attention to condition. But hey, these are intended to be read. Plus there's a lot of character and memories in that wear. 😊
Issues 14 & 26
Sportscards, shoes, shades, girls, cars etc took priority over my magazine buying. Hey, just means I can pick up the remaing 18 issues and complete the full run anytime now. And will eventually. A part of my past that needs completing.
Random musings ...
Pluto TV. Kudos. The Love Boat channel. I love the first two seasons of that show. Reminds me of simpler times. One of the few TV shows the whole family liked to watch. Saturday nights. Love Boat at 9, Fantasy Island at 10. ABC news at 11. Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling at 11:15. Lazy, simple Saturday Nights. So cool.
I miss the old AVP on NBC days. For a few years, 91-95, Beach Volleyball was must see tv 'round here. Sparked my interest in Oakleys.
Two things I like about collecting comics. The stories inside, of course. And the wear, the "character", present on the cover. Low and High, both grades have their own tale they tell...
There are 5 Musical Groups / Artists who I can be linked to under the "Superfan" banner.
1. ZZ Top
2. Elton John
3. Def Leppard
4. The Oak Ridge Boys
5. Ronnie Milsap
ZZ Top and their mystical vids. Bought an Elton John album at age 5. Def Leppard adding power to 1988. The Oak Ridge Boys and their chart dominance beginning the Summer we moved to South Carolina. Ronnie Milsap whose chart run began around the time the Lil' LanceR here started turning up the radio. Great music, talented. So much talent. I was so fortunate to be in a household in which all music was listened to. Hee Haw, Lawrence Welk, Gospel on the radio. The Midnight Special and Soul Train. So lucky was I.
Joe Bonsall, the incredibly gifted Tenor of The Oak Ridge Boys and lead singer on many of the groups biggest hits passed away due to ALS recently. A disease that can only be described as horrific. Known by most as Lou Gehrig's Disease. As a longtime Oaks fan I knew when Bonsall removed himself from touring in early 2024 that something was seriously wrong. Joe was the Energizer Bunny of the Oaks.
The Oaks Country Chart Hit career spanned roughly 1977 - early 1991. My age 7 - 21 years. I basically grew up during their peak. What a peak it was.
63 Singles
17 Number One hits
Inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2010
Inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2015
Love all their work. But I'll take a crack at narrowing it down to 8 favorites.
8. "Elvira". Ahh, novelty song. Love it. Sterban crushes it.
7. "Up On Cripple Creek". Cover of The Band's standard.
6. "Everyday". Mid 80's upbeat - uplifter.
5. "Little Things". From the underrated "Step on Out" LP.
4. "Y'all Come Back Saloon". First Top 10 hit in 1977.
3. "Touch a Hand, Make a Friend". The Staple Singers original version from the 70's is a classic. The Oaks harmonies with the guitar and synth sounds add an up-beat and when Joe Bonsall's Tenor takes over. Wow. Country magic.
My 2 Favorites are on a different level for me.
2. "I Guess It Never Hurts to Hurt Sometimes". Songwriter Randy VanWarmer. Who penned the song following the death of his father. It is a melancholy tune. The lyrics can hit hard. The past is gone for good. Like waves breaking, they aren't coming back.
"You try and hold on to the moment but time won't let you stay But for every step you take you lose something on the way You can't look forward to tomorrow and still hold on to yesterday Oh I hope that you can hear me when I'm saying"
The Oaks, with Bonsall's Tenor leading, took this to #1 in May 1984. VanWarmers lyrics cannot be complimented enough. His version, available on his album "Beat of Love" is powerful as well. If there's a definitive Joe Bonsall lead on an Oak Ridge Boys tune, this is it in my opinion. The Boys did great work on this song. My own Father passed away in 1986. I avoided listening to this song for years. As for why, it's a beautiful song that tugs strings.
1. "I Wish You Could Have Turned My Head (And Left My Heart Alone). Written by Sonny Throckmorton who also released it as a single that ddn't crack the the Top 40. Also recorded by the legend Conway Twitty. Summer of 1982. Fun Summer. This hit #2 on the charts. William Lee Golden and Duane Allen play dueling lead vocals. Sterban's Bass enters the fray then Bonsall's "yeah-yeah-yeah.." and then a horn section!! I so love this song. It's short verse wise but still clocks in at 3:25 of pure musical heaven to my ears. Far and away the best version of this tune.
A part of my past passed on with Joe Bonsall's passing. A case of someone, or a group, affecting ones life though they may never know it. The Oak Ridge Boys music helped me through a dark time or two. A case of the good eventually overwhelming the sad. And I can still listen to the Oaks belting the tunes out anytime I wish. Proud to be a fan 🤙
Trips to Northwoods Mall and Kmart(or your favorite mall/store) back in the day were actually big deals. Likely never to be understood by younger generations. We had a great Kmart. Mego, Star Wars, Remco, G.I.Joe, Big Jim etc. action figures were always stocked. Spring of 1980 something else caught my eye in the Hot Wheels aisle. Topps Baseball Cards. Not in wax packs, but rather in Rack Packs. Example pic, not mine:
Those and the Topps 5x7 Supers took up a small area. Snagged quite a few rack packs that Spring. I had just started following MLB in late 79 so I loved getting cards of guys like Schmidt, Garvey, Brett, Lance Parrish, Rice etc. Racked up, no pun intended, nearly all the stars except for 3 notable misses. Dave Winfield. Nolan Ryan. And the man with the best rookie card in 1980: Rickey Henderson. Though in 1980 I had no clue what a rookie card was, and Rickey was playing at the time for a sorry team in Oakland that I had never seen play 😂. Plus, this is 1980. Pre card collecting, but into the comic books pretty good. A Collecting Act Minus One I suppose 😉.
Rickey Henderson may very well be the best MLB player of the last 45 years. Depending on how people view Barry Bonds among positional players and Roger Clemens among pitchers. Among all time rankings he solidly places in the Top 25 all time when including pitchers. Top 20 if sticking with positional players. As a young fan I became very aware of him by the 1982 season. Helped in part by our area finally getting cable tv in June 1982 😇
Intermezzo
Exciting news and fun ahead for the second half of the year ... Shhh ...
By 1985 I was fully aboard the Henderson train. Don Mattingly had a huge 1985. Crazy stats across the board. Won the 1985 AL MVP. A solid choice with some dissenting views. Rickey's 1st season for the Yanks as Don's teammate was 1985. Rickey played a large part in Mattingly winning the MVP. Rickey would have been a solid choice as well. It was the perfect marriage so to speak. Finally snagged a Rickey Rookie in May 1987. Though it was only with me for three years before I sold it 😖
What, it happens 😏
Rickey was a bit ... mercurial during his nearly four and half seasons in the Bronx. Things got a little tense near the end of his Yankee run in June '89. Yankees were a tire fire at that point. Rickey was shipped back to Oakland for three players who provided little to the Yankees. Rickey back home in Oakland however, was Great Rickey again. ALCS MVP award in 1989. AL MVP in 1990. Career Stolen Base MLB record in 1991. A Career Stolen Base World Record in 1993. Stacking hardware.
The Hired Gun ...
In 1993 A quick stopover in Toronto didn't produce much for the two months of regular season work. An injury nick here/there. Nothing eye popping in the 93 ALCS or World Series but his contributions did help Toronto win a second consecutive World Series. Rickey's second ring as well.
Back to Oakland ... then San Diego ... then Anaheim ... Oakland again ... Mets ... Seattle ... San Diego again ... Boston ... Dodgers. With the Dodgers being the final stop. Rickey bounced around a bit. I wanted him back with the Yanks at various times from 96-00 but alas ...
His great years in the rearview mirror, Rickey did play long enough to become the All Time Runs Scored leader and get the 3000 hit plateau. A first ballot Hall Of Fame induction in 2009 with 94.8% of the vote. Along with the unofficial title of Greatest Leadoff Hitter of All Time. A legendary career. Though he's not everybody's cup of tea.
Rickey joined the collection here in January 2016. By complete accident. I got a real good deal on the Rickey Rookie pictured a few paragraphs above.
Rickey with the Red Sox ... what the ... 😂
Glad to have Rickey in the AcesN8s here. Helps the credibility of the collection having that level of legendary player in house. Inner Circle Hall of Famer and a true great.
