FAMOUS MONSTERS' 1982 FILM FANTASY YEARBOOK (PART 1)

FAMOUS MONSTERS PRESENTS 1982 FILM FANTASY YEARBOOK
Warren Publishing
Editor: Forrest J Ackerman
Pages: 100
Cover Price: $2.50

As the first incarnation of FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND was nearing the end of its run, the contents became a potpourri of film topics. The bedrock of vintage monster movies gave way to the more current film fare of STAR WARS and other adventure fantasies, so much so that sometimes near entire issues were stuffed with stills of Luke Skywalker and Indiana Jones. In between all this were glimpses of the magazine that Monster Kids once knew and loved.

The change was entirely understandable. While slasher film were riding the new wave of horror movies. science fiction and fantasy films, heavily laden with special effects by artists and creators who were using the new technology like a kid in a candy store, were busting the blocks of movie theaters throughout the world. In order to stay relevant, FM had to incorporate coverage of these movies into the pages of a magazine that was once ruled nearly exclusively by the horror film.

The "Official Exclusive" FILM FANTASY YEARBOOK (1982) was a mix of INDIANA JONES, SUPERMAN, DRAGONSLAYER, HALLOWEEN, WOLFEN, EXCALIBUR, FRIDAY THE 13TH, and other movies from the era. The cover, showing the face melting off a Nazi during the climax of RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, was equal to anything that FANGORIA, soon to become famous for its gruesome covers, would ever offer.

In this last gasp for relevancy and a share of the increasingly competitive magazine rack, Warren attempted to give the genre fan a little bit of everything. Unfortunately, the formula did no seem to stick and, in another year, FM faded into monster magazine legend.