My book FANTOMAS IN AMERICA is now available from the good folks at Black Coat Press. You can pick it up on Amazon or at www.blackcoatpress.com.

Briefly, it's an original novel inspired by the lost American movie serial produced by Fox Films in 1921.

While I couldn't be happier with the final product, due to space limitations, not every ad, still and piece of publicity that I provided to Black Coat was used in the book. The book is still heavily illustrated with 50 ads and stills, and the novel is competely intact, but there's still a lot of pressbook material on the "cutting room floor" as it were.

So, I'm in the process of uploading all of this rare material to my Fantomas myspace site. Eventually, I'll probably develop a website away from the auspices of myspace at which time this material may disappear for awhile. Until then, however, I hope people find it of interest. There are about 30 stills, more than 40 illustrated ads and numerous publicity articles and text pieces on the actors. You find it at www.myspace.com/fantomasinamerica.

D.

P.S. And while you're enjoying the free stuff, do consider purchasing the book, won't you? :)

Sold!

I do have to ask:

Do you have any idea when or where those of us in Region 1 will ever be able to get the campy yet colorful FANTOMAS films (or any of the FANTOMAS films) subtitled in English?

Merci beaucoup!

Tom, I wish I knew when all the Fantomas films would be available with English subs. Some of them are even hard to find in France. I desperately want to see Jean Sacha's FANTOMAS (1946) and Robert Vernay's FANTOMAS CONTRE FANTOMAS (1948). I've seen them, but only in their original language with no translation. Likewise the 4-part miniseries from the 80s starring Helmut Berger and directed by Chabrol and Juan Bunuel. I could kick myself for not paying closer attention the MOMA program guide. Back in April they had a Chabrol retrospective and showed the first part of the series with English subs!

Drumming up interest in Fantomas is difficult business, but the character seems to be enjoying a slow renaissance of sorts. Two years ago there were no copies of the English translations in print. Now, the first novel is out from Dover and Penguin (go for the Dover), DAUGHTER OF FANTOMAS is out from Black Coat Press, LORD OF TERROR has been reprinted by Ramble House and EXPLOITS OF JUVE, NEST OF SPIES and ROYAL PRISONER can be found as e-texts. Then there's FANTOMAS IN AMERICA and Black Coat Press' FANTOMAS VS. NICK CARTER (a translation of a French play). I also reprinted a non-Fantomas novel by Marcel Allain called WOMAN OF PREY under the new title FANTOMAS OF LONDON about a year ago. In addition there is significant discussion of the character in the new graphic novel LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN: THE BLACK DOSSIER.

On the DVD front, the UK DVD of Feuillade's serial has English subs, although it is Region 2. There's also an "unofficial" Fantomas film coming from Onar Films in January or February. It's called DEMIR PENCE and features Fantomas battling a superhero called the "Stell Claw" (or something like that).

Hopefully the Lord of Terror will reach his tipping point sometime soon. Maybe then we'll be able to read Tim Lucas' long awaited novel THE ONLY CRIMINAL which, I understand, is a Fantomas pastiche of sorts.

D.

The UK DVD of the Feuillade serial looks great to me, with a much better image quality than the DVD of LES VAMPIRES from Image.

Yes, I think the LES VAMPIRES dvd is compromised by the fact that everything is squeezed onto a single disc. It doesn't look appreciably better than the VHS version, quite frankly. The tinting is also a bit too heavy. The FANTOMAS DVD is more subtle. The best of the Feuillade DVDs, in my opinion, is JUDEX. The serial itself isn't as thrilling as LES VAMPIRES, but the presentation is terrific and the it almost looks like the work of a different director or (more likely) the work of a director who learned a great deal about filmmaking after FANTOMAS.

D.