For real horror film fans, Deadpit Radio, an Internet radio show, as been the ultimate authority on the genre since launching in 2005, and its hosts, "Uncle Bill" and "The Creepy Kentuckian," have, for the most part, been as mysterious as they've been influential to the film industry.
Each Friday night, from their studio in the hills of rural Kentucky.
They have a reach all over the world; fans tuning in as far away as Denmark. But, for the most part, even their biggest supporters didn't really know who they were, other than what little personal information they gave up on air: "Uncle Bill" said he was a janitor. "The Creepy Canadian" claimed he was a coal miner.
But as long as they kept getting high-profile interviews with some of the biggest names in the horror genre -- John Carpenter, director of "Halloween;" James Wan, director of "Saw;" Linnea Quigley, actress in "Return of the Living Dead," to name just a few -- it didn't matter to most.
But it mattered to a group of filmmakers in Milwaukee, including James Bett, Jr., a special effects artist who has worked -- in conjunction with other local filmmakers -- for the last two years to produce "Into The Pit: The Shocking Story of Deadpit.com." The film is a documentary unearthing the real back story behind Deadpit.com's hosts.
Bett began listening to the program regularly after he'd submitted his first short film, "A Dark and Lonely Knife," for review. Deadpit loved it, and the feeling quickly became mutual.
"We fell in love with the idea that these guys were such horror fans and so knowledgeable," says Bett. "When we started listening to Deadpit, we had no idea who these guys were, and neither did their listeners. What we ended up doing was getting underneath those characters and meeting the people behind them. The interesting thing is, it really opened up who are they are on the air, as well. They no longer hide who they are. Their personalities have really come in."
Now known by their real names, Wes Vance (The Creepy Kentuckian) and Aaron T. Frye (Uncle Bill), the Deadpit.com hosts feel less alienated in a small-town culture that generally prefers country music and NASCAR to blood, guts and gore.
"Initially, there was some concern that we were going to exploit the them and the area, because they have had that happen with other documentary crews," says Bett. "It's a very religious area and they didn't want people to know who they were because they didn't want the backlash."
But, as it turns out, Vance and Frye loved the film -- and they weren't alone. "Into the Pit" is one of the official selections for the 2010 Wisconsin Film Festival in Madison (April 15-18), the 2010 A Night of Horror Film Festival in Sydney, Australia (April 15-23), and the 2010 London International Festival of Science Fiction and Fantastic Film (April 28-May 3.)
"Into The Pit: The Shocking Story of Deadpit.com" screens in Madison on Saturday, April 17 at the UW Cinematheque, 821 University Ave. (in Vilas Hall.) Watch the trailer here.
