Psychotronic Video
Encyclopedia
Psychotronic Video was a film magazine originally started by publisher/editor
Michael J. Weldon in 1980 in New York City
as a hand-written and photocopied
weekly fanzine
entitled Psychotronic TV. It was then relaunched by Weldon under its more commonly known name as an offset
quarterly in 1989. Both versions of the magazine covered what Weldon dubbed "Psychotronic Movies", which he defined as "the ones traditionally ignored or ridiculed by mainstream critics at the time of their release: horror
, exploitation, action
, science fiction
, and movies that used to play in drive-ins
or inner city grindhouse
s." Weldon coined the term after being inspired by The Psychotronic Man
(1975), a low budget science fiction obscurity.
Most of the magazine's hundreds of reviews were written by Weldon himself. In each issue, other contributors provided career histories/interviews with cult
directors and actors such as Radley Metzger
, Larry Cohen
, Jack Hill
, William Rotsler
, David Carradine
, Sid Haig
, Karen Black
, and Timothy Carey
. Regular features included Record Reviews by Art Black, Spare Parts (fanzines and comics) by Dale Ashmun, and Never To Be Forgotten, an extensive obituary
column by Weldon that covered the deaths of writers, directors, television and film actors, rock stars, comic book artists, lawyers, and anybody else Weldon felt was related to the overall Psychotronic-universe.
In December of 2006, Weldon announced that he was ceasing publication of Psychotronic Video after 18 years and 41 issues. Citing increasingly expensive printing costs and dubious business practices from distributors as his main source of concern, he noted that "It was a struggle to self-publish in the 80s and 90s but now it’s nearly impossible."
published The Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film (1983), a 813-page compilation of mini-reviews of over 3,000 cult films. The book was written by Weldon with editorial assistance from Charles Beesley, Fangoria
s Bob Martin, and Akira Fitton. The Foreword
by Christopher Cerf
credited the success of the original fanzine as direct inspiration for the publication of the book. In 1996, a sequel
was published by St. Martin's Press
, The Psychotronic Video Guide, credited solely to Weldon.
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
Michael J. Weldon in 1980 in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
as a hand-written and photocopied
Photocopier
A photocopier is a machine that makes paper copies of documents and other visual images quickly and cheaply. Most current photocopiers use a technology called xerography, a dry process using heat...
weekly fanzine
Fanzine
A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
entitled Psychotronic TV. It was then relaunched by Weldon under its more commonly known name as an offset
Offset printing
Offset printing is a commonly used printing technique in which the inked image is transferred from a plate to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface...
quarterly in 1989. Both versions of the magazine covered what Weldon dubbed "Psychotronic Movies", which he defined as "the ones traditionally ignored or ridiculed by mainstream critics at the time of their release: horror
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
, exploitation, action
Action film
Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...
, science fiction
Science fiction film
Science fiction film is a film genre that uses science fiction: speculative, science-based depictions of phenomena that are not necessarily accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial life forms, alien worlds, extrasensory perception, and time travel, often along with futuristic...
, and movies that used to play in drive-ins
Drive-in theater
A drive-in theater is a form of cinema structure consisting of a large outdoor screen, a projection booth, a concession stand and a large parking area for automobiles. Within this enclosed area, customers can view movies from the privacy and comfort of their cars.The screen can be as simple as a...
or inner city grindhouse
Grindhouse
A grindhouse is an American term for a theater that mainly shows exploitation films. It is named after the defunct burlesque theaters located on 42nd Street in New York City, where 'bump n' grind' dancing and striptease were featured.- History :...
s." Weldon coined the term after being inspired by The Psychotronic Man
The Psychotronic Man
The Psychotronic Man is a low budget science fiction cult film that opened in Chicago April 23, 1980 at the Carnegie Theatre. It was directed by Jack M. Sell and written, produced and starred Peter G. Spelson. This film is considered noteworthy for three distinct reasons. The first is that the...
(1975), a low budget science fiction obscurity.
Most of the magazine's hundreds of reviews were written by Weldon himself. In each issue, other contributors provided career histories/interviews with cult
Cult following
A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a specific area of pop culture. A film, book, band, or video game, among other things, will be said to have a cult following when it has a small but very passionate fan base...
directors and actors such as Radley Metzger
Radley Metzger
Radley Metzger is an American filmmaker and distributor. He is also credited under the pseudonym Henry Paris, a name he adopted in the 1970s when he began to direct hardcore pornography....
, Larry Cohen
Larry Cohen
Lawrence G. "Larry" Cohen is an American film producer, director, and screenwriter. He is best known as a B-Movie auteur of horror and science fiction films - often containing a police procedural element - during 1970s and 1980s...
, Jack Hill
Jack Hill
Jack Hill is an U.S. film director, noted for his work in the exploitation film genre. Despite this, several of Hill's later films have been characterized as feminist works.Hill was born in Los Angeles...
, William Rotsler
William Rotsler
William "Bill" Rotsler was an American cartoonist and graphic artist; author of several science fiction novels and short stories, and television and film novelizations, and non-fiction works on a variety of topics, ranging from Star Trek to pornography; a prominent member of science fiction...
, David Carradine
David Carradine
David Carradine was an American actor and martial artist, best known for his role as a warrior monk, Kwai Chang Caine, in the 1970s television series, Kung Fu, which later had a 1990s sequel series, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues...
, Sid Haig
Sid Haig
Sid Haig is a American actor. His roles have included acting in Jack Hill's blaxploitation films of the 1970s as well as his role as Captain Spaulding in Rob Zombie's horror films House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects...
, Karen Black
Karen Black
Karen Black is an American actress, screenwriter, singer, and songwriter. She is noted for appearing in such films as Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, The Great Gatsby, Rhinoceros, The Day of the Locust, Nashville, Airport 1975, and Alfred Hitchcock's final film, Family Plot...
, and Timothy Carey
Timothy Carey
Timothy Agoglia Carey was an American film and television actor....
. Regular features included Record Reviews by Art Black, Spare Parts (fanzines and comics) by Dale Ashmun, and Never To Be Forgotten, an extensive obituary
Obituary
An obituary is a news article that reports the recent death of a person, typically along with an account of the person's life and information about the upcoming funeral. In large cities and larger newspapers, obituaries are written only for people considered significant...
column by Weldon that covered the deaths of writers, directors, television and film actors, rock stars, comic book artists, lawyers, and anybody else Weldon felt was related to the overall Psychotronic-universe.
In December of 2006, Weldon announced that he was ceasing publication of Psychotronic Video after 18 years and 41 issues. Citing increasingly expensive printing costs and dubious business practices from distributors as his main source of concern, he noted that "It was a struggle to self-publish in the 80s and 90s but now it’s nearly impossible."
Psychotronic books
Prior to the appearance of the second version of the magazine, Ballantine BooksBallantine Books
Ballantine Books is a major book publisher located in the United States, founded in 1952 by Ian Ballantine with his wife, Betty Ballantine. It was acquired by Random House in 1973, which in turn was acquired by Bertelsmann AG in 1998 and remains part of that company today. Ballantine's logo is a...
published The Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film (1983), a 813-page compilation of mini-reviews of over 3,000 cult films. The book was written by Weldon with editorial assistance from Charles Beesley, Fangoria
Fangoria (magazine)
Fangoria is an internationally-distributed US film fan magazine specializing in the genres of horror, slasher, splatter and exploitation films, in regular publication since 1979.-Planning:...
s Bob Martin, and Akira Fitton. The Foreword
Foreword
A foreword is a piece of writing sometimes placed at the beginning of a book or other piece of literature. Written by someone other than the primary author of the work, it often tells of some interaction between the writer of the foreword and the book's primary author or the story the book tells...
by Christopher Cerf
Christopher Cerf
Christopher Cerf is a U.S. author, composer-lyricist, voice actor, and record and television producer. He is known for his musical contributions to Sesame Street, for co-creating and co-producing the award-winning PBS literacy education television program Between the Lions, and for his humorous...
credited the success of the original fanzine as direct inspiration for the publication of the book. In 1996, a sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
was published by St. Martin's Press
St. Martin's Press
St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in the Flatiron Building in New York City. Currently, St. Martin's Press is one of the United States' largest publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under eight imprints, which include St. Martin's Press , St...
, The Psychotronic Video Guide, credited solely to Weldon.