The truth is out there, somewhere.
Twenty years before the X-Files were opened, another intrepid investigator was already on the case.
But, funny as he could often be, his work was deadly serious.
You know him, of course, if only by reputation.
Carl Kolchak: reporter, monster hunter, and the Independent News Services least printed writer.
He requested to be released from his contract two episodes before the seasons end.
Its a great time to be a fan of the man in the seersucker suit.
And back then, Kolchak was something wonderfully fresh and new for the horror field.
He was a supernatural sleuth but hardly the professorial, Van Helsing throw in of vampire hunter.
He was a down-to-earth, wisecracking, blue-collar reporter.
And hes a character of great determination, dedication and commitment.
He tackles both corrupt officials and horrific monsters, always battling long odds and an uncaring world.
Yet he never gives up.
No matter how many times hes knocked down, he keeps getting up and roaring back into action.
Aquilone has a similar assessment of the key to Kolchaks appeal.
You mix monsters and Carls charisma, and you have a winning formula that never goes out of style.
They tap into something primal and eternal.
Theres an even more personal touch to Aquilones own enthusiasm for Kolchak and his world.
I first caughtKolchakin late-night reruns in the 1980s.
I would go on to get a degree in journalism and work for several newspapers and magazines.
I was very attracted to the idea of a writer being a hero.
After Carl defeats the monster, he goes off and writes.
How cool is that?
I found that it still holds up.
Its a great look into the newspaper business of the 1970s.
Jeff was a Vegas reporter himself, and the book reads more like non-fiction than a novel.
Featuring the legendary Phil Silvers, Horror in the Heights is about as good as TV gets.
Just a great horror concept.
Aquilone adds a few more recommendations for new viewers.
I recommend first watching the two movies The Night StalkerandThe Night Strangler.
Its hard to top the Richard Matheson scripts.
But its Firefall that I find to be the creepiest.
That doppelganger still makes my skin crawl.
But beneath the gags and gore, theres something deeper.
Dawidziak emphasises the profound impactKolchak: The Night Stalkerhad on the horror genre, which cannot be overstated.
Almost all of them cited the Kolchak influence.
You then see it rolling into the next century, an acknowledged influence on everything fromSupernaturaltoPenny Dreadful.
It was a fitting tribute to the man who embodied Carl Kolchak.
Without him, and Jeff Rices brilliant concept, the horror genre would look very different indeed.
