Kevin J. Anderson
Ben Armstrong
Kevin J. Anderson has more than twenty million books in print in 30 languages, including Dune novels written with Brian Herbert, Star Wars and X-Files novels, and a collaboration with Dean Koontz. He just finished the sixth book in his epic space opera, The Saga of Seven Suns. He and his wife, Rebecca Moesta, have written numerous bestselling and award-winning young adult novels.
Ben Armstrong is the co-owner of Netherworld Haunted Attractions in Atlanta, Georgia, producers of the infamous Netherworld Haunted House. Nationally recognized in the haunted house business, Ben has given seminars on haunted house design and operation at many Halloween and themed amusement conventions, and has been a featured writer in numerous haunt-related publications. He has also designed and acted as a consultant on haunts and other themed events around the nation.
An avid hiker, Anderson dictates his fiction into a microcassette recorder. Research has taken him to the deserts of Morocco, the cloud forests of Ecuador, Inca ruins in the Andes, Maya temples in the Yucatan, the NORAD complex, NASA’s Vehicle Assembly Building, a Minuteman III missile silo, the aircraft carrier Nimitz, the Pacific Stock Exchange, a plutonium plant at Los Alamos, and FBI Headquarters in Washington, DC. He also, occasionally, stays home and works on his manuscripts.
Ben is also well known in haunt and convention circles as a twisted character actor and appears as many hideous creatures, including werewolves, vampires, demons, and a certain mad scientist known as Dr. Ignatius Speculo. Dr. Speculo was a television horror show host he portrayed in the Emmy-nominated Tales from Six Feet Under in the ‘90s.
Vanessa Angel British-born Vanessa Angel began her career at age 14 as a model when she was discovered by world-renowned agent, Eileen Ford. She gained much life experience by traveling the world, relocating to New York and appearing on many magazine covers, including Vogue and Cosmopolitan. She was chosen by director John Landis to play a Russian spy in Spies Like Us (1985). She honed her craft by studying under Sondra Lee and became a member of The Actor’s Studio in New York in 1987, studying under Frank Corsaro.
Other Dr. Speculo adventures have included acting as the master of ceremonies at the 1995 World Horror Convention and a recent full page photo in the Weekly World News (the home of Bat Boy!). For the last three years, he has also hosted Rock ‘n Roll Monster Bash at The Starlight Drive-In, performing gory surgeries on stage and presenting his Museum of Oddities. Ben has also appeared in the Telly award-winning UPN 69-hosted horror show in Atlanta, The True Netherworld Story of the Harvestman.
This led to roles in films including King of New York (1990), Sleep with Me (1994) and Kingpin (1996), from The Farrelly Brothers with Woody Harrelson and Bill Murray, Kissing a Fool (1998) with David Schwimmer and Jason Lee. She appeared in Paramount’s The Perfect Score (2004) and SuperBabies: Baby Geniuses 2 (2004). In addition to her film work, Angel starred in the hit series Weird Science (1994) on the USA Network. The unique range of characters earned her critical recognition for her comedic timing. She has played many roles on television, including a recurring role on NBC’s Reasonable Doubts (1991) and Sci Fi Channel’s Stargate SG-1 (1997). She recently finished filming Out for Blood (2004) with Kevin Dillon and a film for the Sci-Fi Channel with Corin Nemec. She has done several films recently, including Popstar (2006), Criminal Intent (2005), and Trick or Treat (2006).
Stephen L. Antczak Stephen L. Antczak is a founder and CEO of VLE Comics, which publishes comic books, graphic novels and manga - some of which he created, like Nightwolf, Herc Brown, Beowulf the Legend (with James C. Bassett), Arkadian, and a manga based on his novel, God Drug. 20th Century Fox optioned his comic book, Nightwolf, for a TV pilot in 2007. VLE Comics is part of Visible Light Entertainment, which also develops and produced genre-oriented and comic book-inspired movies under the banner of VLE Studios. He has also written a play, Romeo’s Ghost, which is set to be produced in the Los Angeles area in either 2007 or 2008. 21st Edition
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