On Saturday, October 22 at 8 pm, the HERMETIC ORDER OF ARCANA will
proudly
present a "live radio play broadcast" of a new adaptation of Robert
Bloch's
classic horror short story from 1951, "Notebook Found in a Deserted
House",
at Borderlands Books on Valencia Street at 19th Street. This
presentation
is the second radio drama that Borderlands Books has hosted with the
HERMETIC ORDER OF ARCANA, following last year's successful radio
adaptation
of H.P. Lovecraft's "Shadow Over Innsmouth".
The HERMETIC ORDER OF ARCANA is dedicated to preserving and paying
homage to
the memory of great horror and mystery writers throughout the ages
within
the classic medium of the radio drama, and are greatly honored to have
the
opportunity to share the legacy of California horror writer Robert
Bloch,
who is perhaps best known for his chilling characterization of a
schizophrenic serial killer in his classic horror novel PSYCHO, which
was
adapted by Alfred Hitchcock in the internationally famous film of the
same
name.
"Notebook Found in a Deserted House", originally published in WEIRD
TALES in
1951, is a classic horror story to fanatics of the genre, and was once
named
by British horror heavyweight Ramsey Campbell as "the most important
story
in horror fiction since the work of acclaimed horror pioneer H.P.
Lovecraft". The tale examines a chilling account of otherworldly
monsters
and their horrendous activities as seen through the eyes of a twelve
year
old boy in the deep woods of a desolate rural community, and his daring
attempt to comprehend and finally escape an inevitable encounter at
Halloween with the very source of his nightmares that, one by one,
takes
away the members of his family in a scene of gruesome ritualistic
sacrifice.
Bloch's "Notebook Found in a Deserted House" has been adapted for radio
by
the HERMETIC ORDER OF ARCANA's co-founder and artistic director, RW
Hessler,
and is produced by fellow co-founder Thomas Lynch, and will feature
many of
the old fashioned elements of radio drama production as popularized by
pioneers of the genre such as the great Orson Welles and his Mercury
Theatre
Group. This particular "live broadcast" at Borderlands Books will also
feature a live original score by Bay Area musicians Jon Fellman and
Jefferson Parker, who have been active members of the local music scene
for
the past sixteen years.