What once promised to be the greatest horror francshise event ever organized has instead turned into a train wreck of drama, back-biting, and disappointment.
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Unless you've been living under a rock, you probably already know that Fear Fest: Camp Blood, originally scheduled to take place August 13th - 15th in Lewisville, TX, and boasting over 90 guests from the Friday the 13th franchise, has been postponed until May of 2011.
What seemed to be one of the most promising fan events of all time, has over the last few days spun out of control over several internet message boards and turned into a bizarre and dramatic odyssey unlike any this convention goer has ever seen in 20 years on the circuit. From venue changes, to alleged covert sabotage attempts, to guests claiming they were never booked, the Camp Blood saga has erupted into quite a fiasco.
For those not up to speed, allow us to catch you up. On Wednesday, 7/21/2010, amid several weeks of speculation that the convention would be cancelled or postponed despite denials from the promotion staff, the following message was posted on the Camp Blood message board:
There have been a lot of rumors going around since our first location change and
we have done our best to try and hold things together on our end but have had
our backs against the wall. You see, what you don’t know is that a certain
so-called “talent agent” that we have refused to work with since day one has
been trying to sabotage the show while at the same time telling people he was
working with us all along. You all know who he is and for legal reasons right
now we can’t call him out by name.
This individual was responsible for us losing our first location and as we
learned today has tried to sabotage our current location. We didn’t have the
proof it was him until this most recent attempt where he wasn’t even smart
enough to call from a blocked number.
In addition to this he has posted under fake names on our message board and
several other boards starting rumors about various things from guests not
actually being booked to locations never being locked down etc.
He has also called celebrities directly telling them these rumors and casting a
lot of doubt among them and even causing some to flat out cancel for fear that
the show wasn’t for real.
He has made death threats to one celebrity who has contacted the authorities and
has a warrant issued for his arrest. He made death threats and has continued to
harass via phone, text & e-mail several board members here and another real
talent agent. All of which has been documented and we will post that information
here for all to see once certain legal issues have been met. This individual won’t
be a problem for us much longer as the law will be dealing with him shortly.
Sadly he has been successful at temporarily sabotaging this event for the time
being. As much as it pains us to do, we have no choice but to postpone the show
to Friday, May 13th-Sunday, May 15th 2011.
We know several of you have booked flights, got time off of work etc. and we are
very sorry for the personal and financial inconvenience. We are going to look into
some sort of compensation for those who have already booked flights and will incur
a fee to change your flight.
This all may seem like one big excuse but it’s all very real and very serious.
This individual seems to think he is above the law and untouchable but he is
about to find out the hard way that isn’t the case.
Finally, all events will now be held at The Crowne Plaza. The code for booking
your rooms is FRT and you will have to call and reconfirm your reservations. The
room rate and block stays the same. They have been nothing but professional
and courteous throughout this entire debacle, especially David Ramcharan, so
PLEASE do not give them a hard time....they have made this arduous process go a
lot smoother and made things happen much quicker than could be expected of
anyone. We look forward to a long relationship with the staff at the Crowne
Plaza!
All the best,
Texas Fear Fest Staff"
As far as John Gray is concerned? He's a straight up guy not a crook as some have implied here. I am Steve Dash, and I would never, I repeat NEVER vouch for someone if I didn't believe in them. He got fucked but was so far in he tried to salvage it but couldn't and just for the record, I backed out because of other commitments to my film career during the month of August and yes the LA convention pushed me over the edge as far as doing conventions.
I don't know if you all realize this or not but doing a convention as a celeb is a commitment of at least 4 days, sometimes 5. Not to mention the hours of sitting and signing and taking photos with fans. It's work and don't think it's not, it is. John Gray was trying to put together something that has never been done to that magnatute (Huge)but it failed, not because of him but because of outside sources. I think he learned something here and the next show he doe's will be spectacluar.
Good Luck John"
And so the plot thickens. On Friday, Tim Beal got in touch with FDTC and sent a slew of emails that appear to show a series of ongoing and professional communications between himself and John Gray, going as recently as July 17th - if legitimate, this would seemingly call into questions the statement by John Gray issued Wednesday that Tim Beal was acting as a long standing saboteur of Camp Blood.
Amid outcries of foul play and demands for refunds, John Gray released the following statement, denying refunds but promising the newly scheduled Camp Blood would be better than the previously scheduled show:
As always, you can stay tuned to FDTC for the latest convention news and exclusives.
- Mr. Chainsaw
11.03.2011 - 12.03.2011
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