If you know one thing about Wednesday 13, you know that he loves horror movies. Like, seriously loves them. He’s written a ton of songs about vampires, werewolves, serial killers and other things that go bump in the night, as well as having an encyclopaedic knowledge of iconic old-school flicks like Halloween, Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Nightmare On Elm Street. But did you know that he also has a mind-bogglingly big horror toy collection?
We took a trip over to Wednesday’s haunted house for a poke around his dungeon of figures, vinyl toys, and more. We’re totally not jealous, honest.
That’s one damn scary corner you’ve got there! What do you call this room?
“My collection continues all through the house but this is my office, or my ‘man-cave’. It has taken a few years of collecting but that’s what I do in my rare spare time. Toys are my fountain of youth; I had all these toys when I was a kid and I lost my whole collection, so I’ve spent my entire adult life trying to re-collect everything and buying new stuff along the way. It keeps me young, I can go home and look around and I’m surrounded by everything I grew up on. These movies and toys made me the person I am today.”
Which toy started this weird and wonderful collection?
“My very first toy was a Stretch Armstrong action figure of his nemesis, called Stretch Monster. Stretch Monster was this huge, green man just like the Creature from the Black Lagoon. My parents bought it for me when I was four years old and when I opened it, I screamed, ran away and threw it back so my parents hid it in a closet. Every time my mom took the hoover out of that closet, I ran because I was so scared of it. After about three weeks, I decided I wanted to see it again so I played with it and then you couldn’t separate me from it, I slept with it like a doll. Suddenly these toys got recalled because they had this toxic fluid inside them so my parents took it off me and I cried. It was the same with the horror movies that used to scare me so much like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. I never thought I’d own Leatherface toys but now I have a million of them and it’s my favourite horror movie ever. I even have the cast’s autographs.”
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Which piece holds the most sentimental value for you?
“My classic Herman Munster doll from 1965 is the oldest piece I have and it’s the one that’s closest to my heart – The Munsters is one of my favourite TV shows ever. This Herman toy has a pull-string on his back which doesn’t work anymore, but he used to make such a cool gurgling sound.”
Which is the most costly toy in your collection?
“The most expensive one I’ve bought recently is a cool reissue of a 24-inch tall 1978 Alien figure, which set me back $400, but it was worth it. I don’t know the value of many toys in my collection, though, because I don’t buy them to sell them any day, I buy them for me. I’m not a snobby collector so I don’t mind if things are out of the box – if it’s still in good shape, it’s fine by me. I’ve always been that person that opens up toys and I still am now.”
Where do you find the best deals?
“Luckily all my friends are toy collectors too, so instead of skipping through stores, I deal on the black market of toys where I find all my treasures. I have a friend who goes to auctions and I know some toy dealers. It’s very shady, I call these guys up and they say, ‘Meet me at 2 o’clock under this tree, I’ll get you the good stuff.’”
On a scale of 1-10, how metal is owning a movie toy collection?
“It’s a 10 – what’s not metal about collecting every toy from the 1980s and every evil action figure that was ever made? Most of my songs are about these movies and characters, too!”
Wednesday 13’s new album Condolences is out now via Nuclear Blast and is available to order from Amazon.
Wednesday 13: Condolences, serial killers and movie soundtracks
