Tom Savini. Most people may not know the name right off the bat, but once you say “You know Sex Machine from From Dusk Till Dawn? The guy with the cock gun?” They all know whom you’re talking about. Yes, Tom Savini played Sex Machine. He was also in Dawn of the Dead (the original and the remake), Machete, and Martin, along with a slew of other wicked flicks you may or may not have heard of. If you’re among the “may nots,” listen and learn, lovelies. He’s also a director, a stunt man, the king of special FX, and basically an all around super amazing guy. You know that famous special effects wizard Greg Nicotero of KNB EFX? Yeah, he learned from Tom fucking Savini.
He’s calm, he’s cool, he’s soft-spoken and eloquent. For lack of a better word, dear fiends, he’s fucking zen. You know the kind of guy that’s just so cool and laid back, he makes you want to be within his gravitational pull, just so maybe some of that zen will rub off on you? That’s Tom Savini.
I have idolized Savini since I was a teenager, watching his very first film Martin. Idolized so much, in fact, that I was unable to hold back the super-geek inside me, upon first meeting him at ComicCon. Despite my blushing, rambling, declarations of love, and near-tears spazocity, Tom laughed it off, pulled me in for a hug and a picture, and then later, even agreed to let me interview him. God knows why, because I was such a spastic fangirl during that first meeting, that I didn’t stop giggling until the next morning.
Said interview can be found in the video above, and in it, you’ll hear Tom talk about his upcoming remake of the movie Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things, his biographical film Smoke and Mirrors: The Story of Tom Savini, some advice for aspiring make up & FX artists, and whether he prefers slow or fast moving zombies. But, I think, above all else, you’ll learn what a kickass guy Tom Savini is, and hopefully, like me, you’ll become quick and diehard fans of his work.
Stay Scared, kids
