Fans of horror and sci-fi have had the great fortune of being entertained by a plethora of hosts. Thanks to the work of folks like Vampira, Elvira, the Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3k) staff, Rifftrax, and a number of others, the style endures. Thanks to this checklist of professional fanatics, audiences throughout generations had been entertained and offered to horror titles that would possibly have in a different way long past disregarded.
One thing all of these above-mentioned horror icons have in common is that all of them were given their start on native television. One different such host who merits credit score for bringing vintage and B-horror films to a much wider target audience this manner is Richard Koz, who is identified via his character identify, Svengoolie, which is also the identify of his show. Thanks to his dedication to the style, the national syndication of his program out of his home town (Chicago), and the antics of his rubber chicken friend Kerwyn, Svengoolie has persisted for nearly Forty years. But many out of doors of the midwest might not learn about his hilarious endeavors because Koz is now not as neatly referred to as Elvira or MST3k, however the host nonetheless has a solid fanbase who have followed him from his earliest episodes to nowadays.
9 Richard Koz Started In Radio
Koz got his get started in radio, as many tv hosts do. After completing faculty at Northeastern University, Koz discovered himself running in television. In high school, he started to broaden a love of movie, especially the vintage Universal horror monsters like Frankenstein, The Wolfman, and his favorite The Creature From The Black Lagoon. It was additionally in highschool his career in broadcasting began with a student-run DJ gig for WMTH-FM.
8 Richard Koz Isn’t The First To Play Svengoolie
Koz is actually the second one generation of the Svengoolie name. The first Svengoolie was played by Jerry G Bishop, any other Chicago disc jockey and mentor to Koz. Bishop did his version of Svengoolie from 1970-1973. The unique show, titled Screaming Yellow Theater, featured Bishop's personality as a hippie-haired horror host hiding at the back of sunglasses and a cheesy Transylvanian accent. While his rendition of Svengoolie used to be a bit of different from Koz’s, each are considered pieces of Chicago history.
7 Richard Koz Started His Show In 1979
After Bishop retired from Svengoolie in 1973, Koz noticed an opportunity to do his own show and pay homage to his mentor. In 1979, with permission from Bishop, Koz aired the first episode of Son Of Svengoolie, a sequel to Bishop’s unique character where Svengoolie’s son, wearing a most sensible hat and a painted-on satan beard, would resume the show and characteristic jokes and songs in between business breaks. Koz’s display was once a bit of extra formidable, as it had extra props, extra jokes, and a couple of puppet sidekicks like Kerwyn the hen and Sven’s speaking coffin. Son Of Svengoolie gained multiple native Emmys ahead of being canceled.
6 Richard Koz Rebooted The Show In 1995
Son of Svengoolie aired till 1986, then Koz took a little bit of a hiatus after the display was once canceled by the network. That was until 1995, when it got here time for him to reintroduce the display. This time, however, Bishop instructed Koz that it was once time to drop the “Son of” from his title and that he should take possession of the Svengoolie logo. Koz gratefully obliged, and thus the Svengoolie that audiences know and love as of late used to be born.
5 'Svengoolie' Got Picked Up By Me-TV
Eventually, Svengoolie began to develop a cult following outside of Chicago because the display would reach audiences in Indianapolis, Minneapolis, and a number of other portions of the higher midwest. Eventually ME-TV, which focuses on broadcasting classic tv presentations, signed Svengoolie onto their network, and thus, Svengoolie is now a nationally syndicated display.
4 Richard Koz Tours The Convention Circuit
Although the COVID-19 pandemic used to be a big setback for Koz, something that helped him acquire national superstar and made him a success was his appearances at comedian e book and sci-fi conventions. At those conventions, he is now not only assembly with fans and signing autographs, he additionally gets the good fortune to interview celebrities and stars of his favorite movies.
3 Richard Koz Has Some Celebrity Fans, From Mark Ruffalo To Gilbert Godfried
Thanks to his interviews at conventions, we know that Svengoolie has rather an impressive fanbase. Stars like Mark Ruffalo and Gilbert Godfried have made appearances on his show and proven proper gratitude. Also, Koz is a huge wrestling fan and several wrestlers, like the now-retired Mike Foley, have made appearances with Chicago’s favourite horror guru.
2 Richard Koz Has A 'Svengoolie' Merch Store
Thanks to signing with ME-TV, Koz used to be given an abundant avenue to merchandise the Svengoolie title with minimal overhead. Every episode of Svengoolie, (Saturdays at 8pm on ME-TV) options no less than one ad for his now-famous glow at the hours of darkness shirts, and a segment of his show is devoted to sending shout-outs to fanatics who ship in pictures of themselves together with his blouse on at primary ancient landmarks or famous horror museums and movie capturing locations. Svengoolie products additionally includes hats, mugs, and bobbleheads.
1 Richard Koz Is A Chicago Icon, Worth $1 Million
All in all, what makes Svengoolie so common and so endearing to his fans is his humble roots and technique to tv. While Me-TV has been excellent for his occupation, it is now not as lucrative of a deal as what folks like Elvira or MST3k have discovered for themselves. However, along with his humble beginnings on local Chicago television, enthusiasts appear to appreciate this low-key means. Svengoolie is certainly one of Me-TVs most-watched presentations, and technically it is their first authentic program. While not residing in luxury, his net worth is estimated to be around $1 million, a modest but at ease amount.
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