Full Name:
Joshua Rasputin Schafer
Do you have a nickname or what do your friends call you?
I don’t think so? I think peeps call me Josh Lunchmeat for obvious reasons. Most times, people just call me handsome.
Birthplace:
Parts Unknown.
Current hometown:
Right outside Philly.
Favorite city and why?
My hometown. Nostalgia, and family is there. Also, wherever Funyuns are made. What a cool town.
Anyplace they make Funyuns is okay by me.
Birthday / Age:
Feb 25th and I recently forgot how old I was, but now I remember. I’m 28… I think…
How would you describe yourself physically?
Tall, dark and handsome. Some say Andrew WK, some say Jonathan Davis. I think I look like Josh Schafer, though.
How would someone else describe you physically?
Hopefully the same way? Everybody’s perception is completely subjective. I think most people would just say I’m average with that doppelganger long hair and glasses combo. A lot of people think I look like their friend that has long hair and glasses, regardless of their actual face structure. Happens all the time.
That used to happen to me a lot too. People used to ask me where they knew me from, like if they saw me in a movie or on TV or something. But since I got old and fat that happens a lot less.
The first thing people notice about you is…
My Glow in the Dark Enthusiast shirt.
Hair Color/Eye Color/Race?
Brown / Brown / Potato Sack
Sexual orientation?
My girlfriend.
Religion, if any?
Bad Religion.
Are you superstitious at all? Any phobias?
Heights! Shit, man, I can’t take it!! I feel like I’m gonna plummet to my demise!
I can only handle heights when I’m strapped in securely.
Yeah, even then, I’m like “UGHHHHH…. I’M GONNA DIEEEEE”
Do you smoke/drink? If so, what? Any bad habits?
Yeah, when I’m on fire or thirsty. Sometimes just for funzo. I eat a lot of junk food, but hey, it could be worse.
Current occupation / Dream job:
I work for a PA University in Student Life. Just to make art, inspire people and make enough to have a cozy home with my girl. I’m easy to please.
What do you like to do when you’re not at work?
Work on LM stuff, watch movies, write, make funny shit in Photoshop, go to flea markets, farmer’s markets, hang with friends, my family, stay up late and watch for UFOs. You know, regular shit.
Ever seen a UFO?
Funny story: I actually thought I did with my girlfriend about a year ago. We were at her old place, and she had this little roof deck thing, and we’d stepped out there for one reason or another and there were all of these super-eerie, bright white lights bouncing all around, slickly moving across the sky and then changing direction with spooky ass precision. We sat there and stared for about 20 minutes, and we were chilled to the bone, absolutely baffled. After we contemplated it for a while, though, we dismissed it as high-powered spotlights because we figured that’s what it had to be, but we could never figure out why it was happening or where they were coming from. It was seriously one the most eerie moments I’ve ever experienced. It was bitchin.
That… is awesome!
Find the set where they filmed BLAST FROM THE PAST and live in there for a while. Then, I’d probably just get a bunch of guns and tear shit up til I get swallowed up in a blaze of glory. In-between all that, I’d probably raid grocery stores and eat a bunch of everything, break stuff, and hang out in a library for a while. Nobody would bother me there.
A lot of people have gone with the library plan. Guess I know a lot of Twilight Zone fans.
Weapon of choice:
Nunchucks.
Do you have any special skills?
Some seem to think so. I can dislocate my shoulder, which is pretty gross and cool. I can play instruments and sing a little. Ummm… I can throw a 50 yard pass (catchable, too). I make some mean nachos. I beat Beavis and Butthead for Sega one time (and got on stage with GWAR – hit me up for the secret.)
What… is the secret?
Okay, so this is for Sega. Pretty sure it will work for SNES, too, but don’t quote me. So, you know when you first start the game and you pick shit out of the couch and you get the scissors and you can NEVER find a use for them? Well, once you collect all the tickets and get inside, you can sneak backstage if you get past this wiley enemy (if I recall correctly). But, once you get backstage, there’s this Omega Shit-kickin’ enemy that you just can’t beat no matter what you do. My neighbor Jeff and I played the shit out of that game for like all summer, and I think it was him who finally noticed that there was a sandbag right when you walk into the backstage area. We tried cutting it with the chainsaw for a while… but then I was like, “DUDE! The scissors!” So we had to search through the game to find where we dropped the scissors (‘cause who the hell needs them, right?), found ‘em and lo and behold, if you use the scissors on the sandbag rope as soon as you get backstage, the bitch drops and KOs that mother! THEN YOU’RE ON STAGE WITH GWAR! Damn, that was a glorious day.
Did you go to college and, if so, what for?
I did not. Skipped it and started working for a record label a year after high school. As I mentioned before, I work for a University now, and I take a few classes here and there and it’s fun, edifying, and enjoyable. Still not really the institutional learning type, though.
Any pets? If so, what are they and what are their names?
I share pets with my girlfriend, Leah. We have a snake named Aliester, a fish named Ghoulie and crazy candy snatching kitty we call Larry.
I didn’t know kitties ate candy.
This one does! Well, she tries, but we take it away, of course, haha. She’s always trying to eat our food, drink our drinks, and sit in MY seat. Also, she takes showers by standing under the shower head and soaking up the drip. What a weird and cool creature.
What is your favorite animal?
Dogs. I love dogs. Also, probably a goat. They’re so damn cute and cool. Badass wise, definitely probably a rhino or a hippo. Those things are TANKS, and I wouldn’t fucks with ‘em.
Speaking of pets, any pet peeves?
Just mess and clutter. It also bothers me when people are rude in public. Be kind to your fellow man, man.
I hate it when people are rude to their food service people. That job sucks and doesn’t pay a lot of money. Unless you want to stay at home and make that shit yourself, be polite. Give respect, get respect. And tip at least 15%.
Favorite / Least favorite Food:
Junk food is chicken nuggets and fries. Real food is my Mom’s homemade Venison burritos. BOMB. I like all food, really, but pesto kind of grosses me out if there’s too much.
Invite me over for venison burritos sometime?
Anytime, man! My Pop just got three deer, so there’s gonna be burritos aplenty, my friend!
What is your favorite quotation/motto/saying?
Have a good time, all the time.
Also, my boy Ralph Waldo Emerson hits it: “All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better.”
What is the best thing that ever happened to you?
Being born? No, honestly, I don’t know. I’ve been pretty fortunate. Having amazing parents. That’s the best thing I can think of.
What is the worst thing that ever happened to you?
Lost a friend.
Ever had your heart broken? Is there a story worth telling behind your answer?
Of course! Who hasn’t?
Ever broken someone’s heart? Is there a story worth telling behind your answer?
I’d like to think not, but I’m sure I have before. Sorry ‘bout that.
What is the best thing you’ve ever done?
I once threw a no-hitter in farm league baseball. I was pretty happy about it.
What is the worst thing you’ve ever done?
I didn’t really do it, but I when I was about 13 or so I was with a couple of friends at the Harvest Festival, and as we were walking back to his house, he pulled five or six caps off of car tires so they would go flat. I thought it was pure evil.
That is a pretty dick move.
If you could kill one person, consequence free, who would it be and why?
I don’t want to kill anybody! And this is on the internet, right?!
It will be. So I respect your implicit pleading the fifth.
How did you get started doing what you do?
My buddy and I loved weird flicks on VHS, both loved to write and wanted to do something cool, so we decided to do a print fanzine. We really just wanted to share the flicks we were watching, and celebrate that they were only available on tape.
What is your advice to other people that want to get started doing what you do?
Just go for it. Start today. Make the stuff you wanna make and don’t stop. Do it for as long as you can, and do it the best that you can. It may seem like a ton of hard work, and it is, but there is an innate personal reward within that work and it totally pays off. But yeah, start today!
That’s my advice for making love also.
ZING!
What projects are you working on?
I just got done with a bunch of really rad projects! The HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL and DARKTOWN tapes for Wasteland were a lot of fun. I’ve also been doing a groovy group of collab tapes with a bunch of cool dudes like Horror Boobs, Briarwood Entertainment, and Secret Lair. Just did the VIDEO VIOLENCE DIEHARD VIDEOVORE EDITION which was like a total dream come true. I’ve been talking more and more with Gary [Cohen] and he’s awesome, so hopefully we’ll make some more stuff together soon! And, for Halloween, put together LUNCHMEAT’s Midnight Snack # 3, which has an exclusive interview with Chester Turner, an interview with Greydon Clark, and this groovy little maze I put together, haha. If you get through it, you get stickers and stuff!
Who doesn’t like stickers and stuff?
What are you watching?
Just watched the TV movie GARGOYLES and loved it. I thought the makeup was excellent in that one, especially for the budget. The suits were kinda wonky, but man, those FX were fun to look at. Hmmm... BLOODSPORT, HAPPY HOUR (sweet VHS only flick), LITTLE MONSTERS, NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, THE DOCTOR AND THE DEVILS, and BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA. That’s the stack next to my VCR right now.
What are you listening to?
That new Lazerhawk album. Battles. Deftones. The Dicks. Tomahawk. Agent Orange. And lots of ALL and Descendents.
What are you reading?
Bleeding Skull!! Still just the site, though. I need to get the damn book! ACK! Read Bradbury yesterday. Always reading him, though. Been reading NEVER PUNCH A ROCKSTAR by my buddy Danny M. It’s a trip!
When Bradbury passed last year I read two of my favorite stories of his into audio books as a tribute to my love for his work and my sadness over his loss.
The Homecoming by Ray Bradbury [ http://youtu.be/2tgXNSn_pWo ]
All Summer In A Day by Ray Bradbury [ http://youtu.be/NdHiIZKbc8s ]
Favorite author / book?
Ray Bradbury. Or Roald Dahl. I love all their stuff.
Favorite band / song?
The Misfits. Or Descendents. But I REALLY like Queen and The Police are amazing. Pantera and White Zombie rule. Dion and the Belmonts are always a good call.
Least favorite band/song?
Primus Sucks!
Desert Island Music/Movies/Books: You know the deal. Five of each.
THE PIT
MOTHER’S DAY
THE GATE
THE SEVENTH SEAL
WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY
The Golem by Gustav Meyrink
Skin by Roald Dahl
And three Bradbury books. Any of them.
If you could do anything other than what you do now, what would you do?
Be a pro baseball player.
You’re the second interviewee to pick that. Why baseball?
I played baseball all throughout my childhood and I remember how much fun it was, how much I loved it. I still remember the feeling of going out onto the field and taking the mound. Everything else went away. Nothing mattered but the game, and it was just me and the glove. I’ve always been an escapist (movies, comics, books, et al.) but there’s nothing I’ve experienced that’s as powerful as that feeling I had when I played baseball.
Who would you want to meet that you haven’t met? You get three choices: Alive. Dead. Fictional.
Vincent Price.
I’m watching the Vincent Price bio off of Heroes Of Horrors as I edit this interview.
What’s the best and worst job you’ve ever had?
Best? Relapse was a great experience. Worst? Farmhand when I was 12. BRUTAL.
Are there any questions that I didn’t ask that you wished I had asked that you would like to answer now?
No, man, you’re good.
Anyone you recommend I interview that you can put me in touch with?
For sure. Matt Desiderio. Justin and Jesse Rice. I see you got Movrin and that was aces. Dr. Don Abendroth. Slasher Dave. Earl Kess. Mike Paine. And Carl Crew, because he would have a blast with this interview.
Cool! Hook up introductions via Facebook and we’ll get the ball rolling.
Will do, mang!!
Got any questions for me?
Where’d you get those nachos, man?
How did you know?
Thanks for allowing me to subject you to being interviewed!
Shout out to my Momma and my Pops and all my friends in the Jerz. Love for all my VHS brethren. And a sincere and warm thank you to anyone who picks up a mag, a tape, shirt or just reads the site. Couldn’t do this without that support and it’s just awesome. VHS IS HAPPINESS!
Pitch parade:
Give me all of your links for things you want to promote. All of them.
LunchmeatVHS.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lunchmeatvhsfanzine
Website: LunchmeatVHS.com
Blog: LunchmeatVHS.com/blog
Store: http://lunchmeatvhs.storenvy.com/
About the Interviewee:
Josh Schafer is a dude from South Jersey, born and raised on a bounty of cartoons, comics, action figures and an endless stack of VHS. He loves his family, friends and anything that inspires creativity. After playing in bands and releasing some records through his teens and early 20s, he decided to start a print fanzine paying homage to the format that helped him experience some his most treasured entertainments. He now resides in a Philly suburb with his girlfriend Leah and their trio of pets. They watch VHS every day, eat rad food and groove always. He’s a perpetual proponent of good vibes and good times.
And, if I may, one more quote from my boy R.W. Emerson:
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”
About the Interviewer:
Scott Lefebvre has probably read everything you've read and can write about whatever you want him to write about.
Mostly because when he was grounded for his outlandish behavior as a hyperactive school child, the only place he was allowed to go was the public library.
His literary tastes were forged by the works of Helen Hoke, Alvin Schwartz and Stephen Gammell, Ray Bradbury, Richard Matheson, Stephen King, Clive Barker, Edgar Allan Poe, and H. P. Lovecraft.
He is the author of Spooky Creepy Long Island and a contributing author to Forrest J. Ackerman’s Anthology of the Living Dead, Fracas: A Collection of Short Friction, The Call of Lovecraft, and Cashiers du Cinemart.
His reviews have been published by a variety of in print and online media including Scars Magazine, Icons of Fright, Fatally Yours and Screams of Terror, and he has appeared in Fangoria, Rue Morgue and HorrorHound Magazine.
He is the Assistant Program Director for The Arkham Film Society and produces Electronic Music under the names Master Control and LOVECRAFTWORK.
He is currently working on a novel-length expansion of a short-story titled, "The End Of The World Is Nigh", a crowd-funded, crowd-sourced, post-apocalyptic, zombie epidemic project.
Check out the blog for the book here: theendoftheworldisnighbook.blogspot.com
Check out the Facebook Fan Page for the project here: www.facebook.com/TheEndOfTheWorldIsNighBook
Check his author profile at: www.amazon.com/Scott-Lefebvre/e/B001TQ2W9G
Follow him at GoodReads here:
www.goodreads.com/author/show/1617246.Scott_Lefebvre
Check out his electronic music here: soundcloud.com/master_control
And here: master-control.bandcamp.com
Check out his videos at: www.youtube.com/user/doctornapoleon
Check out his IMDB profile here: www.imdb.com/name/nm3678959
Follow his Twitter here: twitter.com/TheLefebvre or @TheLefebvre
Follow his Tumblr here: thelefebvre.tumblr.com
Check out his Etsy here: www.etsy.com/people/arkhamscreenings
Join the group for The Arkham Film Society here:
www.facebook.com/groups/arkhamscreenings
Stalk his Facebook at: www.facebook.com/TheLefebvre
E-mail him at: Scott_Lefebvre@hotmail.com
Scott Lefebvre has probably read everything you've read and can write about whatever you want him to write about.
Mostly because when he was grounded for his outlandish behavior as a hyperactive school child, the only place he was allowed to go was the public library.
His literary tastes were forged by the works of Helen Hoke, Alvin Schwartz and Stephen Gammell, Ray Bradbury, Richard Matheson, Stephen King, Clive Barker, Edgar Allan Poe, and H. P. Lovecraft.
He is the author of Spooky Creepy Long Island and a contributing author to Forrest J. Ackerman’s Anthology of the Living Dead, Fracas: A Collection of Short Friction, The Call of Lovecraft, and Cashiers du Cinemart.
His reviews have been published by a variety of in print and online media including Scars Magazine, Icons of Fright, Fatally Yours and Screams of Terror, and he has appeared in Fangoria, Rue Morgue and HorrorHound Magazine.
He is the Assistant Program Director for The Arkham Film Society and produces Electronic Music under the names Master Control and LOVECRAFTWORK.
He is currently working on a novel-length expansion of a short-story titled, "The End Of The World Is Nigh", a crowd-funded, crowd-sourced, post-apocalyptic, zombie epidemic project.
Check out the blog for the book here: theendoftheworldisnighbook.blogspot.com
Check out the Facebook Fan Page for the project here: www.facebook.com/TheEndOfTheWorldIsNighBook
Check his author profile at: www.amazon.com/Scott-Lefebvre/e/B001TQ2W9G
Follow him at GoodReads here:
www.goodreads.com/author/show/1617246.Scott_Lefebvre
Check out his electronic music here: soundcloud.com/master_control
And here: master-control.bandcamp.com
Check out his videos at: www.youtube.com/user/doctornapoleon
Check out his IMDB profile here: www.imdb.com/name/nm3678959
Follow his Twitter here: twitter.com/TheLefebvre or @TheLefebvre
Follow his Tumblr here: thelefebvre.tumblr.com
Check out his Etsy here: www.etsy.com/people/arkhamscreenings
Join the group for The Arkham Film Society here:
www.facebook.com/groups/arkhamscreenings
Stalk his Facebook at: www.facebook.com/TheLefebvre
E-mail him at: Scott_Lefebvre@hotmail.com
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