PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Aaron Markham has another side, a sinister side bathed in the blood of a few hundred years. His Other Side comes with the name Mortimer Deadfellow. A ghastly ghoul that looks as if it were a late-night horror show host.
We got to sit down with Aaron to ask some questions; here is our result.
PH: What made you fall in love with horror movies?
AM: When my dad first showed me the Universal Monsters. Lon Chaney Sr was the Man of 1000 Faces, and it made me want to be the Man of 1001 Faces. I always looked up to him. I’m a child of the 80s, so Jason, Michael Myers, all the slashers.
PH: What is your character, and do they have a backstory?
AM: Mortimer Deadfellow, aka “The Mortician”. He’s an undead Victorian mortician with a passion for horror and the macabre. Back when he was alive, he was married to his lovely wife Ophelia, who became enamored with that green paint that was made with arsenic, and it did not work out well for the two of them. He spends his undead days haunting his crypt and hosting The Horror BBQ with his undead brother, Reaper.
PH: How did you figure out the makeup that made you say, “This is the one?”
AM: I did a couple of trials to tweak the look; my main inspirations came from Disney’s Hatbox Ghost and Vincent Price in the film Madhouse.
PH: In what time period is your character from?
AM: He was alive and plying his trade mainly in the late 1800s
PH: I would say the makeup kind of represents the old zombie films such as Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things, would you agree?
AM: That movie is definitely a big inspiration for how I do my effects in general, but it wasn’t really on my mind with Mortimer.
PH: Besides your web show, where else does the character appear at?
AM: Mortimer has been asked to cameo in some projects that I can’t really talk about just yet, as they’re still in production. He can sometimes be seen out and about in the horror convention circuit. Of course, he regularly co-hosts The Horror BBQ and The Goddamn Program on Reaper’s Underground.
PH: Have you ever been to a con in full character?
AM: Funny enough, the undead outlaws Mortimer and Reaper just made a full appearance recently at Cult Classic Con in Bastrop. I will almost always be some character or other at whatever convention I attend; Mortimer is making his way into the rotation.
PH: How long does it take to create your character?
AM: Creating is my favorite part. Once I have the vibe of the character, I let it take the reins and inform my decisions on how they should look and act. It doesn’t take long to knock something out.
PH: Are there other ideas for the character, or did it just pop into your head?
AM: I kinda knew the direction I wanted to go with him when Reaper first asked me to co-host the BBQ with him. I’ve always loved the Victorian aesthetic, so it was a good opportunity to channel my inner mustache-twirling cartoon villain.
PH: How has your character evolved through their creation?
AM: I’ve redesigned his makeup a little from his premiere. He leans more into the Vincent Price look than he did in the beginning.
PH: You have a web show, but are there other spots like Facebook live sessions or something to that effect?
AM: Not currently, but it’s not out of the question. I’d say stay tuned to Reaper’s Underground for updates on where you can find more Mortimer Deadfellow.
PH: How long will your character continue on?
AM: Mortimer isn’t going anywhere any time soon. He’s having too much fun messing with the living.
PH: Are you working on any other projects?
AM: We’re in post-production for James Carnes’ Killer Cocks: Just When You Thought It Was Safe to Go Back to the Coop. Coming up soon, Craig Meinhart’s Beware the Devil’s Wrath will be officially released. I play Pastor Brown in that. I’m working on bringing my own passion project to life. The Legend of Bloody Bones. Also, Kevin Gincerowski’s Rotten to the Core is coming along, where you can find me as the character Charlie Vincent. And I’m going to be Milton in Steven Livengood’s The Contract. A lot of great stuff on the way. Busy, busy, busy, but very excited.
