Stanley JohnJ

American writer, arguably the nation’s leading authority on horror and sci-fi films and former host of TVs "Creature Features." His own favorite films were sci-fi and horror, a genre on which he became a specialist. Stanley is the author of the "Creature Features" guide books, of which six editions have been published. He is an Edgar-nominated mystery writer himself and writer-director of the feature film "Nightmare in Blood," 1976. His books include "World War III," 1976, the Edgar-nominated mystery "The Dark Side," 1977 and the non-fiction book "Them Ornery Mitchum Boys" about hell-raising Hollywood brothers Robert and John Mitchum. As a publisher, he put out Robert Blochs "Lost in Time and Space with Lefty Feep," 1987, a collection of short stories from the author of "Psycho." Stanley began working at the San Francisco Chronicle in 1960 as a copy boy and stayed with the paper for 33 years. As writer-editor for the Sunday Datebook, he reviewed films and interviewed many of the stars of his generation. Since retiring from the Chronicle in 1993, Stanley has continued to review films, creates crossword puzzles for TV Guide publications and works as an Elderhostel instructor, specializing in classes about the world of entertainment. He joined TheColumnists.com team as a full partner in January, 2000. He now has moved to emeritus status in order to concentrate on his other projects, but his classic columns remain online. Read less