How a Scream Queen Saved Me

What happens when the VHS kid who found safety with scream queens grows up and becomes the cosplay that inspires the original star?

If horror has ever been your coping tool, your comfort movie, or your mirror when life got loud, Gregory’s story shows how channeling fandom into creativity and community can lift your mood, build resilience, and connect you to people who truly get it. This episode turns nostalgia into a wellness practice you can actually use.

Key takeaways:

Turn comfort watches into creative fuel: how Gregory transformed Friday-night rentals into cosplay, commentary, and connection.

Community heals: ways conventions, photo shoots, and creator shout-outs can reduce isolation and boost self-worth.

Own your origin story: reframing “outsider” energy into confidence, boundaries, and an everyday wellness ritual.

Gregory Van Abelar joins Corey to talk horror as therapy, community, and art. We dig into Gregory’s famed Angela cosplay from Night of the Demons, including the moment Amelia Kinkade herself cheered him on and later collaborated with him for charity events. Gregory traces a throughline from being a horror-loving loner who found friends in scream queens, to creating shoots at sacred genre sites like the Monroeville Mall, to landing on the Night of the Demons 3 Blu-ray commentary. We also hit Night of the Living Dead lore, the new Tom Savini director’s cut, and why revisiting classics can feel like checking in with an old friend. Most of all, Gregory shows how horror helps you survive the hard chapters and celebrate the weird, wonderful you.

How a Scream Queen Saved Me

Highlights:

• Angela forever: first cosplay, junior-high courage, and navigating homophobia without dimming your shine
• The Amelia effect: meeting Kinkade, instant kinship, and teaming up for animal charity work
• Community as medicine: why creator recognition and con culture can be life-giving
• Monroeville Mall memories and keeping horror landmarks alive
• Night of the Living Dead talk, the Savini cut, and why remakes can heal too
• Final people we love: claiming Angela’s last line as a “final girl” crown
• Practical ways horror fandom supports mental wellness

Press play to hear how Gregory turned VHS-era comfort into real-world courage and community, and steal his rituals for making horror part of your mental wellness toolkit today.

Thank you for listening to Horror Heals. 

Share the show with someone who loves horror and someone who needs a little healing.

If you want to support our guests, check the show notes for links to their work, conventions, and fundraising pages.

You can also listen to our sister podcast Family Twist, a show about DNA surprises, identity, and the families we find along the way.

Horror Heals is produced by How the Cow Ate the Cabbage LLC.

Is horror good for mental wellness? Of corpse it is.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:11

Hello, Boils and Hughes. It's your old pal, John Custer, the voice of the Cripkee. And I want to welcome my good fiends of the Horror Heels Podcast. Is horror good for mental wellness? But of course it is. I delight in the delicious deaths of pitiful people on the silver screen. So get ready for a hell of a good time with my new fiends Corey and Kendall on the Horror Heels Podcast.

Night of the Living Dead & Savini’s Director’s Cut

SPEAKER_00 1:02

Hey Horror Heliacs, it's Corey. Today's episode is Pure Scooky Joy. We're hanging out with Gregory Van Abelard, horror fan, cosplayer, commentator, and all-around creative light in the dark. You might know him for his absolutely killer Angelo for Nightly Demons cosplay, the one that's so good that Amelia Kincaid herself couldn't stop talking about it at conventions. Gregory grew up like a lot of us did. A horror-loving loner finding comfort in VHS covers, Friday night rentals, and screen queens who felt like real friends when the world felt quiet. Horror was his escape hatch, his therapy, and eventually his art form. Today he channels that love into cosplay, commentary tracks, and community, including his recent Knight of the Demons 3 Blu-ray appearance. We also talk about Knight of the Living Dead, the new Tom Savini director's cut, and why the Monroville Mall is basically sacred ground. Keep your mitts off in Walmart. And you'll hear how horror for Gregory became a lifeline when things got hard. Because for so many of us, it's not just blood and monsters, it's belonging. Hi Gregory, welcome to the Horror Heals podcast. Hi guys, thanks for having me. Absolutely, yeah. Before we get into the whole horror and healing stuff, I have to admit I was doing a little bit of stalking on your social media, and I love the photos, um, the Night of the Living Dead theme photo shoot that you did recent. I've never been to actually one of the Living Dead cons, but um I've wanted to. Yeah, that it looks like a blast.

SPEAKER_02 2:35

Thank you so much. Oh my god. They're so fun to go to. It's interesting because I guess Walmart purchased them all. So who knows what's gonna happen to it. So I've been encouraging anyone that's into the Living Dead movies or just you know, zombies in general, Steven some history in general, go check it out because it's a really remarkable landmark on top of the history of Dawn of the Dead and everything. Or yeah, it's and the whole town's been on it. You know, you love it. It's cool, yeah, it's fun to be a part of.

SPEAKER_00 3:05

I'm excited that there's a director's cut of Tom Savini's remake coming out in September.

SPEAKER_02 3:11

Yeah, and it's funny. My dad took me to see that movie in the theater when it came out when I was really little. Really little, like too young to be seeing these, right? And but it left such an impression on me, you know what I mean? Like because it's such a great remake and great movie, you know. So I'm really excited to have it in like the best format possible and all the little Easter eggs thrown in, you know.

SPEAKER_00 3:34

Yeah. We're gonna have to at some point get this like custom frame because it's an unusual size, but I've got a Polish movie poster of the remake, and it's signed by George Romero, Tom Civini, Bill Mosley, um, a bunch of the original cats. So it's yeah, it's it's one of our treasures for sure.

SPEAKER_02 3:51

That's so cool. It's funny too, because you know, it's hard when you make something that's so beloved and treasured, and this is kind of one of the few remakes that's almost just as loved, right? Yeah, not really a lot of bad feedback on it, which is great. No, good. The proof is in the pudding. Tom Zavini did a great job. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 4:10

So, Gregory, what do you think of our theme of horror and being good for you know the soul and for wellness and all that?

How Horror Heals Survivors

SPEAKER_02 4:18

I what's so cool is it's very unique, yet very spot on, and it needs to be uh jumped into because uh the horror community in general, a lot of them myself, all of us, in some ways we're like survivors of stuff. And I think one of the pinnacle points is with everybody, I think that we all have in common is horror was there for us when we really needed it. Kind of our darkest time, which is so ironic because it's horror, you know, but like it was there for us during our lowest of our lows, and it'll always be there for us. It's like an old friend that's it's so comforting, and we all have stories, especially it's what's interesting too a lot of what I've c come to notice is it's also different types of films or this or that is so personal to people, so they're kind of attached to this movie or that movie or that actor or that actress. And but what's so beautiful about it is and and what I think people are starting to realize that created these films and acted in them, they're like, Wow, we're we we didn't know at the time, maybe not to speak for everybody, but they're saving lives, you know what I mean, by the art of it all, you know. For sure. It's really fascinating to me, absolutely. So I'm glad you guys are jumping into this and kind of just exploring this topic, which is so important, you know, and it's like therapy, horror, and all that, you know.

SPEAKER_00 5:44

It is, yeah. It took us a little while because we're flung horror fans, and it took us a little while to come to that aha moment. But when when it came to us, it's like, yep, that's it. Oh, absolutely. And and it does heal, it really does. Yes, and we find that with not just fans, but the creators too. Like you know, they they all have a story. Uh there's something that's you know that horror has helped them, the community has helped them.

SPEAKER_02 6:08

It totally has, and it's funny too, because you'll even some of the actors, so some of them don't know till way later. They're like, wait a minute, I had no idea. I did this movie, and I had no idea about the fan base and what it's done for people, but that makes me so happy when they finally do know. You know what I mean? Like, and then they're kind of on board, and you kind of just it's a beautiful exchange of we we we both are getting something so beautiful out of this, something you created and how it's affected me really is timeless, and it's so interesting to see where horror is going because it's been taking off and going in wonderful directions. I think it's healing more now than ever, you know. So, when did horror and cosplay come together for you? That is a really good question. I think it started well, horror in general started for me very young. I was really fortunate. My mom, who's awesome, she would let me rent anything I wanted. Oh, she she trusted my judgment. I got to see some really cool horror movies in the theater when I was very young. All of that really did leave an impression on me because I was very much kind of a loner kid. But the funny part was I wasn't upset about being a loner, I was all about it because that's kind of all I knew. But the funny thing, what was there for me were horror movies, you know, especially like I guess screen queens at the time, I think before even like I knew what that term was. Um, so I'd have certain horror movies that I would connect with these characters, and I really felt like I was hanging out with them. Like I felt like they were my friends and they were there for me when like no one else was. So I remember like Friday night, Saturday nights, my mom would be, you know, doing her thing, but she'd always take me to rent. It'd be like two movies and a pizza, and I was like the happiest person on the planet, you know. You know, and I'd watch them over and over, and then she'd take me to Suncoasts and I'd go buy it if I loved it. You know, it was a really wonderful special time, which has left such an impression on me, and it's gonna be with me forever. And then that kind of leaked into the cosplay, you know, like that kind of came a little bit later, but it all came full circle with all that, you know. Definitely. What was your first cosplay experience? Well, it was Angela from Night of the Demons, and that's a wonderful story on its own because I'm very, very good friends with Amelia Kincaid, and so that I would never have dreamt when I was so young. I have like drawings of her that I did when I was very little. I still have them that it would be something that would come to reality later, you know. Um, and the whole all of the like adventures we've been on, and you know, and I even got her back in the Angela costume at one point, you know, and she still does it. It's just a beautiful you know what it is, it's dream big because it could happen. You know what I mean? It really is don't dream it, be it. That that's one of the underlines of the cosplay and everything. And a lot of the cosplay characters I choose are characters that have somehow really tapped into me, you know, in one way or another. I could see myself in them, and so I try to channel them, and it's fun. It I love tapping into that side and just jumping in.

SPEAKER_00 9:25

Yeah, that's amazing that that was your first because that's and we didn't actually meet at this con. I just like you were posing for photos with Amelia and Linnea, uh, and it was like, oh wow, that is like that is some great Angela. Oh, thank you. And I could hear her just like totally like you know, telling anybody that was like passing by, like how great you were and how how much she appreciated the all the detail and everything.

Meeting Amelia Kincaid (Night of the Demons)

SPEAKER_02 9:49

That's so cool. Yeah, because I first did Angela, I was in junior hot, and I did her for Halloween. I dressed as her, um I believe it was her from part three, and I just remember it was it really was a time where homophobia was very much there, and so you kind of had to learn and kind of like you had to know where to navigate and what you can get away with, what you couldn't. So I remember on Halloween, you definitely knew who your friends were because the ones that were into it, you were so happy, but there was always one or two that had to like make a snag comment. But the funny part was I didn't give a shit, it didn't stop me. You know, I was so happy to be Angela, and I was so excited to be running around on Halloween and this dress and the makeup. It was so much fun. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. That was like the first time I did it. Um, I was really proud of myself. You know, I just remember telling my mom that's what I wanted to do. It was just great. It was just you're caught up in the moment, and that's what you're gonna do. I did it, and I'm so happy I did it, and it's taken me on this journey ever since. Yeah, it's wild. What was Amelia's action when she first saw you? Oh my gosh. Okay, well, this is funny. We both shared the same story. I had never been to a horror convention ever. Like they always seemed like something so far away. Like it was always in, like, you know, the back of Fangoria, you'd see these at, and they were always in different states. I didn't even think about it. You know what I mean? And then one day, I don't know how, but my partner told told me, he goes, Oh my god, there's a horror convention in LA, and one of the guests is Amelia Kincaid. And I was like, What? And I remember I pulled over. I was like, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. Let's pull up these dates, you know what I mean? Like, what is happening? You know, because at this point I was already cosplaying as Angela, like every year, you know, like the West Hollywood Halloween parade, I was doing it, you know, and so I was very much like Angela is all I do. You know what I mean? Like, I was, you know, all about it. So my chance to meet Amelia was there. And I remember we went to this convention, I was so nervous. I like I had to do like a shot in the car. But like I had all I had like almost no experience, you know, to meet these people in real life. It was just like a dream. I was like, this isn't happening, right? And then so I go in to meet her. And the funny part was she hadn't done conventions for a while. She was out of the country and doing all sorts of things. So this was kind of her first foray back in a long time. So I I got to meet her, and it was really we just clicked, and I remember we we exchanged emails almost right away, and I was showing her pictures. It was almost like we already knew each other in another light. It was just kind of instantaneous. It was just boom. And so we were talking, talking, talking, and then we were talking about her animal charity work, and then we decided let's put on an event ourselves, you know. When she was going away, but she was like, When I come back, let's talk. And then we, you know, I took her out to lunch and we started doing charity events in Hollywood, and I would host it as Angela. It was cool, it was kind of just the adventure of it all started off very early, and we've just been together ever since. And she's so amazing. I've learned so much from her. She's truly a caring, wonderful, just funny. She is the bee's knees, everybody. And the proof, you know, it's funny, like everyone at conventions that comes to see her, that's her. You know what I mean? So it's so easy to get just sucked in with whatever she's talking about because she's so charismatic and so wonderful, so beautiful. I'm honored to be her friend. Let's just say that.

SPEAKER_00 13:33

Do you remember what convention that was? Because I went to a couple in when we were living in California. Kind of I lived in the Bay Area for nine years. And this was a Monster Palooza, I believe, where I saw you and Amelia.

SPEAKER_02 13:47

Well, okay, the one I met her at was called Days of the Dead. Okay. I don't think they do them in California anymore, but they did a long time ago, and that was a cool one, you know, because it only had I remember a lot of people. Oh my gosh, like the girls from Evil Dead and they Tommy Doyle from Halloween, like they just had a lot of different people, and so that was my first experience in the conventions, and it was cool, it was really, really cool. And then before I knew it, I was like, you know, at Amelia's table, like working with her, and it was so fun because I had fun chatting with the fans too about Night of the Demons, you know, like it was it was so cool. Yeah, I I love it. Love fellow horror fans, you know. Like I love chatting with them because I'm one of them, you know. It's just this wonderful exchange of our love for this and their story too of survival, you know, like because everyone has it, you know, like it's saved my life. It's for this, that reason. And so that's a part of it. It's it's like, you know, finding these kindred spirits, you know, under this genre, this very misunderstood genre that I now think is finally getting the huge tiara it deserves. You know, because back then it was almost like you did a porno, you know what I mean? Like in the you know, which wasn't true, but still, you know. Right.

SPEAKER_00 15:05

No, definitely a s yeah, it was a stigma there for sure. Yeah, for sure. So I guess it could be argued that Angela is the protagonist or is the villain. You could argue it either way. But what was it about that character that drew you in? That's a really good question.

SPEAKER_02 15:20

I think it really was somehow, and this is what Amelia says too like somehow we knew each other in a past life, and I totally believe that. Because I can't explain why I was drawn to her. And the funny part was when I was really little, my cousin Angela, we were very close, very close. We were BFFs, and one day they came over and her mom had gotten something from the video store, and they showed, they go, Gregory, this is for you. Because I, you know, I obviously I was in the horror and stuff, and they go, Look what we got for you. And they unrolled this poster from the video store, they were giving it away or something, and it was of Angela, it was Night of the Demons, and they go, Look, it says Angela's having a party, Angela, all over it, and they thought I'd be all about it. And I go, Oh, that's okay. Like, I was actually scared of the poster because it was, you know, it was terrifying for me. So that you know what? If you ever have one regret in life, it was that it's obviously later when I discovered it and I was all about it. I was like, I remember asking my aunt, I'm like, Do you still have that poster that you know you try? What poster? I was drawn to her rebellious spirit. She's beautiful, or she's this goth princess. And the irony that in high school I was got. So I was always channeling her, just something about her that, like, uh fuck you, I'm gonna do it my way. She was an outcast, so was I, and she was the champion for the underdog, and I was definitely the underdog. Our souls were just connecting. She was definitely always my inspiration with like the whole goth thing. So, and that's who I still channel. You know, she is my number one diva, absolutely, and I love her. And she could dance. I mean, come on, that's the understatement of all the centuries combined. Truth, yeah, truth, yes, and Hallhouse, believe it or not. So many things in that film just drew me to it. The music, the party, all of it, right? And Hallhouse, it's such a beautiful house. It was in LA, it was old, it had all this history to it, so there were no sets, and sadly they tore it down, which killed me because I didn't know it at the time, but I had so many chances I could have gone down and seen it before they tore it down. But the house is so cool, it's like my dream home. And I think we can all say we all love Halloween, because especially growing up, Halloween was the time where you could be anything you want and you didn't have to worry about being judged. You know, I still think that is the beautiful outlet for either young LGBTQ plus, like that's always an outlet. Like, that's like the creaking the door for some that, like, oh, I could be whatever I want today, and like no one could say shit or bother me. And it's kind of like exploring who you really are, right? You know, at least with me, definitely.

SPEAKER_00 18:07

So, aside from Angela, do you have any other favorite cosplayations that you've done?

SPEAKER_02 18:13

Oh, yeah, it was okay, because growing up alone, and I really tapped into these Scream Queens, you know, like truly, like Grace Jones from Vamp or Stretch from Texas Chance Maskatoon, like either you were like, you know, quote unquote bad or good. There was so many elements of them that I was drawn to, and I feeling like I was a survivor, you know, because I was alone, and obviously, you know, I had an I had an abusive dad, so I didn't see him. So it was just a lot I was dealing with, and I saw the strength and completely identified with Lori Strode and you name it, right? Or Judy from Night of the Demon, you know. But one that I'm really proud of is Miss Renee Zellweger from Texas Chainsaw Massacre 4. I love that movie. That's another one that's one of my favorites because her character Jenny starts off as very meek, and throughout the night she finds her inner strength and her voice, and she survives, you know, and that's one of the underlines with me, at least that's always tapped into me. You know, I totally feel that way. She's one I'm really proud of. You know what? I'm proud of all of them, they're all fun, you know, and it's cool to see what you can come up with when you really want to do it.

SPEAKER_00 19:27

Yeah, for sure. Well, you've done some other really cool stuff in the horror realm. Are there a couple of jewels in your crown that you'd like to mention?

SPEAKER_02 19:35

Oh, yes. Well, I was really happy to be on the commentary for Night of the Demons 3. Um, that's another one that I love that a lot of people hadn't seen. It just got a Blu-ray. So I was on there with Jimmy Kaufman who directed it, who's so fun. He's so wild, and it was he was really fun to be around, you know, completely creative soul. I was really honored to be a part of that. And just everything I've done, I'm I'm always grateful, you know, to be a part of anything. I'm so happy and grateful to be on here with you guys. Just anyone that's interested, you know, like I'm so happy to be a part of it all. I, you know, it's just happy to be here, right? And it's just a wonderful community, and it always gives me something to look forward to. It's just that getting you something to get out of bed and just be excited about. I'm excited for the Blu-ray of Night Living Dead. You know, I just everything coming out, it just gives me something just so happy. And then that's what inspires me too, especially with cosplay or whatever I'm doing, right? It's just to be excited about things. I think it's that kind of childhood innocence that we tap into a lot of people still are trying to find. And I always want to help people find that, which is finding those things that just really get you going. It doesn't always have to be this or that. Sometimes, like the adult worlds, quote unquote, like where that's all you got going and you're just so miserable. It's like, well, you also have to find that that happy place and really keep that very treasured and locked in, you know, because it's keeps us young, right? Keeps us going.

SPEAKER_00 21:16

I love your posity. That is really inspiring.

SPEAKER_02 21:18

Well, you know what's funny too. We are living in a time where in at least in the scope of horror, like I'm so grateful. Like, I if 14-year-old me, if you told me, Oh, they're gonna be still doing Halloween and I know what you did last summers and this and that, you know, I I would have had a heart attack, I would have fainted. It's me, it's so easy now to be like, oh, well, that was dumb, and blah blah blah. It's like, no, we should be really lucky that they're doing this for us. Like that that's my take on it, you know. So the fact that we're getting these reunion movies and this and that and conventions and just all of this, like, I would never have dreamt this exist would have existed when I was younger because it was such a hush-hush thing. Like, you know, you liked horror, because you know, I had people in my family member that were like religious and they were like, Oh, you and this horror movies, and you know, like just stuff like that. They'd always make you feel like shit, just for being your authentic self and being happy, like minding your own business, even because they're unhappy. You know what I mean? Like, that's exactly and it's exactly that. And and even though I didn't quite know that then, I knew then not to let it ruin my good time because I never let it ruin it. You know what I mean? I just wish back then I said something back, but that's okay because the you know, I I did it my own way just by doing it. So there you go.

SPEAKER_00 22:40

The last question that we always ask on this podcast is who's your favorite final person in a horror film?

SPEAKER_02 22:50

Final? Wow, yeah. I guess Angela wasn't final, but she does get the final in part three. She has the final word in the whole series. She says, Happy Halloween. So it'll be Angela. Literally, I see. I found that loophole right there. If it wasn't for Angela, I wouldn't be here. Truly. She kickstarted it all. So it's my love for her that really opened the floodgates to me, you know?

SPEAKER_00 23:21

Absolutely. That's awesome. Great. Well, Amelia has said that she will come on the podcast at some point. I know she's very, very busy, but definitely make sure I'll ping her and let her know about this episode for sure.

Outro: Horror Is Family

SPEAKER_02 23:32

Oh, she'll love it. Yeah, absolutely. Oh, you're gonna have so much fun with her. Yeah, she's I've met her a couple times and she's great. I love what she does for animals and stuff too. Another thing that's so inspiring and just really makes you want to be being a better person. You know, absolutely. She's fighting the good fight for sure.

SPEAKER_00 23:48

Well, Gregory, thank you so much for coming on the show. We really appreciate it.

SPEAKER_02 23:51

Thank you so much. This has been so much fun.

SPEAKER_00 23:53

I'm honored and for the love of horror. That was Gregory Van Avalar reminding us that horror doesn't just entertain, it heals. I love how we put it. Horror is the old friend that shows up when you need it most. From cosplaying Angela in Junior High, despite homophobia, to later working conventions with Amelia herself, Gregory's story is proof that embracing who you are, makeup, fangs, and all of it is its own kind of survival. And yeah, we're gonna claim it. Angela is the final girl of that franchise. She gets the last line and the crown. Gregory, thank you for sharing your warmth, your artistry, and your undead optimism with us. Amelia, we're keeping a chair ready for you too. If this episode hit home, tell the creator their work saved you. Rewatch that movie they got you through, put up the costume that still feels like Arbor, because the horror community, it's not just a fandom, it's family. Thanks for listening. And when someone asks if horror is good for your mental wellness, you tell them, uh, of course it is.