Premio Dardo Winner!

Happy Monday, everybody! The fantastic (and award-winning) blogger Amanda By Night at Made for TV Mayhem has bestowed upon me and this blog the prestigious Premio Dardo Award. Wow!

This blogger-to-blogger accolade "acknowledges the values that every blogger shows in his or her effort to transmit cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values every day."

It's a great privilege to be acknowledged for this honor, especially from a blogger I admire so deeply. Made for TV Mayhem is one of the handful of blogs I follow religiously, and which I enjoy tremendously. Anyone who understands an obsession with Tiffany Bolling is a friend for life in my book. Thank you, Amanda!

I must confess, I don't really understand how precisely all this works (I'm a bit of a dunce when it comes to the community of blogging...), so permit me to go by the rules:

1) Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award and his or her blog link.


2) Pass the award to 4 other blogs that are worthy of this acknowledgment. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

Okay, so now it is incumbent on me to pass along this Premio Dardo decoration to five bloggers whom I feel ably transmit cultural, ethical, literary and personal values every day. Let's do it!

1.) Theofantastique: This meeting place for myth, imagination and mystery in pop culture is a tireless and meticulous effort. The approach is commendably cerebral, and the author, John Morehead is not only curious and thoughtful, but a highly-skilled communicator. John focuses on books, films, television and the history of the horror genre with enthusiasm and a keen intellectual eye.

2.) Zombos Closet of Horror: This dedicated blogger, Iloz Zoc, is the founder and organizer of the League of Tana Tea Drinkers, not to mention a bonafide wit. First, my hat is off to him for wrangling a wide cross-section of authors, and bloggers (herding cats?) with such aplomb, spirit and frankly...love. More to the point, Zombos Closet of Horror is a blog I follow on a daily basis, because I.Z. offers unbridled passion for the horror genre. He also knows how to turn a memorable phrase in an amusing, sharp and appropriately macabre fashion. His writing is perpetually funny and absorbing. Horror conventions and toys, movies old and new -- they're all covered here with a fresh perspective.

3.) Vault of Horror: this is where I go to get my horror news, and pretty much on a daily basis at that. B-Sol is the genius behind all those controversial and inspiring Cyber-Elite lists that have been burning up the Internets lately, but that's only the tip of the machete, so-to-speak. You'll find news stories, reviews, lists, obits, trenchant commentary and much more at Vault of Horror. A must-read horror blog...and if it's been more than a few hours since I checked it out, I feel empty inside.

4.) Plaid Stallions: This is where I head when I need a toy nostalgia fix. Plaid Stallions is an impressive and beautifully-designed daily blog dedicated to a remembrance of all things from the pop-culture of the 1970s, but especially the toys I grew up with. There are great post categories here, from crazy catalog photos of the disco decade, to retro-playgrounds (!), to images of old toy stores and their displays. I don't want to grow up...I'm a Plaid Stallions kid.

Thank you again, Amanda, for thinking of me for this award. It means a lot to me.