Dr Gangrene is the alter ego of award winning TV Horror Host Larry Underwood.
Larry has been broadcasting his strange blend of film reviews, interviews, and er.. stuff for TV stations in and around the Nashville area since 1999.
As well as being an writer, B-movie actor and musician, he is fanatical about Horror and Sci-Fi movies. This passion leads him to be a regular guest presenter at movie conventions across the US.
Am not sure about you, but I don’t think my Careers Officer mentioned this line of profession in our all too brief encounters.
It makes me wonder what he has written in his passport?
Where did Dr. Gangrene originate from?
The idea for the character came as a play on words – ER was really popular when I started the show and folks were telling me I look like Dr. Green (Anthony Edwards) from that show. So Dr. Gangrene is kind of a wordplay on Dr. Green.
The character’s origin is he originates from Transylvania where he had a thriving practice. One evening a woman came in who needed help. Turned out she was a vampire, and he helped her out anyway. Once word spread to the monster community that there was a doctor who would treat his kind his practice boomed – werewolves, vampires, and creatures of the night all sought him out for treatment. Naturally the villagers didn’t take too kindly to this, and they formed a mob and ran him out of town.
Or at least that’s the story he’s always told. I’ve been toying with the idea that Gangrene was lying all these years and is actually from the backwoods of Tennessee – his name is actually Ichabod Gangrene and he barely passed medical school. Haven’t actually shot that yet, though, so you heard it first!
Who is your all time favorite Horror/Chiller cinema actor?
I appreciate all the masters – Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, John Carradine… but I have a real soft spot for Vincent Price. I basically enjoy anything with Price in it. He had such presence and an amazing voice. I could listen to the man read a grocery list and be entertained.
Are there any good recent movies we should go and check out?
There were a lot of good movies that came out in 2010: Piranha, Let Me In, The Wolfman, The Human Centipede. My very favorite movie of last year was SUCK – really smart, funny, well made. Pretty good year for horror movies – Hope 2011 is as good.
Do you have a favorite director?
I have a few favorites, hard to pick just one. I really like Hitchcock, Jack Arnold (Tarantula, Creature from the Black Lagoon), Sam Raimi… really depends on my mood. I like a lot of horror movies and appreciate each for different reasons.