James Aquilone is no slouch when it comes to Kochak, with editing credits including a Kolchak graphic novel and now a novel deluxe available to back on Kickstarter. Kolchak inspired generations with a TV movie in 1972, transfixing audiences and spawning a cult TV series starring Darren McGavin. Now, Aquilone and Monstrous Books have acquired the print rights to Kolchak and will be releasing a limited edition of Jeff Rice’s original cult novel.
The new, deluxe hardcover edition will feature a new foreword by writer and actor David Dastmalchian (Count Crowley; Late Night with the Devil), an all-new afterword by writer and producer Rodney Barnes (Killadelphia), an all-new essay on Jeff Rice by Kolchak expert Mark Dawidziak, (The Night Stalker Companion) and a cover and spot illustrations by Russ Braun (The Boys). The Monstrous Books deluxe hardcover edition of Kolchak: The Night Stalker will be funded via a Kickstarter campaign, with a limited print run of 1973 copies.
I spoke to Aquilone all about the project, including his love for the character, what goes into curating a work like this, and more!
AIPT: Hi James, David Brooke here. We chatted back in 2022 about the Kolchak graphic novel Kickstarter, and you’re back with a new novel also on Kickstarter. Couldn’t get him out of your blood?!
James Aquilone: Hi, David. Great to chat with you again. No, I couldn’t get Kolchak out of my blood. I really loved working on that graphic novel and wanted to do more with the character, so I went and acquired the license!
AIPT: For those who don’t know, what makes Kolchak unique in your mind?
JA: Having a reporter as the hero is different, especially nowadays when reporters aren’t seen as the good guy. Kolchak isn’t a typical hero. He’s a pretty regular guy without any special abilities. His key attribute is that he doggedly pursues the truth. Actually he’s a pretty typical old-school reporter in that way, but he finds himself in very untypical situations.
AIPT: I gotta ask, only 1973 will be printed. Why that number specifically?
JA: The novel was published in 1973. That’s also the year I was born, so it sounded like a good number.
AIPT: As an editor, what goes into acquiring folks like David Dastmalchian and Rodney Barnes to contribute to a new edition of a book like this?
JA: For this project, the only thing needed was Kolchak. They’re superfans. Just as I caught the Kolchak bug, they had been eager to work on Kolchak projects. Since I started doing these books, I’ve been approached by tons of writers and artists. Kolchak is truly beloved in horror circles.
AIPT: There are also interior illustrations by Russ Braun. How do you go about picking the right moments?
JA: There are several iconic moments from The Night Stalker, such as the vampire Janos Skorzeny’s first kill in a Las Vegas alleyway and Kolchak confronting Skorzeny at the end of the TV movie/novel. I won’t give away the other illustrations because we’re still working on them. But you can bet your favorite moment from the story will be there.
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