Age, Biography and Wiki
David J. Skal is an American film critic, writer, cultural historian, and on-camera commentator. He was born on June 21, 1952 in Garfield Heights, Ohio. He is best known for his books on horror films, including The Monster Show: A Cultural History of Horror (1993) and Hollywood Gothic: The Tangled Web of Dracula from Novel to Stage to Screen (1990). He has also written extensively on the history of the horror genre, including The Dark Domain: A Cultural History of Horror (1997) and Screams of Reason: Mad Science and Modern Culture (1998).
Skal has written for numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, The Village Voice, and The New Yorker. He has also appeared as an on-camera commentator for documentaries on the horror genre, including Universal Horror (1998) and The American Nightmare (2000).
Skal is currently a professor of film studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz. He is also the author of several books, including The Monster Show: A Cultural History of Horror (1993), Hollywood Gothic: The Tangled Web of Dracula from Novel to Stage to Screen (1990), and The Dark Domain: A Cultural History of Horror (1997).
As of 2021, David J. Skal has an estimated net worth of $1 million.
Popular As |
N/A |
Occupation |
Film criticwriter cultural historianon-camera commentator |
Age |
71 years old |
Zodiac Sign |
Gemini |
Born |
21 June 1952 |
Birthday |
21 June |
Birthplace |
Garfield Heights, Ohio, United States |
Date of death |
January 01, 2024 |
Died Place |
Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Nationality |
United States |
We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on 21 June.
He is a member of famous with the age 71 years old group.
David J. Skal Height, Weight & Measurements
At 71 years old, David J. Skal height not available right now. We will update David J. Skal's Height, weight, Body Measurements, Eye Color, Hair Color, Shoe & Dress size soon as possible.
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Dating & Relationship status
He is currently single. He is not dating anyone. We don't have much information about He's past relationship and any previous engaged. According to our Database, He has no children.
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Parents |
Not Available |
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David J. Skal Net Worth
His net worth has been growing significantly in 2022-2023. So, how much is David J. Skal worth at the age of 71 years old? David J. Skal’s income source is mostly from being a successful . He is from United States. We have estimated
David J. Skal's net worth
, money, salary, income, and assets.
Net Worth in 2023 |
$1 Million - $5 Million |
Salary in 2023 |
Under Review |
Net Worth in 2022 |
Pending |
Salary in 2022 |
Under Review |
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Not Available |
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David J. Skal Social Network
Timeline
Skal appears in the 2008 documentary film Wrangler: Anatomy of an Icon in which he discusses, as an openly gay cultural critic, the cultural impact of iconic gay pornographic film star Jack Wrangler.
Skal's other major publications include V Is for Vampire: The A to Z Guide to Everything Undead (1996), Screams of Reason: Mad Science and Modern Culture (1998), Death Makes a Holiday: A Cultural History of Halloween (2002), and Claude Rains: An Actor's Voice (2008). Skal also co-edited the 1997 Norton Critical Edition of Bram Stoker's Dracula and compiled the 2001 anthology Vampires: Encounters with the Undead. His biography of Bram Stoker, Something in the Blood, was published in October 2016.
Skal collaborated with Elias Savada to produce 1995's Dark Carnival: The Secret World of Tod Browning, Hollywood's Master of the Macabre. Dark Carnival was the first book-length biography of Tod Browning, best known for directing Freaks and the 1931 version of Dracula. Writing in the Journal of Popular Film and Television, Martin F. Norden described it as "a compelling, in-depth examination of one of America's first cult film directors". Steven E. Alford of the Houston Chronicle remarked, "Dark Carnival succeeds in resurrecting the reputation of one of Hollywood's long-buried eccentrics."
In 1993, Skal released his second non-fiction book, titled The Monster Show: A Cultural History of Horror. In this book, Skal analyzes the history of horror films, drawing parallels between those films and the cultural crises of their times, such as World War I, World War II, the thalidomide controversies, and the AIDS epidemic. M.L. Lyke of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer called The Monster Show "the perfect intellectual primer for a Halloween weekend". Stefan Dziemianowicz of The Washington Post argued that some of Skal's arguments were "pretty far-fetched", but added that, as a whole, the book "offers persuasive evidence that in order to understand a culture, you must know what it fears".
Skal's first nonfiction work was 1990's Hollywood Gothic: The Tangled Web of Dracula from Novel to Stage to Screen. This book discusses the various adaptations of Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula, and the role of the vampire archetype in popular culture. A large portion of the book describes the efforts of Stoker's widow Florence to protect the rights to her husband's work. The book also contains the first in-depth study of a Spanish-language Dracula film produced in 1931. Kathleen Quinn of The New York Times praised Hollywood Gothic, writing, "Skal tracks Transylvania's most popular vampire with dry wit and the skills of a fine detective." Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times called it "witty and comprehensive", and quipped that it was "something to gnaw on long after those trick-or-treaters are gone". Writing in 2004, David Colton of USA Today noted that the book had "become one of the field's essential reads" and had "[raised] the standards for horror researchers".
Skal studied journalism at Ohio University, where he worked as a film critic and assistant editor for the college's newspaper. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1974. After graduation, he interned with the National Endowment for the Arts and became the publicity director for the Hartford Stage Company. He later held positions with the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco and the Theatre Communications Group of New York. During the 1980s, Skal completed three science fiction novels: Scavengers (1980), When We Were Good (1981), and Antibodies (1988).
David John Skal (born June 21, 1952 in Garfield Heights, Ohio) is an American cultural historian, critic, writer, and on-camera commentator known for his research and analysis of horror films and horror literature.
Skal has made several appearances in television specials, such as The 100 Scariest Movie Moments and The Perfect Scary Movie. He has produced DVD supplemental documentaries and/or audio commentaries for a number of films, including Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1931), The Invisible Man (1932), Freaks (1932), The Mummy (1932), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), The Wolf Man (1941), Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948), Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954), and Gods and Monsters (1998).