GVN Talking Comics Interview: Bram Stoker And Rondo Award-Winning Editor James Aquilone For ‘Kolchak: The Night Stalker’

We have had the pleasure of talking to Editor James Aquilone on multiple occasions. First for his eventual Bram Stoker award-winning collection Kolchak: The Night Stalker 50th Anniversary Edition, and his Shakespeare Unleashed collection. But now, James and Monstrous Books are bringing Jeff Rice’s original novel that started the Kolchak phenomenon to fans in a deluxe edition: Kolchak: The Night Stalker.  The campaign for this project has already successfully opened on Kickstarter.

Recently, we were lucky enough to get a few minutes with James to discuss the success of his Kolchak 50th Anniversary collection and this exciting new adaptation of Jeff Rice’s iconic book. So, we welcome once again James Aquilone to GVN Talking Comics.

A Visit with James Aquilone

GVN: Always good to visit with you again, James. We last spoke about “Shakespeare Unleashed” (a 2023 Bram Stoker Award nominee) and before that, about “Kolchak the Night Stalker: 50th Anniversary Edition.” I knew that Kolchak would be a surefire hit, especially for people like me who are huge Carl Kolchak fans, but C’Mon…. Winning the 2022 Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a Graphic Novel as well as a 2022 Rondo Award for Best Graphic Novel or Collection. As the Kickstarter campaign came to a close and you finished this book, did you have any idea how successful it would be?

JA: It’s great talking with you again. It’s been an amazing few years. I knew this campaign would do well, but not this well. The response has been enormous. I probably shouldn’t be surprised. Whenever I go to conventions, people talk to me about how much they love Kolchak and I’m constantly getting emails from writers who want to work on the series. The Kolchak fandom is only growing and it’s an honor to be a part of it.

Getting the Rights to Kolchak

GVN: Since the release of the 50th Anniversary edition, you and Monstrous Books have capitalized on that momentum. You have acquired the print rights to Kolchak: The Night Stalker and will be releasing a limited edition of Jeff Rice’s original cult novel. How did this opportunity come about, and did you have a specific approach in mind for this adaptation?

JA: The rights were available, and I had done very well with the 50th anniversary graphic novel, so the Rice estate offered me the opportunity.

The Visualization of Kolchak

GVN: I recently found out that Jeff Rice’s book was not yet published when the first TV movie was released. I’m not sure how Jeff imagined his main character to look, but after the first movie, Darren McGavin became the face of Kolchak. This made me wonder: would fans accept a Carl Kolchak who didn’t look like Darren McGavin? As I prepared to talk with you again, I was looking through my copy of “Kolchak the Night Stalker: 50th Anniversary Edition” and I noticed that almost all the stories were influenced by Darren McGavin’s portrayal artistically. As one of those fans, I was completely okay with that. Hypothetically, would you or did you ever consider telling a story where Carl had a different appearance?

JA: The first two stories in the 50th anniversary graphic novel feature a teenage Kolchak and he has a different look in both. Those are some of my favorite Kolchak stories of all time. As long as he has the hat and the attitude, it works.

Recruiting Contributors

GVN: For this new book, you have a 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), as well as an essay by Mark Dawidziak. Not to mention a cover and spot illustrations by Russ Braun (The Boys). How did you decide who would contribute to this special adaptation and did you approach them, or did they come to you?

JA: A few of them had approached me either during or after the 50th Anniversary graphic novel about working on Kolchak stuff. People haven’t been shy about telling me how much they love Kolchak. I’m a big fan of David, Rodney, Russ and Mark and they’re huge fans of Kolchak so they’ve been at the top of my list for a while.

Returning to Kickstarter

GVN: As you have for your past projects, you are bringing Kolchak to Kickstarter. What will Kolchak fans who visit your campaign find this go-around?

JA: They’ll find a limited-edition hardcover of the original Kolchak novel, plus prints, a Kolchak button, fan club membership card / press badge, and a poster, and we’re adding stuff all the time.

Upcoming on Monstrous Books

GVN: Thanks once again for your time, James. Before I let you go, I want to allow you to tell our followers not only about Kolchak, but about what else Monstrous Books has coming up.

JA: We’ll probably have another Kolchak campaign coming toward the end of the year. We also got the rights to do another graphic novel based on a cult TV series, which I can’t name yet, but that one will be a lot of fun. Look for that early next year. And our anthology Shakespeare Unleashed is up for two Shirley Jackson awards next month at ReaderCon.

If you are a fan of “The Nightstalker” like me, you should definitely check out this campaign here.