Newswise — Halloween is around the corner, and Texas Tech University has a variety of faculty members who can add expertise to your stories.
So, whether you’re searching for comments about vampires and zombies, and why they continue to successfully infiltrate the entertainment industry, or you want to know how much Americans plan to spend during this Halloween, we have you covered.
Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)Tina Fuentes, director of the School of Art, (806) 742-3826 ext. 238, [email protected].• Fuentes can speak to the history of the Mexican celebration: the ofrendas (alters) and the ceremonies on the last day. She has experienced many of the ceremonies in Mexico.
Jane Bell, senior director, International Cultural Center, (806) 742-3667, [email protected].• Bell can speak to the modern-day beliefs of Dia de los Muertos, especially decorations and objects associated with the celebrations. She also helps organize the Lubbock Dia de los Muertos procession each year.
GhostsGenaro J. Perez, professor of Hispanic literature, (806) 742-3145 ext. 281, [email protected].• Perez can speak to ghosts, legends and the devil in Mexican literature.
LawVickie Sutton, Horn Professor of Law and director of the Center for Biodefense, Texas Tech School of Law, (806) 742-3990 ext. 264, [email protected].• In her new book, “Reel Bio-horror: The Things that Keep Us Up at Night,” Sutton analyzes 47 films from the subgenre, discusses the psychology, law and science of the bio-horror bio-thriller. The book will be released around Oct. 31.
• In her 2012 book, “Halloween Law: A Spirited Look at the Law School Curriculum,” Sutton exhumes cases that illustrate the subjects – many of which revolve around Halloween -- first-year law students are expected to master. The book took honorable mention in the non-fiction category of the Halloween Book Festival in Hollywood, Calif. last year.
Shopping FrenzyDebbie Laverie, Jerry S. Rawls and Piper Professor in marketing, (806) 834-3953, [email protected].• Laverie can speak to the economic outlook for retailers and how much consumers will spend this Halloween.
Shannon Rinaldo, assistant professor of marketing, (806) 834-1825, [email protected].
VampiresErin Collopy, associate chair of classical and modern languages, (806) 742-3286, [email protected].• Collopy can speak to the sexy vampires of today’s movies, and how they are very different from the monsters of eastern European folklore. She also has studied vampires’ origins and how their image has changed in pop culture.
Zombies and Horror MoviesRob Weiner, pop-culture guru and subject librarian for Texas Tech University Libraries, (806) 742-2238 ext. 282, [email protected].• Weiner can speak to horror in movies, literature and comics. He also can talk about the new class he is teaching: “Zombie Culture: The Zombie in History, Film, Literature, Sequential Art and the Popular Imagination.”
Find Texas Tech news, experts and story ideas at www.media.ttu.edu and on Twitter @TexasTechMedia.
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