Horror buffs in the Gettysburg area and as far as New York and Kentucky converged on the Eisenhower Hotel & Conference Center for a unique convention/New Year’s Eve party experience.

In the spring of 2019, Scott and Michelle Hewitt, who regularly vend at conventions under Scott’s Variety Shop, hosted the first Pop, Rock ‘N Horror. That show incorporated their ideas, as well as suggestions from con attendees, for a fresh take on a horror/pop culture con. Building on that success, they planned and hosted Pop, Rock ‘N New Year’s Evil.

“I talked to the hotel, they were thinking about doing something along the lines of a New Year’s Eve dance. And we thought if we can incorporate our horror folks, we could put a twist on it and make it Pop, Rock ‘N New Year’s Evil. It gave it its own life. The name rolls off your tongue. We didn’t expect it to be this big, but it ended up being something amazing,” Scott Hewitt said while describing how the event came to be. (To read more about how the Hewitts planned this event, check out their interview in our “In the Limelight” section.)

The event combined a New Year’s Eve style party with traditional con elements and other activities, all under one price point so that attendees could participate in all of the activities without paying extra on top of the admission ticket. The vendor and autograph area was open on the afternoon of December 31 and the late morning/afternoon of January 1. Since this was only part of the overall event, there was a smaller number of vendors and celebrity guests, but it had a reunion atmosphere with guests, vendors, and attendees bouncing around to each other’s tables while making purchases and getting autographs.

The celebrity guests included Tuesday Knight (Nightmare on Elm Street 4), Jennifer Banko (Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3), Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp), Beverly Randolph (Return of the Living Dead), William Butler (Night of the Living Dead 1990), David Howard Thornton (Terrifier), and Craig Loydgren (comedian). Not only did each sign autographs and take photos with fans, they participated in the full slate of events throughout the two-day show. (Interviews with Felissa Rose and David Howard Thornton are in our “In the Limelight” section.)

Dark Hills Gaming, one of the vendors, invited attendees to a limited time escape room experience. Fuzzy Monkey Films was there to sell their indie horror flicks and promote new movies, including Shriekshow, which features con guests, Tuesday Knight, Felissa Rose, and Beverly Randolph. Documentary filmmaker Mike Perez was there with horror documentaries on Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, and Return of the Living Dead, as well as promoting upcoming projects focused on Sleepaway Camp and It.

There were brief professional photo sessions with the guests, including one option to get a photo with all of the guests together. In addition, there were family photo ops where attendees could get a professional photo with their families in front of the con banner for just $5.

After the con portion closed on December 31, the New Year’s Eve festivities began. The banquet hall was decorated for the occasion with balloons and New Year’s Eve themed party favors, a stage for comedy and karaoke, and an open dancefloor. A full dinner was served, ending with a cookie table and large sheet cakes for dessert. Door prizes were given throughout the evening, including a variety of horror themed collectibles and a pair of tickets to the next Pop, Rock ‘N Horror convention. After dinner, comedian Craig Loydgren performed his standup routine, even poking fun at the guests and show promoters.

This was followed by several hours of karaoke and music in which guests and attendees belted some tunes. One early highlight occurred when a girl, who was likely around 10 years-old, sang Oasis’ “Wonderwall.” She began singing timidly, but started singing her heart out when the entire room full of horror fans began cheering her on, clapping, and singing along. David Howard Thornton, who has a theater background, entertained the crowd multiple times, including singing his version of “Let It Be” by impersonating Looney Tunes characters. Right before midnight, Felissa Rose and Thornton sang “We Are Family” and Rose made a point to express her appreciation for the horror community before starting the number.

After the New Year rang in, they gave the gathered crowd one last surprise. Scott and Michelle Hewitt welcomed a young woman wearing an elegant white dress with a shawl to the stage and presented her with a crown and flowers, dubbing her the scream queen. Rose, a noted horror actress, jumped on stage and exclaimed that she wanted to be the scream queen before dumping a bucket of fake blood on the young woman, à la Carrie. For a split second everyone was shocked until they realized it was staged and that the young woman, Anastasia Stone, was a happy participant in the gag. As photos began snapping like crazy, she and Rose exchanged a hip bump before Stone posed for photos.

“Scott [Hewitt] mentioned to me a few months ago that he wanted to do something different for New Year’s Eve. He mentioned the whole Carrie thing, being that the horror family was together, and it’s a big horror movie, everybody knows it,” Stone revealed the next day. “I agreed to it not realizing what I was getting myself into. [laughs] I was going off the original movie, trying to get the dress, the shawl, the crown, and everything. We kind of did some last minute things with Felissa [Rose] to have her dump the [fake] blood on me and just tried to reenact the movie at midnight.”

When asked if she had fun, Stone answered, “Yes. I’m very shy, so it was very nerve-racking for me at first, but it’s con family, so we kind of all know each other.”

The New Year’s evening capped off with a breakfast buffet that started at midnight before moving on to the pool area where attendees continued to celebrate through the early hours of the morning. Later on January 1 during the second day of convention activity everyone seemed tired but happy, recounting their favorite parts of the night, and already anticipating the next con gathering.

Pop, Rock ‘N Horror is already planning their regular 2020 convention, which will be held on May 29-31. They’ll kick off that show with a KIX concert on May 28. The first few guests announced for that con are Tony Moran (Halloween), Bob Elmore (Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2), and Lenore Zann and George Buza (X-Men: The Animated Series). More details and tickets can be purchased at poprocknhorror.com.