CLEVELAND, Ohio -- You'd think that after 45 years The Ghoul would have grown up. Gotten serious. Gone respectable.
Or, at the very least, trimmed that crazy wig.
What, are you nutzo?
The Cleveland late-night horror legend proudly remains the titan of trash, the lord of lowbrow and a sneaky little kid at heart. So what better way to mark his 45th anniversary in showbiz than with "Ghoul Power 2016!"?
At 6 p.m. Saturday, the exhibition featuring more than a dozen artists paying homage to The Ghoul will hit A Separate Reality Records and Gallery, 2678 West 14th St., Cleveland.
Egads, an art show for a GHOUL??? Worry not: This is also an exhibition of irreverence dedicated to the warped persona of Ron Sweed, who got his start working as an assistant for Ernie "Ghoulardi" Anderson.
"We'll have a burlesque troupe called the Ghoul Girls, a DJ playing music the Ghoul used to play on his show, and people in costumes," says artist and organizer Mitch O'Connell, who grew up watching Sweed as a child. "He was such an inspiration for me and so many kids growing up in Cleveland, but also Ann Arbor and Detroit."
Sweed broke into Cleveland TV in 1971, on WKBF Channel 61 -- dressed in a lab coat and armed with an assortment of low-rent props, from Cheez Whiz to firecrackers to flying pierogi, kielbasa and slime. He would show lowbrow, Z-grade flicks like "Attack of the Mushroom People" (aka "Matango").
Within months, his Cleveland-based late-night horror show was syndicated around the country, from Boston to San Francisco.
"Even though Cleveland was my home, I was 10 times more popular in Detroit," says Sweed. "People still go nuts over Ghoul Power in Michigan."
His TV cult included horror maestros Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell -- who appeared in skits on The Ghoul's show as teenagers - not to mention Bob Seger and Kid Rock.
"Sam and Bruce tell me I warped their minds," says Sweed. "Not bad, considering I was once called 'punk rock puke.' "
The soiree will include the appearance of The Ghoul's longtime nemesis, Froggy -- not to mention a 7-foot Ghoul pinata.
"We're filling it with boom-booms instead of candy, and I'm looking forward to seeing myself getting blown up," says Sweed. "You see, I'm still a kid at heart -- because being a kid is the only way for a ghoul to survive."
For more info, go to facebook.com/events/172344229788674 or call 216-644-7934.