Welcome ghouls, ghosts, and goblins to Collector Spotlight – a regularly irregular interview with a fellow Mezco collector where we dive into the inner workings of their brain and find out what’s haunting their shelves.
In this spooktacular edition of Collector Spotlight, we’re hangin’ out with Nicole from Georgia and taking an in-depth look at her bloodcurdling collection of Living Dead Dolls! Creep on and learn more about Nicole!
Q: When did you first start collecting and what was the first doll you remember seeking out?
A: I first began collecting Living Dead Dolls about 6 years ago, I found my first doll secondhand online and that opened a whole new world. Living Dead Dolls have been around for more than 20 years now, I had a lot of catching up to do. The first doll I specifically looked for was Sadie, she wears a Wednesday Addams-esque outfit, comes with a black bouquet, butcher knife and coffin shaped purse. This doll is the mascot for the line and has also had the most versions or “resurrections”. I have 3.
Q: What inspired you to start collecting?
A: My main inspiration for this collection would be my boyfriend Brandon, he has a rather impressive collection of Transformers and Gunpla models he has completed, he’s even gotten me into some of the models as well. We split the second bedroom of our apartment in half with his collection of various robots on one side, and my collection of little creeps on the other. We have a lot of fun sharing the space and finding common ground. He is extremely supportive of my collection and has even gotten some of my favorite pieces for me!
Q: Who is your favorite horror villain?
A: My favorite horror villain is definitely Pinhead from Hellraiser. Doug Bradley as the leader of the Cenobites is one of the most iconic villains in any horror movie. This villain is not only creepy with nails coming out of their head and bloodied hooks, but they are also quite eloquent which brings another level of terror.
Q: If you could switch lives with any fictional character for a day, who would you choose?
A: Of course it would have to be Doctor Who, hop in the TARDIS and go anytime any place? Count me in!
Q: What is your favorite horror movie of all time?
A: I have always been a huge horror fan so this is a very hard choice, but since I have to pick 1, I will have to go with the original IT based on the novel by arguably the best horror writer of all time, Stephen King. Tim Curry plays Pennywise the dancing clown in one of the creepiest performances to date. It is a wild ride seeing the Loser Club band together to defeat IT, whatever shape it appeared as. Watching this movie as a child definitely instilled a fear of clowns, balloons and storm drains, but a love of horror movies was born as well.
Q: What was your first Living Dead Doll?
A: My first Living Dead Doll was Calico, she has green skin with stitches and purple yarn hair. She comes with her pet Muzzy who is a sort of Frankenstein’d lizard duck. I found her second hand, but fell in love with the details of her stitches, the tissue lined coffin box and “death certificate” which comes with every doll. She started the collection for sure.
Q: What is your favorite Living Dead Doll?
A: There are so many creepy and unique dolls in this line but for me the favorite in my collection is Walpurgis. Named for the witchy German festival she wears a goat mask perfect for summoning demons. The resurrection version seen in my collection has fiery hair and amber glass eyes.
Q: How many Living Dead Dolls do you have in your collection?
A: I have 39 full size dolls, 20 miniatures and 5 mystery mini figures.
Q: What is your grail doll?
A: My holy grail doll would be the fuzzy Eggzorcist, this was a Japan release so finding them is very rare, but maybe one day!
Q: What is your favorite aspect of being a collector?
A: I have always been a fan of museums, libraries and art galleries, so in my collecting I’m basically curating a museum of my favorite things. It’s so satisfying seeing the shelves filling up and the collection growing.
Q: How long have you been a toy photographer and what made you start?
A: Previously I was a portrait photographer for 10 years, but have a degree in commercial photography. Within the last few years this has shifted more to still life/product photography as I have taken a bit of a career change to the technology field. Digital art is becoming increasingly popular it seemed like an easy transition to keep up my love of photography.
Q: What inspires your photography?
A: I’ve always loved catching details that may otherwise go unnoticed. For my portrait photography I take inspiration from old movies, and vintage imagery, this often gives my images a nostalgic, quirky feel.
Q: Any advice you’d like to offer to new collectors?
A: Find your community! There are so many resources and groups now thanks to social media to help find other people who share your passion. I am from a small town so finding other people locally can be tricky, but whatever your Fandom there are other people out there who can help expand your collection or just talk about and show off!