From RopeOfSilicon.com:

“On March 13 the internet will witness what may be a brief moment of insanity or an inspired moment of parody as Twilight: The Musical will debut Act One online at TwilighttheMusical.com.”

Get the full scoop HERE. Visit the Twilight: The Musical site HERE.

From The Hollywood Reporter: Sources indicate that horror wunderkind — and Guillermo Del Toro protege — Juan Antonio Bayona has emerged as one of the finalists to direct “Eclipse,” the third movie in Stephenie Meyer’s “Twilight” franchise.

The studio declined to comment; a rep said producers were looking at a number of candidates.

Bayona’s name has come up in recent months, though generally in a group of other directors — an eclectic list that’s ranged from Paul Weitz to Drew Barrymore to James Mangold;earlier today, in fact, a report on the Twilighters fansite reported it would be Paul Weitz.

Many of the other names have been batted down. Bayona’s name, on the other hand, has surfaced more in recent days as the man who could land the job, in what would mark a bold departure for the franchise…

READ THE FULL STORY

DRACULACON WEEKEND will take place in downtown Windber, PA April 24 & 25,2009, and is a scholastic, history-oriented weekend of vampire-themed entertainment. Some of the material will be mature. This is a serious event, not appropriate for children younger than 17 years of age. Costumes are naturally welcomed.

For full details, guest lists, schedule of events, etc, visit http://www.draculacon.com.

2009 VAMPIRE FILM SERIES & FESTIVAL will take place “Autumn 2009″ (no specific dates yet) in New Orleans, LA. The mission of the Vampire Film Festival is to showcase the artistry of filmmakers who work in this supernatural genre, to further the mythology and lore of vampires and share it with the mortal world. They are currently seeking submissions.

For full details, visit http://www.vampirefilmfestival.com.

Rue Morgue and Mongrel are giving away 10 Let the Right One In prize packs which include the DVD and the original best-selling novel on which the film was based. Simply send your name and mailing address to contests@rue-morgue.com for your chance to win. Ends March 31, 2009.

SOURCE

Walmart brings fans nationwide a chance to hear Taylor Lautner, “Jacob Black” in Twilight, speak about his experiences live from the set of The Twilight Saga’s New Moon!

On Monday, March 9 at 9 pm EST / 6pm PST, be at your computer and link into www.BlogTalkRadio.com Stardish program – you may even get the chance to ask Taylor your own question!

SOURCE

MySpace Celebrity sits down with Taylor Lautner!

With “Twilight” attracting mobs of new vampire fans to theaters and bookshelves right now, it makes plenty of sense that Alex Proyas would want to jump onto his Dracula origin project — “Dracula Year Zero” — while ticket-buyers are biting. Right now, all that the “I, Robot” and “Dark City” director needs is a lead actor.

“There’s this kind of discourse between casting and budget and trying to find the sweet spot in between,” Proyas told MTV News. The filmmaker, whose latest movie “Knowing” comes out this month, speculated that “Dracula Year Zero” would be next on his docket with one word: “Probably…”

Read the full story at MTV.COM

A SKELETON exhumed from a grave in Venice is being claimed as the first known example of the “vampires” widely referred to in contemporary documents.

Matteo Borrini of the University of Florence in Italy found the skeleton of a woman with a small brick in her mouth (see right) while excavating mass graves of plague victims from the Middle Ages on Lazzaretto Nuovo Island in Venice (see second image here).

At the time the woman died, many people believed that the plague was spread by “vampires” which, rather than drinking people’s blood, spread disease by chewing on their shrouds after dying. Grave-diggers put bricks in the mouths of suspected vampires to stop them doing this, Borrini says..

FULL STORY

For those who enjoy Vampire: The Masquerade, from ROBOT VIKING: “The new World of Darkness doesn’t enjoy (or suffer from, depending on your point of view) the deluge of sourcebooks that the old version did. Instead of describing countless real-world cities, the neo-WoD sourcebooks are intended to illuminate some crucial aspect of life in a world filled with supernatural horrors. In the case of New Wave Requiem, the subject is a historical era: the 1980s…”

“…This book gives players and storytellers a nice overview of the 80s (or the World of Darkness idea of the 80s). The various clans’ reactions and motivations during this period are included, along with tips for playing out the primary themes of the Me Decade. There’s a complete adventure set in 1983 Chicago, a bunch of NPCs, and a couple of crunchy rules, such as a way for vamps to mentally read information directly from computer disks or video tapes.”

Read the full article: http://www.robotviking.com/2009/02/vampires-cocaine-michael-jackson-and-aids/

MARCH 20, 2009 at Midnight : Several Chicago area stores are having midnight Twilight Release Parties for the DVD release of Twilight on March 21. Locations include Borders at 6103 N Lincoln Ave, 2817 N Clark St & 1700 Maple Ave (Evanston), Hot Topic in Lincolnwood, and other area stores.

To find the closest location to you, visit http://www.twilightthemovie.com/