Dark Carnival Online was a collaborative experiment started in 1995 by Fred Burke, then editor of Dark Carnival Bookstore's The Barker, and Joel Kehle and Mike Mercede, of Tahlequah Telecommunications.
Originally conceived as an online bookstore database, DCOL became much more, quickly taking on a life of its own. The database was originally separated into "Carnival Attractions" -- subject categories in a broad-ranging "Carnival of Books." The original graphics were done by Mike and talented young graphic designer Joseph Bucciarelli (see the illustration on this page).
As the site grew, it became apparent that if it was to reflect the truly surreal literary nature of the Dark Carnival Bookstore, it would have to be more than just a list of books. In late 1995 DCOL began to publish "Audio Interviews" on the net. These downloadable audio interviews of such authors as Clive Barker, Anne Rice, Francesca Block, and Harlan Ellison, launched DCOL into its next phase: a full featured online magazine.
In early 1996, Tahlequah expanded its staff, hiring ex-Mondo 2000 editor Paul McEnery and
graphic designer Bill Collins. DCOL took on a new look and a new
mission. Soon it became one of the hottest online magazines
for imaginative fiction on the Net, garnering both AOL's and The
Twilight Zone's best of the web awards, as well as others.
In addition to what this small-scale archive can support, DCOL included in its online pages such features as Mad Professor Mike's Movie Reviews, Starphish's odd advice column, Ralston's Raw Reviews of Hong Kong Cinema, Paul McEnery's insights into the graphic novel realm, and in-depth computer game reviews by wunderkind Chris Hudak.
Unfortunately, Tahlequah was fated to suffer Webdeath. This is very similar to crib death, in that it happens in one's youth, seems to be related to premature birth, and is generally a pisser for all those involved. Late in 1996 Tahlequah closed its doors and turned darkcarnival.com back over to the fine folks at the Dark Carnival Bookstore, where this archive now rests, giving but a brief five meg taste of what we accomplished.
But who knows what will happen next...
-- Mike Mercede
Text and Illustrations © 1996 the individual creators.