OH, THE HORROR LITTLE SHOP ON BURBANK BOULEVARD HAS BECOME A MECCA OF THE MACABRE FOR FANS OF ALL STRIPES.

Byline: Brent Hopkins Staff Writer

BURBANK - Normally, shopping for the serial killer aficionado can be a difficult task. Though slasher flicks may be enjoying a bit of a renaissance, horror has long been a marginalized genre, pushed to the sides of bookstores, sold as an afterthought at novelty shops. While costumers and Halloween stores enjoy temporary spikes at this time of year, normal stores hold little for ghoul enthusiasts.

But Dark Delicacies is not a normal store. In a little unassuming shop on Burbank Boulevard, monsters fill the aisles and psycho killers prowl. On its shelves, shoppers can scope out antique death certificates, intricate elfin figurines, and wineglasses emblazoned with devils. Toward the back sits a sculpture of an oddly familiar-looking mountain, carved with the busts of Frankenstein's Monster, the Wolfman, the Mummy and Dracula.

``If you ask yourself 'Where would I find a famous monsters' Mount Rushmore?''' said proprietor Del Howison, ``now you know.''

In its eight years in existence, the shop has become a mecca of the macabre. Both to horror heavyweights and casual fans, it fits a need not addressed at most mainstream bookstores, selling hard-to-find titles, gifts and movies that otherwise get little attention. Though fully stocked with the more hard-core elements of the genre, true crime tales and death compendiums, the store has a distinctly family friendly feel. Not far from titles like ``A Taste of Blood Wine'' sit Charlie Brown Great Pumpkin action figures and videos of Casper, the Friendly Ghost.

Howison started the store with his then-girlfriend, now-wife, Sue, out of mutual frustration. Both horror enthusiasts, they picked up books wherever possible and amassed a small collection of tchotchkes, but were unable to find a convenient source to shop. Sick of thumbing through catalogs full of witch ornaments, they resolved to become a one-stop spot for all things terrifying.

``It was hard getting started,'' recalled Sue Howison, a pleasant-mannered woman who enjoys visiting old cemeteries in her spare time. ``At the gift shows, the Halloween stuff is kind of cutesy. It's hard to find something good.''

The Howisons opened in Burbank with $5,000 and their own collection of books to sell, quickly learning that they were not alone in their passion. Though Del Howison figured he'd attract a crowd of 15- to 25-year-old men in gothic garb, he's found himself pleasantly surprised to have a broad base of shoppers. This year, they expect annual revenue of $225,000 and count some of horror's top names as friends and customers.

``I go there looking for really obscure titles,'' said horrormeister Clive Barker, writer, illustrator and director known for the ``Hellraiser'' series. ``They'll call me up, and they know my tastes. They'll say, 'I've got a book about the Black Plague, and we'll only have two copies.' It won't be something poppy, but they know I'll want a $75 book about the Black Plague.''

Not all patrons have such unusual tastes. Dawn Wirth, a Burbank payroll coordinator, has been a once-a-week shopper for nine years, enjoying their selection of ``Nightmare Before Christmas'' wares.

``My friend Evil Eric and I were driving around, and we saw the sign,'' Wirth said. ``I said, Ah! We've got to check it out! I couldn't believe there could be something that cool in Burbank.''

Though some of the store's goods, its stuffed ``Simpsons'' dolls and Dean Koontz novels, show up in more traditional retailers, customers say the vibe is unique. The Howisons' two corgi-pug mixes, Gomez and Morticia, hang around the cash register while the owners field questions on Victorian mourning rituals and the latest Peter Straub titles.

``It's the only shop in town you can get the latest horror books and a vampire wine cabinet,'' said Steve Niles, a Toluca Lake-based comic book writer and screenwriter. ``If you go into Barnes & Noble and ask for the Encyclopedia of Monsters, they tend to laugh and point at you.''

Such is the trouble for horror fans, who get saddled with a slightly odd reputation. But the Howisons' shop, with Etta James music playing in the background, could pass for a regular bookstore, albeit one with a large ``Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' poster on one wall.

``They understand the genre and they have a sense of humor,'' said author Tamara Thorne, who featured the shop in her novel, ``The Forgotten,'' a ghost story about government conspiracies. ``It could be all creepy and gothy, but this is more fun horror.''

Which is exactly what he wants, Del Howison said. A genial man with a long shock of white hair and a quick smile, he looks far removed from the stereotypical image of a horror fan. He sees the shop in the mold of an old-fashioned general store, only with a Frankenstein's monster figure out front rather than a cigar store Indian.

``Anyone can come in and find a place where you don't get looked at like you need to take your medication,'' he said. ``Liking horror isn't any stranger than an accountant dressing up like a cowboy and going to country and western bars.''

Brent Hopkins, [phone]

brent.hopkins(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

3 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) ``America's only all-horror book and gift store'' owner Sue Howison holds Gomez and Morticia in her Burbank shop.

(2 -- color) no caption (Monster)

(3 -- color) Frankenstein's monster lurks outside Del Howison's Dark Delicacies shop on Burbank Boulevard.

John McCoy/Staff Photographer