This week marks the release of Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street, an absorbing documentary about openly gay Nightmare on Elm Street 2 star Mark Patton and his journey to make peace with the demons of his past—from surviving the AIDS crisis to Hollywood homophobia to the changing reception of the film and his performance. It’s a special film for me, personally, because it was co-directed by my friend Roman Chiamenti, and marks my first screen credit (for Additional Writing and Events Coordinator). Here’s a timeline of my experiences with the movie.

Fall 2001

It’s my freshman year at Emerson College in Boston, MA. My friend Steve shows me a video compilation of the most homoerotic scenes from A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985). Steve is doing his Queer Identity presentation on the movie. I’m a fan of the Wes Craven original but have never seen this one; I have to admit that scenes like a scuffle between Patton’s Jesse and Grady (hunky Robert Rusler), in which Jesse’s jockstrap is exposed, are pretty damn gay.

In a scene from the original film "A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge" - actor Mark Patton is surprised. Photo Credit: New Line Cinema This sequence is featured in the documentary SCREAM, QUEEN! MY NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET — In a scene from the original film *"A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge" -* actor Mark Patton is surprised. Photo Credit: New Line Cinema This sequence is featured in the documentary SCREAM, QUEEN! MY NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET

Summer 2014

My friend Roman, an accomplished sound designer, tells me that he’s been invited to do sound design for There Is No Jesse, a meta-documentary about Elm Street 2 starring Patton. He’s tremendously excited because Freddy’s Revenge is one of his favorite horror films. He tells me that he’ll be travelling to Maryland to meet Patton and discuss the project, and invites me and my friend David Rondinelli to come along.

We embark on an early morning road trip to a showing of Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master featuring Patton, Dream Master star Lisa Wilcox (Alice), and JoAnn Willette, one of the “School Bus Girls” from Freddy’s Revenge. David documents the day for our YouTube channel, Monster Nation (RIP). The host of the screening is a middle aged mom who’s clearly a huge fangirl; she’s more than a little awkward. During the post-screening Q&A, the lights briefly go out and the actors amusingly recite the Freddy chant: “One, two, Freddy’s coming for you…”

Patton is a sweet, gregarious character with tons of stories from his fascinating life. He recalls the time he and legendary actress Hope Lange, his mom in Part 2, got buzzed and were accused of being drunk on set by a nasty crew member. “Hope wasn’t drunk; she was maintaining,” he says drily. Afterwards we all get Chipotle with Patton, who is delighted to have a posse of New York gays visiting him. Back at his hotel, Mark agrees to sit down with David and I for an on-camera interview. In the elevator ride to his room, he explains that this hotel is a ways away from the theater and that the isolated location is making him feel like James Caan in Misery. The event host certainly seems like she could give Annie Wilkes a run for her mallet smashing money.

On camera, Mark tells us that he was asked to play Psycho star Anthony Perkins in a stage show, but at the time the life of the closeted actor, who died from AIDS in 1992, was too close for comfort. (Patton came out as HIV positive on the cover of HIV Plus Magazine in 2013, and is a vocal advocate for HIV/AIDS advocacy and education.) Perkins is one of my favorite actors, and I’d still love to see Patton portray him. As we head back to New York, I wonder what my college age self would think if he could see me now.

January 2015

Directors of SCREAM QUEEN! MY NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET – L to R Roman Chimienti and Tyler Jensen – Photo Courtesy of Virgil Films — **Directors of SCREAM QUEEN! MY NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET – L to R Roman Chimienti and Tyler Jensen** – Photo Courtesy of Virgil Films

There is no There Is No Jesse; after the original director left the project, Roman and his growing team decided to scrap the meta conceit and do a straight forward documentary about Mark’s life and career, and the evolving reception for Elm Street 2. On a freezing cold night, I convene with Roman, cinematographer Amber Gray, and others to develop a rough outline for the project, which will kick off filming at a Florida convention reuniting the cast and crew of Freddy’s Revenge.

Although shooting will ultimately be spread out over the next three years, the basic through line of Mark “confronting his bullies”—namely David Chaskin, the screenwriter who spent years denying any gay subtext in his screenplay and scapegoating Patton for any queerness—remains in the finished film. Amber mentions that Roman would make a great director, a suggestion he resists. Of course, she proved to be completely right.

Valentine’s Day 2015

It’s a bitterly cold weekend in New York, and my partner and I spend it mostly indoors at his apartment. I wake up to a series of texts from Roman, who has just met Robert (“Freddy”) Englund for his interview and can’t believe that he’s had his face caressed in a recreation of Part 2’s “seduction” scene. Talk about a bloody valentine. The material Roman and company capture this weekend will comprise some of Scream, Queen!’s most pivotal scenes, including Englund’s unforgettable pronunciation of “homoerotic.”

June 2015

In a scene from the documentary - SCREAM, QUEEN! MY NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET - subject/actor MARK PATTON - takes a break between autograph signings and special appearances for fans of the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. Photo Courtesy of Virgil … — In a scene from the documentary - SCREAM, QUEEN! MY NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET - subject/actor MARK PATTON - takes a break between autograph signings and special appearances for fans of the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. Photo Courtesy of Virgil Films

Following my suggestion, Patton has agreed to appear at the inaugural edition of Flame Con, the gay and lesbian comic con created by Geeks OUT. (I’ve blogged for the organization for years, mainly about film and television.) Roman told me Mark had been thinking about taking a break from the convention circuit, but I told him this was different and that I had a hunch Patton would love the opportunity to meet his LGBTQ fans. Roman, co-director Tyler Jensen, and crew accompany Mark to film his day. A few days later, Patton co-hosts horror trivia night at Rockbar alongside owner Jason Romas and fellow Geeks OUT blogger Rob Russin; the film crew is there, too. David and I become friends with Andrew Carillo, another horror nerd, and enjoy reciting lines from the likes of Halloween: H20 with Patton and the crowd. They hold a dance contest to recreate Jesse’s unforgettable and hilarious routine from Freddy’s Revenge, and I’m the winner! Andrew and I join Mark onstage for a dance party as Roman’s remix of “Touch Me” plays. When I see this moment onscreen years later, my eyes well up with happy tears.

August 2017

Flame Con has grown in popularity each year and expanded to a full weekend at downtown Brooklyn’s Marriott. I’ve had a rough summer, but this Flame Con proves to be the highlight for two reasons: one, I meet my friend Peter Lavalle, another Geeks OUT blogger, horror fan, and fabulous nerd. Two, I get to spend a couple of hours hanging out with Patton, who has returned for a second appearance. One moment in particular makes a big impression on me. A fan snaps a selfie with Patton and quickly moves on. When I point out that people were supposed to pay for pictures with Mark, he shrugs off the concern. That’s not important, he tells me. He also shares a hilarious story about a Q&A he did for a low budget film with Felissa Rose, star of the camp classic Sleepaway Camp. Neither they nor the interviewer cared for the film itself. “We whispered, ‘we know,’” Mark recalls. “We proceeded to talk about literally everything else but the film.”

Fall 2017

In a scene from the documentary - SCREAM, QUEEN! MY NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET - subject/actor MARK PATTON finally confronts the screenwriter of A Nightmare on Elm Street 2 - DAVID CHASKIN. Photo Courtesy of Virgil Films — In a scene from the documentary - SCREAM, QUEEN! MY NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET - subject/actor MARK PATTON finally confronts the screenwriter of *A Nightmare on Elm Street 2* - DAVID CHASKIN. Photo Courtesy of Virgil Films

Roman invites me to the Kickstarter offices in Brooklyn for a rough cut screening of Scream, Queen! I’m very excited. Alas, I realize afterwards that as much as I want to like it, the current cut is… not great. Roman and Tyler use the audience feedback as the impetus to shoot more material and craft an entirely new timeline.

January 2019

Back at the Kickstarter headquarters I watch, enraptured, as the new and vastly improved Scream, Queen! unspools, beginning with dazzling animated opening credits and the propulsive sounds of an original score by Alexander Taylor. This is the movie I always imagined: entertaining, absorbing, insightful, and imbued with Mark’s unique spirit.

October 2019

Scream, Queen! gets its New York premiere at NewFest, New York’s long-running LGBT film festival. The credits include my name, so I finally get to see “my name in lights.” After the screening, Roman and Tyler invite everyone who worked on the film to come onstage for a group photo. The afterparty, fittingly, is at Rockbar. It’s a lovely end to my own journey with a film that I hope will inspire and touch a great many people.

Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street is available on DVD, Apple TV, Amazon Prime, Vudu, and Google Play.