Barking Matt ® profile picture

Barking Matt ®

I am here for Friends and Networking

About Me


Born 1957 -the same year as Osama bin Laden, Sid Vicious, and the European Union-, in a lonely old mansion near the ocean, Barking Matt alledgedly is partly descended from Borneo headhunters. From them he would have inherited his affinity to sharp implements & macabre trophies. He speaks / reads Dutch (including its archaic forms), English, French & German, plus some Italian, Latin, Gaelic, Hebrew & Malay, and has a basic understanding of ancient Egyptian.
In an earlier incarnation he won an MBA (Master of the Black Arts) from Transylvania University. Unfortunately this episode also left him with some undesirable behaviour during full moon. Both aspects clung to him in this life, and this led him c. 1975 to contact Professor Van Helsing in Amsterdam who managed to rehabilitate him. "Don't worry", Barking Matt comments, "I'm fully housetrained now".
When he got drafted in 1977, Barking Matt refused to join military intelligence, calling it "a contradiction in terms". So he did an involuntary stint as a tankdriver in the Dutch army, and as such he partook in the great manhunt for Holland's most notorious cereal killer, the Tuna Bomber.
Resuming his studies, he gained an honorary degree (BA) in Medieval Metaphysics from Miskatonic University (at Arkham, Massachusetts) in 1987. Oddly, in that period he also won the Israel Defence Forces' Distinguished Service Medal. Barking Matt can't or won't divulge the reason why either happened. Rumors have it, however, that he was involved in some unspeakable exploits in a valley near the ancient ruins of Megiddo (Israel), also known as Armageddon.
Anyway, in that same year 1987 he graduated (MA) in Art History & Classical Archeology from his Dutch alma mater. Leiden University (established 1575) is justly infamous for the ancient Egyptian magic scrolls and obscure medieval codices in its collection. Also, its Archeological Museum houses an entire Egyptian temple - rebuilt there stone by stone...
If you are unfamiliar with the goings-on at Leiden University, please read "A Singular Passage in the Life of the Late Henry Harris, D.D." in The Ingoldsby Legends by the Rev. Richard Barham (aka Thomas Ingoldsby). It's an oldie (original publication c. 1850), but still a good read. It can't be coincidental that the town of Leiden once gave refuge to numerous alledged Pilgrim Fathers who went on to settle the Arkham region in Massachusetts.
At Talamasca HQ Barking Matt is considered an authority on necromancy - if only because he managed to reach Van Helsing in 1975, since this already was an elderly guy in the 1890s. Proud member of "The Antient Order of the Knights who say Ni" (Chapter 42), black belt Origami, 140+ IQ, and "Keeper of the Staff of Ho Lin Wan" -won in a joust with Sir Loin-, he is currently in the Werewolf Protection Program, living undercover disguised as a Warner Bros cartoonist.
Some questions & observations: A dog, if bitten by a werewolf, may turn humanoid at full moon. True, the hills ARE alive, but that's the sound of horror... If possession is 9/10-ths of the law, exorcise your lawyers. By the way, "habeas corpus" smacks of necromancy.... Ancient Egyptian government had a Department of Silly Hats. People owning huge numbers of shoes realy are multipedal aliens. Life is a sexually transmitted condition - and it's fatal! If there's a tourist season, why can't we shoot them? Your garden gnome is a minion of evil. Paranoids DO have enemies. My computer hates me.
Warning: Subject is known for extreme acts of sillyness and is suspected of partaking in several cases of utter nonsense! Should be considered weird and curious at all times! Approach with cauldron.

My Interests

I'd like to meet:


Another Shrubbery, the Great Pumpkin, the Queen of Hearts, Zaphod Beeblebrox, Dulcinea del Toboso, Dr. Herbert West, any Jubjub birds, a Girl with Kaleidoscope Eyes, the Daleks, Trin Tragula, a Walrus & a Carpenter, the Machine that goes "Ping", the Bandersnatch, Nephren Ka, Manuel (from Barcelona), the Jabberwock, Randolph Carter, Cardinal Biggles (with Comfy Chair), Blue Meanies, Cloister the Stupid, a Bellman, a Beaver, and maybe a Boojum or two...

My Blog

Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters??

Quirk Books, the publisher responsible for "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" has announced a new title: Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters. Meanwhile, the author of "Pride and P...
Posted by on Thu, 16 Jul 2009 11:00:00 GMT

What kind of reader are you?

What Kind of Reader Are You? Your Result: Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm You're probably in the final stages of a Ph.D. or otherwise finding a way to make your living out of reading. You are one of the...
Posted by on Fri, 05 Jun 2009 04:53:00 GMT

Peter Rabbit

As promised a while ago (this book took a long time to arrive): a sample page of A Tale of Peter Rabbit translated into middle kingdom egyptian (hieroglyphs).
Posted by on Wed, 06 May 2009 07:36:00 GMT

Miscellaneous

Item: Yesterday Holland celebrated the "Queen's Birthday" - it's really not even the birthday of our current monarch but never mind, it's a traditional holiday. Anyway, some nutcase took the occasion ...
Posted by on Fri, 01 May 2009 04:17:00 GMT

Svankmajer

As some of you will know I have huge respect for the work of Czech filmmaker Jan Svankmajer. Here's a sample of his work: Today I managed to purchase one of his prints (he's a visual ...
Posted by on Thu, 23 Apr 2009 05:04:00 GMT

Introducing

Fresh from the litter at about 7 weeks and 5 kilo's (c. 12 lbs): the amazing Ankher. She'll be a handful ;-)
Posted by on Sun, 05 Apr 2009 03:35:00 GMT

Peter Rabbit

As some of you will know, though I can't afford the really rare ones, I enjoy books - especially weird ones. If you're interested you can browse my library (well, about 50-60% of it at present) virtua...
Posted by on Thu, 05 Feb 2009 15:44:00 GMT

Cool High Nerd

Okay, so I was bored, sue me...
Posted by on Sun, 25 Jan 2009 08:12:00 GMT

RIP Harry Goldberg & Ratatouille

The holiday season - and the time leading up to it - is rarely a happy occasion for me, and this year was certainly no exception.On December 10 we lost Harry Goldberg (born 1923): holocaust survivor, ...
Posted by on Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:30:00 GMT

Gold Wreath

Archaeologists in Greece have found a gold wreath, possibly having belonged to Philip of Macedon - the father of Alexander the Great. Fascinating, especially since the conditions of the find are so un...
Posted by on Sat, 30 Aug 2008 13:48:00 GMT