Penny Dreadful XIII

Penny Dreadful XIII is a television horror host based in New England. She is portrayed by actress, writer, and comedian Danielle Gelehrter.

Gelehrter created the persona of Penny Dreadful the witch in an effort to revive the concept of a horror moviehost on Boston-area television. The show, Penny Dreadful’s Shilling Shockers, premiered on local cable in January 2006. Shilling Shockers first aired on Public-access television cable TV in Providence, Rhode Island, Boston, Massachusetts, New Bedford, Massachusetts, and Salem, Massachusetts. It eventually spread to over 200 cities and towns throughout the six New England states.

The names “Penny Dreadful” and “Shilling Shockers” are both derived from 19th-century serialized tales of terror, crime, and the supernatural.The Penny Dreadful witch persona is described on the program’s website as “an intermingling of light and dark elements. She can be very silly and sinister by turns, with a withering wit and a dramatic gaze."Penny is fond of using the exclamation, "hex-cellent!" and refers to her viewers as her "Dreary Ones."

The Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards presented Penny Dreadful with the award for “Favorite Horror Host” of 2007. She was the first horror host to receive the award in this category.

Penny also won the 2010 Rondo Award for "Favorite Horror Host," becoming the first host to win the award twice in this category.

'The Dreadful HallowGreen Special,' a made-for-TV movie which Gelehrter co-produced and co-hosted with Larry Underwood aka TV horror host Dr. Gangrene, was nominated for a regional Midsouth Emmy Award in 2011. In the special, Penny Dreadful & Garou and Dr. Gangrene join forces to save Halloween from a terrible fate.

On March 17, 2014, Magoo Gelehrter (Penny's husband and werewolf sidekick, Garou the werewolf) received a special "Pure in Heart" Rondo Award

On March 22, 2014, Penny Dreadful was inducted into the Horror Host Hall of Fame.

On March 16, 2019, 'Shilling Shockers' director Rebecca Paiva was inducted into the Horror Host Hall of Fame in the "Behind the Screams" category.

Penny Dreadful XIII is a regular guest at conventions such as HorrorHound in Indianapolis, Indiana, Monster Bash in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvaniaand Rock & Shock in Worcester, Massachusetts.Penny has hosted several live fundraising events for children’s organizations such as The Make-A-Wish Foundation and the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.She continues to host annual Shilling Shockers Halloween specials and has appeared in a number of horror-themed publications such as Fangoria Magazine, Rue Morgue (magazine), and Scary Monsters Magazine as well as in films such as Atomic Brain Invasionand The Dungeon of Dr. Dreck.

Garou is the werewolf henchman and husband of Penny Dreadful. He communicates only through guttural growls and funny facial expressions. Garou was portrayed by Magoo Gelehrter, who died in May 2014 following a battle with cancer.

Dr. Manfred Von Bulow is a semi-retired vampire hunter with a thick German accent. He is Penny Dreadful’s foil. He is portrayed by Ivan Bernier.

Luna is a madwoman, released from the abandoned Danvers State Hospital. She is insane but highly intelligent. Luna is portrayed by the series' television director Rebecca Paiva.

On May 16, 2014 Gelehrter's real-life husband Magoo Gelehrter, who played Garou the werewolf of 'Shilling Shockers' passed away due to stage four cancer.

On September 21, 2018 Gelehrter outed herself on her public Penny Dreadful Facebook page as a post-operative MTF transgender woman, and also revealed that her late husband Magoo Gelehrter had been a transgender FTM man. This was prompted by an anti-transgender ballot question in Massachusetts at the time which would have prohibited trans people from using the restroom which matched their gender identity.

Danielle Gelehrter studied theatre at San Francisco State University. She also studied improv comedy at Second City (Chicago), Improv Boston, and Improv Asylum. She possesses BA degrees in Creative Writing and in Literature, and has a Master's Degree in English.

Gelehrter has worked as a writer and lead researcher on various official projects related to the Masters of the Universe brand.

Starting in early 2016, Danielle "Penny Dreadful" Gelehrter and Eric Marshall took over as co-writers for the Masters of the Universe Classics toy packaging bios as well as the official digital "Masters Mondays" bios released through the He-Man.Org website. Contracted through MVCreations, Gelehrter and Marshall have written bios for Mattel and Super7, covering stories and mythology for many characters and artifacts from the toyline. Through the bios, Gelehrter introduced an original vampire villain called the Crimson Countess in an effort to add more distinct horror-themed elements to the Masters of the Universe canon. Building on what was already established in earlier MOTU Classics mythology, Gelehrter and Marshall have filled in many character backgrounds and stories, using elements from throughout the brand's history.

Gelehrter has also worked on a number of books by Dark Horse Comics, including 'The Art of He-Man & the Masters of the Universe' (co-adviser with Val Staples), 'He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Minicomic Collection' (interview writer), 'He-Man & the Masters of the Universe: The Newspaper Comic Strips' (lead researcher), 'He-Man & the Masters of the Universe: A Character Guide & World Compendium' (co-writer).