Madame Macabre
Lily Esther
Lily Esther came to the West Coast on a bus in the early 1970s like many young women seeking fame and fortune. Unlike most, with her ambition, looks, and savvy she managed to land a handful of roles in some of the low-budget horror films of the day. While Cry! Blackstein! Cry! and The Growling weren’t classics, they did get her noticed by a local TV affiliate, who offered Lily a gig hosting late-night horror films as Madame Macabre, the Hostess or Horror!
Lily’s sexy persona and willingness to shamelessly self-promote got her show picked up by affiliates all along the coast. She even starred in her own movie in the mid-’80s and did a nude pictorial in a popular men’s magazine. She was never a superstar, but she was beloved by B-movie aficionados and horror fans the world over.
She always knew the “Hostess of Horror” thing wasn’t going to be popular forever, but she was able to extend her career as Madame Macabre until cable killed late night movie shows. Then younger actresses became darlings of the B-movie crowd and she realized she was losing her looks... and with them, her career. Her tell-all book wasn’t nearly as popular as she’d hoped and a crooked financial advisor squandered the modest fortune she’d saved up her whole life. Worst of all, the acting career she dreamed of appeared to be dead and she never had the chance to be anything but a late-night Scream Queen. Sitting alone in her soon-to-be-foreclosed-on Gothic mansion Lily contemplated how she’d wasted her life, how she’d do things differently if she had the chance, and finally, she contemplated ending it all.
That was when he walked in. Suave, dark, and handsome, with eyes that reflected no light, he offered the fading starlet a deal. He would grant her youth, looks, and powers beyond those of any mortal and in return, she would owe 666 “favors.” None would be suicidal, some would even be trivial, but unless they were completed he would take away all he was offering. She promptly forgot all her thoughts of a wasted life and doing things differently and accepted. What she wanted was eternal life and beauty! That was all she ever wanted! Now Madame Macabre alternates between working off her debt to her benefactor, seeking revenge on any who have wronged her, and trying to reach new levels of fame and glory.
Physical Description
Special abilities
Though a skilled seductress and passable actress, Madame Macabre’s real abilities come from her infernal powers. She can manipulate mystical energies with a variety of effects including mystic blasts, teleportation, illusion-casting, mind control, and summoning demonic shades in the form of classic movie monsters to do her bidding.
Mental characteristics
Intellectual Characteristics
Though moodier since her transformation from media personality to supervillainess, Madame Macabre is a sassy, witty, and generally charming woman. She is fond of horror-themed jokes, puns, and jibes. She strikes seductive poses almost on reflex and loves meeting members of her fanbase. Beneath this exterior, however, lurks a woman afraid of death, decrepitude, and being forgotten. She will do whatever it takes to fulfill her bargain and keep the powers she sees as the only way to avoid such a fate. Certainly her soul will become even more stained by the powers she uses over time, which will have an even greater effect on her personality.
Social
Contacts & Relations
Other than some hardcore fans and the mysterious figure who granted her powers, Madame Macabre has few long term allies. She will work with other mystical villains as needed, but she prefers to have the spotlight to herself as much as possible.
Madame Macabre is often opposed by mystical heroes such as Adrian Eldrich and Seven. She has also had run-ins with the werewolf hero, Mongrel, as well as the Asian mystic, Dragoneye. Perhaps the dark queen Una or the goddess Eris are looking for a “mortal avatar” on the Earthly plane and have invested Madame Macabre with mystic power for that purpose.
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