Press Release

Chickens in tuxedos. Hillbilly pranksters. Lawn ornaments with attitude. Bigfoot with a sweet tooth. Squirrel gangs running amok. Sleepytown- just your average slice of small town America.

Welcome to Sleepytown is a humorous new book written and illustrated by Mark A. Randall. A collection of short stories, the book explores a small Midwestern town's colorful history, odd citizens, and bizarre legends and folklore.

Brett Pittman, creator of Dark Hollows Entertainment says, "Man, this is just too creative! The more I learn about this place, the more I want to find out how to get there. It's somewhere between Mayberry and an early 60's Rod Serling Twilight Zone episode."

In addition to the book, a separate companion CD is also being released. Welcome to Sleepytown is composed, produced, and performed by Jeff Randall. The CD's blend of folk, bluegrass, country, gospel, and rock is the perfect soundtrack to transport the listener far away from the hustle and bustle of big city life to a certain sleepy little town.

Mark A. Randall has always had a fascination with quirky characters and odd stories. Combining those elements with his love for history, rural America, the paranormal, and squirrels, Welcome to Sleepytown came to life. Mark grew up in a sleepy little town in Illinois and still calls the Midwest home.

The book and CD are available online at: www.welcometosleepytown.com

For fans of The Andy Griffith Show, The Dukes of Hazzard, Green Acres, the original Twilight Zone, Christopher Guest mockumentaries: Waiting for Guffman and Best in Show, SCTV, Travel Channel shows: Weird Travels, Bigfootville, Ghost Adventures, Ghost Stories, and Mystery Science Theater 3000 riff on Boggy Creek 2.

New book welcomes visitors to a wild and woolly town

Chickens in tuxedos. Alien pickpockets. Lawn ornaments with attitude. Bigfoot with a sweet tooth. Squirrel gangs running amok. Sleepytown- just your average slice of small town America.

Welcome to Sleepytown is a humorous new book written and illustrated by Mark A. Randall. A collection of short stories, the book explores a small Midwestern town's colorful history, odd citizens, and bizarre legends and folklore.

"I've always had a fascination with strange stories and quirky characters," says Mark. "My interests range from things like ghosts, ufos, and the paranormal to American history, particularly the 1800s, and small town rural life. Over the years I've filled countless notebooks with all sorts of ideas, but I never knew exactly what to do with them. It wasn't until I hit on the idea of creating my own town with its own history that things really took off."

The residents of Sleepytown seem quite at ease despite all of the strange things going on around them. They think nothing of a man who walks his cow downtown for an ice cream sundae or a woman who decides to wash her clothes (and herself) in the town fountain. They don't even seem too overly concerned when UFOs or mysterious creatures are spotted nearby. Nothing seems to rattle them. Nothing, that is, except squirrels.

"Squirrels play an important role in Sleepytown," Mark explains. "As the reader will discover, there is a shaky truce between man and squirrel. It has something to do with an incident that happened in the town's early history. Since then, the residents have done everything they can to stay on the squirrels' good side. They don't want to rock the boat with their bushy-tailed neighbors."

In addition to the book, a separate companion CD is also being released. Welcome to Sleepytown the CD is composed, produced, and performed by Jeff Randall.

"My brother Jeff has done an amazing job on the CD," says Mark. "From the beginning I thought it would be cool to do a soundtrack to compliment the stories in the book. Once Jeff got going, he really expanded on the whole concept and ended up creating something totally unique."

Rounding out the Sleepytown experience is the town's official website. It includes visitor information, a community calendar, and up-to-date news about town stories.

"I really enjoy the website because it allows me to expand the entire Sleepytown community," Mark concludes. "My hope is that visitors will come to Sleepytown for a visit and then stick around to see what sort of nonsense happens next!"