Blair House

[Philippe Cordier]

A couple of weeks ago I had some rare time to watch some DS again, and at random I started at a time soon after Tom Jennings had apparently been destroyed and his brother Chris arrived in Collinsport. I think Chris attacks and kills the proprietor (or front desk clerk?) of Collinsport Inn, where he is staying, yet I don't think this is so much as mentioned by anyone . . . I noted a tombstone for a Jonah or Jonas Collins, who would have been born in 1839 or 1840  -  yet when we get to 1840, there is no mention of a newborn child at Collinwood (of course we know how not everything matches up on DS . . . ). I was interested in the seaside house where Nicolas Blair is living but must have missed an earlier episode that would have said how he comes to live there. Isn't this Dr. Lang's former house? At one point, I think in an opening voiceover, it's said that the house is on the Collins estate - now why would that be? Does anyone recall anything about the actual house whose picture is used to establish the scene when it takes place inside the house?

[Bob_the_Bartender]

Philippe,

That manager of The Collinsport Inn was Mr. Wells, portrayed by the late Conrad Bain, later of “Maude” and “Different Strokes.” Mr. Wells was in the very early episodes of DS before Barnabas arrived in town. They brought back the overly-curious Mr. Wells just to be “sliced-and-diced” by Chris Jennings in his other form.

The house Nicholas lived in was called “The House by the Sea” and was owned by Mrs. Stoddard. After Cassandra split from Roger, it was kind of “awkward” and “uncomfortable” to have Cassandra’s “brother” to stay on at Collinwood, so Elizabeth agreed to rent the seaside house to Nicholas (who wanted to continue on with his mad plan to create another race of men for his master, Satan, and to also put the moves on  Maggie Evans).

This house is completely different from Dr. Lang’s home/laboratory. Although Lang’s house looks exactly like the evil Rev. Gregory Trask’s 1897 school, Worthington Hall, which Laura Collins later took care of as only Laura could.

You know, after the malevolent ghost of Quentin Collins chased everyone out of Collinwood and they all took refuge in the Old House, I could never quite understand that. After all, the Old House had all of the “conveniences” of the 18th century. How they could put up with no electricity, no telephones, no central heating, no running hot and cold water (read: hot showers and working toilets), and not get on each others’ nerves after just a week living with such early American conditions?

Mrs. Johnson must have absolutely “loved” having to cook for all of those people in a kitchen with a wood-burning stove and no microwave or other electric appliances. Do you think she got along with Willie Loomis in such a Daniel Boone-like kitchen?

And, what of Roger Collins, a patrician man with refined sensibilities, who must have experienced cultural shock, when he was forced to use a bed pan or to schlep out into the cold night in order to use the outhouse behind the Old House. I venture to say that an exasperated Roger must have finally said to his sister, “Screw this, Liz! I’m taking my son over to the House by the Sea, so that I can take a hot shower, have a quick and easy microwave dinner and don’t have to put my pants on to go outside and make a ‘pit stop’ in the middle of the night!”

No doubt, Maggie, Carolyn and that seemingly perpetual Collinwood house guest, Dr. Julia Hoffman, were all also bummed-out by the primitive living conditions in the Old House. I’m surprised that Maggie and Carolyn didn’t take little Amy Jennings with them to stay in the much more comfortable Evans family cottage. Although by then, I’m surprised that Mrs. Stoddard and some more of the others didn’t opt for either Carolyn and Jeb Hawkes’ future newlywed cottage or even the shack at Findley’s Cove on the Collinwood estate rather than live in misery and discomfort in Barnabas’s beloved Old House? 

[Uncle Roger]

Bob, you raise some interesting points about the family roughing it at The Old House. While I have no doubt that Elizabeth appreciated the offer from Barnabas to stay there, the accommodations were unlikely to be awarded the coveted five diamond award from AAA.
While it was long established that Collinwood had an abundance of bedrooms, it is somewhat vague as to how many there are at the Old House. Enough for Barnabas and Willie? Sure. But enough for Elizabeth, Roger, Julia, Carolyn, Amy, David, Maggie, Mrs. Johnson and Harry? Wasn't there some reference to Maggie being assigned to Josette's room? Maybe Barnabas is still associating her with Josette on some level? Maggie may have been promoted to head ingenue but the prime bedroom probably should have gone to Elizabeth, though Mrs. Stoddard would have been too gracious to bring that to anyone's attention. And David is supposed to be near death. Did anyone suggest that he might be better off in a hospital? With a nurse or two? Or possibly life support equipment, if necessary? Yeah, that generator might have been okay for a few days but that kid really needed to be in a hospital! And did Julia leave any instructions as to David's Healthcare when she decided to pop off to 1897 for an extended stay? The dialog states that David could die "tonight", so shouldn't his personal physician made some sort of arrangement for David's situation?
The plumbing facilities at The Old House are perhaps best left unexplained. I'm thinking that they might have used chamber pots. I think that Willie and Mrs. Johnson would have passed the maintenance of said chamber pots on to Harry. Which may well explain why Harry vanished so abruptly.

[Bob_the_Bartender]

Uncle Roger,

Yes, it does seem as if the Old House would be bulging at the seams with everyone from Collinwood taking up residence there after the “bad” Quentin spooked them out of the great house. But, thinking back to 1797, with Joshua, Naomi, Barnabas, Sarah, Jeremiah and the shrewish Abigail all living in the Old House (I figure that Ben Stokes was relegated to the O.H. stable), they now also had Josette, Henri, Aunt Natalie and servant Angelique, along with Phyliss Wick’s unexpected replacement Vicky Winters, residing in the place. So, although the Old House does not look that large from the front, the house must have extended back for some appreciable length to accommodate that small army of Collinses, DuPre’s, etc.

As to keeping the deathly-ill David Collins at the Old House, that is a puzzler. Maybe Roger and Elizabeth were not confident in the medical ability of the medical staff at the Collinsport Hospital, knowing that they had literally lost a deathly-ill Maggie Evans while she was a patient there, and, quite frankly, with an emergency room physician like Dr. Eric Lang on the staff, that hardly inspired “confidence” in the caliber of medical care there?

Maybe Dr. Hoffman could have driven David to her own hospital, Wyndcliff (sp?) where, inevitably, most inhabitants of Collinwood and residents of Collinsport routinely ended up anyway? 

[Josette]

I was about to mention all of the 1795 family members and guests plus servants' quarters, so I would presume there was room for the current family.  But, had those rooms been restored sufficiently for them to use???

[Bob_the_Bartender]

Good point, Josette. As I recall, Barnabas was very fortunate to “acquire” Willie Loomis as his servant/factotum;   Willie not only saw to Barnabas’ unique “needs,” but Willie was also an extremely handy guy around the Old House, performing carpentry, plumbing and house painting duties in the place.

If the repair guys from “This Old House” filmed an episode of their show at the Old House, I think that Kevin O’Connor and the boys would be mightily impressed with ol’ Willie’s varied and expert home repair skills. But, you have to wonder if even Willie had enough time and energy to repair every room in the Old House so that everyone would have a comfortable room in the Old House?

Oh, yeah, I forgot to include the ditsy, but gentle Millicent Collins and the precocious Daniel Collins as two more people, who resided in that decidedly overcrowded 1797 Old House. I guess after those “slightly” crowded living conditions in the Old House, even an old skinflint like Joshua Collins was not about to spare any expense in the construction of the great, new house of Collinwood. Joshua probably instructed his brother/architect Jeremiah that he wanted the house built to such an enormous size, that he wanted to be able to walk through the many rooms of Collinwood and NOT have to cross paths with any members of the DuPre family, but especially that insufferable French snob, Countess Natalie DuPre! 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Joshua probably instructed his brother/architect Jeremiah that he wanted the house built to such an enormous size, that he wanted to be able to walk through the many rooms of Collinwood and NOT have to cross paths with any members of the DuPre family, but especially that insufferable French snob, Countess Natalie DuPre! 

I suspect you make an excellent point there! 

[Bob_the_Bartender]

I once read that novelist Charles Dickens was not very impressed with the then-relatively new United States, when he visited our country. I know that the late Joel Crothers was an expert on Charles Dickens and his many works. Perhaps Mr. Crothers could have offered a considered opinion on the renowned British author?

It would have been cool if Charles Dickens had visited Collinsport during his travels throughout the US. If he met the Collinses and started to ask his “fellow Brit,” Barnabas, about where he lived in London and who he knew there, I think Barnabas might have pulled a Ralph Kramden, and only manage to reply with a “hamana...hamana...hamana!” before making a hasty exit from Collinwood. No doubt, the sharp-eyed attorney, Desmond Collins, would take note of his “cousin’s” great distress and file it away for future reference. 

[Josette]

But, you have to wonder if even Willie had enough time and energy to repair every room in the Old House so that everyone would have a comfortable room in the Old House?

I think they gave conflicting messages (as with most other things!).  There were times I thought only the main drawing room downstairs and Josette's bedroom had been restored.  Other times they implied that at least a lot of it had been done.  But, even if the latter, as you said, Bob, would Willie really have had a chance to have done that much at that point?