Anniversary of Grayson's passing

[David]

In Oct 1967, age 11, I watched Dark Shadows for the first time.
The episode was Julia running from room to room at Collinwood screaming "was it you Dave? Was it? Was it?"
At that tender young age, the episode scared me senseless!

But I was enthralled. I watched the closing credits, and Grayson was the first DS star whose name I knew.

I've since seen every DS episode she did 5 times over.
I've seen her in film and other TV roles.
She never failed to entertain me.

RIP dear lady.
You left too soon.

David

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Another point is that there are people who say an actor is a "bad actor" because he/she can't walk and chew gum at the same time in front of the camera.  Working in front of the camera doesn't just require good acting skills but technical skills as well.

That's very true. And if I were to hazard a guess, I strongly suspect the lack of technical skills is what frequently prompts actors to criticize each other. I've seen many famous actors taken to task by their fellow actors for lack of technical skills.

I suppose the litmus test is to try and decide why so many people remember the character of Barnabas Collins 40 years later . . . because of his long teeth? Pointy bangs?

Believe it or not, though, some people do seem to only remember Barn for his pointy bangs. I've actually seen that exact type of comment in responses to some of the Depp/DS film online articles. Though the only thing such comments really manage to do is make it quite obvious that those people couldn't possibly have been DS fans. 

[Miranda]

 Actually, I did like Grayson when she was Euphemia on One Life to Live, used to watch that, AMC, and General Hospital, now only GH.  Can someone answer me  one some OLTL trivia--were Drew and Delilah Euphemia's niece and nephew?? okay, I also remember Bo had a son named after Drew, but was the mother the singer Becky Lee Abbott who ended up marrying Drew, who was killed soon after?? I do remember that Delilah was married to Bo for awhile.... I know this is a bit OT, but  I was wondering about it....thanks!!

[Gothick]

Hi Miranda,

I believe Delilah was supposed to be Euphemia's daughter.  Grayson mentions on the Grayson Gathering tape that a line where she was supposed to say "to hell with her!" in reference to Delilah was cut because it was considered bad form for a mother to say such a thing about her own daughter.

Just think of any Jerry Springer episode of the last ten years in this regard and it will tell you what a different world that was, even as "recently" as 1982...

G.

[Miranda]

Thanks, Gothick, come to think of it I think that was the case, Drew and Delilah were cousins--I think I am right about little Drew's parentage and stuff, but  who knows?? Thanks for the reply...

[Janet the Wicked]

I took the "dumb actor" remark to mean that Frid screwed up and didn't capitalize on his fame the way he could have.  The Halls separately made comments to the effect that Frid was probably sorry he didn't take the second DS movie.  I don't believe that decision was the last minute though, Gothick; the reason for the Halls' displeasure seemed to be tied to the fact that Frid was a cash cow and the biggest draw.  Removing himself from the project hurt in the pocketbook and in terms of visibility.  In the Halls' place, I would be sorely disappointed.

Another point is that there are people who say an actor is a "bad actor" because he/she can't walk and chew gum at the same time in front of the camera.  Working in front of the camera doesn't just require good acting skills but technical skills as well.  Frid didn't have those technical skills.  Does that make him a bad actor? For people who believe a good actor is also a technical actor, yes.

I suppose the litmus test is to try and decide why so many people remember the character of Barnabas Collins 40 years later . . . because of his long teeth? Pointy bangs?

What makes me remember JF is his presence; the way he completely took over every scene. He ruled over scenes with all his fellow actors. As Barnabas, he won the heart of Liz, the respect of Mrs Johnson and Roger, the admiration of Vicky, Carolyn, and David, and the hatred of Burke Devlin. He made us dread Willie's every waking moment, he made us adore history, and he had a fine sense of dressing. JF's scenes with Grayson Hall are a tribute to two fine actors. They made their scenes come to life, I think, because they cared about their roles on the series. And not just for the bread. I think they portrayed their characters the way they did because they had a sense of respect for one another, a love of the characters they portrayed.
That's my take on it anyway.