I just spotted Diana the other day in an old TV show...honestly cannot recall which one though.  I think it was something on MeTV or one of the other retro stations.

CastleBee,

I spotted Ms. Millay in an episode of "Father Knows Best," in which she portrayed Bud Anderson's English tutor.  The episode had to have been filmed during the late 1950s.

I must say that as a teenager, Ms. Millay looked especially beautiful.

Bob

I'll take up permanent residence in the one place you failed to mention, Burke's old suite at the Collinsport Inn, but only because the Blue Whale has no sleeping quarters.

Dom,

Yes, Burke's suite in the Collinsport Inn did look pretty good.  However, that room Chris Jennings stayed in at the Collinsport Inn seemed about as "appealing" as one of rooms of those "slightly" sleazy hotels just off 42nd Street in New York City.  (And as the late, great George Carlin once observed about 42nd Street: "They call it 42nd Street because that's about as much time as you'd want to spent there, forty seconds!")

MT,

I agree that Count Petofi's "lair" was kind of cool.  It also reminded me of Dr. Cyrus Longworth's laboratory, minus that iron spiral starcase in the good doctor's lab.

And, what about Barnabas' hideout at, I believe, Shipwreck Cove?  That place seemed to be just the least bit damp and chilly to be comfortable.

Bob

PS Do you think the house that Nicholas Blair was living in during his return to keep an eye on Jeb Hawks and to supervise the success of the Leviathan plot was located on the grounds of the Collinwood estate or was the house located somewhere else in Collinsport?  I don't think that it was ever made clear where that house was exactly situated?   

Hey, gang,

No doubt, many lifelong fans of Dark Shadows have fantasized at one time or another about actually living in the mythical New England fishing village of Collinsport, Maine.  (I know I have!)  And if you've ever travelled to Maine, you know what an incredibly beautiful state Maine truly is, especially at this time of year. 

However, if by some Twilight Zone-like twist of fate or fortune, you were able to become a resident of Collinsport, where would you like to set up digs?  I suppose many Dark Shadows fans/cousins would select the great house of Collinwood as their first choice of residence.  And, many others might want to settle down in the Collins family's first home, that of the Old House.

Perhaps other fans/cousins might opt for one of the smaller residences on the Collins estate, including Matthew Morgan's old cottage, the carriage house (where the newlyweds Jeb and Carolyn Hawks lived for a brief time); then there's the House-by-the-Sea (which warlock Nicholas Blair rented from the Collins family for several months), and I believe, Seaview, where Vicky and Burke were eventually going to move into after they were married.  (Alas, we know that that never happened.)

Other possibilities include the quaint and cozy Evans cottage, which, I believe, was KLS' favorite set on the show.  You know, we never actually got to see the second floor of the Evans cottage.  (It always struck me as funny that Sam and Maggie had their bedrooms on the first floor of the cottage.  I'd have thought that their bedrooms would have been on the second floor?)

Of course, there's always the McGruder Mansion, which we got to see during Dark Shadows' final year on the air.  That place (and I mean the real one and not the replica in the playroom) always looked like a Ken & Barbie dollhouse.  And, then there were the apartment buildings in which Prof. Stokes, Joe Haskell, Tony Peterson and Jeff Clark lived in.  While Prof. Stokes and Tony Peterson's apartments didn't look bad, it looked to as if both Joe Haskell and Jeff Clark lived in flophouses.

As to my own preference, well, I think that Collinwood, as magnificent as it was, was just too darned big.  (And, I'd always be concerned that I might accidentally walk into one of Collinwood's many secret passage ways, and get hopelessly lost, when I was anxiously "searching" for a "water closet" at about four in the morning!)    And, let's not even talk about how much it must have cost to keep the lights, water, heating, etc., on in Collinwood!  

On the other hand, as cool as the Old House is, I don't think that I could ever handle the lack of electricity, hot-and-cold running water, central heating and air conditioning, but MOST of all, I don't think that I could EVER get used to "employing" the chamber pots and outdoor out house(s) which Banabas and Willie, no doubt, made frequent use of.  (I venture to say that the lack of "facilities" in the Old House had to have been the toughest thing for poor Willie to accept/adjust to after he went to "work" for Mr. B.)

Oh yeah, there is also the late, lamented Dr. Eric Lang's house, which looks incredibly like the late, unlamented Rev. Gregory Trask's boarding school of Worthington Hall.  (Dr. Lang's house also kind of reminds me of Herman Munster's homestead at 1313 Mockingbird Lane in Mockingbird Heights, USA, but I digress.)

So, I have to say that I like both the Evans cottage and the House-by-the-Sea, but I'd have to go with Nicholas Blair's former Collinsport residence.  The thought of living by the sea is very appealing to me (barring any future Hurricanes Katrina or Sandy hitting the East coast.)  And, the prospect of living in that isolated house with neither noisy nor nosy neighbors around to annoy me is EXTREMELY appealing!!!

So, which Collinsport/Collinwood house (or apartment) would you like to live in?

Bob   

       

A Lang & Clark and the Skipper & Gilligan parallel, that IS truly inspired!!!

No doubt, Dark Shadows' late, great limerick practitioner, Mr. Dennis Patrick, would have wholeheartedly approved of your witty parody of the theme song of the crew of the Minnow!

However, on a "serious" note, aren't you insulting the Skipper and his "little buddy" by comparing them with the likes of Dark Shadows' own "Dr. Vinnie Boombotz" and the good doctor's "laconic" lab assistant, "Ed Grimley"?

Hey, gang,

I believe that I posted this thread about a million years ago on the Dark Shadows Forums (actually, perhaps ten years ago), and since DS fans are currently discussing the Adam storyline, I thought that it might be fun to reprise it:

Throughout the 20th century and beyond, Americans have enjoyed outstanding, and I venture to say, legendary comedy teams, such as Laurel & Hardy, Hope & Crosby, Abbott & Costello, and Nichols & May to name but a few.

Today, a bright new duo enters this pantheon of comedy team greats.  Of course, I am referring to Collinsport's two favorite sons, those new Kings of Comedy:

Lang & Clark!!!

Yes, Eric Lang, master of the malaprop, the non sequitur, and proud possessor of that winsomely crooked smile, a great straight man in the tradition of the-one-and-only Mr. Bud Abbott!   

And the younger half of this sensational new team, the irrepressible Jeff Clark, whose skillfull use of the pratfall and the phony limb; and whose unparalleled utilization of humorous histrionics make him a comedic talent to reckoned with for years to come.

So, be forewarned dear viewer, for you will soon be exposed (or possibly even subjected) to almost unrelenting, side-splitting zaniness.  Understandably, the residents of Collinsport are extremely proud of their two local boys who have made good.  Think of them as Collinsport's answer to Cheech & Chong!

I therefore submit for your consideration, and obvious enjoyment, Dr. Eric Lang and Mr. Jeff Clark, these masters of mirth and mayhem.  Let the laughter begin!!! 

Ha ha ha! Maybe Barn had Willie rig a wire so he could siphon off just enough power from the Great House to run a TV set in the basement. Who knows, he might even get a VCR in so Willie could tape the soaps and Judge Judy for his evening viewing. He probably wouldn't much care for True Blood or Vampire Diaries, though.

For all that Timothy Elliott Stokes seems to know about almost everything, his total ignorance about vampires is a really big ol' blind spot, isn't it. 

Yes, that's a great idea about Willie "borrowing" some power from the great house of Collinwood in order to hook-up a television set.  I've always thought that Wilie must have missed watching tv tremendously once he started to "work" for Barnabas.

At least, with that tv set, Willie would be able to catch the late, great Johnny Carson on "The Tonight Show" every night.  I mean, even if Mr. Carson bombed during his opening monologue on the show, he was still extremely funny with his ad-libs tap-dancing, etc. 

And maybe Willie would be able to catch the occasional Boston Red Sox, Celtic, Bruin or the then-Boston Patriots game on the boob tube as well?

As to Barnabas, I wonder if he just happened to be passing by the Collinsport Cinema in town at night, and the title of some film up there on the marque caught his eye (with some flick like "Rosemary's Baby" or "Barbarella" being featured that week), if Mr. B. just might de-materialize behind the movie house and re-appear inside the place in a dark and discreet part of the theater, and check-out the film?    

(Can you imagine if Barnabas happened to see "Bob and Carol, and Ted and Alice" at the Collinsport Cinema?)

Incidentally, Prof. Stokes apparently knew about the existence of werewolves because I recall him saying something to Dr. Hoffman just after Barnabas had I-Chinged his way back to 1897, by offering some profound words about how Barnabas, in addition to saving David and Amy, might also find a solution (or cure?) for poor Chris Jennings' "problem." 

Although, we never heard the good professor broach the subject of Chris Jennings again after Mr. B. returned from 1897 to the present.  So, go figure.

Barn could also read about all the wars he slept through, beginning with the War of 1812. And more books have been written about Abraham Lincoln than about anyone else in history except for Jesus.

I'll bet Stokes would read Stephen King for laughs, but I'm sure Willie would take it all very seriously.

DarkLady,

Just think of how many highly informative television programs Barnabas could have watched if he had only installed electric power in the Old House: "Biography," "The 20th Century," "Victory at Sea," "The World at War," "Sister Wendy's History of Art," Rick Steves' Travels Through Europe," "Keeping Up with the Kardashians," etc. etc.

Somehow, I don't think that Barnabas would especially like reading Bram Stoker's "Dracula," or Anne Rice's "Interview with a Vampire," or any of Steven King's occult-oriented novels.

As to the eminent Prof. T. Elliott Stokes, for a man who knows practically everything about witches, I-Ching and Parallel Time, the good professor always impressed me as being virtually ignorant of the possible existence of vampires.  So, maybe reading "Salem's Lot," just might clue the venerable professor into those allegedly "thirsty" creatures of the night?

Had it been written at the time, Barnabas probably would have dismissed Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot as unrealistic.

Ah yes, great point about Barnabas' fellow Maine resident, the prolific Steven King!!!

However, I can see both Prof. Stokes and Willie Loomis being faithful Steven King readers.  (Although, Willie would probably have to hide the books until daylight when Barnabas was taking his customary "siesta.")