DARK SHADOWS FORUMS
General Discussions => Current Talk Archive => Current Talk '24 I => Current Talk '09 I => Topic started by: joe integlia on April 02, 2009, 06:34:16 AM
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OK here we go, 38 years ago on april 2nd, 1971.......you know the rest! lets hear the stories for those of u who were watching that day. i had stopped watching in mid 1897 storyline because i had a paper route and maybe just caught a few episodes here and there. in late march 1971, a friend who never missed an episode informed me that friday april 2nd was going to be the last episode. i tried to catch a couple of episodes during that final week being totally confused of what was going on. still i planned to watch the final one. i refused to deliver the papers that friday untill i saw every bit of the last show with my friend and sister and mother. my friend filled us in on the details of [spoiler]why barnabas wasnt barnabas and angelique wasnt angelique etc[/spoiler] then at the very end, Melanie [spoiler]having bite marks on her neck [/spoiler] and i think to myself,"ok now this is the DARK SHADOWS i remember! but then looking at the clock and wondering how they are going to wrap up this story in just a few minutes. then the [spoiler]final narration comes on explaining it all and how it wasnt a vampire bite etc[/spoiler] and then it was all over. then the phone started ringing from people wondering where their newspaper was and then back to reality!
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There are only two specific DS moments I remember from back then. The first was when during the destruction of Collinwood in 1970, a visible canvas tarp came down from the ceiling and dumped debris onto the floor of the Great Hall. My 12 or 13 year old self thought he must be hallucinating!
The second was the final moments of the final episode. I wasn't watching regularly anymore. I too was PT-ed out, and had reached my limit what with all the games of musical chairs having been played with all the actors and characters. Somehow in some other world someplace, Julia was a Collins in 1841. This either gives you a stroke when you hear it, or if you're youthful and cardiologically bulletproof, it just weirds you out just a bit.
Had I heard this was the last episode? I can't remember. I know that my already mocking self was highly disappointed but amused with the business at the end voiceovered by Thayer, where he said about the bitemarks, wait, no, they were made by an animal after all, what a coincidence, phew, hooray and huzzah.
The end was something of a bummer, but I was a disaffected pre-teen viewer at this point.
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Has it really been that long!
I never thought I'd see it again after that sad day.......
David
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To be honest, when it did end, I was already a "sophisticated" high schooler - LOL! Also, by that time, DS was jumping around so much, it was getting difficult to muster much enthusiasm. However, as you said, I, too, felt I'd never see it again. After all, it was before the era of the VCR, so we never had the luxury of taping it. Imagine my sheer delight when PBS in New Jersey started airing it. I was able to get the channel, if fuzzy, and devoured the show. My love was reborn. Then, when Sci-Fi began airing it, I despaired. My cable company didn't run Sci-Fi. When they finally did acquire the channel, I was ecstatic. I taped every single episode again and again. Stupidly, though, I never kept those tapes. I kept taping over them. That's when I began acquiring the series on VHS, beginning with the Collector's Series. OK -- another blunder. I should have waited for the DVD's. I now have the entire series on video but must begin, once again, with the DVD's. Do I hear Blu-Ray lurking? Hope not!
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I hated the show's final three months~~still do!
1840 began beautifully but ended as a muddled, senseless mess.
1841PT was a different show entirely, one that I felt no connection to,
Yet I was crushed when DS ended.
Now, many parts are of the show are still wonderful:
Barnabas kidnaps Maggie, 1795, 1897, the Quentin/Beth ghost story, 1995, the first Laura Collins story:
all DS at it's best, and all of those stories hold up beautifully after all this time!
David
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I uttered the very serious threat (mostly to the trees around our house) to blow up ABC studios with an atomic bomb if they didn't bring DS back, but on my allowance at the time, I couldn't afford enriched uranium.
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I agree. There are so many wonderful storylines and subplots. I was hooked right from the beginning -- Vicki arriving on the train. Now, whenever I see the episode again, it still thrills me to this day.
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Actually, a Blue Ray player will play all your DVD's so you dont have to replace any of them.
1840 turned into a mess when they decided to have a witch trial ina time period far too removed from the witch hysteria days. Perhaps Judah Zachary placed a spell on the townspeople. The summer of 1970 indicated the townspeople knew Gerard was the bad guy all along judging from his tombstone (which actually has the correct year of his death- 1841).
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I remember well this sad, sad day. It seems very odd but I recall tuning in every day for those final months expecting that at any moment, they would return to 1971 and show us what Barnabas, Julia, and Prof. Stokes were up to! I kept wondering what was happening at the REAL Collinwood during that time.
At the same time, I did get involved in the new PT 1841 story. I remember how my heart went out to Melanie in particular, and how fascinating the new costumes were, and the mystery around the locked room (very Horace Walpole/Ann Radcliffe-ish!).
For the final weeks, one of the ABC affiliates in Washington started showing the episodes in the evenings, in an 11:30 pm slot, I think. For many years, these wound up being the only DS episodes that I had gotten to see TWICE.
G.
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This is a great thread. Thanks for starting it. I'm really curious if anyone has a story about when they actually heard that DS was going off the air. When was that announced and where was it reported? What was it like watching the show knowing it was going off the air? I've heard all the explanations for DS' demise, but what was actually the word at the time?
Sally
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Unfortunately, I wasn't quite the dedicated DS viewer as I thought I was. While rewatching all the episodes, I found I only remembered a handful and I think I fully stopped during that parallel time line (Angelique and her twin sister). The only memories I have of my origina watching were - and this is weird - Angelique wearing the same wild printed dress about 5 days in a row, Maggie baring a shoulder getting ready for bed (she was married to Quentin), [spoiler]the zombies coming out of the ground and Gerard waving the flag from the window to signal the destruction of Collinwood.[/spoiler] Funny how selective your mind is in remembering stuff [easter_cheesy]
Some of my fav. storylines - Barnabas/Maggie/Josette story, 1795, and almost any other story set in contemporary time. However, the costumes towards the later part of the series were outstanding (as Gothick mentioned).
Going backward, I have started watching the Beginning episodes and am enjoying them so far. What a little devil David was! [diablo]
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I had also stopped watching sometime after the 1897 storyline or, at least, not regularly. I got involved in after school activities that ran about three days a week usually. When I was home I turned on the show but didn't know what was going on most of the time. [easter_embarassed] When I heard from a classmate that the last episode was going to be aired on April 2nd, I faked being sick from hockey practice to see it.
nancy
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I saw an article in the local paper, The Baltimore Sun, stating that it was going off the air. I think there was an item about the cancellation in those typewriter-printed looking yellow pages that used to be at the beginning and end of TV Guide--the "New York Report" and the "Hollywood Report"--DS news would have been in the New York pages, of course.
I would try to describe how the news made me feel, but it would all sound absurdly melodramatic. I do remember turning on the following Monday half hoping that it would show up as usual, only to have PASSWORD thrown in my face--a show I had actually enjoyed. Until that moment.
G.
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The two good things that came out of the show being cancelled in my world was having an extra half hour to my "television viewing allowance" my parents had us on. PASSWORD was a show I came to love and didn't have to give up a half hour to because my parents thought it was "educational." I remember feeling very nostalgic about DS being gone and thinking that would be the last I would ever hear about it.
Nancy
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I cried my eyes out at the end of that last episode, not wanting it to end. On Monday, I ran home and turned the TV on, hoping beyond hope, that a mistake had been made and it would be back.
Gerard
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I was only a gleam in my mother's eye...so I can't participate but I do know that horrible feeling of a favorite show ending. I actually like 1841 PT, it's very romantic and gothic. It's not my favorite and I would have preferred to have the show end in the present but that wasn't going to happen since Jon wasn't gonna play Barney anymore.
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i wasn't born when the series orignally aired but i'm sure i would have been devastated by it's cancellation had i been a fan at the time.
however i have to say that as a contemporary viewer i have found the five year cycle to be quite satisfying.1200+ episodes of any series is hard to digest.to tell you the truth by the time of the 1840 storyline the series was losing steam for me and had begun to feel like a rehash.i grew bored.
i'm not sure how much more i could have watched so the five year run works for me. [easter_tongue]
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Yeah, if the show had to end, I was glad that it went off during that absolutely God-awful 1840PT storyline. Yet, even back on April 2, 1971, I felt terrible that we never got to find out what was going on with Barnabas, Julia, Willie, Liz, etc. back in "real-time" 1971. What a bummer.... [easter_sad] [easter_cry]
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In RT 1971, I was pleased and surprised that they really did conclude things. That is, everything was fixed, things are good, now they can go on with satisfying lives, presumably without supernatual crap waiting for them 'round every corner. We liked seeing all that, but a little wearing on the characters... I'd have preferred something like Liz recognizing them in some other way, since they wouldn't have been in 1971 Collinwood after changing history. Barnabas wouldn't have been there at all, of course.
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Off topic a bit: Adamsgirl, that is why I would never buy DS on VHS because I knew DVD was next! Glad I waited, althought it was hard.
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I remember looking in the T.V Guide and seeing something like end of series under Friday's listing and then when next week's came in the mail looking to see that Password was listed. I remember tuning in Monday hoping it was wrong. My Mom loved Password from the start and we watched it with her. I still cringe when I remember Lucy Ball trying to give clues. Liz Montgomery and Carol Burnett were the best guests. I loved PT 1841, but I had read Wurthering Heights and thought it was great so with Jon playing Heathcliff and Lara playing Cathy it was all good.
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I was a wee lad of 11 who had been watching the show since sometime in 1967, when my cousin Mary Ann told my older brother, John, who she knew loved horror stiff, about the show. We got hooked watching it quickly, and one of my earliest memories is of Barnabas walling Trask up.
Something funny I recall about that time period. My brother and I were also big comic book fans, so every week we would buy our latest Marvel Comics. One day DS was on TV and I guess I was more enthused over the latest issue of Spider-Man and wasn't paying much attention to the show. My brother scolded me, saying something to the effect of: "Watch the show! You can always read the comics! You'll never see the show again!" Little did we know!
I have a memory that I knew about the last show. It had been a part of my childhood every day so certainly missed it and was thrilled when they began to rerun it, first on NBC and later on the New Jersey Network.
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I remember bursting into tears when my parents told me they had read in the TV GUIDE that DS was being cancelled! They encouraged me to start a petition to save the show and then mail it to ABC. I went around the neighborhood and at school and got people to sign my petition - I even convinced my six year-old brother to add his John Hancock. I was very proud when I sent that petition in to ABC. I think a short while after DS ended I received this jovial form letter from ABC thanking me for watching DS but life is full of changes...
In recent times, it seems viewers are much more organized and aggressive in protesting the cancellation of a series. I like it when they besiege networks with some sort of symbol connected to the program being axed. JERICHO fans, for example, sent in peanuts while ROSWELL viewers mailed in bottles of hot sauce. Which leads me to the question: if DS was on today and being cancelled, what would DS fans send into ABC to protest its removal from the airwaves?
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Coffee
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Coffee
[ghost_cheesy]
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What a marvelous idea for a thread. I'd have to assume some mistakenly thought it was an April Fools joke due to the timing, eh?
Taeylor, I could be wrong but I'd always heard that Jonathan would have been willing to continue as Barnabas - only not as a vampire. IIRC he was tired of the "fanging business."
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I...turned the TV on, hoping beyond hope, that a mistake had been made and it would be back.
I had a similar experience with the 1976 syndication. I was too young to be allowed to watch during the original run. Six months into the syndication there was a change in the TV Guide listings. It said that "The Best of Groucho" would start the following Monday. It was on too late for me to see it regularly, but my best friend watched any way, hoping that a miracle would happen. IT DID. The show stayed on another few months courtesy of complaints from viewers. When that year ended, it was yanked, of course. We called the station and were told it was not available to ANYONE. A newspaper article confirmed that World Vision had taken it out of syndication. This puzzled us because a NH station started running it soon after. I later found out that they'd gotten the rights at literally the last minute. It was too far away for us to catch it. I doubted I'd ever see the show again
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Regarding the question about publicitiy related to the cancellation, I have a splash page from one of the teen mags that says "KISS US GOODBYE" and shows Barnabasl surrounded by the faces of various cast members. I think that's an accurate description. I can't locate the page at the moment.
How did you all feel about the movie that was in the works at the time? Most shows leave the scene without a trace. DS bowed out with a movie still to come. Was there an expectation or hope that it would turn into a series of films like the Hammer lines?
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I was sad to see the show end for nostalgic reasons but by the time it left the air, DS wasn't in charge of my afternoon anymore (revolving everything around being able to see it). Afterall, I was just getting into after school activities which allowed me to pursue interests I developed watching DS such as the theater and acting in particular. I don't remember being that interested in the second movie or much caring whether or not that last burst of energy would bring back the show. I was done, or so I thought. [ghost_rolleyes]
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Final Goodbye" Jonathan Frid's Most Revealing Interview
By Stephen Lewis
TV By Day
November, 1971
The familiar rooms of Collinwood had a strange new look to them. The furniture and props were pushed back against the walls, and a bar and a buffet had been set up. Guests, the stars of Dark Shadows, the stars who had left the show and friends, wandered through the maze of cameras, laughing and talking about their experiences during the five year history of the show.
Upstairs, on the upper floor of the ABC-TV studio in New York, other members of the cast gave their dressing rooms a final going over, took a last look at the makeup and wardrobe rooms that had been part of their daily routine for so long, and went downstairs to say their good-byes.
Dark Shadows had taped its final episode and was going off the air.
Jonathan Frid, unlike the rest of the cast, couldn't join in the nostalgic mood of the party. He was starring in a special stage
production of Murder In The Cathedral and had to hurry off to a rehearsal.
But just a few days before, as we sat in his spacious East Side apartment, Jonathan had had plenty of time to express his feelings on the death of the soap that had made him a star, feelings that many of his fans may not be aware of.
"Miss it?" Jonathan asked, reflecting on his three and a half years as a member of the cast. "Of course I will. The show, heaven knows, has been very good to me, and very good for me. But I dont feel terribly saddened. It's just time to go on to something else."
Most of the cast are going on to a second Dark Shadows movie. Conveniently, the movie went into production just a few days after the serial went off the air. Jonathan wont be seen in the screen version, though, and he explained why.
"They wanted me to play Barnabas," he revealed. "As you know, the Barnabas character met his final end on the show some while back and I must say I was rather happy about it. I didnt want to revive the role for the movie, and the fact is that I never, ever want to play Barnabas again!
"I really havent the least interest in the supernatural. I studied the occult a bit when I began on the show. I wanted to learn about the character I was playing. But over the years, people have come to think that Im very involved with it personally. Theyve confused my identity with the character I play, and that isnt good.
"For so long, people have thought of me as Barnabas. Ive been flattered, of course its a sign that people responded to my acting, to my performance. But there were things I had to do, tours for the show and things, that were pretty embarrassing.
"The straw that broke the camel's back, so to speak, about my doing Barnabas, was a letter inviting me to join an occult society --one of many. It made me aware of the danger that people will associate me with Barnabas as long as I live almost like Johnny Weissmuller and Tarzan. For an actor who wants to do things, it's frightening.
"The whole occult thing bores me. I dont even read my horoscope in the daily paper.
"What I want to see now is just what the Barnabas image has done for me in the business, among producers and so forth. Id like, very much, to do some stage work, and Id love doing my own TV series.
"As for movies, well, to be very honest, its a very different thing from television or the stage. There is so much waiting around, so much boredom. You have to stand there while they arrange lights and things, and it takes forever.
The Dark Shadows film was made rather quickly, and I didnt likeit. There were some moments that I felt were all right, and a few that I enjoyed. But generally, the whole experience was pretty embarrassing. Yes, people came to see it, but the reviews were horrifying.
"And for an actor, no matter what you are doing, you want to bring the best of your craft to your work. I wouldn't mind doing some other movies. I'd like to, just to see if I can work in that medium.
"Ive been offered roles, but I wont do Barnabas or anythingremotely related to him. No vampires, no monsters, no necrophiliacs! Im not trying to delude myself, I know that there are many people who will confuse Jonathan Frid with Barnabas. Ive been, over the past year or so, very grateful to the magazines for writing about Jonathan Frid and not just Barnabas. But making the public understand that the character isnt my whole identity will take work in something very strong.
"I need to find a good manager. The fans I have are wonderful, but Ill need a good manager to get work.
Jonathan also discussed a question that many viewers have asked: why did Dark Shadows go off the air?
"You have to remember," Jonathan explained, "that the show had a very good run --five years, after all, is a long time. What happened? I guess its pretty much the same thing that happens when you are a child going to serials on Saturday afternoons. You see Tarzan jumping off a huge cliff, and the first time youre thrilled. "The next week, you see the same thing, pretty much, happening, and you begin to realize that the cliff isnāt really that high. And then, as the weeks go by, you begin to outgrow the whole fantasy.
"In a soap opera, half of the success is identification -- viewers identifying the actors with the characters they play. We tried to change stories, to drop one story and pick up another, and to change characters. It may have educated the public that actors are not the people they play, but I think it hurt us. Quite frankly, I think we knew the show was on its last legs long before the cancellation was announced -- maybe as far back as last November. I was almost out of the show on the first of the year, but I wanted to try another character.
"We could have done something else, we could have revived Barnabas and then done that whole biting bit again, but I didnt want to. When Dan Curtis, the producer, and I discussed the movie, I told him I wouldnt play Barnabas in the second film.
"He said, 'Well, I guess you want to get out of the show, too. I hadnt been bargaining for that, but I said to myself, 'Why not? maybe its time." As it worked out, though, I stayed.
"Actually, I should have left a year or two ago, when the show was at its peak, to capitalize on the success of the series. Of course after doing the same thing you wonder what will happen, but I'm not sure thats bad too much security isnt good for an actor. I dont really care if I donāt have the popularity I had on Dark Shadows, as long as I work and have a good income. I dont want to play 'star'. On stage, its one thing -- its your work and its honest. Offstage, its something else. All stars are liars, liars because they are giving the public an image. Theyre still performing offstage, and the public believes they are like that. Its not really true. When an actor goes off stage, he's though acting star never stops."
Just what will Jonathan do now?
"I'm really not sure -just look for work. Ideally, I suppose I'd like a Broadway show for a while, then TV, some movies. Id do another soap if the right offer came along, but what I really want to do is grow as an actor.
Ive had a very big youth following, and Ive liked it. But I'mnot a child. I'm forty-seven. I hope that my audiences, my fans will grow with me when I do other things. Before I did the show, I never had any experience with that kind of mass popularity. I'm grateful for it. I'm grateful for the letters, for the fans, for all the magazines who've been kind to me.
"Ive had to learn to work fast, and I think in the long run that has helped my acting. I hope that's the case, and I suppose the future will tell it.
"Right now, I'm very optimistic about the future. I want to be able to take some time for myself, to relax. That's something I couldn't do as long as the show was running. Also, in the past few months, it's been kind of hard. I guess you could say that the mood in the studio, at times, was a bit depressing since everyone knew we were going off and that it was just a matter of time. We knew it long before the final date was announced."
Thousands of Dark Shadows fans did their best to postpone that final date with letters to ABC, and they can take some condolence in the fact that while the series may be off, the series of movies based on it may continue forever.
Jonathan's personal following - the largest of any star in Dark Shadows history -- can expect to see him turning up in a number of movies and in guest spots on the major TV series. Since his availability has become known, Jonathan has been offered numerous scripts and parts, and now it's a matter of just selecting whatās best for him.
"I don't want to make a mistake," he says,"about what I choose next. It will be an important move in my career."
One thing that Jonathan Frid can be sure of, is no matter where his career takes him, his many fans will be happy to go along!
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From Marlene of Val d'or, Quebec, Canada: "I feel that it generally does sound like Jonathan. I have that article in question and have reread it many times. Since Jon seems capable of great mental reflections, it woudl appear natural that he should analyze his past, present and future quite thoroughly, which the article seems to indicate. My impression of Jon is that he is honest with himself and others, reason why he answered whatever questions the reporter may have posed him personally and honestly.
"The part I find questionable though is where he denied interest in the occult. Considering the fact that he protrayed the supernatural character, he must have had some interest in this field, even if only at the beginning. I realize that the whole aspect of occultism would become boring after portraying a character such as Barnabas in a show like Dark Shadows whcih resolves around the parapsychological belief for so long. But if I should be mistaken, I would appreciate correction from you, since you know Jon."
From Barbara of Brooklyn, New York: "If Jon did say what the article quoted him as saying I am very hurt. I'm sorry that he felt that way about playing Barnabas on DS. If he feels that way, where does that leave us his fans that loved Barnabas and enjoyed DS. Right now I feel rather stupid. I rather think that it is a compliment that an actor does a role so well that when fans think of the character that the actor is playing they immediately think of the actor. Another thing I didn't know. I thought that actors were grateful for fans of all ages, whether young or old as long as he had fans. I can't believe, I don't want to believe, that Jonathan said those things. I just want to think about this some more. I've been blaming everyone under the sun for the demise of DS, but I never dreamed that Jon could be connected with it. Jonathan Frid brought Barnabas to life for us. It's his portrayal of Barnabas that endeared him to millions of fans. Then to learn that Jon disliked being Barnabas well that's just too much. I hope now he is happy he has all the time he needs to do whatever it is that he wants to do. He still remains my very
favorite actor. If he was so unhappy being Barnabas I hope that he finds something that he will being happy doing. I only hope that I will see him somewhere again, be it movies, TV or on the stage."
From Dee of Huntley, Illinois: "I read this article some time ago, and I questioned it then. Now, I have never had the privilege of meeting Jon, and so I can't pretend to know how he would think of feeling regarding -- well, anything really. But I DO know that sort of man I would choose to admire, and that type of man just would not make some of the comments that were printed in this article. I don't think he would display such an uncaring attitude, particularly toward the vehicle which brought him stardom. Even if he felt that way privately, I can't see him ever making any such statements in public. Now, some parts of it could very well be more authentic - I can well understand his not wanting to be typed in the vampire role, and being eager to move on to other things. But other parts - the statement that quotes him as saying he should have left the show at its peak in order ot capitalize on its success, for example -- that is such a self-centered remark that it might well have changed my entire attitude toward Jon -- if I didn't doubt so strongly that he actually said it. On a recent Dick Cavett show, Ralph Nader made an appearance and he and Sandy Duncan were discussing movie magazines and their habit of printing just about anything as 'truth' -- be it true or not. 'Reporters' from these publications will interview stars and then twist those interviews any way they choose -- or they won't interview them at all, but will simply make up anything at all from their own imaginations, throwing in enough well-known background material on the performer to make their garbage sound authentic. And readers swallow it as fact. I have a strong hunch that much of this article was exactly that -- a product of Stephen Lewis' imagination. You and other members may or may not agree with me -- but those are my feelings."
The club president Carol Gould then wrote: "I want to thank each and every one of you who responded to this article. I am sorry that I could not print all of the letters I received, however, that feel that these few are indicative of the controversial potentials for such a questionable article. Personally, I feel that it is important for all of us to be wary of movie and TV fan magazines, many of which printed exaggerated or fabricated stories, just for the sake of sensationalism. Be careful of these magazines, and make sure they are legitimate before believing the stories they tell." -- Carol Gould
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I doubted I'd ever see the show again
I was floored one day in the 1980s when I came home for dinner, turned on the TV and there was DS on New Jersey Network. I could not believe it. It was exciting to see and hear the opening of the show. My grandmother, who was dining with me, rolled her eyes and said "Oh no! Here we go again!"
Nancy
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Thanks Nancy for all that.. I actually got through it all. JF sounds pretty reasonable here. Those are the things that actors say. He emphasized negatives because on any given day, you emphasize positives or negatives, and that point in DS history was something of a downer. If you give him the benefit of the doubt, nothing here is really negative. If I'd read the interview on a different day, I'd have reacted negatively myself I guess.
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True but remember we are reading this interview as adults. The end of a series we love would not be met with such a sense of tragedy or bereftness as felt by pre-teens and teens. Their perspective on what makes up life is much less than what an adult's would be. We know through our experience that unhappy things happen and we won't always get our way but life goes on. When a beloved show ends for us now, as adults, we are bummed out but it doesn't hae the same emotional toll as it would have in our youth. We have other things to be concerned with, other things that make us happy, and always new interests to get into. When you are a pre-teen or teenager, you tend to not have that perspective. The end is more upsetting.
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Nancy,
Thanks for posting. Very interesting comments from Frid. Frid could not get away from the character of Barnabas because the audience would not accept him as anyone else. Barnabas became the focus of the show and anytime his role was diminished it was felt. Barnabas as a vampire was no longer needed, and in fact was gone for a while in the storyline. Julia and Barnabas became more heroic, more like Holmes and Watson, and that was not a bad idea. I think Frid made a mistake in that asking DC to eliminate the character of Barnabas from the series. Instead, he should have fought to keep Barnabas away from the "vampire bit" and try to develop the character in different ways. Perhaps he was too close to the series to understand the appeal of the character, why it was essential.
I do agree with him that there was a lot of repetition on the show and that had to have an effect on him. It obviously disturbed him that too many were taking it seriously and he did not want to be associated with those elements.
DS had a nice run and likely would have grown even more repetitive and dull if it had continued without a fresh injection of writers with new ideas. Its too bad Frid didn't get to do more on TV or movies, but he diversified, doing plays and seems to be content with his life. Good for him.
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Two thoughts that occur to me from skimming this fascinating article--one is the fact that everyone on the show knew "long before the final date was announced" that the cancellation was approaching adds grist to my theory that DC was the one who pulled the plug--and no one else. I always thought it was just way too "convenient" that DS went off the air right in time for the start of the NoDS filming schedule.
It's ironic that the two main projects JF went on to do in the next couple of years were occult themed. In that 1973 interview in a monster movie magazine he spoke of wanting to do a film with Jeanne Moreau. That would have been fascinating to see.
G.
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Yes, that was ironic. JF loved stories with a deep psychological pinnings and he was provided with the chance to engage in those stories even though they were occult themed. He was told there would be more to his role in "Devil's Daughter" but that wound up not happening. Still, I liked his performance very much.
As a person, JF doesn't understand why anyone gets caught up in the occult in real life.
nancy
It's ironic that the two main projects JF went on to do in the next couple of years were occult themed. In that 1973 interview in a monster movie magazine he spoke of wanting to do a film with Jeanne Moreau. That would have been fascinating to see.
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I think Frid made a mistake in that asking DC to eliminate the character of Barnabas from the series. Instead, he should have fought to keep Barnabas away from the "vampire bit" and try to develop the character in different ways. Perhaps he was too close to the series to understand the appeal of the character, why it was essential.
Barnabas the Vampire gave the series the higher ratings. I've read and heard that numerous times. The audience was less interested in Barnabas the non-vampire, the good guy with less conflicts. It wouldn't have helped DC much. I think JF knew the ratings were high with Barny the vaccillating vampire. I think he was just bored more than anything else. Other actors got to strut their stuff and show their range. JF was capable of playing a completely different character but the audiences would not have accepted that from him, you are right about that!
I wish I could tell you all the TV and movie offers Frid has turned down through the 80s, 90s, etc. The reality is he prefers the stage and as a performer is more comfortable there.
Nancy
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His perspective may been skewed a bit by the tradition on DS of actors playing multiple parts. On any other show the situation wouldn't even have come up. It wouldn't have occurred to the star of any other successful show to ask to switch roles. It's not just the actor the audience tunes in for... the lead character is crafted not just by an actor but by writers as well. A lot of thought and work is put into it. It isn't just an overcoat to throw off and replace with a new one. It's the specific character the audience cares about. Caroll O'Connor was an accomplished actor who played many different roles over the years, but he didn't say "Let me play a different role on 'All in the Family' than Archie, please."
Well, that sounded far more critical than I intended. It was just a passing thought. And I would have loved to see human Barnabas, who could have been written with conflicts too, over past actions to start with. And I'm sure Mr. Frid did what was best for him at the time, as we all need to.
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Caroll O'Connor was an accomplished actor who played many different roles over the years, but he didn't say "Let me play a different role on 'All in the Family' than Archie, please."
O'Connor even played Archie in nightclubs. He took his TV act on the road so he was more involved with the role and playing it outside the studio than JF was. JF didn't like to play the vampire outside of the DS studio.
Nancy