DARK SHADOWS FORUMS

Members' Mausoleum => Calendar Events / Announcements Archive => Calendar Events / Announcements '24 I => Calendar Events / Announcements '16 II => Topic started by: dom on September 05, 2016, 03:58:48 PM

Title: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: dom on September 05, 2016, 03:58:48 PM
Here's a link to an abandoned Hudson Valley mansion named Wyndcliffe:

http://abandonedhudsonvalley.com/wyndcliffe/

I got a kick out of looking at it and imagining it as the DS Wyndcliffe - Julia running it back in it's glory days. Liz no doubt "resting" in a grand suite. Amy running the halls, lol.

When I was a kid DS was all so engrossing to me that I imagined it as real (to a certain extent, I'm sure you know what I mean). So much so that now when I see photo's of Maine locations (facebook group) I instantaneously think of it as what Collinsport must have looked like to Joe and Maggie, etc.

I am a little surprised that my mind still goes back to that after all these many years. But I will say that I do get a kick out of it.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Mysterious Benefactor on September 05, 2016, 05:51:48 PM
How very upsetting that such a grand building is abandoned and in so much disrepair.

Though if anyone else has seen "Crimson Peak" (a film I would recommend - which to me is very DS - with design/story elements I could swear they stole from Depp/DS), doesn't this Windcliffe remind you of that film's mansion, what with the missing roof. I can just see the snow falling into Windcliffe just like it does into Crimson Peak.

Thanks for the link, dom.  [ghost_smiley]
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: dom on September 05, 2016, 06:19:39 PM
I'll have to do a search on Crimson Peak to see if it's available to me by my cable provider. I just read a review that makes it sound like a masterpiece.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Mysterious Benefactor on September 05, 2016, 06:31:49 PM
And the fact that one of the stars is Jessica Chastain doesn't hurt.  [ghost_nowink]  But then, all the actors in the film are great.  [ghost_cool]
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Uncle Roger on September 05, 2016, 07:28:35 PM
Quote from: Mysterious Benefactor on September 05, 2016, 06:31:49 PM
And the fact that one of the stars is Jessica Chastain doesn't hurt.  [ghost_nowink]  But then, all the actors in the film are great.  [ghost_cool]

Especially since Jessica seems to be paying homage to Barbara Steele.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Gothick on September 06, 2016, 04:45:11 PM
Jessica Chastain was almost shockingly brilliant in CRIMSON PEAK.  Hiddleston and Mia (I have given up trying to remember how to spell Mia's last name) are both very good, but Jessica steals every scene she's in.

My criticism of the movie, for what it is worth, is that it was overproduced to an absurd degree.  I told a friend after I saw it last November that it would have been much better if del Toro had spent 30 million less on it.  I could make the same comment about the Burton Depp Shadows disaster except there wasn't all that much to salvage from the latter.  A vast improvement would have been made if Depp had never appeared onscreen.

And that's all she wrote.

G.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: dom on September 24, 2016, 01:00:13 AM
Well, well, well. Which one of you bought Wyndcliffe?!! Do tell!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3800356/For-sale-NY-mansion-Keeping-Joneses-fame.html
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Mysterious Benefactor on September 24, 2016, 01:53:20 AM
I only wish it was me because, like I said, I think it's a grand building.

Let's just hope that whoever bought it will restore it rather than demolish it...
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Mysterious Benefactor on September 24, 2016, 02:04:37 AM
I just did a bit of research and thankfully it doesn't look like the building can be torn down because it's on the list of US National Historic Landmark District Contributing Properties.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: dom on September 24, 2016, 02:44:10 AM
It'll be one helluva job to accomplish. And take a fortune I imagine.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Philippe Cordier on September 25, 2016, 11:58:40 PM
Do you think this is where they found the name "Wyndcliffe"? Seems too much of a coincidence if not. And if so, I wonder if they ever shot footage of it ... or sought permission to do so, but did not receive permission. It does seem like rather an omission that they never showed a still of Wyndcliffe that I recall ...

Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: michael c on September 26, 2016, 12:38:35 AM
they did show an exterior still frame slide of Wyndcliffe during it's earliest days when Maggie was first placed under Dr. Hoffman's rather dubious "care".

i seem to recall a white wooden structure with maybe a widow's walk?


i don't believe the shot was used in any of the color episodes.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Gothick on September 26, 2016, 03:57:21 PM
The stock photo used for Wyndcliffe/ Windcliff in the series was not the Hudson Valley mansion.  Nobody can remember where the stock photo was taken.  I would think it was most likely something that was in an ABC library or office and they just grabbed it and used it on the fly.  But who knows, perhaps it was a house in either Essex or Newport.  I know fans have tried to find it and nobody has ever succeeded, so far as I am aware.

There are some good shots of the ruins of Wyndcliffe here:

http://www.hudsonvalleyruins.org/yasinsac/wyndcliffe/wyndcliffe.html

As you can see, salvaging anything remotely habitable from that is going to take millions of dollars.

G.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: dom on February 15, 2017, 02:51:23 AM
Crimson Peak finally showed up on my cable guide and was free to record. I really liked it! Glad it came highly recommended - I'd not have bothered otherwise.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Mysterious Benefactor on February 17, 2017, 10:36:08 PM
I'm so happy you enjoyed it!  [snow_smiley]
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: dom on February 24, 2017, 12:19:41 AM
I forgot to mention an extremely tenuous (but cute-ish) link to DS. The actor who plays private detective Holly played a character named Trask in the ABC TV drama Revenge.
Title: Re: O/T The real Wyndcliffe and the imagination of an impressionable kid
Post by: Mysterious Benefactor on February 24, 2017, 01:35:12 AM
Yes, Burn Gorman! (Who seems to be in every other British film/TV show I watch.)

But there's an even closer association with DS because Doug Jones, the actor who embodied the "creature" makeup for Edith's Mother / Lady Sharpe, also appeared in the '04 DS pilot as two different characters:

The Train Demon:

Quote from: Mysterious Benefactor on January 10, 2014, 02:28:06 AM
here are two production photos from the pilot:

(http://www.dsboards.com/2004pilotquoteimages/TrainDreamDemon.jpg)
Creature actor Doug Jones as the Train Dream Demon.

(http://www.dsboards.com/2004pilotquoteimages/Vicki_Hogan_Demon.jpg)
Vicki, director PJ Hogan, and the Demon.
And the desiccated Barnabas:

Quote from: Mysterious Benefactor on May 07, 2014, 03:46:24 AM
I have some production stills to share to help to better illustrate what's just happened. First off, a lovely photo of creature actor Doug Jones as Barnabas in full desiccated makeup (complete with red eyes and pointy nails):

(http://www.dsboards.com/2004pilotquoteimages/Revived.jpg)

...

And for a bit of fun, here's a shot of Doug Jones getting the finishing touches of his body makeup applied:

(http://www.dsboards.com/2004pilotquoteimages/Doug_makeup.jpg)