Ah! ? The scene from Jamison's dream of David's last birthday! One of my favorite moments in the series! ? If only Violet Welles had been with the show longer!

Hi Arashi, according to an interview with Violet Welles published in Dale Clark's zine, she did come back to write many scripts in the final couple of months of DS.  She started out ghostwriting scripts for Gordon Russell who must have been busy with other projects or perhaps just needed some time doing something other than writing DS, and then somehow got on the show's roster as a writer.  I'm guessing that if Violet was not mis-remembering her time on the show, her final relay of scripts must have been the same arrangement--Russell got the screen credit but she did the work.

The arrangement is apparently more common in television than the general public are widely aware.

G.

Stuart posted an interview on collinwood.net today with Lara Parker in which she gives some fairly detailed information about her new book.  Most of it is set in the 20s, and Liz appears as an amorous, gun-toting flapper.  I've heard others discuss the desire to read fiction about Liz has a flapper, although in the original series Liz was born in 1917 and would have been about ten at the height of the flapper era.

Parker tactfully (?) discusses how some fans get upset when she "re-imagines" characters.  I guess this is her way of expressing reckless disregard for well established continuity over which she rides roughshod in her confections.  Even a series as "fluid" as DS did have its rules... I'm sure it will sell like hotcakes, though.

G.

Interesting to see that an official UK issue of DS has finally happened.  A 3 disc set was released on April 30.  I have no idea whether further discs will be issued.  The series has already received a glowing review from a knowledgeable fan on Amazon UK.  It will be interesting to see a review of this specific release:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dark-Shadows-Original-Barnabas-Episodes/dp/B0077NF7AQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1336021777&sr=1-1

A number of vintage UK series from the 1960s and 1970s have been released in the past few years that have production values and styles similar to DS, so I could really see it taking off in the UK, provided it is marketed properly.

G.

The new episode (17/XVII) of Dank Shadows is available for viewing on their youtube page:

http://www.youtube.com/user/dankshadows

I have to say this version of Josette's music box is a real riot! 

Best,

G.

Fans,

I am excited to report that I just learned that an episode of One Life to Live
we haven't seen before from Grayson's Euphemia Ralston storyline has been posted
to Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZuvKfiie0M

I have been able to watch part 1 (there seem to be 3 parts in all) and although
the visual quality is not too good, the sound is OK.  I played through parts 2 and 3 and Grayson reappears for a short scene in part 3.  No Nancy Barrett or Tony George in this one, so far as I can tell.

For those who don't know, Grayson's personal backstory for Euphemia was that as
a young woman, she had either been raised in the North or been educated there
and so would not have a typical Southern accent. However, one of the directors
on the show disagreed and made Grayson play the role with a "corn-pone"
deep-fried accent. The episode currently available is an example of Grayson
having to work with this Director. Eventually (thankfully) Grayson got her wish
and Euphemia lost the Southern accent.

I'm not up on the history of OLTL but I believe that Euphemia's estranged
daughter Delilah became a regular character on the show. Euphemia's final
episode was taped in around April 1983 I believe.

It has been a longtime dream of mine some day to be able to view ALL of
Grayson's work as Euphemia.

Best,

Steve

Dear Fans, while looking through some old magazines, I found my 1998 DS Festival program and noticed a very rare (and so far as I know, never used) publicity photo from 1967 (or perhaps '68?)--it seems to have been done on the same day as a well known series of Jon and Grayson mugging around Barn's coffin.  In this one, Barn is flattening himself dramatically against the cellar wall, the coffin is center of photo and in front of it is Liz (wearing an outfit I don't recall her ever wearing on the series, but that doesn't mean that it may not have appeared and I simply don't remember).  Liz is clasping hands to face and about to let loose with one of her famous strangled screams.

If I can get a scan done of the photo, I will try to share it here.

Best,  G.

So, are any cousins out there watching this very surreal spoof of the series, "Dank Shadows," on Youtube?  I just learned of its existence today although it's been running for several months now and they are up to episode 13.

There are some softcore gay porno references woven in--nothing actually X rated, but some off-color humor.  The wildest bits involve Scorcha Burns Ballins (the Laura character) who is portrayed by three different performers in different episodes, including a whacky "To Tell the Truth" dream sequence that a traumatized "Gayvid" has after Scorcha's flaming demise.

I hesitate to actually recommend this stuff, as the humor is beyond the surreal and offbeat, but I've already become addicted.

G.

For now at least, what appears to be the entire film from 1970 "Hi, Mom!" (directed by Brian de Palma, starring Robert de Niro), co-starring Lara Parker, has been loaded onto Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRY7-fG73E0&feature=related

I watched a bit of the beginning but no scenes with Lara showed up.  It's definitely a different kind of project for her.

G.