What fun!  Even if Alec doesn't get to do much beyond yell, cry, run around and take his clothes off (yum!), this should be good exposure for him.

Sounds as if they're not using Madonna's song Into the Groove which was in the original movie; too bad.  That song really defined Desperately seeking Susan for this viewer.

G.

I actually prefer shows to be "slow," particularly "slow" by today's standards.  I've already seen pretty much every plot twist the mind of wo/man could invent, and then some--what makes a drama worth viewing for me is CHARACTER, and a more layered approach that suggests possibilities of interpretation.

I found the character of the lead vampire's mentor jarring in a flat, rather banal way.  The writing was horrendous and the actor obviously did not have a clue what he was supposed to be doing.  He did actually seem as if he was fairly competent craft-wise.  Perhaps if the writing has improved and they have changed directors, they might have been able to make something of the character.

Glad to hear YOU enjoy it!  I'm all about people enjoying themselves.

I must say I am fascinated to learn that there are people out there who regard Angel as the be-all and end-all of vampire stories.  Truly fascinating *raises eyebrow in Spock-like fashion*.

cheers, G.

DS has, as far as I can tell, broken records yet again in staying IN PRINT consistently for far longer than is usual for ANYTHING on home video/disc.  Presumably that trend will continue with the new excitement in the run-up to Depp's film and the fact that the series, as a pop culture artifact, seems to be more widely visible than at any time since 1968.

Willie, we're probably going to see a DVD release of the two movies within the coming year.  If you have to have new copies of the VHS releases, try Amazon markets and other outlets on the Net.  I recommend getting the laser disc if you have a player for them although they still were not released with the correct screen ratio (can't speak to the audio mix).

G.

Mysterioso darling, so exquisitely do our days mngle the threads of Art and Life that at this very moment I am *wearing* my Legion t-shirt with the image of Barnabas rescuing Julia above.

Thanks for the lovely assemblage of scenes!  You're a peach with a gorgeous bloom on your cheeks!

cheers, G.

Fans,

Several years ago I wrote a lengthy (I believe it totalled 17 pages) essay analysing Grayson Hall's first few months on Dark Shadows.  (This was meant as a contribution to a book on the 1967 storyline which never did see the light of day.)  I was intrigued to learn that Grayson appeared in a very high number of episodes in the October/November period of that year; I believe that she was in all but five of the shows taped in October of '67.  The slideshow today and those of the recent past are reminding me what a fabulous period this time of the year is for Grayson Hall addicts.  Today's slides include images of the legendary face-off between Julia and Carolyn in the foyer.  I really do think it is "better than heroin" when Julia slams the phone down on Miss Minx's flirtatious chat with Tony Peterson, only to have the young heiress icily inform her houseguest that the Collins family expects a certain standard in the behavior of those who dwell beneath their roof.  Why, it's nearly dinnertime and Julia hasn't even changed!  I find this all the more a hoot in that not only do we never even see the family having dinner (after the one episode of them dining with Laura Collins in, what, January of '67?) but we certainly never see signs that anyone has changed for dinner in later shows (though there are plenty of cases of young ingenues going to bed in high heels and street makeup).

Yesterday's slideshow featured the first of Julia's showdowns with Nicholas Blair, and I did love how it looked in the capture as if the redoubtable "Physician to the Vampire" was going to clock the suave, smug warlock right in the putz.  We have more showdowns between Julia and Nicholas to enjoy in the weeks to come, and in late November we can look forward to the debut of "Julia Hoffman, Detective at Large" with the onset of the Leviathans story.

The falling leaves drift past my window--and there's more fabulous performances from Grayson Hall and the DS repertory company to savor!  Here's to autumnal bliss!

G.

MSC, one of my all-time favorite Grayson moments is, I think, in the introduction of Sabrina storyline (and those painful weeks when we had to deal with RD's Ned Stuart characterization).    Julia is trying to see someone and the other person is claiming that the individual she seeks is not around.  Then somebody else comes out and says "Oh, they're in the next room."  Julia turns to whoever it is she was speaking to before and asks, in this gently wounded innocent voice, "Why was it necessary to LIE?"  Watching that scene as an adult years ago, I had to guffaw, being all too acutely aware of the NUMEROUS times our dear Dr. Hoffman had lied her way with a sweet and smiling face out of one situation after another.

If someone could remind me just when the scene I attempt to describe above actually occurred, I'd be very grateful; since reading Michael's comments above I've been jonesing to see it again.

cheers, G.

Glorioski!  We've had skulls, bats, witches, ghosts, and ghouls, but surely the ULTIMATE horror is what is staring us IN OUR FACE on this site today--the hideous, eldritch, nefandous, insidious terror that IS ROGER DAVIS!!!  And he's CLLUTCHING his HAIR!!!  *swooooooooon*

I remember well that one of the creepiest moments on DS as a child was when Vampire Dirk (probably RD's best performance on the show) was summoning his patsy Judith to come receive her "reward"--I remember the look in RD's eyes made it feel as though ice cubes were cascading down my nether regions!

The Horror!   The Horror!

*hiding behind the sofa, praying he'll go away...*

G.