Something about the music in NODS put me off track from the DS universe and the gothic atmosphere was the harmonica. To me that's such a folksy instrument, and I know it was big with folk music in the '70s. But to me it doesn't go with "Dark Shadows" and gave the movie a much different atmosphere from the show and also HODS. I didn't necessarily like the additions to the music in HODS, but the harmonica in NODS changed things too much for me.

I appreciated Prof Stokes' candid and thoughtful assessment. Despite the small scale production, I'm much more interested in seeing this than ... that "other one."

The strangest instance of this was at some point in, I think, the early 1990s, all of a sudden DS cues were being played during some Saturday Night Live skits.

I remember that moment on "Saturday Night Live" too. I think the music was from "Josette's Music Box." Did that happen as late as the 1990s? I recall that the audience reacted to the music with a mixture of awe and laughter, obviously recalling it. That's why I wonder if this incidence was really more than 20 years after the series.

I really don't remember anything specifically about "Dark Shadows" ending. It must have been near the end of the school year, and in our location I remember that "DS" aired at 3 p.m., and school was dismissed at either 3:10 or 3:15. There were times that I ran home from school, through the park, and managed to catch .... about the last five minutes of the show, which was a disappointment and almost not worth it. So while I have a vague thought or memory of disappointment upon hearing that the series was ending, I wasn't able to watch it anyway at that time (and wasn't supposed to watch it, either).

I never completely forgot "Dark Shadows," and when I was living in the SF Bay area in 1982-84, I was startled one night, late at night, to flip the TV channel and stumble upon DS airing on the local PBS station, I think it was. The thrill and memories returned instantly, and I was able to watch quite a few episodes over some time (it was during the part about the Leviathan book, which I had no previous memories about), and then I don't know what happened - school got in the way or the broadcasts ceased or both. But I do recall excitedly telling some of my college friends about it and everyone brightened up right away and remembered the show fondly and with instant recognition and interest.

I remember that scene now that I see the screencap ...  It was Barnabas who sent her the fan with the message scrawled inside, wasn't it? Somehow that handwriting doesn't look like what I imagine for Barnabas's though.

I certainly hadn't remembered that detail, either. And I don't recall Charlotte Fairchild being mentioned on this forum ever before. Is she listed in any of the DS Almanacs or other resources?

Thanks for posting ... I'll look forward to watching the entire video soon. Brings back memories of the Festival, which already seems so long ago 

I received both DVDs, "House of Dark Shadows" and "Night of Dark Shadows" from amazon on October 30, delivered by UPS. I viewed "House of Dark Shadows" on a large screen, HD TV (not mine), and the print looked fantastic. I was especially taken by the depth of colors – the cinematography was superb for this film. Darren wrote "the framing is too tight," and I did somehow have the sense that the film had a broader scope (to use my own terminology) when I saw it at the Vista Theater in Los Angeles at the fest there a few years ago. The warmth of the fire in the several scenes with fireplaces was beautiful – I think that scene where Barnabas gives Maggie the music box is absolutely lovely. And I really liked the thick red glasses at the Blue Whale, or whatever that restaurant was. I like this movie more each time I see it, to my surprise. Of course there are flaws, but I think this is one of the best vampire movies I've seen. The performances are very good to excellent, beginning with Frid's. And Lyndhurst was breathtakingly beautiful.