Well I'm here, and all is well. Been seeing some people around so far, and I can't wait until tomorrow for the Lyndhurst trip!

Wowee! How'd you get there so fast? They shoot you out of a cannon or something?

When Julia dropped by unexpectedly, Barnabas was so excited to have the opportunity to demonstrate the new dance he'd just created and hoped would sweep the nation, if not the world - the Frug.. I mean The Frid.

I wasn't aware they were doing an auction this year. But at any rate, what happens is, they have the items on display and invite the audience up to the stage to get a bird's eye view of what's for sale. They also have folks run about on stage, during the auction, with every item up for bid, displaying and describing each and every piece. It's quite fun, really. They do a great job.

I strongly urge everyone to watch Woman
on the Beach (1947) a moody film noir not on disc.
Joan, as always, is gorgeous in this!

And to see a VERY young Joan, check out 1929's Disraeli, in which she co-stars with 70 year old
George Arliss!

Unfortunately, I didn't get home in time to watch this unique film and I was out of VHS tapes. But I'd seen it before and loved it. Funny thing how this picture reminds me of Sam Evans...
Kudos to Joan and Moby Dick, in which she co-stars, is a delight as well. At least it's interesting.
I think Scarlet Street is my fave JB film, though. Such a good film. There's no doubt about it; Joan Bennett was one of the best.

I took the "dumb actor" remark to mean that Frid screwed up and didn't capitalize on his fame the way he could have.  The Halls separately made comments to the effect that Frid was probably sorry he didn't take the second DS movie.  I don't believe that decision was the last minute though, Gothick; the reason for the Halls' displeasure seemed to be tied to the fact that Frid was a cash cow and the biggest draw.  Removing himself from the project hurt in the pocketbook and in terms of visibility.  In the Halls' place, I would be sorely disappointed.

Another point is that there are people who say an actor is a "bad actor" because he/she can't walk and chew gum at the same time in front of the camera.  Working in front of the camera doesn't just require good acting skills but technical skills as well.  Frid didn't have those technical skills.  Does that make him a bad actor? For people who believe a good actor is also a technical actor, yes.

I suppose the litmus test is to try and decide why so many people remember the character of Barnabas Collins 40 years later . . . because of his long teeth? Pointy bangs?

What makes me remember JF is his presence; the way he completely took over every scene. He ruled over scenes with all his fellow actors. As Barnabas, he won the heart of Liz, the respect of Mrs Johnson and Roger, the admiration of Vicky, Carolyn, and David, and the hatred of Burke Devlin. He made us dread Willie's every waking moment, he made us adore history, and he had a fine sense of dressing. JF's scenes with Grayson Hall are a tribute to two fine actors. They made their scenes come to life, I think, because they cared about their roles on the series. And not just for the bread. I think they portrayed their characters the way they did because they had a sense of respect for one another, a love of the characters they portrayed.
That's my take on it anyway.

Julia became extremely concerned once she began sneezing incessantly because she feared it could mean only one thing - she was allergic to Dippity Doo - and that could cost her her cushy position as permanent houseguest at Collinwood."

After being awoken in the middle of the night by a strange feeling, Julia was about to make the horrifying discovery that Peter Turgeon was in bed with her!!!!"

Barnabas wondered if Dr. Hoffman's treatments had caused him to become absentminded because he just couldn't believe it when he suddenly realized he'd completely forgotten to side step the candelabrum.