Browsing through those $5.00 videos at the local CVS, I ran accross "Hi, Mom"  (1970) which I'd been curious to see as not only is it a very early Brian DePalma film, it had an interesting cast including Jennifer Salt ("Soap"/"Play It Again Sam"), Gerrit Graham ("Phantom of the Paradise"/Dan Curtis's "The Love Letter"), a very young Robert DeNiro and our own Lara Parker. I'd read a few reviews so i was prepared for the dated style and "messages" of the film. The plot, if there is one, has Robert DeNiro as a young filmmaker trying to see "Peep Art" or amateur films he makes from filming the activity in the apartment building across from his.(Obviously, his main intent is to satisfy his voyeurism and make a buck off it.) Lara Parker and her family are one of the apartments he (briefly) films. Lara's appearence in the film is relatively short, aside from the window views, in her case very simple domestic life, we later see her at the camera shop where DeNiro is also a customer, but mostly hear her discuss the home movie camera. We later see her use it with her family, her real life sons play themselves, and she vanishes from the film after running into the very taciturn Gerrit in the elevator. This whole scene is shot from her POV as she is narrating her home movie. The most interesting thing is Lara's voice is unlike the Angelique voice or her voice now. She still has a soft Tennessee accent here. Of course, the few times she's in front of the camera, she's immediately recognizable.
     I can't actually recommend the film. The scene that Lara's last appearence segues into is a very badly dated "Performance Art" or "Theatre of Reality" scene called "Be Black Baby" that is pretty hard to watch at times, not only because of the brutal confrontationalism, but that part of it is a viscious rape (fortunatlely not Lara!). Also, the DeNiro character commits an act of urban terrorism at the end that is also supposed to be laughed off, but's really too pointless and savage in the context of viewing the film today to be able to balance it with the satiric tome of the first third of the film. So be forwarned. But for $5.00 my curiousity was finally satisfied. Its now somewhat easliy found on DVD as well.

Michael

Okay, I hope this is a first this time, lol  Not only is DS '91 finally coming on DVD, but the classic Kolchak:The Night Stalker is now too. Here's a link w/info:
http://www.thedigitalbits.com/mytwocentsa107.html#kol

Lara Parker is our main DS guest star, on "The Trevi Collection." Yep, she plays a witch.

Now if only CBS can get around to doing Wild, Wild West box sets on DVD. Thayer David guest starred twice, and well, who doesn't love Dr. Loveless

Michael

  I spoke to one of my best friends who attended the David selby instore near Ft. Lauderdale last night. he stated there were about 35-40 attendees, and his impression was few were DS fans. He did speak to Selby about Shadows, and David mentioned his attending Michael Stroka's funeral, working with Thayer David, and best of all, that he and Jerry Lacey have "something special planned" for this year's show. As if I wasn't stoked (all puns intended) about finally meeting Jerry Lacey anyway. I always love the dramatic presentations, so I wish I was alreadt there. Flight's booked, got my convention confirmations!

Michael

I made a reference to some great food snak products that we enjoyed back when DS ran originally, in one of my recent captions. I found a great web page that has images of the old packages of these foods, now lost forever in the grocery aisles of time. So if you want to remember what old Quisp boxes, Space Food Stix, Funny Face paks or even Shake-A-Puddin boxes looked like, go here for hours of fun

http://www.theimaginaryworld.com/page4.html

Michael

"I was there, I remember..."

 Â     

Adrian Paul, who played Jeremiah Collins in the 1991 NBC Dark Shadows revival will have a collectible figure of his likeness from the "Highlander" series released later this year. The figure will be produced by Sidesshow Toys, and will be similar to the figures planned for Barnabas and Quentin that are being produced by a competitor listed here a few months ago. Go to
http://www.sideshowtoy.com/cgi-bin/category.cgi?category=0
and click on the Highlander Press release to see a prototype.

I love the Sideshow figures myself, as a classic Universal horror films fan. They have done excellent work on the Lugosi, Karloff, Chaney, Dwight Frye et al figures, from all the films that so influenced Dan Curtis, many of which he remade after including in Shadows storylines. Look through their archives while there. They do many other films, military and history figures. I have to admit I love their Planet of the Apes line. Even if they aren't doing the upcoming DS figures, I am glad someone is.

Michael

Okay DS fans, being Mr. Curious here. What's are some of your other favorite supernatural TV shows?
Are you a modern vampyre fan of Buffy or Angel? Do you still love the anthology shows like Thriller or Twilght Zone? Did you cruise the streets with Nick Nite or Mulder and Scully? Are you the ONLY person you know who's ever actually seen "Strange Paradise"? (I've net met anyone who's seen one) Or do you just surf to the Munster's themesong? What's your choice for the next TV box sets? Spill your spooky faves.

I'm going to start this off with 2 of my favorites...

1.) Smallville . I'm hooked. The first year had a lot of X Files overtones, but now the characters have kept me coiming back. Great cast, great scripts. Clark Kent is a man with a secret held by only a few. A great reinvention of the Superman saga without a cape in sight.

2.) Twin Peaks. It had a great group of oddball characters, but there was a nice thick underbelly of mystery and the supernatural that was fascinating if you stuck with it. Unfortunately, it will forever be a cliff hanger.

Your turn...MJ

Hey,
      Fans of Anthony George (Burke Devlin # 2/Jeremiah Collins) will probably want to check out a short feature on a comic book adaptation of the TV series "Checkmate" on which he played "Don Corey." This series ran prior to his DS years. The funny thing is that on the cover, his eyes look out of sync, rather like he's doing a "Popeye the Sailor Man" look. 
Anyway, here's a link
http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/oddball/

If you don't check it out today, 10/16/03, then go to the Archives section from that page. Its a cool daily site reviewing unusual comics from the past. Likewise, a while back there was a feature on Jonn Jonzz, Manhunter from Mars that relvealed his artist later worked on the Gold Key DS comics. (The Archives go back several years, I don't recall the date on that one. If I find it, I'll post the date.)

       Have fun on the site, I always do.

Your Cousin from Virginia, CyrusL aka Michael