I found the following article online which covers an alleged "real" vampire right here in my Richmond Va area. While I can definitely state many of the events covered in the article are documented, most especially the Shockoe train wreck and the location of Hollywood cemetery (named for the trees, not any other place, as it was founded mid 19th Century), and others are real, I think other parts of the story are, well, you decide.

http://virginiaghosts.com/vampire_update.htm          

Anyone visiting Richmond should not miss Hollywood Cemetery, its wonderfully gothic, great mausoleums (one or two with Tiffany stained glass windows), a few notables including two US presidents (three if you count ol'Jeff Davis) and the walking tour mentions the plethora of local legends and ghosts.    

Michael

It would be interesting to know whether her act was inspired by the Charles Addams cartoons.  Both certainly owe something to the star of Dracula's Daughter.

I have several Charles Addams books with collections of his cartoons. They indeed predate the Vampira TV show, and as the cartoons were very well known and popular in the 1940s and 1950s, they would have been very accessible to Maila Nurmi aka Vampira. "Drawn and Quartered" was out as early as 1942. I have read that Addams was influenced by the Universal horror films of the 1930s and '40s. The original version of "Lurch" was based on Boris Karloff's Morgan in "The Old Dark House" of 1932, noting especially that early drawing sport the heavy beard of that character while later drawing look more like the TV character, still somewhat karloff-like. The woman like most of the Addams characters was not named in the comic strip, but since Addams stated "Lurch" was inspired by Karloff, I don't think its too mich as stretch to think "the woman" aka Morticia was probably inspired by characters like "Draculas Daughter."

    I agree with most of the posters here that the "Goth" look as we now see it as its own subculture came out of Punk rock of the '70s and early '80s. I would note that most of the early Gothic bands, now probably in their '40s and '50s in some cases grew up contemporary with the "monster boom" of the late '50s and 1960s; Famous Monsters,   [frankie]Aurora models, Hammer films and TV shows like The Munsters, Addams Family, Bewitched and Dark Shadows. While Goth developed its present form in England moreso than America, the Batcave gang as previously noted, some American bands were setting an important precedent. Let's not disavow for example Alice Cooper with his theatrics and stage presence, songs about Dwight Frye and guillotines, or even the 1950's when Screamin' Jay Hawkins came on stage on a coffin singing about zombies and voodoo. (For that matter, Screamin' Lord Sutch of the British wave of the mid '60s with his Jekyll & Hyde era attire and songs is another forerunner.) By the time we get to Punk, you have the Cramps forming in the mid-70s, and their music, while more '50s rockabilly and '60s garage/psycedelic sound, made its impact with their look and attitude. (I still love the Cramps, even with their need to repeat themselves.) Never let the Goth snobs say Siouxsie and the Banshees, squarely in the middle of the brit-punk revolution, didn't create a cornerstone for Goth. I think another major event were the films "The Hunger" which feature cornerstone band# 2, Bauhaus, and the midnight cult of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show."  This came at a time when the cult of the Anne Rice novels was forming. From the convergence of all these things grows Goth. The dyed black hair, black clothes, black nail polish, lots of fishnet (probaby influenced heavily by Tim Curry's Dr. Frankenfurter),  the dark clubs with cobwebs and smoke. The film "the Crow" was another indication Goth had arrived in its own.  Think of him as being one cooler than Batman as he's actually dead.
     I think if I had been a little younger, I would have been more into this scene myself. I was more around for the Ramones, Blondie, Black Flag and the Cramps, who did influence me to wear a lot of black shirts and pants in those halcyon days. 
      Now as for all these young people who have formed the next wave of Goth, who are more influnced by the bands who came later, I can say while some are great fun, the Richmond band "Siddal" who are very synthy and moody are highly reccomended, some are just too literal in their attempt to create a vampyre world. I can only listen to so many droning songs about "exquiste corpses". I can say however, if I were a real vampyre, I'm not sure if I would want to hang out with these people who attempt to play at being undead 24/7 or find it convenient to hide among them. I would say, that unlike a young Goth I saw on TV, I would never be caught dead or undead running around with a feathery black mullet haircut. I might wear an 18th century suit once in a while, but not for everyday wear. I do still have a love of visiting cemetaries so I have some empathy for these folk. I think I've just grown out of the need to wear a t-shirt or other look to advertise my favorite bank day in, day out. I think Morrissey once said something like "Those who's are unsatisfied with their art tend to try to make themselves into their art."  And while I can kind of deal with pepole who might share a small amout of blood drinking in a committed, if kinky relationship, I don't think its a good idea at all to do that rather randomly. Just too dangerous nowadays. Let's say I might enjoy doing an actual seance but not any attempts to conjure up any real demons. 

Michael

Maggie: I don't care if you are the greater Maine pocket pool champion, Harry, I'm not going to see any Swedish movies at the drive-in with you!
 

Julia, thinking:All the wicked, wicked things I've done, and it comes to this..
(Speaking) Yes, yes, yes Agent Allison, I once sold watered down penicillan to Harry Lime.
 

Angelique: Now that I've sealed your mouth with that "Superglue" I brought back from the 20th century, the piece of poison apple will never be removed. You will sleep...forever!
 

Peter: No, really, I'm Ryan Seacrest, and you, Kelly Clarkson, and the first 19th century American Idol!
 

Barnabas: Quick Chris, we have to hide Dr. Shepard's father's body. Now! before Locke sees us.

Chris: This "Lost" show we're on now has more twists than Mrs. Johnson's pretzels.