The July/August issue of Diabolique focuses on Dark Shadows. The 2012 film is mentioned but the focus is on the TV incarnation. David Del Valle, who produced the 30th anniversary tribute, wrote a very warm and quite funny tribute to Jonathan Frid. Apparently, the Seizure shoot was party central. Martine Beswicke "recalled having to keep the cameraman sober by making love to him on occasion, to which Jonathan laughed and said 'Better you than me.'" Now, that's the kind of scrapbook memories that I'd like to hear more of!

There's also an article about the DS influence on other supernatural Tv shows, from Twin Peaks to Days of Our Lives.

There are some good pictures, though nothing too uncommon. The shots of Nancy Barrett from HODS actually appear twice on the cover. Once as artwork and once on the masthead.

Two Dark Shadows actors will be appearing on Broadway this fall. Jessica Chastain, who played Carolyn in the WB pilot, will be in a revival of the Heiress. It's based on a story by Henry James. Olivia de Havilland starred in the movie version.

Michael Shannon, who was in the recent film as an Angel Bay board member, will appear in Grace, a comedy that also features Paul Rudd and Edward Asner.

Shock Cinema is a magazine that reviews obscure cult movies have followings outside the mainstream. In the current issue, one of the movies reviewed is called Death Promise, which apparently is a martial arts version of Death Wish. Our favorite bartender stars as the "ex-pugilist" dad of the hero. They live in a rat trap apartment in 1977 NYC. Bob's death kicks off the plot as his son seeks vengeance.

This is one obscure piece of '70's cinema. Aside from Mr. O'connell, I've never heard of anyone associated with it. There's probably a reason for that.

I crosschecked imdb and it made me wonder if this was a non union film. You see, Bob O'connell doesn't appear under his own name. He is billed as, I swear, Rocky Crevice!

During a visit to the local library, I came across a book by Richard Lamparski titled "Whatever Became of...." He wrote a series of these books back in the 1970's and 1980's. And, as you might gather, the book consists of interviews with celebrities who were no longer as prominent in the public eye as they had once been.  This is the ninth in the series, published in 1985,  and has two Dark Shadows connections.

The first is John Beal who presided over Quentin's witchcraft trial. Beal had extensive film and theatre credits including two early films with Katharine Hepburn and an early adaptation of Les Miserables.

The other is Jonathan Frid who also appears on the book cover. The interview doesn't contain any info that today's fans won't already know but I imagine it was all new at the time. There is, however, a picture that I have never seen reproduced elsewhere. It's a shot of him in his NYC apartment, standing next to a portrait of Barnabas, done, I think, by Anne Marie Erenthal.

The Pop Century hotel at Walt Disney World is themed around 20th Century pop culture. There all sorts of memorabilia representing different decades, such as Rubik's Cube, Eight track tapes, mood rings and such. No DS items or so I thought. 

One poster I saw was a collage of Disney's stuff. One of the items was the cover of the Gold Key comic book adaptation of That Darn Cat, with a photo of Grayson and Frank Gorshin. Yes, Julia Hoffman and the Riddler together again.

There are others as well. Johnny Depp is part of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. There is a short clip of Ben Cross from Chariots of Fire. And Kate Jackson's footprints are in the courtyard at the Chinese theatre.