Happy 50th Anniversary, Night of Dark Shadows

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If you want to learn about or refresh your memory concerning the background of today's quote -

Page 20A/Scene 56 - Strack: 'Dust...to dust...ashes to ashes. Oh Lord, we beseech you to have pity on this sinner...for we all sin, knowing the mercy of our heavenly Father. So we commend to Him the flesh and spirit of Angelique Collins, beloved wife of Gabriel, loyal and loving sister-in-law to Laura.'

- check out -

Setting up the current sequence/scene - and we've reached the first instance where Grayson's and DC's scripts differ. But first up we'll deal with the way things play in DC's script, which, probably not surprisingly, is the way they mostly appear in the film:

- this post - and be sure to also read the two posts after it...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If you want to learn about or refresh your memory concerning the background of today's first quote -

Page 20A/Scene 56 - Strack: 'Angelique Collins has departed this life for a far better one - a world without tears or pain.'

- and/or today's second quote -

Page 20A/Scene 56 - Strack: (loudly, trying to top the laughter) 'And so we commend her spirit to a just and forgiving God. Amen..'

- check out -

Continuing with DC's script's version of Scene 56, as well as Scenes 57 & 58:

- this post...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Before we move on from Quentin's ride and the funeral vision, I have a batch of rare stills to share - first up, two of Quentin:

(Click here for a 700X684 version)

(Click here for a 700X473 version)

[Mysterious Benefactor]

The first of the funeral:

And the last for this post is a photo that used to appear on Craig Hamrick's darkshadowsonline.com site, but when I went there yesterday intending to get the URL to link to the page rather than post the photo itself, I discovered the photo is no longer being used there. I guess it fell by the wayside after the site was redesigned. But thankfully I'd saved a copy:

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And the last three:

(Click here for a 530X700 version)

(Click here for a 700X560 version)

This final one appears on page 108 of the The DS Companion.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

While I was looking again to see if I could locate the misplaced Angelique still from Reply #124 (still no luck), I actually came across something far more interesting: a stash of color NoDS stills that I'd completely forgotten I had. And one of them was the color version of the photo I'd posted of Gerard with the horse in Reply #134. So, if you go back to that post you'll see that I've replaced the B&W version with the color one...

I know I've said that I would have been much smarter if I'd stored all my NoDS things in the same place, and perhaps that's true. But if I had, I wouldn't have had the thrill today of finding the stash of color stills. And I enjoyed that much more than I would have if I'd remembered they were there. So... 

[Uncle Roger]

I guess that the rights to darkshadowsonline have expired. I went to check on a few things and was greeted by ads for cialis and other assorted products.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

As for Sam's remarks, well, we know the length of the version of NoDS that they showed MGM was 129 minutes and not 165. However, at one point there may have been a 165 minute version because it's common practice for a director to assemble a fairly long "rough cut" of a film and then to whittle it down to something much more manageable.

While looking for something else entirely different (which is usually when I come across these things) I suspect I came across an explanation. Back in the days when Darren Gross had his NoDS Restoration Web site, he wrote this in the "NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS: LOST SCENES NOT INCLUDED IN THE RESTORED 129 MIN VERSION" section:

"the fine cut of the film which included virtually every scene shot for the film had a running time of around 150 minutes. This was screened for production personnel but obviously deemed too long and ambitious for a commercial horror film. Though very happy with the 150 minute version, Dan Curtis trimmed around 20 minutes from it to produce the more commercial 129 min version which he presented to MGM. That version had 35 more minutes hacked from it before theatrical release."

I also came across this in the "FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ)" section:

"97 MINUTE (R-Rated) PRINT OF NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS FOUND! . We are delighted to report that after an extensive search, one of the original 97 minute theatrical prints of NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS has been located. As discussed elsewhere on this page, both 97 and 93.5 minute versions were released back in 1971. Unfortunately MGM did not hold onto any of the longer, more explicit theatrical prints and cut the intermediate materials so they have been without this longer version for 29 years. (The video, laserdisc and television broadcasts have been of the 93.5 minute version.) During a worldwide search of international film archives, restoration producer Darren Gross located an original English-language print of the 97 minute version. While the 129 minute version contains all the scenes in the 97 minute version, the restoration is an extremely costly project. In case the restoration of the 129 minute version doesn't happen, fans can at least look forward to a 2.5 minute longer version being eventually released. (Although referred to in references as 97 minutes, this version actually runs 96 mins 01 second.)"

I'd completely forgotten that a copy of the 97 minute (R-Rated) version had been found. And if only the 2012 DVD/Blu-ray release of NoDS had been that version. Given WB wasn't willing to pay for the full restoration, one might think releasing the 97 minute version wouldn't have cost them anywhere near as much. But alas, WB had other and even cheaper ideas in mind...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If you haven't already, be sure to read -

Continuing with Grayson's script's version of the rest of Scene 56 and beyond:

- to see the differences between DC's and Grayson's scripts when it comes to the end of the Quentin riding/funeral vision sequence.


And if you want to learn about or refresh your memory concerning the background of yesterday's quote -

Page 22/Scene 59 - Alex: 'Imagine! Running down the Master of Collinwood.'

- and/or today's quote -

Page 22/Scene 59 - Quentin: 'On his first day, too...before he's even put out the rules of the manor.'

- check out -

Setting up the current scene:

- this post...


(There's a raging thunderstorm going on as I post this. Fun, fun!  )

[Mysterious Benefactor]

(There's a raging thunderstorm going on as I post this. Fun, fun!  )

(It's so dark here it's like it should be 8pm instead of only 2:10 - and the thunder is still raging...)

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Before we move on to today's quote, I want to share this still that relates to how Scene 59 actually opens:

(Click here for a 700X514 version)

In fact, it looks practically exactly like how the scene opens -

... and when Scene 59 begins, before anyone says anything, Alex, Quentin and Claire are seen having a good laugh, as can be seen -

- in the above capture.

- except from a different angle...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If you want to learn about or refresh your memory concerning the background of today's quote -

Page 22/Scene 59 - Quentin: 'I see you still have that.'

- check out -

Continuing with Scene 59 as scripted:

- this post...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If you want to learn about or refresh your memory concerning the background of yesterday's quote -

Page 22/Scene 59 - Alex: 'A place of honor, old buddy -- wherever we go -- so how's life in the castle? Have you seen Miss Drake smile yet?'

- check out -

And continuing with more of Scene 59 as scripted we have today's quote -

- this post...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Before we move on with more quotes from the scene at the Jenkins cottage, I thought I'd share a page from the '87 LA Fest Program Guide which features candids of most of the ladies of NoDS:

(Click here for a 762X1076 version)

Most of them were never shared elsewhere - or as is the case with the bottom left Angelique candid, it was cropped when later shared.

It's interesting that the shot of Laura was taken in the Gallery because she wears that outfit in Quentin's subconscious memory cut during the pool scene:

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And speaking of Fest programs, I forgot to mention that I first saw the still of Alex, Quentin and Claire that I posted in Reply #145 when it appeared as part of the '95 NYC Fest Program (in its announcement of the 30th Anniversary Celebration in LA in '96). Though that version was a bit cropped - what I shared was the actual still, which I came across a few years later...