Happy 50th Anniversary, Night of Dark Shadows

[Mysterious Benefactor]

The first of two posts to revisit related to Scene 96:

Here are the first batch of stills for Scene 96. First up, a rare still I've never seen shared anywhere:

(Click here for a 700X908 version)

Next, another rare one, though it was published as part of an article in Daytime TV (along with several other rare ones that have only been published as part of that article):

The caption for it reads: "Jealous that Angelique is spending too much time with Quentin, Gerard goes after Quentin."

And another rare one that I find a bit funny because to me it looks more like David Selby wearing a wig and pretending to be James Storm as Gerard -

 - but then, it could be James. Who knows? But it was published in the Dec. '71 issue of 16 Magazine, hence the drawing of scratches on the face where there shouldn't even be any yet...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

The second of two posts to revisit related to Scene 96:

Here are a second batch of stills for Scene 96. First up, a rare still that was also published as part of the article that appeared in the Dec. '71 issue of 16 Magazine:

The caption for it reads: "Even in the present day, Quentin fights to defend himself
from one of Angelique's lovers. This time it is Gerard (James
Storm), who, madly in love with the ghost of Angelique, succeeds
in his attack against Quentin -- alias Charles."

(It's interesting that the caption explicitly states Gerard's relationship to Angelique prior to Quentin's arrival when, as the film stands, the audience has to piece things together for themselves, and that's made harder by the fact that even in the 129 minute version Scenes 41 through 44 in which Quentin goes to the tower room on his first night at Collinwood and a Gerard who reacts with "eyes blazing with hatred" sees that Quentin goes there are not included. The only things in any version of the film that give any idea Gerard is somehow angered by Quentin's arrival is when he asks Carlotta in Scene 51, "Do you know what happened last night? Do you?!" - Carlotta explains, "Everything has changed now. You must accept that" - he replies, "I was good enough until he came around. Now..." - and she insists, "Now listen! I want you to go to the stables. He'll be there soon to ride. I've told you that everything was different now." The audience doesn't really have any clue to be able to piece things together to understand what Gerard meant until Scenes 92 through 97 take place - and only if they remember that exchange with Carlotta.)

Next, a still that pops up seemingly all over the place (including that same 16 Magazine article, which is why -

(Click here for a 700X564 version)
The 16 Magazine caption for it reads: "In one of his grotesque visions of a time long gone, Quentin
"sees" Angelique (Lara Parker) trying to stop her husband
Gabriel (Christopher Pennock) as he's about to attack Charles
Collins (who Quentin realizes is himself) in a fit of jealous rage!"

- the caption for the first still says "Even in the present day, Quentin fights to defend himself
from one of Angelique's lovers."

But here's a rare version of Angelique's attack on Gabriel -

The caption for it reads: "A busy spirit, Angelique scratches the face
of Christopher Pennock (Gabriel) as he pre-
pares to launch an assault of his own."
Though shouldn't that have been "Lara Parker scratches the face
of Christopher Pennock (Gabriel)"  or "Angelique scratches the face
of Gabriel (Christopher Pennock)" - not what it is because it
associates a character with an actor...

- something that was also published as part of that same Daytime TV article the second Gerard still came from...

And of course you'll recall that the second still in that post is #15 in the NoDS Editor's Portfolio...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Actually, here's a third post worth revisiting related to Scene 96:

I forgot to ask yesterday if I'm the only one who finds it a little odd that the makeup they used in Scene 85 to show the scratch wounds on the cheek of Strack's henchmen -

- makeup that was barely seen as it quickly flashed by in the scene, is much more effective than what they did with the scratch wounds on Gabriel's cheek -

 - when that wound is seen on camera for several seconds.    I mean, the henchman's wounds actually do look like Angelique's nails dug in his skin, whereas Gabriel's wounds look like they simply painted his cheek with red paint. But who knows? Maybe with Gabriel they were attempting to suggest that his wounds were bleeding so much that the actual scratches were hidden under all the blood. 

And I didn't notice until today when I broke Scene 96 down into frames to select one to post on the  "Caption This! - Night of Dark Shadows" board that the scratches on Gerard's face seem to fall inbetween the henchman's and Gabriel's:

Also, I've never really thought about it until today but it's so convenient that those doors in the corridor are closed so Gerard can come bursting through them. We never see them closed in any other scene in the film (or even in hoDS). And when he bursts through them, making all that sound, he isn't exactly acting the way he's scripted to make his way through the house to the stairs because the script says he "quietly ENTERS" his first shot. So much for that notion.    Though the way it is in the film is much more dramatic - not to mention DC isn't exactly known for his subtlety, now is he?! In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if DC moved Gerard's entrance from the foyer to the corridor just so Gerard could burst through those doors! 

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting how Scenes 97 continues to be scripted and moving to Scene 98 in the script:

Picking up with Scene 97:

Suddenly Tracy ENTERS THE SHOT as she runs up the        stairs and tries to pull Quentin off.

And that's when today's quote -

Page 41/Scene 97 - Tracy: 'Quentin!...stop it! You'll kill him! Stop it!'

- comes up, followed by the script continuing with:

She is beating and pulling at him but he won't let        go as Gerard has just about had it.  Then suddenly,        with a ROAR OF ANGER, Quentin turns on Tracy. 98     INTERCUT - SAMANTHA - QUENTIN'S P.O.V.           98        SUBCONSCIOUS MEMORY CUT.        as he starts to strangle her.

And when it comes to what's different with the dialogue, Tracy actually says "Quentin!...stop it! Stop it! You'll kill him!"

And when it comes to what's different with the descriptions and directions, as part of Scene 97 Tracy does desperately pull at Quentin to try to get him off of Gerard but she doesn't beat him - and there's no audible roar of anger when Quentin turns on Tracy - and as we all know, Scene 98 involves Laura -

- and not Samantha. In fact, it's interesting that in the scenes in DC's script where Samantha's name still appears (it was changed to Laura in the rewrites involving her), it's never crossed out and replaced with Laura, whereas in Grayson's script Samantha's name is nearly always crossed out and replaced with Laura even if Carlotta doesn't appear in any way in the sequence.

  As far as "today's quote" goes, it was December 17th this time around.

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

A post worth revisiting related to Scene 97:

Here's a rare still from Scene 97 ...:

(Click here for a 700X544 version)

It's funny that Gerard is the only one whose face you can't see in the screen capture for Tracy's quote -

- yet his is the only face you can see in the still...

And of course you'll recall that the second still in that post is #14 in the NoDS Editor's Portfolio...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Backtracking a bit to two things, one I didn't even think about, and one I forgot was there:

First up, in Scene 92 when the door creeks open to allow Quentin into the tower room, neither the subtitles nor the closed captioning acknowledges the sound, even though in other instances one or the other or both do acknowledge such things.

And second, even though the closed captioning doesn't, the subtitles do acknowledge that the sounds are muted when it comes to Scene 96 as Gerard and Quentin's fight -

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

A post worth revisiting related to Scene 97's subtitles and close captioning:

Sometimes I wonder if the people who did the subtitles and/or closed captioning for NoDS ever actually watched the film? Case in point, when Tracy tries desperately to stop Quentin from attacking Gerard. She screams, "Quentin!...stop it! Stop it! You'll kill him!", and mind you, the closed captioning does get all of that correct, and the subtitles get the first part correct, however, this is what the subtitles comes up with for the latter half:

Who knows?! 

...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Recisiting how Scene 99 is scripted:

Continuing with the current sequence:

99     QUENTIN - CLOSE-UP - NORMAL COLOR                99        as he finally realizes what he's doing and lets go. 99     CONTD                                     CONTD  99

And that's when today's quote -

Page 42/Scene 99 - Quentin: 'Tracy! Tracy!'

- comes up.

And when it comes to what's different with the dialogue, Quentin simply says "Tracy" quietly as the shock of what he's been doing to her hits him.

And when it comes to what's different with the descriptions and directions, for the first and probably only time posting about this sequence, nothing is different. 

  As far as "today's quote" goes, it was December 18th this time around.

Wrapping up Scene 99, first by picking up after Quentin realizes what he was doing to Tracy:

Tracy is in shock as Carlotta ENTERS THE SHOT.

And that's when today's quote -

Page 42/Scene 99 - Carlotta: 'Mr. Collins! What happened?'

- comes up, followed in the script by:

Then she sees Gerard - the blood from the claw        marks on his face.  She rushes to help him as        Quentin shakes his head wordlessly, unable to        explain.

End of scene.

And when it comes to what's different with the dialogue, the descriptions, and the directions, we don't actually see Tracy in shock after Quentin realizes he was strangling her because the scene immediately shifts to Carlotta arriving and almost immediately kneeling to examine her nephew, which means that she doesn't speak to Quentin before seeing Gerard - and what Carlotta actually says is "Mr. Collins!", first with shock, and then "Mr. Collins!" with a great deal of incredulity - and so, considering that Carlotta is already at Gerard's side, she doesn't rush to help him when scripted - and nor does Quentin shake his head wordlessly, unable to explain because what Quentin actually does, as can be seen in the following capture -

- is wordlessly cling to Tracy in shock.

And Grayson has some notations in her script for this section. And as you can read below, they start off with "Animal excitement", which perhaps harkens back to Carlotta and Gerard's murdering of the hippy, which was never shot, but perhaps Grayson didn't know that at the time she wrote that notation in her script. And then she writes "Touches blood", which Carlotta doesn't actually do in the take used in the film, but she does do in this publicity shot for the scene (and I've always thought that it's interesting that Carlotta is pointing in the photo used for the lobby card for this scene but she doesn't actually do that in the film either - but then, some of the lobby cards for NoDS are quite different from what happens in the film - one isn't even shot is the same room that the actual scene takes place, but I digress...). And finally she writes something in reference to Angelique. But once again for the life of me I can't decipher the whole thing -

- so perhaps someone else (and you know who you are  ) can...

  As far as "today's quote" goes, it actually is today, December 19th, this time around.

And we'll revisit that deciphering by "someone else" in my next post...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

 

Let's see. It appears to be: Animal excitement. Touches blood. Fingers (or possibly lingers) on as Angelique. Does that seem like it to you, MB?

I think "lingers" may very well be it. That's the word I couldn't figure out, so thanks again! 

...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

A post definitely worth revisiting related to Scene 99:

As you may recall, I posted publicity stills for Scene 99 back in August in Reply #53:

...

(Click here for a 1088X838 version)

- and like the Charles still, there's an alternate (and rare) version -

- but unlike anything I've shared so far, there's also an alternate (and rarer still) color version -

(Click here for a 700X476 version)

...

Although, in the time since I first made that post, I discovered I had a better version of the color still (the one I'd originally shared ended at Gerard's chin but the better one goes down further), so I replaced the original version with its better version. However, depending on how long it's been since you've cleared your browser's cache, you may need to do so the see the newer version. 

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And another post definitely worth revisiting related to Scene 99:

... There's also a color version as part of the NoDS Lobby Cards set ...

And here that is from back when I posted it in Reply #77:

...

(Click here for a 930X738 version)

...

Although, I have to say that I honestly prefer the still version:

(Click here for a 700X476 version)

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I didn't realize until today that the blood on Gabriel's face in the film is -

- very similar to the blood on Gerard's face in the stills -

(Click here for a 700X476 version)

I wonder if they did that deliberately? And who knows if Chris Pennock and James Storm even shot their parts on the same day?

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And speaking of bloody Gabriel, there are these posts worth revisiting:

MB, I'm wondering if maybe it's the angle on the henchman's face and the way the light hits the blood that makes it more effective.  It looks like it could possibly be the same makeup technique as on Gabriel, but the angle and lighting on Gabriel make it much less effective.

Is there anyone active here who has seen the 129-minute cut?  (Have you, MB?)  I wonder if some shots originally were intended to last a bit longer.  There are certainly some very rough edits in the version we have currently.  And they definitely shortened/eliminated some shots to de-emphasize gore and sex between the (97-minute?) "pre-rated" or "R-rated" version and the 95-minute official release version.  (I saw the 97-minute version twice on the very first day of release.  Quentin and Angelique's kisses, and Gerard's moves on Tracy, were certainly eyebrow-raising, at least for an impressionable 14-year-old.  When I saw the movie again a fews years later on TV, it seemed quite a bit tamer--but that could well have been due to CBS' standards and practices department.  But then the VHS also seemed tamer than my memory of the initial release, and later on I learned about the apparent mistaken release of a non-PG version in Aug. 1971--which I had been lucky enough to catch!!)

MB, I'm wondering if maybe it's the angle on the henchman's face and the way the light hits the blood that makes it more effective.  It looks like it could possibly be the same makeup technique as on Gabriel, but the angle and lighting on Gabriel make it much less effective.

I finally found the time to do what I wanted to do, which was to examine the henchman's sequence using some Linux software that can break down video files into their individual frames. And having done that now it would seem as if the makeup for the henchman is different from the makeup for Gabriel. When it comes to the henchman, in addition to the blood, his makeup has little bits applied to his skin, apparently put there to approximate the skin that was torn by Angelique's nails (and interestingly enough, the same sort of makeup technique seems to have been used for Gerard's cheek wounds). But Gabriel's cheek wounds don't seem to have those bits - or if they do, they're covered up by so much "blood" as to be indiscernible. Unfortunately, we don't get to see a side view of Gabriel's wounded cheek either before or after we see it full on, so if there are bits applied, we can't check to see if they stick up from his skin.

Is there anyone active here who has seen the 129-minute cut?  (Have you, MB?)

I've only seen the presentations that Darren Gross has done at the Fests. Though during the presentation that he did in '04, he showed practically all of the recovered footage, and that was a real thrill to see.

I wonder if some shots originally were intended to last a bit longer.  There are certainly some very rough edits in the version we have currently.  And they definitely shortened/eliminated some shots to de-emphasize gore and sex between the (97-minute?) "pre-rated" or "R-rated" version and the 95-minute official release version.  (I saw the 97-minute version twice on the very first day of release.  Quentin and Angelique's kisses, and Gerard's moves on Tracy, were certainly eyebrow-raising, at least for an impressionable 14-year-old.

Yes, the 97 minute version is much more graphic than the version we currently have. The Charles/Angelique tower make out scene, the Quentin/Tracy bedroom molestation scene, and the Gerard/Tracy truck molestation scene are more sexually graphic - and the horse trampling of Trask and the aftermath of Gerard's shooting are much more bloody. But honestly at this point I don't recall if Darren showed the longer versions of those scenes or if he simply showed the scenes that were completely cut.

When I saw the movie again a fews years later on TV, it seemed quite a bit tamer--but that could well have been due to CBS' standards and practices department.  But then the VHS also seemed tamer than my memory of the initial release, and later on I learned about the apparent mistaken release of a non-PG version in Aug. 1971--which I had been lucky enough to catch!!)

Because of its graphic, bloody, and violent nature, I wasn't surprised that a lot of the stuff that I'd remembered from seeing the 97 minute version wasn't shown on TV, not even on TBS - but I was shocked when it didn't show up in the VHS and the VHS appeared to be exactly like the TBS edit. I was even more shocked when I wrote Marcy Robin to ask if she knew why they didn't use the version of the film that I remembered for the VHS but appeared to use the TBS version and she had no idea what I was talking about. And after I explained to her about the stuff that was missing, she was even more confused because she'd never seen what I was claiming had been in the film. It wasn't until a while later that it was uncovered that the 97 minute version had been mistakenly released in some areas of the country.

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Yesterday I was listening to music online and what should come up but Gary Glitter's Do You Wanna Touch? An idea immediately struck me  though I decided to use Joan Jett & the Blackhearts remake because I like it more:

Brings out a lot of the simmering sexual tension in so many scenes, no?!    And it could have been so much better if we had the 129 minute or even the 97 minute version of the film, which both include the more explicit tower scene and the more explicit molestations of Tracy by Quentin and Gerard. But alas...

Now, if only Warner Brothers had thought to put together a similar promotional video for NoDS when they released it on DVD/Blu-ray back in 2012, think of how many more copies they might have sold. But nooooooo! But then, they were the worst penny pinchers imaginable.    But don't get me started...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting how the first part of Scene 100 is scripted:

Setting up the next scene:

100    INT - CARD ROOM - NIGHT                          100        It is about 3 a.m.  Quentin sits staring at his        coffee.  Tracy watches him nervously.  He now knows        what those other dreams were about - Angelique -        however he still considers her part of a dream.        He does not remember what happened during the fight.                              QUENTIN                  There isn't any explanation.                  None at all.                              TRACY                       (to him)                  Darling, we don't need talk                  about it anymore.

And that's when today's first quote -

Page 42/Scene 100 - Quentin: 'I don't remember anything until I saw Gerard. I didn't recognize him. He shouldn't have been in the house.'

- comes up, followed by today's second quote -

Page 42/Scene 100 - Tracy: 'He simply thought he saw a light.'

-coming up.

And when it comes to what's different with the dialogue, Quentin's "There isn't any explanation. None at all" is dropped in the film - what Tracy actually says to begin the scene is "Darling, we don't need to talk about it anymore" (and I find it odd that the script would specify "to him" because who else would Tracy be saying that to?) - but then Quentin actually says "The first thing I remember is Gerard but I didn't recognize him. What was he doing in the house, anyway?"

And whereas they're not a part of this slideshow, Quentin's and Tracy's first lines were a part of the original Movies Quotes Slideshow:

NoDS: Scene #100 - Quentin: 'There isn't any explanation.
None at all.'


NoDS: Scene #100 - Tracy: 'Darling, we don't need to talk
about it anymore.'

And when it comes to what's different with the descriptions and directions, while Quentin is apparently staring at his coffee (the scene is shot so far away - from two rooms away and through three doorways - that it's hard to discern what he's looking down at), we do see/hear Tracy take a sip of her coffee and put the cup down on its saucer before she tells Quentin they don't have to continue to talk about what happened - and Tracy reaches over to touch Quentin's arm before she tells him that Gerard's explanation is that he simply thought he saw a light (yeah, right!).

  As far as "today's quote" goes, it was December 20th this time around.

Continuing Scene 100, or rather Scene 100B because DC's script has a notation that Scene 100B begins after Tracy tells Quentin that Gerard simply thought he saw a light. And the first thing to come up after that is today's first quote -

Page 42/Scene 100B - Quentin: 'And what was I about to do to you?'

- followed in DC's script by:

He gets up. x to window

And that's when today's second quote -

Page 42/Scene 100B - Tracy: 'You stopped when you realized what you were doing.'

- comes up.

And as for what's different with the dialogue, for a change, nothing is different because both Quentin's and Tracy's lines are delivered exactly as written.

But as for what's different with the descriptions and directions, no doubt DC considered this next part of the scene to be 100B because the camera switches from the long shot of yesterday's portion of the scene to a 2 shot, as can be seen -

- in today's first capture - and Quentin actually reaches out to hold Tracy's hand which, as we may recall from the previous post, is on his arm - and, unlike what the script says and DC's notation to it, Quentin doesn't actually get up and cross to the window after he delivers his line, and that can be easily seen in today's second capture -

- because he's obviously still sitting at the table with Tracy while she reassures him. And speaking of Tracy, there another notation in DC's script that indicates that the camera was supposed to stay on her as Quentin crosses out of frame and she delivers her line, but the above capture also shows that obviously things don't play that way either.

  As far as "today's quote" goes, it was December 21st this time around.