Happy 50th Anniversary, Night of Dark Shadows

[Uncle Roger]

If Jerry Lacy had been playing the part, maybe Christopher Pennock would have delivered the "good reverend" line with a soupcon of sarcasm.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Everything else about the dream sequences comes up in future sections of the script and will be dealt with then. So, we move on to revisiting how Scene 46 is scripted:

...

CUT TO: 46     INT - MASTER BEDROOM - DAY                        46        It is the following morning.  Quentin is still        asleep.  Tracy has just finished dressing and        now stands looking down at him.  She smiles,        leans over, kisses him lightly.                              TRACY                  Quentin ...        He barely stirs.                  Come on.  It's your first day                  here.  Are you going to sleep                  it away?        Still no response.  She shakes him, still smiling.        Finally, he turns on his back, opens his eyes.        He stares at her, unsmiling, almost as if he didn't        remember her.                              TRACY                  Good morning!        At last Quentin smiles, reaches over and touches        her.

And that's when today's quote -

Page 15/Scene 46 - Quentin: 'Hi...wake me in two hours. I'm beat.'

- comes up.

And there are still no differences between the way DC's and Grayson Hall's scripts are written up to this point - but there is a notations in DC's script that we'll get into below...

And when it comes to any differences in the dialogue, we have no way of knowing at this point because the scene is not in the film as it currently stands.

And so far as any differences in the directions and descriptions go, again, we have no way of knowing at this point. However, there is a notation in DC's script that the scene would open on Tracy's face and then pan down with her.

...

Picking up where we left off with Scene 46:

He yawns, starts to turn over again.  She stops        him with a kiss.

And that's when yesterday's quote -

Page 15/Scene 46 - Tracy: 'Serves you right for wandering around last night without me.'

- comes up, followed by the script continuing with:

46     CONTD                                     CONTD   46                              QUENTIN                  For doing what?                              TRACY                  I woke up and you weren't here.                              QUENTIN                  You imagined it.

And that's when today's quote -

Page 16/Scene 46 - Tracy: 'We haven't been married that long. I know when you're not in my bed.'

- comes up.

...

Wrapping up Scene 46, beginning with yesterday's quote, Quentin's reply to Tracy:

Page 16/Scene 46 - Quentin: 'Well, I was and all night, dreaming very strange dreams.'

- which is followed by the script continuing with:

He struggles into a half-sitting position.

And that's when today's quote -

Page 16/Scene 46 - Tracy: 'I won't fight with you. Ever. Now get up.'

- comes up, followed in the script by:

She EXITS as the CAMERA TRUCKS IN TO HIS CLOSE-UP.        His eyes are very far away as he tries to remember        the "Dream".

End of scene.

...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Another post worth revisiting:

When I'd put together the recent Scene 46 graphics -

- I used a slight crop of this -

(Click here for a 700X532 version)

- rare still...

...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Two more posts worth revisiting regarding Scene 46:

First up -

Here's a rare candid associated with Scene 46 -

(Click here for a 700X874 version)

- and the thing I find most interesting about it is the prominent braid in Tracy's hair, and if you look closely, you can even see the braid in the still I shared in Reply #795. And the reason why I find that most interesting is, given it takes place on the same morning, it means that in the sequence that takes place over upcoming Scenes 47-50 Tracy must also have the braid, though in no other portion of the film does it appear. A whim on hairdresser Edith Tilles' part? Who knows...

The funny thing is that even if Darren Gross hadn't posted on his Restoration Web site that Scenes 46-50 were recovered -

A selection of scenes cut from the 129-minute version that have been recovered:

...

Tracy wakes Quentin after their first night at Collinwood. She tells him that she woke up in the middle of the night to find Quentin gone. Quentin has no memory of leaving the room and he pulls Tracy to him for a passionate kiss.

Tracy sees Gerard and his two Dobermans staring up at her as she drinks coffee in the Gallery. Carlotta tells her that the man is Gerard Stiles, the handyman as well as her nephew.

- I would know they had been because I saw them at the 2004 Tarrytown Fest (and even if I hadn't been there, I would know that at least Scene 46 had been recovered because, as some may recall, a member of the forum took a photo of that scene with their phone and posted it as part of their forum signature, but Darren made them remove it because it violated WB's copyright), but I can't honestly say I have any memory of there being a braid in Tracy's hair. But then, given the excitement that I was seeing recovered footage, I seriously doubt Tracy's hair was what I'd paid attention to...

Another interesting thing is that as far as I can recall, one of the very few times I've ever seen the still published was when it accompanied a question published in one of the daytime magazines (I don't remember which) during The Rookies years when someone asked if Gerald S. O'Loughlin (though they misspelled his name as O'Laughlin) and Kate were once on daytime television. And I seem to recall only one other time when it accompanied an article about Kate during those same years. But I'm too lazy right now to try to track down either...

...

I did actually track down the article this time around and I was a bit off as far as the year goes because it was published in 1977 near the end of the first season of Charlie's Angels. The article was part of a spread featuring articles about all three CA actresses.

(And going off on a complete tangent, Farrah Fawcett-Majors' article includes this quote from her then husband, Lee Majors: "As far as intelligence is concerned, it's way down on my list. If a girl doesn't appeal to me on the most basic of physical levels first - then I'll never be around her long enough to find out if she's intelligent." Wow - no wonder she divorced him. Though Lee Majors was hardly alone in that sort of thinking back then. Men who supported feminism, like Alan Alda, were few and far between. After all, the supposed male ideal was the excessive masculinity of the Marlboro Man...)

- and then -

One last thing about Scene 46:

Apparently I have a photo of another still associated with the scene and I didn't even realize it until today. Though to clarify, I did know I have it, but I didn't realize the still is different from the one I posted in Reply #796. I came across the photo of the still on a site on the Internet (that I've been unable to find again - perhaps the posting no longer exists?) and I saved a copy thinking it was the same still as I posted in Reply #796 but it simply showed more of the background. It wasn't until today when I came across it on my computer while looking for a still I want to post in association of Scene 50 that I realized that it's different. And here it is:

(Click here for a 700X560 version)

Possibly needless to say, to my knowledge it has never been officially published anywhere...

...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

   Oops, I forgot to mention that Kate Jackson offered that top photo as one you could get autographed through the Hollywood Show.

And yes, all right, I'll confess that I bought a copy. I even splurged for a personalized 11X14. And she also added an inscription that I didn't even ask for...

Now it sits beside my autographed Lara Parker NoDS photo.

 

[Uncle Roger]

I got distracted and missed the deadline. Oh well. I ended up spending the money (and quite a bit more) on the deluxe edition of Nancy Sinatra's coffee table book One For Your Dreams.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

   You might regret missing out on Kate, but something tells me you don't regret even one cent of what you spent on Nancy's book. 

[Uncle Roger]

You know me well! The book is definitely a quality item. It has a lenticular cover. It's signed and numbered. The pictures, many of which I've never seen before, are gorgeous. It even came with a pair of white gloves, to keep from staining the pages. Pomegranate Press will never come close to producing an item like this.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If Jerry Lacy had been playing the part, maybe Christopher Pennock would have delivered the "good reverend" line with a soupcon of sarcasm.

If Jerry Lacy played things the way he played 1795/96's Trask, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if it might have affected how Pennock delivered some of Gabriel's lines. How could it not have? 

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Oops #2 - I forgot to revisit this last time around, and I almost forgot to revisit it again:

...

And as a side note, the following line -

NoDS: Scene #46 - Tracy: 'It's your first day here. Are you
going to sleep it away?'

- was included in the NoDS section of the Movies Quotes Slideshow because it's the entry for July 20th on the Fest's 1999 Movie Calendar of quotes.

Obviously it wasn't picked as a quote in the current slideshow...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting how Scenes 47 through 50 are scripted:

...

47     INT - GALLERY - DAY - LOW WIDE ANGLE              47        Tracy stands near the window sipping a cup of        coffee as she leafs through an old book.  CAMERA        starts a SLOW TRUCK IN ON HER.  As we get closer,        we see that she senses something.  She turns and        looks out the window. 48     EXT - GROUNDS - DAY - HER P.O.V.                  48        Standing amongst the trees, staring up at her,        is Gerard.  With him are two vicious-looking black        dogs, both straining at their leashes.  ZOOM IN TO        HIS CLOSE-UP. 49     TRACY - CLOSE-UP                                  49        as she reacts and turns away from his gaze.  It        is obvious that he has upset her.

End of scene.

And there are still no differences between the way DC's and Grayson Hall's scripts are written up to this point.

And as for what might be different when it comes to the directions and descriptions, again, we have no way of knowing at this point because those scenes do not appear in the film as it currently stands.

Though thanks to Darren's Gross' Restoration Web site and the fact that he's shown them, we do know that they and the following scene have been recovered.

...

50     CARLOTTA - MEDIUM ANGLE                           50        as she ENTERS the room carrying a tray with fresh        coffee she sees Tracy by the window. 50     CONTD                                     CONTD   50

And that's when today's quote -

Page 17/Scene 50 - Carlotta: 'Is anything wrong, Mrs. Collins?'

- comes up.

... Grayson's script has extensive notes for this scene, and we'll get into all of them as the scene unfolds. But for now, the first notation is that Carlotta is happy because things are going so well.

...

Picking up where we left off, beginning with:

TRACY - CARLOTTA

And that's when yesterday's quote -

Page 17/Scene 50 - Tracy: 'There's someone down there just staring up at me. Who is it, Carlotta?'

- comes up, followed by the script continuing with:

Carlotta puts down the tray and comes to Tracy.        TRUCK with her so that the two of them are framed        in the window.  In the B.G. we can see that        Gerard is no longer there, but Tracy does not        know this since her back is to the window.

And that's when today's first quote -

Page 17/Scene 50 - Carlotta: 'There's no one there.'

- comes up, followed by the script continuing with:

Tracy turns to look out.

And that's when today's second quote -

Page 17/Scene 50 - Tracy: 'There was a man. With two black dogs.'

- comes up.

...

... Carlotta's explanation:

Page 17/Scene 50 - Carlotta: 'Oh, Gerard. Gerard Stiles. My nephew. He's the caretaker-handyman. He keeps the horses, too. I don't know what I'd do without him.'

... Grayson's script has extensive notes for this portion of the scene. She writes that Carlotta should intimidate Tracy even though she's also wondering what Gerard has done and whether or not he will screw things up - Carlotta must also stop Tracy's curiosity and be short with Tracy - plus she should lead Tracy from the window, sit her down, and serve her her coffee.

...

And as for what might be different when it comes to the directions and descriptions, again, we have no way of knowing at this point because this scene doesn't appear in the film as it currently stands. But if Grayson's notes are an indication, if Carlotta actually sits Tracy down and serves her coffee, that would be different from what's in the script.

Also, I believe Carlotta's lines here are the only place in the script that we learn that Gerard is her nephew so, as the film stands now, that relationship is unknown. (Though many DS fans were probably aware of it before even seeing the film because it was mentioned in some of the publicity leading up to the release and possibly even after, as we'll see once some of that stuff gets posted...)

Wrapping up the current scene:

They look at each other for a moment.                              TRACY                  Oh - I see -- Well, it was just                  that those dogs ...

And that's when today's quote -

Page 17/Scene 50 - Carlotta: 'Those dogs are very important to the security of the estate, madam ... now, is there anything I can get you?'

- comes up, followed by the script continuing with:

TRACY                       (embarrassed)                  Oh - no.  Nothing.  Everything                  ...Everything's just fine.

End of scene.

... in Grayson's script she writes that Carlotta has the subtext that she manages the estate so why does Tracy ask when she should leave it to Carlotta and Carlotta will take care of it. And with DC's script, he notes that when it comes to Tracy's last bits of dialogue, the camera is to pan to her as she looks away.

...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

A post relating to Scenes 47 through 50 that's worth revisiting

When I'd put together the recent Scene 50 graphics -

- I used a slight crop of this -

(Above) Gerard watches Tracy with his two doberman pinschers from under the gallery window in a newly recovered scene from NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS. The dogs are played 'Flash Weiner' and 'Boy Powers.' (Photo courtesy Captain Art Haggerty who was the animal handler and can be seen as the bald henchman in the film.)

- rare still that was shared on Darren Gross' Restoration Web site in the Photo Gallery section...

...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting how Scene 51 is scripted:

...

51     INT - PANTRY - DAY                                51        Gerard is filling a thermos of coffee from the        electric urn.  Carlotta enters. 51     CONTD                                     CONTD   51

And that's when today's quote -

Page 18/Scene 51 - Gerard: 'Do you know what happened last night? [She does not answer.] Do you?'

- comes up.

And there are still no differences between the way DC's and Grayson Hall's scripts are written up to this point. However, once again Grayson's script has extensive notes for this scene, and once again we'll get into all of them as the scene unfolds. But for now, the first notations are that with this scene there's a big transition from the previous scene - here for Carlotta it's all about power and intent and desperation - and Carlotta's not answering Gerard's question at first is her way of angrily giving it to him.

And as for anything that's different with the dialogue, the only thing is that Gerard asks "Do you?" much more forcefully than the script might indicate.

And as for what's different when it comes to the directions and descriptions, Gerard fills his thermos from a pot of coffee, not from an electric urn - and Grayson adds the notation to her script that Carlotta enters "with tray + coffee".

And finally I do have to say that I love the expression on Carlotta's face in today's capture, and here's a closer look:

Continuing with Scene 51, beginning with today's first quote -

Page 18/Scene 51 - Carlotta: 'Everything has changed now. You must accept-'

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

Page 18/Scene 51 - Gerard (interrupting): 'I was good enough before he came, now...'

- coming up.

... for this section the next notations in Grayson's script say "other side" (and I'm not quite sure what that means), "no pretense", and "authoritative".

... And what's unfortunate about all this is that as the film currently stands, the audience doesn't have the vaguest clue as to what they're talking about. Not that everything would be clear with Scenes 41 through 44 in the film because there would still be quite a bit of mystery - but at least the audience would know that Quentin was drawn to the tower room, Gerard is aware of that because while he was outside the night before he saw Quentin pass by the tower room windows, and for some reason as yet unknown, Gerard reacted to that sight with blazing hatred.

And as for what's different with the directions and descriptions, Gerard doesn't actually cut Carlotta off.

And wrapping up Scene 51, beginning with today's quote -

Page 18/Scene 51 - Carlotta (snapping at him): 'Go to the stables. He will be down to ride soon. [Gerard is about to object.] I've told you things are different now.'

- coming up, followed by the script explaining:

She just looks at him.  Finally, he turns and        slams his way out of the room.

... Grayson's script notation for this part says "On the edge of violence. Losing temper."

...

And as for what's different when it comes to the directions and descriptions, Gerard doesn't attempt to object in the middle of Carlotta's lines - and Gerard doesn't so much slam his way out of the room as he grabs his thermos and the cover and leaves - however, in an unscripted action, Carlotta carries the tray over to the counter and slams it down in anger and frustration. And I love her body language -

- because there's no doubt as to who's in charge.

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Starting to deal with the subtitles and the closed captioning for Scene 51:

The closed captioning reflects Gerard's stuttered delivery of his first line -

- whereas the subtitles do not -

- and after Gerard demands, "Do you?!" Carlotta explains that everything has changed and he must accept it - however, his somewhat stuttered comeback is, "I was good enough until he came around, Now..." - but for some reason the subtitles have -

- and the closed captioning completely drops the "Now..." part -

More to come...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Wrapping up the subtitles and the closed captioning for Scene 51:

Both the subtitles and the closed captioning acknowledge that Carlotta cuts off Gerard with an unscripted -

- and after Carlotta orders Gerard to go to the stables because Quentin will be there soon to ride, she reiterates, "I've told you that everything was different now." - however, both the subtitles and the closed captioning have -