Happy 50th Anniversary, Night of Dark Shadows

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I remember at one of the events at Lyndhurst, a particularly loud and rather obnoxious fan didn't feel that a fall from there could kill a person. Many of us encouraged him to go up there and try it for himself.

Really. The tower is five stories high with most of the floors having higher than normal ceilings. I sure as hell wouldn't want to attempt a jump thinking I could survive it. At least not without an awful lot of padding at the bottom. 

But you know what, there's always one in the group. 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Another discussion worth revisiting:

The production still where it shows that Grayson was standing on a box for that scene is a fun one. 

I can just hear her saying when she got home, "Sam!  I worked MY ASS OFF today! Gimme a g & t and make it snappy!"

The production still where it shows that Grayson was standing on a box for that scene is a fun one.

Yes - and what makes it even a bit more fun is that still is one of the lobby cards, so the box is something that almost anyone who saw NoDS in a theater (as opposed to a drive-in) probably saw even though the box doesn't show in the film. 

That's a fabulous shot of Dan shooting the Carlotta jump sequence.  Johnny is right in character even though the camera isn't on him.  Now, that's training!

I'd forgotten about those heels Grayson wore as part of the Carlotta costume.  Fabulous... and no doubt excruciating by the end of each day.

That shot of her on that box really is a hoot!  Can't believe that was used for one of the lobbies.  Somebody was really asleep at the wheel the day they did that layout!!

Somebody sometimes being asleep at the wheel when it comes to DS? What a concept!! 

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting the end of how Scene 238 is scripted and moving through revisiting how Scenes 239 & 240 are scripted:

Wrapping up Scene 238 and moving beyond, beginning with today's quote -

Page 110/Scene 238 - Carlotta (as she looks over the side): 'She needs me.'

coming up, followed in the script by:

239    THE GROUND BELOW - CARLOTTA'S P.O.V.              239        On the ground far below stands the ghost-like figure        of Angelique. her arms outstretched as she beckons        Carlotta to her death. 240    EXT - PARAPET - NIGHT                             240        as Alex takes another step toward Carlotta, she turns        and plummets from the tower.  The only SOUND is that        of the MOANING WIND.        FAST ZOOM to Angelique on the ground below.

End of scripted tower sequence - though in the film that isn't the last we see of Carlotta. But more on that in an upcoming post.

And as far as the descriptions and directions go, everything plays pretty much exactly as scripted with the only difference being that there's a zoom to Angelique both times we see her.

And as far as the dialogue goes, Carlotta's quote doesn't appear in the film as it currently stands.

And Grayson has a note in her script that as Cartlotta decides to jump, she trusts in her love for Angelique.

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   And as far as "today's" quotes go, they were July 22nd this time around.

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting a still associated with Scene 240 -

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- that was shared as part of the Herald featured in the NoDS Pressbook.

And being the trouper that she was, I'm sure Grayson did her own stunt and dived off the tower to an inflatable bag below, right? ... No ... Well, you believe what you believe and I'll believe what I believe!! 

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And here ... behind the scenes ... of DC directing -

(Click here for a 962X600 version)

 - Grayson Hall, which so far as I can recall has never been officially published anywhere...

I hope none of these people, especially Grayson, were afraid of heights. But then as we know a lot of the production of NoDS forced people to face their fears...

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[Mysterious Benefactor]

A couple more posts worth revisiting:

And being the trouper that she was, I'm sure Grayson did her own stunt and dived off the tower to an inflatable bag below, right? ... No ... Well, you believe what you believe and I'll believe what I believe!! 

Oh wow, I don't remember ever seeing that still before!  And as many times as I've seen the movie, I also don't recall seeing Carlotta fall from the tower.  (Of course, as I get older, my memory is less and less what it used to be...)  Gotta give those stunt people credit for what they do.  I'd certainly hate to have to jump off that tower, even if they had the most trustworthy inflatable bags, snug up against the house and reaching out at least a hundred feet away!  Well, maybe if the bag was deep enough that my jump only ended up being one story...

The only place I've ever seen that still is as part of the NoDS Herald that was offered to theaters in the NoDS Pressbook. The sad thing, though, is the pressbook doesn't scan very well, so this is about as good as the page gets:

And if you're wondering what all the captions say, starting top left: "Condemned as a witch and adulteress, Angelique hangs from a rotting tree branch, mute testimony of man's treachery", top center: "Quentin seeks his own answers to the ghostly horror that festers in the dank atmosphere of Collinwood", top right: "Shrill cries of terror racket from Tracy's very soul as she encounters the ghostly Angelique", center right: "Carlotta seeks a terrifying ultimate release from the charnel life that has bound her", bottom right: "Ferocious adversaries spill one another's blood as Gerard and Quentin tangle in vicious confrontation", bottom center: "The restless ghost of Angelique emerges from shadows determinedly seeking her earthling lover Quentin", and bottom left: "Reverend Strack, who has persisted with his scheming that Angelique should be hanged as a witch, and Charles Collins, her lover, look upon her limp body swaying from the gibbet" - and the caption for the bottom card: "Zombie-like mourners tramp the sad loneliness of the Collinwood cemetery as Angelique's coffin is delivered to a final resting place."

And as you can see, whoever wrote all that copy was really showing off...

You'll no doubt spot other stills that I've shared from the Herald. And interestingly enough, notice that stills #1 & #2 from the NoDS Editor's portfolio appear as part of the Herald but many others are not a part of that portfolio and are exclusive to the Herald.

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

A post most definitely worth revisiting about music cues and how things were switched around:

in the 129 minute version of the film Scene 225 continues to play out with Alex and Claire showing up outside the room and Alex helping Quentin to open the door, and we know that Angelique's Assault continues to play over that part of Scene 225 because later on the Blu-ray we get evidence of it (and we'll be revisiting that evidence in the not too distant future)...

And that time has arrived.

As we know, as the film currently stands (as well as in the 97 minute version), the beginning of Scene 225 switches to Scenes 237 through 240, and then switches to Scene 227 (and we'll deal more with those jumps in a future post). So next up I want to revisit the following post that shows that in the 129 minute version of the film Angelique's Assaut continues to play as the background music into Scene 227 (minus any blending with The Possession of Quentin):

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And something that I think I didn't discover until today - or at least I didn't remember it until today when I watched the DVD/Blu-ray version of the sequence.

(I've edited out most of the Alex/Carlotta/Angelique sequence.)

First, the VHS version:

Then the Blu-Ray version:

Though I shouldn't be surprised that each version has something that the other doesn't, particularly because Darren has complained about how the DVD/Blu-ray version is missing much of its foley (the VHS has sounds of Quentin's movement as he enters the room, the DVD/Blu-ray doesn't).

And while others have complained that the holdover music cues at the beginnings of some scenes shouldn't be there in the DVD/Blu-ray version, and I supposed technically they shouldn't, I enjoy the fact that they are because it lets us know how things play in the 129 minute version. But truthfully, who knows if there will ever be a version of NoDS in which everything that should be in place is in place regardless of which length of the film it is? As it is there are already three different versions out there (the VHS, the DVD/Blu-ray and the Amazon Prime/iTunes) none of which is completely correct...

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And speaking of that podcast, Darren also revealed something about the restoration that I found quite intriguing. But I'm going to hold off getting into it for a few days because in a way it relates to something I'm going to revisit then.

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And what's so intriguing is that as part of the restoration process of the 129 minute version of the film Darren and Bob Cobert went through the film and Cobert suggested adding music in some places in the film where there wasn't any. Hopefully one day we'll get to see those changes and how they affect the film...

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(It's getting pitch black here - and that's because severe thunder storms are forecast - fun, fun!!)

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting how Scene 241 is scripted:

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241    INT - GALLERY - NIGHT - HIGH WIDE ANGLE           241        Quentin lies on the floor cradled in Tracy's arms.        Claire kneels next to him.  HOLD FOR ONE BEAT and        then FAST ZOOM IN TO QUENTIN'S CLOSE-UP as, taking        a deep breath, he opens his eyes.  SLOWLY WIDEN TO        INCLUDE Claire and Tracy, as Quentin and Tracy        embrace.

And that's when today's first quote -

Page 110/Scene 241 - Tracy: 'Thank God, Quentin, thank God.'

comes up, followed in the script by:

Claire rises as we continue to PULL BACK as dawn   can be seen through the gallery windows.

And that's when today's second quote -

Page 110/Scene 241 - Quentin: 'It's over, Tracy. It's over!'

comes up.

End of the seance sequence.

And as far as the descriptions and directions go, we do know that there's a zoom in to Quentin as he wakes because that is in one of the TV spots, but beyond that who knows because Scene 241 doesn't appear in the film as it currently stands...

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   And so far as "today's" quotes go, they were July 23rd this time around.

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting the answer to the question I revisited in Reply #1976:

Actually, the biggest clue I can give is: don't watch, listen!

Some people have said privately that they're still confused and I'm pretty much out of hints. And even though the difference is subtle, you might be once you learn what the difference is. 

So, if you watch the Blu-ray/DVD version of the video of the featured part of Scene 224 -

- the background music that you hear is strictly the piece entitled Angelique's Assault on the movies CD -

However, when it comes to the VHS/Laser version -

- between the 5th and 7th seconds of the clip a brief flourish of the beginning of the piece entitled The Possession of Quentin on the movies CD -

- blends with Angelique's Assault -

You'll also note that those two pieces also blend together once things switch to Scene 225 with a desperate Quentin trying to open the door before things switch in the 94 minute (and the 97 minute) version of the film to Scene 237 with Alex arriving in the Tower Room and they continue to blend for a bit with the switch.

Now, when it comes to the Blu-ray/DVD, one would actually expect there not to be any blend and for the background music to go directly from Angelique's Assault to The Possession of Quentin because of the enforced cuts that were made to trim the film down because that's how all the other incidents where footage was removed have worked on the Blu-Ray/DVD. It's a bit confounding that there is blending on the Blu-ray/DVD because in the 129 minute version of the film Scene 225 continues to play out with Alex and Claire showing up outside the room and Alex helping Quentin to open the door, and we know that Angelique's Assault continues to play over that part of Scene 225 because later on the Blu-ray/DVD we get evidence of it (and we'll be revisiting that evidence in the not too distant future)...

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(ADMIN: Edited to replace VHS video with Laser video)

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Another post well worth revisiting:

I've been dancing around the subject for days, but thanks to James Aubrey's insanity, much of what we've been dealing with lately is either jumbled around in the film as it currently stands, or it's completely missing.

Case in point, the only part of Scene 227 that currently appears in the film is Tracy on the floor after the white mist has disappeared, which is then followed by an obvious cut to Quentin kneeling down to revive Tracy and cradle her as she sobs. And what's worse is those two bits of Scene 227 appear after Scenes 237 through 240, which are currently cut to right after Quentin begs Tracy to answer him in Scene 225. And all that means that in the timeline of the current version of the film:

• Scene 225: Quentin begs Tracy to answer him because he can hear her screams as Angelique attacks her in the basement room that Angelique has trapped her.
• Scene 237: Alex searches the tower, sees the parapet door is open.
• Scenes 238-240: Alex finds Carlotta, but she jumps to her death at Angelique's urging.
• Scene 227: Quentin reaches Tracy.

And the problems with that rearrangement is that:

• It causes the audience to presume Carlotta's death allows Quentin to reach Tracy because, apparently, Angelique is no longer being kept alive by Carlotta.
• And quite possibly Angelique could be in two places at once: attacking Tracy AND urging Carlotta to jump. Though because we never do see Angelique's actual attack on Tracy like we do with her attack on Alex, one could at least presume that Angelique doesn't go to Carlotta until after she feels she's dispatched Tracy.
• But the truth is that all of those presumptions are wrong given what was actually scripted. Similar to her attack on Alex, Angelique's attack on Tracy is actually ended by light flooding the room (once the door to the room is finally opened) - and that happens before the seance and before Alex even encounters Carlotta.
• And something that's also quite interesting is that the zooming shot down to Carlotta's dead body on the ground -
  
  
  
  
  - (that currently appears after the bits of Scene 227 - further reinforcing that it's Carlotta's death that saved Tracy) is unscripted. We can presume it might appear in the 129 minute version of the film after Scene 241 (Quentin revives/everything is declared as being over), but who knows...
  

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting the first graphics for July 23rd's quotes:

The first time I made graphics for the above quotes they were -

Page 110/Scene 241 - Tracy: 'Thank God, Quentin,
thank God.'


Page 110/Scene 241 - Quentin: 'It's over, Tracy. It's over!'

- those two, with the top graphic using a screen capture from this -

- which appear in one of the NoDS TV spots.

And here's a version of the clip slowed down to 25% of the speed -

- to get a better look at it...

(It's quite odd that the frame from the shot of the railroad bridge shows up at the beginning of the slowed down version yet it doesn't display at the start of the same clip at its normal speed or when I run the clip frame by frame through my video editing software. And because it doesn't show up in the software, I can't remove it. But hey, not everything can be perfect.  )

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[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting more about graphic for those two quotes:

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And as far as the dialogue goes, presumably in the 129 minute version of the film Tracy still delivers some version of her line, but interestingly enough, in a document that I just recently rediscovered and had forgotten all about, Darren indicates that Quentin's quote was given to Claire (minus the reference to Tracy). So, if I had done graphics closer to what the scene is apparently actually like, these would have probably been more appropriate:

Tracy: 'Thank God, Quentin, thank God.'


Claire: 'It's over. It's over!'

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- with the second one using a crop of this still -

(Click here for a 700X664 version)
Movie Soundtracks booklet caption: "Nancy Barrett as Claire Jenkins, David Selby as Quentin Collins
and Kate Jackson as Tracy Collins in the deleted seance scene."

- which also happens to appear on page 16 of the Movie Soundtracks booklet...

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[Mysterious Benefactor]

And revisiting even more about the graphics for those two quotes:

But this time around, with knowledge that Quentin's "It's over, Tracy. It's over!" was actually given to Claire on the day of shooting (minus the reference to Tracy), I decided to change the graphics again.

The first stayed nearly the same, but I updated it with a better scan -

- by using a crop of this version of the still -

(Click here for a 906X685 version)
Daytime TV caption: "Tracy (Kate Jackson) cradles husband
Quentin (David Selby) during seance to
rid him of the spirit of Angelique."
TV Radio Show caption: "David Selby and Kate Jackson had the lead
roles in Night of Dark Shadows as newlyweds."

- versions of which, as indicated by the captions, were published in Daytime TV and TV Radio Show, and also as the back inside cover of the 30th Anniversary '96 LA Fest.

However, the second got a whole new image -

- by using a crop of this still -

(Click here for a 897X700 version)
TV Dawn to Dusk's caption: "Quentin
collapses in the presence of Angelique's spirit as
Claire (Nancy Barrett) and Tracey (Kate Jackson) sup-
port him."
Famous Monsters of Filmland caption: "Three Creepy People
looking for a light in NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS."
DS Movie Book caption: "Night of Dark Shadows: Nancy Barrett, David Selby and Kate Jackson in the deleted seance scene."

- versions of which, as indicated by the captions, were published in TV Dawn to Dusk and an issue different from the issue of Famous Monsters of Filmland that published the full NoDS article, and also happens to appear on page 12 as part of Kate Jackson's essay in the DS Movie Book...

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   No doubt you'll recall that the still used for the first graphic is #10 in the NoDS Editor's Portfolio, and the second still is #9 in the portfolio.

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And when it comes to that second still:

Oops - I forgot that with regard to that second still, I'd wanted to quote this portion of this post from 2016 about the NoDS slideshow based on the Fest's 1999 Movie Calendar:

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I also forgot to mention that for the original NoDS slideshow, I used a different graphic for the following lines:

NoDS: Scene #234 - Alex: 'Let go of her, Carlotta! You have no right
to hold her back.'

I figured it was just as valid to show Claire and Tracy reacting to Alex and Carlotta as it was showing Alex because at least in part it's that way in the film as well. Plus, as I said, I don't have any stills of Alex...

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And two more from the seance:

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First up an alternate shot of Quentin and Tracy -

- that I've only seen as part of Flip's Curse of Dark Shadows article.

And a shot of Claire that Darren had shared on his Restoration Web site -

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[Mysterious Benefactor]

This is all pretty selfexplanitory:

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And as we're only too well aware, so much of what we've recently been dealing with in the script doesn't play the same way in the film as it currently stands. And I will be getting into those differences very soon. But for now I want to share two videos that I created with the footage that is available in the film and in the trailers and TV spots to put the clips from the trailers in perspective and to give some idea of how certain things were intended to play and how they do play in the 129 minute version.And for the existing footage in the film I used the VHS so that it would be the same aspect ratio as the clips in the trailers/TV spots.

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(ADMIN: Edited to add videos and remove animated GIFs)

As I have with other GIFs, I've made videos of the GIFs I'd originally made so as to give some idea of how the seance and surrounding scenes were intended to play and how they do play in the 129 minute version of the film.

Part 1:

Part 2:

I thought about redoing them so that they had sound, which wasn't possible with GIFs, but the zoom in clip of Quentin waking has part of a voiceover on it, so that wouldn't have worked very well...

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