Marcy Robin

[Midnite]

Sad news from Stuart Manning: DS fan Marcy Robin passed away today (Friday) from complications associated with Alzheimer's disease. We all knew Marcy as publisher of Shadowgram as well as a Festival Committee member and coordinator of its costume galas, and as a wonderful fan fiction writer. My heartfelt condolences go out to her family and friends.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

This is sad news. Marcy and I were very friendly in the '80s and '90s when I first got into fandom, though we lost touch in the years since. I always found her to be quite friendly and willing to go above and beyond for her fellow fans, and not just DS fans because she and I also shared a love of The X-Files. Her contributions to several fandoms will be sorely missed, and ShadowGram was an invaluable source of DS info for decades. I also send my heartfelt condolences to her family and friends....

[patrickm]

All I can say is wow... Marcy and Kathleen were my very first contacts into Dark Shadows fandom around 1988.  ( I didn"t even know there was one. ) I happened to stumble across an old fan club directory at a used book sale and it had a listing for World of Dark Shadows. I wrote and Kathleen replied and got me connected with Marcy and Shadowgram and all the various fanzines n clubs at the time.

I dialogged with Marcy quite a bit back in the early Sci Fi days and DS rally and our fan club activities. Shadowgram was just priceless to me and couldnt wait for the next issue , all pre internet. Even though Shadowgram ceased, we still exchanged Christmas cards every year.  Like Lara Parker, hard to believe she's no longer with us. Really sad... My condolences to Kathleen and their families and friends.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Seems like we have very similar stories, patrickm, because my very first SG was the #44 issue from October of '88. I'd known about SG, The World of DS and Inside The Old House ever since flyers for them came with my copy of KLS' My Scrapbook Memories, which I'd immediately ordered after learning about it via an article about it the DS Files A 20th Anniversary Tribute edition, which a friend had amazingly come across at a Star Trek convention in '86. I've written about this before, but back then I was recording DS in syndication but I was resisting getting involved in fandom because I knew how DS had dominated my life back during its original run and I didn't want to get into things that deeply again. But after the syndication run ended in September of '88 I found myself going through DS withdrawal, and despite myself, before I knew it I was subscribing to SG, The World of DS and Inside The Old House. Though unlike how you began your relationship with Marcy through Kathleen, my experience was the other way around. I still have many letters from them packed away with my old SG and TWODS issues. One of these days I should dig them out and reread them because I suspect it would be a hoot...

As for giving in to getting back into fandom, well, it's pretty obvious how that worked out for me.    But I'll always be grateful for those early years in fandom and Marcy's (and Kathleen's) friendship...

[ProfStokes]

I'm shocked to learn that Marcy Robin is no longer with us. I hadn't seen or heard much from her since the 2016 Festival. I suppose her illness is the reason why. Marcy was a superfan who helped keep the show alive through Shadowgram and the Festivals.  She was always nice to me during my participation in the Festival Costume Galas. Like Patrick said, it's hard to believe she's no longer with us. My condolences. To Kathleen and the rest of Marcy's family and friends. May she rest in peace.

ProfStokes

[Annie]

Omg I’m so sad I can’t believe it . She always used to send the shadow grams to me, when I was in the club.
She will be missed a lot. My deepest condolences go out to her family. May she rest in the peace of heaven.
Anne 😢

[Uncle Roger]

I entered DS fandom earlier than most of you. My first convention of any sort was at the 1983 Shadowcon. I first became aware of Marcy as the author of some pretty good DS fan fiction 
At the first Festival also in 1983, there was something called a Storyfest. Marcy had written the opening to a short story about a sinister mailman. Fans were invited to continue the story and Marcy would read the complete story aloud on the last day of the festival. I don't think that she quite expected the story to go in the direction that it did. Especially when Collinwood turns out to be a certain of debauchery featuring a leather clad Carolyn tormenting Roger. I wish that I could accurately describe the look on her face. Unsurprisingly, they never did a second Story fest.
And she certainly deserved praise for keeping a mostly straight face through some of the more unusual bits in the costume gala.

[Bob_the_Bartender]

I first met Marcy Robin at one of the DS Festivals in NYC during the early 1990s. I told Marcy that I subscribed to her great newsletter, “ShadowGram.” Marcy was extremely gracious and when I told Marcy that there were many teachers in my family, including my mother, Marcy told me of the trials and triumphs she had experienced as a career teacher in Los Angeles.

We corresponded over the years and Marcy very kindly once mentioned in “ShadowGram” that I had vacationed one summer up in Maine, trying to “find” Collinsport along the rocky shores of that beautiful state. As other DS fans have already mentioned, we’ve lost so many DS actors, such as Mitchell Ryan, Christopher Pennock and, most recently, the wonderful Lara Parker. And, on this cherished web site, we have also lost such respected and beloved cousins/posters as my good friends Vera Ann, a/k/a “VAM” and also my Long Island paisan, Raineypark. The news of Marcy’s death this week makes this Christmas season very sad.

May Marcy and all of our departed friends, Rest in Peace.

[Philippe Cordier]

Sad news indeed, especially the familiar names of three in our DS fandom. Thank you for sharing this information. Thoughtful tributes, one and all.

[PennyDreadful]

I was very sad to hear about Marcy's passing. Truly, this is a huge loss in the fan community. I didn't know she was so ill, and was just thinking about her last week because I was hoping to reach out to her about a podcast interview. I was shocked when I saw Stuart's post in the DS News feed on Facebook. It was always such a thrill to receive a Shadowgram in the mail. My deepest sympathies to her friends and family.