Fans,

Several years ago I wrote a lengthy (I believe it totalled 17 pages) essay analysing Grayson Hall's first few months on Dark Shadows.  (This was meant as a contribution to a book on the 1967 storyline which never did see the light of day.)  I was intrigued to learn that Grayson appeared in a very high number of episodes in the October/November period of that year; I believe that she was in all but five of the shows taped in October of '67.  The slideshow today and those of the recent past are reminding me what a fabulous period this time of the year is for Grayson Hall addicts.  Today's slides include images of the legendary face-off between Julia and Carolyn in the foyer.  I really do think it is "better than heroin" when Julia slams the phone down on Miss Minx's flirtatious chat with Tony Peterson, only to have the young heiress icily inform her houseguest that the Collins family expects a certain standard in the behavior of those who dwell beneath their roof.  Why, it's nearly dinnertime and Julia hasn't even changed!  I find this all the more a hoot in that not only do we never even see the family having dinner (after the one episode of them dining with Laura Collins in, what, January of '67?) but we certainly never see signs that anyone has changed for dinner in later shows (though there are plenty of cases of young ingenues going to bed in high heels and street makeup).

Yesterday's slideshow featured the first of Julia's showdowns with Nicholas Blair, and I did love how it looked in the capture as if the redoubtable "Physician to the Vampire" was going to clock the suave, smug warlock right in the putz.  We have more showdowns between Julia and Nicholas to enjoy in the weeks to come, and in late November we can look forward to the debut of "Julia Hoffman, Detective at Large" with the onset of the Leviathans story.

The falling leaves drift past my window--and there's more fabulous performances from Grayson Hall and the DS repertory company to savor!  Here's to autumnal bliss!

G.

MSC, one of my all-time favorite Grayson moments is, I think, in the introduction of Sabrina storyline (and those painful weeks when we had to deal with RD's Ned Stuart characterization).    Julia is trying to see someone and the other person is claiming that the individual she seeks is not around.  Then somebody else comes out and says "Oh, they're in the next room."  Julia turns to whoever it is she was speaking to before and asks, in this gently wounded innocent voice, "Why was it necessary to LIE?"  Watching that scene as an adult years ago, I had to guffaw, being all too acutely aware of the NUMEROUS times our dear Dr. Hoffman had lied her way with a sweet and smiling face out of one situation after another.

If someone could remind me just when the scene I attempt to describe above actually occurred, I'd be very grateful; since reading Michael's comments above I've been jonesing to see it again.

cheers, G.

Glorioski!  We've had skulls, bats, witches, ghosts, and ghouls, but surely the ULTIMATE horror is what is staring us IN OUR FACE on this site today--the hideous, eldritch, nefandous, insidious terror that IS ROGER DAVIS!!!  And he's CLLUTCHING his HAIR!!!  *swooooooooon*

I remember well that one of the creepiest moments on DS as a child was when Vampire Dirk (probably RD's best performance on the show) was summoning his patsy Judith to come receive her "reward"--I remember the look in RD's eyes made it feel as though ice cubes were cascading down my nether regions!

The Horror!   The Horror!

*hiding behind the sofa, praying he'll go away...*

G.

What an incredibly revealing shot of Barnabas and Julia in the slideshow for Episode 346!  The looks on their respective faces brilliantly encapsulates the emotional dynamic of their relationship at this time in the series.  I think it also shows how brilliantly Grayson and Jonathan played off one another.  When they were both "on," they were a hot couple!

G.

What a fabulous tribute to our beloved show!  I'm fascinated by how much DS seems to be in the public eye these days.

The images are very lush and beautiful, but I think the makeup artist went WAY over the top with the eyeliner.  "Vicki" looks more like Maggie in that last image, to my taste at least.  In the red sleeveless dress "Vicki" actually looks more like Cassandra who did have a red sleeveless dress somewhat close to that color, plus Vicki never wore makeup that dramatic.  Angelique on the stairs is absolutely on-target.  I think my favorite is Angelique and "Vicki" (who again looks more like Maggie to me) on the sofa. Too bad the women on the show didn't have shoes that sharp.

Many thanks to the fan who shared the scans.

G.

Markyboo, it's great to see a DS fan with an appreciation for the films of the Sixties and Seventies (I love the earlier mid-century decades too). I absolutely agree regarding 99 percent of the rubbish H'wood churns out these days.  When I think about the current scene, the prevailing emotion is no longer anything as vigorous as distaste.  It is boredom--tired, enervated boredom.  (I wish I could insert a clip of Grayson as Julia deviously throwing Dave Woodard off the track in '67--"frankly, Dave, I'm boooored."  LOVE that scene.)

Let's hope that the J. Depp Shadows project escapes the curse of script-by-committee, over-produced gloss, supporting actors who are very pretty but can't act their way out of a soggy Dunkin Donuts bag, and C G Isn't.

cheers, G.

Hysterical!  thanks for the laugh.  I needed it...

G.

I really want The Cat Creature. I got a bootleg of it on eBay and it looks godawful on that.  The divine Gale Sondergaard was such a diva in that film...

G.