For the first year or so of the series, it was unquestionably Vicki.  Her opening voiceovers meant she was a presence even on days when Alex wasn't actually a performer onscreen, and she was very clearly intended as the audience's point of view.

I don't think any single character comes that close to being the definitive focus after Barnabas arrives. Barnabas himself is probably the closest they get.  I think the web of plots and subplots gets so complicated after [spoiler]the death of Jason[/spoiler] that different characters are focal points for different storylines.  For instance, during the Adam storyline, Carolyn sort of becomes a way for the audience to get inside of Adam's head and advocate for attributing some shred of humanity to someone who increasingly becomes a whiney, one-note, unattractive character.  They try to use her this way again later on with Jeb and it's even less successful there.  Probably not the best example but if you think about other storylines you will see how they do this again and again.

G.

I don't just want them all to go.  I want to watch them slowly ... BURN.

*sadistic leer*

G.

My personal favorite episode guide is the one in the revised edition (so revised it really should hardly bear the same title) of My DS Scrapbook Memories.  I don't believe that one has the MPI tape numbers, though.

I answered this individual's question based on my own memories of viewing the tapes because the scenes s/he mentioned are ones I've viewed a number of times.  I realize that does qualify me for some sort of so-geeky-he's-beyond-the-pale certificate...

G.

Holy Hekate!  How on Earth did I miss saluting my beloved, entrancing Divine One's first day on the series?  I'm gonna PAY bigtime for such an oversight!

I first saw this show during the 1976 syndication (on Phila's Channel 48) and it was like SEEING GOD.  I was fascinating by Julia's fishtank.  I think I wondered whether she was keeping her very own pet piranha pool in there.  There seemed something vaguely lethal about how she was playing with that little thingamujig (now, I KNOW it's not called a fishnet...).

I was very surprised at how different Jules was when she was introduced, from how she was when I first "met" her in June of '68.  I do think that some of Julia's harder edges come out occasionally in later storylines (thinking of some scenes in the original Chris and Sabrina story here, for example).

The other story I always remember about this episode is from an article in TWODS.  It was by a fan who had become enamoured of Grayson through Night of the Iguana.  One afternoon while she was sitting at home after school filing her nails, a dear friend rang her up and said "Hurry and turn on the TV, it's Grayson Hall running around in a lab coat!  You won't believe it!" Her initial reaction was to blandly inform her friend, "Darling, put down whatever it is you're smoking and take a deep breath and snap out of that trip!" Her friend finally convinced her to put the show on and her jaw dropped... and thereby, hangs a tail!

G.

Thanks for letting us know, Brian.  I did love Camilla's appearances on DS; very memorable.  Oddly enough, her one line of dialogue is one of the few that stands out for me from my viewings of hoDS (apart from anything in the trailer, of course " Vampirism is NOT a disease, Julia!").

Funny, too, that you should mention "The Mothers-in-law."  A week or two ago I watched a very grainy clip (from an episode guest starring Desi Arnaz Sr.) on YouTube.  What a hoot!

Best, Steve

Greetings Cousins,

Last weekend I checked out from the Library the new (released August of '06) two-disc release of the 1944 classic Double Indemnity.  I was quite surprised to learn that the set included a 1973 TV-movie remake (of whose existence I had previously been unaware), and even more surprised to find "Kathleen Cody" in the role of Samantha Eggar's stepdaughter, Lola.

Cody has, I think, three scenes in the movie.  The final one makes the biggest splash.  I still find her an irritatingly one-note performer, but for those who admire her work, they'll want to check this out.

G.

Happy Birthday to the master of suave, debonair villainy at its finest!

G.

Maggie's qualifications:  good healthy screams; looks groovy in the latest Governess Chic fashions, vintage '69.

It would have made some sense if Liz had hired Maggie to do DAYCARE for the children, on the presumption that since Maggie had been close to Vicki, Maggie's presence in the house would help ease the trauma of Vicki's disappearance for the kids.  There could have been dialogue along the lines of "I'll ask Maggie if she'd like to come live at Collinwood to help watch the children while I look for a teacher to provide their lessons."  Of course, this would have required hiring another actress to play the teacher, but she could have appeared even more infrequently than Mrs Johnson did...

I quite like the notion of Julia as the Governess.  (*starts pondering scenarios*)

G.