What a great thread!  thanks to Pansity for getting it going.

I love all the historical costumes on the show, but I disagree that they were anywhere near accurate in the period.  The dresses worn by Naomi and the Countess are MID 18th century--1760s at best, I believe.  I read somewhere that the costumes for 1795 came to the production from a play or film for which they had originally been made. I've often wondered whether the availability of those costumes had anything to do with the date switch in the "origins of Barnabas" storyline from the original ca. 1837 date to the 1790s.  I'm by no means an authority, but the costumes for Joshua, Barnabas, Forbes and Jeremiah all look more Revolutionary War than Federalist to my untrained eye.  Anybody have a URL handy for men's clothing of the mid 1790s?  The arrival of Napoleon on the scene seems to have brought a lot of innovations in its wake--in fashion and elsewhere, although when I was reading Dangerous Liaisons I remember the notes saying that some years before '89 the women's clothes had already been streamlined and the character of the Marquise was Laclos's comment upon proto-feminist thought in the 1780s.

I do think Angelique's clothes in 1795 are more correct--for a lady of middling class but not for a servant girl.  The mob cap is a nice touch, of course.

The women's clothes for the 1897 serial seem a little nearer the mark to me, but a friend told me that the men's clothing (Quentin, Edward, et al.) was more 1870s than 1890s.  Carl's suits do look like old photographs I have seen of 1890s men's holiday wear--appropriate for a gentleman of (aspiring) leisure.

I'm not sure that people in early modern society had all that many changes of clothing.  I've heard Americans who travel comment that people of good background in, say, Italy, tend to have three outfits--the work outfit, the relaxing-at-home outfit, and the party outfit.  They'll accessorise those outfits with changes of tie, scarf, gloves, whatever.  The idea of a closet packed with 40 different outfits is an innovation of US consumerism of the 1950s and 60s.

Just a few thoughts from me on this topic...

G.

The answer to this question is complicated for Ode to Angelique.  An arrangement of the tune plays as a cue for the early glimpses of life in the Parallel Time room in episodes that aired in February of 1970.  In March we first heard the Bruno Hess version on a phonograph record that Hoffman tricked Maggie into purchasing for Daniel.  Shortly thereafter, we hear Bruno playing it (for the first of MANY occasions) on the piano in the cottage.

As for Quentin's theme, I believe it was first heard playing from Quentin's gramophone in December of '68.

Hopefully others can give you specific day/month/year dates and episode numbers.

Best, Steve

I can never remember whether there were TWO board games, one called Barnabas Collins and one called Dark Shadows, or whether they were just different packagings of the same games.

The story about the fangs basically is that kids would run riot through the house "fanging"one another, then take out the fangs and run off to watch DS... their irate Moms would grab those icky fangs off the kitchen counter where they had been unwisely parked and sweep them right into the bin.  Poof!  no more fangs.

Best, G.

Midnite, many thanks for sharing this exciting news!

If the Bloopers disc does indeed make the targeted November release date, it will be in time to be a ready candidate for every fan's holidaze dream stocking-stuffer!

Thanks again, G.

Hi Penny Dreadful,

my roommate and I viewed the extra-special Easter Leg last night and we were both in awe of your Witchy way with accessorizing!  I actually learned something, too, as I don't believe I ever saw the "retro orange" DS cards before (although I have this weird half-memory of having read about them, somewhere or other).

My biggest complaint about the various card sets is that none of them, so far as I am aware, included Cassandra.  I now have nearly the entire Cassandra storyline on DVD (minus her lovely cameo appearance in the autumn of '68) and was reviewing the discs over the weekend and just realizing all over again why Cassandra will always be among my own favorite Witches.  (Doesn't stop me from snickering whenever Nicholas rakes her over the coals as "incompetent" and even worse, "amateur"!)

You didn't include the Viewmaster set, my personal favorite DS collectible. Wish I still had mine, with the booklet "in sombre colors" that included a muted, gorgeous portrait of Julia.

Best, Steve

Oh, I'm quite fond of that dressing gown.  It really brings a whiff of "Eau de Liberace" to the series....
I agree however that Frid looked fabulous in the smoking jacket.  The shots of him actually smoking while wearing the jacket on the OH drawing room set (which I assume were snapped during a break--probably while Bill Chu was working on his book) are sooo deliciously HIP.

G.

Would have been even more fun if they had staged that scene with Jason in his smoking jacket and Barn wearing his dressing gown.  Poor Willie--the beaten-down butch fought over by the rival daddies!

G.