SHADOWGRAM NEWS UPDATE   # 340
 
January 5, 2015
 
Hello, Dark Shadows Fan,
 
ShadowGram (SG), The Official Newsletter & News Source for Dark Shadows (DS), announces the following key breaking news in this Official DS News Online Update "bulletin."
 
PLEASE NOTE:
DUE TO THE AMOUNT OF RECENT DS NEWS, SG UPDATE # 340 AND  SG UPDATE # 341 BOTH ARE BEING POSTED TODAY, JANUARY 5, 2015.
 
--- IN THIS SG UPDATE # 340:
 
**** DAVID SELBY & SUSAN SULLIVAN HONORED FOR PLAY PERFORMANCES
 
**** DONNA WANDREY TO APPEAR IN PLAY IN NORTH CAROLINA
 
**** JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT MARRIES
 
**** LYNDHURST ESTATE FEATURED ON SMITHSONIAN CHANNEL SHOW
AND DS FANS ENCOURAGED TO SUPPORT LYNDHURST
 
**** GREYSTONE IS FILMING LOCATION FOR MARVEL’S NEW TV SERIES
 
 
--- IN THE SOON-TO-FOLLOW SG UPDATE # 341:
 
**** IN MEMORIAM – 2014
 
**** DARK SHADOWS REMEMBRANCES
 
**** 2015 DS CALENDAR HAS RARE PHOTOS FROM 1970 & 1971 DS MOVIES
 
**** DS CARIBBEAN CRUISE – SAILING JAN. 10-17, 2015
 
 
----------- HERE IS SHADOWGRAM OFFICIAL DS NEWS ONLINE UPDATE # 340:
 
**** DAVID SELBY, SUSAN SULLIVAN, & “A DELICATE BALANCE” AWARDED
 
SG is happy to share news that David provided this afternoon. Announced today: The 2014 production of “A Delicate Balance” received 6 awards from “the theater critics of www.ArtsinLA.com. The honors went to the entire production, director Robin Larsen, and 3 actors: David, Susan, and their co-star O-Lan Jones.
 
http://www.artsinla.com/ explained:  On 1-1-15 “the theater critics of ArtsInLA.com submitted their lists of the ‘Best of 2014’ in categories ranging from production through performances. Names appearing on 2 or more of the critics’ lists became winners of ArtsInLA.com’s second annual Sage Awards. The awards are named for the obvious reference to the wisdom we hope for, but also for the plant that covers the Los Angeles area, as we do.”
 
SG Update #313 (3-23-14) and subsequent SG Updates announced and reported the play staged at LA’s Odyssey Theatre 4-30/6-15-14. Numerous reviews highly praised the overall production and cast. The LA Times and other local media often cited it as a “Critics’ Pick.”
 
Edward Albee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning “A Delicate Balance” is very intense, full of complex characters seeking a balance – or trying to rationalize or escape how things really are. Long-married couple (Susan’s Agnes and David’s Tobias) must face the deeply hidden and ignored fractures in their relationships with each other, their adult daughter, their best friends, and the course of their lives. 
 
This marked the first time David (DS’ Quentin) and Susan (DS’ Ghost) had acted onstage together in a play. They had no scenes together on DS. But as stars in 1981-90’s FALCON CREST primetime series; their characters eventually married. They also performed the classic 2-character staged reading LOVE LETTERS as a 1-day benefit in Martinsburg, WV 10-10-2003.
 
 
***** DONNA WANDREY ONSTAGE IN PLAY IN N. CAROLINA
 
SG thanks Marie Wallace for relaying Donna’s news: Donna portrays “Polly” in OTHER DESERT CITIES at the Hanesbrand Theatre in downtown Winston-Salem, NC. Rehearsals start soon. Previews begin 2-11 with opening night 2-14. The run ends 3-1.
 
Publicity: “A contemporary comic drama. Returning to Palm Springs, CA, to celebrate the holidays with her family for the first time in years, Brooke Wyeth reveals plans to publish a memoir. As she threatens to disclose the most painful moment in the family history, Brooke’s parents must come to terms with her choices. Through battles over perception and fact, Brooke soon discovers that even secrets have secrets of their own.”
 
The production is through the “professional not-for-profit Triad Stage organization, serving the Triad area.”
 
The Hanesbrands Theatre is at 209 Spruce Street North, Winston-Salem, NC 27101. Box Office:  (336) 272-0160, or (866) 569-TIXX    http://triadstage.org/hanesbrands   Driving directions: http://triadstage.org/visit
 
 
**** JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT & TASHA McCAULEY WED
 
SG congratulates Joe (1991 DS’ David, Daniel) and his wife Tasha McCauley on their 12-20-14 wedding. 
 
His PR representative Erica Grey confirms the private ceremony was held at the couple’s home. It’s well-known that Joe values his privacy, very rarely talking about his relationship.
 
SG Online Updates and SG in print have long included Joe’s own news, also sharing and applauding his many-faceted talents, career, and creative interests. His innovative hitRECord.org collaborative production company openly encourages and works with people of every type worldwide. Its Pivot cable TV series “hitRECord ON TV” won a Creative Arts Interactive Media Emmy Award last summer for its first season of episodes. (See SG Update # 328 – 8-27-14)
 
Tasha is the co-founder and CEO of Fellow Robots, a robotics company based at NASA Research Park in the Silicon Valley, CA. She has a Masters from USC and has taught about robotics, artificial intelligence, and other technologies at the university level. “She is a director of the Ten to the Ninth Plus Foundation, an organization focused on “empowering exponential technological change worldwide.” An area of interest is “how technology can facilitate and enhance creativity.”
 
Joe’s involved in directing, producing, screenwriting, acting, and other projects. In 2014 he starred in SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR. He’s also seen briefly in the recent controversial comedy THE INTERVIEW, co-directed by his friend Seth Rogen, who was his co-star in 2011’s 50/50 movie.
 
 
**** LYNDHURST ESTATE IN NEW SMITHSONIAN CHANNEL SHOW
**** PLEASE SUPPORT LYNDHURST – D S MOVIES’ “COLLINWOOD”
 
--- Promotional footage for the Smithsonian Channel’s new historical/biographical series, MILLION DOLLAR AMERICAN PRINCESSES, was filmed at Lyndhurst.
 
Publicity: “An in-depth look at the young American heiresses whose real-life stories inspired the acclaimed TV drama DOWNTON ABBEY. This series explores the time between the 1870s and the outbreak of World War One, when more than 200 daughters of America’s new industrial millionaires marry into the money-strapped British aristocracy. They use their affluence, allure and ingenuity to their advantage, and they bring dramatic changes to the English ruling class and eventually the world.”   
 
Smithsonian website schedule: http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/sc/web/series/1003587/million-dollar-american-princesses
 
Please check your local listings. The website and its brief biographies of the individual women do not mention Lyndhurst.
 
---- Please support Lyndhurst
 
Over the years, each Fest gathering at Lyndhurst and nearby locations has benefited ongoing restoration and maintenance of the historic estate. SG celebrates that recent DS Festival events there have raised over $20,000 for the preservation of Lyndhurst.
 
The estate is part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation but relies heavily on public support. On 12-27 Lyndhurst shared: “We're growing. With expanded programs, more concerts, new exhibitions and free lectures, Lyndhurst continues to welcome members of our community” and visitors from near and far.  Please make a commitment to Lyndhurst and your contribution will help us for years to come. If you want to ensure that our beautiful 67 acre park stays open and vital, please help us today. As a private, non-profit, we only exist and thrive because you care.”
 
It is hoped DS fans will support the estate, its programs, upkeep, and legacy. Thank you.
To donate: https://secure2.convio.net/nthp/site/Donation2?df_id=13800&13800.donation=form1
 
Lyndhurst, 635 S. Broadway, Tarrytown, NY.  914-631-4481. www.lyndhurst.org
 
“Lyndhurst is considered one of the most significant architectural masterpieces of 19th century America. Designed by Alexander Jackson Davis, the preeminent American architect of his time, Lyndhurst contains important collections of Davis’ furniture, designed for the house and still in situ. Lyndhurst also displays significant collections of French 19th century academic paintings, 18th century French furniture and late 19th century American decorative art objects…. Your donation will help us restore objects and architectural details in the collection, both large and small, as well as support educational programs, curatorial research and preservation of this American Treasure.”
 
 
**** GREYSTONE ESTATE SETTING FOR MARVEL’S NEW “AGENT CARTER’” TV SERIES
 
Interiors, exteriors, and the grounds of Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills served as “Collinwood” and “The Old House” in NBC’s 1991 primetime TV revival DS series (1-13/3-22-1991). The 2004 pilot for a proposed new WB (Warner Brothers) DS series also shot on the estate.
 
Greystone currently is the production set for AGENT CARTER, the new 8-episode series based on the widely-popular Marvel Cinematic/TV universe. The ABC show debuts with a 2-hour episode Tues., Jan. 6.
 
LA Times 1-4: “Set in 1946,… (it) features a number of key characters from Marvel lore,
But with its espionage trappings and deft blend of adventure, comedy, and intrigue,… it’s a high-spirited caper.” The show “is set 1 year after (the movie) CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER… Should the show prove a breakout hit, the busy agent could return for further adventures.” TV Guide 1-5: The “lushly-produced, lavish adventure series brings) some old-style Hollywood glamour to primetime.”

SHADOWGRAM NEWS UPDATE   # 337
 
November 25, 2014
 
Hello, Dark Shadows Fan,
 
ShadowGram (SG), The Official Newsletter & News Source for Dark Shadows (DS), announces the following key breaking news in this Official DS News Online Update "bulletin."
 
 
**** KATHRYN LEIGH SCOTT: “AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.” & HER NEW NOVEL
**** BIG FINISH PRODUCTIONS – “BLOODLUST” NEW DS AUDIO DRAMA SERIES
 
------------
 
KATHRYN LEIGH SCOTT TELLS SG ABOUT “S.H.I.E.L.D” EPISODE & HER “BEVERLY HEELS” SEQUEL
 
SG Update # 336 (11-23) announced Kathryn (Maggie, Josette, Kitty, Rachel) is in an upcoming episode of TV’s “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” She now adds the following.
 
“I filmed several scenes in a new episode of ‘Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ The show is so secretive that I was never given a script, only my dialogue! I am going to respect their desire to keep the story a surprise. Besides, I can't provide a synopsis because I have no idea what the story is. My episode will air mid-season and I will supply more information as I get it.
 
“I'd also like to announce my sequel to ‘Down and Out in Beverly Heels,’ (titled) ‘Jinxed.’ It is available on Amazon for preorder and will be published 2-7-15.”
 
Kathryn here shares the “Jinxed” synopsis with SG:
 
“JINXED – A Jinx Fogarty Mystery
 
Back on the comeback trail, actress Meg Barnes, beloved for her role as amateur sleuth Jinx Fogarty in a renowned detective show, assumes she’ll star as Jinx in the revamped TV series, only to discover that a young ingénue has been cast instead. Meg swallows her pride for a paycheck to coach Chelsea Horne—until temperamental Chelsea goes missing before filming begins. Meg ignores the warnings from Jack, her FBI-agent boyfriend, not to do her “Jinx thing.” But when a threatening secret exposes a dark chapter in Meg’s past, it’s clear her life—and more—is in jeopardy.”
 
 
**** NEW AUDIO DRAMA SERIES WITH LARGE ENSEMBLE CAST DUE IN JANUARY, 2015
 
At the August 2006 Brooklyn, NY, DS Festival, Big Finish Productions (BFP) of England launched its first of its 40+ DS audio dramas. These new stories are based on the original show and star many original DS cast members re-creating their TV characters or portraying new ones. They are joined by talented actors from England and America, with music and sound effects. Each professionally-recorded drama presents its own original story set within the established DS time periods as well as in the decades between.
 
“Bloodlust” is a major new audio drama in 13 episodes, to be available as a series of downloads and then on CD in boxed sets, starting in January.
 
SG greatly thanks Joe Lidster and David Darlington of BFP for sharing the Official Press Release and the Cast List.
 
BLOODLUST – A Multi-Chapter Original Dark Shadows Audio Drama
 
“Some describe it as the town at the edge of the world.
 
“When Melody and Michael Devereux come to Collinsport on their honeymoon, they don't know the secrets that are hidden behind closed doors. But those secrets will be unearthed when an innocent is viciously murdered.
 
“Collinsport will be a town divided. One woman's rise to power will lead to further death and destruction. Families will be ripped apart. Blood will be spilt.
 
“And the dark forces that wait in the shadows will wait no more. For in Collinsport, death is never the end…,”
 
Jerry Lacy, Lara Parker, Kathryn Leigh Scott, David Selby and Marie Wallace star in the new audio series from Big Finish Productions. A 13-episode serial, Bloodlust sees the town of Collinsport ripped apart by a brutal murder. The series will be launched in January 2015 both as a series of downloads and in two CD boxsets.
 
“Big Finish has been producing Dark Shadows audios since 2006,” says writer and series co-producer Joseph Lidster. “Over the years, we've brought back most of the original cast and told stories featuring so many of those fantastic characters Dan Curtis created but we knew, with Bloodlust, we wanted to go even bigger.”
 
“For me, the appeal of Dark Shadows is the soap opera format,” continues co-producer David Darlington. “It's hard to re-create that in a series of audio dramas but, over the last couple of years, we've experimented with ongoing storylines and character arcs. And now, with Bloodlust, we're really going for it.”
 
“We want the listener to be able to close their eyes and see Collinsport,” says Lidster. “These are absolutely 13 episodes of Dark Shadows and, although the murder mystery has a beginning, middle and end, there's so much more going on. Relationships develop across the series and there are a few surprises along the way.”
 
Fans of the audio dramas will know that 2010's Kingdom of the Dead ended on a cliffhanger. Bloodlust will continue on from that but will also act as a perfect jumping-on point for new listeners. As well as original series actors, the series also features Alec Newman (the 2004 Dark Shadows pilot) and Matthew Waterhouse (Doctor Who).
 
“We're really very proud of Bloodlust,” continues Lidster. “We're huge fans of the original television series and it's a genuine honour to be continuing the legacy of Dan Curtis.”
 
BLOODLUST CAST LIST:
 
Julius Bishop - Ross McNamara
Angelique Bouchard - Lara Parker
Barnabas Collins - Andrew Collins
David Collins - Alec Newman (“Barnabas” - 2004 WB DS pilot)
Quentin Collins - David Selby
Amy Cunningham - Stephanie Ellyne
Andrew Cunningham - Matthew Waterhouse
Harry Cunningham - Scott Haran
Melody Devereux - Daisy Tormé
Michael Devereux - Jeff Harding
Maggie Evans - Kathryn Leigh Scott
Benjamin Franklin - Roger Carvalho
Ed Griffin - Jamison Selby
Jessica Griffin - Marie Wallace
Eric Hanley - Daniel Collard
Cody Hill - Walles Hamonde
Edgar McBride - Wallace McBride
Kate Ripperton - Asta Parry
Jacqueline Tate - Alexandra Donnachie
Rhonda Tate - Lachele Carl
Isaiah Trask  - Jerry Lacy
 
The “Bloodlust” audio drama series now is available to pre-order at http://www.bigfinish.com/ranges/v/dark-shadows---bloodlust.
 
You can hear the various townsfolk – including Quentin, Maggie and Angelique –introducing themselves, for free, at https://soundcloud.com/darkshadowsbfp/sets/dark-shadows-bloodlust.
 
For further information, visit the Big Finish website or follow us on Twitter @darkshadowsbfp.
 
---- PLEASE NOTE: Pre-orders are for downloads only, or for a Bundle of all 13 episodes in two CD boxed sets, which will be sent after the finish of the series.
 
The boxed sets also will be available separately via the BFP website. They cannot be pre-ordered at this time. Orders for boxed sets placed via the BFP website will be shipped from BFP’s location in England. This will require additional postage and longer shipping time.
 
The ShadowGram Official DS News Online Updates will announce when the actual boxed sets are available for purchase. Exact mail-order prices are being finalized. SG will announce those details as they are confirmed.
 
The DS Festival/Official DS Fan Club will be the only American-based source for the “Bloodlust” audio drama series boxed sets, as of their release in early 2015.
 
To be notified when the boxed sets are available for purchase, please email pansyfaye@darkshadowsfestival.com  Please include your full name and postal-mail address.
 
---- Also: previous DS Big Finish audio drama CDs are currently for sale directly from the DS Festival/Official Fan Club. These include some that are autographed by the DS stars.  For more information, please go to www.darkshadowsfestival.com
 
After the “Bloodlust” boxed sets are released, they also will be available via the BFP website. Those orders will be shipped from BFP’s location in England. This will require additional postage and longer shipping / delivery time.

Marcy Robin

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