Halloween in Hollywood

I understand that the Festival sold 300 tickets for yesterday's event, and I noticed badges numbering in the 270s, but the head count was definitely not in the 300 ballpark.  Maybe if you added in the Festival staff, the actors, and the facility employees, you'd get close.  Not that I'm complaining, mind you.  The lobby accommodated individual lines for each of the tables, there were plenty of seats all over, and the line to enter didn't get long.  By afternoon, you could simply walk up to get autographs from some of the actors, and by then a certain actress (who was ailing) finally allowed photos to be taken of her.

And the doors opened promptly at 12!!!!  Good news: no registration line.  Bad news: no program of any kind.  As per usual: the event room had the A/C blasting even though we're finally experiencing some fall weather here.

Saw 7 Forum cousins.  Enjoyed catching up with jimbo and Darren Gross.  Check out the many wonderful photos on Facebook, such as Dark Shadows Lives, where you can see the two Willies meet up again at Karlen's table (joined by KLS, sigh).  Joe Intelgia, who stepped in as videographer, has a terrific photo of the Costume Gala if you're able to view his Fb page.  Also, who knew that Daniel Roebuck is a fan?

Mitch Ryan was a no-show.  Nancy Barrett didn't make it (ailing husband) but her fangs did.  Sy Tomashoff contacted Pierson in the morning to say he just wasn't feeling up to it.  Roger Davis was late, missing his panel, but was replaced by the recently added Jerry Lacy.  Roger took the stage alone during the scheduled meal break and rambled on until being told to please stop.  Because his "villagers" were pumped for his appearance, Chris Pennock (who'd come down with the flu) received the loudest applause in his panel, but John Karlen received standing ovations both coming and going as he did in Tarrytown; sadly, he seemed a little bit frailer to me since that appearance this past summer.

Also in attendance but not previously mentioned:  Lisa Richards; Robert Cobert-- recently turning 92, looking great, and dropping F-bombs like you would not believe, but only after making sure that no one under 17 was in his audience; Lara Parker-- not reading from her soon-to-be-released book due to a bad cold, though she did speak on stage, and lots of books were sold; Jim Storm and guitar; Ansel Faraj (Doctor Mabuse was one of the freebies for attendees).  KLS had a mound of her books for sale.  MPI sent a table of stuff.  AFAIK, Big Finish wasn't represented but some of their audio recordings were for sale at a special Halloween rate of $10.

A photo of NoDS from a current scene in the Forum slide show was for sale at Jim Storm's table.  Interestingly, John Karlen did not recognize himself standing between Grayson Hall and Storm in the picture.

I can give some details of the presentations later.  I'm sorry to say I did not catch the new Documentary so I can't say a thing about it.  It was scheduled to be shown at 7:30 and I simply had to step out with friends for a bite to eat and some red refreshment and we just didn't make it back in time. 

Hopefully it will stop raining here today by the time fans start visiting the Greystone grounds.

I forgot to mention that Janet Meehan was seated next to Lara with many paintings as well as her graphic novel on display.  Her work (seen via link) is much more stunning in person.

http://laraparkersite.blogspot.com/2016/10/talented-artist-illustrates-angeliques.html

Thanks so much for your account of the day, Midnite. I definitely look forward to more info. 

A photo of NoDS from a current scene in the Forum slide show was for sale at Jim Storm's table.  Interestingly, John Karlen did not recognize himself standing between Grayson Hall and Storm in the picture.

Jim Storm must have known to make sure to bring that photo along because it coordinated with our slideshow, right?    Might it have been one of these two photos -

- or some other version thereof?

(I've always found the captions for those photos to be quite odd. The top photo appears in the NoDS Pressbook, and one would presume that a pressbook for a film would accurately caption its photos, but apparently not because it says something like a ghost terrifies Grayson Hall, John Karlen and James Storm. Yet as we well know, they're actually looking up at David Selby when Quentin tells Carlotta and Gerard to leave Alex alone. And the bottom photo appears in a NoDS article from 16 Spec Magazine, and its caption is even more misleading because it says something like Carlotta, Alex and Gerard gape with fear as they see Angelique. Huh?!)

The top one, MB.    Had it been the 2nd photo, perhaps Johnny wouldn't have been so reluctant to sign it?

Saturday, October 29

Between noon and 1, while many fans were getting autographs and purchasing merchandise from the actors’ and MPI’s tables, DS Bloopers aired first in the adjoining event room.  Surprisingly, a number of fans mentioned that they hadn’t seen it before.  When asked by Jim Pierson how many in the room had traveled from out of state, about a third of the room raised a hand.

Next was the 2nd Fest showing of The Web from 1954, the earlier of Art Wallace’s teleplays that served as inspiration for his DS bible.  A mother and daughter-- Elizabeth/Liz and Louise Stover-- reside in a house that’s fallen into disrepair, with the latter newly engaged to her boyfriend Joe.  Unlike our Carolyn, Louise is reluctant to leave her mother, and Joe is such a nice guy that he agrees to live there temporarily after the wedding.  A creepy sailor named Walt Cummings presses for information about them at a local bar while, at a nearby table, a regular named Sam just can’t seem to avoid ticking off the bartender.

There’s a mention of Liz’s most precious possession, which apparently is a red snapper recipe, though clearly her daughter is her only reason for living.

Liz is shocked to see Walt at her door.  We learn that Walt left town, promising to never return, after she murdered her seaman husband John after he threatened to desert his family and take her jewelry with him.  Louise is shocked when Walt stays over since he’s the first stranger her mother has allowed to stay in the house during those years.  Louise invites Walt to her wedding, and after he emotionally manipulates her with a few kind words about knowing her as a child, she becomes convinced that Walt is her daddy.  Walt is amused, and this enrages Liz, who privately warns him with such a crazed look that even he wonders if she’ll kill him too.

But Louise has a right to know, she thinks, and believing that her daughter is going to be safe and happy with Joe has given Liz some strength, and when a worker (Will?) sent by Joe to fix up the place wants to begin in the cellar, Liz decides to show him exactly where to dig.  Walt is nervous, and Liz informs Louise that her father is dead-- she killed the cruel, selfish jerk almost 25 years before.  He wanted her jewelry to pay off his gambling debt and she pulled out the gun he kept in an attempt to stop him but it went off.  Walt had showed Liz the spot where he’d buried him, but the worker came upstairs to say he’d only found dirt there.  Walt came clean-- John was merely grazed in the head and came to in the cellar.  The men left together, with Liz thinking the jewels were a payment for Walt’s silence, and John died for real at sea 10 years ago.  Walt claims it was just an innocent deception.  Joe wants Walt jailed for extortion, but Liz feels her new-found freedom is payoff enough.  “I can leave the house now,” she says.  And she walks outside into sunlight.

We were promised a “lost clip” next, which turned out to be a highlight reel from the first year of the show.  I love that period, but why be misleading about it?  I’m guessing it was recently edited anyway since it highlighted performances by several of the day’s expected guests.  It began with Ep #1, then Carolyn visiting Burke’s room for the first time; Maggie called Vicki a jerk; Matthew found David and Vicki discussing Josette’s portrait in the Old House; Josette’s ghost walked off the canvas; Willie #1 bugged Maggie and then antagonized Joe in the Blue Whale; Willie #1 horribly menaces Carolyn.

A bearded John Karlen is introduced by emcee Richard Halpern and had to be assisted to his chair, where he corrected him with: “What’s left of John Karlen.”  He warned that he sometimes gets screwed up regarding the order of events, but that didn’t prevent fans from asking detailed questions of him, sigh.

Regarding Tyne Daly, he said he feels lucky to have worked with her, they always had a great relationship and remain in touch monthly.  When told that Cagney & Lacey airs on THIS, he asked “How does it hold up?”  A fan showed him a painting she did of him as Carl.  It’s pretty good, he says.  (We don’t see it as it’s on her phone.)  When asked how he felt when he learned he was going to be bitten by a vampire and his personality would undergo a transformation, he asked, “What was it before?”  But he was excited about the being-bitten-by-a-vampire part.  Jonathan Frid, he told another fan, was a true friend.  And then we hear about the bar near the studio, its steaks, and Frid’s love of vodka.

His first TV job was “The Verdict is Yours” at age 24 or 25.  He was allowed to do anything on it that he wanted to do [the show was unscripted], which made for some of his best moments ever in acting.  He was asked if this show was an anthology (what the hell?) but he had to ask what that meant, then was able to answer that he thinks he played the same character every week, a criminal.  He always tried to give all that he had in his roles, probably because he grew up Brooklyn where kids never held anything back.  He said he had no audition for DS as he “replaced a guy” who didn’t work out and had the job cold when he showed up for it.  He recalls watching the other actor in the role a couple of times before he took over.

Favorite character on DS?  “Wasn’t I Willie Loomis?” he replied.  Of course that was his favorite, he said.  [Let it go, people; but no.]  Fans called out the names of his other characters.  “Was Carl Collins an Englishman?”  Kinda, he was told.  <sigh>

Jonathan, he said, was fun, he had a little trouble with his lines, but he made it clear that’s not a shot against him.  Since there were no reshoots, when Frid would go up once in a while, Karlen would do a ventriloquist act behind him, giving him a line.  Again, not a shot; he loved JF very much.

What does he think of the Depp movie?  “I never saw it.  (a beat) Depp played who?”  Barnabas.  He declared, “That’s simply out of his range” to much applause.  He then told the story of Frid, packed up and ready to go to California, “his hand on the door knob” when the phone rang and he was asked to audition for the part of Barnabas.  “Five minutes later, he’d be in California playing Tarzan or something.”

When asked how long he had the script before an episode, he said he would learn it on the subway from Queens, but luckily, learning lines was easy for him.  Richard asked if the script often changed.  There were very few, he answered.  “Not enough to upset the apple cart.”

Asked about the appeal of stage, he said it’s “easily the best”.  He loved a live crowd.  In recalling his performance in Prometheus Bound (60 maidens, 18-piece orchestra below the stage…), he said it stands alone as the best thing he’d ever done.  He named Caligula and Marat/Sade.  As Willie, I gave it all I had, he said, but for an actor who can act, the stage is the name of the game.  For Prometheus Bound, the reviews were pretty good.

He thanked fans for their 50 years of loyalty.  “Mostly, everyone is dead.”

He told about the biggest moment he ever had-- while walking in the city, he came upon Muhammad Ali with his entourage.  Ali caught his eye and acknowledged him with a thumb’s up. “Another fan of Dark Shadows,” John said.  Ali lost 3 years of his career as a conscientious objector, and Karlen wondered what his own thinking about it was back then.

About working with Dennis Patrick, Karlen said he couldn’t hardly stop from laughing and had to bite the inside of his cheek when he heard his Irish brogue.  Dennis had a horrible ending, huddled on the top floor with his dog when his home burned and dying of smoke inhalation.

On Clarice Blackburn, he said she was a sweetheart of a lady.

Do you have a moment about Jonathan Frid that stands out?  “He was at his best with a vodka in his hand.”  He’d hold onto that glass, had 3 or 4 of them after the show.  He was a great guy.  He was happy that DS allowed him to rent that apartment for a few years with the view of the Manhattan (?) bridge.

It took 2 people to help him up and off the stage.  God bless him.

Laura Brodian was introduced as the founding artistic director of the Collinsport Players.  Wearing flowers in hair and flashing a sweet smile, she spoke about finding the inspiration to create skits after the first Dark Shadows Festival in 1983 (in NJ).  She was joined in the effort by Jeff Thompson (now East Coast director), and Laura became the West Coast director, from the start contributing her writing and acting skills, making costumes, and occasionally cracking up during performances.


Next was Mary O’Leary, a producer of daytime TV (GH, GL, Y&R, AW, OLTL) and a 7-time Emmy winner.  Mary partnered with Jonathan Frid in Clunes Associates, producing his one-man shows during the 8 years it toured.  She was a fan of Dark Shadows, had started working in TV, and wrote Frid a letter after he mentioned his newest endeavor to perform one-man shows during a promotion of DS and the NJ Network in 1985, where he also performed The Tell-Tale Heart and a segment from Richard III.  He phoned her 2 days later and they met.  Frid wanted a variety of authors, and he was frank with her that he wasn’t always the best at memorizing lines, but she explained to him that Reader’s Theater utilizes scripts.  He began doing readings at DS Festivals, and Mary, joined by then high-schooler Will McKinley, researched his material.  Frid wanted a theme while using many different titles and also incorporating some humor.  Mary’s former high school teacher helped arrange his first campus show which took him to Salve Regina University, where he found himself performing with “the house” [the Carey Mansion] over his shoulder.

Next came the opportunity to do Arsenic and Old Lace since most of the Broadway cast except Jean Stapleton didn’t want to tour.  The cast was made up of other TV stars, and Mary convinced him that doing it would help get future bookings for his shows.  She also mentioned that there’s a line in the original production in which Karloff as Jonathan Brewster said, “I’ve been given the face of Boris Karloff.”  (I caught up with Mary in the lobby and asked what Frid’s line was in the play.  She said it was suggested that he say, “I’ve been given the face of Barnabas Collins,” but Frid refused, saying the original line should stay the same.  Abe Vigoda, she said, also played the character on stage and he too delivered the line as it was on Broadway.)

Mary said that Frid loved being on stage.  He loved playing Barnabas, but he wanted more rehearsal time in playing him.

In 1993 she was being promoted on Guiding Light and found herself overreaching, so she felt the need to pass the torch.  Frid retired and returned to Canada.  Her own career brought her to California to work on General Hospital.  Wlll McKinley attended NYU after a recommendation by Frid to Robert Costello, then a professor at the University.

Her slide show presentation is enjoyable:  several personal photos with Frid, and many of fans in earlier days.  One of the songs-- “Best Day of My Life” (wooooh wooooh)-- just made the whole thing uplifting.

A Q&A followed:  Clunes Associates, chosen by Frid, was inspired by his Scottish heritage.  Frid auditioned for a role on Guiding Light as Baron Von Halkein, father of India, but unfortunately he wasn’t what they had in mind for the part.  She told a couple of stories and spoke about the grueling schedule on soaps today.

Next, Robert Cobert.

Make that BOB Cobert, and he made us practice calling him that.  He made a 3 hour trek to get there from his home in Palm Desert and so far this event is still running on time!  Pierson said his score for Curtis’ The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde would debut next month (and not at this Fest as announced in Shadowgram).

“Don’t get to be 92,” Cobert said after slowly getting into his chair.  “It’s a pain in the ass.”

Question:  How did he make such fantastic music on a small budget?  He said he used midgets, then that he hoped there were no midgets there. [sigh]  Then, “I’m a genius.”  Finally, he said that while the show had a small budget, he didn’t.  He used anywhere from a small orchestra-- 5 or 6 musicians-- on up to 45 to 50 piece orchestras.  Then he joked that nah, he’d hire a kid for $9 and head to his penthouse on Park Ave.

How much time was he given to compose music for the show?  He wasn’t backstage five days a week; he’d compose libraries, and Sybil Weinberger, who WAS at the studio every day, had his entire library to decide from.  He never had to write something overnight for the show.  He heard ahead that a vampire was coming onto the show, and within a couple of weeks he had a couple of hours of vampire music for the show to use.  Sybil was the one that had DC sitting behind her in the booth; “she had to live through all that,” he said.

Quentin’s Theme?  Dan Curtis said he had a new spook coming.  Cobert was called in and asked to come up with music for Quentin’s Theme, as Curtis was already calling it-- something from the 1885/1890 period.  He knew Curtis’ need for instant gratification and said he had something and began to hum it for him (and also for us).  Curtis:  “It’s f**king fantastic.  I love it.”  But it did sound a little familiar to him, and Cobert told him it’s because he’d written it for Jekyll & Hyde.  “And the rest is history,” he said.

When did Cobert meet DC?  He was working for David Susskind, and Bob Costello was associated with the same show.  During Father’s Day at the Manhattan School where both men had kids, Costello asked if he had time for another show (in addition to the five he was already working on).  He was brought in and clicked with Curtis immediately.  Cobert thought the idea for Dark Shadows smelled like a hit and he liked the nuthead.  He told Curtis that the theme would have to come to him as he had to get the feel for the show.  While shaving, it did and he later whistled it for Curtis (though not for us because he can’t whistle anymore).  “I f**kin love it,” Curtis told him.  The following day, he brought in 6 musicians to play it for him.  All Curtis had done previously, he explained, was a golf show, so he told Curtis “would you go sit in the control room and shut the f**k up?”  After hearing it, Curtis told him, “You’re the greatest f**king composer in the whole f**king world.”  What do you really think?, Cobert said about that.

Did the DS theme really utilize a theremin?  “Does anybody give a shit?” Cobert responded.  [I'm asking myself the same question as I type this whole writeup.]  The answer is no, not for the theme.  It was a specially built Yamaha piano with a synth string on the end of it.  Dick Hyman was the pianist.  It was spooky on top, and the bass flute (3 octaves down) was what gave it the balls… the juice.   There was a bass player, a harpist, a vibraphone player.  The theme, at that point, had not been written down.

A fan mentioned seeing a clip of Cobert on the set during filming of the 1991 series.  The ’91 series, Cobert explained, is not a library; it was done like a real movie.  The music had to be spotted frame by frame, word by word by himself, the music editor, and DC.  For the ’91 series, he had only 2 or 3 days to compose, orchestrate, and get it recorded.  “I was killing myself.”

A fan said he often hums Cobert’s theme used on Password when he sees others changing seats.  Cobert acknowledged that he wrote that.

A stage musical of DS?  There was talk of one but nothing ever happened.  Money changed hands but it just fell apart.  Now it’ll never happen, he said, because DC was the only one who knew how to handle Dark Shadows.

His favorite work?  The Winds of War and War and Remembrance.

Why use London Bridge for Sara Collins instead of something new?  “I don’t have the vaguest idea.”  Actually, they called in Dan Curtis and London Bridge was what he wanted.

Was Dick Hyman involved with Star Trek as well?  “I have no idea.”  Using the piano for the theme was Cobert’s idea but Hyman contributed a lot.

The final question was from a pleasant fan named Jane, but before she could ask it, Cobert began a one-way conversation that went something like this:  “What’s your phone number?  Okay, after the show.  Let me tell you something… shut the hell up… I’m 92, don’t expect a whole lot.  Now what was your stupid question?”  Finally, “What was your question?”  The poor thing handled it quite well and got her question out about DS ringtones.  As if it had never happened, he answered that he’s been bringing the subject up to Pierson since ringtones first came out.  He said to call Jim and he’ll tell you.  David Selby could make a penny, he added.  (Jane was okay, and things were smoothed over later at Cobert’s autograph table.)

Sounds like Mr. Cobert--excuse me, Bob--has the makings of becoming a YouTube sensation.

That's awesome reporting, Midnite.  Thanks so much!

xo, G.

Good one, Uncle Roger!  And thank you, Gothick!


At the auction were the usual books, CDs, DVDs, etc., and a coffin set of the series.  Nancy Barretts’s fangs from HoDS sold for $350.

KLS took the stage at 4:30 to auction rare personal items with all proceeds to benefit CurePSP.  Her husband passed away in 2011 after battling the degenerative nerve disease (Progressive Supranuclear Palsy).

The fall that she wore early on in DS (in the "fangs" photo and in NoDS) plus those photos sold for $300.  The curls she wore as Josette and (she thinks) later as Lady Kitty didn’t get any bids.  Her original script of ep #7 went for $80.  The second kinescope of the day went for $200.

Before the next panel started, KLS also spoke about the Woman’s Club of Hollywood-- its history and the organization.

While John Karlen has asserted over the years that he has no idea why he was needed to replace James Hall as Willie Loomis, you might recall that KLS has offered her own recollections as to how it went down.  At the 2004 Fest in Tarrytown, for example, she said Hall (a friend of hers from acting class) was hampered by both nervousness and a drinking problem and that in the middle of shooting an episode, it became obvious that he couldn’t continue in the role.  It was a shame, she said.  Another time, she was heard to say that he quit acting after DS.  And it had been awkward working with him because he was on his way out the door.  Flash ahead to this past Saturday evening, when KLS and James Hall took the stage together in a panel titled “DS: The First Year”.  (Nancy Barrett, who called ahead to cancel, and Mitch Ryan, who at this point was still expected, were scheduled to join them but didn’t attend the day’s event.)

BTW, emcee Halpern, who introduced the actors and admitted to contacting Hall via Facebook and learning he lived in Santa Monica, had proposed this past summer in Tarrytown that the two Willie Loomises be brought together at a Festival event (!).  So, thanks, Richie.  For those of you reading this, enjoy!



Jim Hall and KLS met in an acting class while both were studying with Uta Hagen.  Hall said he appeared in 5 episodes on DS, describing himself as a footnote.  He was a National Champ football player at Ole Miss before getting on a bus and heading to NY with $200 in his pocket to become an actor.  In 1967, he played the lead in an O’Neill play that garnered him a rave review in the NY Times and his photo on the front page.  Dark Shadows followed and was his first TV show.  He knew nothing about doing television; had never seen a teleprompter before.

He went on to appear in “Of Mice and Men.”  He also had an ongoing association with Sam Shepard.

KLS said she loved working with Jim Hall and did miss him.  She added that she didn’t love him as much as she loved John Karlen.  LOL

“I’ll be honest,” Hall told us.  After his first play in NY, “I thought I was hot stuff.”  But actors didn’t want soaps; we wanted commercials.  He wanted to stick with method acting in the style of Brando and Dean.  Hagen had taught him about transforming himself.  The classes were a great experience and he brought what he learned with him to his TV role.

Menacing comes naturally to him.  He did Back Bog Beast Bait, a Shepard play while simultaneously doing another one of his at American Place with Patti Smith (who was living with Shepard at the time).  He did only 1 or 2 performances and walked off.

A few years later, he played Slim in off off Broadway at a tiny theater, working for free.  He took over the part originated by Richard Gere.

An actor asked about the rumor that Joan Bennett was scared of him.  He said he did make her nervous.

KLS completed The Three Christs of Ypsilanti with Jane Alexander, Peter Dinklage, Charlotte Hope and Bradley Whitford back in August.  Richard Gere is also in it, and she explains that this was her Gere segue.  She also appears in a Hallmark movie airing November 27 in which she plays the mother of Melissa Joan Hart’s character, with Richard Klein as her husband.  She’s a warm, lovable Diane Keaton kind of mom.

Is he still performing now?  He’s retired.  “Is there an agent in the house?” Hall smiles and asks.

KLS is asked the secret to her immortal beauty.  She said she can’t say it’s French fries, which gets a laugh, and adds that she eats fairly healthy food.

He was asked about his scene with Nancy Barrett that aired earlier in the day.  She was so beautiful, he said.  “She didn’t like me to touch her hair.”  He added it’s too bad she can’t be here.

About his Blue Whale scene with Joe, he said, “We got into a fight and he won.”

KLS was asked to talk about Crothers.  He was a really lovely guy, like an older brother to her.  He treated her like a kid sister.  He was Phi Beta Kappa, a scholar.  He’d been a child actor, also did Barefoot in the Park on Broadway, replacing Redford.  She misses him terribly.  When she was asked to write a piece about him, after she turned it in she kept on writing and that turned into her book “Scrapbook Memories.”  Crothers passed away in 1985.

A fan asked about Hall’s firing from DS.  KLS, who was holding the mic, leaned forward and said slowly and deliberately, “He wasn’t FIRED.  He LEFT.”  [I nearly fell off my chair!!]  Hall said, I wanted to move onto other things.  "I was very young, and it was my first TV show.  I didn’t want to be cornered on a soap."  He said he did go on to work on The Edge of Night.  On a soap, it’s put you here, put you there, and 30 pages to learn.

He’s a father of 3 children.  He wrote a book called “William Eggleston and Me” about the famous photographer and himself.  He said he has sold a few.  It concerns the two men in Mississippi and their years in New York and stuck on the road.  He tried to be discreet while writing it because his children were young, though now they’re grown.  The first 5 or 6 pages are available on Amazon.

Here you go:  https://www.amazon.com/William-Eggleston-Me-Photograph-signed/dp/0615861334

He only brought along 2 copies.  “I didn’t know,” he said as the audience cracked up.  The emcee guaranteed that he will not be going home with them.  “I have two books, can let them go for 30 bucks!” Hall called out, imitating the auction.

They were asked about 1960s NY.  KLS went first.  I began as a Playboy Bunny.  “That’s when I knew you!” Hall said excitedly.  Hall took the mic and said he performed at Ole Miss playing Great God Brown in the play of the same name.  It was his epiphany to head to NY and become an actor.  He gained confidence.  New York in the mid 60s to mid 70s was extraordinary, he said.  He hung out mostly with writers (more than actors, anyway), lived in the Village.  “New York was so alive.”  He did a play on Fire Escape Theater, played Medea in a laundromat.  He got his education in New York in more ways than one.  And then, he said, there were the bars.  It was an expression of freedom.  Things were changing.

He was asked why Willie Loomis seemed to be a different character as played by both actors.  KLS answered that the writers wrote to their strengths.  James Hall as Willie was dangerous, while JK showed a vulnerable side, she said.  Hall: “I don’t know.  I was just trying to keep up.”  He showed the other side of himself, the bad part of Mississippi.  In a deep voice: “I’m a nasty man.”

If anyone was dangerous on DS, KLS said, it was Grayson Hall.  She gave all the young gals a hard time.  She was tough and funny.  She had a sense about her that you knew to stay out of her way.  But she was lovely too, and invited her to the Hall residence for great parties.  And there were good times at the Brittany du Soir.  She was a formidable woman.  If you’ve seen her character in Night of the Iguana, “that was very much Grayson Hall.”

Asked about smoking in the studio, KLS said you could smoke on an airplane back then, and anyplace you wanted.  You could smoke in your dressing room, though not in the studio.  Smoking was so prevalent then.

Asked about Joan Bennett, KLS said she was quite wonderful.  She still sees her daughter Diana quite often.  She treated herself, Nancy Barrett, Alexandra Moltke and Lara Parker like daughters too.

Hall discussed his acting classes and his first teacher, but Uta Hagen at Berghof Studio was his biggest influence.  She taught him to “be in the moment.”  His roles have included a Bible salesman, which is ironic since he had been one in Mississippi for two weeks.  “I didn’t do very well” (as a real Bible salesman; his performance received rave reviews.)  KLS said Hagen had the greatest influence on her, teaching how to create reality out of make believe.

[That was bizarre!]

Wow, Midnite.  This is awesome!  One of the fascinating aspects for me is that I read references to Grayson studying with Uta Hagen back in the early 1950s, I guess--and if I remember correctly, Grayson (then billed as Shirley Grayson) was Uta's understudy in the critically acclaimed play THE MAGIC AND THE LOSS, around '54 or thereabouts. Uta Hagen didn't do too many films, so far as I am aware.  She made a huge impression on me when she appeared on one of the talk shows (Mike Douglas, I think?) to promote that Tom Tryon film, THE OTHER.

Wonderful write-up! 

Thanks again,

G.

Medea in a laundromat is about the funniest thing I've heard in ages. Was it done in acts or spin cycles?
Hall doesn't have a lot of imdb credits, just 12. A couple of fairly big movies, Norma Rae and China Syndrome but small parts.
With only 5 episodes, I don't know how the writers could have been writing to his strengths as an actor. But, since KLS tends to have a multiple choice concept of her time on DS, the story will stand until the next panel.
Grayson remains a conundrum and probably always will. I can only imagine how she would have been at a festival.

What a wonderful report!    Thank you so much, Midnite, for sharing all the details with those of us who could not be present.  The panels with Bob Cobert and James Hall sound especially entertaining.

ProfStokes

You're welcome.

Apparently there's a play called Medea in the Laundromat (1965) written by HM Koutoukas, who passed away in 2010.  During the 1960s, Koutoukas was associated with Sam Shepard and other off off Broadway playwrights.  It's based on the play by Euripides but the action does take place in a laundromat!

Same guy also wrote the fire escape play according to this blurb from http://koutoukas.blogspot.com/:

Suicide Notations (a Play for Fire Escapes)
October 22, 1972: fire escapes of Christopher Street; directed by J. S. Hall, with Lisa Jane Persky, H. M. Koutoukas, Jackie Curtis, Taylor Mead, Ronald Tavel, James Hall, Ron Whyte, Jane Roberts; videotaped by Rudi Stern and the Global Village collective.