Dark Shadows

[John]

Was Hoping It would be daytime again but doubtful

I believe the 2004 pilot had Alexis Thorpe of Days & YR

[lucaslesann23]

I just dont want this to be like dynasty that shows a mess rn

[DRW50]

Why is this in the canceled section?

[DRW50]

 

[Chris B]

I'm going to be optimistic about this. The Tim Burton movie was largely panned for it's tone so I can't see them doing the same thing again. I feel this will have the dark tone needed. I also love that it is a continuation and not a remake. I hope they still use time travel like the original. Due to age I wouldn't expect to see many if any of the original actors, which is fine. I just like the idea of the mythology still existing. 

[vetsoapfan]

 

OMG, with the original cover art too? This is great news. Way back when, I was never able to collect all the books, and now only have one in my collection. If these are not outrageously expensive, I'll be buying them!

[Vee]

@DRW50

This is a fascinating tidbit about what may have pertained to Season 2 of the 1991 show.

 

Context: Innovation Comics was a short-lived independent comics outfit during the early '90s comics boom. They briefly had the rights to Dark Shadows, Lost in Space, A Nightmare on Elm Street and other properties, and produced gorgeous books with beautiful painted art. The quality of the writing varied wildly, but the LIS series in particular had some great, mature stories for such a goofy property, including an extended storyline written by Bill Mumy.

I read some of these books first as a kid and then a teenager. They can also be found to read online through 'alternative means.'  The DS comics' rights very strictly pertained only to the 1991 series and were directly approved by Dan Curtis and co., though they were allowed to use Lara Parker's likeness for a new character in the first arc, in which Barnabas and Julia go to a town involved with the Salem witch trials. The DS comic ended abruptly with Innovation going bankrupt, amidst a new storyline focusing on ghosts and Sarah Collins, again with beautiful painted art.

The article above suggests Innovation - which had direct access to Dan Curtis - knew of some of the aborted plans for DS Season 2, including possibly a return for Lysette Anthony as the brunette Angelique-as-Cassandra. (I'd heard in the past that Michael T. Weiss would return as the werewolf Chris Jennings, but Peter Bradford recurring makes more sense.)

Edited October 22, 2019 by Vee

[DRW50]

Thanks for finding that. I think I have some of those somewhere. I had no idea they were based on ideas for the show. I didn't care for the last episodes at all; I wish we'd gotten another season for a fresh start.

[Vee]

They weren't based on show ideas, AFAIK. But that unused cover suggests some might have been had they continued. All prior DS comics at Innovation had taken place during the first season; the one advertised there (and unprinted) was slated to take place after.

[DRW50]

I've been following along with the One SNL Episode A Day blog and he got to a 1996 episode with Alec Baldwin. There's a lazy "what if Jane Austen characters were idiots and crass" sketch which threw me because they use (along with several pieces from elsewhere) three different Dark Shadows songs - the music often used in scenes where characters were at Widows Hill or in the woods or at the beach looking contemplative, a generic music box theme, and Josette's Theme. 

 

I have no idea why they used those, but I guess it helps explain why it isn't available on NBC's website...

[DRW50]

Somebody uploaded an episode of Chicken Soup for the Soul that I watched back when it aired, starring Julia Duffy and Jerry Lacy (with Alicia Leigh Willis as their daughter). I enjoyed this show a great deal at the time, both because there were so many people I recognized and also because I thought the writing and performances were of a high quality. I'm sorry it didn't last longer. 

 

Another episode has a very powerful performance from Stephen Macht. The last has Joe Penny and Jerry Levine.

 

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[amybrickwallace]

James Storm (Gerard) is now appearing as the eighth (!!!) Dr. Mike Powers on Retro TV's rerun cycle of The Doctors. His first airdate was May 5, 1979, and he appeared on the show until 1981.

[jam6242]

The Dark Shadows newsletter, Shadowgram, is reporting that John Karlen has died.

 

SHADOWGRAM UPDATE # 431

Wednesday, January 22, 2020

--Remembering John Karlen

********************************************

An Official Internet Publication of SHADOWGRAM – THE DARK SHADOWS NEWSLETTER

********************************************

***** SHADOWGRAM UPDATE #

REMEMBERING JOHN KARLEN

It is with profound personal sadness that ShadowGram reports that beloved friend JOHN KARLEN passed away earlier today at age 86 of congestive heart failure in hospice care in Burbank, California.

 

Of course, John is best-known among "Dark Shadows" fans as the scheming drifter Willie Loomis, who becomes an unwitting servant to vampire Barnabas Collins, eventually becoming a confidant as well as a character with empathy and a moral compass.

John also was a longtime, generous supporter of DS fan efforts, readily helping the show enjoy a cult-classic afterlife by attending numerous DS Festivals as well as earlier DS-themed events, dating back to 1971 with John's participation in the "Miss American Ghost" contest to promote the release of the film "Night of Dark Shadows."

 

Indeed, John continued to be a lively, willing, and warm presence across nearly 50 years of the original DS series' afterlife.

When KHJ Television in Los Angeles began airing DS reruns in the mid-1970s, John joined a promotional blood drive. In 1977 he appeared as the first – and only - DS guest for the first-ever DS fan convention gathering, ShadowCon I, as part of the overall science fiction / fantasy / horror fan programming at StarCon in San Diego.

 

This soon was followed by annual DS-focused ShadowCon fan conventions held in Los Angeles through 1984. Along with other

original DS cast members, John was a regular guest.

 

Subsequently, John participated in the annual Dark Shadows Festivals on the west coast starting in 1987 and he began attending the New York area DS Fests a decade later. At every DS event he attended, John was always a delight to be with, very open, outspoken, often teasing and yet also interested in individual people and shared experiences and ideas.

 

Despite escalating health issues, John last traveled to New York to reunite with DS cast members in celebration of the show's 50th Anniversary in Tarrytown, NY in 2016. He also entertained fans at the DS Halloween Party in Hollywood, CA that same year. He made his last public appearance at the October 2018 Los Angeles sneak-preview of "Master of Dark Shadows" documentary in which he was interviewed.

John always enjoyed the camaraderie of his fellow cast/crew members and interacting with fans of all ages from across the U.S, and beyond, including Canada, England, Australia, Mexico, and elsewhere.

 

John loved acting and telling stories of his early days growing up in Brooklyn, his Polish ancestry, his early work on the stage, favorite actors and movies, and his love of sports, the race track, and a good meal.

 

A veteran of the Korean war, John was a passionate man with a long life of adventures and accomplishments. His contributions both in front of and behind the camera will long be remembered by the countless friends and fans he touched along the way.

 

We thank you, John, for bringing so much into our lives.

[DAMfan]

RIP John always liked him

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[Khan]

So, that's why I've been dreaming so much about "Cagney & Lacey" lately.

 

RIP Mr. Karlen.