|
 In
2001, Malia
Howard published
the first complete career biography of Jonathan
Frid: An
Actor's Curious Journey.
In an exclusive extract, she details the inspiration and eventual
process of writing the book.
It began with the click of a
mouse in a search engine late in the year 1996. My curiosity
had been piqued about an actor I recalled from my childhood - the
actor was Jonathan Frid, star of the uniquely popular soap opera
of the late 60's and early 70's, Dark
Shadows. Just what
had become of him, I wondered.
By the spring
of 1997, what had started as simple curiosity had blossomed into
an important ambition, I decided that Mr. Frid's story was not only
a rather unique one in the annals of American entertainment, but
that it was a story that needed to be told with the benefit of some
real context. Most of his fans had no idea - really
- about his work outside of that four-year window when the reluctant
vampire Barnabas Collins, and the other mysterious inhabitants of
Dark Shadows,
sent a generation of kids running home from school to watch the
show.
Jonathan Frid is, in reality, a classically trained actor, with
a list of impressive stage credits that would capture any theatre
lover's attention. Yet, in the public's mind he had burst onto the
commercial television scene, seemingly out of nowhere, as one of
the biggest television sensations of the era while playing a vampire
on a soap opera. Of all the curious twists of fate that might
befall a serious actor's career, that totally astounding turn of
events is among the most amazing any actor has experienced.
So, how had an event like that affected Mr. Frid in mid-life and
since? What had it done to boost his career and what had it
done to distort it? And how much more would his fans appreciate
the talent they had all reacted to so positively, if they knew the
true breadth of it, the myriad of roles and experiences and bits
of knowledge gained in a lifetime of acting that caught their attention
during that special season in their young lives? I decided,
in sum, that it was a story that deserved a book and that I would
commit myself to doing what it would take to write it. What
you see in the pages of the book is the result of that effort.
Beginning in 1999, Jonathan Frid has made generous contributions
of his time and materials in support of this effort. In the
spring of that year, Mr. Frid invited me to his home in Canada and
permitted me to make copies of numerous items in his private collection.
And, fortunately for me, I had the pleasure of becoming acquainted
with Mr. Frid over these last years and of seeing him perform his
Readers' Theatre programs and the play, Mass
Appeal. All of those
steps along the way of my
own curious journey made
an important impact on the final result you see here.
This is Mr. Frid's story as seen through my eyes and, thus, is reflective
of my point of view and perspective. My hope is that I have
been able to do justice to his story.
For
more information on the book, visit www.curiousjourney.com
Back
http://www.darkshadows.co.uk/
is operated by the Dark
Shadows Journal
Original Content and Design ©
Copyright Stuart
Manning
Dark Shadows © 1966 Dan Curtis Productions, Inc. All rights reserved.
|
|
