Halloween Press Cuttings

With Halloween approaching, Dark Shadows has been getting plenty of mentions in the media:

Canadian news source CNews profiles Jonathan Frid (Barnabas), with An Interview with a 'real' Vampire; Speaking to the Los Angeles Times, Kevin Williamson, executive producer for CW's The Vampire Diaries acknowledges Dark Shadows as an influence on his new show; while Phil Guarnieri discusses the nostalgic appeal of Dark Shadows for the Floral Park Dispatch. 

Rounding off things, New York's Paley Center for the Media will host Dark Shadows at Twilight: A Paley Center Vampire Weekend, taking place on November 13-15. Dark Shadows DVD producer and author Jim Pierson will be discussing the show on Saturday 14. For more information, click here.

News Round-up

• Dark Shadows fans could recently see some familiar faces amidst the new US fall line-up. US Ivana Milicevic (2004 Angelique) guested on the October 14 episode of ABC's Eastwick, while Michael Cavanaugh (1991 Sheriff Patterson) turned up in the October 22 episode of FlashFoward.
• Barnabas Collins is featured in a poll currently being conducted by the Paley Centre for the Media. You can vote for Barnabas as your choice in the TV Vampire (S)Takedown by clicking here.
• Several readers have emailed in about the recent iTunes release of Night of Dark Shadows, which features some audio not included in the theatrical release, including additional music and some unheard dialogue. Dark Shadows movie expert Darren Gross tells me that this release accidentally uses the film's original magnetic soundtrack master, which includes some unmixed edit joins from the film's last-minute editing session. These were later smoothed out for the final release. Darren located the longer director's cut of the movie over 10 years ago, and has been working on a restoration effort, which includes reconstructing the full soundtrack. So while these glitches may leave iTunes viewers scratching their heads for now, they will play their part in the eventual restoration: "It's this aspect of the original master that's so helpful," explains Darren. "All these little bits help indicate what music was used in the scene that follows or the scene preceding it." 

Halloween is Coming

Halloween is just around the corner, so here's the Dark Shadows Journal's run-down on how to enjoy the holiday, Collinsport style. Way back when, this site hosted a Dark Shadows Halloween micro-site, featuring e-cards, desktop wallpaper and a a downloadable Barnabas jack-o-lantern pattern – just the thing for scaring away evil spirits and mad relatives in the attic. 

If you're having a Halloween party, you'll need some party music, so why not check out the Dark Shadows: 30th Anniversary Collection, featuring some great kitschy muzak arrangements of Robert Cobert's character themes. And if you're decorating your home with a flavour of Collinwood, then don't forget the blue candles and cobwebs. For party food ideas, the show's resident phoenix Laura, alias actress Diana Millay, has a great cookbook, I'd Rather Eat Than Act, featuring her personal recipes and tasty treats from Dark Shadows co-stars. Also, for some creepy festive viewing, check out MPI's two new DVD compilations – The Vampire Curse and The Haunting of Collinwood, plus for a midnight matinee round-off, there's the spin-off movie House of Dark Shadows, now available as a digital download.

I also realised this week that it's been 10 years since the Dark Shadows Journal launched online. The exact date is lost somewhere on a dusty hard drive, but this seems as good a time as any to celebrate. So a tip of the hat to everyone who's supported and contributed to this site over the past decade. Thank you all. Have a great Halloween everyone!