And Even Yet Another New Slideshow

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Maybe a day or more has passed.

At least a day has passed because we had the arrival of Vicki, the release of Barnabas, and the attack on Carolyn all on the same night - then the next morning during breakfast the family receives the news about Carolyn and then the events at the hospital take place. Presumably Barnabas then arrives that night, though there isn't any specific indicator in the script as to how much time has passed...

[Gerard]

Thanks, MB, for putting it into time-line perspective.  I was really confused.  But, not to stir a kettle of fish, isn't it rather ridiculous to have Barnabas released one day and able to fit into 21st sociology and technology the next?  Why does DS, in all its formats (save for '12), do this?  I know it's fiction, but, still.

Gerard

[Cousin_Barnabas]

I don't know if it's too far-fetched.  Barnabas has minimal interaction -- and most is at Collinwood with the family. (Collinwood, itself, is timeless -- and the family is a little odd.) Willie would be a great help when it comes to filling in certain important information gaps.   

Plus, his story is that he has lived a reclusive life in another country, which would probably make up for any strange habits he may possess.

Now it would definitely be problematic if Barnabas were going out on the town and interacting in public, but all of his early interactions are very meticulously strategized and of a limited scope. 

I've never really had a problem with his early encounters.  It's the things that happen later, like driving a car, that are really laughable.   

[dom]

I like the fact that as in no other video/film version, Barnabas is young and handsome - which is as it should be and I'd guess how it was supposed to be.

[Gothick]

Ooh Dom you're on thin ice with the Frid fans and Ben Cross fans there!  lol.

Alec Newman was in his prime when he did this and he's stunning.  But more importantly he had a kind of mystique as Barnabas that I have truthfully never seen in any other portrayal.  Frid had mystique in buckets, but Newman's is a different kind of mystique... among other things more sexual.  Newman wins top marks from me in his work in the role. 

G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Given all the clues in various storylines on the original DS, there's no doubt Barnabas was supposed to be younger than Frid. It's also interesting that Frid once commented that he enjoyed playing Barnabas as a "youth" during the 1795 storyline. I found that a strange remark at the time because I considered Barnabas many things, but a youth wasn't one of them. I chalked it up to Frid possibly meaning a more naive Barnabas. But then once I saw DS in syndication I began to pick up on all those clues that Barnabas was supposedly only in his 20s... And, hey, if a 60-something Joan Crawford could step in and play her 20-something daughter's role on The Secret Storm, anything is possible casting wise in the soap world. 

[Gothick]

MB, I know this is outrageously off-topic, but an audiotape has surfaced of one of Joan Crawford's SECRET STORM appearances and it makes for fascinating reading.  At the start of the tape, canned music plays because the character (confusingly also named Joan) is supposed to be listening to the radio and relaxing at home:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MG-DkuB1V28

The tape really makes me appreciate Joan Bennett's poise in making the transition from films to working on a soap opera.  And I love Joan Crawford as a film actress.

G.

[Josette]

Many classic TV shows from the past wouldn't be around if broadcasters "back then" followed today's make-it-rich-quick mentality today.  If that had happened, we wouldn't have such critical/viewer smashes like The Dick Van Dyke Show, All In the Family and Cheers.  All debuted to extremely low ratings which today would've had them trashed after a few episodes.  But the networks held out, found ways of making them work and without these classic series, we'd have no TVLand today.

Another example is Star Trek where they actually let them do a second pilot and then picked it up.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Oops - I forgot to post that the "So far. Unfortunately, she can't remember much about what happened..." part of yesterday's quote -

Page 33 - Roger: 'So far. Unfortunately, she can't remember much about what happened... (suspicious) I don't want to be rude, Mr. Collins, but I'm confused.'

- is dropped in the pilot. But no doubt that's because it's in response to the question that's been dropped from Barnabas' quote. And when it comes to the part that Roger does actually say in the pilot, he rearranges things a bit by saying, "Uh, Mr. Collins, I don't mean to be rude, but I'm confused."

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Before we get to today's quote, it needs to be mentioned that in response to Roger's statement of confusion, Barnabas asks:

BARNABAS
By my visit?

However, we chose not to include that in the slideshow in favor of including a more interesting quote from the ones available in the script/pilot for July.

And as for today's quote -

Page 33 - Roger: 'By you. I've had the world's top genealogists research our lineage. Unless they missed something, you seem to have fallen off the family tree.'

- the way it's actually said in the pilot is "By you. You see I know our lineage and unless I'm missing something, you must have fallen off the family tree." That makes it a much more personal knowledge. And Roger finishes that off almost with a laugh. (And it's great to see Roger using the word "must" - certainly a favorite if not the favorite word of the Collinses (and several of their cohorts) in the original show.  )

[Gothick]

Yay for "must"!  Definitely helps give everything that "Dark Shadows" edge.

Slashy moment... I'm having fun imagining that the reason Roger is staring is that he's thinking to himself "Hubba Hubba!  How can I offer to let him spend the night in MY ROOM without seeming too forward?? Sophia will just have to make other arrangements!"

Because that's how my brain works...

G.

[Gothick]

And today is another iconic DS moment:  Liz just said, "Roger, PLEASE!"  lol.

This just gets better and better...

G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And today is another iconic DS moment:  Liz just said, "Roger, PLEASE!"  lol.

I was just about to say the same thing. 

[KMR]

Slashy moment... I'm having fun imagining that the reason Roger is staring is that he's thinking to himself "Hubba Hubba!  How can I offer to let him spend the night in MY ROOM without seeming too forward?? Sophia will just have to make other arrangements!"

Because that's how my brain works...

Now THAT would be a great direction for DS to take!   

[Mysterious Benefactor]

When it comes to today's quote -

Page 33 - Barnabas: 'It's all right. Families grow apart, but the blood ties remain. After all these years in England, I've decided it's time to reclaim my heritage.'

- the way Barnabas actually delivers it in the pilot is as "No, it's all right. Families grow apart, but the blood ties remain. (pause) After so many years in England, I've decided it's time to reclaim my... heritage."