Will McKinley loves House of Dark Shadows. As a high school student, working for former Jonathan Frid nights and weekends on a series of one-man shows that had originated at fan conventions, the 1970 feature film was his gateway into the world of Dark Shadows. Nancy Kersey, a creative collaborator with Frid in those days, does not love House of Dark Shadows, a film she believes does a disservice to the television series. On Oct. 19, they made a pilgrimage to Lyndhurst Mansion in Tarrytown, New Y...
Oct 22, 2019•37 min
Kathryn Leigh Scott and David Selby recently reunited to play Maggie Evans and Quentin Collins once more for Big Finish Productions in a four-story boxset "Maggie and Quentin: The Lovers' Refrain." Set after "Return to Collinwood","The Lovers' Refrain" catches up with a very-much-in-love 21st Century Maggie and Quentin who find that as they get older - or at least as one of them does - life doesn't get any easier. Kathryn's recording sessions for this boxset took her to Los Angeles, New York and...
Aug 30, 2019•33 min
Diabolical Daybook diarist Patrick McCray is joined by the Fabulous Alexis Latshaw to resurrect Barnabas Collins and argue that TV’s greatest villain is its greatest hero in a bizarre act of unnatural fan love.
Aug 28, 2019•37 min
Penny Dreadful's alter ego Danielle Gelehrter discusses her favorite vampire, Barnabas Collins, and her memories of growing up a "second generation" Dark Shadows fan.
Aug 26, 2019•9 min
Jessica Dwyer explains why the sins of Collinsport's royal family aren't always that sinful.
Aug 23, 2019•12 min
The producers of Big Finish's line of "Dark Shadows" audio dramas talk about why extending the show's storyline has always been about extending the Collins family.
Aug 22, 2019•35 min
Patrick McCray and Justin Partridge have a drink at The Blue Whale and talk about Master of Dark Shadows, how the show speaks to the lonely and why the 1897 storyline is like an episode of "Fantasy Island" for Barnabas Collins.
Aug 21, 2019•36 min
Alice Collins talks about discovering "Dark Shadows" on The Sci-Fi Channel while home sick from school at age 11, and seeing something familiar in the show's themes and characters.
Aug 20, 2019•7 min
On the seventh anniversary of Jonathan Frid's death, his production staff and creative collaborators reunite in New York City.
Aug 19, 2019•31 min
Ella Minnope talks about how the romantic aesthetic of the deep South compares to the dysfunctional Collins family.
Aug 18, 2019•4 min
Dana Gould discusses the Kennedys, the real-life family that could give the Collinses runs for their money in The Suffering Olympics.
Aug 17, 2019•9 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Jonathan Frid is on the cover of "Barnabas Collins," the 1968 Dark Shadows novel by Marilyn Ross, but he's otherwise absent from the book. You might even argue that Barnabas Collins, at least the character you might know from the television show, is also absent from the tale. A vampire bearing that name makes his way through the course of the story but, unguided by Frid's peculiar wounded menace and a staff of writers that understood how to find humanity even in the most inhuman of characters, t...
May 04, 2019•1 hr 24 min
In this episode: Evolving in the Shadows with Ella Minnope Ella Minnope talks about how the romantic aesthetic of the deep South compares to the dysfunctional Collins family. Night Rally with Dana Gould Dana Gould discusses the Kennedys, the real-life family that could give the Collinses runs for their money in The Suffering Olympics. The Dark Shadows Daybook with Patrick McCray Patrick McCray and Justin Partridge have a drink at The Blue Whale and talk about Master of Dark Shadows, how the show...
Apr 24, 2019•2 hr 13 min•Season 2Ep. 1
In June 2016, David Darlington, co-producer of Big Finish Production's Dark Shadows ranges, and I flew to New York to attend the Tarrytown celebrations for Dark Shadows' 50th Anniversary. When the fans visited the Big Finish tables, they all had requests for what they'd like to hear from the range... "Something with Julia", "More Tony and Cassandra", "Quentin and Laura in Eygpt", "More Tony and Cassandra", "What Happened Next to Adam", "More Tony and Cassandra"... All weekend, over and over, we ...
Jan 09, 2018•1 hr
On her visit to the UK last month, I caught up with Daisy Tormé, star of Bloodlust and Blood & Fire. A life - long friend of Kathryn Leigh Scott, Daisy talks of how Kathryn brought her into the Dark Shadows world to be Bloodlust's Melody Devereux, a Victoria Winters for the 1980s. And she tells me how she approached taking on the established role of Abigail Collins in Big Finish Productions' 50th Anniversary Special Blood & Fire. Along the way we discuss her career, her childhood in both...
Sep 10, 2016•1 hr
Join Robert Dick as he interviews Big Finish producers David Darlington and Joseph Lidster and writer Rob Morris. They look back at the BBC Audio Award short-listed BLOODLUST and the 2015 season of Dramatic Readings, and also look forward to the 50th Anniversary audio releases. Davy and Joe reveal the title of the standalone special as well as dropping a few details and teases regarding that and BLOODLINE.
Feb 04, 2016•1 hr 10 min
It's HALLOWEEN! This night at the Collinsport Historical Society HQ might prove to be the most terrifying yet, for this is the night that the living will try to contact the dead. Specters will knock on doors and ring bells, extorting sugary gifts from the residents inside. This ritual might seem harmless enough to strangers, but I promise you: the tricks are very dangerous. If they visit and find your pantry barren of candy, vandalism is the best you can hope for. Several years back, Mrs. Merriw...
Oct 30, 2015•43 min
This week, DARK SHADOWS fans all over the world finally got to hear the latest audio drama from Big Finish, AND RED ALL OVER. And it’s a milestone by anyone’s definition: not only is it the company’s 50th DARK SHADOWS release, it also marks the return of original cast member Mitchell Ryan. Ryan played antihero Burke Devlin during the first year of the show, exiting during the summer of 1967. Joining us is Cody Schell, the author of AND RED ALL OVER. Cody’s no stranger to DARK SHADOWS, having wri...
Oct 29, 2015•28 min
Brooke Perrin and Patrick McCray discuss the shooting script for Tim Burton's 2012 feature, DARK SHADOWS.
Oct 01, 2015•52 min
This is an interview that's been long in the planning stages. Since last summer, actor/writer Matthew Waterhouse has been willing to join us here at The Collinsport Historical Society podcast ... and then a baby shaped monkey wrench was thrown into the works. While I was looking forward to lording my interview with the one-time Adric from DOCTOR WHO, my schedule just hasn't been able to accommodate the podcast in recent months. Luckily for us, the roguish Robert Dick was willing to intervene. Wa...
Feb 13, 2015•1 hr 24 min
Marie Maginity, Patrick McCray and Brooke Perrin cornered Christoper Pennock in June during a break at this year's DARK SHADOWS FESTIVAL and chatted with him about his various projects, including comic books, Merchant Ivory, Shakespeare and, of course, his work on DARK SHADOWS.
Nov 30, 2014•1 hr 6 min
I know surprisingly little about James Storm. Despite being one of my favorite actors on DARK SHADOWS, I haven't had the opportunity to see much of his work, on or off the stage. Luckily, Marie Maginity, Patrick McCray and Brooke Perrin flagged him down at this year's DARK SHADOWS FESTIVAL and chatted with him about his various projects, including the upcoming WANDERLUST photography trip. It's a terrific interview that touches on his tenure in daytime drama, the difference between DARK SHADOWS a...
Sep 03, 2014•1 hr 1 min
Sharon Smyth Lentz joined the cast of DARK SHADOWS in June 1967, playing the ghost of Sarah Collins, the little sister of vampire Barnabas Collins. In this podcast, she talks about her experiences on the series, her decision to leave acting, and fields a few questions from online fans. It's a fun episode, and hosted by CHS contributor Marie Maginity. Sharon will be among the guests at the annual DARK SHADOWS FESTIVAL this weekend, and will be apeparing the weekend of July 18 in Greenville, S.C.,...
Jun 25, 2014•1 hr 6 min
Actor Humbert Allen Astredo joins the Collinsport Historical Society for a rare interview in this installment of our podcast. Astredo entered the world of DARK SHADOWS with a bang in 1968 as warlock Nicholas Blair. He'd later go on to play the satanic Evan Hanley and Charles Dawson on the show, and had a lenthy career on stage and screen after the program's cancellation. Astredo speaks with Patrick McCray in this episode about using comedy to survive the Korean War, the diffrent perspectives bet...
Mar 16, 2014•1 hr 2 min
MARIE MAGINITY recently visited actor JOHN KARLEN during his recent stay in a Los Angeles hospital. The Emmy winning actor, known for his work on CAGNEY AND LACEY, as well as the 1971 cult horror film DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS, speaks about his childhood, acting and his experience as henchman/hero Willie Loomis on DARK SHADOWS.
Sep 05, 2013•37 min
Joe Keatinge , writer of Marvel's new MORBIUS THE LIVING VAMPIRE series, and comics legend Roy Thomas speak about creating - and re-creating - Marvel's first vampire. http://www.collinsporthistoricalsociety.com/
Jan 04, 2013•30 min
The Collinsport Historical Society kicks off its first podcast with a look back at HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS. Kathryn Leigh Scott stops by to talk about her role in the film, while Will McKinley, Jessica Dwyer and Patrick McCray talk about plagiarism, Barnabas Collins’s recipe for banana bread, and why Willie Loomis is the film’s real hero. Featuring the songs “Barnabus Collins: Love Bandit” by Keanya Collins, “The Ballad of Barnabas Collins” by the Von Hoffman Orchestra and “Barnabas Collins” by Th...
Dec 13, 2012•1 hr 22 min
