Curse of Dark Shadows - an original Dark Shadows Graphic Novel

Sixty years ago, a new soap opera premiered on daytime television, and while it only lasted five years for a total of 1,225 episodes, the show has had a legacy that has far surpassed that of pretty much any other soap that has ever aired.  Sure, General Hospital is still on the air; but let's face reality - despite being on the air for 63 years, that show did not spawn a series of books; it did not have board games and models; it did not see various comic book series published over the years; it did not generate enough fandom to warrant audio stories to continue the tales of its characters; it did not generate not one, not two, but three feature films based on the show; and it did not give rise to a fan base that 55 years after the show ended is not only still going strong, but getting stronger with every generation.  Dark Shadows has done that and so much more.  A Gothic soap opera that struggled its first year, it hit its stride when it introduced the reluctant vampire, Barnabas Collins - and from that moment on, history was made.  The show went off the air in April 1971, leaving viewers wondering just what happened to all of the characters on the show.  There have been various continuations, both in book and audio form, that have given fans a taste of what could have been and how the stories might have continued.  Sadly, neither the films nor the updated television shows continued the stories; rather, they simply retold or reimagined the tales already told in the original soap.  So, it is only fitting that with this 60th anniversary, fans should have a special treat - and it's my hope this is only the first of many to come out this year!

 

Curse of Dark Shadows is a graphic novel published by Hermes Press that brings the Collins family and their hometown into the present time.  It's been over 50 years since we last saw the Collins clan, and a lot has changed.  Roger Collins is dead, his ghost now haunting his son, David.  Elizabeth Collins Stoddard is also dead, having left her daughter, Carolyn, with a revelation and request - Victoria Winters, the former governess who was called back in time, truly was Elizabeth's daughter (and Carolyn's sister!), and Carolyn is given the task of finding her and bringing her back home.  Maggie Evans is a grandmother.  And Barnabas Collins ... our ill-fated vampire ... well, it seems he took off back to Europe with Dr. Julia Hoffman, where they finally married and lived out the remaining years of her life.  The only thing that remains the same is the dark shadows that always seem to linger over Collinwood, infecting its inhabitants with terrors that never seem to end.  But Carolyn is working on that.  She has spent half a century trying to find a way to bring Victoria Winters back from the past, and in so doing, putting an end to the curse that has held the family in its sway for centuries...

 

The graphic novel is written by Craig Hurd-McKenney, who has been writing comics since 2000, including a story in the first issue of the the recent revival of Gold Key comics' Boris Karloff Gold Key Mysteries.  This book appears to be his first foray into the world of Dark Shadows, and it is clear he has a love for the show, its characters, and its rich history.  While the story is set in the present, it definitely builds upon everything that has come before - Hurd-McKenney even makes a number of references to events in the television series, citing the actual episodes where they took place.  And the simple fact that he brings Victoria Winters back from the past - well, that puts him right on the top of my list of favorite writers!  Victoria, as portrayed by actress Alexandra Moltke, has always been my favorite character on the show, and it truly disappointed me that they wrote her out of the show the way they did.  Lara Parker (who portrayed Angelique in the show) wrote a Dark Shadows novel that brought Victoria back to the present; and while I enjoyed that story, I have to say, I love the way Hurd-McKenney did it so much better.  I can't say I'm overly thrilled with the characterization of Carolyn Stoddard-Hawkes in her old age; however, having spent the last half-century inside Collinwood, I can't begin to imagine what that would do to a person.  I did, however, like the fact that David was still being haunted by his father's presence - a man he never really got along with when he was alive, so it only makes sense that Roger would still haunt him after he died.  While Barnabas does come into the story, we see very little, if any, of the other supporting cast.  Hallie works in the Blue Whale with her son;  Maggie Evans is a grandmother, and she owns the Collinsport Inn.  But I would love to know what happened to Amy Jennings ... and Quentin Collins ... and Angelique ... and so many others ... perhaps Hurd-McKenney has some more stories rolling around in his head, and we'll get further graphic novels that continue the story (considering the number of sub-plots hinted at throughout the book, he darned-well better have more in the works!).

 

The interior art is provided by "Jok with Gervasio." This is a team of artists that I was completely unfamiliar with prior to buying this book.  It appears they have collaborated on a number of other graphic novels and illustrated books.  Jok is an Argentine artist who has had work published in a number of countries since 1993.  Gervasio is also an Argentine artist, who has worked with Jok in producing some of the "I Survived" graphic novels for Scholastic, as well as some other works.  Their art has a distinctive style to it, and while I can definitely see it as being conducive to darker stories, such as vampire, ghost, and supernatural tales, I must admit that I did not find myself enjoying it much for the Dark Shadows story.  None of the characters bore any resemblance whatsoever to their television counterparts, and perhaps that was their intention.  Thankfully, Hurd-McKenney's story was strong enough to carry me past the art, and it was ultimately still a thoroughly enjoyable read.

 

An added bonus to this book are the character profiles that appear after the story - seventeen pages detailing some of Dark Shadows' greatest characters over the years.  From Adam to Judah Zachary ... from Nicholas Blair to Count Petofi ... from Roxanne Drew to Janet Findley ... from Sarah Collins to Peter Bradford ... and so many more!  Each character is drawn by a different artist - including one by Luciano Vecchio, a wonderful artist that I have the pleasure of knowing through his work on Drumfish Productions' Sentinels books some years back.  And I love that the Victoria Winters depicted in these bios is a much stronger resemblance to the Alexandra Moltke that I so loved from the show.

 

There are a couple of things about the graphic novel that did leave me somewhat perplexed.  For unexplained reasons, page 3 of the story repeats itself (it appears on both pages 7 and 8 of the book).  Then, just a few pages later, page 10 of the story appears a second time, appearing first on page 15 (right after page 9 of the story), and that again on page 17 (right after page 11 of the story).  And if that were not confusing enough, after page 22 of the story, the page numbering reverts back to page 1, even though the story continues without any break (in fact, page 22 and page 1 thereafter contains a 2-page spread of Victoria Winters fighting the Leviathan on Widow's Hill in the past).  I can only assume there was some production issues when the book was put together, because I can't image the creators intended these mis-matched pages on purpose.  Finally, there's the curious misspelling of Quentin's name in the character bios - he is listed as Quentin "Collin," without the "s" at the end of his last name.  This was likely a simple editing snafu.

 

These gaffes, though, did not in any way spoil the story for me.  I still highly recommend the book for any Dark Shadows fan, as it not only brings the show and its characters and mythos into the 21st century, but it gives us fans a long-awaited continuation of the original series.  Big Finish Productions filled that void for a number of years with their audio dramas; now Hermes Press is picking up where Big Finish left off and giving us even more Gothic horror to fill our insatiable need for more Barnabas ... more Victoria ... more Carolyn and David ... more stories of those people who may at times be only shadows in our mind, but who continue to fill the days and nights of our every tomorrow!

 

RATING:  9 empty baby cribs out of 10 for taking the Dark Shadows' lore far beyond that of the original series and crafting a new tale of mystery, suspense, and horror in the tradition set by Dan Curtis some 60 years ago...

The World of General Hospital - Six Decades of Drama in Port Charles

Back in the late '70s and early '80s, I watched the daytime drama, General Hospital, with my mom each afternoon.  I remember the whole Cassadine island / Ice Princess story, the romance and wedding of Luke and Laura (and yes, I watched that episode when it aired!), the death and later resurrection of Laura Spencer, and so many other great stories of that era.  But I fell away from the show, and it was not until decades later, when ABC cancelled its other soaps (All My Children and One Life to Live), that I picked up on the show, as I loved the idea of Todd Manning, Starr Manning, and John McBain coming over from One Life to Live to continue their stories on General Hospital.  Thirteen years later, and I'm still watching the show, even though those three characters (and the actors who played them) have been long gone.  I've been very fortunate in recent years to meet in person a number of the actors who have been on the show, and so when I saw this book listed on Amazon, I picked it up, thinking it would offer up a great history about a television drama that has aired daily for more than 60 years!  Sadly, I could not have been more wrong...

The World of General Hospital offers very little when it comes to any specific history of the show.   Written by Jesse Shanks, whose biography on Amazon indicates he has "shown talents for writing, genealogy, programming, and research," this book reads like a fluff piece that provides general information about a show that has been on television for more than six decades.  While I was hoping for some decade by decade look at the various stories and characters, as well as, perhaps, some cast listings and character profiles, and maybe even some synopses of various major stories over the years, I instead got a book that repeats itself often about the importance of Steve Hardy and Jesse Brewer, the revitalization of the show with Luke and Laura, and the current emphasis on Sonny Corinthos.  We get some brief mentions of the different families that have appeared on the show (the Hardys, the Quartermaines, the Conrinthos, and the Spencers) and some quick references to some of the locations on the show; but there is very little in-depth look at either the characters or the locations.

 

This show has been on the air continuously for more than 60 years!  While I do realize a full, in-depth look at the show for that length of time could very well take up 600 pages or more, I do think Shanks could have spent some more time on some of the major highlights.  As he indicates in the book (more than one, I might add), the wedding of Luke and Laura was a major network event that garnered more viewers than the royal wedding around that same time!  One would think he would spend some time looking at the relationship of these characters, and how they evolved over the years - from Luke's vicious rape of Laura, to their unconventional love on the run story, to their magnificent wedding, to Luke's loss when Laura disappeared in the fog, to her shocking return (and with it the beginning of the life-long conflict with the Cassadine clan), to their children, their divorce and various other loves (Luke with Tracy and Laura with Kevin).  I mean, for years, "Luke and Laura" truly defined the show!  So, why was their story given only a few pages scattered throughout the book?

 

I have to wonder if the author even watched the show prior to the 2000s (or, possibly, the '90s).  Many of the more lengthy descriptions of stories (such as the text-message killer) are from the more modern era; however, there were plenty of great stories back in the day:  the murder of Diana Taylor; the Prometheus disc / Grant Putnam story (talk about a revelation when viewers found out he was really a Russian spy!); the murder of Phil Brewer; Heather Webber accidentally injecting herself with LSD; even the outrageously crazy Ice Princess story and the Cassadine weather-control device.  These, and so many more, deserved some attention and some details; instead, most do not even get mentioned, and when they do, it is only in one or two sentences before moving on to something else.

 

I do give Shanks credit for giving at least a brief look at the various changes the show has undergone over the years - from one-half hour to one hour in 1976 (I did not realize it had become an hour show only a couple of years before I started watching it!); from medical drama to adventure stories with the hiring of Gloria Monty in 1978; the inclusion of more social issues when head writer Claire Labine came on board in 1993; and even how the show has been filmed (from black and white to color, then to HD, and how those changes affected the way the sets were designed).  Shanks also takes a few pages to look at how the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Writer's Strike affected the show, and how these events affected the way the show was filmed and the stories written.  So, despite the overall "general" information provided for most things, the author does give readers a bit of technical history that can be appreciated.

 

But, other than that, there is absolutely no behind-the-scenes look at the show.  There is no discussion of the actors' interactions with one another and with writers and/or directors; no talk of how the actors dealt with certain stories or were affected by cast changes around them; no look at how long-term actors have grown with the show (such as Leslie Charleston, Genie Francis, Jane Elliott, Mauirce Bernard, Rebecca Herbst, Finola Hughes, or others who have been on the show for 20 years or more!);  no real list of famous actors who got their start on GH, such as John Stamos, Amber Tamblyn, Demi Moore, Mark Hamill, and others); and no mention of the various actors who made a real impact on the show and who have passed on in real life (such as Anna Lee, John Ingle, Peter Hansen, John Reilly, Tyler Christopher, Billy Miller, Susan Brown, Shell Kepler, and the list goes on).  

 

On top of all of this, there are glaring errors in the content of the book.  The book indicates Aurora Media was founded by Drew Cain and Jason Morgan (p. 116) - which is wholly incorrect, as the company was established by Drew Cain and Sam McCall after they acquired it from Derek Wells Media back in 2017.  Jason was never involved.  The book also references the revenge porn story, indicating it took place from 2017- 2018 and it involved Oscar Nero (p. 116). I have no idea where this came from as Oscar was never involved in any revenge porn story, which did not occur until 2022 (four years after his character on the show died!) and involved Joss and Cam, with Esme Prince setting up Trina to take the blame. In addition to that, the book states that Port Charles' newspaper, The Invader was run by Julian Jerome, "and later Martin Grey..." (p. 116).  While The Invadeer has been run by a number of people on the show (Shawn Butler, Valentin Cassadine, Nina Reeves, Adrian DeWitt, and Alexis Davis), Martin Grey was never the head of that paper.

 

With the huge reliance on AI for so much these days, I'm left wondering if this book was not a product of AI.  It is lacking in any real depth, and it glosses over so much that has taken place in the 60-plus years of General Hospital's history, plus it contains some very glaring mistakes, that I find it hard to believe that Shanks put a whole lot of time into researching and writing this book.  With so many rich storylines, so many great characters, and so many years of amazing history to draw upon, this book is a disappointment in its lack of specifics and detail.  Longtime fans of the show will be extremely let down by this book, particularly with the $15.99 hardcover / $8.99 softcover prices (I bought the hardcover).  I would not recommend this book at all, unless you are someone who simply must have ever book out there about General Hospital - in that case, it might be worth it to you.  As for me, this will go on a shelf and likely never looked at again.

 

RATING:  3  hospital corridors echoing with hurried footsteps out of 10 for at the very least mentioning one of my favorite characters, Nelle Benson (although not at all mentioning my other favorite, Sabrina Santiago, even though she was instrumental in bringing the Nurse's Ball back to GH!).

 

 

Love in the Afternoon - the wild novel of a soap opera superstar!

Sometimes you come across some of the best books when you are not really looking for them.  Such is the case with this book.  I was combing through the paperbacks at the Family Bookstore in DeLand, when, as I reached the end of the section, my eyes glanced over the title to this book and had to take a second look.  The slogan "Love in the Afternoon" was used by ABC to market its soap operas for a decade, from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s - advertisements with a catchy theme, giving clips of the various soap operas in ABC's line-up - Ryan's Hope, Edge of Night, All My Children, One Life to Life, and General Hospital.  (It should be noted that NBC had used that same slogan to market their soaps in 1974, but gave up on it rather quickly, which is when ABC decided to take the banner for their channel.)  Because of this, the phrase "Love in the Afternoon" pretty much became synonymous with soap operas.  So, when I caught the title to this book, I figured it would have to be about soaps - and sure enough, it was!  Therefore, I shelled out the couple of bucks and bought it.

 

Love in the Afternoon gives two taglines on its cover: "Daytime TV will never be the same!" and "The wild, brilliantly hilarious novel of the on- and off-camera lives and loves of a soap-opera superstar."  Written by Ed Zimmermann, the book was originally published in hardcover in 1971, and the Pocket Books paperback came out two years later - and both came out before either NBC or ABC ever began their ad campaigns using that slogan!  Leads one to wonder if this book may have prompted the use of the phrase by NBC and ABC.  In any event, it turns out Ed Zimmermann, the author, was actually a soap opera actor himself, having played the role of Dr. Joseph Werner (the second actor to play the role) on the CBS soap, Guiding Light from 1967 to 1972.  He was only 39 years old when he died of a heart attack on July 6, 1972 (just a year after this book was first published).  He was also a stage actor, and he was in Ogunquit, Maine auditioning for a part in "Who Killed Santa Claus?" when he died.  He only authored this one book.  A huge Guiding Light fan, on her blog, indicates this book is based upon the behind the scenes experiences of Zimmermann while working on the soap.

 

The book tells the story of actor Steven Prince (which, to me, feels like a cross between Steve Trevor and Diana Prince from the Wonder Woman comics!), who takes a role on a television daytime drama, playing Dr. Harlan Cross on a soap opera that centers around Pinewood Hospital.  After acting on Broadway, making the transition from stage to the small screen is quite an experience for Prince.  For an actor used to months of rehearsals to a show where you get only hours of rehearsals before filming live - one can't even begin to imagine; however, Zimmermann does his best to provide the reader with just how much stress that can cause an actor new to daytime TV.  From being handed the first script, to meeting his co-workers, to learning where everything is in the production building - it is basically like being thrown into the water and being told, "Go ahead, now, and swim!" He even provides a schedule that Prince is given his first day on the set (from page 24):

8:00 - 10:00 - Dry for Blocking (First Rehearsal)

8:00 - 10:00 - Makeuip and Costume

10:00 - 10:30 - No Fax (Blocking on Set with No Cameras)

10:30 - 11:00 - Camera Conference

11:00 -12:00 - Fax 1 (Blocking with Cameras and Boom)

12:00 - 1:00 - Break

1:00 - 1:30 - Fax 2 (Run Through)

1:30 - 2:00 - Break and Film Check

2:00 - 2:30 - Dress

2:30 - 3:00 - Break

3:00 - AIR

I look at that schedule and realize just how tight it really is and how little time the actors have to get it right.  I've heard actors from Dark Shadows talk about how fast-paced daytime television is, and their experiences pretty much line up with what Zimmermann shares here.  It's evident he took his own experiences on the set of Guiding Light and integrated them into this story.  With frazzled nerves, Prince manages to make it through his first day, and as the days turn into weeks, he begins to enjoy playing the villain everyone loves to hate.  And his interaction with the cast is bound to have come from his real-life interactions - some actors who are laid back; others who demand attention; still others who rarely know their lines to those who make everyone else's life a disaster.   There is even the behind the scene attempts to seduce co-stars - thankfully, though, Zimmermann keeps his main character faithful to his real-life wife, for which I was happy to see.

 

One of the interesting tidbits I enjoyed in the book was how fans of Prince's on-screen character, Harlan Cross, could not see to separate the actor from his role.  Even his own mother was questioning his motives on the show, and Prince eventually gives up trying to convince her that he is not the character.  I have heard actors talk about these types of scenarios before (at General Hospital fan fests, several actors have talked about being berated by fans for the actions of their characters, as if they were the actual character), so reading about it in this book was not really much of a surprise. It makes me wonder if Zimmermann faced this same problem with his role on Guiding Light.  

 

Then there is the change in writers, which brings about major changes in the show - and for Prince, this results in his bad-boy doctor being redeemed and turned into a caring man searching for a real relationship, rather than breaking up all those around him.  Prince is not happy about the shift, but since it is his job, he must work with it.  Oh, and I loved the way the production had to accommodate Prince when he accidentally fractures his ankle - so they have to create work-arounds for all of his scenes.  The operating table is lowered so he can film the scene sitting down (but the cameras are angled to make it appear everyone is standing), and a body double is used when "Harlan" has to break down a door and rush into a room.  I can't tell you how many times I've seen actors in soaps with casts or crutches because they have injured themselves in real life, so the writers have to write that injury into the show somehow.  So, again, reading about this scenario feels like par for the course for a soap opera.

 

From what I have been able to gather online, the book apparently has a number of parallels with the Guiding Light, when it comes to characters and situations.  Having never watched that show, I cannot confirm such likenesses; however, I can say that much of what takes place behind the scenes in this story lines up with many stories I have heard from soap opera actors over the years.  I think it great that Zimmermann took his experiences and turned it into a comical story for fans to read.

 

One final observation is the opening paragraph to Chapter Eight.  Zimmermann discusses how soap opera writers have fun with time - "moulding it and stretching it and playing with it as if it were so much silly putty" (p. 156).  An entire season can pass by in just a few days, or weeks can be stretched out into months.  And yet, despite this stretching and contracting of time, all of the holidays still manage to show up at the correct time!  My friends and I have all made this observation about soap operas for years!  Passions, which ran on NBC from 1999 to 2007, was very bad about this.  One day on that show would sometimes last more than a month!  Thus, it was definitely appropriate for Zimmermann to make mention of this in the book, since any real soap fan would recognize this as a reality of daytime television!

 

Interestingly, the copyright page actually gives credit to the cover artist (which so few books from this era ever did!).  Lou Marchetti was well-known for his cover art for paperback books, but he also provided art for movie posters and magazines, such as Galaxy and Reader's Digest.  The cover gives us a scene with Prince and a fellow actress on what appears to be a crimson bedspread, with plenty of cameras and lights surrounding them.  More information can be found about Marchetti at the website run by his daughter, Louise (The Life and Art of Lou Marchetti).

 

While not exactly "brilliantly hilarious" as advertised on the cover, I would say the book does have some laughs and is a pretty good read - especially for anyone who enjoys soap operas!

 

RATING: 8 ankle-crunching slides into home plate out of 10 for a somewhat satirical look into what goes on behind the scenes of your favorite daytime drama!