DARK SHADOWS: THE GAME

Several years ago, artist Bill Branch created an elaborate board game featuring the many names, faces and place seen around Collinsport.

“After an intense re-watch of the series, I created DARK SHADOWS: THE GAME because I wanted to play a game that recreated the experience of the show, as if the players were characters on the show,” Branch said. One hundred boards were produced, with game’s cards cut by hand, with most (if not all) of the show's dueling timelines represented on the board. I've added a few close-up images to give you an idea of the level of detail Branch included in the game, because this thing is gorgeous.

Even though he's had a few false starts with the product, Branch is still open to the idea of putting this game on the market as an official release. What do you think?

DARK SHADOWS FAN ART: Angelique

The original TV portrait.

DARK SHADOWS loves its portraits. At one time or another, most of the show's leads had their likeness done in oils, from Burke Devlin to Quentin Collins. Visual art played such a role in the series that the cast of characters even included a few people that were portraits come to life. Naturally, this fascination with art extends to fans of the series.

Last year, BILL BRANCH shared some of his DARK SHADOWS-inspired work with this website, but this artwork of Angelique (specifically Angelique Stokes Collins, for those of you keeping score at home) somehow slipped through the cracks. Branch created this art on an antique sewing machine cabinet that he gutted. And the tulips he added to the background of the image? Angelique tulips, of course.

Howlers

This week's installment of Bill Branch's classic HOWLERS comics.

Howlers

This week's installment of Bill Branch's classic HOWLERS comics.

Howlers

This week's installment of Bill Branch's classic HOWLERS comics.

Howlers

This week's installment of Bill Branch's classic HOWLERS comics.

Howlers

This week's installment of Bill Branch's classic HOWLERS comics.

Howlers

This week's installment of Bill Branch's classic HOWLERS comics.

Howlers

This week's classic HOWLERS comic from Bill Branch.

Fangsgiving in Collinsport

THE COLLINSPORT HISTORICAL SOCIETY is approaching its "unofficial" one-year anniversary this month. Back on Nov. 25, 2011, I created the first post for this site ... and then abandoned the project for almost two months.

These kinds of pages are easy to create, but it's incredibly difficult to connect them with an audience. Competition from a planet full of bloggers creates a constant hum of white noise, and I've been in publishing long enough to know you never, ever take an audience for granted. Even with 7 billion people on the planet you can't assume you're going to chance upon another like-minded person, let alone enough to sustain a publication. I've watched newspaper circulations slowly dwindle over the last 15 years as writers, editors and publishers lost touch with the needs of their readers, and I wasn't entirely sure my pronounced idiosyncrasies would be a good fit for this subject matter. The idea for this page was far from a slam dunk.

I don't remember what finally prompted me follow through on the website, but it probably wasn't any one thing. Looking back, the first post reads like a rough "mission statement," and the concept hasn't really changed much since. This is a page about DARK SHADOWS, but it's mostly about the show's passionate fans. The volume and variety of tributes that fans have created over the years is astounding, especially when you consider DARK SHADOWS hasn't received much of a boost from mainstream media. We've been content to do our thing and have never really cared if the outside world "got it."

Since then, THE COLLINSPORT HISTORICAL SOCIETY has developed a devoted following. It's not the most heavily visited website on the planet, but my readers are smart, funny and opinionated without ever veering too far into Crazytown. I'm not trying to temp fate, but this blog isn't regularly patrolled by grammar nazis and Dark Shadows Fundamentalists demanding to see our credentials.

I've also been fortunate in conning convincing some very talented people to contribute material to this site from time to time. Kathryn Leigh Scott subjected herself to my babbling for an interview back in February, and I was able to rope Matthew Hall into chiming in for a blog-a-thon about his late mother, Grayson. DARK SHADOWS fandom went off the rails shortly before the new movie was released in theaters, and I'm happy to report that we survived the experience. It's been an interesting year.

But, I can't really take any credit for that. If you're reading this, chances are you heard about this site by word of mouth. And that conversation was started by people much more influential than myself. If you've got a moment, please visit their websites. You won't be disappointed:

Will McKinley:  He's not only pimped this site more heavily than anyone else, he's also let me chip in a little commentary (both spoken and written) to his various projects. He's the 2012 COLLINSPORT HISTORICAL SOCIETY MVP, for sure. You can stalk him on TWITTER, too.

Plucky Chicken: Plucky has taken part in almost all of our little blog-a-thons this year. Smart and funny, I have a feeling she'll be a celebrity blogger by the end of 2013. So go visit her website so you can say you knew her before she was famous. (TWITTER.)

THE COLLINSPORT HISTORICAL SOCIETY has two soul mates, whether they know it or not. The first is Julia Hoffman, Md. a Tumblr feed that is a constant source for inspiration and an early sign to me that a DARK SHADOWS page could be simultaneously vicious AND funny. The other is The Collins Foundation, another website that breathes life into a not-so-new television show.

Bill Branch: I was away for a few weeks and didn't want to put this blog on hold while I was gone. In the weeks leading up to my departure, I struggled to line up material to post automatically while I was away. But some of it was ... less than good. As luck would have it, I heard from Branch as I was scheduling these posts, and he provided a lot of interesting content that kept THE COLLINSPORT HISTORICAL SOCIETY vital in my absence. I hope you enjoyed his contributions as much as I did.

George Caltsoudas: The art you saw at the top of my page for the last few months came from George Caltsoudas, who does some amazing work. I'd LOVE to see him create a comicbook, but I've given up hope that he'll ever be allowed to work on the DARK SHADOWS series from Dynamite ... he's too damn good for them. Frankly, I'd be more excited to see him pour his creative energies into a book of his own creation.

"Victoria Winters" and "Fushigi Fox" sent me a few gifts in the mail this year. Miss Winters upgraded her DARK SHADOWS DVD collection by purchasing the massive "coffin set" and sent me her duplicates of the first two box sets of DARK SHADOWS: THE BEGINNING. That's the reason you're reading the new DARK SHADOWS DIARY feature. Mrs. Fox sent me a collection of promotional materials for the new DARK SHADOWS movie, as well sending me a copy of the Japanese reprint of the Marilyn Ross HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS novel for All Hallow's Read. I'm incredibly grateful to them both.

And, finally, my Twitter followers. I'm not as active on Twitter as I should be, and I made a decision earlier in the year that was well-intentioned but probably counter productive. Terrified I'd forget to mention somebody on #FF (Follow Friday) I took to re-tweeting anyone that mentioned me in a #FF tweet. The idea was to promote my followers and their interests without putting myself in a position of alienating someone by omission. (It helped that I could complete this task with the press of a single button.) Ultimately, I think it looked like I was just promoting myself, which wasn't the case. So, here's a short list of some of my favorite Twitterers:

https://twitter.com/FrankJayGruber

https://twitter.com/danclarkmusic

https://twitter.com/VisioTnugdali

https://twitter.com/Majkinja

https://twitter.com/davidselbycom

Even after all that, I'm STILL convinced I've left someone out. Anyhow, the point to this editorial is to say thanks to those of you who take the time to read it. There's a lot of competition for your attention, so I'm flattered you think this site is worth a few moments of your time.

Victoria Winters by Bill Branch

Victoria Winters' messy backstory meant she was one of the few leads on DARK SHADOWS that never had a portrait created for her. Barnabas Collins and Angelique Bouchard Blair Rumson Collins Mellencamp both had two, while Maggie Evans/Josette DuPres technically had one.

BILL BRANCH corrected this oversite by creating a portrait of ALEXANDRA MOLTKE as Collinwood's original governess.

"This is a painting of Victoria Winters holding Josette’s Music Box and wearing the dress she wore during the masquerade party," Branch said. "I met Alexandra in the early '90s when she brought her son and guests to Delmonaco’s Restaurant on Wooster Street in New Haven, CT for her son’s Yale graduation party. I recognized her immediately while her party waited to be seated. She was very gracious autographing a notepad, then 20 minutes later signing Kathryn Leigh Scott’s MY SCRAPBOOK MEMORIES. She was fascinated by the book and flipped through it. I was in Heaven to have finally met her since at the time she did not attend Festivals. She was stunning and very sweet."

Howlers

By BILL BRANCH

Howlers

By BILL BRANCH

Recreating Seaview Terrace

Lara Parker, with Branch's sculpture.

I am lucky.

Because I am an artist — if I want a portrait of Victoria Winters, I paint it; if I want to play a Dark Shadows Game (—and immerse myself in the world), I create it; and if I want a model of Collinwood, I mold it, fire it and hand paint it.

In 1995, I was able to visit a friend at the Salve Regina Dorm, Seaview Terrace/Carey Mansion, we all know and love as Collinwood. I got inside and wrote a book about it. After that, I took a million photos of the building’s details - and then proceeded to make 3 sculptures of it.  The medium one, I sent to the Carey’s as a gift. The other two I kept. These photos are of the larger. It’s a bit ragged but I love it. It became a bit more ragged in 2007 when one of my cats (not the one in the photo) chewed on some of the peaks and bit off the chimneys and trees. I glued it back together for these photos.

I also have attached a photo of Lara Parker holding the same sculpture at one of the NYC Dark Shadows Festivals where I had a dealer’s table.

- BILL BRANCH

Howlers

By BILL BRANCH

Mysteries of the real-life Collinsport

There might be more to Essex, Conn., than meets the eye.

Used as the exterior of Collinsport in the original DARK SHADOWS television show, a number of locations made occasional appearances on the program during pre-recorded footage used to connect interior scenes. According to Wikipedia, the Collinsport Wharf, Main Street and the Evans Cottage were all physical locations in Essex.  The Griswold Inn in Essex was used for the Collinsport Inn and the town post office was used for the town Police Station.

But there's a stronger connection between the two towns than mere scenery. Last week, I received an e-mail from DARK SHADOWS fan Bill Branch, which asked a very interesting question:

"Why has no one ever mentioned these facts that I have discovered?"

 The Griswold Inn was purchased in 1972 by Bill and Victoria Winterer. "Obviously someone key to Dark Shadows knew the Winterers before they bought the Gris in ’72," says Branch, a Connecticut resident.

Also: "Close to Main Street Essex, there are two streets nearly side by side named Evans Lane and Collins Lane."

"Finally," he said, "in the cemetery behind the home used as Evans’ Cottage there is a grave for Barnabas Bates. This has to be where they got Barnabas from. These cannot be coincidences."

As a side note, Branch said the property used as the "Evans Cottage" was much larger than it appeared on DARK SHADOWS. He was able to visit the house during a Holiday Home Tour in the later '90s.

"This was after I had located it (and reported it at the Festival and in the fanzine INSIDE THE OLD HOUSE Issue 54/55) -- so I had to go," he said. "It was a thrill being able to go inside. The home was fairly sprawling, considering that it looks small from the front. Unfortunately this was before I got a digital camera - and I did not take photos." 

Branch was also kind enough to forward some photos of the DARK SHADOWS locations showing how they look today. What are your thoughts?

Howlers

By BILL BRANCH

Thanksgiving with Louis Edmonds

Bill Branch is no stranger to Collinwood. His art, publications and games are well known to DARK SHADOWS fans, so I was delighted when he agreed to share some of his memories with this website. You can also look for his classic HOWLERS comics to appear here on Fridays for the next few months (and keep an eye out next week for the story behind the Victoria Winters painting seen in one of the photos below.) 

- COUSIN BARNABAS

I met Louis at one of the Festivals in the early 90s and thought he was charming, so when I saw Craig Hamrick’s book, Big Lou, there, I bought it, devoured it and sent Louis and Craig my praises.

The next thing I know, my partner & I are invited by Louis through Craig Hamrick to spend the weekend at Louis’ home, the Rookery.

We went to the Rookery one other time for a weekend, then invited Louis and Craig to our home, Winter Cottage, in Deep River for Thanksgiving overnight.

The following year, 2000, I was amazed when Louis drove with his nurse/friend Robert all the way from Long Island to Vermont for our Civil Union ceremony. It really made us feel special.

I won’t pretend that I was at the top of Louis list, but he was at the top of mine. He called us his Deep River Angels and I miss him every day. I keep his photo out in our dining room.

Louis was a doll, with his slightly naughty humor, sweet to the core.

- BILL BRANCH