Podcast: Return to House of Dark Shadows

Will McKinley loves House of Dark Shadows. As a high school student, working for actor 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 York — the film's shooting location — to debate the merits of the big screen version of Barnabas Collins. Listen to it here!



They also snapped a few photos during their tour, which you can see below.

Cinematic Collinwood featured on Saturday Night Live

The cast and crew of Saturday Night Live set up shop at Lyndhurst Mansion for last weekend's parody of the Downton Abbey feature film. While the fake trailer's establishing shot was of Highclere Castle, the stand-in for the show's fictional country estate, the rest of the clip was shot in and around Lyndhurst ... the Tarrytown, New York, mansion transformed into Collinwood for both House of Dark Shadows (1970) and Night of Dark Shadows (1971). Below is a screencap of SNL castmember Beck Bennett standing outside Lyndhurst, as well as a shot from House of Dark Shadows of Kathryn Leigh Scott, John Karlen and David Henesy in more-or-less the same spot.

1942 film offers rare color perspective of fictional "Collinwood"

The National Trust for Historic Preservation has an interesting feature story on Lyndhurst Mansion, the Tarrytown, N.Y., location that served as the location of the fictional "Collinwood" in both 1970's HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS and its 1971 sequel NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS. It's a well-researched, well-written piece that tells you just about everything you need to know about the historic mansion without ever once mentioning DARK SHADOWS. But that's OK. That's my domain.

The feature has a particularly juicy piece of bait on its hook, though: a rare 1942 color movie showcasing the Lyndhurst gardens. The backstory features a bit of gothic melodrama that proves to be mostly fictional:

"The discovery of this film is significant because it offers, for the first time, a tangible look at the landscape during the period when Lyndhurst was owned by Anna Gould. It had previously been understood that all staff, save for Lyndhurst’s superintendent, Robert B. Allan, were let go when Helen Gould died and that the gardens had consequently languished while Anna occupied the property only part-time. The film proves that this wasn’t the case — that in 1942, the Lyndhurst landscape still very much reflected Helen’s careful stewardship."

You can read the entire piece HERE and it's well worth the time of any DARK SHADOWS fan. There are also a a few little-seen photos of the property dating back to the 19th century. If you've already decided you know all there is to know about Lyndhurst, though, you can skip directly to the movie below. (And don't forget: both HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS and NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS will be airing on TCM next month.)

Spend Christmas at Collinwood

Lyndhurst Mansion, the Tarrytown, N.Y. property that served as the fictional "Collinwood" in both HOUSE and NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS, will summon a few ghosts on the estate this Christmas. "Mr. Dickens Tells a Christmas Carol" recreates Charles Dickens’ own performances of the classic tale that brings the travails of Ebenezer Scrooge, Bob Cratchit, and Tiny Tim to life. Actor Mikel Von Brodbeck plays Charles Dickens, who uses the author's original script as he takes guests on a tour of the main floor of Lyndhurst where you will meet various spirits and characters that haunt the grounds.

The event takes place Dec. 14-30. Visit Showclix to purchase tickets to the event.

Now, if we can only convince them to host a live reading of the Big Finish audio "The Christmas Presance."

H/T to @willmckinley.

Tour the picture gallery of "Collinwood" from your phone

Earlier this week, the Facebook page of the Lyndurst Mansion, the location that served as Collinwood in both HOUSE and NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS, posted an interesting image: a 360° panoramic image of its picture gallery. This is the room of the estate that was most famously used in HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS, in the scene where Barnabas Collins presents matriarch Elizabeth Stoddard with "lost" family jewels while weaving an ellaborate fiction about his background. You can interact with the image below, either with your smartphone or your mouse. Go! Explore!

Special thanks to Will McKinley for the tip! Follow him on Twitter @willmckinley.

Take a whirl around the Picture Gallery at Lyndhurst. Which is your favorite painting?
Posted by Lyndhurst Mansion on Tuesday, May 1, 2018

Mansions of the Gilded Age Symposium returns to Collinwood

The Mansions of the Gilded Age Symposium is returning this year to the historic Lyndhurst Mansion, the location used as the fictional "Collinwood" in HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS and its sequel, NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS.

Lyndhurst is a Gothic Revival country house that sits in its own 67-acre park beside the Hudson River in Tarrytown, New York. Designed in 1838 by Alexander Jackson Davis, the house's last resident was railroad baron Jay Gould. In 1961, Gould's daughter Anna Gould donated it to the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The National Historic Landmark is now open to the public.

On April 29, Mansions of the Gilded Age Symposium will present a day of lectures and activities at Lyndhurst. Five speakers and authors will discuss topics related to Gilded Age homes, society and art at the mansion. You can find a full schedule of lectures and tours for the day at the official Facebook event page HERE. Tickets are available at lyndhurst.org.

(H/T to Will McKinley for the tip. Follow him on Twitter at @willmckinley.)

Inside Collinwood

This year marked the first time I've attended a Dark Shadows Festival, but I've had little time to discuss it here in the weeks (months?!) since. My schedule has been so cramped lately that there's little time to do anything more than make cameo appearances on social media. I've since banked podcast interviews with Marie Wallace, Will McKinley and Mary O'Leary ... all of which still await editing. Sigh.

Until I get my crap together, here are some photos taken during the festival of the Lyndhurst Estate in Tarrytown, N.Y. The property, which was the shooting location for HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS and NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS, was ready for fans that weekend. There were portraits of Jonathan Frid and Lara Parker on display, and one of the tour guides was decked out in full vampire regalia. I was unable to bring any camera gear with on on the trip, but my cell phone served as a decent enough backup. It makes me feel a little guilty about almost leaving it at an airport restaurant in Newark, N.J.

The format of this website isn't especially friendly for photo galleries, so I've posted the images at the CHS Tumblr feed ... which you can find HERE.

Lyndhurst is taking over the world one TV show at a time

The producers of the new Smithsonian Channel series MILLION DOLLAR AMERICAN PRINCESSES temporarily set up shop at the Lyndhurst Estate to create promotional material for the series.


Also known as the Jay Gould Estate, Lyndhurst is a gothic-revival home located near the Hudson River in Tarrytown, New York. The property is no stranger to film and television, and was most recently used as a location for the TV series SLEEPY HOLLOW and feature film WINTER'S TALE.

More to the point, the estate was used as Collinwood for both HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS and NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS, and has been a popular location for the annual Dark Shadows Festival. If you're visiting this site, there's a good chance you've been to Lyndhurst, yourself.

Sadly, there appear to be hardly any vampires attached to MILLION DOLLAR AMERICAN PRINCESSES. The show seems to be playing off the popularity of another gothic melodrama, DOWNTON ABBEY.
Here's the official series summary:

Join Elizabeth McGovern as she takes an in-depth look at the young American heiresses whose real life stories inspired the acclaimed TV drama "Downton Abbey." This series explores the time between the 1870s and the outbreak of World War One, when more than 200 daughters of America's new industrial millionaires marry into the money-strapped British aristocracy. They use their affluence, allure and ingenuity to their advantage, and they bring dramatic changes to the English ruling class and eventually the world.

You can learn more about the series at the Smithsonian Channel website HERE.

Celebrate Halloween with "Lyndhurst After Dark"

I run a DARK SHADOWS blog and have never been to the Lyndhurst Estate. I've also never been to Me, but that's because Me has some seriously unreasonable visa policies.

If I wasn't up to me gills in non-DARK SHADOWS/Halloween related matters (Get married on Halloween, they said! It will be fun, they said!*) this month would be the perfect opportunity to get acquainted with the historic site used as the location for HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS and NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS. From Lyndhurst.org:

Lyndhurst After Dark lets you walk through the house at your own pace to experience the mansion as you’ve never even dreamed before.  Tickets have timed entry and are available on-line.  Visit in the shadows or in darkest night, beginning October 4 and continuing throughout the month.  Costumes are encouraged.  We recommend this event for ages 6 and up.  Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.  $25 pp.  For the complete schedule, and to purchase tickets visit http://www.showclix.com/event/AfterDark

Visit the official website for more details. If you go, feel free to send me some photos of the event. I'd love to share them.

* Note: "They" = "Me."