The Dark Shadows Daybook: May 25

By PATRICK McCRAY

Taped on this day in 1967: Episode 248

When Barnabas woos Maggie with a tour of Collinsport’s cozier hideaways, will Willie provide a rude awakening? Maggie Evans: Kathryn Leigh Scott. (Repeat; 30 min.)

Barnabas punishes Maggie with an overday stay in a coffin. When she returns to the Old House, her true personality seems to permanently reemerge.

We’ve been teased for long enough. Maggie Evans knows that she’s Maggie Evans, but how are we supposed to feel?

If the original viewers of the show were cheering her on, the character of Barnabas would have had no future. If those familiar with the show say they are cheering her on, they aren’t that familiar with it after all.

This is the crux of the show’s most morally challenging storyline, but it’s not morally challenging for the characters. The compass there is clear. The challenge is for you, the viewer. Do you side with the character you know is destined to save the future, motivated by love and desperation, despite knowing that he is wrong? Or do you side with the brave, tortured woman you know will be free in time? It’s an ugly choice. If I were you, I wouldn’t even dignify the question. The show is relentless in confronting us with it, anyway, even though we may equivocate with, “neither” or, “both” or, “Are you crazy?”

It’s borrowing a page from Vertigo, and in that, too, we tacitly approve of extreme behavior by men toward women because we know there is a larger purpose. The difference is that Judy is not only responsible for Scotty’s pain, but (through complicity) the murder of Madeline. And Jimmy Stewart is not an undead hemovore (in that movie, anyway). With Barnabas, it’s more complicated. Maybe. Both men are driven by love. Both men are forcibly improving class status. And both men suspect that the true object of their affections lurks within. You realize that it’s a dark Cinderella, right?

There are different and theoretically forbidden dimensions to this entire topic for both men and women. Yeah, it’s clear why it’s abhorrent. Now, let’s talk about why it’s appealing, anyway. Not okay, but strangely appealing.

For women, let’s talk about the appeal first from what’s not going on. There’s no rape, and I can’t emphasize the power of that. Despite everything that’s going on, sexual violation isn’t one of them. In fact, there’s not even the hint. This is a driven and insistent and personal desire that involves who Maggie/Josette truly is rather than what she can do. Sex is fungible. Josette is not. With that off the table, the idea of this crime is one of the most flattering in the arena of the totally reprehensible. An all-powerful uber-patriarch comes to life and has only one focus: to love. Unlike Laura, there is no sacrifice involved. Yes, yes, Maggie will become one of the living dead, but in a very attractive, powerful, immortal way and, well, you gotta die sometime.

The prime demographic here (at this point in the run) is women home at four in the afternoon every weekday. I don’t need a Betty Friedan on my shoulder to both dislocate it and tell me that there’s a good chance this viewer might feel marginalized and unfulfilled. As much as Maggie screams for pop-pop-pop, she kind of has to. The story would be over if she didn’t. No one wants their identity replaced, but from the objective view of the audience, there are worse trades given the Byronic pining of her “host.” Josette sounds pretty great, and Maggie is a character destined for exactly the fate of many viewers… the beleaguered housewife of a working-class barfly who comes home every night stinking of dead shellfish and Kools. Go to bed with Joe Haskell and wake up with Curly Joe DeRita.

It’s quite the briar patch over at the Old House, and other than forgetting the forgettable minutiae of her former life, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of privation here. Yes, lack of air conditioning, but it’s Maine, you know?



For male viewers? I’m not sure there were many back then. But it’s clear that, while Barnabas’ desperate methods are cruel, his motives are not. Jonathan Frid projected a pain, melancholy, and lingering, unresolved desire better than any other actor in the medium. We have been there. I’m not going to say “incel,” because of the terrible baggage that perfectly decent descriptor (coined as a self-reference by a woman, I am led to believe) immediately gave itself, but… he didn’t explicitly ask for this. If a grown man is sitting around watching Dark Shadows, I can tell you that either his dance card is empty or he certainly knows what an empty one looks like. And while no rational human would contemplate kidnapping and brainwashing, Barnabas is s’darn earnest that we know that his motives are pure and motivated by a sense of profound loss, one that even the mighty, 1795 storyline strains itself to justify.

The fact that Barnabas loses her repeatedly in this, concluding in the shattering realization that he has caused the (supposed) death of another innocent person, is the ultimate comeuppance. His crime? The desire to not be alone. Yes, a phallocentric quest for power, but power over what was lost. Power to undo a crime of jealousy. And not Barnabas’.

If it sounds like I’m defending the undefendable, I am. But so is the show, because this man transforms into its hero, and we all kept watching. The reasons run deep.

This episode hit the airwaves on June 7, 1967.

The Dark Shadows Daybook: May 15

By PATRICK McCRAY

Taped on this date in 1967: Episode 239

Maggie, now in Josette’s wedding dress, joins Barnabas for dinner in an hypnotic haze. This is interrupted by a visiting Sam and Joe, who are sent away with Sam’s paints. Maggie, breaking free of her programming in her upstairs room, tries to escape, and Barnabas threatens her to stay.

Sometimes, DARK SHADOWS’ reputation for romance can be hard to understand if all you catch is a random episode. It shows us that a lot of people on it are in love, but only certain images and lines can make us feel why. But when it makes us feel why, few shows do it better, and few if any episodes do it better than 239.

At the heart of the ‘why’ is that word, “Gothic.” No other sensibility appeals to life in quite the same way because it openly acknowledges, confronts, and coexists with death. It refutes death by insisting that life will thrive despite it; the quintessence of romance is to want and strive and hope against all reason. As Barnabas Collins watches Maggie descend the stairs in Josette’s dress, glide through the decaying remnants of the House that was not always Old, and sit for a dinner that has been almost two centuries in the making, there is nothing rational to any of it. It is, however, necessary for this man, and as uneasy as the circumstances are, the beauty and authenticity of his motives cannot be denied. In the hands of another actor, Barnabas would have seemed lustful and selfish. Jonathan Frid’s sad gentility makes it clear that this is unrelated to the carnal. This is about Josette, and releasing her from her reincarnated prison known as Maggie Evans. It’s a strange and desperate gamble to win after what seems to be the ultimate loss.

We were supposed to see this from Maggie’s perspective, also, and sickening as her Stockholm syndrome is, it’s just as disheartening to feel that it’s always on the verge of failure. Go one way or the other, but let’s have some resolution. But romance in art is about suspense more than fulfillment, and the knitting of suspense to desire is what DARK SHADOWS is all about. At the end of the episode, as Maggie’s personality threatens to eclipse what Barnabas has tried to instill, she panics. Barnabas lunges for her, and the image fades to the credits. Is he going to attack her or is he going to beg? It’s unclear, and if it were not, I don’t think the show would have been a success. If there’s a mystery to DARK SHADOWS, it’s there.

On this day in 1967, the US Supreme Court recognized that juveniles accused of adult crimes have adult rights, as well.

This episode hit the airwaves May 25, 1967.

The Dark Shadows Daybook: May 25

By PATRICK McCRAY

Taped on this date in 1970: Episode 1026

Maggie wanders into Angelique’s room to hear Angelique's voice taunting her, comparing them as common versus glamorous. Liz talks her down from jumping by insisting that jumping would ruin Quentin. In interviewing Hoffman, Barnabas asks why Angelique owned books on witchcraft and promised to return from the grave. Hoffman brushes them off as metaphors. In Angelique’s room, Barnabas stares into the eyes of the Angelique portrait, demanding the truth. Across the estate, Angelique (as Alexis) senses being observed. Her eyes are burning! Barnabas commands her to come closer and closer until she runs into the room, screaming. She knows. And he knows. And she knows that he knows. And he knows that she knows that he knows.

Today is the birthday of the memorably menacing Erica Fitz, who played Leona Eltrich and Danielle Roget. She put in a wicked, strong performance as the evil spirit of Eve. Her career wasn’t terribly long, but it wasn’t dull. Not only did she welcome Arnold Schwarzenegger to the USA by co-starring with him in HERCULES IN NEW YORK, but she also sexed up the Broadway farce, THERE’S A GIRL IN MY SOUP, co-starting the Third Doctor, himself, Jon Pertwee! Stuck on Earth in that incarnation, his Doctor used his wisdom to guide a world-protecting service and protect the planet. Hard to find, look up the episode “The Daemons” for DR. WHO at his very best.

The Dark Shadows Daybook: MAY 26

By PATRICK McCRAY

May 26, 1967
Taped on this date: Episode 246.

Family attorney Richard Garner visits and is pleased when Liz asks him to finally file for divorce from Paul. She denies that she’s planning on a future marriage when Jason barges in and introduces himself. When Garner leaves, it’s clear that Liz will be marrying Jason whether she likes it or not. Roger glides in later saying that they’re understaffed -- everyone is staying home due to the attacks. Roger relates that the law still has no lead on Maggie. Liz relates that she’s going through with the divorce. Roger is delighted until Jason enters, acting like one of the family and dropping insinuations that he’ll be her next husband. Carolyn asks Vicky to drive into  and town with her, lamenting the disappearance of Maggie. Who will be next? Roger enters the study and reports his suspicions about the upcoming prospective marriage. The three are outraged. Carolyn suspects blackmail. The room in the basement must be the connection. Roger reveals that Liz wears the only key around her neck. Carolyn is determined to get it. In the drawing room, Jason holds the threat of exposing Liz as a murderess over her head. Carolyn enters and asks for the key. Liz refuses. Carolyn will break the door down if need be. Jason tells Carolyn that he can get the key, and Carolyn says that she’ll have him thrown out before then. Jason responds that it may not be so easy.

It’s always a pleasure to see one of the Garners, voices of reason in the early part of the series. This would be his last appearance in that role after representing Roger against Burke and in the investigation of Bill Malloy’s death. Richard Garner (father of Frank, another lawyer) was played by Hugh Franklin, a fascinating man. Not only was he husband to Madeleine L’Engle, a fine speculative fiction writer herself. Franklin was an accomplished Broadway actor, having appeared in numerous plays, including THE DEVILS, although he did not play a bone-brandishing nun.  This is the kind of episode that reminds us how dull the competition was back then with similar potboilers. Thank goodness for the wit and craft of the cast, especially Dennis Patrick, who manages to be the most charming and most threatening character on the show.

(Episode 240 airs on this date.)

May 25, 1969
Taped on this date: Episode 766.

1897. The wolf has been shot! Barnabas attempts to exact revenge on Magda, but is held at bay by the threat of silver bullets. The wolf is only wounded, and they move him to the Old House. For the sake of the children, and the curse that is carried onward, she will do what she can to help. As the cock crows, Barnabas goes to sleep and exacts a promise from Magda that she will explain that they want to help. Barnabas asks for the gun and he finds that a silver bullet is missing. She must have dropped it. Barnabas remains suspicious, although she claims she dropped it while loading it. He assures her that if Quentin dies, Magda will as well. After he retires, the wolf revives and dashes out. Under the sun’s rays, Quentin reverts in the woods. He hears weeping and becomes distraught. The voice continues as Quentin realizes it is the ghost of Dorcas Trilling. He continues to hear her accusations of murder as she appears in his mirror. Quentin reports the appearance to Judith, but orders her out before providing more details. The sun sets and Barnabas rises. He learns that Quentin is still unaware, but Magda reports that she knows a gypsy, who turned Petofi into a wolf, may be able to help… or rather her daughter, Julianka, can help. She was part of the Romana family, and King Johnny is in Boston and would know. She’ll go to Boston, and senses that Barnabas knows the fates of Quentin’s children. Barnabas visits Quentin and explains that he knows the secret and is here to help. Quentin resists, suspecting that Barnabas means some kind of harm. Barnabas insists that his fealty is genuine because Quentin’s survival is key to the survival of his loved ones. He cites possible solutions, and that he is researching more. Barnabas will let him know more when Magda returns. Quentin asks that he kill him if no cure is available. As Barnabas leaves, Judith reports that Jamison is disturbed by a name -- “David Collins.” He awoke from a dream screaming, “David Collins is dead!”

Quentin and Barnabas are half of the way to trust and friendship. The other half will come when Barnabas exposes his own strengths and vulnerabilities. And this is the rug that ties the room together and where DS goes ape. Quentin and Barnabas are teaming up, Magda is contrite, we have the promise of the beautiful and inexplicable Julianka, and hints at King Johnny and Petofi. For viewers who thought that DARK SHADOWS had shown them the fantastic, they were in for a surprise.   Especially interesting was the link between Jamison and David. The point of all of this was to save to David. So, for Barnabas to discover that he’s already a goner? Truly, one of DARK SHADOWS’ most shocking and poignant moments. Those are moments of real horror.

(Episode 761 airs on this date.)

May 25, 1970
Taped on this date: Episode 1027.

1970PT. Angelique, outed, knows that Barnabas is not human. Barnabas demands that she stop her plans against Quentin and Maggie or be destroyed. She says she has powers, as well. He leaves and she calls her father, Stokes, who believes she’s Alexis. She says she has information about Angelique. Upon leaving, Quentin and Barnabas meet, and Quentin reveals he’d never met Alexis before her death. Stokes arrives, with no love for Alexis. She reveals that the experiment was a success. Alexis opened the coffin, and Angelique used her warmth to come back. She needs his help against Barnabas. She thinks he may be from Parallel Time. He expounds on the theory to her. Quentin returns to Maggie, explaining that she was in Angelique’s dress, and that Alexis gave it to her. Quentin wants to start over, but Maggie is unsure how. Stokes is searching Loomis house -- he and Stokes were friends -- and is found by Barnabas. They greet one another, and Stokes introduces himself as the stepfather of Alexis and Angelique. Meanwhile at the lab, Cyrus is distant from Sabrina and she asks if there is someone else. It’s Maggie. She wants advice from Cyrus who says that Quentin may always be stuck on Angelique, and she should look to other men. Cyrus begins to collapse. Maggie leaves and Cyrus transforms before Sabrina’s eyes. He rises as Yaeger. He dresses to go, and forces Sabrina to meet Maggie, who has come back to check on him. Sabrina lies and says that Cyrus is gone. Quentin also enters seeking Cyrus. Quentin insists on waiting. Maggie and Quentin eventually leave. Upon Quentin’s return to Collinwood, he laments to Barnabas about Maggie’s fixation with Angelique. Upstairs, Maggie sleeps, observed by Yaeger.

Finally! An episode where Things Really Happen and the Series is Not the Same Again! We meet a deliciously sleazy Stokes, learn that he’s the mad scientist behind Angelique’s resurrection and Alexis’ sacrifice, hear “Parallel Time” referred to on the other side of the mirror, witness Sabrina finally learning that Cyrus = Yaeger, and see another Angelique/Barnabas standoff with all cards on the table. When a justified Barnabas quietly gloats, it’s a thing of true beauty. Thayer David inaugurates his sixth character on the show, which is a stunning record. He had been gone for 54 days, thanks to HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS, although at this time, he was also very busy as an actor in Hollywood, etc. He had just shot an episode of THE WILD WILD WEST and was gearing up to shoot LITTLE BIG MAN. A busy guy. His portly appearance made him seem older than he was. At the time, he was only 43.

(Episode 1022 airs on this date.)

The Dark Shadows Daybook: MAY 25

By PATRICK McCRAY

May 25, 1967
Taped on this date: Episode 248.

Sam insists that he saw Maggie, and Burke believes him. Outside, as Maggie wanders through the fog, a hand grasps her neck. Later, Patterson interviews Sam, who reports that her dress was of another century. Patterson suspects he was drinking, but they’re searching anyway. At the mausoleum, Barnabas ushers Maggie into the secret room, despite her protests. She now shows terror and resistance, and he shows nothing but panicked force. Barnabas attempts to reprogram her. Sometimes it seems to take. Barnabas rescinds his threat to punish so they may return to their house. He sees her holding Sam’s pipe, and Barnabas flies into a rage. She passes out as he carries her into the secret room. She awakens in a coffin as he seals it on her. When Willie opens the coffin some time later, he tells her to do exactly as he says. He leads Maggie into the night and back to her room at the Old House. She thinks of her time in the coffin as a nightmare, but then realizes it was real and becomes inconsolable. Willie tells her to try to become Josette, for her own sake. He even plays the music box. It calms her, temporarily. At Sam’s, Patterson reports no progress. All Patterson found was a dog. Patterson says that it may be his imagination. Burke is inclined to agree. In her room, Maggie plays the music box and begins to repeat that she is Josette Collins. Her reflection, however, reawakens her knowledge that she is Maggie Evans. She tears about the room, stating that she is Maggie Evans.

Up to now, was it clear that Kathryn Leigh Scott was a capable actress? Yes. But this is the point in the show where Maggie is pushed to such extremes that she overwhelms the show in the best way. It’s a performance brimming with powerful authenticity, and decidedly not the kind of acting we expect from daytime drama. This moment has been coming, and it pushes everyone to new extremes. Frid responds with a feral fusion of genuine fury and an angrily broken heart. Most importantly, this was the final day for actor Mitch Ryan as Burke Devlin. Mr. Ryan’s alcoholism in that period was legendary and led to his departure from the show. The good news is that his recovery was relatively swift, and his career rebounded. The sad part, other than it marking a dark period for a good man, is that the show lost a virile, charming, polished, street-tough force that most reminds me of Dan Curtis, himself -- almost Curtis’ surrogate. (The two men shared a resemblance both physically and in force of presence.) Anthony George is a perfectly serviceable actor, but not the primal actor that was and is Mitch Ryan. The show would continue for nearly a thousand episodes after his departure, but the absence is always felt because his presence so firmly established the emotional and moral core of the program.

(Episode 239 airs on this date.)

May 25, 1970
Taped on this date: Episode 248

1970PT. Maggie wanders into Angelique’s room to hear Angelieque’s voice taunting her, comparing them as common versus glamorous. Quentin doesn’t love her, she says. The window flies open and Angelique’s voice enthuses her to jump. Liz tries to stop her, but all Maggie wants to do is die to escape Angelique. Liz talks her down by insisting that jumping would ruin Quentin. Hoffman reports to Angelique that it almost worked. Hoffman reports that Maggie will leave Quentin over his treatment. Angelique needs to realize she has won. Liz shows a shaken Maggie into the drawing room, and Barnabas enters. Maggie relates the events of the night, insisting that Angelique is still with them. Barnabas says she may be more right than she knows. Later, Liz calms her, despite her fatalism. Liz refuses to believe that Angelique has won. In interviewing Hoffman, Barnabas asks why she might own books on witchcraft and promise to return after her death. Hoffman says it was mere metaphor. “Alexis” enters and accuses him of being too much of a romantic. She taunts his thoughts of witchcraft. Barnabas said it would be of interest to her. Such as fire… the one by which she’s sitting. She had said she had an attraction to fire. Aesthetic or more? She says Barnabas is preposterous. Barnabas takes it in stride and excuses himself. Later, Angelique tells Hoffman that Barnabas is nothing to worry about. And they can take care of him if he becomes trouble. In Maggie’s room, Liz and Barnabas comfort her. In Angelique’s room, Barnabas stares into the eyes of the Angelique portrait, demanding the truth. Across the estate, Angelique senses being observed. Her eyes are burning! Barnabas commands her to come closer and closer until she runs into the room, screaming. She knows. And he knows. And she knows that he knows. And he knows that she knows that he knows.

Today is the birthday of the memorably menacing Erica Fitz, who played Leona Eltrich and Danielle Roget. She put in a wicked, strong performance as the evil spirit of Eve.  Her career wasn’t terribly long, but it wasn’t dull. Not only did she welcome Arnold Schwartzenegger to the USA by co-starring with him in HERCULES IN NEW YORK, but she also sexed up the Broadway farce, THERE’S A GIRL IN MY SOUP, co-starting the Third Doctor, himself, Jon Pertwee! There’s a joke about his UNIT in there, but I’ll leave it to you to complete it.

(Episode 1021 airs on this date.)