Dark Shadows: How to make a monster

This is turning into one of those weeks where everybody involved is just too busy with real-life stuff to find time to blather on about Dark Shadows. Patrick McCray keeps watching episodes for the Dark Shadows Daybook and failing to find time to file the appropriate paperwork. Justin Partridge is still listening to the Big Finish audios and keeping his thoughts on them to himself. And I've been ... busy. My preoccupations have nothing to do with this week's full moon, as I explained to the sheriff at length this morning. No, I can't account for my whereabouts. If I knew there would be a test I would have taken notes. Am I expected to keep track of my comings and goings at all hours of the day?

I did find time to clean up a few images that you detail-loving nerds out there might enjoy. Below are some images relating to the 1969 Barnabas Collins model kit, including a comicbook ad, scans of the instructions, the box art and a hilarious insert included with the kit's 2012 re-release. Whoever wrote the copy for that box really knew their Dark Shadows lore.

Vintage Barnabas Collins model kit gets a makeover

Much of the vintage merchandise created for DARK SHADOWS is amazingly naïve. In his defense, Dan Curtis essentially created the business model that George Lucas would later perfect. While movies and television shows had been attaching their brand to peripheral (if not entirely disposal) products for years, Curtis established a framework for private enterprises that allowed them milk an intellectual property for everything it was worth. It's almost shocking to me that HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS, a movie that provided the Dark Shadows brand with its first legitimate Hollywood support, wasn't accompanied by the same flood of crap that had been attached to the television series just a few years earlier. Where were the trading cards? The coloring books? The HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS board game? Talk about a missed opportunity.

There didn't seem to be much in the way of quality control for the DARK SHADOWS television brand, though. When I referred to the merch as "naïve" at the start of this post, I really meant "awful yet cute." The MPC model kit is a flagship of sorts for the Dark Shadows brand, and is more representative of the "monster kid" culture championed by MPC than anything seen on DARK SHADOWS. It's a neat kit, to be sure, but looks more like an undead Alfred E. Neuman than Jonathan Frid.

Dick Smith adds a few hundred years to Jonathan Frid, 1967.

Back in 2013, MPC re-released the kits with new head sculpts for both the original Barnabas Collins and Werewolf model kits, featuring much improved likenesses of both characters. Not to be outdone, Escape Hatch Hobbies now has available a head for the Barnabas Collins kit that resembles the iconic Dick Smith make-up for the "aged" version of the character. This appears to be an unlicensed product so I hope this post doesn't cause them any problems ... but their work is pretty damned good.

You can see profiles of the sculpt below, and find them for sale on Ebay by clicking HERE.

Barnabas Collins model actually looks like Barnabas Collins

Remember that Barnabas Collins model kit released in the 1960s? The one that looked more like a creepy ventriloquist dummy that Jonathan Frid? Good news! MPC has done a bit of work on the sculpt, revising the heads for both the Barnabas Collins model and the classic Chris Jennings werewolf kit.

The "classic" kits were re-released a few years ago, compete with vintage-style packaging and a sarcastic product description. While I love the idea of getting the kit as it was originally produced, it still looks a little ... weird. (It doesn't help that the Barnabas Collins kit appears to be little more than a re-purposed Dracula mold.)

New editions of these models will be available from Entertainment Earth in January, complete with new sculpts for their heads. I've never heard anybody complain about the werewolf sculpt before, I have to admit the new version is an improvement. Both figures will be available in a two-pack. CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS.

Another look at the Barnabas Collins model

Universal Steve has posted a few images of a completed Barnabas Collins model kit at the Universal Monster Army message boards. Steve confirms some of the criticisms of Lyn Powell, who spoke about his work on the kit in a previous post here at TCHS.

Like Powell, Steve thought the flexible arms were "useless" and expanded on the base provided for the figure. He also purchased a replacement head for the model from CultTVMan, a part that looks more like actor Jonathan Frid than the item provided with the original plastic kit. He goes into more detail (and provides additional photos of the completed kit) at the UMA message boards.

The cast of Dark Shadows by the Clay Guy

Barry Crawford is one of the original '60s "Monster Kids" and took his love for classic model kits into a different medium with his Clay Guy sculptures. You'll find a healthy mix of horror icons available for sale at his site, ranging from Jack Nicholson in The Shining, to even The (gack!) Human Centipede.
Among his many creations are characters from Dark Shadows. I've posted a few of his images above and, if you're interested, you can talk to him about a private commission at his website HERE.

Find his Dark Shadows gallery at THIS LINK., Meanwhile, the website Horror Toys also has an interview with Crawford that delves into his love for horror movies and TV shows.

Building Barnabas Collins

The Barnabas Collins model kit is one of the best-known pieces of Dark Shadows merchandise. Recently re-released by MPC, it's a nifty little throw-back to the original '60s show that's easy to find. Unfortunately, putting together a model requires a certain kind of skill that most of us never acquire. After mulling my own dubious model-building skills for a few weeks I decided to take a more practical route and hire a Model Mercenary.

And not just any Model Mercenary, but THE Model Merc: Lyn Powell. I've see his work for sale on the shelves of Heroes and Dragons in Columbia, S.C., and asked him if he was game to build a Barnabas Collins model. Even though he admitted he didn't know much about Dark Shadows he was aware of the model kit and had heard it had ... issues.

And because I have a hungry blog to feed, he also agreed to take a few photos of the process and provided me with a detailed journal of the ordeal. Here's what he had to say:

Barnabas Collins, disassembled.

Lyn Powell Vs. Barnabas Collins

Oh the world of plastic model kits! Those retro nightmares reissued for a new generation to throw against the wall in rage! Ha ha ha. I'm not a huge fan of plastic kits. Can you tell? They're usually overpriced and small, and aren't known for their attention to details.
So, when given the MPC Barnabas Collins it, I expected the worst. The kit promised glow-in-the-dark parts and extra arms made of PVC. Let the madness begin!

The "glowing" parts, in white.

The glow-in-the-dark parts were just silly. If left unpainted they looked horrible. If painted, they don't glow. Sigh. On to the PVC parts.

The PVC parts were another failed attempt by MPC and included a metal rod that was to be used on one half of the arm, then the other half would "sandwich"  the rod so the arm could be bent. The problem is when PVC isn't warm it can't be bent. When warm, the arms split open. Epic fail, MPC! Bring me the basic parts.

Blocking the sunlight.

At first appearance Mr Collins' pose looked like he had a stroke, but when playing with the kit I settled on an OK idea. When the left arm is raised and has the hand titled, he was shielding his face. With a small modification to his neck he seemed to be blocking out the sunlight! Presto! Not a bad pose after all.

I glued all of the parts and primed Mr. B. with black sandible auto primer. I decided on a dark grey color for the jacket and a grey/black suit. I used a drybrushing technique for the coat using a lighter shade of grey on the raised edges to get the desired highlights. I decided on a light grey for the shirt with a dark burgundy tie, just to give him some needed contrast. He's not  in the FBI!

His shoes were done in a high gloss black. As with most plastic model kits the head comes in two pieces. This kit was not too bad ... sanding and a little putty and he was ready for paint.

Happy vampire is happy.

I chose a medium flesh tone to start. I then drybrushed lighter shades of fleshtone, hitting all the highlights to the face (nose, cheeks, etc.) I decided on a red fleshtone around his eyes. I wanted a "vamp" look, not the undead look. I was happy with the overall look so I moved on to his hair.

The kit had a decent sculpt of hair. Nice details made painting fun! I studied more reference pics and decided on the hair color. I started with a black, working from darkest to lightest, making my way up to a natural brown. I enjoyed the fact that, even if very small, they added his ring to the hand sculpt. Little details are what the fans love.

The base was just a tiny plastic "cobblestone" surface. This just wouldn't do for Mr. Barnabas Collins. I added a round wooden base painted black marble. I added grass and small wildflowers to give the look of an early morning stroll. "Ah, the sun's coming up!"

I think this was a nice little build. It had annoying moments but that's part of building model kits. Hope you guys enjoy Barnabas Collins!

The final product.

So, do you think you've got what it takes to build the Barnabas Collins model? If so, visit Amazon HERE and order yours today. If you do, feel free to send me photos of the final product. I'm sure everyone would like to see your work!

Surprisingly incisive criticism of Dark Shadows found in an unlikely place

I was on my way out the door to go see The Phantom Menace today (don't judge me) when I found a package waiting outside on my porch. It was the Barnabas Collins MPC model, a re-release of the popular kit from the 1960s. I've got my doubts about being able to build this model and have it resemble anything human, but I thought I'd take a shot at it. If you never see it  mentioned on this site again you can probably assume the worst.

While the box uses the classic artwork from the original release, a modern flier is attached to the back of the package. Whoever wrote the copy for this insert not only knows their Dark Shadows lore, but also managed to sneak in a little  criticism of the show, as well. Here's a sample:

"Cursed by a vindictive with, the romantic protagonist would spend the rest of eternity (or at least five seasons and a feature film) searching for his heart's desire, Josette... and Maggie and Victoria and Roxanne and maybe Julia."