What’s the perfect way to celebrate Halloween?... With Dark Shadows and Horror Hosts, of corpse! In this episode, Penny Dreadful summons many of her fellow television and internet horror movie hosts to share their memories and thoughts on DS. Hosted by Penny Dreadful and featuring (in order of appearance): Count Gore De Vol, Sally the Zombie Cheerleader, Dr. Gangrene, Doctor Sarcofiguy, Professor Anton Griffin, Undead Johnny, Marlena Midnite, Sicko-Psychotic, The Bone Jangler, Karlos Borloff, Dr. Dreck, Remo D, Bobby Gammonster, Scarlett Kaiju, The Host, Danvers, Stevie Gothling/Tim the Enchanter, Octavian Hallow, and Halloween Jack. You won’t want to miss this hex-clusive Halloween Horror Host celebration of Dark Shadows! Listen to the very end to hear a fascinating interview clip from a horror host who tried to audition for the original Dark Shadows in the early 70’s!

Robert Cobert’s iconic music themes for Dark Shadows were integral to the identity of the entire series and its two film spinoffs. Musician, author, and DePaul University College of Law professor, Ben Alba, visits the podcast to discuss and celebrate some favorite Cobert pieces. Throughout the course of episode, Ben even plays a few bars from several of the themes on his keyboard. Topics include: Ben’s lifelong fascination with the music from Dark Shadows, playing on the piano for fans at a Dark Shadows Festival, Bob Cobert’s incredible range as a composer, Dark Shadows soundtrack albums, and much more!

Correction: According to the interview with Bob Cobert in the booklet included with Discs 5 & 6 of ‘The Complete Dark Shadows Soundtrack Music Collection’ – “Many people assume that the instrument playing the Dark Shadows theme was a Theremin, but it wasn’t. The opening theme was neither a Theremin nor an Ondes Martinot. It was a Yamaha synthesizer with a string on it that made a Theremin-like sound. We couldn’t find an Ondes Martinot player or a Theremin player in New York, so we used that, and it was played by a very famous pianist named Dick Hyman… What you’re hearing in the theme is, melodically, a Yamaha on top, an alto flute on the bottom, then a bass, vibes, and harp, playing atonal accompaniment – five players in all.” I actually knew about this but misremembered the tweaked synthesizer organ as the way Robert Cobert initially presented the theme to Dan Curtis. Cobert presented the theme to Curtis by describing it and sort of whistling it while shaking his head about. I pulled the instrument listing (including the Theremin) from an online article and should have double-checked everything before recording the episode. Apologies. Also, from the same interview: “Almost all of the Dark Shadows music cues were recorded in England. It was money, pure and simple... the theme itself was recorded in New York.”

UPDATE: However, according to listener Jim Negro, it was an Electro-Theremin ("Tannerin") that was used in the DS theme: "The instrument used on the Dark Shadows Theme is indeed a Theremin, but not a traditional model. It was called an Electro-Theremin, and was invented and played by a man named Paul Tanner. Modern versions of this instrument are called the "Tannerin" in his honor, and also to help differentiate it from a traditional Theremin. It was Paul Tanner that contributed to the score; not Dick Hyman (see below).

Traditional Theremins are notoriously difficult to play and record with, so the Electro-Theremin was created as a substitute. It's played much like a regular keyboard, but has slide controls that alter pitch and volume. Most famous "Theremin" songs you've heard like the Dark Shadows Theme and the Beach Boys Good Vibrations are actually the Electro-Theremin.

Bob Cobert misspoke in the interview (perfectly understandable, given he was an octogenarian at the time) which has caused a lot of confusion. Yamaha Synthesizers didn't exist until 1974, and there's no "string" attachment to be had on them. He was describing an Electro-Theremin and its slide controls.

Dick Hyman confirmed he did not contribute anything to the Dark Shadows score. He's kept meticulous notes of all his sessions, going back to the late 1940s, and there's nothing for the Robert Cobert Orchestra or for any television/film score at that time. On the dates Bob Cobert was recording the theme in New York, Hyman was in Chicago recording material for the I'll Never Be The Same Again album. It would have been pretty unlikely that Hyman finished recording in Chicago during the day, flew to New York that night to record an Electro-Theremin part for a soap opera theme, then flew back to Chicago by the next morning to resume his album sessions, and not have any memory or record of doing so. There's also no evidence he ever played the Electro-Theremin or even knew what it was.

There was only one Electro-Theremin in existence, and it was owned by its inventor, Paul Tanner. He was the only person that was ever known to play it. All verified instances of its use (The Beach Boys Pet Sounds album, the My Favorite Martian score, the Music For Heavenly Bodies LP, the Ghost and Mrs. Muir theme, etc) were all performed by Paul Tanner, meaning the Dark Shadows score is almost certainly performed by him as well. The fact that he was under contract to ABC Television at the time pretty much seals the deal."

The new Jonathan Frid documentary website features many exclusive video clips, interviews, photographs, merchandise, and more! Returning guests, Mary O’Leary and Will McKinley, are joined by Frid documentary editor and post-producer Michael Giglio to discuss behind-the-scenes stories about ‘Dark Shadows and Beyond: The Jonathan Frid Story’. After that, Mary and Will share some inside scoops about what fans can expect from the new Jonathan Frid website. Mary and Will also discuss their experiences regarding Jonathan’s recording of ‘The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’ for MCI’s Halloween Hotline in 1991. The show ends with that very audio recording of Jonathan Frid reading ‘The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’.

Trivia facts about Dark Shadows plotlines and the show’s cast and crew are discussed with the master of DS trivia, Charles Ellis. Charles was a regular at the Dark Shadows Festivals and his DS devotion and knowledge is well-known to both fans and actors! This fun discussion runs the gamut from DS syndication, fanzines, storylines, characters, DS stars, the lost episode, cancellation, autograph collecting, Lovelady Powell as Dr. Julia Hoffman, and much, much more!

The 1970 Parallel Time storyline introduced Dark Shadows viewers to a strange and fascinating parallel universe inhabited by alternate versions of familiar characters who, in this mirror timeband, made different choices in their lives. Visiting to discuss this unique story arc are fellow DS podcasters Cara Tillitz and Christen Pierce of the Between the Shadows podcast and Jule Saynes of the Resident of Collinwood YouTube podcast channel. In addition to discussing the plotlines and characters of 1970 Parallel Time, and their inspirations, Cara, Christen, and Jule also talk about their introductions to Dark Shadows and why they launched their own DS-focused podcasts.

Actress Marie Wallace played the memorable characters Eve, Jenny Collins, and Megan Todd on Dark Shadows. In this episode of Terror at Collinwood, the charming Marie sits down for a fun chat about her career in theatre and television. In addition to discussing her memories of DS and the characters she portrayed on the show, Marie talks about her early theatre experiences, reuniting with Jonathan Frid for ‘The Lion in Winter’, her interactions with ‘Dark Shadows’ fans, photography, her autobiography, painting, and more!

This episode of the podcast features the return of listener email! The show kicks off with a special thanks to every forum and group where Terror at Collinwood is shared, plus plugs for other podcasts. After that, Penny Dreadful dips her claws into the Collinsport mailbag to read and address messages and comments from fellow Dark Shadows fans! Topics include: Dark Shadows memories, time travel conundrums, thoughts on Roxanne Drew, quitting the podcast over criticism of the Burton film, listening to the show while exercising, stigma of not being a first generation fan, DS and Doctor Who, what if Mitchell Ryan had played Jeremiah, and much, much more!

A wide variety of memorable Dark Shadows collectibles have been released over the decades, surely with more to come. Jeff Kenny, a longtime DS fan, collector, and co-administrator of the Dark Shadows Collectors Facebook group, sits down for a show & tell chat about his favorite DS merchandise, rare holy grail items, and hopes for future collectibles. In addition, Jeff shares his passion for DS filming locations and discusses many important buildings and locations used in the series and films. Other topics include meeting DS actors, DS tattoos, Seaview Terrace, gatekeeping behavior in fandom, and much more!

In June of 1967 Grayson Hall joined the Dark Shadows cast as Dr. Julia Hoffman, a character who went on to play a pivotal role throughout the remainder of the series. In total, Grayson played six memorable characters on the show, including Magda Rakosi and Countess Natalie DuPres. This episode of Terror at Collinwood celebrates the 55th anniversary of Julia’s first appearance and features guests R.J. Jamison, who wrote the popular biography ‘Grayson Hall: A Hard Act to Follow’, and writer & longtime fan Steve Shutt. This fun and spirited discussion explores several favorite Grayson Hall scenes featuring each of her DS characters.

The deeply fascinating but oft-maligned Leviathans arc is the focus of this episode. Acclaimed authors Stephen Mark Rainey and Rick Lai visit the podcast to discuss and analyze this Dark Shadows storyline, while also looking at its inspirations. Other topics include Mark’s official work on the Dark Shadows Big Finish audio plays and the DS novel ‘Dreams of the Dark’, and Rick’s intriguing essay on the Leviathans as well as some of his fictional tales that incorporate nods to DS.

Note: Apologies for the audio issues near the end of this episode.

Prolific writer, film director, screenwriter, and classic horror fan, Don Glut, pops by the Terror at Collinwood podcast for a fun chat about his fandom for Dark Shadows. In addition to discussing his memories of discovering Dark Shadows in the 60’s, Don talks about meeting various DS stars over the years, and shares memories of working with Jerry Lacy in Tales of Frankenstein. Don also talks about being in the band Penny Arkade and hanging out with the band’s producer Michael Nesmith of The Monkees. Don also created The Occult Files of Dr. Spektor for Gold Key Comics and talks about trying to sneak Barnabas into an issue.

Since 2010, Hermes Press has been releasing high-quality collections and reprints of classic 60's and 70's Dark Shadows publications such as the Gold Key comics and story digest, the newspaper comic strips, and the Paperback Library novels. Managing Editor Sabrina Herman stops by the podcast to talk about the origins of DS at Hermes, the work that goes into putting these books together, and she even drops some tantalizing hints about potential future Hermes Press Dark Shadows books!

Dr. Andrew Higgins is a respected J.R.R. Tolkien scholar and longtime Dark Shadows fan who wrote the essay “The Gothic World-Building of Dark Shadows” for the publication, Exploring Imaginary Worlds: Essays on Media, Structure, and Subcreation. He visits Terror at Collinwood for a fun and insightful discussion about transmedia world-building, the primary vs. the secondary world, formalism, canon vs. non-canon, how spin-off media and fandom enriches and informs story worlds, and much more! Other topics include J.R.R. Tolkien, Andrew's memories of Dark Shadows, the story that inspired the use of I-Ching on DS, Angelique's confusing timeline, Grayson Hall, 1795, 1840, and much more!

This episode features a discussion with editor and writer Jim Beard who, along with Charles R. Rutledge, edited the new book Running Home to Shadows: Memories of TV’s First Supernatural Soap from Today’s Grown-Up Kids from Becky Books. We talk about the book, its contents, how the project came together, and about Jim and his wife Becky's history with Dark Shadows and classic horror movies. This spirited conversation touches on many topics, including Sir Graves Ghastly, Batman, Kolchak, the Planet of the Apes fiction anthology, a proposed Dark Shadows fiction anthology, Universal and Hammer horror, pulp heroes and, of course, running home from school to watch Dark Shadows.

This special episode of Terror at Collinwood is a celebration of the 55th anniversary of Jonathan Frid’s first appearance as Barnabas Collins on Dark Shadows! The show opens with a delightful discussion featuring special guest David Selby, who portrayed the iconic Quentin Collins in Dark Shadows. Following the interview, there’s a fun and spirited chat with special guests Mary O’Leary, Nancy Kersey and Will McKinley, who worked with Jonathan Frid in the development of his one-man shows in the 1980’s era. Finally, the episode concludes with a rare and exciting recording of Jonathan Frid reading Dead Call by author William F. Nolan, featuring music by David Christenberry/RaveDave60 Music. This episode is dedicated to the memory of Kay Fry.

This short episode kicks off with a tribute to the late Mitchell Ryan from Jeff Owens and Richard Chamberlain of the 'Classic Horrors Club' podcast! After that, Penny examines some possibilities about what might have taken place before Barnabas changed history in 1897.

The iconic and beloved 1897 storyline garnered Dark Shadows its highest ratings when it originally aired in 1969. Longtime DS fan and editor of the online eZine 'The Collins Mausoleum', Joe Escobar, visits the podcast to discuss this mega-popular set of episodes. Stay tuned until the end for tributes to the late Mitchell Ryan from Rob and Phyllis Floyd of the 'Fantasmo After Dark' podcast and Jule Saynes of the 'Resident of Collinwood' YouTube podcast.

Another frenzied (and geeky) lecture? You bet! This time, Penny Dreadful tackles major characteristics of gothic horror & gothic romance and illustrates their use in Dark Shadows. Topics include Terror at Collinwood’s Rondo Award nomination for best podcast (!!!), Terror vs. Horror, “spackling” continuity and bloopers, atmosphere of the gothic, otherness, serials, obsession, madness, love triangles, monsters and the supernatural, heightened emotion, the sublime, subverting the gothic, and much more!

Be sure to vote in the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards!

Terror at Collinwood was nominated for Best Podcast & Penny Dreadful was nominated for Favorite Horror Host

The full ballot can be found here: https://rondoaward.com

Ricardo Rebelo is a filmmaker, professor of communications, and former director of the Rhode Island International Horror Film Festival. In this episode, Ric joins Penny Dreadful as they rank the Dark Shadows remakes and reboots! Other topics include the atmosphere of New England, Ric’s introduction to DS and the horror genre, hopes for the future, and much more!

Graphic designer, Big Finish audio producer, and writer Stuart Manning visits the podcast to discuss his upcoming 'Dark Shadows' print fanzine 'Daytime Gothic'. Other topics include Stuart's work on the Big Finish DS audio dramas, the Dark Shadows News Page, the Dark Shadows Journal, Stuart's introduction to DS, the Burton film, DS in the UK, and much, much more!