Dark Shadows (1991 TV series)

Dark Shadows (1991)
Dark Shadows title card
Format	Soap opera
Created by	Dan Curtis
Starring	Ben Cross Joanna Going Joseph Gordon-Levitt Michael T. Weiss Lysette Anthony Roy Thinnes Jean Simmons Barbara Steele Barbara Blackburn Jim Fyfe Veronica Lauren Julianna McCarthy Ely Pouget Eddie Jones Stefan Gierasch Adrian Paul
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	12 (List of episodes)
Production
Running time	55 minutes
Production company(s)	Dan Curtis Productions MGM Television
Broadcast
Original channel	NBC
Original run	January 13 – March 22, 1991

Dark Shadows, often referred to as Dark Shadows: The Revival Series, is a re-imagining of Dan Curtis's original Dark Shadows television series which aired from June 27, 1966 to April 2, 1971 on NBC. It aired as a weekly show during primetime. It was later shown in reruns on the Sci-Fi Channel and Chiller.

Series story line

Also developed by Curtis, it tells a streamlined version of the original storyline - the arrival of Governess Victoria Winters at Collinwood, vampire Barnabas Collins being released from his coffin, Dr. Hoffman's attempt to medically cure Barnabas' vampirism, and finally Victoria's time warp into the past to witness the still-human Barnabas' encounter with Angelique, and his transformation into an undead creature.

Production

This version was produced by MGM Television, whose parent company had produced the two earlier theatrical films (now owned by Warner Bros./Turner Entertainment). A majority of the series was filmed at the Greystone Park and Mansion in Beverly Hills, California.

Cast

• Ben Cross as Barnabas Collins
• Joanna Going as Victoria Winters / Josette Du Pres Collins
• Joseph Gordon-Levitt as David Collins / Daniel Collins
• Michael T. Weiss as Joe Haskell / Peter Bradford
• Lysette Anthony as Angelique Bouchard
• Roy Thinnes as Roger Collins / Rev. Trask
• Jean Simmons as Elizabeth Collins Stoddard / Naomi Collins
• Barbara Steele as Dr. Julia Hoffman / Countess Natalie Du Pres
• Barbara Blackburn as Carolyn Stoddard / Millicent Collins
• Jim Fyfe as Willie Loomis / Ben Loomis
• Veronica Lauren as Sarah Collins
• Julianna McCarthy as Mrs. Johnson / Abigail Collins
• Ely Pouget as Maggie Evans
• Eddie Jones as Sam Evans / Bailiff Henry Evans
• Michael Cavanaugh as Sheriff George Patterson / Andres Du Pres
• Stefan Gierasch as Professor Michael Woodard / Joshua Collins
• Adrian Paul as Jeremiah Collins
• Rebecca Staab as Daphne Collins

Ratings and cancellation

Though the series premiered to great success, watched by nearly 1 in 4 households according to ratings of the period, NBC frequently pre-empted or abruptly re-scheduled later episodes in favor of news coverage during the onset of the Gulf War. Ratings rapidly declined in turn and the show was not picked up for a second season as a result.

VHS and DVD releases

The original VHS release from MPI Home Video features an extended pilot episode and extended final episode. The October 18, 2005 DVD release of the series was re-mastered in High Definition and formatted for 1.78:1 Anamorphic widescreen but did not include the unaired scenes available on the VHS release.

External links

• Dark Shadows (1991) at the Internet Movie Database
• Dark Shadows (1991) at TV.com