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Post by gregm on Oct 17, 2016 0:06:20 GMT
Laura Collins' portrait (modern)When Laura Collins returned to Collinwood intending to reclaim her son, the supernatural threat to David Collins' life lead the ghost of Josette DuPres to intervene indirectly. Josette inspired/forced Sam Evans to paint a portrait of Laura Collins standing in flames. It was completed, initially with an area of the canvas left blank, and was taken to Collinwood. Mysteriously, the painted figure of David Collins appeared in the blank area. Sometimes, the painting transforms into a portrait of Laura as a phoenix. Later, Roger Collins throws the painting into a fire and it is incinerated - with a feminine scream heard in the distance. It is not clear whether Josette's intervention was brought about by an antipathy between Josette and Laura (both were married at one time to Jeremiah Collins), because David had sought out the ghost of Josette in the Old House when she was largely forgotten and ignored in modern times, or just out of a general benevolent approach to the living by Josette.
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Post by barnabaslives on Oct 17, 2016 20:10:45 GMT
Ben Stokes' Diary. (Multiple copies of Ben Stokes' diary might have existed, considering the available information?) In 1840, Lamar Trask reads passages from Ben Stoke's journal, a black leather bound volume, to Gerard Stiles. They learn that the same day that Victoria Winters appeared on trial, "...The Reverend Trask took his last trip to the Old House. He made the mistake of finding the secret in the basement" (1167). Gerard: "It's hard to believe that Ben Stokes would write a diary". Lamar: "It's not a diary really, it's more of a journal, written after the fact" (1167). In 1897, Laura Collins and Dirk Wilkins unearth Ben Stokes' grave in search of his diary, hoping to learn Barnabas' secret from it. They recover a red leather-bound book from the casket but Barnabas appears, overpowers Dirk, and takes the diary from them before Laura is able to read from it. (755-756). In the present, Professor Stokes considers the possibility of enlisting aid from the spirit of Reverend Trask to fight against Angelique. He has pages from Ben's journal individually mounted in a modern notebook. He is able to complete a key passage, although originally left unfinished, concerning the unknown resting place of Trask, towards this end. Ben's ghost may have assisted Prof. Stokes in this task, since the Professor is able to fill in the missing information (and in his ancestor Ben's own handwriting), apparently without entering into a trance (510). (An earlier episode may make reference to the diary having been in a fire). Prof. Stokes: "This is my ancestor, Ben Stokes' memoir... Whole chapters are missing unfortunately... I've mounted the original pages on these for preservation" (510).
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Post by gregm on Oct 18, 2016 12:21:48 GMT
Burke Devlin Special
A combination of fruit juices which Burke Devlin had enjoyed as a child. He continued to favour this as an adult, and he introduced David Collins to it during one of David's visits to his room in the Collinsport Inn. It was David who gave it the name, the 'Burke Devlin Special'.
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Post by barnabaslives on Oct 18, 2016 19:45:44 GMT
Jenny Collins' Portrait. A portrait of Jenny Collins, wife of Quentin Collins II and lovely co-star of Dark Shadows audio book #14, The Doll House.
(The portrait as illustrated appears in episode 804 of the original series).
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Post by silverednickle on Oct 18, 2016 23:31:51 GMT
Barnabas Collins' Coffin After Barnabas Collins seemingly died by the plague, it was arranged to have a secret burial of him. In his coffin, he was hidden in the secret room of the Collins' family mausoleum. Returning as a vampire, Barnabas was forced to "sleep" in the coffin by day, which caused the coffin to be hidden away in many locations over the years. In The Rage Beneath, Pirate Oswald Gravenor and his crew stole the coffin, which likely was destroyed in a fire, and he likely used the substitute on Willie Loomis found after Oswald's theft.
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Post by barnabaslives on Oct 19, 2016 20:39:27 GMT
Deed to The Old House. When Barnabas announces that he is marrying Angelique, his mother Naomi gives him the deed to The Old House as a wedding present (395). (Joan Bennett and her character Naomi Collins are both awesome in this scene).
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Post by gregm on Oct 20, 2016 4:26:36 GMT
The Golden ScimitarAn heirloom of the Romano tribe of gypsies, handed down from one king to his successor, the Golden Scimitar is most noted for one act: it was used to sever the hand of Count Andreas Petofi. The Scimitar has always been sacred to gypsies, and it protects its wielder from Petofi's magic. In 1897, Magda Rakosi stole the hand of Petofi and took it to Collinwood, intending to life the curse of the werewolf from Quentin Collins. Magda had palced this curse on Quentin in punishment for his treatment of his wife, Jenny, who was Magda's sister, but which Magda later regretted. King Johnny Romano pursued Magda to Collinwood, bringing the Golden Scimitar with him. When he learned that Count Petofi himself was in Collinsport and reunited with his hand, King Johnny sought him out to again sever his hand with the Golden Scimitar. And he would have got away with it too, if not for that pesky Aristede. Aristede struck King Johnny down with a dagger while Petofi was at his mercy. The Scimitar vanishes mysteriously, its current whereabouts unknown.
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Post by silverednickle on Oct 20, 2016 19:53:19 GMT
Collinwood Foyer Grandfather Clock It is stated that the clock was nearly 200 years old in 1967 as was probably one of the first pieces of furniture brought into Collinwood. The clock would have been built around 1767 and would currently be nearly 250 years old. Throughout the many time lines and bands, the clock does not appear to move from the foyer. In many episodes, not only is a piece of the backdrop, but also helps characters keep track of the time in sometimes rather dramatic scenes. At one point, Dr. Julia Hoffman hides her journal in it, which causes it not to chime. The clock seems to recover from this situation and is heard chiming many times after that.
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Post by barnabaslives on Oct 20, 2016 21:13:29 GMT
Amanda Harris' Portrait. In 1897, still in disbelief over having met the same woman he has been painting, who is wearing the same jewelry he has been painting, Charles Delaware Tate re-examines his portrait of Amanda (822). Later, Pansy Faye (secretly on behalf of Judith Trask) purchases what appears to be the same portrait from Charles for the sum of $5000 (864). The portrait appears in the drawing room for the purpose of taunting Gregory Trask about his aspirations to dalliance with Miss Harris (869-870), with Judith announcing that she is entertaining the thought of having it hung in the master bedroom (870). After returning to the present, Julia discovers a relatively recent Tate landscape for sale at the Todd's antique shop, which she purchases for $300 (888). Julia inquires with Professor Stokes whether Tate is still alive (899). Stokes' friend Professor Henry Osmund claims that Tate is known to have died 10 years ago (910). Famous actress Olivia Corey is interested in the painting and arranges a loan from Julia for the purpose of examining it and having it photographed (903). Stokes shows Julia a newly-completed restoration of the portrait underneath her Tate landscape, done by Professor Osmund; it appears to be the very same portrait of Amanda (912).
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Post by barnabaslives on Oct 20, 2016 21:39:49 GMT
(Amanda Harris' Portrait, supplemental material). The Tate landscape which Julia Hoffman purchased from the antique shop is included here for clarity since it may be often confused with a different Tate landscape entitled "A View of New South Wales," in the possession of Skylar Rumson. (Detail from the landscape purchased by Julia from the Todds, prior to its restoration and just prior to being lent to Olivia Corey, appears at left; detail from the landscape from a charity auction found in the attic at center; detail from "A View of New South Wales" appears at right). The previous owner of Julia's landscape was Matthew Smith. Phillip Todd found the painting at the Anderson Auction House in Rockport. Phillip estimates the age of Julia's landscape at about 20 years (888). A third Tate landscape was discovered in the attic at Collinwood. Elizabeth claims she purchased it from a charity auction, but then promptly stored it away in the attic due to Roger's distaste for it (911). It too was designated for restoration by Prof. Osmund, but the outcome of the restoration may not ever have been announced. Several fleeting glimpses of a yellowish canvas are all that are seen of it while Stokes is first examining it (912), but previously it is shown to be very similar to the landscape purchased by Julia (911). Stokes describes the subject of the two similar landscapes as Indian Hill, commenting upon inspection of the landscape from the attic that it is "Extraordinary that a man with that talent for portraiture should waste his time painting Indian Hill" (912). A curious note regarding "A View of New South Wales" is that Angelique claims to have been in Tate's studio the night he covered over the portrait underneath and began work on the landscape (924, approx 10 1/2 minutes into the episode).
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Post by gregm on Oct 20, 2016 23:39:02 GMT
The Collins Family HistoryThis large book contains the official history of the Collins family from their arrival in America in the 17th century. It has been authorised by the family, and has been found to contain a number og omissions. For example, in relation to the events of 1795, it does not mention that Josette DuPres arrived at Collinwood already engaged to Barnabas Collins, nor does it correctly relate the deaths of Barnabas Collins, Naomi Collins, or the marriage between Millicent Collins and Nathan Forbes. There is a strange set of circumstances relating to this set of bowdlerised material. In 1968, a seance was held in Collinswood to contact he ghost of Sarah Collins, whose presence had sometimes disturbed and other times assisted various members of the Collins family and their friends. Rather than contacting the spirit of Sarah, instead Victoria Winters was transported back through time to the year of Sarah's death - 1795. She was holding the Collins Family History at the time of her transport to the past, and endeavoured to prevent it being read by the Collins family of the period she found herself in. Her efforts eventually failed, and the book was used as proof that Victoria was a witch and consequently blamed for the actions of the servant Angelique, who was actually a witch. The book ended up with the family patriarch, Joshua Collins, who noted where the narrative differed from the events he had lived through and determined that this false account would be included in the official history of his family. He ordered the family servant, Ben Stokes, to destroy the original copy that Victoria had possessed. This ordered action was not carried out and Ben lost possession of the book to Danielle Rogét (actually Eve, sent back in time from 1968 by Angelique), who brought the book back to 1968 Collinwood along with a note from Peter Bradford relating to the fates of himself and Victoria and their eventual reuniting in the 20th century. The book was given to Victoria as a wedding present. There was one curious change to the book that Victoria took back in time - a note saying 'The witch swears it is true" in the hand of the Reverend Trask,
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Post by barnabaslives on Oct 21, 2016 19:12:39 GMT
Chris Jennings' Portrait. In hope of Chris' curse being arrested in the same way that Quentin's was, Julia, Quentin and Chris seek out the painter Charles Delaware Tate. Chris eventually finds Tate, who is reluctant to paint Chris' portrait, so Chris tries to persuade Charles by locking them both in the house with the full moon rapidly approaching. Tate paints a portrait of Chris, but it is somehow to no avail, and Chris' transformation begins (919/920/921). Now a werewolf, Chris is apparently furious that Charles has depicted his chin too large, and after giving the artist a merry old chase around the easel a time or two, Chris expresses his art criticism in the manner customary for werewolves, mauling painting and painter alike. Quentin returns in time to confront Chris but not in time to prevent Chris' merciless review of Charles' artwork (919/920/921).
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Post by barnabaslives on Oct 22, 2016 20:29:08 GMT
Ghost Photo of Gerard Stiles. After Barnabas and Julia exit from Parallel Time, the mysterious room in the East wing takes them into the future to the year 1995. The deranged Carolyn who they encounter in their future gives them a list of events that herald the destruction of Collinwood in 1970 (1067). One of the events on the list is a picnic. Carolyn, David, Maggie and Quentin go on a picnic, and David brings his camera. While David is taking a picture of Maggie and Quentin, he is momentarily distracted by the sense of a presence behind him. When David develops the photo of Maggie and Quentin in the darkroom, he and Carolyn notice something very peculiar in the background of the picture (1077).
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Post by gregm on Oct 22, 2016 23:58:11 GMT
Mysterious shadow from another realityCollinsport is situated at a place where the barriers between realities and other dimensions are thin. This allows people and objects to pass between our own and other parallel times, and also back and forth through time. Sometimes lesser manifestations of these thin walls between realities manifest by odd shadows, usually unnoticed, appear on the walls, sometimes accompanied by spectral noises. The have been occurring throughout the history of Collinsport. These may be the source of some of the tales of ghosts in the town.
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Post by silverednickle on Oct 23, 2016 18:36:30 GMT
Attachment DeletedDark Shadows Skeleton PropThroughout the run of Dark Shadows, a certain skeleton can be seen used to represent some of the departed across time-bands and universes. Observant fans might note that the skull appears to have the dome cut through and have speculated this might have been the type of skeleton used in medical schools. Regardless, the prop offers chilling and sometimes outlandish visuals for the gothic soap opera.
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Post by gregm on Oct 23, 2016 21:04:01 GMT
A note accompanying a baby in a cardboard box In the winter of 1946, a cardboard box was left on the doorstep of the Hammomd Foundling Home in New York. It contained a new-born baby girl, and pinned to her was a note reading 'Her name is Victoria. I cannot take care of her.' The foundling home took her in, and called her Victoria Winters, basing the surname on the season she arrived at the home. 20 years later, Victoria Winters was invited to come to Collinwood to be the governess of David Collins by his aunt, Elizabeth Collins Stoddard. (Secretly, Elizabeth was Victoria's mother, a secret that she revealed only in her will.) Victoria set off to Collinsport by train...
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Post by barnabaslives on Oct 23, 2016 22:22:58 GMT
Java Queen (model ship). The model ship appears in Davids' room. He seems perplexed to see it. Maggie inquires where it came from and David tells her it was found in the attic along with other old items. After Maggie leaves, Daphne's ghost appears and silently acknowledges bringing it there from the playroom (1077). Barnabas examines the model and comments on it and its surprisingly good condition, curious to know where it came from. David tells Barnabas he found it in the attic the day before (1079). A close-up of the model ship reveals its name as (the) Java Queen (1080). David and Hallie discuss recent supernatural events, and resolve to tell the adults what they know. They depart David's room to do so, leaving behind the model. When they reach the Drawing Room, they are about to confide in Elizabeth when they notice the model of the Java Queen is inexplicably present in the Drawing Room, causing them to lose their nerve and invent an innocuous story about why they wished to speak to her. David takes the model from the drawing room to return it to the playroom (1080). Later, David and Hallie notice the appearance of the skull and crossbones of the Jolly Roger flag atop the model's mast (1086), then it is also noticed by Julia (1087). It is an ill omen. Julia's research reveals that there was a real ship called the Java Queen that was shipwrecked near Collinsport on that very same day in 1841 (1089). Returning to the materials, Julia reads more: "On Thursday the 27th day of August in the year 1841, the Java Queen, notorious scavenger of the seas, was caught in a storm on the rockbound coast of Maine, near the fishing village of Collinsport. Her crew of 23 brigands and cutthroats perished at sea. For years it was believed that her infamous captain, whose identity was never known, survived the wreckage and vowed to unite his evil followers in death, causing them to rise from their graves to kill and plunder once more" (1089) .
(The Java Queen appears in the closing credits for episodes 1078 and 1086).
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Post by barnabaslives on Oct 24, 2016 23:58:11 GMT
Peter Guthrie's Tape Recorder. Immediately upon her return to Collinwood after a confrontation with Laura Collins over David, Elizabeth falls mysteriously ill (155). A physician, Dr. Reeves, visits and examines Elizabeth but cannot find anything physically wrong with her (158). With strange discoveries being made about Laura (157) and encounters with Josette's ghost taking place, both Vicki and attorney Frank Garner are increasingly suspicious that some sort of supernatural investigator is in order. Finally Frank thinks of one (159).
Frank: There's a professor at Dartmouth, of parapsychology. Vicki: What's that? Frank: Well, that's the study of extrasensory perception and supernatural phenomenon. Vicki: That... sounds a little way out. Frank: But isn't that what's been happening here? Vicki: I suppose so. Frank: Dr... Guthrie. Peter Guthrie - and I know he'd be interested in this, he's always researching and investigating things like this. I'm going to phone him ask him to come over. I'd like his opinion. Vicki: I hope he can shed some light on the matter. Frank: Well if there's a genuine supernatural occurrence happening here, Peter Guthrie will explain it. (159) Guthrie arrives at Collinwood (160) and speaks to various people, including David (162), Laura (163) and Sam (164). Guthrie too becomes increasingly suspicious of the role of the supernatural in the events taking place, and organizes the first seance to be shown on the television series. Guthrie hopes that the seance may help to identify the cause of Elizabeth's illness (165). Guthrie: Now, I'm sure that you're both familiar with, or that you know the meaning of, the word seance. Vicki: Seance? Guthrie: I'm not all sure that it's either necessary or desirable, but it is something I've been thinking about and I wanted to mention it to both of you. Carolyn: You mean trying to make contact with spirits and all that? Guthrie: Precisely. (165) Guthrie brings a tape recorder to record the seance. Guthrie, Vicki, Carolyn and Roger conduct a seance. Josette's spirit takes possession of Vicki. Laura appears and interrupts the seance. It resumes with her present. Josette, speaking though Vicki in French, clearly intends to speak a certain name but is unable to before Vicki passes out ending the seance (170). Guthrie is listening to the playback of the recording when Laura arrives and interrupts him. Later, after Laura has left and he returns to the task, he excitedly calls out for Mrs. Johnson to ask her if anyone has touched the recorder or the table it's sitting on (172). Mrs Johnson: There's been no one leaving or entering. What is all this about? Guthrie: Listen to this (starts tape recorder). Mrs Johnson: Huh. Sounds like a fire crackling. Guthrie: Yes. The sound of fire. (172)
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Post by Zagreus on Oct 25, 2016 0:32:58 GMT
The Last Will and Testament of Elizabeth Collins Stoddard2003 saw the passing of the splendid matriarch of the Collins family, and with the sad occasion came the reading of her will, and an accompanying seance for good measure, just in case she had anything to say that hadn't made it down on paper. She divided up the family fortune, properties, and lands amongst family and friends, and then revealed a secret she'd long kept close to her heart, that the girl Victoria Winters, brought on those decades ago as a governess and then vanished under strange circumstances, was actually her daughter, Carolyn's older sister, and requested that Vicki be found and brought home, to live once more with the family. It was a tearful and moving occasion.
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Post by gregm on Oct 25, 2016 4:32:48 GMT
Great choice for our 50th object, Trace
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