Memories of Darker Shadows, 14 Nov 2002

The book is made up of cast remembrances and factual commentary, including a lengthy excerpt from Kathryn Leigh Scott's long out-of-print memoir, "My Scrapbook Memories of Dark Shadows". Scott speaks with warmth and anecdotal wit, feeling encouraged to comment warmly of the series that launched her career. This is an unashamedly subjective overview of the series, written with gratitude and nostalgia, leisurely trawling through happy times, but still manages to offer some occasional surprises along the way.

Perhaps the most interesting element of the book is its subtle shift in tone from its predecessors. Whereas past books have taken a firmly reverent, nostalgic look at the actors and their lives, this book seems more willing to acknowledge some of the disappointments and pain that the "Dark Shadows" cast also faced. Alexandra Moltke sets the tone in her foreword, in her comments about Thayer David. Presented warmly, but with pragmatism, they emerge as a commendation for the actor, delivered without malice or judgement.

Similarly, David Henesy's contribution shares a welcome candour with readers, delivering healthy doses of nostalgia and gossip with aplomb. Where previous books tiptoe coyly around sensitive areas, David gleefully shares stories of cosmetic surgery and narcotic substances with moments of genuine insight. In many ways, his contribution is the highlight of this book, and thus seems frustratingly brief. His memories are vivid and detailed, and he clearly has a lot of unique things to say about the "Dark Shadows" phenomenon. I hope that he will be encouraged to share some more memories soon.

Complimenting the text is an excellent range of previously unpublished photographs, married with two sumptuously reproduced colour inserts. The colour sections are made up of full-page portrait shots of the actors, with some genuinely stunning treasures included.

Around a third of the text is composed of episode synopses and plot summaries, which seem to jar oddly with the more emotional, nostalgic material elsewhere. For many fans, these sections will seem superfluous, such information having already been made available in several other books. However, for new devotees freshly drawn in from SciFi Channel reruns, they will probably be gratefully accepted.

Ultimately, the book scores most strongly when it concentrates on people and their stories, which prove far more compelling than any episode guide. And by letting these stories play in a more pragmatic, less sugar-coated way, they prove genuinely illuminating. On that note alone, "Dark Shadows Memories" claims a place as one of the most important books published about the series, and it would be rewarding to see future "Dark Shadows" references build on this promise.

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