What would Halloween be without the classic monsters? Werewolves, mummies, Frankenstein's horrid creation...there are so many takes on these horror archetypes that they always seem fresh. Just when you think the monsters of old have been laid to rest once and for all, up pops a new version to terrorize the countryside.
One archetype that seems to return again and again is the vampire. You just can't keep a good bloodsucker down! And vampires come in all shapes and sizes, too -- you got the classic, Eastern European, tuxedo-sportin' Bela Lugosi-style vamp. If that ain't the way you take your nosferatus, you can enjoy your swanky, boat-neck-sweater-wearing Chris Sarandon-type. There's always the metaphoric vampire-as-drug-addict Lili Taylor look. Or maybe you just don't dig the dashing leading man/woman variety. Maybe you're one of the true sickos who sees this visage in your dreams...
Whichever way you take your vamps, if you are down with the undead, then today's Blog-o-ween entry is for you. Earlier this month, we spotlighted the Canadian radio series Nightfall. As an example of that show, we took a look at their adaptation of J. Sheridan La Fanu's female vampire story, "Carmilla." If you didn't get a chance to listen to it, then take the time today. It's a good one.
If we're talking vampires, then we had better start with Bram Stoker's creation, Dracula. today we have not one, but two versions of Stoker's story. The first is from Orson Welles and The Mercury Theatre on the Air. It was first broadcast in the spooky month of...July, 1938...and it stars Welles himself as ol' Drac and Agnes Moorehead in the role of Mina Harker. Look for more Moorehead later this month, but in the meanwhile feast your eyes on this lovely photo of Agnes...
The other version of Dracula is from the CBS Radio Mystery Theater, and it features another of radio's greatest actors in the role of Mina: Mercedes McCambridge. We took a look at Ms. McCambridge's radio career previously, so it's nice to get a chance to hear her wonderful voice again.
Last, but certainly not least is a non-Dracula vampire story from The Hermit's Cave. A syndicated radio program from the late-1930s, uniquely, The Hermit's Cave's syndication was achieved not via recordings, but through the scripts themselves. That way, each station could broadcast the program with their own casts.
Today's episode, "The Vampire's Desire" is about two men seeking shelter from a raging storm. They are initially turned away by an old woman in a run down house. They force their way in and soon become trapped in a sealed room with a dead body in it! There are some things worse than being wet, it seems. Indeed...you may just catch your death! Heh-heh-heh!
(I'm gettin' pretty good at this horror host banter!)
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