Update: March 27, 2025 - Completing Volume Three of the restored Sherlock Holmes Collection with Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce begins with a vehicle that spotlights Hillary Brooke as the lead villainous. After two previous appearances in the Sherlock Holmes series that were just supporting parts, she gets to outshine even Henry Daniell playing Professor Moriarty. Just uploaded you can take a look at the first of four final films from the Holmes 'modern' collection with the following link to Sherlock Holmes and...
"The Woman In Green" [1945] 720pHD with Commentary on the 2nd soundtrack.
The two short extras which include a photo gallery and movie footage of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle have been bundled up together and can be found via this link:
"Woman" Extras - DVD
This is how we 'kick off' the month of SHOCKtober! I'll keep it short and sweet. I'm still struggling through my situation yet, selling my mother's home. It looks now like the deal will close on the 30th of September. I can only hope it goes well. I've been experiencing a lot of waste lately and it's a shame but hopefully in the long run I'll find something good out of it coming from this trauma I've experienced with the not-so-peaceful death of my Mother and the court case I've had to defend myself in. I only talk about it because I know what being paralyzed by anxiety now feels like. My message to those also struggling is to hold on or, as I saw on a sign today, "Keep Calm and Carry On".
It's a good month to practice this as this is our favorite one of the year, October. It's a time to honor the dead and the loved ones we lost. We lost, however, only in a physical way. As I posted on Facebook recently: "I've been trying to be more in touch with my spirituality to help get me through these tough times, like wishing for some kind of a sign from my Mom and Dad (who are both now gone) and this morning before awakening, I dreamt I literally saw a sign which had written on it, "Your parents are thinking of you.'"
No matter where that came from or how it could be 'written off' as insignificant, I am not concerned. After feeling a bit cut off from my parents lately, I finally felt I was back on track and re-connecting with them.
I'll return before that wonderful holiday, Halloween, with the next post and an update on where the heck I will be at that point. Until then, let the Autumnal Season commence!
*Fay Wray
*A friend of us all: Remembering David J. Skal [1952-2024]
Special thoughts go out to David, who we lost in a terrible and tragic accident on New Year's Day, 2024.
I did not have the pleasure of meeting David in person but we exchanged good thoughts online and he always made me feel welcome which led me to believe we'd meet at sometime. I'm still hoping for that.
Love to you and yours, David.
*Dracula's sexual abiguity
*Whitby Harbor 1885 Dmitry shipwreck
*Vlad the Impaler
*Highgate Cemetery
*The First Presentation
*When Christopher Lee did return as Dracula in "Dracula: Prince of Darkness" [1966] the Van Helsing character was replaced by Father Sandor [played by Andrew Kier].
*Dracula & Van Helsing would eventually re-unite in latter films including "The Satanic Rites of Dracula" [1973]
*Christopher Lee got to play a different Dracula from the usual screen version in "Conde Dracula" [1970], but this time out the screen did not do this Stoker inspired interpretation justice.
*Herbert Lom took on the role as Van Helsing in "Conde Dracula" [1970]
*Peter Cushing returns as Van Helsing in "Dracula A.D. 1972"
*Peter Cushing brings down the curtain on his Van Helsing in "The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires" [1974]
*One of the Bat women from "Van Helsing" [2004]
*Jack Palance [above as Dracula] and Nigel Davenport [below as Van Helsing] grace Dan Curtis'
"Bram Stoker's Dracula" [1974]
*Walter Ladengast takes on the role of Van Helsing in "Nosferatu, The Vampyre" [1979]
*For the BBC Television mini-series "Count Dracula" [1977] we have Frank Finlay [above, left] as Van Helsing and Louis Jourdan as Dracula [below].
*George Hamilton honors Bela Lugosi!
*George Hamilton as Dracula meets Richard Benjamin [shown here and above], playing a descendent of Van Helsing in "Love At First Bite" [1979]
*Lawrence Olivier is now Van Helsing in "Dracula" [1979].
*Lawrence Olivier is shown again [top] in the 1979 production of "Dracula" with Frank Langella taking on the role of the evil Count.
*Patricia Morrison [above] and with J. Carrol Naish [below] in "Persons In Hiding" [1939].
*Patricia Morrison [above] and with Caesar Romero [below] in "Romance of the Rio Grande" [1941].
*Patricia Morrison [above] and with Alfred Drake & John Carradine [below] in
"Hitler's Madman" [1943]
*Patricia Morrison [above] and with Lon Chaney [below] in "Calling Dr. Death" [1943].
*Patricia Morrison [above] and with David Bruce and Deanna Durbin [below] in
*Patricia Morrison [above] and with Edmund Breon [below] in
"Dressed To Kill" [1946]
*Patricia Morrison [above] and with Brenda Joyce and Kathleen Howard [below] in
"Danger Woman" [1946].
*Peggy Webber
written by Dennis Simanaitis from his currently active blog: SimanaitisSays.com
Dennis says it was of Peggy [right] visiting an advertising agency during the 1940s.
*Peggy Webber in "Macbeth" [1948] with Alan Napier & Christopher Welles [top].
written by Dennis Simanaitis from his currently active blog: SimanaitisSays.com
*Peggy Webber in "Submarine Command" [1951]
*Peggy Webber as she would appear on the "Climax!" TV show in 1956.
The episode was called "The Empty Blue Room".
*Peggy Webber in Alfred Hitchcock's "The Wrong Man" [1956].
*Peggy Webber leads the way ready to take on "The Space Children" [1958] while behind her from R2L are Jackie Coogan, & Adam Williams.
*Peggy Webber and John Hudson [below] in "The Screaming Skull" [1958]
*Peggy Webber in and episode of "Dragnet" from the late 1960s.
*Peggy Webber in another photo from "Dragnet" [1969].
*Peggy Webber at age 90, still active and still creating.
written by Dennis Simanaitis from his currently active blog: SimanaitisSays.com
10 years after Peggy did this interview, in 2014, she was the first woman to be recognized with the
Norman Corwin Award for Excellence in Audio Theatre.
She is the founder of the California Artists Radio Theatre and was honored with an episode of
"The Big Broadcast", September 8, 2019 highlighting her career and interviewing her regarding her current projects.
She is still with us at age 99 and will turn 100 on September 15, 2025.
*Patricia Morrison [above] and with Nigel Bruce and Basil Rathbone [below] on the set of
"Dressed To Kill" [1946]
*Patricia Morrison and Alfred Drake on stage performing "Kiss Me Kate" [1958]
*Update: March 7, 2025 - I've found so much inspiration delving into the life of Patricia Morrison. She was a grand 89 years of age back when she was interviewed by Richard Valley for this article in 2004.
Richard would continue their relationship while visiting Forry Ackerman for his 88th Birthday Bash in California at the end of that year.
While so many things changed afterwards and we lost so much, Patricia would soldier on enjoying her passion for painting in the privacy of her home yet still making stage appearances and singing.
She would be honored at the Pasadena Playhouse on her 100th birthday in 2015 and would quietly pass away in her home in 2018 at age 103. Oh, if only all of us could go this way!
Stay tuned for on my last Scarlet Street Post for Issue #55 as there will be a surprise presentation that includes both
Patricia Morrison and Richard Valley!
*Vanderdecken
*Florence Stoker with Nosferatu hovering over her.
*For Television there was "The Passion of Dracula" [1980] starring Christopher Bernau as the Count [above] and Malachi Throne as Van Helsing [below].
*Klaus Kinski returns as another blood-sucker in "Vampire in Venice" [1986]
*The Van Helsing type character in "Vampire in Venice" [1986] is Professor Catalano played by Christopher Plummer.
*Jack Gwillim gets a crack at playing Van Helsing in "The Monster Squad" [1987]
*Anthony Hopkins [above and below, center] is Van Helsing in "Bram Stoker's Dracula" [1992]
*Mel Brooks [above & center] leaves us laughing as Van Helsing with Leslie Nielsen as Dracula [below] in "Dracula Dead and Loving It" [1994].
Update: March 27, 2025 - Completing Volume Three of the restored Sherlock Holmes Collection with Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce begins with a vehicle that spotlights Hillary Brooke as the lead villainous. After two previous appearances in the Sherlock Holmes series that were just supporting parts, she gets to outshine even Henry Daniell playing Professor Moriarty. Just uploaded you can take a look at the first of four final films from the Holmes 'modern' collection with the following link to Sherlock Holmes and...
"The Woman In Green" [1945] 720pHD with Commentary on the 2nd soundtrack.
The two short extras which include a photo gallery and movie footage of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle have been bundled up together and can be found via this link:
"Woman" Extras - DVD
Update: March 27, 2025 - Completing Volume Three of the restored Sherlock Holmes Collection with Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce begins with a vehicle that spotlights Hillary Brooke as the lead villainous. After two previous appearances in the Sherlock Holmes series that were just supporting parts, she gets to outshine even Henry Daniell playing Professor Moriarty. Just uploaded you can take a look at the first of four final films from the Holmes 'modern' collection with the following link to Sherlock Holmes and...
"The Woman In Green" [1945] 720pHD with Commentary on the 2nd soundtrack.
The two short extras which include a photo gallery and movie footage of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle have been bundled up together and can be found via this link:
"Woman" Extras - DVD
* Supplemental images are noted with an
(*) asterisk. My intention is to only enhance the reading experience
and not take away from the original publication.
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