MPI Media Group has announced that production has commenced on the first-ever feature-length documentary devoted to Canadian born actor Jonathan Frid, who became a pop culture icon with his portrayal of guilt-ridden vampire Barnabas Collins on the original 1966-1971 ABC-TV daytime drama Dark Shadows.
The documentary, to be entitled Dark Shadows & Shakespeare: the Jonathan Frid Story, will tell how the classically trained actor became a fan-favorite as a soap opera vampire. “The in-depth documentary [will]explore[s] Frid’s struggles, joys, artistic triumphs and rise to fame through the personal reminiscences of family, friends and colleagues Marion Ross, Dick Cavett, Christina Pickles, Anthony Zerbe, David Selby, Kathryn Leigh Scott, Marie Wallace and others. The documentary also includes rare clips, photographs and audio from Frid’s career in addition to previously unseen video interview footage” according to the Collinsport Historical Society’s webpage.
The documentary will be directed and produced by Emmy-winning soap opera veteran Mary O’Leary.
“Dark Shadows & Shakespeare: The Jonathan Frid Story will be released by MPI Media Group in 2020. For updates and further information, please visit the documentary’s Facebook page.”
Jonathan Frid (1924 – 2012) was a Canadian actor who attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, England, and earned a master’s degree in directing from the Yale School of Drama in New Haven, Connecticut. He appeared on Broadway and in repertory theaters across the United States and Canada.
Dark Shadows co-star Kathryn Leigh Scott described Frid as a “charismatic, entertaining, complex and plain-spoken man.”
The documentary is expected to release in 2020, but so far there is no specific release date.
Watch this space.
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Susan Macdonald is the author of the children’s book “R is for Renaissance Faire”, as well as 26 short stories, mostly fantasy in “Alternative Truths”, “Swords and Sorceress #30”, Swords &Sorceries Vols. 1, 2, & 5, “Cat Tails” “Under Western Stars”, and “Knee-High Drummond and the Durango Kid”. Her articles have appeared on SCIFI.radio’s web site, in The Inquisitr, and in The Millington Star. She enjoys Renaissance Faires (see book above), science fiction conventions, Highland Games, and Native American pow-wows.
