Sad Week for 1960s Fans

It has been a sad week for fans of 1960s pop culture. Word spread quickly on April 18 about the death of Dick Clark, the famed radio and television personality. Clark is best known for his shows American Bandstand and New Year's Rockin' Eve. Affectionately known as "America's Oldest Teenager," Clark always remained young at heart, even through his declining health in recent years.

Perhaps not as widely publicized last week was the death of Jonathan Frid. Although Frid may not have been as well known as Dick Clark, he holds a place near and dear to my heart. In my past posts, I have mentioned my love for the 1960s soap opera Dark Shadows. Jonathan Frid played Barnabas Collins, the show's main character.

Before Barnabas Collins arrived on the scene, Dark Shadows was on the verge of being cancelled. Dan Curtis, the show's producer, decided that he wanted the show to go out with a bang. So he decided to add a 175-year-old vampire to the mix.

Canadian actor Jonathan Frid's true passion was Shakespearean theater. He brought a sympathetic elegance to the character of Barnabas Collins, believing that "every monster is a human of sorts."

Jonathan Frid in costume as Barnabas Collins in a 1960s publicity still

Fans, including a young Tim Burton and a young Johnny Depp, became entranced with the remorseful vampire whom Frid crafted. Dark Shadows went on to see its greatest successes because of the introduction of Barnabas Collins.

Over 40 years later, Jonathan Frid and several of his co-stars would perform cameo appearances in Tim Burton's new film adaptation of Dark Shadows. Johnny Depp, portraying Barnabas Collins in the film, said that Frid "was elegant and magical as I had always imagined."

I was especially touched by a tribute to Frid by one of his co-stars, David Selby. Selby played Quentin Collins, another main character on Dark Shadows. As such, he also got to make a cameo appearance in the new film. Selby recalls memories of Frid from the set of the film as well as from the set of the soap opera itself.

Frid was very much looking forward to Dark Shadows' rebirth on the big screen. Frid saved Dark Shadows when he joined the cast in 1967; because of him, the show achieved cult status and will be released in its reimagined form next month.

As Tim Burton exclaimed after Frid's death, "Barnabas lives on!" Barnabas lives on because of the passion with which Frid crafted his character.