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51 |
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| Broadcast |
September 5, 1966 |
| Recorded |
August 22, 1966 |
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| We have 2 images of Dark Shadows 51 | |
Victoria and Carolyn return to Collinwood; they tell of the body they saw at the foot of Widows' Hill.
Synopsis
- My name is Victoria Winters. Collinwood mansion situated on top of Widows' Hill has a long history of sudden and violent death. And once again it strikes. This time under my very eyes.
Victoria was screaming because she saw a dead man. Roger is skeptical that Bill Malloy is in any danger and Elizabeth is trying to convince him how out of character it is for Malloy to be gone when Carolyn and Victoria run screaming into the house and reveal their discovery of the dead body at the foot of the Hill. Roger refuses to check and insists Matthew be sent; Elizabeth phones him directly. Elizabeth thinks they saw rocks while Roger suggests it was seaweed. Carolyn insists it wasn't seaweed because she knows how that looks. Victoria thinks it may have been a trick of David's.
Matthew goes out to Widows' Hill and looks. Whatever Matthew sees, he feels it necessary to climb down Widows' Hill. They again speak of the legend and Roger is glad that they now refer to the sight as 'the thing'. Privately Carolyn and Victoria speak of what they really saw and hope it was a stranger. Roger tries to continue the morbid discussion in favor of returning to the discussion of business. Elizabeth informs him that she offered Ned Calder his job back and insults Roger's business acumen. Roger believes that Ned's refusal and Elizabeth's triumph will lead to his gaining more power. Elizabeth insists it must also please Malloy; Matthew claims that he found nothing and even went down to the beach to check.
Elizabeth puts the matter to bed but Victoria and Carolyn decide to bunk together for strength anyway. Victoria asks Carolyn if Matthew would have any reason to lie; Elizabeth thinks Matthew was acting strangely and questions his veracity. Roger calls Sam and asks if he's heard from Malloy. Matthew gets a visitor, Elizabeth, who asks him if anything’s wrong. Matthew tells Elizabeth that he expected to find Bill Malloy, a man of habits. Matthew is worried that whatever 'kept' Bill Malloy away will ruin the grounds of Collinwood. Elizabeth asks Matthew to show her what he saw. Victoria and Carolyn want to look again, can't get Roger to come with them. Elizabeth sees a shocking sight; clumps of seaweed that look like a dead body. Matthew wants them silenced. Victoria tells about David's prediction.
Memorable quotes
- Victoria: At the bottom of the cliff, there's a dead man!
- Carolyn: I know what seaweed looks like!
- Carolyn: How could anyone sleep when there's a body floating around down there?
- Matthew: Around Collinwood, nothing's impossible!
- Roger [regarding the body at the bottom of the cliff]: It sounds exactly like the type of joke that would appeal to my good-natured son...the incorrigible monster.
- Elizabeth: I won't even venture a guess as to the identity of this mysterious corpse.
- Roger: Perhaps Burke Devlin drowned himself in a fit of depression.
- Roger: If I were given free rein....
- Elizabeth: If you were given free reign, the Collins cannery and fishing fleet would disappear from the face of the earth.
- Matthew: I've heard tales about Collinwood all my life. There are those who laugh at 'em. But I've seen too much to laugh.
Dramatis personae
- ← Joan Bennett as Elizabeth Collins Stoddard →
- ← Louis Edmonds as Roger Collins →
- ← Nancy Barrett as Carolyn Stoddard →
- ← Thayer David as Matthew Morgan →
- ← Alexandra Moltke as Victoria Winters →
Background information and notes
Production
Story
- A bride was the first to fall from Widows' Hill; the second was a governess. A third death has been prophesied. The legend was also mentioned in episodes 9 and 50.
- TIMELINE: It was a few minutes later when Matthew went to check Widows' Hill.
Bloopers and continuity errors
- In the drawing room, right after Roger says, "What do we have Matthew for?" Elizabeth starts to stand up, then sits back down and fidgits a little, then stands and goes to the phone to call Matthew. It is almost as if Joan Bennett wasn't sure that was her cue to go to the phone.
- After Carolyn asks Vicki if she can "bunk in" with her for the night and Vicki says "Sure," everyone hesitates without saying anything. Alexandra Moltke seems to have missed her line. Carolyn starts to walk away, and then Vicki says, "How about that cocoa?"; then they both leave the drawing room.
- When Matthew comes back to Collinwood to report on what he found, Louis Edmonds and Thayer David step on each other's lines.
End credits announcement
- It's like nothing else except funny, and it's Love On a Rooftop. Advance premiere tomorrow night in color on ABC.
- Dark Shadows is a Dan Curtis production.
External Links
Dark Shadows - Episode 51 on the IMDb
The Collinsport Historical Society - Dark Shadows Diary - Episode 51