Dan Curtis
Encyclopedia
Dan Curtis was an American
director
and producer of television and film, probably best known for his miniseries The Winds of War and War and Remembrance
, his afternoon TV series Dark Shadows
, and the made for TV movie, Trilogy of Terror. Dark Shadows originally aired from 1966 to 1971 and has aired in syndication for nearly 40 years. Curtis was responsible for the 1991 remake of Dark Shadows, which was canceled due to low ratings. He was the executive producer
for Dark Shadows
for The WB Television Network
; however, it was canceled before the pilot episode aired.
His series of macabre films include The Night Stalker (which inspired the series Kolchak: The Night Stalker
), Intruders, The Night Strangler
, House of Dark Shadows
, Night of Dark Shadows
, Burnt Offerings
, Trilogy of Terror
, The Norliss Tapes (a 1973 pilot for an unproduced series starring Roy Thinnes
), Curse of the Black Widow, Dead Of Night, Scream of the Wolf
and others. He worked frequently with sci-fi/horror writer Richard Matheson
. Curtis was producer and/or director of a number of television adaptations of horror-related productions including Dracula
, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and Turn of the Screw, all made between 1968 and 1975.
In 1978, Curtis made a departure from his usual macabre offerings, when he wrote, produced, and directed the sentimental NBC
television film When Every Day Was the Fourth of July
. Although fictionalized, the film was semi-autobiographical, based on his childhood growing up in Bridgeport, Connecticut
in the 1930s. The film was originally intended to be a pilot
for a potential series, but when the series was not picked up by the NBC
network, Curtis produced and directed the 1980 television movie sequel The Long Days of Summer, this time airing on the ABC network.
His miniseries The Winds of War was nominated for four Emmy Award
s.
He also directed the War and Remembrance
mini-series which was the continuation of The Winds of War. This mini-series was 30 hours in length and was split into two segments, Chapters I-Vll and Vll, the final chapter. This series received 15 Emmy Award nominations and won for best miniseries, special effects and single-camera production editing. The miniseries was nominated for Emmy Awards for best actor (John Gielgud
), actress (Jane Seymour
) and supporting actress (Polly Bergen
).
Curtis died of a brain tumor in his home on March 27, 2006, two weeks after the death of his wife Norma.
Curtis' rights to Dark Shadows
remain with his estate, who have signed a deal with Warner Bros. for a new Dark Shadows movie. The film will star Johnny Depp
as Barnabas Collins
and is set for release in 2012.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
and producer of television and film, probably best known for his miniseries The Winds of War and War and Remembrance
War and Remembrance
War and Remembrance is a novel by Herman Wouk, published in 1978, which is the sequel to The Winds of War. It continues the story of the extended Henry family and the Jastrow family starting on 15 December 1941 and ending on 6 August 1945. This novel was adapted into a mini-series presented on...
, his afternoon TV series Dark Shadows
Dark Shadows
Dark Shadows is a gothic soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966 to April 2, 1971. The show was created by Dan Curtis. The story bible, which was written by Art Wallace, does not mention any supernatural elements...
, and the made for TV movie, Trilogy of Terror. Dark Shadows originally aired from 1966 to 1971 and has aired in syndication for nearly 40 years. Curtis was responsible for the 1991 remake of Dark Shadows, which was canceled due to low ratings. He was the executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
for Dark Shadows
Dark Shadows (2004)
Dark Shadows is a one hour pilot that was a remake of the 1966–1971 series Dark Shadows. The pilot was commissioned by The WB Television Network and produced in 2004. Directed by P. J. Hogan, it was filmed at the Greystone Mansion, which also served as the Collinwood Mansion for the previous...
for The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...
; however, it was canceled before the pilot episode aired.
His series of macabre films include The Night Stalker (which inspired the series Kolchak: The Night Stalker
Kolchak: The Night Stalker
Kolchak: The Night Stalker is an American television series that aired on ABC during the 1974-1975 season. It featured a fictional Chicago newspaper reporter — Carl Kolchak, played by Darren McGavin — who investigates mysterious crimes with unlikely causes, particularly ones law...
), Intruders, The Night Strangler
The Night Strangler (film)
The Night Strangler is a made for television movie which first aired on ABC on January 16, 1973 as a sequel to The Night Stalker.-Plot:...
, House of Dark Shadows
House of Dark Shadows
House of Dark Shadows is a 1970 feature-length horror film directed by Dan Curtis based on his Dark Shadows television series. Filming took place at Lyndhurst in Tarrytown, New York with additional footage at nearby Sleepy Hollow Cemetery: parts of the locals appeared on the Dark Shadows series as...
, Night of Dark Shadows
Night of Dark Shadows
Night of Dark Shadows is a 1971 horror film by Dan Curtis. It is the sequel to House of Dark Shadows. It centers on the story of Quentin Collins and his bride Tracy at the Collinwood Mansion in Collinsport, Maine....
, Burnt Offerings
Burnt Offerings (film)
Burnt Offerings is a 1976 horror film based on the 1973 novel of the same name by Robert Marasco. It is about a family who moves into a haunted house that rejuvenates itself with each injury and death that occurs inside of it...
, Trilogy of Terror
Trilogy of Terror
Trilogy of Terror is a three-part made-for-television horror film, first aired as an ABC Movie of the Week on March 4, 1975...
, The Norliss Tapes (a 1973 pilot for an unproduced series starring Roy Thinnes
Roy Thinnes
Roy Thinnes is an American television and film actor best known for his portrayal of lonely hero David Vincent in the ABC 1967-68 television series The Invaders. He also played Alfred Wentworth in the pilot episode of Law & Order...
), Curse of the Black Widow, Dead Of Night, Scream of the Wolf
Scream of the Wolf
Scream of the Wolf is a 1974 television movie starring Peter Graves and directed by Dan Curtis.-Plot:Adventure writer John Weatherby is called in to investigate a series of brutal murders that has investigators confused. The clues are not clear and leave no clear trail. The tracks left at the...
and others. He worked frequently with sci-fi/horror writer Richard Matheson
Richard Matheson
Richard Burton Matheson is an American author and screenwriter, primarily in the fantasy, horror, and science fiction genres. He is perhaps best known as the author of What Dreams May Come, Bid Time Return, A Stir of Echoes, The Incredible Shrinking Man, and I Am Legend, all of which have been...
. Curtis was producer and/or director of a number of television adaptations of horror-related productions including Dracula
Dracula (1973)
Dracula is a 1973 television adaptation of Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula written by Richard Matheson and directed by Dark Shadows creator Dan Curtis.-Plot summary:"Bistritz, Hungary May 1897"....
, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and Turn of the Screw, all made between 1968 and 1975.
In 1978, Curtis made a departure from his usual macabre offerings, when he wrote, produced, and directed the sentimental NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
television film When Every Day Was the Fourth of July
When Every Day Was the Fourth of July
When Every Day Was the Fourth of July is a 1978 NBC television movie about a Jewish-American family in 1937 Bridgeport, Connecticut. Narrated in first person flashback, the story follows a 12-year-old boy and his family who find themselves defending the town "misfit" after he's accused of murder. ...
. Although fictionalized, the film was semi-autobiographical, based on his childhood growing up in Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in Fairfield County, the city had an estimated population of 144,229 at the 2010 United States Census and is the core of the Greater Bridgeport area...
in the 1930s. The film was originally intended to be a pilot
Television pilot
A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
for a potential series, but when the series was not picked up by the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
network, Curtis produced and directed the 1980 television movie sequel The Long Days of Summer, this time airing on the ABC network.
His miniseries The Winds of War was nominated for four Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
s.
He also directed the War and Remembrance
War and Remembrance
War and Remembrance is a novel by Herman Wouk, published in 1978, which is the sequel to The Winds of War. It continues the story of the extended Henry family and the Jastrow family starting on 15 December 1941 and ending on 6 August 1945. This novel was adapted into a mini-series presented on...
mini-series which was the continuation of The Winds of War. This mini-series was 30 hours in length and was split into two segments, Chapters I-Vll and Vll, the final chapter. This series received 15 Emmy Award nominations and won for best miniseries, special effects and single-camera production editing. The miniseries was nominated for Emmy Awards for best actor (John Gielgud
John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
), actress (Jane Seymour
Jane Seymour (actress)
Jane Seymour, OBE is an English actress best known for her performances in the James Bond film Live and Let Die , East of Eden , Onassis: The Richest Man in the World , and the American television series Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman...
) and supporting actress (Polly Bergen
Polly Bergen
Polly Bergen is an American actress, singer, and entrepreneur.-Career:Bergen appeared in many film roles, most notably in the original Cape Fear opposite Gregory Peck and Robert Mitchum...
).
Curtis died of a brain tumor in his home on March 27, 2006, two weeks after the death of his wife Norma.
Curtis' rights to Dark Shadows
Dark Shadows
Dark Shadows is a gothic soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966 to April 2, 1971. The show was created by Dan Curtis. The story bible, which was written by Art Wallace, does not mention any supernatural elements...
remain with his estate, who have signed a deal with Warner Bros. for a new Dark Shadows movie. The film will star Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp
John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
as Barnabas Collins
Barnabas Collins
Barnabas Collins is a fictional character, one of the feature characters in the ABC daytime serial Dark Shadows, which aired from 1966 to 1971. Originally played by Canadian actor Jonathan Frid, Barnabas Collins is a 200-year-old vampire who is in search of fresh blood and his lost love, Josette...
and is set for release in 2012.