Soap opera fans, test your knowledge about soap operas, the storylines, and the stars who make them! Today, we have a wonderful challenge to test your classic soap opera knowledge – how well do you know Dark Shadows? Good luck and share the game with your soap friends!
Take the Soap Opera Challenge
Which one of these titles was NEVER considered during this daytime chillers early development stages?
Although many titles - including those listed above - were batted around, head writer Art Wallace favored Shadows on the Wall though eventually all parties settled on Dark Shadows
What was this supernatural soaps premiere date?
Dark Shadows was set in what town and state?
What was the first phantasmagorical entity to be featured on this series?
Although Dark Shadows is best remembered for reluctant 200 year old vampire Barnabas Collins, it was actually the ghost of his beloved Josette that ushered in the supernatural shenanigans for which Dark Shadows became best known.
What was the title of the first Dark Shadows feature film?
This 1970 feature film retold and expanded upon a storyline featuring vampire Barnabas Collins which had been featured in the daily serialized version three years earlier. The film placed an emphasis on gore not seen in the soap and was a major box office success.
On which fellow ABC daytime drama did prolific Dark Shadows scribe Gordon Russell serve as head writer?
Russell served as One Life to Lives head writer from August 1972 t0 March 1980. His many accomplishments at that series includes the introductions of Dorian Cramer Lord, Tina Clayton Lord and the rough n' tumble Buchanan family. Russell was also responsible for the infamous moment when Karen Wolek admitted in open court to being a, "common hooker."
What business enterprise was owned and operated by the Collins family?
The Collins fishing fleet and cannery was the largest business in Collinsport, Maine and - by the late 1960s - it employed over half of the town's inhabitants.
Which one of these films did NOT star former Hollywood luminaire and Dark Shadows cast member Joan Bennett?
Though Bennett was well known for her collaborations with director Fritz Lang, she did not appear in this 1960 offering.
True or False? The Dark Shadows cast members graced the cover of the first issue of Soap Opera Digest.
Dark Shadows had been off the air for four years and seven prior to the release of the first Soap Opera Digest issue. Cast members from the CBS daytime drama Love of Life honored the new magazine with their visage.
Of the 1,225 episodes produced during Dark Shadows run how many are still in existence?
Unlike most it's fellow soap opera brethren, Dark Shadows has a nearly perfectly preserved archive. Only one episode - number 1219 - is missing in it's entirety. A reconstruction was created using still photographs from previous episodes linked by narration from actress Laura Parker.
More on Soap Opera History
Soap opera began in the early 1900s, as radio broadcasts. Soap companies were behind the conception of the daytime dramas because they wanted to sell soaps to stay-at-home-moms. They did their job and also launched a lifelong programming format, the soap operas.
Spanning more than five decades, American sudsers have seen the rise and fall of daytime soaps. In the heyday of soaps in the early 1980s, there was up to 13 different soap operas broadcasted. However, over the years, the number has declined. Currently, there are only four American soap operas on the air. They Include Days of our Lives (DAYS), General Hospital (GH), The Young and the Restless (YR), The Bold and the Beautiful (BB). For more facts about soap opera history, head over to our archives and relive the glory days of sudsers!
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