Hollywood Gothic: The Tangled Web of Dracula from Novel to Stage to Screen [Paperback]

David J. Skal (Author)

Book Description

Release date: October 7, 2004 | ISBN-10: 0571211585 | ISBN-13: 978-0571211586 | Edition: 1st

The primal image of the black-caped vampire Dracula has become an indelible fixture of the modern imagination. It's recognition factor rivals, in its own perverse way, the familiarity of Santa Claus. Most of us can recite without prompting the salient characteristics of the vampire: sleeping by day in its coffin, rising at dusk to feed on the blood of the living; the ability to shapeshift into a bat, wolf, or mist; a mortal vulnerability to a wooden stake through the heart or a shaft of sunlight. In this critically acclaimed excursion through the life of a cultural icon, David Skal maps out the archetypal vampire's relentless trajectory from Victorian literary oddity to movie idol to cultural commidity, digging through the populist veneer to reveal what the prince of darkness says about us all.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Faber & Faber; 1st edition (October 7, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0571211585
• ISBN-13: 978-0571211586
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #946,708 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #86 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Movies > Adaptations

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Horror novelist Skal presents various 19th- and 20th-century interpretations of everyone's favorite black-cloaked bloodsucker. Featured here are Bram Stoker's Victorian thriller, Max Shreck in the German expressionist film Nosferatu and Bela Lugosi on stage and screen as Count Dracula. Illustrated. (Oct.)no PW review
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"Tracks Transylvania's most popular vampire with dry wit and the skills of a fine detective." --The New York Times Book Review

"Witty, comprehensive . . . For those who take Halloween seriously, this is something to gnaw on long after those trick-or-treaters are gone." --The Los Angeles Times Book Review

"Meticulously researched, engagingly written and packed with rare, archival images . . . The history of Dracula reads like a novel itself." --The San Francisco Bay Guardian

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Faber & Faber; 1st edition (October 7, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0571211585
• ISBN-13: 978-0571211586
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #946,708 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #86 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Movies > Adaptations

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating History of Dracula's Path to the Silver Screen. May 5, 2005

By mirasreviews HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

In "Hollywood Gothic" David Skal tells the story of "Dracula" that came after the classic of gothic horror was published in 1897. It's a fascinating, fact-filled tale of colorful personalities, legal battles, Hollywood politics, and a culture still captivated by the King of Literary Vampires. The book's seven chapters begin with author Bram Stoker, end with the Count's recent incarnations on stage and screen, and include the most insightful analysis of "Dracula"'s origins that I have read in the course of my minor obsession with the novel.

Chapter 1 explores "Dracula"'s literary and theatrical predecessors before moving on to discussion of the intellectual and sexual climate into which the book was published in 1897, the life and elusive character of its author Bram Stoker, and how the novel was received in its own day. David Skal does an impressive job of pulling together the relevant details, from diverse perspectives, of the novel's birth.

Chapter 2 details the legal battle waged by the Bram Stoker's widow, Mrs. Florence Stoker, to suppress the first cinematic adaptation of her husband's novel, 1922's "Nosferatu", the unauthorized German production directed by F.W. Murnau, now recognized as a masterpiece of silent cinema. Chapter 3 sees Mrs, Stoker finally authorize an adaptation to British dramatist Hamilton Deane, whose wordy, plodding "Dracula" play nevertheless achieved great financial success, attracting the attention of American theatrical producer Horace Liveright. Liveright enlisted journalist John Balderston to rewrite the play for Broadway and make it a smash hit on this side of the Atlantic.

Chapter 4 moves to Hollywood for the protracted negotiations over "Dracula"'s film rights.... "Dracula"'s path through the early 20th century was mined with legal battles, and it is a credit to author David Skal that he is able to make interminable and constantly mutating negotiations into absorbing drama. Chapter 5 follows the winding road to the production of the first Hollywood "Dracula", the 1931 film starring Bela Lugosi, which, although made cheaply and lazily, was the first horror talkie and a financial life preserver for Universal Studios. Happily, Skal has dedicated Chapter 6 to the superior Spanish language version of "Dracula" that was filmed simultaneously, on the same sets, as the English version of the 1931 film, but with a different producer, director, cinematographer, and cast.

Chapter 7 tells us what became of the principle person's associated with the two 1931 films. Then it follows the legacy of "Dracula" from the 1930s forward, through its incarnations in film, plays, musicals, ballets, and other performances. Appendix A is a list of notable stage performances of "Dracula", 1897-2003. Appendix B is a list of about 200 films, 1921-2004, which feature the "Dracula" character or name. Thankfully, there is an index.

In outlining the contents of "Hollywood Gothic", I may have made the book seem dry. But the story of "Dracula"'s continuing life in film and on stage is as lively as the novel that inspired it -and it is written a good deal better. David Skal's tireless research and engaging style never fail to impress. "Hollywood Gothic" is an absorbing literary and cinematic history that "Dracula" fans shouldn't miss. Read more ›

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Nifty little book about the granddaddy of vampires October 8, 2004

By Ian Fowler

Format:Paperback

I read this book years ago. It's good to see it's coming back into print.

Skal charts the history of Stoker's book, beginning with early drafts extant, following the tangled film history, including the legal battles over Murnau's "Nosferatu", Universal Studio's struggle to get the rights for the Lugosi pic, and everything that happened after.

It won't change your life, but its fascinating stuff. Skal's style is quick, clean, and to the point. This book is a lot of fun, giving insights into publishing, film, theater, and the audience reaction to and participation in all of those mediums. A must for all vampire buffs, film students, and those who are curious about the inner workings of popular culture.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Nosferatu gets his due! October 31, 2002

By R. Rosener VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

This is a good look at the early stage and film versions of Dracula; more impressive is that it's one of the very best works to look at the 1922" Nosferatu". The author details the occult beliefs of the producer of Nosferatu, and how it was really he (Albin Grau,) and not Director Murnau who was responsible for the verminous look of Count Orlok. Fans of the recent film "Shadow of the Vampire" will really enjoy the Nosferatu production details. Some of the Freudian psychosexual analysis is way over the top and should be taken with a grain of salt (or a clove of garlic?). However, the author is on to something when he points out the paralells between the economic paralysis and blood draining of the Great Depression with the similar symptoms of victims in the 1931 Lugosi film. Was the popularity of the film a mass catharsis? You can decide after reading this book. Skal does a great job of drawing eerie analogies between the plight of the real life players behind Dracula and characters in the novel and films.
You'll find yourself consulting and pondering over this book when watching the old films or reading the original Stoker novel. The social context in which Skal places the classical Dracula films will resonate for modern readers.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice Revision to an Already Great Book January 4, 2005

By Ricky Hunter VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

David J. Skal is as readable as ever is this newly revised edition of the definitive Hollywood Gothic as he covers the history of Dracula from his creation by Bram Stoker to the various and multiple version on screen and stage. The thrust of the story is, of course, on the novel and the iconic Bela Lugosi movie, with an additional nice, but smaller, chunk on Nosferatu. The author is particularly effective in combining, in an interesting fashion, the creative, financial, and legal elements. His analysis is always clear and interesting and will definitely send the reader on a viewing frenzy. Vampire movies seem always to be streaming forth from Hollywood and Dracula is and always will be the most tempting of the bunch. This book brings this fascination to life, as it were. A very good job.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The bang ends with a whimper July 7, 2012

By Jory

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

A review from the Los Angeles Times quoted on the back cover of David J. Skal's Hollywood Gothic calls the book "comprehensive." This is technically true, since the book does indeed cover the history of Dracula film and stage adaptations from the earliest days (1897, when Bram Stoker wrote a stage play version of his novel) to the most recent (2004, when the book was last revised), but a little elaboration is needed. The vast majority of the book, the first six chapters out of seven total, covers a limited area: Stoker's 1897 novel, the unauthorized 1922 film adaptation Nosferatu, the early stage plays (focusing mostly on those of the mid to late 1920s), the 1931 film starring Bela Lugosi, and the Spanish-language film produced concurrently with the Lugosi film. It's not until the seventh and final chapter that Skal covers the post-1931 adaptations, blowing through them quickly in about 60 pages, and doing his job not nearly as well as he does in the preceding six chapters (more on that below).

Those first six chapters are where the book shines. This is where Skal's interest (or, more appropriately, obsession) lies, and his enthusiasm for his subject matter makes for engrossing reading. Although he does judge the artistic value of the adaptations, he writes much more about the people behind them, both in their professional and personal lives; but like the writers from the History Channel who can somehow manage to make something like the history of toothpaste sound fascinating, Skal makes the most mundane details of these people sound nearly as interesting as (and sometimes more interesting than) the fictional drama that they put on film.... Amongst other intriguing topics, the book covers the legal battles over Nosferatu, Lugosi's battle to procure the role in the 1931 film (and how it subsequently typecast and haunted him), and how the filmmakers behind the Spanish film disliked the English version and made an effort to improve upon it.

The content presents a wealth of information, ranging from Skal's personal research to interviews with the important players involved, and black and white photographs both familiar and obscure fill the pages. Skal's writing strikes a good balance between scholarly and conversational, making sure to include a good amount of humor and wit so as not to come across as too stuffy. As I mentioned above, he sticks mostly to the facts, but he isn't afraid to throw a wealthy amount of opinion into the mix, both from himself and from others. Since we can't all agree on everything, some of his views inevitably ended up rubbing me the wrong way (such as his casual dismissal of the excellent 1979 version of Nosferatu), but he rarely comes across as a fanboy with an axe to grind.

The final chapter (along with the appendixes, which list stage and screen adaptations with no more than a sentence or two of details) is where the book stumbles. It's clear that Skal's interest in Dracula begins with Bram Stoker and ends with Bela Lugosi; and that's fine, but he really should have worked on this chapter with a co-writer, since his lack of interest in the post-1931 adaptations results in writing that's not only flat and dull compared to the preceding chapters, but also riddled with revealing and careless mistakes. For example, the short plot summary he gives for the film Dracula A.D. 1972 actually belongs to its sequel, The Satanic Rites of Dracula, which otherwise isn't listed at all. He refers to Dracula Has Risen from the Grave as the third Dracula movie from Hammer Films (it was the fourth). He refers to a video game titled Castlevania: Dracula X, which he says was released in 1997 and is alternately known as "Nocturne with Moonlight" [sic], but he's confusing two games here: 1996's Castlevania: Dracula X, and 1997's Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, the latter of which is known in Japan as Dracula X: Nocturne in the Moonlight.

Skal also gets dates wrong left and right in these sections: Blood for Dracula starring Udo Kier, Taste the Blood of Dracula starring Christopher Lee, the television adaptation of Dracula starring Jack Palance, the silent ballet film Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary, and the video games Dracula: Resurrection and Dracula 2: The Last Sanctuary were not released when Skal says they were; and he cites several different release dates for the BBC version of Dracula starring Louis Jourdan, only getting it right once. The final chapter and appendixes are also curiously scattershot, including adaptations seemingly at random while leaving out others that belong: Skal covers a handful of the movies from Hammer Films starring Christopher Lee but leaves others out, and he refers to only one of the Castlevania video games (or two; see above), of which there are many more worth mentioning. Obscure porno versions of Dracula are given plot summaries while major films like Dracula: Prince of Darkness get nothing but a release date listed.

I own two good books that cover the Sherlock Holmes films, Sherlock Holmes On Screen by Alan Barnes and Starring Sherlock Holmes by David Stuart Davies. Both books cover the Holmes films comprehensively, giving each of them anywhere from one to four pages, never neglecting a single one, no matter how obscure. I was hoping for and expecting a book that covered the Dracula films in a similar way, but I'll have to keep looking, because that's not what Hollywood Gothic is. Instead of giving each of the over 100 Dracula films a little coverage, he gives three of them (and the early stage plays) a whole lot of it, and then casually and carelessly skims over the rest. The final chapter is a disappointment, and the book would have been a waste of time had the rest of it been written in such a sloppy manner. Fortunately, however, the majority of it is informative, clever, insightful, funny, well-researched, and entertaining. Anyone wanting more than a sentence or two about films such as Son of Dracula, Blacula, and Dracula 2000 will be let down, but if your interests match Skal's, you're in for a good read. Read more ›