Bram Stoker once envisioned his most successful novel, Dracula, as a stage play. The actor he wanted to play the title role, Sir Henry Irving, walked out of the table read, yawning and griping about wordiness. It was probably the most auspicious walkout in horror entertainment history. Had Irving starred in a bomb, Bela Lugosi, Frank Langella, Gary Oldman, and quite a few other actors wouldn’t have been able to don the cape.
Dracula wasn’t the first book about vampires, but it was the first time Vlad “the Impaler” Tepes was portrayed as one. Until then, people thought of him as a cruel tyrant who nailed hats onto the heads of monks, and dipped his bread in the blood of vanquished soldiers. That is if they thought of him at all, outside of Romania, which celebrates him with pride as a freedom fighter and national protector, the “son...
Dracula wasn’t the first book about vampires, but it was the first time Vlad “the Impaler” Tepes was portrayed as one. Until then, people thought of him as a cruel tyrant who nailed hats onto the heads of monks, and dipped his bread in the blood of vanquished soldiers. That is if they thought of him at all, outside of Romania, which celebrates him with pride as a freedom fighter and national protector, the “son...
- 9/10/2022
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
Tony Sokol Oct 21, 2019
While variations on the Dracula legend are among the most oft-told tales in movies and television, some stand out from the pack.
Dracula, the name is legendary. The First Vampire of both literature and film, he also rose to dominate pages of history. Dracula has been vilified for years. Vlad Tepes is painted as a cruel tyrant who impaled people who defied him, nailed hats onto the heads of monks who didn’t deify him, and who dipped his bread in the blood of armies defeated by him.
Cruel? Maybe. But not when you remember that after Spartacus’ slave rebellion was put down, Rome lined miles of roads with crucified dissidents. There was no internet back then and when you wanted to send a message you had to make it big. The Turks knew enough not to fuck with Vlad the Impaler or they’d get a...
While variations on the Dracula legend are among the most oft-told tales in movies and television, some stand out from the pack.
Dracula, the name is legendary. The First Vampire of both literature and film, he also rose to dominate pages of history. Dracula has been vilified for years. Vlad Tepes is painted as a cruel tyrant who impaled people who defied him, nailed hats onto the heads of monks who didn’t deify him, and who dipped his bread in the blood of armies defeated by him.
Cruel? Maybe. But not when you remember that after Spartacus’ slave rebellion was put down, Rome lined miles of roads with crucified dissidents. There was no internet back then and when you wanted to send a message you had to make it big. The Turks knew enough not to fuck with Vlad the Impaler or they’d get a...
- 10/20/2013
- Den of Geek
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