Paint your face and nails in 'Dark Shadows' colors

Paint your face and nails in ‘Dark Shadows’ colors

Senior Features Writer

May 2, 2012 1:21 PM PT

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Based on the movie trailers we’ve seen so far, Tim Burton’s big-screen remake of the cult TV show ‘Dark Shadows’ seems to have struck a particularly rich vein -- style-wise at least -- by setting the vampire tale back in 1972.

We’re not only looking forward to seeing how the Gothic-meets-Me-decade aesthetic plays out in the movie itself (which stars Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Michelle Pfeiffer, among others), but also how it translates to the movie merchandise tie-ins.

One reason for our interest is that since we’ve recently been watching as many as four of the original series’ episodes a night (via Netflix), we couldn’t help but notice the clothes -- and how each episode includes the end credit ‘fashion provided by Ohrbach’s.’

Another reason is that the gothic soap opera’s long run from 1966 to 1971 earned it a large and loyal fan base that today appears eager -- based on comments posted to the upcoming film’s IMDB.com entry -- to snap up Barnabas Collins rings, wolf-head walking sticks and the like.

While we’ll have to wait until the Warner Bros. film’s May 11 release date to see what Academy Award winner Colleen Atwood has done in the wardrobe department, the merchandise tie-ins are already rolling out to retail, including NYX Cosmetics’ Crimson Amulet Collection (a 24-piece assortment including blushes, eye shadows and lip liners in a palette ‘inspired by the film,’ $25) and Orly International’s DS-inspired quartet of nail colors (with the equally colorful names of ‘Grave Mistake,’ ‘Buried Alive,’ ‘Decades of Dysfunction,’ and ‘Mysterious Curse,’ $8.50 each).

After watching a dozen or so episodes of the original series, what we find ourselves thinking about is a pop-up version of Collinsport, Maine’s, local watering hole -- a pub called The Blue Whale -- to which the show’s various characters would routinely decamp, tip back a few drinks and discuss the mysterious events taking place around them.

I’ve even got an idea for a signature drink -- a version of the classic Tom Collins gin drink with a dash of blood-red grenadine.

That’s right -- a Barnabas Collins.

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-- Adam Tschorn

All the Rage

Adam Tschorn

Senior features writer Adam Tschorn is a former small-town newspaper editor, game-show question-and-answer man and fashion scribe who joined the Los Angeles Times in 2007. He currently covers a wide range of pop-culture topics with a focus on cannabis culture. Holding a B.A. in philosophy and an M.A. in journalism, he feels perfectly suited to looking at things, asking “why?” and writing down the answers.