LB: Goodbye to Sam Hall

A TV writer I never knew but whose work helped me survive the ’60s died a few weeks ago. His name was Sam Hall, and he was the head writer of DARK SHADOWS.

I’m talking about the real DARK SHADOWS, the gothic daytime serial (that’s “soap opera” to those who probably watched it). Sam Hall wrote more than 300 episodes of the series and was nominated for 5 Daytime Emmys and a Peabody Award during his career.

How did Sam Hall help me survive the ’60s? If you have to ask, you probably won’t understand the answer, but I’ll give it to you anyway:

Barnabas Collins.

Oh yeah, baby.

‘Bye, Sam. Hope you’re having the best afterlife ever!

For DARK SHADOWS fans: Here’s a kind of Afterword to the series written by Sam Hall and telling how all the arcs in play were intended to end – if the @^%!ers in charge hadn’t canceled.

Author: LB

A legendary figure in the television writing and production world with a career going back to the late ’60s, Larry Brody has written and produced hundreds of hours of American and worldwide television and is a consultant to production companies and networks in the U.S. and abroad . Shows written or produced by Brody have won several awards including - yes, it's true - Emmys, Writers Guild Awards, and the Humanitas Award. View all posts by LB