GUILEY 2005 (7SDB2018)
Rosemary
Ellen Guiley
Facts
On File, Inc., 2005, 369 p. (pdf.)
Foreword
by Jeanne Keyes Youngson, Ph.D.
Founder of the Vampire Empire
„Of all the creatures in our
mythologies and demonologies, the vampire reigns as the most fascinating. Most
people knowledgeable about vampires do not start out with the intention of
becoming experts. The vampire does, however, have a way of getting into your
bloodstream and staying there. At least that is what happened to me many years
ago. I did not just wake up one morning and decide to start the world’s first Dracula fan club. It happened over a period of
time—and it certainly has been an incredible journey. This is
how it happened: In the early 1960s, I was an animation
filmmaker living in New York City with my husband, Robert
Youngson, who had won two Oscars for his films The World of Kids and This
Mechanical Age. We were movie mavens and went as often as time
permitted. Those were the days of Brides of Dracula, Horror of Dracula, and Dracula,
Prince of Darkness, which I was particularly drawn to,
perhaps because I had loved Stoker’s Dracula so much. In 1965 I
went on my first trip to Romania and learned firsthand about the Wallachian voivode,
Vlad Tepes. The guide talked about this national hero nonstop and I, of course,
remembered Harry Ludlam mentioning him in A Biography
of Dracula: The Life Story of Bram Stoker. I suppose the combination of these factors was
what started me thinking about starting a Dracula society—which I did as soon as I
got back to New York. The original Count Dracula Fan Club
was born on June 25, 1965, and, as it turned out, more people than I realized were as
interested in the Prince of Darkness as I was. Robert had
a large office at 1 Fifth Avenue, and we had a lot of movie get-togethers where we
showed films on his 16-mm projector. One of our regular
guests was Edward Gorey, who later did the sets and costumes for John Badham’s Dracula, starring Frank Langella. Gorey always came laden with
gifts and balloons, sometimes with a bag of his latest
books. Both Robert and I loved his wry humor and wonderful
stories about ballet. He was a real delight and a most
appreciative audience for the movies Bob took such great care
to choose. The Count Dracula Fan Club was an immediate success, and word
about the society spread like wildfire. We soon had a long mailing list for our
newsletter and almost from the beginning I heard from people
who asked all kinds of questions about vampires, wanted to tell me they thought
they had become a vampire, or wanted to know how they could become one.
Sometimes they wanted me to set them up with other blood-drinkers—as
though the club was some sort of dating service. One woman wanted to marry a
vampire and start her own dynasty! The letters still come
in, many of them these days from prison inmates who are
desperate for pen pals. And two men on death row inquired
about becoming vampires so that they could live on as undeads
following execution. I started collecting Dracula, vampire,
and horror memorabilia in 1965 and continued amassing a huge
collection, which, I hoped, I could incorporate into a museum when the time
was right (1990, as it turned out). In 1974 Robert died suddenly and
unexpectedly. Actor friends in London offered me their flat,
and I jumped at the opportunity to live abroad. I had their
apartment on Pall Mall for four years and later sublet a house in Cambridge, England,
for four more years. I commuted between the United States and England during this
time, which meant I could have two active club headquarters,
one in the States and one in Britain—the best of all possible worlds. One of the
first things I did once I got to London was join the British Dracula Society, and in
1974 I accompanied them on their first trip to Romania. The journey was, in a way, a
turning point in my life, when I realized that my society had far
more potential than I had originally thought. Shortly
thereafter I gave up filmmaking and turned my complete
attention to running the Count Dracula Fan Club. Through the years, I expanded
the society, adding new divisions, which served several niche
interests. I gave interviews, spoke at conferences, and fielded
innumerable media requests. The public’s appetite for vampires became as
insatiable as the vampires’ own blood lust. By 2000, it was obvious that the
Count Dracula Fan Club had grown beyond Stoker’s Count and far beyond being
“just” a fan club. Vampires and Dracula had hit the big time in all
respects and had become a potent force in entertainment, literature and the
performing arts, and as pop icons. I renamed the society the Vampire
Empire at the turn of this century, a title I thought
more befitting our extensive modus operandi. Along the way, I have had the privilege
of traveling around the world, and I have met many terrific people, some of
whom have become important parts of the Vampire Empire and
the entire vampire field as well as close personal friends.
One of these persons is Rosemary Ellen Guiley. I met
Rosemary in 1989, when she contacted me for her first book
on vampires, Vampires Among Us. Having worked with many
writers and reporters, I was most impressed with Rosemary’s
knowledge, professionalism, and thoroughness in research. Vampires Among Us became
a must-read for vampire fans, and I have no doubt that this encyclopedia will be
met with the same enthusiasm. Rosemary has compiled an
encyclopedia of astonishing scope and depth, from little-known
folklore to arts and entertainment, to roleplaying in social
cultures. Simply put, the book is fascinating and fun.
No matter where you open it, you will find something amazing. It is also a
substantial compendium of information, an indispensable and very
accessible tool for anyone who undertakes research on
vampires and werewolves, whether for academic study, for books
and articles, or for novels and entertainment.There is always something new
to learn about the vampire and his cousin, the werewolf. The
Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves, and Other Monsters is a top pick, an important contribution to this
ever-growing field” (pp. IX-X).
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