Much ado about Yutte

If you've heard of Danish actress, Yutte Stensgaard, at all, chances are it's because of her role as Carmilla Karnstein in Lust for a vampire (1971). If that flick doesn't ring, a bell, this still–or minor variants thereof–might:

The grim gallery

In fact, that's probably one of the few reasons it's remembered at all–unless you're a fan of Tracy's pop tune, 'Strange love'.

Anyway, I was having a read of her IMDb profile yesterday. Two things surprised me. Firstly, she appears to have stopped making films in 1972. Second, the user-submitted bio by 'Dez'. Why did it surprise me? Well, the entry starts off ok:

A former au pair and model, Jytte Stensgaard emigrated to the UK in 1963, hoping to have a successful international film career. Changing her name to the slightly easier to pronounce "Yutte" Stensgaard she ironically didn't make her debut in a British film, but in the Italian movie La ragazza con la pistola (1968) (Girl with a Pistol) which did have some British backing. She then went on to appear in various British movies, mainly of the comedy or horror genre, most famously the lead role in Lust for a Vampire (1971), as well as several television guest roles.

But after mentioning she had 'a six-month stint hosting a game show with British king of comedy, Bob Monkhouse', things take a turn for the decidedly impartial:

After struggling with myopic casting directors, who could not see the beauty and budding talent before them and were happier to just keep casting more established but less beautiful women, Yutte finally gave up and emigrated to the USA in the mid-seventies and took up a job selling air time for a Christian radio station in Oregan [sic].

It then diverts lapses into overt snobbery–despite the author acknowledging her main claim to fame was playing a vampires countess. Once.

Understandably reluctant to make appearances at horror conventions when British film publicists finally started to notice her when it was too late, she did relent and start appearing at a select few in the late 1990s, giving the non-fickle amongst her fans a chance to see her unique radiance once more.

If you thought the slavish adoration of her appearance (at the expense of her acting talents) stopped there, you'd be wrong!

An inimitable beauty the likes of which has never been seen since, Yutte Stensgaard was possibly the biggest loss to movies since that of Sharon Tate.

And that how it wraps up. Going by this summation, it's hard to fathom how cinema's thrived without Yutte's glowing presence. 

The Tate comparison–perhaps inadvertently, going by the author's critical ability–provides another vampire connection. Tate starred in Roman Polanski's 1967 film, Dance of the vampires. However, 'loss' probably wasn't the greatest choice of words, given the circumstances of their departure.

After all, Stengaard merely dropped out of the film industry; Tate was brutally murdered by the Manson Family in 1969. Dez could've shown some restraint with that one.

Tweeting again

Over a year ago, I ditched my Twitter account. Well, I've finally decided to get back on it again. Tonight, in fact.

I think it'd be a great platform to share my blog entries. My new Twitter account's synced to this thing. Unfortunately, I couldn't use my name or 'vampirologist' as a handle (both taken). Couldn't use 'thevampirologist', either, as you can only have 15 characters in a username. It's only one character over. D'oh! Still, I'm happy with the handle I chose.

The Twitter account's linked to this blog. You'll get live feeds of blog entries I post on here and maybe, maybe some other non-blog stuff. I've still gotta verse myself in using the thing properly. That'll happen in time.

Deciphering sources

As someone only acquainted with the English language, one of the most frustrating things about vampire research is that a lot of the good stuff is written in other languages. 

A perfect example leapt out to me while I was reading the 'Historical note' in James M. B. Lyon's novel, Kiss of the butterfly (2011): 'The Djordjevic book Vampiri i druga bica -- Вампири и друга бића (Vampires and Other Beings) exists and constitutes a veritable treasure trove of Balkan vampire lore' (p. 377).

Djordjevic's work is also recommended by another author well-versed in Balkan vampire lore:

The best general study of vampires in what is now Yugoslavia is T. Djordjević, "Vampir i druga bića u našem narodnom verovanju i predanju," published in the Serbican Academy of Sciences series, Srpski Etnografski Zbornik, knj. LXVI, Second Series "Život i običaji narodni," knj. 30, Beograd, 1953, pp. 149-219.¹

'T. Djordjević' is Tihomir Djordjevic–or Tihomir R. Đorđević–depending on which transcription you use. Wait till you get to his name's Serbian Cyrillic spelling: Тихомир Ђорђевић. Yikes.

As it happens, I've tracked down what appears to be the work in question (below)–but I'm left with several quandaries. 

Scribd

 Firstly, how on earth do I even begin to cite this bastard–little alone be able to read it? 

Second, the date on the first page is given as 1952–but the citation listed (which corresponds with the copy I've found) is given as 1953. What's the deal with that? 

Thirdly, if we follow Fine's reference, we're dealing with an article. An incredibly substantial article, sure–but an article nonetheless. So why does Lyon refer to a book? Is it possible the article was a 'teaser'? Or is the article an extract from a book?

Fourth, much like the work's subject–this appears to have risen from the grave: Djordjević died in 1944. Does that mean the work appeared in an earlier source? Quite possibly. I'll look into it. And, as usual, reader feedback's welcome.

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^{1. JVA Fine, Jr., 'In defense of vampires: Church/State efforts to stop vigilante action against vampires in Serbia during the first reign of Miloš Obrenovic', East European Quarterly, vol. 21, no. 1, 1987, p. 23, n1.↩}

Moore trouble

Earlier this year, I reported the case of a Facebook member whose Dracula fanpage was swiped under unusual circumstances, despite Dracula (1897) being public domain.

Something similar has befallen Andrew Moore of Nosferatu TV fame:

Earlier today I have recived [sic] a cease order and had to take down all my movies, which I had searched and found to be in the public domain, the order was given to me by the StudioCanal Video distrobustion [sic] company out of the United Kingdom, though I live in the United States, untill [sic] this issue is resolved there will only be news and reviews and on the website, and possible podcasts, though untill [sic] this is all done I will keep them down.

Was StudioCanal Video right to issue a cease and desist notice against Moore? We'll wait and see...

Though it's not immediately clear which movies were supposedly in violation of the company's rights, Nosferatu (1922)–at least, the non restored version–is public domain.

The Whitby Vampire

Let's nip this one in the bud. Some of you may've heard about the Whitby Vampire. Apparently, a 'story was printed in the Whitby Telegraph on Friday 23rd March 2012' which was 'withdrawn by the newspaper just before it went on sale.'

An 'unnamed worker' salvaged one copy of the paper before all other copies were destroyed. Fortuitously, the issue features images of the supposed vampire–the only ones in public existence, because the rest were seized by 'government officials the same day'.

The vampire in question was a small, shrivelled bat-thing impaled through the chest 'with an iron spike containing a rolled up parchment of the Lord's Prayer in Latin.' It has some rather obvious Dracula (1897) parallels:

In the remote North Yorkshire town of Whitby, the setting for Bram Stoker's gothic novel Dracula, a recent discovery may suggest that he took inspiration for his book from something much closer to home than the 15th century Vlad the Impaler.

The story has been shared by credulous sources like identity-theft group, The Highgate Cemetery Vampire Appreciation Society (not to be confused with the legit group of the same name).

The Highgate Cemetery Vampire Appreciation Society

Where do I begin? Firstly, the photographic 'evidence' of the 'man-bat' tells us the images are property of Aldbrough University's Anthropology Department:

The Whitby Vampire

One small problem: Aldbrough University doesn't exist.

The story is accompanied by an interview with Rabbi Shachnaey, who 'claims to have successfully slain over 15 vampires in the last 40 years.' His identity is obscured by a black bar across his eyes.

Shachnaey can't hide behind a Google Image search, though, which reveals 'Rabbi Shachnaey' is actually Roni Shachnaey, an Israeli magician. He 'has had lifetime career in magic, mentalism, readings, and the bizarre.' Not vampire hunting, I'm afraid.

Lastly, what about the paper the article appeared in? The Whitby Telegraph? Yeah, about that–there's no such paper.

Upcoming books 5

For the previous instalment, click here. This latest round-up pleases me greatly: it seems there's a shift toward academic vampire works. As there bloody well should be! If I was to pick a theme, I'd say they embody the vampire's formative process. Take a look-see.

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30 November 2012

The Twilight mind: Twilight saga psychology skills / Julie-Anne Sykley

Amazon says the book was already released on 16 November, but the publisher site gives the 30 November date. Take your pick. According the publisher site, 'The Twilight Saga is not just a vampire tale. It is a powerful psychological thriller about deep desire, self-discovery defying misery and achieving happiness against all odds.' I'll bet. I do wonder how many more Twilight tomes will be released in the wake of the series' final (?) film instalment, Breaking dawn–part 2. I'm guessing they'll start drying up.

Also, good to see this one's written by a fellow Australian. There are very few in the non-fiction vampire book stakes. Only Ken Gelder and David Keyworth spring to mind.

24 December 2012

Transnational and postcolonial vampires: dark blood / Tabish Khair & Johan Höglund (eds)

To all intents and purposes, an academic vampire work with an ethnic flavour. The book's description is a bit of a mouthful, though: 'Transnational and Postcolonial Vampires is a unique and timely collection that examines the past and present vampire narrative as a postcolonial and transnational phenomenon. Through a series of important contributions by well-known scholars in the field, it illustrates how vampires have mapped and continues to map the fear of the Other, the ravenous hunger of Empires and the transcultural rifts and intercultural common grounds that make up global society today.' Sure, ok. Nonetheless, it does sound intriguing.

8 January 2013

The modern vampire and human identity / Deborah Mutch (ed.)

Going by the book's description–'The essays offer readings of the modern vampire as a complex consideration of our modern human selves. Now that we no longer see the vampire as essentially evil, what does that say about us?'–it sounds Mutch has followed in the footsteps lead by Nina Auerbach's 1995 book, Our vampires, ourselves.

1 February 2013

The rise of the vampire / Erik Butler

Though not stated in its description, I can't help wondering if this book serves as a sequel to Metamorphoses of the vampire in literature and film: cultural transformations in Europe, 1732-1933 (2010). If it's anything like that one, get it. Butler knows his stuff when it comes to the undead.

It's published by Reaktion Books, the same guys behind Matthew Beresford's popular 2008 book, From demons to Dracula: the creation of the modern vampire myth.

4 April 2013

Who was Dracula?: Bram Stoker's trail of blood / Jim Steinmeyer

This book says it will be 'Hunting through archives and letters, literary and theatrical history, and the relationships and events that gave shape to Stoker’s life, Steinmeyer reveals the people and stories behind the Transylvanian legend . . . he shows how Stoker drew on material from the careers of literary contemporaries Walt Whitman and Oscar Wilde; reviled personas such as Jack the Ripper and the infamous fifteenth-century prince Vlad Tepes'–which, as anyone who's familiar with Elizabeth Miller's work will know, sounds a helluva lot like literary guesswork. We'll see.

The not-so-original cameo

I was having a browse through Facebook earlier today, when I noticed something shared on my friend's wall:

Facebook

I immediately recognised the image–as I'm sure many of you probably will. Nonetheless, I decided to give its 'creator', Diamond*Star*Halo, the benefit of the doubt and checked out their page listing. Instead of acknowledging of the piece's source, I found this:

This piece is not for the timid. The Succubus slinks across her prey in an ornate, antique silver tone setting full of rhinestones.
This original cameo was designed by me and is not to be replicated in any manner.

It takes a lot of balls to tell other people not to replicate a piece that has been replicated from elsewhere. The image is derived–sorry, I meant ripped-off–from an 1897 painting by Philip Burne-Jones: 

Art of the beautiful-grotesque

 It wasn't called Succubus, either. It's actual name? The vampire. It's very well-known image. It's graced the covers of non-fiction works like Nicolaus Equiamicus' Vampire: Von damals bis(s) heute (2010), Joachim Nagel's Vampire: Mythische Wesen der Nacht and Wolfgang Schwerdt's Vampire, Wiedergänger und Untote. Auf der Spur der lebenden Toten (both 2011).

And Diamond*Star*Halo would've gotten away with it too, if it hadn't been for this pesky vampirologist!