Salem's Lot Studies in the Horror Film

Since it first aired on CBS in November 1979, Tobe Hooper’s miniseries Salem’s Lot has terrified and fascinated audiences. Based on Stephen King’s modern Gothic horror, David Soul stars as novelist Ben Mears, whose return to his quaint, idyllic hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine becomes a living nightmare. Intending to write away his childhood fears of the dreaded Marsten House, Mears finds himself battling a plague of vampires, led by the demonic Barlow (Reggie Nalder). With a supporting cast including James Mason, Bonnie Bedelia, and Lew Ayres. This heavily expanded second edition of Centipede Press’s 2014 study of Salem’s Lot delivers a 736-page account of the film’s development and production. The complete first edition is included, featuring interviews with Tobe Hooper, David Soul, producer Richard Kobritz, James Mason, Reggie Nalder, Lance Kerwin, cinematographer Jules Brenner, and many others, illustrated with dozens of rare photographs, many now sharpened in higher resolution. Also included are deleted scenes from the teleplay plus a gallery of international poster images as well as fan art. 400 pages of never-before-published material has been added, including detailed histories of early unfilmed Salem’s Lot feature film scripts by Stirling Silliphant and Larry Cohen; Robert Bloch’s unproduced pilot for a spinoff TV series, and treatments for episodes by other writers including Stephen King; previously unpublished color and black and white photographs, including unseen behind-the-scenes shots; new interviews with the cast and crew, including titles designer Gene Kraft and Ron Scribner, who played child vampire Ralphie Glick; a 1979 interview with Stephen King; new photos of the Los Angeles filming locations; remembrances of the late Tobe Hooper and David Soul; and more.

Since it first aired on CBS in November 1979, Tobe Hooper’s miniseries Salem’s Lot has terrified and fascinated audiences. Based on Stephen King’s novel, David Soul stars as novelist Ben Mears, whose return to his quaint, idyllic hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine becomes a living nightmare. Intending to write away his childhood fears of the dreaded Marsten House, Mears finds himself battling a plague of vampires, led by the demonic Barlow (Reggie Nalder). With a supporting cast including James Mason, Bonnie Bedelia, and Lew Ayres, it remains a benchmark in made-for-TV horror.

Few horror films in the history of television can boast the deadly seriousness, inspired casting, indelible images and lingering impact of Salem's Lot. Tobe Hooper's adaptation of Stephen King's 1975 novel about vampires that infest a small Maine town was first broadcast in November 1979. The three-hour film featured performances by James Mason, David Soul, Lew Ayres, Bonnie Bedelia, and Reggie Nalder as the vampire Mr Barlow. This book documents the gestation and production of the film. It includes reminiscences from cast and crew, including interviews with Tobe Hooper, David Soul, cinematographer Jules Brenner and producer Richard Kobritz; dozens of images, including behind-the-scenes production stills; deleted scenes from the original teleplay; foreign posters and artwork inspired by the film; and photographs of Ferndale, California, where the exteriors of Salem's Lot were filmed.