Our thanks to Will for recommending this Hall of Fantasy episode, “The Castle of Lavoca!” Or maybe it’s “The Castle of Drago.” Or it may be “The Legend of Drago.” Regardless of the proper name, the story depicts two American tourists who visit a small Eastern European town in the shadow of an old castle. Is there truth to the stories about the baron who once called this castle home? Do these tourists dare risk visiting the castle and becoming part of it’s sinister legend? Are Satan’s dogs truly evil or just poorly trained? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!
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I thought this was interesting and fun, but I wish they’d done more with the idea that Satan always takes someone away with him in exchange for the Baron’s prowess / immortality. That would up the suspense at the end.
That’s a good observation. The sacrifices are definitely the most horrific aspect of the story. What was the Baron offering in exchange for victory in the next world war?
What aspects of the performances scream out modern to you? Super curious! Great show as always…great episodes and your commentary is always fascinating and hilarious!!
Good question. To my ear, the performances in “Lavoca”, particularly the two leads, sounded very naturalistic and, for lack of a better term, non-theatrical. As I mentioned in the podcast, it reminded me of the performances from CBS Radio Mystery Theater. or even Nightfall. There is no trace of the mid-atlantic accent, for example. I know it fell out of vogue after World War II (at least in film) but you can still hear it in radio well into the fifties.
If you listen to Robert Stack in his Unsolved Mysteries episodes, he still uses that accent. He says “atall” a lot!
This show is actually a re-creation done in the 1970’s by the main actors that starred in the original 50’s program. That’s why it has that CBSRMT feel to it. It is well done, though I felt this script left a little to be desired. The Shadow People & He Who Follows Me are much better in my opinion.
My issue was similar to Eric’s. In the end, the protagonists had no effect on anything, and nothing had a real effect on them.