Dave Vanian and The Damned: Shadow of Love, 1985
Why now? If Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise weren’t able to cause this kind of a stir after Interview with the Vampire, then who would have guessed Mr. Pattinson (a.k.a. Edward) could? Not me. I, for one, have always been drawn to and intrigued by the dark, gothic appeal of the Vampire. I thought Dave Vanian of The Damned was “all that.” He definitely set a trend of sorts, but it only reached a narrow group of people. The Goth look was certainly not mainstream; in fact, Goth’s were considered strange, outcast and people assumed they were witches.
Dave Vanian of The Damned
So, while Dave Vanian, Siouxie Sioux and death rockers in general were judged and scrutinized, Robert Pattinson turns into a worldwide heartthrob and Twilight becomes a major phenomenon. Go figure. I think we need to credit Buffy the Vampire Slayer with making bloodsuckers seem cool. Spike stole hearts of girls all over the country including that of my beautiful friend, WendyB! Wendy “hearts” him (click here to read Wendy's post and to see her heart and spike ring!!).
Spike from the TV series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
I’ve never paid any attention to the Twilight films, but they must have sunk in by osmosis. The first film of the series was released in the end of November, 2008. The same year, I dressed as Countess Dracula for Halloween, so either I was just ahead of the trend or Twilight got under my skin somehow. Eerie.
scary looking me as Countess Dracula - October, 2008
I snapped my own photos before I went out on the town... to hunt!!
*Don't worry mom and dad, I covered up with a cape!!
How long will this trend last? Who knows, but with bands like Vampire Weekend and shows like True Blood and Vampire Diaries all enjoying huge success, my guess is a while…
Vampire Weekend: Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa, 2008
