Top image: AP Photo / Bob Wands

On Monday, June 27, Decades will feature a special anniversary event marking the premiere of the soap opera Dark Shadows. This anniversary tribute comes to Decades 50 years to the day of the first broadcast of Dark Shadows in 1966. Twelve of the series’ most well known shows will be featured, including the debut episodes of vampire Barnabas Collins.

From the first notes of its distinctly haunting musical theme, to the innovative storylines that transformed daytime television, to its iconic cast of characters, Dark Shadows transported audiences to the mysterious town of Collinsport, Maine, and they never looked back. Decades remembers the premiere of this cult favorite with the 12 episodes that marked the beginning of the Barnabas storyline, one that propelled the daytime series to new heights.

In addition to the selected Dark Shadows episodes, the Decades original one-hour daily series Through the Decades will present an exclusive interview with Steven August Papa, the proclaimed No. 1 lifetime fan of Dark Shadows, who shares his childhood love for the show and why he is still hooked many years later. We talk with Walter Podrazik, Television Curator at the Museum of Broadcast Communications, about the show’s place in TV history. The episode will also feature interviews with cast members Jonathan Frid (Barnabas Collins), Kathryn Leigh Scott (Maggie Evans) and Lara Parker (Angelique).