Rhode Island PBS encores
House of Shadows by local filmmakers Michael and Karen Iacobbo of Providence Lyceum, LLC. Featured as part of the ongoing Rhode Island PBS series
Rhode Island Stories,
House of Shadows airs Thursday, November 10 at 8 p.m., Saturday, November 12 at 11 p.m., and Sunday, November 13 at 7 p.m.
Filmed at some of Rhode Island’s most beautiful and important historical sites, the hour-long Gothic romance
House of Shadows is inspired by the television series
Dark Shadows. And, in fact, Connecticut actress Beverly Hayes, who plays Patience Silverfield, the 19th Century mistress of Silverfield Hall in
House of Shadows, appeared in the original
Dark Shadows.
Beautifully filmed as it moves between present day and 1893, the story explores the strange events that unfold - and the force that manifests - after the mansion in the family of famous Victorian poet Nathaniel Silverfield is taken by eminent domain for a planned flood.
Rhode Island locations showcased in the film include the Governor Henry Lippitt House Museum in Providence, the Malbone Estate in Newport, the Governor William Sprague Mansion in Cranston, the Museum of Work and Culture in Woonsocket, and the Roger Williams Park in Providence.
With a strong Rhode Island connection through its film locations, the film's cast, too, has local ties.
House of Shadows stars Welsh-born actor and former Massachusetts resident Joe Michael Phillips, as Victorian-era poet Nathaniel Silverfield. Actress Jami Tennille of Massachusetts stars as Nathaniel’s fiancée, Victoria Noble. Connecticut actress Suzanne McCormick narrates
House of Shadows and stars as Buffy Silverfield, mistress of the 21st Century estate. Young actor Olivia Sage Pentell, who plays heiress Annabel Lee Silverfield, is also from Connecticut. Rhode Island actor Kevin Cahill plays the villain: Gerard Hawthorne.
Other Rhode Island actors include Lawrence O'Leary as Jeffrey Silverfield, Linda Colvin as Aunt Lacey Silverfield, Josh Passarelli as Toby, Adam Buxbaum as Julian Murk, and Peggy Passarelli as the doctor.
Casting information provided by Providence Lyceum, LLC
November 3 - Navy Heroes of Normandy
The Manhattan Project in World War II was an enormous undertaking that required the efforts of many of the world's most brilliant scientists. Thousands of physicists, mathematicians and engineers were needed to design, build and test the world's first atomic weapon. The United States government did everything in its power to attract these individuals to the top-secret program. One of those assigned to the project was the filmmaker's uncle, John Edmund Gray. Regarded as a pioneer in the field of nuclear energy John Gray was front and center as the evolution of that power from wartime use to peaceful means came to fruition.
On D-Day, June 6, 1944, the green 29th Infantry Division faced some of the most brutal fighting on Omaha Beach. In June of 2014, a handful of remaining members of the 29th Infantry Division made a final trip back to Normandy to recognize the 70th anniversary of D-Day. The World War II Foundation was along as these veterans shared their stories and looked over the bluffs of Omaha Beach one last time. The aging veterans also visited the Normandy-American cemetery to say their final goodbyes to their friends who never left Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944. Local villages and towns also honored the men of D-Day with dozens of celebrations around Normandy.
The Nazis had outlawed the annual Christmas-related celebration of St. Nicholas Day when they occupied Luxembourg in 1940. Even though American GIs had liberated the town of Wiltz in late 1944, the citizens had no resources left with which to mark their very special holiday. So a group of soldiers of the battle-weary 28th Infantry Division got together and brought back hope and joy back to a small town. One GI, Corporal Richard Brookins, played the role of Saint Nick, costume and all. His sleigh was a U.S. Army jeep. Brookins and the men of the 28th passed out candy and baked goods to the children of Wiltz.
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