''Salem's Lot'' (also known as ''Salem's Lot: The Movie'', ''Salem's Lot: The Miniseries'' and ''Blood Thirst'') is a 1979 American

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format ...

television adaptation An adaptation is a transfer of a work of art from one style, culture or medium to another. Some common examples are: * Film adaptation, a story from another work, adapted into a film (it may be a novel, non-fiction like journalism, autobiography, ...

of the 1975 horror novel '' 'Salem's Lot'' by

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high ...

. Directed by

Tobe Hooper Willard Tobe Hooper (; January 25, 1943 – August 26, 2017) was an American director, screenwriter, and producer best known for his work in the horror genre. The British Film Institute cited Hooper as one of the most influential horror fi ...

and starring

David Soul David Soul (born David Richard Solberg; August 28, 1943) is an American-British actor and singer. He is known for his role as Detective Kenneth "Hutch" Hutchinson in the television series '' Starsky & Hutch'' from 1975 to 1979; Joshua Bolt on ...

and

James Mason James Neville Mason (; 15 May 190927 July 1984) was an English actor. He achieved considerable success in British cinema before becoming a star in Hollywood. He was the top box-office attraction in the UK in 1944 and 1945; his British films inc ...

, the plot concerns a writer who returns to his hometown and discovers that its citizens are turning into

vampires A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deat ...

. ''Salem's Lot'' combines elements of the

vampire film Vampire films have been a staple in world cinema since the era of silent films, so much so that the depiction of vampires in popular culture is strongly based upon their depiction in films throughout the years. The most popular cinematic adaptat ...

and

haunted house A haunted house, spook house or ghost house in ghostlore is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were otherwise connected with the prope ...

subgenres of horror.

Plot

At a church in Guatemala, a man and a boy, Ben Mears and Mark Petrie, are filling small bottles with

holy water Holy water is water that has been blessed by a member of the clergy or a religious figure, or derived from a well or spring considered holy. The use for cleansing prior to a baptism and spiritual cleansing is common in several religions, from ...

. When one of the bottles begins to emit an eerie supernatural glow, Mears tells Mark that "they've found us again." Knowing an evil presence is nearby, they decide to stay to fight it. Two years earlier, Mears, a successful author, returns after a long absence to his small hometown of Salem's Lot,

Maine Maine () is a U.S. state, state in the New England and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and territories of Canad ...

. Mears intends to write a book about the Marsten House, an old, ominous property on a hilltop which has a reputation for being haunted. Attempting to rent it, Mears finds that it has already been purchased by another new arrival in town, the mysterious Richard Straker, who is in the process of opening an antique shop with his oft-mentioned but never present business partner, Kurt Barlow. Instead, Mears moves into a boarding house in town run by Eva Miller and develops a romantic relationship with a local woman, Susan Norton. He befriends Susan's father, Dr. Bill Norton, and reconnects with his kindly former school teacher, Jason Burke. Mears tells Burke that he feels the Marsten House is somehow inherently

evil Evil, in a general sense, is defined as the opposite or absence of good. It can be an extremely broad concept, although in everyday usage it is often more narrowly used to talk about profound wickedness and against common good. It is general ...

, recalling that its original owner, Hubie Marsten – implied to have been a

child molester Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (wheth ...

– committed suicide there. Mears further recalls a traumatic childhood incident in which he broke into the house on a dare and saw Hubie's

ghost A ghost is the soul (spirit), soul or spirit of a dead Human, person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visibl ...

. After a large crate is delivered to the Marsten House one night, townspeople begin to disappear or die under strange circumstances. Mears and Straker are the main suspects as they are both new in town, but it eventually becomes clear that the crate contained Straker's business partner, Kurt Barlow — an ancient vampire who has come to Salem's Lot after sending Straker to make way for his arrival. Straker kidnaps a young boy, Ralphie Glick, as an offering to Barlow, while Barlow himself kills local realtor Larry Crockett. The Glick boy then returns as a vampire to claim his brother, Danny. After his funeral, the

undead The undead are beings in mythology, legend, or fiction that are deceased but behave as if alive. Most commonly the term refers to corporeal forms of formerly-alive humans, such as mummies, vampires, and zombies, who have been reanimated by ...

Danny infects a

gravedigger A gravedigger is a cemetery worker who is responsible for digging a grave prior to a funeral service. Description If the grave is in a cemetery on the property of a church or other religious organization (part of, or called, a churchyard), ...

, Mike Ryerson, and attempts to prey on one of his schoolfriends, Mark Petrie. However, Mark is a horror film buff and manages to repel Danny with a

cross A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a s ...

. As the vampirism spreads, Mears, Burke, and Dr. Norton gradually realize what is happening to the town and attempt to stop it. Mears is attacked by Ralph and Danny's presumed-dead mother Marjorie Glick after she revives on a mortician's table, but Mears defends himself using a makeshift cross. Mark's parents are both killed by Barlow, though Mark escapes with the assistance of a local priest. Burke, however, suffers a severe heart attack following an encounter with the newly vampirized Ryerson. Seeking revenge for his parents' deaths, Mark breaks into the Marsten House, and a concerned Susan follows him inside; both are soon captured by Straker. Later, Mears and Dr. Norton enter the house, too, where Straker kills Norton by impaling him on a pair of antlers before he himself is fatally shot by Mears. Afterwards, Mears and the freed Mark find Barlow's coffin in the cellar and destroy him by driving a stake through his heart. Fleeing the other vampires in the house (the infected townsfolk), the two set fire to the Marsten property as they leave, though Susan is nowhere to be found. While the house burns, the wind carries the fire towards the town itself. As he and Mark drive away from Salem's Lot, Mears comments that the fire will drive all the vampires from their hiding places and purify the town from the evil that has engulfed it. The story returns to Mears and Mark at the church in Guatemala two years later. It becomes clear that they are on the run from the surviving Salem's Lot vampires, and that their bottles of holy water glow whenever a vampire is nearby. Realising that they have been tracked down yet again, Mears and Mark return to their lodgings to collect their belongings. Once there, Mears finds Susan lying in his bed. Now a vampire, she prepares to bite him as he leans down to kiss her, but instead Mears drives a stake through her heart and destroys her. A grief-stricken Mears then leaves with Mark, knowing that the vampires will continue to pursue them.

Cast

as Ben Mears *

as Richard Straker * Lance Kerwin as Mark Petrie *

Bonnie Bedelia Bonnie Bedelia Culkin (born ) is an American actress. After beginning her career in theatre in the 1960s, Bedelia starred in the CBS daytime soap opera '' Love of Life'' and made her film debut in '' The Gypsy Moths''. Bedelia subsequently appea ...

as Susan Norton *

Lew Ayres Lewis Frederick Ayres III (December 28, 1908 – December 30, 1996) was an American actor whose film and television career spanned 65 years. He is best known for starring as German soldier Paul Bäumer in the film '' All Quiet on the Western Fr ...

as Jason Burke *

Ed Flanders Edward Paul Flanders (December 29, 1934 – February 22, 1995) was an American actor. He is best known for playing Dr. Donald Westphall in the medical drama series ''St. Elsewhere'' (1982–1988). Flanders was nominated for eight Primetime Em ...

as Bill Norton *

Fred Willard Frederic Charles Willard (September 18, 1933 May 15, 2020) was an American actor, comedian, and writer. He was best known for his roles in the Rob Reiner mockumentary film '' This Is Spinal Tap'' (1984); the Christopher Guest mockumentaries ''Wa ...

as Larry Crockett *

Julie Cobb Julie Frances Cobb is an American actress. She is the daughter of actor Lee J. Cobb. Early life Cobb was born in Los Angeles, California, to a Jewish family. Her parents were actor Lee J. Cobb and actress Helen Beverley. She went to Beverl ...

as Bonnie Sawyer * Kenneth McMillan as Constable Parkins Gillespie * Geoffrey Lewis as Mike Ryerson * Barney McFadden as Ned Tebbets *

Marie Windsor Marie Windsor (born Emily Marie Bertelsen; December 11, 1919 – December 10, 2000) was an American actress known for her femme fatale characters in the classic film noir features '' Force of Evil'', ''The Narrow Margin'' and '' The Killing''. ...

as Eva Miller * Bonnie Bartlett as Ann Norton *

George Dzundza George Dzundza ( ; born July 19, 1945) is an American television and film actor. Early life and education Dzundza was born in Rosenheim, Germany, to a Ukrainian-Jewish father, Roman Dzundza, originally from Kalush, Ukraine, and a Polish-Jewish ...

as Cully Sawyer *

Elisha Cook Jr. Elisha Vanslyck Cook Jr. (December 26, 1903 – May 18, 1995) was an American character actor famed for his work in films noir. According to Bill Georgaris of TSPDT: They Shoot Pictures, Don't They, Cook appeared in a total of 21 film n ...

as Gordon "Weasel" Phillips *

Clarissa Kaye Clarissa Kaye (2 August 193121 July 1994) was an Australian stage, film and television actress. She was the second wife (1971–1984) of the British actor James Mason. After her marriage, she was often known as Clarissa Kaye-Mason. Biography ...

as Marjorie Glick * Ned Wilson as Henry Glick * Barbara Babcock as June Petrie *

Joshua Bryant Joshua Bryant (born July 2, 1940) is an American actor, director, author, and speaker who is the founder of the Taos Talking Pictures Film Festival in Taos, New Mexico. Early life and education Bryant was born in Norfolk, Virginia. After a ...

as Ted Petrie * James Gallery as Father Callahan *

Reggie Nalder Reggie Nalder (born Alfred Reginald Natzler; 4 September 1907 – 19 November 1991) was a prolific Austrian film and television character actor from the late 1940s to the early 1990s. His distinctive features—partially the result of disfiguri ...

as Kurt Barlow * Brad Savage as Danny Glick * Ronnie Scribner as Ralphie Glick

Production

Development

After Warner Bros. acquired the rights to ''Salem's Lot'', the studio sought to turn the 400-page novel by Stephen King into a feature film, while still remaining faithful to the source material. Producer

Stirling Silliphant Stirling Dale Silliphant (January 16, 1918 – April 26, 1996) was an American screenwriter and producer. He is best remembered for his screenplay for '' In the Heat of the Night'', for which he won an Academy Award in 1967, and for creating ...

, screenwriter Robert Getchell, and writer/director

Larry Cohen Lawrence George Cohen (July 15, 1936 – March 23, 2019) was an American screenwriter, producer, and director of film and television, best known as an author of horror and science fiction films — often containing police procedural and ...

all contributed screenplays but none proved satisfactory. "It was a mess," King said. "Every director in Hollywood who's ever been involved with horror wanted to do it, but nobody could come up with a script." Eventually, the project was turned over to Warner Bros. Television and producer Richard Kobritz. Kobritz decided that, due to the novel's length, ''Salem's Lot'' would work better as a television miniseries than as a feature film. Television writer

Paul Monash Paul Monash (June 14, 1917 – January 14, 2003) was an American television and film producer and screenwriter. Life and career Paul Monash was born in Harlem, New York, in 1917, and grew up in The Bronx. His mother, Rhoda Melrose, acted in si ...

was contracted to write the

teleplay A teleplay is a screenplay or script used in the production of a scripted television program or series. In general usage, the term is most commonly seen in reference to a standalone production, such as a television film, a television play, or a ...

. Monash was familiar with writing about small towns, as he had previously produced the film adaptation of King's novel '' Carrie'' and had worked on the television series, '' Peyton Place''. Finally, a screening of ''

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre ''The Texas Chain Saw Massacre'' is a 1974 American horror film produced and directed by Tobe Hooper from a story and screenplay by Hooper and Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow and Gunnar Hansen, wh ...

'' (1974) resulted in Kobritz selecting

as director. With a budget of $4 million,

principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...

began on July 10, 1979, in the

Northern California Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers incl ...

town of Ferndale, with some scenes filmed at the Burbank studios. Filming officially wrapped on August 29, 1979.

Adaptation from source material

Though the miniseries follows the general outline of King's novel, there are a few substantial deviations for creative or logistical reasons. Many characters have been combined or merely deleted, as have certain subplots, and the character of Barlow is vastly different in the miniseries from how he is in the novel. However, Stephen King praised Paul Monash's screenplay and commented, "Monash has succeeded in combining the characters a lot, and it works." Producer Richard Kobritz, who took a strong creative interest in his films, added several changes to Monash's script including turning the head vampire Kurt Barlow from a cultured human-looking villain into a speechless demonic-looking monster. Kobritz explained: Other changes by Kobritz included having the final confrontation with Barlow in the cellar of the Marsten House whereas in the book it is in the basement of Eva Miller's boarding house, a concept Kobritz felt "Just doesn't work. I mean, from a point of sheer construction in a well-written screenplay, he's got to reside in the inside of the Marsten House. He's a major star in the picture – the third or fourth most important character – he's got to be there. It may have worked in the book, but not in the movie." Susan's death was also moved to the climax, to give her death "more impact and provide the film with a snap ending."

Casting

For the roles of Richard K. Straker and the vampire Kurt Barlow,

and

had been on producer Richard Kobritz's "wish list".''

Fangoria ''Fangoria'' is an internationally distributed American horror film fan magazine, in publication since 1979. It is published four times a year by Fangoria Publishing, LLC and is edited by Phil Nobile Jr. The magazine was originally released i ...

'' #82 (1989) Kobritz sent Mason a copy of the script, who loved the part and his wife, Clarissa Kaye-Mason, was also cast as Marjorie Glick. However, Nalder was less impressed. "The makeup and contact lenses were painful but I got used to them. I liked the money best of all." The miniseries also features

as Weasel Philips and

as Eva Miller, two characters with a relationship. This casting was an inside joke by producer Kobritz, a fan of

Stanley Kubrick Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...

; Cook and Windsor had previously played a couple in Kubrick's '' The Killing'' (1956).

Direction

''Salem's Lot'' does not rely on the same kind of dynamics as ''The Texas Chain Saw Massacre''. "This film is very spooky – it suggests things and always has the overtone of the grave. It affects you differently than my other horror films. It's more soft-shelled," director Tobe Hooper explains. "A television movie does not have blood or violence. It has atmosphere which creates something you cannot escape – the reminder that our time is limited and all the accoutrements that go with it, such as the visuals." Although ''Salem's Lot'' was aimed at television, a European theatrical release was also planned and which would include more violence. For example, two versions of the scene where Cully Sawyer threatens Larry Crockett with a shotgun were filmed. In one version, Larry holds the gun barrel in his mouth, while in the other, the barrel is in front of his face. "They worked at a feature film pace instead of a TV pace," recalled actor Lance Kerwin on the filming. "It's really even hard to tell the flow of the film. It was a miniseries originally, then we shot a feature film version for Europe at the same time. They've edited and cut together so much."

Design and effects

Unable to find a house in Ferndale that resembled the Marsten House from the book, an estimated $100,000 was spent on constructing a three-story facade over an already-existing house on a hillside, overlooking Ferndale and the Eel River Valley. Designed by Mort Rabinowitz, it took 20 days to build. Another $70,000 was spent on constructing the interior set of the house which proved even more difficult for designer Rabinowitz, who also designed the building of Straker's antique shop and the small village in Guatemala where the beginning and end of the miniseries is set. The vampire

makeup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vo ...

involving glowing

contact lens Contact lenses, or simply contacts, are thin lenses placed directly on the surface of the eyes. Contact lenses are ocular prosthetic devices used by over 150 million people worldwide, and they can be worn to correct vision or for cosmetic ...

es was invented by Jack Young. According to Tobe Hooper, the makeup on actor Reggie Nalder would constantly fall off, as well as the fake nails and

teeth A tooth ( : teeth) is a hard, calcified structure found in the jaws (or mouths) of many vertebrates and used to break down food. Some animals, particularly carnivores and omnivores, also use teeth to help with capturing or wounding prey, te ...

, and the contact lenses would go sideways. The contact lenses could only be worn for 15 minutes at a time before they had to be removed to let the eyes rest for 30 minutes. The vampire

levitation Levitation (from Latin ''levitas'' "lightness") is the process by which an object is held aloft in a stable position, without mechanical support via any physical contact. Levitation is accomplished by providing an upward force that counteracts ...

s were accomplished by placing the actors on a

boom crane Boom may refer to: Objects * Boom (containment), a temporary floating barrier used to contain an oil spill * Boom (navigational barrier), an obstacle used to control or block marine navigation * Boom (sailing), a sailboat part * Boom (windsurf ...

instead of traditional wires: "We didn't fly our vampires in on wires, because even in the best of films you can see them," producer Richard Korbitz explained. "We wanted to get a feeling of floating. And the effect is horrific, because you ''know'' there are no wires. It has a very spooky, eerie quality to it." The levitation sequences were also shot-in-reverse icto make the scenes more eerie.

Soundtrack

With producer Richard Kobritz wanting "a good, atmospheric, old-fashioned, Bernie Herrmann-type score", the

score Score or scorer may refer to: *Test score, the result of an exam or test Business * Score Digital, now part of Bauer Radio * Score Entertainment, a former American trading card design and manufacturing company * Score Media, a former Canadian m ...

was composed and conducted by Harry Sukman, whom Korbitz described as "a former cohort and protege of

Victor Young Albert Victor Young (August 8, 1899– November 10, 1956)"Victor Young, Composer, Dies of Heart Attack", ''Oakland Tribune'', November 12, 1956. was an American composer, arranger, violinist and conductor. Biography Young is commonly said to ...

". The soundtrack to Salem's Lot is known to be Sukman's last work before passing in 1984. Waxwork Records released the soundtrack in 2016 on vinyl record for the first time.

Reception

Critical response

Broadcast reviews for ''Salem's Lot'' were largely positive, with critics praising the film's atmosphere, cinematography, Hooper's direction, and scares. '' Time Out'' called the film "surprisingly successful", highlighting the film's cinematography, atmosphere, and climax. Helen O'Hara of '' Empire Magazine'' awarded the film three out of five stars, stating that, although it "doesn’t quite nail the scale of the infection", the film's scares, special effects, pacing, and characters more than made up for it. As of August 2022, it holds an approval rating of 89% on review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, based on 18 reviews, and an average rating of 6.65/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Director Tobe Hooper and a devilishly charismatic James Mason elevate this television adaptation of the Stephen King novel, injecting the vampiric tradition with fresh blood and lingering scares."

Awards and nominations

Legacy

In the years following its initial broadcast, ''Salem's Lot'' has accumulated a

cult following A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic ...

and is now considered a classic. It has been included in multiple lists by several media outlets. ''

Paste Magazine ''Paste'' is a monthly music and entertainment digital magazine, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with studios in Atlanta and Manhattan, and owned by Paste Media Group. The magazine began as a website in 1998. It ran as a print publication fr ...

'' ranked the film at #64 in their list of "100 Best Vampire Movies of All Time". '' Variety'' listed it at #20 in their "Best and Worst Stephen King Adaptations".

Influence

''Salem's Lot'' had a significant impact on the vampire genre, as it inspired horror films such as '' Fright Night'' (1985) and the scenes of vampire boys floating outside windows would be referenced in ''

The Lost Boys ''The Lost Boys'' is a 1987 American supernatural black comedy horror film directed by Joel Schumacher, produced by Harvey Bernhard with a screenplay written by Jeffrey Boam, Janice Fischer and James Jeremias, from a story by Fischer and Jeremia ...

'' (1987) (and later spoofed in ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...

'' episode " Treehouse of Horror IV"). ''Salem's Lot'' has also been cited as one of the primary influences for Joss Whedon's hit TV series '' Buffy the Vampire Slayer''. Writer Bryan Fuller stated that the scene where a character is impaled on a deer's antlers in ''Salem's Lot'' inspired him to do a similar scene in his 2013 TV series ''

Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Pu ...

'' because the original scene frightened him so much as a child. Filmmaker Mike Flanagan's 2021 horror limited series ''

Midnight Mass In many Western Christian traditions Midnight Mass is the first liturgy of Christmastide that is celebrated on the night of Christmas Eve, traditionally beginning at midnight when Christmas Eve gives way to Christmas Day. This popular Christmas ...

,'' is heavily inspired by both the novel and the miniseries. Like Salem's Lot,'' ''Midnight Mass'' centers around a small town where a former local returns after an extended period of time. The arrival of a strange new resident (in King's story, Straker, in Flanagan's series the substitute priest), and the revelation of the town being infected by vampires. The master vampire in ''Mass'' is modeled somewhat on the miniseries version, and also never speaks. The vampires eyes are also lifted from the miniseries.

Sequels and remakes

In 1987,

directed '' A Return to Salem's Lot'', a sequel to the 1979 miniseries. In 2004, TNT premiered a new version of ''Salem's Lot'' starring

Rob Lowe Robert Hepler Lowe (born March 17, 1964) is an American actor, filmmaker, and podcast host. He made his acting debut at the age of 15 with ABC's short-lived sitcom '' A New Kind of Family'' (1979–1980). Following numerous television roles i ...

, which also received a Primetime Emmy nomination for its music. On April 23, 2019,

New Line Cinema New Line Cinema is an American film production studio owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and is a film label of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye as an independent film distribution company; later becoming a film studio after ...

announced that a theatrical film based on the novel would be made, with Gary Dauberman and

James Wan James Wan (born 26 February 1977) is an Australian director, producer, screenwriter and comic book writer. He has primarily worked in the horror genre as the co-creator of the '' Saw'' and ''Insidious'' franchises and the creator of The Conjurin ...

producing. Dauberman wrote the screenplay for '' It'' and '' It Chapter Two''. Dauberman was confirmed as director on April 10, 2020.

References

External links

* * *
Salem's Lot Then And Now
{{'Salem's Lot 1979 American television series debuts 1979 American television series endings American horror fiction television series American horror television films 1970s American television miniseries Television shows based on works by Stephen King Films based on works by Stephen King Films based on American horror novels Films directed by Tobe Hooper Films scored by Harry Sukman Films set in Guatemala Films set in Maine Films shot in California American vampire films Vampires in television CBS original programming 'Salem's Lot