333 - October 4, 1967

[bunniefuu]

[Dr. Hoffman] - A fiery evening sun

is setting over Collinwood,

and, in a moment, darkness will descend.

A small boy has broken into the old house

on the great estate,

determined to discover its secrets.

His curiosity is about to place him

in the greatest danger he has ever known.

[creaking]

♪♪

[lid slams]

♪♪

[eerie music] ♪♪

- Hello, David.

- Barnabas!

- What are you doing here?

- I...

- You promised your father

that you wouldn't come sneaking in this house.

Why did you break that promise?

- I... - Well, what's the matter?

Why don't you speak?

Are you afraid of me?

- This is a coffin!

- What about it?

- What-- what's it doing here?

- You ask a great many questions, David,

far too many for your own good.

- No, please!

- Please what?

- Please, please, don't hurt me!

- You broke your word.

You must be punished, much as I regret to do it.

- No, don't! Don't, please!

Help, help!

[Dr. Hoffman] - David! David!

- David!

David!

- David?

- Help, help!

Help, Miss Hoffman. - David.

David, what's-- what's happening?

What's going on? - Barnabas!

He... He's going to k*ll me!

- k*ll you?

- I found him prowling around in the basement.

- What? - Yes.

I was about to give him a sound spanking!

- He grabbed me! He was going to k*ll me!

- Oh, now, David, no one's going to harm you.

- You stay away from me.

Don't let him come near me!

- Barnabas is not going to harm you, are you, Barnabas?

- No, of course not. - You see?

- Little boys who go around

breaking into other people's houses

should be punished,

but I'll let your father do that.

- You're gonna let me go back home?

- In a moment, after you've answered some questions.

- Questions?

- How did you get down in the basement?

- I-- I took my Aunt Elizabeth's keys.

- Oh?

So there's another set of keys.

- Yes.

- Well, where are they?

- In my pocket. - May I have them?

- I'll keep these for the time being,

just in case you decide to pay me

another unexpected visit.

- Can I-- can I go now, please?

- After you promise me that you will never

try to break into this house again.

- I promise.

- All right, you may go.

[locks clicking]

- What did he see in the basement?

- My coffin.

- Your coffin?

- Yes.

- But he'll-- he'll run right back to Collinwood

and tell everyone.

- Perhaps they won't believe him.

- But what if they do?

- Then whoever he tells is in possession

of some very dangerous knowledge.

- You must be planning something, Barnabas.

What is it?

- You'll see, Doctor.

You'll see.

- Barnabas, I hope you know what you're doing.

- I believe I do.

♪♪

- Disappeared? - That's what Mrs. Johnson says.

Vicki is out looking for him now.

Miss Hoffman is down at the old house.

- Where do you suppose he went?

- I don't know,

but I'm getting worried about that kid.

He's behaving very strangely lately,

and, according to Vicki, he's got all sorts of

wild fantasies.

- Yeah, if they are fantasies.

- What do you mean by that?

- Oh, I'm not sure what I mean myself, Burke.

- Now, what's up, Dave?

I've never knowing you to talk in riddles before.

- Look, can we go into that room for a minute?

I've got a question I want to ask you.

- What is it?

- Burke, a while back,

you told me that you thought you were onto something,

something pretty fantastic.

- Yes. - What were you talking about?

- Well, I had a theory about the maniac who kidnapped Maggie,

but it turned out to be wrong.

- Well, what was your theory?

- Well, does it matter now?

Because the maniac turned out to be Willie,

and all my suspicions were wrong.

- But who did you suspect?

- Well I'd... I'd rather not say.

- Well, why not?

- Well, because of Vicki.

- Vicki?

- The man in question happens to be a friend of Vicki's,

and I can't say a word against him.

- Are you talking about Barnabas Collins?

- Why do you say that?

- Was it Barnabas?

- Well, yes.

There was a time when I thought that Barnabas was...

Well, not all that he seemed to be,

but apparently I'm wrong.

- Well, what did you think was strange about him?

- I... [door opening]

- David! - Oh, Burke!

I'm so glad you're here! - Where have you been?

- The old house.

- What were you doing at the old house?

- I-- I found--

I found out the secret!

- The secret?

- Yes, the secret of the old house!

I know what it is.

- What are you talking about, David?

- There's a coffin in the basement of the old house.

- A coffin?

- Yes, and it's empty.

- Well now, wait a minute!

- It's there, Burke, it's really there.

- Now, what would Barnabas Collins be doing

with a coffin in his basement?

- Because he's dead.

- What?

- Dead?

- He walks and talks, but-- but he's really dead,

and that was his coffin that I saw.

- Now, hold on, David, do you know what you're saying?

- Yes. I knew there was something spooky about him

ever since I had that dream,

and, in that dream,

I saw him rise up out of a coffin,

just like that one,

and it turned out to be real!

- You must forget about that dream, David.

- Miss Hoffman.

- David, are you all right?

- Yes.

- I found David wandering around the old house.

He was hysterical, imagining all sorts of things.

- I wasn't imagining things.

Barnabas tried to k*ll me.

- k*ll you? - Yes!

And if Miss Hoffman hadn't come in at the time,

he would have k*lled me.

- Oh, David.

He was just going to spank you

for breaking into his house,

but he didn't even get to do that, did he?

- He was going to k*ll me!

- Now, why would Mr. Collins want to k*ll you?

- Because I found out about his coffin.

- His coffin?

- Yes. He has a coffin,

and he keeps it in the basement of the old house.

I saw it, and that's why he wanted to k*ll me.

- David, you--

You didn't see a coffin.

- Yes, I did.

- No, you only imagined you did.

You saw something that resembled a coffin.

A trunk, perhaps.

- No, it was a real coffin, and its top was open.

- But that-- that's not possible.

- What do you mean, Julia?

- I've been into the basement of the old house,

and there's nothing there.

Nothing at all.

♪♪

- She's... She's lying!

- David...

- Don't listen to her, Burke.

There is a coffin, there really is.

- Calm down, Davey.

- Burke, if you don't believe me,

go to the old house.

Go to the basement, that's where it is.

See for yourself!

- What is all this commotion?

- Go there, you go there, too, please!

- Go where? - The old house.

- The old house?

- David imagines that he saw a coffin

in the basement of the old house.

- A coffin?

- It's there-- really, it is.

- Now, David, if you'd seen a coffin there,

I would have, too, and I didn't see anything.

So there must not have been anything there.

- Why are you lying?

- Well, I'm not lying, and neither are you.

You just imagined you saw something,

but you didn't see any coffin.

- Don't listen to her, Burke, she's lying!

I don't know why, but she's lying!

- David, I will not have you talking to Miss Hoffman this way.

Apologize at once.

- I won't apologize because she is lying!

- David! - It's--

it's-- it's all right, he's-- he's just excited.

David, I'll take you up to your room now. - No!

Stay away from me.

- Miss Hoffman isn't going to hurt you, David.

- She's going to protect him,

she's his friend.

She's going to help him.

- David, I have had enough of this nonsense!

Go to your room!

- Burke, go to the old house.

Make Barnabas show you the basement.

Then you'll see a coffin, you'll see it!

- Did you hear me, David? Go to your room immediately.

- Yes, sir.

- I want to apologize for my son, Miss Hoffman,

I... I don't know what else to say.

- Well, it's all right.

I realize that he is highly disturbed.

- I wonder...

- Wonder what? - How disturbed he really is.

- What does that mean?

- I think we ought to go to the old house.

- Whatever for?

- To check out the boy's word.

- Do you seriously think there's a grain of truth

in this preposterous story?

- It is pretty far-fetched. - All right, Burke.

chances out of ,

it's nothing but the boy's imagination,

but there is that one chance that he did see something,

and I think we ought to check it out.

- What are you thinking, Doctor?

Are you-- do you suspect that there is something

dire and sinister about my cousin?

- I am not accusing Barnabas of anything,

but David has been accused of having fantasies.

- So you want to barge into his house

and demand that you inspect his basement?

- Why should he object

to letting us see it unless he has something to hide?

- I think the doctor is right.

I think we ought to take a look.

- You've both lost your minds!

- Possibly.

- Mr. Collins would be very insulted.

- Of course he would, and I will not allow you

to insult him this way.

- Unfortunately, you have nothing to say about it.

If we want to go down there, we will.

- Well, then I'll have nothing to do with it.

I wash my hands of the whole thing.

- That's your privilege.

Shall we go?

- Dave? - Yes, Julia?

- Nothing.

- You're making fools of yourselves.

- Maybe we are, but that's our privilege.

[door closes]

- Have you ever heard such utter nonsense

in all your life?

- No.

No, never.

♪♪

[wind blowing]

- There's no answer.

- Well, he must be at home.

- Wait. I hear something.

[lock thuds]

- Why, Burke, Doctor Woodard,

what can I do for you?

- Could we see you for a moment, Mr. Collins?

- Of course, come in. - Thank you.

- Now, what is it?

- I'm afraid we have a rather unusual request.

- Yes? - We'd like to take a look at your basement.

- My basement?

- Young David claims that he saw something down there,

something rather weird.

- What? - A coffin.

- A coffin? - That's what he claims.

- Poor cousin David.

His fantasies are getting

more and more out of hand.

I'm really growing quite concerned for him.

- Then it is a fantasy?

There's no coffin?

- Well, of course there isn't.

What would I be doing with a coffin in my basement?

- It would be strange to say the least.

- Well, I assure you, there's nothing down there

but some old trunks

and a lot of odds and ends.

- Then you won't mind our having a look?

- What?

- I said, you won't mind our having a look.

- Well, I told you. There's nothing down there.

Won't you believe me?

- It's your word against David's.

- My word against the word of a--

of a disturbed child?

You prefer to believe him?

- We don't know who to believe, Mr. Collins.

That's why we want to see for ourselves.

- I resent the implication of what you're saying.

I find it quite insulting.

- I'm sorry.

- You know, it would be within my right

to ask the both of you to leave this house immediately.

- We realize that. - But we're not leaving...

until we have a look at your basement.

- And if I refuse to let you go down there?

- That wouldn't be a good idea.

- Are you threatening me, Mr. Devlin?

- No.

We're asking you to show us your basement.

If you have nothing to hide,

then you shouldn't object to showing it to us.

- I dislike invasions of my privacy.

That's why I refuse to let you see it.

- Refuse? - Yes, refuse.

- I'm beginning to think that you are

hiding something, Mr. Collins.

- Nonsense.

Now please leave my house, now!

- All right.

But we'll come back,

with a search warrant, if necessary.

- Wait! - Why?

- I'll show you the basement.

- You will?

- Yes.

So that we can end all of this nonsense once and for all.

Come with me.

- It's so dark in here, I can't see a thing.

- I'll light some candles.

- Well, gentlemen...

Do you see anything that

faintly resembles a coffin?

- No.

- Are you willing to admit that you are wrong?

- We apologize, Mr. Collins.

Obviously, the coffin was

a figment of David's imagination.

- Obviously.

♪♪

[eerie music] ♪♪

[Dr. Hoffman] - "Dark Shadows" is a Dan Curtis production.