Uploaded March 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
Mark Dawidziak is the author or editor of 25 books, including three acclaimed studies of landmark television series: The Columbo Phile, The Night Stalker Companion and Everything I Need to Know I Learned in The Twilight Zone. Mark has also edited Blood Lines, a book celebrating every tale a vampiric terror that the legendary Richard Matheson ever wrote including his unproduced screenplay adaptation of his cult classic, I Am Legend.
Mark, a long time fan and friend of Richard Matheson and I delve deep into Matheson's work, his relationship with the man, and what exactly endures Matheson as a literary legend who influences so much of pop culture today.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00:00 – Intro
00:00:35 – How Mark got to know Richard Matheson
00:11:15 – The man behind the Writer pushing his influence forward
00:28:06 – Blood Lines With Richard Matheson’s Scream Treatment For I AM Legend
00:42:18 – Opportunities Like Dominoes Starting With The NightStalker
00:48:34 – Discussing I AM LEGEND Adaptations And The Unproduced Script
01:03:30 - Why Don’t They Just Do The Book?
01:06:00 - How To reclaim I Am Legend in film
01:12:04 – What Dreams May Come
01:12:34 - Powerful Endorsements and Humble Reflections
01:15:34 – The Book wins
01:19:13 - THE OMEGA MAN
01:20:29 - The Wonderful Thing About Horror Fans
01:23:40 - Matheson’s Poe Adaptations And Others Things Left Unsaid
01:29:16 – Richard Was Not the Household Name Bradbury Was
01:30:12 – How To Start Reading Richard Matheson
01:33:44 – Matheson and Comedy
01:49:34 - The One True Adaptation of I Am Legend (George Romero TOTALLY Ripped Off I Am Legend)
00:51:44 – I Have Never heard one person say, you know who my favourite Dracula is?
00:55:27 - It's not shocking they keep getting I Am Legend Wrong
01:06:00 - How To reclaim I Am Legend in film
01:14:11 - What is the real reward for a writer?
01:19:13 - THE OMEGA MAN and a story why it fell so short
01:25:55 - The One Term Richard Matheson Absolutely Hated
01:29:16 – Richard Was Not the Household Name Bradbury Was
For more about Mark Dawidziak: markdawidziak.com
***
If you enjoyed this video, please consider throwing the channel a bone to keep the content alive and well. Every bit goes a long way to keeping this dark heart beating! buymeacoffee.com/DarkBites
Become a Patron of Dark Bites for Early access and exclusive content! patreon.com/DarkBites91
Follow Dark Bites on X/Twitter: @DarkBitesBlog
Or on Instagram: @darkbitesbyrickhipson
Until next time, stay hungry ... stay dark.
And thanks for watching!
#RichardMatheson #iamlegend #vampires @WillSmith#horrorinterview #whatdreamsmaycome #raybradbury #robertbloch
Mark Dawidziak is the author or editor of 25 books, including three acclaimed studies of landmark television series: The Columbo Phile, The Night Stalker Companion and Everything I Need to Know I Learned in The Twilight Zone. Mark has also edited Blood Lines, a book celebrating every tale a vampiric terror that the legendary Richard Matheson ever wrote including his unproduced screenplay adaptation of his cult classic, I Am Legend.
Mark, a long time fan and friend of Richard Matheson and I delve deep into Matheson's work, his relationship with the man, and what exactly endures Matheson as a literary legend who influences so much of pop culture today.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00:00 – Intro
00:00:35 – How Mark got to know Richard Matheson
00:11:15 – The man behind the Writer pushing his influence forward
00:28:06 – Blood Lines With Richard Matheson’s Scream Treatment For I AM Legend
00:42:18 – Opportunities Like Dominoes Starting With The NightStalker
00:48:34 – Discussing I AM LEGEND Adaptations And The Unproduced Script
01:03:30 - Why Don’t They Just Do The Book?
01:06:00 - How To reclaim I Am Legend in film
01:12:04 – What Dreams May Come
01:12:34 - Powerful Endorsements and Humble Reflections
01:15:34 – The Book wins
01:19:13 - THE OMEGA MAN
01:20:29 - The Wonderful Thing About Horror Fans
01:23:40 - Matheson’s Poe Adaptations And Others Things Left Unsaid
01:29:16 – Richard Was Not the Household Name Bradbury Was
01:30:12 – How To Start Reading Richard Matheson
01:33:44 – Matheson and Comedy
01:49:34 - The One True Adaptation of I Am Legend (George Romero TOTALLY Ripped Off I Am Legend)
00:51:44 – I Have Never heard one person say, you know who my favourite Dracula is?
00:55:27 - It's not shocking they keep getting I Am Legend Wrong
01:06:00 - How To reclaim I Am Legend in film
01:14:11 - What is the real reward for a writer?
01:19:13 - THE OMEGA MAN and a story why it fell so short
01:25:55 - The One Term Richard Matheson Absolutely Hated
01:29:16 – Richard Was Not the Household Name Bradbury Was
For more about Mark Dawidziak: markdawidziak.com
***
If you enjoyed this video, please consider throwing the channel a bone to keep the content alive and well. Every bit goes a long way to keeping this dark heart beating! buymeacoffee.com/DarkBites
Become a Patron of Dark Bites for Early access and exclusive content! patreon.com/DarkBites91
Follow Dark Bites on X/Twitter: @DarkBitesBlog
Or on Instagram: @darkbitesbyrickhipson
Until next time, stay hungry ... stay dark.
And thanks for watching!
#RichardMatheson #iamlegend #vampires @WillSmith#horrorinterview #whatdreamsmaycome #raybradbury #robertbloch
