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CBS/ August 24, 2009, 12:02 PM

Fans Sink Fangs Into Vampire Tales

As CBS News correspondent Michelle Miller reports, people are always thirsty for new trends, and now these legendary monsters may be satisfying their taste buds.

Once, Count Dracula ruled as the baddest bloodsucker of them all. But in the 1980s, that dark, evil image became younger and hotter in "The Lost Boys."

And vampires grew a conscience in the 1990s after an interview with one, and slayed audiences with "Buffy's" "love 'em but hate 'em" routine.

Now the new night stalkers are giving the other vamps a run for the title: they're are all the rage, in books, movies and on TV.

"There's always been a fascination with lusting after what you can't have," explains Carissa Rosenberg, Seventeen magazine's entertainment editor. "They've just made it a lot cooler."

You can blame the "Twilight" book series and its big screen namesake.

Kristen Stewart says the story's simply irresistible. "It's about two people that are dysfunctionally devoted to each other and how it screws with everything else in their life."

Immortality, seduction, longing - it's all in there. Add a little raunch and you've got TV's hottest new cable series, true blood.

In True Blood, vampires have come out of the coffin, so to speak. The subtext so complete it's meant true love for its co-stars, now engaged in real life.

Marketers are also sucking up the sex appeal. "Trends tend to be cyclical but marketers are really hopping on this and I think this trend is like vampires themselves undead," explains Barbara Lippert from Adweek.

There are cards, Barbie dolls, makeup and clothing. And if you're still hungry for more, with the Twilight sequel "New Moon," and another series, "The Vampire Diairies," set to be released this fall. Fans are letting the undead in, and are perhaps living through them.

And if that doesn't quench your thirst, how about this: True Blood, the drink. It's now available online, so if you really got it bad and need a taste of the vampire lifestyle, this just might be the fix you're looking for.

Copyright 2009 CBS. All rights reserved.
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textal says:
I am disappointed in CBS. It is one thing if someone wants to go and see an R rated vampire movie, or even look for clips on the internet. But for CBS to air an extremely R rated clip on the Early Show in the morning is crossing the line. Children are around at that time of day, and we are talking about CBS not HBO. The clip was an extremely disturbing one even for me. It would be much more so for young children. I am so glad my child was not around when that clip was aired. I changed the channel, and will be avoiding CBS, which will not be difficult, as it is a channel I rarely watch anyway.
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dianalaurence says:
It's true, vampire fans are as insatiable as the blood-drinkers they love. Having vampires strictly limited to entertainment doesn't seem to be quite enough anymore, which is why there's a market for vampiric props like TruBlood, the drink. It's fun to envision a world with real vampires in it, and millions would love to interact with immortals themselves if they could.

That's why it was the perfect time for me to write a vampire dating guide. There are vampirophiles galore longing to do more with vampires than watch others enjoy them on the big and small screens. And thanks to good press about our dark and delightful immortal friends, like you provided here, wishing to date a vampire is now quite socially acceptable! Hey, they do it in Bon Temps, why not your hometown and mine?

--Diana Laurence
www.howtocatchandkeepavampire.com
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