About When Dorothy Met Dracula in Hollywood

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It’s 1943 and faded horror film star Bela Lugosi sits in his Hollywood Hills Castle longing for a return to his glory days as a Broadway matinee idol and movie leading man. He is 60 years old. His fourth wife has just left him and all Lugosi has now is his memories, mounting debts and a continuing spiral of bad monster movie roles in his future.

 

On Halloween night, wannabee starlet---Dorothy from Kansas---shows up at his home and stirs his ambition to make one last shot for the golden ring of fame. If he can find his old friend and mentor---Dracula director Tod Browning---Lugosi might once again have a chance to be a major star.  But, Browning disappeared from the Hollywood scene in 1939 at the height of his career. 

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A call to meet him at “their old haunts,” sends Bela and Dorothy on a hilarious night-long search for Browning through the underbelly of old Hollywood while a killer stalks them and gangsters try to rub them out. Along the way, the Dracula stereotype fades as we discover the real cigar smoking, woman-loving, cynic that was Bela Lugosi. The story is full of Hollywood history, humor and guest appearances by the Three Stooges, Errol Flynn, John Wayne, the Marx Brothers and other famous stars.

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About the Author

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Myron Kukla is a former newspaper reporter for the Grand Rapids Press and is now focused on writing historical fiction, humor books and screenplays.  The story "When Dorothy Met Dracula in Hollywood" comes from his love of Hollywood film noir movies and the untold story of Bela Lugosi’s fascinating life as a Broadway matinee idol, movie star and lady’s man.

 

Kukla is also the author of several humor books including Guide to Surviving Life and Memories of a Baby Boomer. His humor column---Guide to Surviving---appears in Best Version city magazines in the Midwest. Kukla’s most recent book, Ascent, looks at the 75-year history of the Tulip City Airport in Holland, Michigan.

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Where to read:

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When Dorothy Met Dracula in Hollywood is only available on Kindle Vella. Vella publishes serial stories, one episode at a time.

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Chapter One: Return of the Vampire available March 21.

Chapter Two: The Midnight Girl available March 28.

Chapter Three: Sunset Boulevard available April 4.

Chapter Four: Such Men Are Dangerous available April 11.

Chapter Five: Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman available April 18.

Chapter Six: Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla available April 25.

Chapter Seven: The Silent Command available May 2.

Chapter Eight: Genius at Work available May 9.

Chapter Nine: The Unknown available May 16.

Chapter Ten: Freaks available May 23.

Chapter Eleven: One Body Too Many available May 30.

Chapter Twelve: Plan 9 From Outer Space available June 6.

Chapter Thirteen: Dracula available June 13.

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