Lamar Trask

Lamar Trask is a fictional undertaker and a recurring antagonist featured on the original 1960s daytime Gothic soap opera series Dark Shadows. The character was associated with a storyline colloquially referred to as the "1840 Flashback". Played by actor Jerry Lacy, he first appeared in episode 1114 in October, 1970.

Biography
Lamar Trask was the owner of a funeral home and lived in Collinsport, Maine in the mid 19th century. He was the son of evangelical preacher, Reverend Trask, who disappeared mysteriously in the year 1796.

In the year 1840, Lamar began investigating his father's disappearance, convinced that he had been murdered. He believed that the truth behind his father's demise laid within the walls of the haunted Collinwood estate.

To this end, Trask employed the services of a psychic named Leticia Faye. Along with occultist and Collins family friend Gerard Stiles, Trask and Faye conducted a séance to reach out to his father's spirit.

During this time, Lamar had fallen in love with a woman named Roxanne Drew, with whom he was engaged to be married via an arrangement with Roxanne's father. Roxanne did not reciprocate his affection however, and was actually in love with a man named Barnabas Collins.

Roxanne was killed as a result of a vampire bite. Lamar Trask believed that Barnabas was the man responsible for this. As it turned out however, Roxanne was killed by a witch named Angelique who made the attack appear to be caused by a vampire. Ironically, though Barnabas was innocent of this particular crime, he was in fact a vampire and was responsible for murdering Reverend Trask back in 1796.

Lamar Trask engaged in another flamboyant crusade, this time against Quentin Collins, who had been framed for murder and witchcraft by Gerard Stiles. Trask's testimony at Quentin's trial was particularly damning.

The spirit of Reverend Trask eventually made contact with Lamar, and he learned the truth about his father. Vowing revenge against Barnabas, he captured him and brought him to the basement of his funeral home, where he sealed him up behind a brick wall. This was the same method that Barnabas used to kill his father. Fortunately for Barnabas, the ghost of Roxanne Drew alerted Angelique and Barnabas' ally Julia Hoffman as to this location and they were able to rescue him.

Lamar Trask went to Collinwood where he confronted Angelique, who was now mortal. He fired a shot from his revolver, which ultimately killed her. Barnabas entered the house and grappled with Trask. Through the fight, Barnabas stabbed him in the abdomen.

The wounded Trask fled into the East Wing of Collinwood, which also happened to be a doorway into parallel time. Lamar stumbled through the portal and died moments later trapped in a parallel dimension.

Notes & Trivia



 * Actor Jerry Lacy also played the role of Lamar's father, Reverend Trask from the year 1795, as well as his grandson, Gregory Trask from the year 1897.


 * The character of Lamar Trask was Jerry Lacy's fifth and final character on Dark Shadows.


 * It has been implied that Tony Peterson, a lawyer from the 1960s and 1970s might be a descendant of the Trask family, though this has never been confirmed in the series itself.


 * Lamar Trask originally hailed from Salem, Massachusetts.


 * In the expanded universe of Dark Shadows, Lamar Trask had a son named Elias, who was the father of Gregory Trask.