History Film / LoveAtFirstBite

Decades before anyone even conceived of the first sparkly vampire, we had a {{Disco}} {{Dracula}} in this 1979 comedy film directed by Stan Dragoti and starring Creator/GeorgeHamilton as the tannest Count Dracula ever to appear on film.

Much, much better than it probably sounds, this film provided the role of a lifetime for Hamilton, and the rest of the cast turns in excellent performances as well.

Much, much better than it probably sounds, this film provided the role of a lifetime for Hamilton, and the rest of the cast turned in excellent performances as well.

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/love_at_first_bite.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:No, that's not a Franchise/{{Batman}} logo.]]

In the (1979 version of) PresentDay, the world-weary Count is evicted from his ancestral home by the Communist Romanian government and, along with his bug-eating assistant Renfield (Arte Johnson), travels to UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity in search of his soulmate, currently reincarnated as flaky fashion model Cindy Sondheim (Susan Saint James). In winning her heart, Drac must deal with bumbling assassination attempts from her long-suffering psychiatrist/quasi-boyfriend Jeffery Rosenberg (Creator/RichardBenjamin), who is "Fritz" Van Helsing's grandson. Assisting Rosenberg is skeptical NYPD detective Lt. Ferguson (Dick Shawn).

Decades before anyone even conceived of the first sparkly vampire, we had a {{Disco}} {{Dracula}} in this 1979 comedy film directed by Stan Dragoti and starring Creator/GeorgeHamilton [[WTHCastingAgency (!?)]] as the tannest Count Dracula ever to appear on film.

In the PresentDay (or the [[UnintentionalPeriodPiece 1979 version of it]], anyway), the world-weary Count is evicted from his ancestral home by the Communist Romanian government and, along with his bug-eating assistant Renfield (Arte Johnson), travels to UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity in search of his soulmate, currently reincarnated as flaky fashion model Cindy Sondheim (Susan Saint James). In winning her heart, Drac must deal with bumbling assassination attempts from her long-suffering psychiatrist/quasi-boyfriend Jeffery Rosenberg (Creator/RichardBenjamin), who is "Fritz" Van Helsing's grandson. Assisting Rosenberg is skeptical NYPD detective Lt. Ferguson (Dick Shawn).

* TheWoobie: "As for me, in a world without romance, it is better to be dead." Despite being a comedic character, Dracula has several moments of painful sincerity, owing to the movie playing its Romanticism vs. Enlightenment themes with heartfelt earnestness.

Much, much better than it probably sounds, this film provided the role of a lifetime for Hamilton, and the rest of the cast turn in excellent performances as well.

Hamilton has tried on numerous occasions to get a sequel filmed, but the concept remains mired deep in DevelopmentHell.

** He ''really'' shouldn't have drank the water.

* TheCameo: Isabel Sanford and Sherman Helmsley (''Series/TheJeffersons'') play a judge and a preacher respectively, albeit in separate scenes.

* FakeNationality: An in-universe example: Rosenberg the psychiatrist adapted that name "for professional reasons."

* KissOfTheVampire + RuleOfThrees: Dracula has to bite Cindy three times to fully turn her into a vampire.

* PocketProtector: How Dracula survived being staked by the original Van Helsing.

* ReReleaseSoundtrack: The scene where Dracula and Cindy dance was originally set to the highly-appropriate Alicia Bridges song "I Love The Nightlife". In home-video releases, it was replaced with a generic disco tune. It was restored for the twin-pack DVD paired with ''Film/OnceBitten''.
* RomanticismVersusEnlightenment: The central conflict of the story. It is first represented by the Count (Romanticism) being driven from his home by the government (Enlightenment). Thereafter Enlghtenment is represented by Van Helsing. This being a movie that sides with Romanticism, the Enlightenment side is presented as dry, dull, and passionless.

* UrineTrouble: Dracula appears at Cindy's photo-shoot, guard stops Dracula at the gate, Dracula changes into doberman [[spoiler:and raises his leg on the guard]]...
* VampireDance: He likes the night life..

* TheWoobie: "As for me, in a world without romance, it is better to be dead." Despite being a comedic character, Dracula has several moments of painful sincerity, owing to the movie playing its Romanticism vs Enlightenment themes with a heartfelt earnestness.

* YouHaveToBelieveMe: Rosenberg's rants about a vampire on the loose get him beaten up in an elevator, tied to an ambulance's gurney, and finally locked up in a padded cell in a straight-jacket.

* {{Dracula}}

* RomanticismVersusEnlightenment: The central conflict of the story. It is first represented by the Count (Romanticism) being kicked out by the government (Enlightenment). Thereafter Enlghtenment is represented by Van Helsing. This being a movie that sides with Romanticism, the Enlightenment side is presented as dry, dull, and passionless.

* RomanticismVersusEnlightenment: the central conflict of the story. It is first represented by the Count(Romanticism) being kicked out by the government(Enlightenment). Thereafter Enlghtenment is represented by Van Helsing. This being a movie that sides with Romanticism, the Enlightenment side is presented as dry, dull, and passionless.

-->I am a great power -- but I am humbled before you.[[note]] Note that Creator/FredricMarch's Death also spoke in a cheesy eastern European accent in that film. If the line works, it works, right?[[/note]]

-->''I am [Dracula] a great power -- but I am humbled before you.'' ''[[note]] Note that Frederick March's Death also spoke in a cheesy eastern European accent. If the line works, it works, right?[[/note]]

* YouHaveToBelieveMe: Rosenberg's rants about a vampire on the loose get him beaten up in an elevator, tied to an ambulance's gurney and finally locked up in a padded cell in a straight-jacket.

Much, much better than it probably sounds, the film provided the role of a lifetime for Hamilton, and the rest of the cast turns in excellent performances as well.

* ReReleaseSoundtrack: The scene where Dracula and Cindy dance was originally set to the highly-appropriate Alicia Bridges song "I Love The Nightlife". In home-video releases, this is replaced with a generic disco tune. It was restored for the twin-pack DVD paired with ''Film/OnceBitten''.

* HomeVersionSoundtrackReplacement: In the VHS and original DVD releases of the film, the disco song perfectly used in a crucial scene ("I Love The Nightlife" by Alicia Bridges) was replaced with some third-rate generic tune. It's been restored for the twin-pack DVD paired with ''Film/OnceBitten''.

* AnnoyingLaugh: Renfield, copied from Creator/DwightFrye in the 1931 ''Film/{{Dracula|1931}}'' film.

Decades before anyone even conceived of the first sparkly vampire, we had a {{Disco}} {{Dracula}} in this 1979 comedy film directed by Stan Dragoti and starring [[WTHCastingAgency George Hamilton (!?)]] as the tannest Count Dracula ever to appear on film.

In the PresentDay (or the [[UnintentionalPeriodPiece 1979 version of it]], anyway), the world-weary Count is evicted from his ancestral home by the Communist Romanian government and, along with his bug-eating assistant Renfield (Arte Johnson), travels to UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity in search of his soulmate, currently reincarnated as flaky fashion model Cindy Sondheim (Susan Saint James). In winning her heart, Drac must deal with bumbling assassination attempts from her long-suffering psychiatrist/quasi-boyfriend Jeffery Rosenberg (Richard Benjamin), who is "Fritz" Van Helsing's grandson. Assisting Rosenberg is skeptical NYPD detective Lt. Ferguson (Dick Shawn).

* HomeVersionSoundtrackReplacement: In the VHS and DVD releases of the film, the disco song perfectly used in a crucial scene ("I Love The Nightlife" by Alicia Bridges) was replaced with some third-rate generic tune.

In the PresentDay (or the [[UnintentionalPeriodPiece 1979 version of it]], anyway), the world-weary Count is evicted from his ancestral home by the Communist Romanian government and, along with his bug-eating assistant Renfield (Arte Johnson), travels to UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity in search of his soulmate, currently reincarnated as flaky fashion model Cindy Sondheim (Susan Saint James). In winning her heart, he must deal with bumbling assassination attempts from her long-suffering psychiatrist/quasi-boyfriend Jeffery Rosenberg (Richard Benjamin), who is "Fritz" Van Helsing's grandson. Assisting Rosenberg is skeptical NYPD detective Lt. Ferguson (Dick Shawn).

In the PresentDay, the world-weary Count is evicted from his ancestral home by the Communist Romanian government and, along with his bug-eating assistant Renfield (Arte Johnson), travels to UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity in search of his soulmate, currently reincarnated as flaky fashion model Cindy Sondheim (Susan Saint James). In winning her heart, he must deal with bumbling assassination attempts from her long-suffering psychiatrist/quasi-boyfriend Jeffery Rosenberg (Richard Benjamin), who is "Fritz" Van Helsing's grandson. Assisting Rosenberg is skeptical NYPD detective Lt. Ferguson (Dick Shawn).

The world-weary Count is evicted from his ancestral home by the Communist Romanian government and, along with his bug-eating assistant Renfield (Arte Johnson), travels to modern-day UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity in search of his soulmate, currently reincarnated as flaky fashion model Cindy Sondheim (Susan Saint James). In winning her heart, he must deal with bumbling assassination attempts from her long-suffering psychiatrist/quasi-boyfriend Jeffery Rosenberg (Richard Benjamin), who is "Fritz" Van Helsing's grandson. Assisting Rosenberg is skeptical NYPD detective Lt. Ferguson (Dick Shawn).

* KissOfTheVampire: Dracula has to bite Cindy three times to fully turn her into a vampire.

Decades before anyone even conceived of the first sparkly vampire, we had a {{Disco}} Dracula in this 1979 comedy film directed by Stan Dragoti and starring [[WTHCastingAgency George Hamilton (!?)]] as the tannest Count Dracula ever to appear on film.

** Multiple ''{{Roots}}'' references thoroughly date this piece.

* MuggingTheMonster: "It's folks like you that give this neighborhood [[[[HypocriticalHumor a bad name]]!" (

* BlackCloak

* CursedWithAwesome

* HypocriticalHumor / MuggingTheMonster: "It's folks like you that give this neighborhood a bad name!"

** "Didn't he used to be on ''FantasyIsland''?"