 The production notes on the DVD reveal that Johnny Depp (qv) based  his characterization on the late Roddy McDowall (qv)  (_Fright Night (1985)_ (qv)), Angela Lansbury (qv)  (_Mirror Crackd, The (1980)_ (qv)) and Basil Rathbone (qv)  (_Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, The (1939)_ (qv) and others).