Elizabeth Miller, N.L. educator and 'chief of the Dracula Police,' dead at 82
Miller was a leading expert on the world's most famous vampire
Elizabeth Miller, a celebrated member of Memorial University's English department — and known around the world for shedding light on stories of the world's most famous vampire — has died.
Miller, a graduate of Memorial herself, spent 25 years writing about Dracula and his creator, Irish writer Bram Stoker. She wrote or edited seven books on Dracula including Dracula: Sense and Nonsense and The Lost Journal of Bram Stoker. MUN named her professor emerita following her 2005 retirement. She died peacefully on Jan. 2 in Toronto at the age of 82.
Dacre Stoker, a best-selling author and great-grand-nephew of Bram Stoker, worked with Miller for many years and was a close friend.
"She was a special person. We got to know each other very well working on books together and attending conferences. Quite a loss to the world," Stoker told CBC Radio's On The Go Thursday.
"She was a proud educator. A professor who cared deeply about her teaching and the scholarly process."
Over the course of her career, Stoker said Miller became known as the "chief of the Dracula Police," as someone who cared deeply about the character and worked hard to learn the truth about Bram and Dracula's origins, which garnered respect from fans around the world.
"Stoker family members in Montreal and Toronto, who all met her before I did in the '90s, they were so impressed with how much more she knew about our uncle Bram than they actually did," he laughed.
"If you wanted to know the truth, you went to one of Elizabeth's books or if you were lucky enough to chat with her, you got to know the real deal."
Stoker said Miller's death represents a big loss for the Dracula community across the globe, along with the loss of a loyal and dependable friend.
"I've lost a friend … but the world has also lost a passionate and dedicated chief of the Dracula Police."
With files from On The Go