| Alucard | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Other Names |
Dracula |
|
First Appearance |
Dracula (1897) |
|
Original Publisher |
Archibald Constable and Company |
|
Created by |
Bram Stoker |
Origin[]
Alucard (the anadrome of "Dracula") is sometimes it a pseudonym used by Dracula. It is also commonly a name used by vampire or dhampir relatives of Dracula such as a son or more distant descendant. However sometimes the character using the name was not directly related to Dracula and instead used as something of a shout-out to arguably the most famous vampire of all time.
The original use of "Alucard" as a vampire's alias was in the 1943 film Son of Dracula, starring Lon Chaney, Jr. but there are numerous examples of the name Alucard appearing in subsequent pop culture projects including video games, comic books, manga/anime, music, and more.
This is because in the United States, copyright law generally doesn't protect names, titles, or short phrases though some names may be protected under trademark law. So while you can create your own version of Alucard, you cannot use versions protected by copyright such as the ones featured in Castlevania, Hellsing, or Son of Dracula (1943).
Notes[]
- In the anime series Hellsing, He's Dracula. Him taking the name of Alucard is said to be a name given to him by a former Hellsing leader, specifically Arthur Hellsing, Integra's father.
- In the Castlevania games, Adrian Farenheit Tepes, son of Dracula and his second wife Lisa, refused to go along with his father's revenge plan after his mother killed by humans and took the name Alucard to signify his intent to oppose his father.
- Count Alucard is the title character in the 1943 Universal Monster film Son of Dracula and other works
- In animated DC Comics film, The Batman vs. Dracula, Dr. Alucard is the alias used by Dracula.
- Rachel Alucard is a playable character from the Blazblue series.
- The Anno Dracula novel series by Kim Newman features a character named Johnny Alucard.
- A vampire named "Alucard" also shows up on Wizards of Waverly Place.
- In the movie The Monster Squad, a kid sees Alucard's name on a post-it note on his parents' refrigerator and plays with the letters until he gets Dracula.