[dmarex]

It's been a long time since this soap ended it's run,
but it's still living in the hearts of the biggest fans.
Let's discuss the award-winning soap.

This post has been edited by dmarex: 27 June 2008 - 04:55 AM

[dc11786]

A Mary Dobson-Collier wrote for "Santa Barbara" from 1991 to 1992. I assume this would be their daughter?

[Donna B]

Does anyone know if Bridget and Jerome had any children? And how many?

Those two are 70, BTW, if anyone wanted to know.

I know they have, or had, a son, who was responsible for the financial side of their personal businesses. I think his name is/was Jeffrey.

[CassieFan]

This is kind of AMC related, so I didn't want to start new topic. Marcy Walker (ex Liza-AMC) will be interviewed by Croatian television showbizz magazine "Red Carpet" this Sunday. The same reporter interviewed A Martinez two weeks back. They were interviewed because Santa Barbara, Cruz & Eden were / still are very popular in Croatia. Here is a picture...


Croatian reporter Ivana Nanut and Marcy Walker

Source (on Croatian):
http://sapunice.net/...t-pronasla-eden

YAY!!!

[juniorz1]

Thanks so much for the Marcy news!!! Any link to an archive of the interview?

[CassieFan]

I think it will be posted on Youtube. When I find it, I will post it here.

[CassieFan]

Thanks so much for the Marcy news!!! Any link to an archive of the interview?

http://www.youtube.c...re=channel_page

[juniorz1]

Thanks so much for posting the link. Definitely enjoyed it!

[Paul Raven]

A critique from Soap Opera Digest 1989 by John Kelly Genovese





SANTA BARBARA is unquestionably the biggest cult soap since DARK SHADOWS. Its ratings never make headlines, but one would never know that by the way the show's followers talk about it. This is a loyal, vocal group that literally salivates over all the day-to-day action. Oddly enough, many of these viewers are he same folks who have watched ALL MY CHILDREN or AS THE WORLD TURNS for years, but they discuss the happenings on these shows in more reserved tones.

Of course, there is a fundamental difference between DARK SHADOWS and SANTA BARBARA. While DARK SHADOWS was obvious camp (a Gothic horror poof with werewolves, vampires and time warps), SB doesn't fit neatly into any one category. Through most of its five years on the air, it has been an unlikely blend of Hamlet, MARY HARTMAN, MARY HARTAN, SOAP, WHEEL OF FORTUNE and Waiting for Mr. Goodbar.

Sure there have been serious moments. Cruz and Eden Castillo (A Martinez and Marcy Walker) dealt with Eden's rape with new level of dignity and maturity for daytime television — no soapy histrionics here. either Michael (Frank Runyeon) struggled convincingly as he questioned his commitment to the cloth (this was not a "guilt" storyline).

Nonetheless, SANTA BARBARA became known mostly for its raunchier, funnier elements. Gina (Robin Mattson) wasn't just a vamp, she was an exhibitionist. Mason Capwell (Lane Davies) put away an average of a fifth of scotch per episode, yet was never too tongue-tied to deliver an erudite dig. And who could forget the much missed Lionel and Augusta Lockridge (Nicolas Coster and Louise Sorel), who proved that sex was not only alive after forty, but could be more fun than ever?

In the past year, the show got even nuttier. Gina became entangled with a crossdresser named Bunny (Joe Marinelli). Mason was felled with amnesia and took on the alter-ego of redneck Sonny Sprocket. It was a hoot, but one began to wonder how much farther SB would go just to get laughs. We half expected Gina to become a nun, or Redd Foxx to show up as a long lost brother to millionaire C.C. Capwell (Jed Allan). Also, for far too long, the Capwells were the only family in town, and the writers seemed capable of writing for only one couple — Cruz and Eden.

But then, SB shifted gear and turned into a good old-fashioned romance, reinstating a classic soap ingredient — the love triangle. In their search for infant daughter Adriana, Cruz and Eden crossed paths with psychic Sandra Mills (Miranda Wilson), who is obsessed with Cruz. Feisty Sophia (Judith McConnell) is rethinking her independence from C.C. with the advent of romance novelist Megan Richardson (Meg Bennett). Mason, recently married to Julia (Nancy Grahn), has been facing his drinking problem with the very interested support of Lisa DiNapoli (Tawny Kitaen). Dr. Scott dark (Vincent Irizarry) is caught between Heather (Jane Rogers), who is pregnant with his child, and a rekindled high school romance with Lisa's ex-hooker sis, Celeste (Signy Coleman). Michael — minus the collar — is reminded of his past with Laura Asher (Christopher Norris), wife of suspender-clad DA Ethan Asher (Leigh McCloskey).

For SANTA BARBARA, this is pretty conservative stuff. Now that affairs of the heart have taken over, characters once again are allowed to sit and philosophize occasionally to examine their relationships without flippancy or risk of interruption. At the same time, the show never gets dreary. Mason and Julia enjoy sexual romps at the office; Gina still hurls her barbs; it is still great fun, but no longer absurd.

This turn of events is largely due to the show's head writer, the underrated Charles Pratt, Jr., who has brought back the values that Bridget and Jerome Dobson (SB's creators) instituted at the beginning. The relationship between C.C. and Mason has always been tragic. It is a classic representation of millions of fathers and sons who never really accepted one another; whose attempts to connect were marred by mutual disapproval and distrust. As C.C. bares his soul to Megan for biographical purposes, and Mason looks at his life through out-of-body experience in Heaven (followed by AA), this relationship shows signs of a new beginning. And thank goodness for the humanizing of Gina. She's still one sexy wench, but she is once again being portrayed as a survivor whose one constant in life is her love for her son, Brandon (Justin Gocke). She, too, is looking at her circumstances through a new set of glasses; envying the simplicity and innocence of the people around her. When she and Brandon were held hostage by the psychotic Kirk Cranston (played chillingly by Joseph Bottoms), Gina showed fortitude and savvy in setting Kirk up for Cruz's trap. The woman may like sex and money, but she's not a total dingbat.

These are examples of the wonderful "gray areas" that have made SB's characters so fascinating. Also better than ever is the overall caliber of the acting ensemble. Until recently, the cast was a combination of hits and misses. No more. The newcomers appear to be as strong as the veterans. Signy Coleman is absolutely endearing. Tawny Kitaen is one smashing lady — commanding in a self-assuredly feminine (never brash) way. Marcy Walker, Nancy Grahn and Judith McConnell also make for this brand of heroine.

SB's male actors are equally strong. A Martinez proves that TV cops can be vulnerable and believable. Todd McKee (Ted Capwell) is an appealing young actor who deserves more challenging material than the cutesy stuff he is often given. Frank Runyeon and Vincent Irizarry seem far more focused and comfortable with their characters than they were on their previous soaps (ex-Steve, ATWT; ex-Lujack, GL, respectively), and they have proven they can be super male leads. Lane Davies? This is a master. He is the pathetic clown, the sardonic Greek chorus, the idealistic lawyer, the mischievous lover. Give this guy an Emmy. SANTA BARBARA has given its audience many moments of fun in what some consider to be a dour medium. And it's still fun. The show is simply growing

[juniorz1]

Thanks so much for posting this article. And it is an absolute crime that Lane Davies was never given an Emmy for his portrayal of Mason Capwell, let alone nominated.

[typoprone]

Does anyone know the name of the song that played in the series' final scene? More importantly, anyone know where I can find the mp3?

[Manny]

I watched it religiously for years... but I stopped watching during the last season. I will never forgive myself that I never saw the final episode.

And even though I was a kid, I still remember some scenes very clearly... like Kelly pushing that guy through the window, Elena being killed, Elena pushing Eden off the cliff into the snow, Mason and Julia in the forrest having sex (I believe it was their first time..).....

And here is one unpopular opinion: I hated Cruz and Eden.. LOL Everyone in Croatia loved them, I hated them. They were SO annoying.

I was a Mason and Julia fan. And a Kelly fan. I loooved Robin Wright in the role. Kelly #2 was bad, but then Carrington Garland was awesome too. Eileen was such a miscast. I didn't know at the time who Eileen was. I hated her too.. LOL

[MichaelGL]

What about this 4 Orphan storyline? Sounds interesting from the name.

[Manny]

Hmmm.. I remember that 4 guys were together in an orphanage (Derek Griffin, Stephen Slade, Craig Hunt and Ethan Asher)... and now they've met again in Santa Barbara. And they thought that their friend from the orphanage Cassie Benedict was dead, I believe.. but then she turned up alive... Did they believe that they killed Cassie? I don't remember...

I did watch during that time, but that part faded in my mind.. lol

[Wendy]

Hmmm.. I remember that 4 guys were together in an orphanage (Derek Griffin, Stephen Slade, Craig Hunt and Ethan Asher)... and now they've met again in Santa Barbara. And they thought that their friend from the orphanage Cassie Benedict was dead, I believe.. but then she turned up alive... Did they believe that they killed Cassie? I don't remember...

I did watch during that time, but that part faded in my mind.. lol

Actually, if I recall, the tunnel caved in and Cassie was thought "dead". But before that, she was a foster kid to the Capwells or something (been so long) and teen Mason was jealous of the attention she received. They argued in the tunnel, and there was some cave in and Cassie "died", I think. (I think this was one of the reasons Mason began drinking.)

And the Four Orphans (Craig: John Callahan, Steven: John O'Hurley, the Derek actor [heh], and Ethan: Leigh J. McCloskey) I THINK suspected Mason had intentionally murdered Cassie - or, at least, Craig did...and hated Mason for it and tried to seek revenge.

And teen Mason in the flashbacks with Cassie in the tunnel (around '90) was played by none-other than a then-virtually unknown Leonardo DiCaprio [TL was Mason then, so a blonde Mason fit! ]!

[CarlD2]

For many years I have had a memory in my head of Eden and Cruz on a boat - I think - and Eden talks about how she keeps seeing hands. I guess this was about a murder. What was that about?

[Paul Raven]

1989 Summary

Cruz was on the trail of the man who raped Eden. C.C. threw a costume party at the country club in hopes of flushing out the rapist, and Cain's girlfriend, Andrea, was killed. Cain was charged with murder, but later released. He left town, as did Major Phillip Hamilton.

Eden was relieved to learn the rapist was not the father of the child she was expecting. She gave birth to a baby girl, Adriana, in a cave after the helicopter taking her to a hospital made an emergency landing. The newborn had an unusual birthmark on her arm. The poor infant was kidnapped — by Dr. Zack Kelton, Eden's rapist. Cruz chased Zack into the mountains. During a scuffle on the edge of a cliff, Zack fell to his death. Eden didn't believe Zack's dying declaration that Adriana was dead. In fact, the baby had been sold on the black market to a couple in Paris, Ric and Hollis Castillo. Ric was Cruz's troublemaking younger brother. While Cruz pursued Kirk Cranston, Eden's deranged ex-husband, who was also after Adriana, recurring dreams about her child drove Eden to Ric's place in Paris.

Sandra, a psychic, helped Cruz with his investigation, and became obsessed with him. Cruz rebuffed Sandra's advances and joined his wife in France, where he located the doctor who had removed Adriana's birthmark. Confronted about the baby's origin, Hollis admitted that she bought the baby on the black market because her inheritance depended on her having a healthy child. She handed Adriana to Eden, then slipped into the Seine and drowned. The Castillos — widower Ric included — returned to Santa Barbara.

Another Castillo relative, Cruz's father Rafael, entered the picture, at an Acapulco hotel where he performed a magic act. A competing magician, Mephisto, kidnapped Rafael and in exchange for his freedom, Rafael gave him his greatest illusion. Eden convinced the elder Castillo to reconcile with his sons and move to Santa Barbara.

Robert Barr, the right-hand man of a Las Vegas mobster named Tonell, arrived in town to engineer a takeover of Capwell Enterprises. His real objective was a reunion with Eden. They'd been in love as teenagers, and Barr couldn't forget her. A case of amnesia had blocked out Eden's memories of Barr and their summer on the island of Sirenas. Eden had also repressed the memory of the murder of a man named Raoul. Robert had served five years in prison for the crime, believing he was taking the rap for Eden. Santa Barbara mayoral candidate Jerry Calhoun, a childhood friend of Mason's, was found to be the culprit after a re-creation of the night of Raoul's murder on the Capwell yacht. Jerry jumped overboard and drowned. The crime solved, Cruz fretted that Eden still loved Robert. Castillo lost his job, thanks to Tonell.

Mason's split-personality, Sonny Sprocket!, tried to sabotage Mason's wedding to Julia by having her catch him and Gina making love. A humiliated Julia left Mason at the altar and turned to Father Michael for comfort. Mason emerged and went to talk to Julia. When he saw her making love to Michael, he was devastated. Julia and Michael agreed that what happened was a mistake. Still, the padre left the Church.

Bunny stopped cross-dressing in order to win Gina's heart, to no avail. Gina and Sonny successfully bilked C.C. out of ten million dollars. As revenge, C.C. sought permanent custody of Brandon. During the battle, Brandon learned that Santana was his natural mother, not Gina. Sonny offered to marry Gina to provide a more stable home, which would look good in court. At the wedding, Bunny's Uncle Mario hired a hit man to shoot Mason (for his nephew's sake). After an out-of-body experience, Sonny disappeared and Mason reunited with Julia.

Ethan Asher, the new DA (and Zack Kelton lookalike), arrived in town with his wife, Laura. Years earlier, when Michael was a Boston cop, he had romanced Laura. In a shootout with criminal Leo Mitchell, Laura's son, Jamie, was caught in the cross fire and killed. Anxious for revenge on Michael — who had also fatally shot Leo's brother —

Leo escaped from jail and turned up in Santa Barbara. In a showdown at the Beach Bar, Leo was killed. His body disappeared. Michael was thrown in jail, although Laura had really killed Leo, ostensibly to save Michael's life. Once Leo's body was recovered, the bullet in his body didn't match Michael's gun, and he was released. When a betrayed Michael learned that he had taken the rap for a murder that Laura committed, he ended their affair.

Scott and Heather's romance hit a snag when Celeste DiNapoli, Scott's high school sweetheart, got a job at the clinic. Scott broke up with Heather and proposed to Celeste — then Heather discovered she was pregnant. Scott's engagement to Celeste went bust when he found out about his intended's past as a hooker. He hoped for another chance with Heather, but she didn't want anything to do with him. Heather gave birth to a boy and named him Mike. She did agree that Scott could be a part of their son's life. Heather, Mike, Scott and Celeste all left town.

C.C. learned that a one-night stand eighteen years earlier, with Megan, the author of his autobiography, resulted in the conception of their son, Greg. Greg fell in love with Emily DiNapoli — sister of Celeste. Megan, who was dying of leukemia, left town.

TJ sold the Lair to Bunny and headed for Palm Springs; Bunny's family pressured him to marry a woman named Vanessa but he refused; Ted went to find Mason in Europe and didn't return; Jeffrey and Kelly divorced and he left town; Kelly had a brief flirtation with Ric; Mason and Julia finally got married.

[Elsa]

Santa Barbara had lost me by that time.

Eden's rape story and her search for her presumed-dead baby was way too depressing for me. The entire Cain-Andrea-Philip Hamilton-Ming Li storyline was very tasteless, there was no reason for Megan and Greg to show up, Bunny was too much, boring Sandra, boring DiNappoli girls, don't get me started on Ethan-Laura-Michael and Heather-Celeste-Scott. Who was in charge of the show back then?

I was a huge Cruz and Eden fan until Robert showed up and for the first time I wanted Eden with someone else

Santa Barbara never recovered from the loss of Lane Davies and Robin Wright. We had two other GREAT Masons, but Kelly was no longer Kelly to me.

From what I understand Santa Barbara's JumpTheShark moment happened sometime in 1988 for me.

Thanks for the great summary!

[CarlD2]

I saw a few clips of the Carnation Killer story -- that was the story that was supposedly designed to write some of the bad blonde actresses off the show, right? What did you think of it?

I saw a clip of Gina's sister, Summer. The actress seemed AWFUL, but do you think the character should have died? Was she ever mentioned after her death?

This was pre Robin Mattson, right?