sungrey

This was on YouTube once... and it either got taken down or buried... but I loved the sequence where Mason broke into CC's bedroom while he was with Gina and brandished a sword. It was obviously during the Charles Bateman era, but the scene was so damn good!!

Sounds like he saved his AW money pretty well. Got into business after leaving acting and apparently did pretty well for himself! RIP.

"Milk, butter, ground beef..."

One of the funniest lines in the show's history...

Yay for Mel! Although you're probably right... it'll end up on Fox Tuesday night and fail miserably...

Apparently she filmed something for Showtime's Masters of Sex

That show is about the sex therapists Masters and Johnson and is set in the 1960s. It's supposed to resemble what someone her age would wear back then, I guess.

I have tweeted with Lexi before and she's very sweet to her fans... I do agree the latest pics look a little too adult, but it depends on the role...

Hi everyone... I have decided to place my version of Somerset in a blog so people can see it. I used to have it at SON TV... come check it out! You do not need to understand the original show at all... it's like you're revisiting Somerset 35 years later. (There are some connections to the original show.)

Thisissomerset.blogspot.com

Thanks,

Steve

Oh God, Flame was a delight. When Roscoe Born left they didn't quite know what to do with her so she ended up with Frank Runyeon's Michael character, and they had sparks too. Then she was gone, and he didn't last too much longer.

Some of the 1989-90 characters were so exciting to watch.

If you watch the tape the acting is still quite strong on the 1982 episode. The problem was just that damn noon timeslot. I don't know what the hell NBC was thinking.

I really loved her as Michelle. I never can see her as an adult without thinking of Michelle. Fortunately for her I'm likely in the minority with that, since she has such a good, solid career.

For as much as I hated them killing off Maureen... it made for great, solid drama for a couple weeks but ultimately cost the show much more in the long run... Rachel's acting was flawless. She absolutely played the role like someone who had lost her own mother.

How she was overlooked for an Emmy nomination that year was criminal.

Holy [!@#$%^&*]! Carl, thanks... I thought Page was pretty good, especially when he became a little unhinged about Kelly (and not surprised that Robin Wright was particularly snotty toward him)... like most stories in that period, it suffered because I don't think they really knew what to do with Nick/Kelly/Dylan.

I will say, Dylan's death was the catalyst for the stolen videotape which Gina used to blackmail CC into marriage, so the story turned out to be pretty damn good in the end.

I do believe Chuck Pratt and Josh Griffith were co-headwriters throughout most of 1989 and into 1990.

Glad I haven't eaten today, Cheap! Thanks...

In all seriousness, I still to this day wonder what Reilly was thinking.

I remember both those articles...

The Mason/Julia first wedding was a hoot. I'll never forget Lane Davies' speech with Todd McKee in the first act and then Mason pulling out what he thinks are his vows and saying "milk, butter, ground beef..."

By March 1992 I was already wondering if the show was on its last legs. Had there not been so much turnover in the previous years...

I believe that Constance Ford also had some issues with VW in the beginning as well, but they worked it out pretty quickly. Poor VW, it sounds like she walked into a hornet's nest on that set.

I think it's been documented in interviews, but in one of the first rehearsals involving Vicky and Constance Ford there was something in the scene that Vicky did and Constance jumped right out and said "Rachel wouldn't do that." Without batting an eyelash, Vicky turned to Constance and said "THIS Rachel would."

I think that broke the ice between the two. If Constance sensed that you were a stand-up actress and didn't cave in, she thought you were a stronger person, or so it seems. I could be wrong.

Beautiful news! Glad to have Edge's homepage back up and running!!

I can offer some insight on the decision to run Somerset at 4... I do believe it was P&G's decree that its soaps could not run opposite each other. Since Edge was still running at 3:30 back in 1970, that would have violated the sponsor's rule.

This P&G rule stayed until the mid-1970s, when ABC bought Edge and placed it at 4 with the sponsor's blessing. Of course, I believe NBC added the second 1:00 feed at the time; that was mainly meant for Central and Mountain stations that didn't have a noon newscast. I recall hearing Somerset did very well in the markets where it was on at 1:00. Can someone clarify?

Wow. I have a ton of stuff here. Not to mention Somerset's one of those shows whose history has to be filled in piecemeal.

Tom: To fill you in on what I am doing, in my updated version Susannah is the central character and she comes back to Somerset, ostensibly to open her own law practice. I won't bore the rest of the board with long, boring details (lol), but this version is meant to hook today's audience, about 90-95 percent of whom probably didn't see the original show.

I have referred quite sparingly to past events in Bay City and Somerset; when Susannah was ill and the doctors were filling Sam and Lahoma in on her condition, one doctor asked if Sam and Lahoma took part in the "recreational drug" habits of the 1960s and Lahoma went bonkers, saying she hadn't touched anything more than cold medicine since her friend Lee Randolph's death in an LSD-influenced car crash.

Keep all this stuff coming, everybody!! It's good that we see more history filled in.

"To me the biggest problem with Somerset seems to be why was it created in the first place? Carol Roux left after six months...they had no way of guessing that? Ann Wedgworth was probably an obvious candidate for leaving too - I'm surprised she stayed as long as she did. They did cast other very talented actors like Marie Wallace and Georgann Johnson but there never seemed to be a structure. I've only seen two episodes - one on a tape (India and her husband were arguing in an empty dining room or something), and one put on Youtube."

Carol Roux left because, as she said very clearly in an article at the time she was greatly offended when she moved to NYC and found that a couple of "homosexuals" lived in the building. She gave her notice and was wrttien out - her last airdate was September 18, 1970. Her character was mentioned a few times the following year on AW.

JULY 9, 1971,

"Liz told Peggy that Missy was happy in Arizona."

JULY 22, 1971 (EP. #1801)

"Liz told Dan and Susan she's planning an extended visit to Missy, as Missy was having trouble with Ricky and was considering buying a house, and they agreed she didn't have much reason to stay in Bay City."

As to Somerset never having any structure, I have to respectfully disagree. From 1970 to 1972 it had a very carefully crafted one and the characters were consistant. It was not until January 1972, a full year after Slesar took over, that he began to change the structure tremendously. Between February and September of 1972, he and Jane Lyon jettisoned nearly half of the shows characters (8 were originals), replacing them with his own, only to see half of THOSE cut lose a year later when HE was replaced:

1. Robert Delaney: NICOLAS COSTER (3/18/1970-3/1972) (Original Cast)
   
2. Gerald Davis: WALTER MATTHEWS (3/18/1970-2/1972) (Original Cast) *
   
3. Jessica Buchanan Delaney: WYNNE MILLER (3/18/1970-3/1972) (Original Cast) *
   
4. India Bishop Delaney Hillman: MARIE WALLACE (3/27/1970-9/1972) (Original Cast)
   
5. Jill Grant Farmer: SUSAN MacDONALD (3/30/1970-9/1972; 10/1974-10/1975; 1-12/1976) (Original Cast)
   
6. Marsha Davis Harding: ALICE HIRSON (3/31/1970-6/1972) (Original Cast) *
   
7. Randy Buchanan: GARY SANDY (3/31/1970-7/1/1972) (Original Cast) *
   
8. Peter Delaney: LEN GOCHMAN (4/1/1970-2/1972) (Original Cast)
   
9. Karen MacMillan: NANCY PINKERTON (6/1970-2/1972 contract; to 6/1972 recurring)
   
10. Bill the bartender: BILL MOOR (3/1971 – 8/1972)
    
11. Chuck Hillman: EDWARD WINTER (1/1971-8/1972)
    
12. Mitch Farmer: RICHARD SHOBERG (3/1971-9/1972)
    
13. Dannie Cotsworth: MELINDA PLANK (7/1971-6/1972)
    
14. Susan Giles: ALICE MARY RILEY (5/1971-4/72)
    

I have been compiling a fairly comprehensive storyline over the years in bits and pieces, and if anyone is interested, will post it little by little for others to enjoy.

Also, for the curious, here are the show's annual ratings (it reached its highest peak from February to August of 1971 during the Jasper murder story) along with all the daytime drama ratings so as to compare. You can see that it appears to have had an effect on Dark Shadows during the 1970 to 1971 season.

1969-1970

1.As The World Turns 13.6

2.The Edge Of Night 10.8

3.Search for Tomorrow 10.0

4.The Guiding Light 8.9

5.Another World 9.6

6. Love is Splend. Thing 9.5

7.Days Of Our Lives 8.8

8.The Doctors 8.6

8.The Secret Storm 8.6

10.General Hospital 8.5

11.Love Of Life 8.0

12.Dark Shadows 7.3

13.Where The Heart Is 7.0

14.One Life To Live 6.7

15. Somerset 5.7

16.Bright Promise 5.2

17.All My Children 4.4

18.A World Apart 2.8

19.Best Of Everything 1.8

1970-1971

1.As The World Turns 12.4

2.The Edge Of Night 10.1

3.The Guiding Light 9.7

4.Another World 9.5

4.Days Of Our Lives 9.5

4.General Hospital 9.5

7.The Doctors 9.4

8.Search for Tomorrow 9.3

9. Love is Splend. Thing 9.2

10.The Secret Storm 8.0

11.Love Of Life 7.9

12.Where The Heart Is 7.0

12. Somerset 7.0

1

4.Bright Promise 6.8

15.One Life To Live 6.5

16.Dark Shadows 5.3

17.All My Children 4.8

18.A World Apart 3.4

1971-1972

1.As The World Turns 11.1

2.General Hospital 10.4

3.Days Of Our Lives 9.9

4.The Edge Of Night 9.5

5.The Doctors 9.3

6.Another World 9.1

7.Search for Tomorrow 8.6

7.The Guiding Light 8.6

9. Love is Splend. Thing 8.0

10.Love Of Life 7.4

10.Return to Peyton Place 7.4

10.The Secret Storm 7.4

13.One Life To Live 7.3

14.Somerset 6.5

15.Where The Heart Is 6.3

16.Bright Promise 6.1

17.All My Children 5.7

1972-1973

1.As The World Turns 10.6

2.Days Of Our Lives 9.9

3.Another World 9.7

3.General Hospital 9.7

5.The Doctors 9.3

6.Search for Tomorrow 8.6

7.One Life To Live 8.3

8.All My Children 8.2

8.The Guiding Light 8.2

10.The Edge Of Night 7.9

11.The Secret Storm 7.3

12.Love Of Life 7.2

13.Return to Peyton Place 7.2

14. Love is Splend. Thing 7.1

15.Somerset 6.8

1

6.Where The Heart Is 6.4

17.Young And The Restless 5.0

1973-1974

1.As The World Turns 9.7

1.Days Of Our Lives 9.7

1.Another World 9.7

4.The Doctors 9.5

5.General Hospital 9.2

6.All My Children 9.1

7.The Guiding Light 8.1

8.One Life To Live 7.8

9.Search for Tomorrow 7.7

10.The Edge Of Night 7.4

11.Return to Peyton Place 7.0

12.How/Survive A Marriage 6.4

13. Young And The Restless 6.2

14.Somerset 6.1

1

5.Love Of Life 6.0

16.The Secret Storm 5.8

1974-1975

1.As The World Turns 10.8

1.Another World 9.7

3.Days Of Our Lives 9.7

4.Search for Tomorrow 9.4

5.All My Children 9.3

6.The Doctors 9.0

7.The Guiding Light 8.5

7.General Hospital 8.5

9.Young And The Restless 8.4

10.The Edge Of Night 7.6

11.One Life To Live 7.4

12.Love Of Life 7.0

13.Somerset 6.0

1

4.How/Survive A Marriage 5.7

1975-1976

1.As The World Turns 9.4

2.Another World 8.9

3.Young And The Restless 8.6

4.Search for Tomorrow 8.3

4.Days Of Our Lives 8.3

6.All My Children 8.1

6.The Guiding Light 8.1

8.The Doctors 7.3

9.Love Of Life 7.2

10.General Hospital 7.1

11.One Life To Live 6.8

12.The Edge Of Night 6.7

13.Somerset 5.9

1

4.Ryan's Hope 5.7

1976-1977

1.As The World Turns 9.9

2.Another World 9.0

3.The Guiding Light 8.9

4.Young And The Restless 8.7

5.Search for Tomorrow 8.6

6.All My Children 8.2

7.Days Of Our Lives 7.8

8.Ryan's Hope 7.3

8.One Life To Live 7.3

10.General Hospital 7.0

11.The Doctors 6.9

12.Love Of Life 6.3

13.The Edge Of Night 6.2

14.Somerset 5.2

15.Lovers And Friends 2.9

Somerset managed to hang onto its roots until the end of 1973 when The Lucas family and the last Delaney character, Laura, were written out. You can more or less track the changes in direction from the changes in head writers. Contrary to what some on here believe, Cenedella handed down to Slesar after the first year - this fact is well-documented. Slesar came up with the Jasper murder storyline which took upnine months of 1971, and he also came up with the Robert and India divorce,as well as the Davis divorce and Marsha marrying the nefarious Ike Harding, only to see him killed less than a year later:

Robert Cenedella (3/1970-12/1970) 1 year

Henry Slesar (1/1971-3/1972) 1 year alone

Henry Slesar & Jane Lyon (4/1972-6/1973) 1 year

Roy Winsor (6/1973-6/1974) 1 year

Robert J. Shaw & Winifred Wolfe (6/1974 – 1/1975) 6 months

Don Appell (1-6/1975) 6 months

A.J. Russell (6-12/1975) 6 months

Russell Kubeck (1-12/1976) 1 year

Changing the head writer situtation every year, and later on every 6 months for a year and a half, certainly helped to bring the show down. They lost many among their original audience - every time the got rid on original faves, ratings would suffer.

IMO Randy Buchanan, India Delaney, Robert and Jessica Delaney and Jill Grant never should have been cut loose. They were all very popular. It was the ratings dive after the Jasper story ended in August of 1971 that pushed Slesar to make some heavy changes, and the network brought in Jane Lyon to assist. When you read through the story synopsis, you can actually the whole show evolving - way too rapidly.

Anyway, hope all above is of interest.

Tom!! Depending on how much of the show's history I utilize in my version of Somerset on the ONtv network, I would like to pick your brain about a few things if it comes down to it. Should that happen, I'd be very happy to give you "consultant" status in my credits.

Yeah, they really did screw it up. I don't watch soaps much anymore, but from what I do catch, it makes me realize how good Todd McKee and Stacy Edwards (and Susan Marie Snyder too) were as young actors in their first acting jobs. I sound like an old fart, but that talent level seems to be missing these days in soaps. I think they kept Todd around since Ted was a Capwell, but more than that it was evident that he had talent, and he apparently was well-liked by the cast and producers.

I am a wee bit biased because Stacy happens to be one of my favorite actresses and still is to this day, but Santa Barbara had an annoying habit of cleaning house every six months and getting rid of about three or four characters at a time. It really hurt the show's continuity after a while.

I always thought Stacy and Todd McKee got along great off screen; Stacy said in an interview with SOD that after a while she got tired of "going to work and bickering with Ted". The writing team at the time didn't know how to write a solid story for Ted/Hayley; that was bad because Gina was Hayley's aunt and that alone would have made for plenty of drama with the Capwells.

Hayley's chemistry with Jake wasn't the same, although Rick Edwards gave it the old college try. As for Stacy, getting fired turned out to be a blessing in disguise because she went on to a solid career in prime time and movies.

Not only that, she shed the ingenue image after a while. If you ever saw her on Law and Order SVU as a child predator, that proved she could be sweet and innocent in one role and really creepy in the next.

Danfling: Teri's maiden name was Martin. And Lahoma actually had the baby, and they named it Susannah.

I believe Ann Wedgeworth wanted to leave the show to try her luck again on Broadway or in movies, so they sent Lahoma out of town with Susannah and eventually had Lahoma say she wanted a divorce; that was when they sent Sam back to Bay City (and to Another World for about a year).

In the version of Somerset I write for OnTV, Susannah is the central character and Sam and Lahoma make infrequent appearances.

Carl, thanks so much. Saynotoursoap must have ONE HELL of an Edge collection.

RIP, Linda. Always loved you on Loving and all of your work on Edge was a joy to see, too.

I recognize that as a Michigan TV Guide! Those 13 and 41 affiliates were Grand Rapids, which never aired the show at 4:00.

Laura Malone went on maternity leave in February 1984. During her absence, actress Judy Dewey subbed for her. When Malone returned, she had not lost the weight gained during her pregnancy. According to Malone, she was good friends with Chris Rich and Nancy Frangione offscreen; however, after she returned from maternity leave, their attitude toward her changed. It deteriorated to the point that they refused to talk to her, and onscreen, during scenes, Rich's demeanor was cold and unwlecoming to her. Malone was very upset by the change and didn't understand why former friends were treating her so shabbily.

She was dropped in July 1984 and instantly replaced again by Judy Dewey. The events surrounding her departure were clouded in mystery at the time, because Malone was very popular in the role. Later, Malone alleged that Allen Potter and P&G had gotten rid of her because she was too "fat". From what I understand, Chris Rich allegedly played a part in the decision, too. Apparently he threatened to leave the show if Malone was not replaced with another performer. I believe that Malone instigated legal action against her employers and reached a settlement.

Hmmm. And Chris Rich left the show the following year. Wonder how that all came about...

I was under the illusion the whole Laura Malone situation had nothing to do with Chris Rich... Allen Potter was an excellent producer, but legend has it he was quite the son of a bitch behind the scenes.

I will still defend the first DePriest regime from 1986-88, for the most part. A lot of people have brought up legitimate points on here, but AW was boring as hell under Sam Hall's pen from 1985-86. (Amphora dust? Please.)

The show needed a shakeup badly and it got one. The one thing I will say is it seems like a lot of the plots were either cut short or re-thought (Donna having triplets instead of twins, for example). The Mitch/Rachel dynamic was good to watch again, but then they steered Mitch toward Felicia and, while they made a decent couple, it almost seemed like a dead end.

Aw, I loved Joanna Going. She's one of those actresses that I was glad to see move on and do other things in prime time and movies. I thought she and Larry Lau had decent chemistry but then they started to write Lisa/Jamie a little off kilter. In defense of AW, I'm sure Joanna told them she was leaving the show when her contract was up so they had no choice but to go in that direction.