DRW50

You're right about Clarice at Mac's funeral. AWHP was down at the time I posted and I was going off her line to Amanda (remembering her when she was in braces, or whatever), which was odd to say if she'd seen her at Mac's funeral. I don't think Larry ever stripped on the show. For some reason I thought he did cheat on Clarice, but I might be wrong. I suppose the actors may have found it insulting but I think the show should have kept Clarice and Larry on recurring status, as a familiar couple for viewers who were seeing so many characters leave. Dumping so many women in this age range meant that you had awkwardness like that PSDonna/Felicia friendship. Quinn would have been a more believable sounding board to PSDonna. There was no reason to kill that character off. I saw a bit of Leyman, not much. I did read that they did a number on the character when they recast her, including demoting her on the force because of some paperwork error. The PSDonna/John/Michael stuff was weak. The only part I enjoyed of it was Donna's conflict with "Mother Hudson." My favorite part was when she yelled at the old woman and this led to a collapse. I don't think it was supposed to be funny but it was. I also never understood why they treated the character of Peter so shabbily. The way he disappeared just as Reginald's story was winding down made no sense.

Do you think Carly was brought in as any attempt to emulate parts of Ava that Lisa didn't get?

As much as I go around retroactively condemning these decisions, I can definitely see why they went with Pat/Faith again under Hicks and Groome. Hicks was very popular, and charismatic, and kooky, and unique. I just wonder if they considered what would happen when she left. Why not reunite Pat/Faith and then kill Faith off when Hicks decided to leave? Then since Groome was also leaving, he could just leave mourning Faith. Or just have Pat and Faith leave town together. Why recast both? They eventually realized that the "nice" version of Faith was not suited for KMG, so she became a cold, needy, self-righteous shrew. OK. Yet this also went nowhere. What especially annoyed me was that Jill never got to seriously respond to Faith's vicious attacks. Jill was never much of a fighter, but beyond this, I think the show was still trying to say Faith was a sympathetic character. Why, I never knew, because only a fool gets together with a man her sister has been with for a decade, and then expects this relationship to end happily. You're right that Delia had become so regressed by the time Ilene returned. She was just a plot device for all of 1981 and the last months of 1980. It was such a waste, as Randall Edwards did a great job when they let Delia mature. For me, Delia trying to win Frank back is always the worst sign of the show having no idea what to do with her character. I never believed she would want him back and even as a symbol of her insecurities, it didn't work, because he had treated her so horribly. Since they no longer had any purpose for Delia, why not write her out for a few years (starting around 1981) and make Faith the show's screwed-up schemer? Why not have Jill REALLY lay into her, with the #1 attack being that Faith killed their father (which she technically didn't, but then the truth didn't matter to Faith anyway), and this drives Faith over the edge and she uses her money to become a big menace, sort of what Rae was before Kimberly showed up? I never understood why they got rid of Barry or why they felt they couldn't write story for him. While he wasn't closely tied to the Ryans, he did have strong bonds with Jill, Faith, and the Crystal Palace group. He could have gone anywhere. It made no sense to me. I wonder if this was ABC meddling again.

That was a sad read. To be honest every time I read about a younger man/much older woman society story I wonder if this is what the outcome is, some type of money drain or a big legal battle between family. I'm sorry it had to happen to all of them. Is Diana Walker the soap actress (Where the Heart Is)?

I love that story about the kitchen. I wish we could see more of this. The thought of Lois Nettleton and Hal Holbrook in scenes together is a treat.

Carol Richards as Mary Ryan.

I'm not sure how but I missed this episode until now. It's really good. Leslie Charleson cuts through what could be a maudlin situation and makes you care about Iris and her self-destructive pain. I have to say I was very impressed by the guy who played Mark. Who was he? IMDB says Sam Wade? Did he leave or did they fire him? And who was the rich woman bantering with the policeman? I loved that scene. What a treat to see John Karlen. I guess this helps explain why he wasn't on Dark Shadows all that much in 1968. How large was his story on this show?

Here's a radio broadcast of TBD. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DqQwDgoh30&feature=related This is an episode saynotoursoap uploaded earlier this year. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAr6vB5JuMI&feature=related

I liked Sharlene, although I liked her more when she was more downtrodden and tougher - after she got together with John it wasn't quite the same. It was Felicia/Mitch/Wally who got me early on, although I also loved the dynamics with Amanda, Rachel, Mac, Ada, and Amanda/Sam was very fresh and not at all cloying, which is pretty amazing, considering how cliched the story was.

They haven't in years.

I finally watched the 1983 episode. Thanks again for letting us know, dc. I enjoyed it. I wasn't too fond of the mustache-twirler (don't know his name) and his leaden "bad guy" lines at the hospital, but I liked Cissy bitching Eleanor out and poking her nose in. I'm surprised they got rid of her early on. What was her exit? She wasn't the best actress but played bitchy with gusto ("Ooh, pretty kitty has claws!"). Matt seemed a bit dull but he was OK. I liked Jonathan and Eleanor. He was very flaming and he smiled through too many scenes but he was cute. I guess he didn't have any other major roles after this show. Why did they kill off Eleanor? I thought she was great, and they were a believable couple.

They started in July 1987. They said they wanted to start after the big Sin Stalker mystery because that was a clean slate. Frankly I think they should have started before the mystery, as it would have been something to get viewers hooked. I was startled at how barren Bay City was when the reruns began, and while I did grow to care for Sally Spencer's work, I'm not sure if weeks of episodes of MJ calling herself a whore was a way to lure in the viewers.

Was the Jimmy story mentioned in the Digest recaps? I can't remember. I remember Tina and the big handkerchief that you posted...(the recap, not the handkerchief). Kevin and Sandy married. I'm not sure what went on then - didn't he go on a drunken self-destructive rampage and die in a car crash? They could have brought Sandy back when Bob and Kim split up. She could have comforted a lonely Ellen, had a spark with Bob, which would have annoyed Kim as well as quasi-rival Susan. Jimmy could have been in the age group with the Snyder brothers or a little older.

Sandy is working at the bookstore to fill in for Natalie. Norman, her estranged husband, is in the hospital recovering from his heart attack after a drunken argument with Bob at the Colonnade Room. He tells everyone that Bob and Sandy are having an affair, yet he will only let Bob treat him. He tries to get John to convince Bob to swear that he slipped at the restaurant, which would make the hospital liable to a big lawsuit. John refuses. Meanwhile, Chris goes over the books for the beauty supply business Sandy and Norman run, and sees that a large amount of money is missing. He keeps this from Sandy for her own good. A young woman named Tina calls Norman's hospital room, saying she's in town, she has no money, and she's upset about his heart attack. He tells her to stay away. She sneaks into his room. He says she's ruining his plan, but she doesn't know why - he's declared his love for her, and they'll be married. Norman gets more and more upset and starts telling that everything is Sandy's fault. Bob had left the floor station for Norman's room, but realized he'd forgotten his stethoscope and returned to his office to get it. Nurses passing Norman's room heard shouting but thought everything was OK, as Bob was supposed to be there. When Bob finally gets there, Tina is gone, and Norman has had another heart attack. Norman dies, and Bob feels guilty. John takes the opportunity to start a hearing on Norman's death. The floor nurses say Bob was in the room and Norman had been arguing with him, and Bob called for help when Norman went into heart failure. Bob says he went to get his stethoscope and Norman was already dying. Bob thinks this won't be a big deal and goes on vacation; when he gets back it's become a major investigation. When Sandy realizes the argument is the main reason Bob is being investigated, she claims she was arguing with Norman. Bob won't let her commit perjury, and John uses this as "proof" that Norman was right about Bob and Sandy. A week later, Bob gets a reprimand. He's furious that the hospital doubts him, and he resigns. He soon regrets this decision and decides to fight the charges. He and Tom begin to reconstruct the circumstances of Norman's death. Floor Nurse Connolly admits someone could have gone into the room without them seeing, but Floor Nurse Holland insists that's impossible. Bob continues to lose patients and lecturing assignments. He tells Tom that a woman named Tina had called Norman. Around the same time, Tina calls to ask about Norman, and John intercepts the message, calling to tell her Norman is dead. Tom gets the number, but John insists it's a former business associate of Norman's. They don't believe him, especially when they learn the number has been disconnected. John begins to panic and tries to get Bob's reprimand reversed, but it's too late. Tina goes to see Sandy and offers to sell Norman's IOU for $500. Sandy realizes this is the girl Bob is looking for, and everyone gets together to talk. Tina admits she argued with Norman and then left before he died. She says she told Dr. Dixon about this on the phone. Nurse Holland backs Tina up, and Bob comforts her as John denies everything. John tries to get to Kim first to "explain," but it's too confusing for her. The hospital asks for John's resignation, but he refuses. Later that year, Sandy begins seeing Kevin casually, which upsets Susan, even though they insist they're just friends. Sandy confides in Kevin that she wants to reunite with Bob, who only wants Valerie. Eventually, Sandy tells Kevin she went to see her son Jimmy and her father and that she is able to support them now (she had resumed her modeling career to pay off Norman's debts), so can they move back to Oakdale? Sandy is very upset when Jimmy tells her she deserted him, and his teacher and her father warn her not to try to uproot him. Kevin encourages her to be hopeful, that, if she lets Jimmy stay in California, then in time, Jimmy will feel closer to her.

OK. I'll type some of those sections up. Is Edward Grover Cindy Grover's father? There were several articles in the early 70's about the Grover family and how they were all actors on soaps and isn't it wonderful. I can't remember if the father was named Edward.

Thanks for this. I didn't know Jay's stepfather was ever on the show. I wonder if they ever considered a serious Jay/Lisa romance. I guess this was around the time Jennifer started reading "Look to this Day"? I was going to ask if you were interested in any more of the story with Bob, Sandy, and her husband Norman (it's detailed more in the Soap Opera Annual) or if you already know that story from the Digest recaps?

I never knew any of this either. Thanks. I guess this was after Rogers was on AMC as Ray Gardner.

2001.

I think John Blazo could have been up for playing material that showed Pat growing (the third Pat was hideous and I wish I could forget him), but he never had any real chance. I feel the problems with Pat were based on using him as a device for Delia's schemes. It made his character seem empty. If they had actually paired him with Delia in a real relationship, not him pitying her/lusting after her and then her scheming against him non-stop, it would have paid dividends. I think they should have driven Pat from the Ryan family and into stories on his own with Delia, with the Ryans on the outside looking in. Then that would have been about himself as much as Delia. The other problem I had with Pat is that Pat/Faith was a fantasy relationship. They were together briefly and he dumped her for clinginess. IMO the relationship should have ended there - with Pat regretting his actions and Faith regretting hers, and they both move on with their lives. I have never understood why they were written as being star-crossed lovers. The Pat/Nancy story was so plot-driven. Would it have worked better with Malcolm? I'm not sure. I just think it was a non-starter. Pat became an afterthought to the family, aside from Maeve worrying. I am still annoyed, years and years on, at how they didn't play up more of Pat/Siobhan, as I thought Felder and Blazo had a great rapport. I didn't know Marguerite was back in the early 80's either - I had remembered her showing up again with a different actress in the late 70's but not for long. I saw a promo of Jill/Seneca a while back so knew they were together but didn't know it had gone that far. Too bad it didn't last. I thought they had great chemistry and I wish the show had let them move forward as a couple...especially since Frank was such an unstable character in terms of casting. I would like to see this Faith and Bronski. It seems random as hell, like every single Faith pairing under KMG. That's a good point about Delia. I'm a little disappointed that she still seemed to have no character growth when Ilene returned, but I wasn't too surprised, as she seemed very one-dimensional when I saw some of her 1983 episodes. At least this confirms that Delia still had the Crystal Palace when Ilene was around. I've never been sure of that. I did have to laugh when Delia suddenly forgave Joe when she realized she could use him. That's classic Delia. I wonder how Ilene and Roscoe were. Randall and Roscoe had serious chemistry, for obvious reasons. Is it me or even with Hollis Kirkland are Kim and Rae STILL playing out the same storyline they played out for a year to two years beforehand? Zzzzzzzz... Do you think Maureen Garrett might have worked as a Siobhan recast? I never understood why she came in as Barry's sister right when they had fired Richard Backus! I was biased against the character very quickly because a) she was paired with Roger and I wasn't a big fan of his when he was in self-righteous noble honorary Ryan mode and b ) she was essentially brought in under the "Delia is so stupid/pathetic" banner, and that always annoys me. I got more than a little satisfaction out of that synopsis where Roger told Delia she'd been right about EJ. It does sound like EJ left with a whimper, while they kept trying to figure out how to keep Ox around. Odd. Thanks so much for reading all those and commenting on them! I know they were just kind of dumped onto the thread. I felt like if not now, never, so I just went ahead. It helped me a little with that year and I'm glad it did the same for you.

In the last few photos she looks like Anna Stuart. The first photo looks like Irna Phillips. Those hammy silent film poses are very entertaining though.

I think I or someone else already asked this and got an answer but I searched briefly and didn't find it. Is there a reason why Carl Williams basically ceased to exist as a character after about 1990?

I'd forgotten saynotoursoap posted an episode of this. I'll have to go watch that again. I have one more interview, somewhere, with Tom Holland. I will try to post it when I find it again. Weird that he went on to direct Child's Play...

I think he was around for 2005-2006 but not around after that until late 2008 or early 2009 when he was running against Luke for college president or something.

I think they all left when their contracts were up, yes. As juniorz1 said, Schnetzer may have asked more for a 6 month leave but told them he might return, which he did. I hated, hated, hated, hated, hated what I have seen of the writing for Anna Stuart's Donna once the Reginald story started, and I wonder if she felt the same way. I wish the show had recast Ben at some point. I get the feeling they thought that would be a threat to Jake. Of course these days he would return and reveal himself as a psycho, and a "bad" rapist to Jake's "good" rapist.

Thanks for telling us about it. I watched the 1984 episode but never saw the 1983 one.