DRW50

Another installment in you never know what you'll find in a soap magazine letters page...from a 12/1993 Weekly. "Kudos to Loving for continuing to allow Angie to flaunt her 'blackness.' Angie screaming "Whoomp! There it is' (the chorus of Tag Team's hit record) after she got a strike at Pins was priceless."

Thanks for typing this up. I didn't quite realize just how quickly there was cast turnover - when Doris left in 1977 or 1978 that meant there were no more original cast members. That must be a record for such a long-running soap.

At the time I felt this story was too tame, in some ways, but looking back, it was more daring than most of what would be allowed on TV today (of course TV would now say it is too passe or PC and he would just be there to be a psycho or to be laughed at). With some of the country's most prominent politicians calling for gay teachers to be fired, this story's subject matter hasn't dated at all.

Yes, he did. He felt Palmer would not be homophobic.

I always liked that they had Adam and Palmer as accepting of gays - I'm sure some derided that as "PC" but it was a nice step.

Watching that clip, although it was kind of fun, reminded me of how empty the Martins have been in the last 15-20 years...I guess it could be much worse (looking at what became of the Bauers), but I think it's just they lost their homey charm when their numbers dwindled and they became known mostly for covering up crimes. The best part was the start, with Jacob Young doing a spoof of one of those old "serious" quasi-PSA ads.

Wasn't this after McTavish left?

I think many would say Mary Carney was the least offensive. Goulet was OK but she had no chemistry with anyone and was also cold and talked too fast. To me the real problem was the character - Mary was self-righteous, smug, judgmental, and tough for me to take even with Mulgrew in the role. I think the show should have done a Jack/Siobhan/Joe triangle, or just gone with Jack/Siobhan. They said they didn't because they didn't think Jack would go with his wife's sister. Yet the awful Frankenfaith stuff was still foisted on viewers.

Thanks so much to saynotoursoap for uploading this episode! I enjoyed most of this - the actors have a nice chemistry throughout. The only stuff that doesn't quite work for me is the stuff with Nancy Stafford as the stoned out punk club queen, although that is at least good for a laugh. I wonder if I'm biased because I've mostly seen her in good girl roles. Any thoughts on this Mike Powers? video gone

Nice upload from saynotoursoap: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dN0sxPTFHiA&feature=feedu

Chilling episode. I do wish they'd kept Jeff around, he's very cute. I also like how they use Nancy in this episode - her reactions to Julie.

I couldn't stand her then either (all she did was berate Leo for not taking her to Paris).

This is what fiscal conservatives are doing with your tax money. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/19/house-republicans-500k-defense-marriage-act_n_851035.html

I agree. This isn't new for Patsy - she didn't speak kindly of the show while she was gone, she complained about being paired with Ricky again (not that I can blame her), and then there's this. I think she never would have come back if she hadn't needed to financially, and while that's true of many actors, some bother to hide it a little more. I would miss Bianca, but to me the character wasn't the same after her initial run. I hated some of her writing in 2008 and even in 2009 there was too much of the shrieky stuff. It's only been with Carol's return that the quieter and more human Bianca returned again. I know Carol probably won't be around forever either but as long as she and Pat are there I don't miss Bianca that much.

Thanks for finding that. I guess I can see why she felt it was a bad experience. I have always wondered why the show made the decision to have her in peril with the Kenneth Castle mess - it was so rushed and seemed to come out of nowhere.

Lots of nice new promo photos: http://www.walfordweb.co.uk/ww/castphotos

I was reading through a March 1973 Radio TV Mirror and they have a brief interview with Carmine Stipo, who had just been cast as a lawyer on ATWT (he had previously played a paraplegic Vietnam vet on Love is a Many Splendored Thing). Jill Harman was cast is his wife, playing "a very serious 23 year old housewife with two children." Do you know anything about their characters, or what stories they had?

They wanted a more attractive Faith. They did not like the awkward/neurotic Faith. To me Hawkins was wooden and kept tripping up on his lines. He was miscast for a charismatic and energetic figure. I also saw no chemistry with Jill, which was a problem with more than one Frank. If they'd kept him with Delia he might have worked better, as he and Ilene had more of a spark.

At the time I loved Brooke, although the "bad Billy" story afterwards was kind of hilarious. For some reason I always forget the stuff with Allison and Brooke's father (Perry King). King was such a hot daddy, I didn't know why he was so misused on Melrose and then Titans.

I would have liked the story more if it wasn't so rigidly plot-driven. I never believed that Dimitri and Maria would have had sex, and I thought it trashed his character. He was written so horribly for the next year that I assumed he was going to be killed off (which I think he was if McTavish hadn't returned), and I always felt Dimitri had much more potential as a character than Edmund. The baby swap stuff made more sense to me, and had some of Susan Lucci's best work, especially after her miscarriage. I also hated seeing Skye used as a plot device for that, although it brought out the best in Carrie Genzel.

I really liked Natalie's appearances - I thought the last scene with Harold was very moving and understated (and also kept a surprise from viewers). It made me choke up. I also thought her scenes with Janet were very good, and with Tim. I just dislike the ghost stuff when it's obviously being used to make up for bad story decisions (all of Ghost Dixie's appearances).

Santa was Broderick. I think this was probably a Disney mandate to try to make the show more fun. I enjoyed the story, at least when it moved away from dour overall Laura doubting Santa and became more about Myrtle. I loved her cameo as Mrs. Claus.

Flash back to ten years ago on Inside Soap: http://www.insidesoap.co.uk/inside-story/the-inside-soap-vault/ Meanwhile, Patsy Palmer is saying she has tried out for an American drama and will leave Eastenders if she gets it. While I can't blame her, I do kind of wonder if she is looking for a reason not to return.

Was there some AMC/Santa Barbara crossover I missed?

This is great. I didn't know Sadie was close to the Lords. I've read a little about Wendy, and seen a photo, but didn't know her story.