saynotoursoap

The November 1979 disaster was a tornado, not an earthquake. Steve and Colin were visiting a rival hospital when the storm struck. They were in the stairwell, leaving the hospital. The concrete walls and support beams collapsed, as seen in the photo. The debris fell on Colin, killing him. The sequence was terrifying and very well produced. It was far better than the storms on All My Children, which had a much larger budget. It just shows you how the ingenuity of creative writing, directing, and and producing can trump big budgets and CGI effects.

Thank you for the post, SFK. Claire's husband Tom Callaway is an actor, too. He was David Grant on Somerset. In the 80s, Tom and Claire appeared on Falcon Crest, though separately. Claire also played Jo's mother on The Facts of Life. The Dorian character was in somewhat of a transition phase when Claire played her on OLTL. I do not feel she was provided with material in which she could really shine, hence she is often forgotten or dismissed in DorIan discussions. She was a solid actress. I am sorry to learn of her premature death.

Bob/Kim dvd arrived in the mail today. Was there a strike in 85? There is no writing credits in the closing.

FYI, there was a WGA strike in 1985; however, it was one of the shortest on record. It lasted only two weeks and was focused on receiving residuals for a new market... home video! Problems with that negotiation led to the 1988 strike, which lasted five and a half months.

On that clip above, Tina says, "I've never really been with a man before." Who is she talking to?

I remember vaguely that she had a boyfriend who was her lawyer after she returned from Califoria. He learned that she was the daughter of Victor and tried to encourage her to go after her inheritance (which he had his eyes on). Is that the person?

No. This scene is much earlier in the series (1979/80). Tina was only 17/18 in the clip. The fellow's name was James. I cannot recall his surname. He was a recurring character for about six months, from the summer of 1979 until the winter of 1980. Tina dated him to get over her crush on Mick Gordon, who chose Samantha. The quality of OLTL seriously declined during this period, and my viewing was occasional. If anyone has access to Soap Opera Digest, we should be able to uncover his full name. I believe he was actually called Jamie.

Is it true that Suzi died some time in the show's final year? I remember hearing that somewhere and was wondering. The show was a little before my time but I got to watch some of the episode back when AOL posted them all and really enjoyed SEARCH. I know the reaction to the McClearys was mixed but I really liked them and didn't see them eating a show.

I almost added the episode in which Suzi dies, rather than this plane crash episode, as one of my regular viewers has been messaging me about it for at least a year. Likely, I will add that one in my next set of uploads, so if you are interested in seeing it, be on the lookout for it.

Yes, Henry Slesar eventually reconciled Adam Drake and Nicole. However, a more interesting couple (Steve Gutherie and Deborah Saxon) were never reunited. Also, I believe (althought this could have been done by Lou Schofied and Margaret DePriest) that Slesar began the show when Adam was in a relationship with Roxanne Carey (played by actress Martha Gilphen). Someone told me that there was a hasty scene which ended that relationship, but I had missed it.

I think that everyone on earth would have been happy had Laurie Karr and her husband Vic Hastings reconcilled. I think that Liz Hillyer and Steve Prentiss should have returned to one another (again, that couple could have been seperated by Schofield and DePriest). I think that most pople waited for Tony Cooper and Jill Farmer on Somerset reunion.

Was Slesar responsible for breaking up Sam and Lahoma Lucas?

I believe you mean Vic Lamont, danfling. Vic Hastings was a character on Another World. And, no,not everyone on earth wanted Laurie and Vic reunited. I did not. I never bought the Vic/Laurie relationship. It was very unusual in that their marriage was the very last thing that Emily Prager played. She left in December 1972. Laurie was not shown on camera again until Jeanne Ruskin took over in March 1973. The first thing her Laurie did was express discontent with her three month old marriage, Four months later she had an affair with Johnny Dallas. I never had time to even contemplate Vic and Laurie as a real married couple.

I haven't watched yet but the woman was either Elizabeth or Jackie.

I think the foreign woman helped Roger when he had been shot by Holly and he blackmailed Alan into getting him out of the country. She fell in love with him but did not know how evil he was. She eventually got together with Mike, but then died.

The foreign woman was Dr. Renee Dubois. She was a plastic surgeon hired by Roger to change his identity. She thought he was Arthur Green and did not realize the extent of his crimes. She eventually learned Roger's true identity in March 1980, just as he planned to kidnap Holly and Christina. They struggled, and Roger shoved her over a balcony to her death. Due to positive audience reaction,the same actress, Deborah May, returned a year later as Ivy Pierce, who also fell in love with Mike, but her new character fizzled. Marland wrote her out, too.

Thanks to Carl and Bright Eyes for watching. Sometimes I feel no one will watch some of the material I upload. It is nice to know that it is viewed and appreciated.

Carl, I believe that the "best dressed show' originated from the fact that many early programs required actors to wear their own clothes. One Man's Family was one of the first to have its wardrobe provided by a boutique. In this case, Lord and Taylor exclusively dressed the cast.

where did you get these facts? I think Marg was gone much earlier than that. she only lasted a few months and Strasser came back

The facts are correct. Margie Impert started on AW in December 1971. The following are the runs of each of the Rachels, from Eddie Drueding's AWHP. He documented the dates from the actual scripts.

Robin Strasser, March 8, 1967 - December 10, 1971;

Margie Impert, December 27, 1971 - February 15, 1972.

Robin Strasser, February 17, 1972 - June 29, 1972.

Victoria Wyndham, July 21, 1972 - June 25, 1999.

Was anything big going on for GH around that time? I am surprised to see them leading in the ratings. I thought the only time they reached number 1 then was when Audrey stood trial for murder?

GH did go to number one during Audrey's trial, and the series managed to maintain the momentum for several years during the early 70s. Around 1972/73, All My Children began its ascendency in the Nielsens, too, allowing third-rated ABC a genuine shot at luring audiences away from CBS and NBC. The televised Watergate hearings did affect the ratings, as pointed out by Carl. In the summer of 1973, GH's writers amped up the plots in order to keep the audience hooked through weeks of preemptions.

July 1973 in the as-yet-unamed Port Charles:

Dr. Phil Brewer learned that Diana Taylor was pregnant. Months earlier, Phil had raped Diana. Diana lied about the date of her conception to keep her husband Peter and Phil in the dark about the child's paternity.

Nurse Sharon Pinkham went into labor and gave birth to Henry's daughter.

Dr. Tom Baldwin was reported killed in Mexico. Audrey recovered from the shock with the help of Steve Hardy, who wanted a reconciliation with her, but he was forced to vie for Audery's affection by Dr. Jim Hobart, who saved Audrey's son Tommy's life with delicate heart surgery.

Augusta McLeod, Tommy Baldwin's private nurse, became upset when she learned that Dr. Lesley Williams was practicing at General Hospital. Augusta had previously been involved with Lesley's husband. Lesley confided to Jim Hobart that her late husband Brian, a diabetic, died from an insulin overdose shortly after their baby died. His death was ruled accidental, but Lesley speculated that it was suicide.

Jessie's persistent cough grew worse, and she finally sought medical attention. An x-ray revealed a shadow on her lung.

Attorney Lee Baldwin's wife Meg irrationally believed that Lee and Lesley were having an illicit affair. Her suspicions bordered on paranoia, and she became convinced that Lesley was poisoning her blood pressure medication. Meg secretly went off the medication, and while arguing violently with Lee about his "indiscretions", Meg suffered a massive cereberal hemorrhage. Despite the best efforts of the hospital staff, Meg died.

Judge me if you must, but I'd sure love me some Philip Brown.

Why judge you, Khan? Phil is smoking hot, even now. He is also one of the most gentle, down to earth "soap stars" around. He is a genuinely nice man.

I don't think she did, but I'm not sure. I guess they meant she'd take time off to recuperate from all the work.

Who were those two characters?

Nita Ray was a gun moll of mobster Franky Sills. Franky and the nefarious Ian Russell had been involved in illegal activities. Rick Latimer, attempting to get Arlene away from Ian, tracked down Franky through Nita, and attempted to persuade him to spill his guts. Ian discovered what Rick was up to and had Franky murdered. Nita appeared during the summer of 1977. July, I presume, from the date on the photo.

Zachary Bly was a friend of attorney Elliott Lang, who married Ben's ex-wife Betsy Crawford. His character was introduced as a love interest for Lynn Henderson, but Lynn was written out shortly thereafter, leaving Zachary with nothing to do. He wasn't around very long in the summer and autumn of 1978.

Let me check, I have it written down somewhere. Holden's only on in the end so I didn't put it on the DVD but it has that explosive scene between them that I wanted people to get to see again.

UPDATE:

I think it's Feb. 10, 1986. Episode 7692 which I was thinking was Feb. 7 but maybe there was a pre-emption? At the end, Dan Region says "join us tomorrow" instead of "join us Monday."

All soaps were preempted on Tuesday, January 28, 1986 for continuous coverage of the Challenger space shuttle disaster. Some soaps were also preempted/partially preempted the following Friday for a live memorial service led by President Reagan.

I love this season though It's amazing how Grey's still continues to be interesting in it's eight season and Desperate housewives have become such a terrible show in s8.

Personally, I have always loathed this series. I find it over the top nonsense. It is so contrived, and the appeal of it completely mystifies me. All of Shonda Rimes' creations are exactly the same. Predictable, silly, melodramatic. I suppose that is the appeal. This is the type of series that does not require much thought. Perfect for today's mainstream audiences.

The announcer Parnell accused was Don Hancock.

An SOD issue from spring 1984 says Bradley Raines was going to be killed in the Dreaming Death story. Clearly that didn't happen. Do you know what changed the show's mind? Was he even a part of the story?

I have never heard this tidbit. According to Pam, in her original story outline Bradley was to have died at the hands of Lillian. As the story progressed, Pam felt that death was too easy an out for the character. She wanted the audience to see Bradley imprisioned for his crimes. The idea was that Bradley being forced to take responsibility for the abuse of Beth, something for which he could never atone, was a fate worse than death. Plus, Beth would be given the opportunity to confront her attacker. I wonder if SOD simply made an assumption or if a false plot development was leaked? I really cannot see Pam writing such an end for Bradley because the sexual abuse story was taken very seriously.

According to an interview with Doug Marland, in fact, Potter rarely enjoyed the stories he was writing for GUIDING LIGHT -- which is ironic, since, next to THE DOCTORS, it's practically his greatest success as a producer.

True, but Potter was EP of The Guiding Light for many years prior to Doug coming on board. I believe that Potter had a better working relationship with the Dobsons and was happier with their stories. Personally, I tend to agree. Despite some good moments under Marland, I preferred the Dobsons. I wonder how different things would have been had Marland remained at General Hospital, where, in my opinion, he did his best work, and the Dobsons stayed at GL.

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.

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.

Thanks for the Ann Williams article. She was a class act. Her real-life soap was more heartbreaking than anything a writer could contrive. Reading this article, it is so sad to consider what her future would bring.

Did anyone else think Susan Keith was better as Cecile than Frangiore?

Yes, they did. We are in the minority, but some of us prefer serious Cecile over camp Cecile. For me, she was tolerable during her first year, but once the writers highlighted the "humor" mentioned by Carl, I changed the channel to Guiding Light. Tony the Tuna, Cass in drag, Cecile dressed as nun, that was not Another World to me. Granted, I became an AW viewer during 1968, which was truly the best era of the soap. It was just superb, so what it devolved to in the mid-80s and 90s was mortifying to me. God bless the vets who hung in there. They were only the reason I continued to tune in occasionally.

Personally, I never cared for Frangione in any of her roles. I loathed her as Tara on AMC, and I was unhappy when she was cast on AW. The reprehensible treatment she and Chris Rich inflicted on Laura Malone did not endear me to her either, so perhaps I am somewhat prejudiced.

That sounds like a great set of scenes. I'm sorry the show didn't do more with Kathleen Cullen's talents - she is one of those actresses who could play such a range of emotions in a subtle way, but you know exactly what she is thinking.

I do wonder if he didn't quite know what to do with the character - didn't he inherit the story of her being Alan's daughter, or did he come up with that?

The stalker story which is online is something I enjoy watching but I can't say it's a hallmark of writing or acting (the late ClassicGL went on about how hilariously campy Jennifer's brother was). That seems to be a peak of some type of Amanda bitchery.

I'm surprised at how long Eve lasted. I guess she was on for, what, a year, a year and a half, after Rita left? Even before Rita left it doesn't sound like she had a ton of story. Eve also seems to have had few ties, besides Rita of course, Ben, and Ross. I wonder why they kept her at the charity shop and didn't have her as a nurse or something along those lines.

Yes, Doug inherited Amanda's parentage from the Dobsons. That was one of their final storylines for GL, going to broadcast just a month or two before they left. My comments were not a swipe at Doug rather an observation that I found Amanda particularly obnoxious during that era. From a character standpoint, her behavior made perfect sense. I like to compare her to ATWT's Lily. Remember how Lily reacted when she learned the truth about Iva and Josh, and then later found out that Lucinda was responsible for Holden's amnesia? Every day she was upset and lashing out at someone about something. Well, Amanda was the prototype for Lily. Just as Lily evolved and became more likeable when she met Damian, so did Amanda with Mark. And, that story happened within a month or so of Doug's departure, so perhaps it had been planned by him all along. I do know that PFS wrote the scripts, regardless of whose idea the story was.

I thought it was a big mistake to write Amanda, Jennifer, and Mark out. That is another plot development of which I am unsure. I do not know whether or not Doug intended for Mark to be bad, or if later writers made him Samuel Pasquin in order to get rid of him. I do wish that they had all remained on the canvas longer.

I am unfamilar with "the late Classic GL", but the person is correct about Jennifer's brother Chet and Bill Herndon, who played him so over the top.

Yes, PFS created Company in one of the most bizarre accidents on daytime. It was surreal to say the least, but they certainly got a good deal of mileage out of it.

Here's an Ed Bryce interview from an August 78 Digest.

Thanks for this article, Carl. I had not read this. Considering Ed Bryce's apparent ambivalence toward the story, I wonder if this also played a part in the story being resolved so quickly. I had never really considered it before, but it was quite bold for the Dobsons to create a story in which Bill's actions were indefensible. It was unusual for that era, but then again, the Dobsons were unusual writers.

What was the oil rig material with Amanda?

I was also going to ask, what did you think of the show between the time Marland left and Long arrived? I know Schemering said L. Virignia Browne brought the ratings up during her tenure. Did you think anything interesting was going on? All I know of this time was the endless saga with Mark and Rebecca and so on.

In the autumn of 1982, Amanda and Mark went to Spain on business. There were Spaulding employees on an offshore oil rig, with a storm headed their way. Mark and Amanda thought they could get the jet there to collect them, but the storm picked up speed and trapped them all. This was an odd story. In my memory, it lasted for weeks, but perhaps it was only seven or eight episodes. What stands out is Kathleen Cullen's performance. I had never cared much for Amanda, particularly under Marland. The Dobsons created her as a sheltered and easily manipulated young woman. Doug changed her into a bitter, vindicative, neurotic, who severely tested my patience.

When Pat Falken Smith took over, the tone changed. However, she and Marland were very different writers. Marland had a stock of character types and situations that were perfectly suited for his storytelling, but not for for Smith's, and she didn't seem to know what to do with anything. I thought her work was excellent on Days and GH, because those serials lent themselves to her style. Her work at GL was similar to her equally disastrous work at Ryan's Hope, because both of those shows were out of her element.

With the oil rig story, though, something worked. Amanda became the caregiver and the comforter. She disregarded her inhibitions and fears and allowed herself to open up to Mark Evans, who was her stepfather. It was a very low-key event, despite the element of danger. Unlike today's soaps, where the rig would have caught fire and blown up or been hit by a tidal wave or stormed by terrorists, PFS wrote a very gentle story about two people discovering one another, and to their chagrin, falling deeply into an unexpected and very forbidden love. I thought that Amanda became a fully realized character at that point. Stronger, more confident, and a woman instead of a little girl or a victim. And, it added an interesting dynamic to the story because Jennifer had spent years attempting to gain Amanda's love and acceptance, and now Amanda had done something for which Jennifer might not be able to forgive her.

Pam Long/Richard Culliton killed off Bill, I think.

What always confuses me about fan reaction to Bill's return is that from the 50's and 60's stuff I've seen, especially the 60's stuff, Bill seems like a very weak man. I think leaving his family was perfectly in character.

I agree, Carl, but as I stated, I was not a fan in the 50s and 60s; therefore, I did not possess the same emotional investment that others did. As a relative newcomer to Springfield, I enjoyed the story very much and was unhappy to see it end. It was all about the Bauers. What other soap had a 60ish matriarch caught up in a triangle between her presumed dead bigamist husband, and her new interest, a 60ish doctor? It was great.

Bill and Bert always shared such a complex relationship. Remember, in the beginning Bert was portrayed as somewhat of a shrew and nagger. Her criticism and discontent helped precipitate Bill's alcoholism.She was not the warm, fuzzy matriarch in that era. Reuniting them in the 70s could have carried the story for years with thousands of different complications, particularly since Bill betrayed the family in a way that cut to the bone. Imagine all the scenes they could have written for Charita as she experienced an array of emotions. That would have carried over to the remainder of the family. I recall that Ed was furious that he was the last to be told, and Mike had confided Bill's return to Rita months before. This caused Ed to fall off the wagon and could have a created a huge rift between brothers, similar to the one they had in the 60s. And how would each of them react to Hillary, a lovely girl who was an innocent victim? There was so much more to mine from it. I remember one interesting plot development that arose was the fact that when Bill was presumed dead in the accident, Bert received a death benefit from his insurance company and used that money to pay off the mortgage on their home. When Bill returned in 1977, the insurance company discovered what had happened, and they wanted Bert to pay back the full amount. Of course, she did not have the money. Before the plot wrapped, Bill came up with the cash for her, but it is one small example of how ingenious writers could have devised numerous complications with very strong emotional reactions. It is too bad we never had the opportunity to find out. I suppose many viewers simply could not tolerate warm, infallible, grandmotherly Bert being subjected to something as tawdry as bigamy

Fascinating discussion.

One question that I hope someone will answer.Were Hillary and her brother (Paul?) the biological children of Bill? If so ,how was that explained? I thought it was stated onscreen that Bill had been gone for about 10 years.Am I mistaken? Hillary was supposed to be early 20's when she arrived,so was it actually stated that it was more like 20 years?

Or had Bill and Simone been carrying on this affair during his previous time on the show?

Which writers killed off Bill? Did Ed Bryce want to leave,or was it thought to be a dramatic plot for the show?

Paul, I am not sure which writer(s) disposed of Bill. Although family members watched TGL, I did not. The NBC soaps were my shows in the late 60s, and I preferred CBS' house soaps over the P&G ones. I became interested in ATWT in 1972. GL was something I watched very sporadically from 1974-76. It became a regular program for me in 1977. Although it was the last of the venerable P&G soaps to capture my attention; ironically, it became my favorite and the only one I watched consistently until its demise.

The story with Bill was confusing. I knew that he had been "killed off" in 1969. When he returned, the story began with the arrival of Hillary. Hillary was Hillary Kincaid. She referred to her mother and stepfather, who lived in Vancouver. Simultaenously, the Bauers began to reference their late patriarch Bill. When he had been mentioned three times in the space of a week or two, it was obvious to me where the story was leading.

Hillary had a close relationship with her stepfather Bill Moray, because he had married her mother when Hillary was still a child. I believe that it was stated that Bill had been gone for ten years (though it was eight in real time). Hillary's biological father Victor Kincaid had been killed shortly before Simone married Bill, and Hillary attached herself to her new stepfather, who was very loving and kind. For a few weeks, Bill was shown on camera in phone calls with Hillary, but Ed Bryce had a beard, and he was always shot at an angle or shadowed so that the audience could not fully see his face, which was another giveaway as to his identity.

After Bill had been revealed to the audience, Mike flew to Vancouver to confront him, because at that point, the circumstances of how he came to be alive after the plane crash and why he did not contact the family had not been disclosed. The Dobsons played every aspect of it as a mystery, which totally hooked me. If my memory is not failing me, the eventual explanation was that Bill had never been on the Alaskan airline. The Dobsons somewhat retconned history by having it turn out that Bill and Hillary's mother Simone had been lovers for many years. Bill was leading a double life with two families. He used the Alaskan trip as an excuse to spend time with Simone and their family. When the plane crash was announced, Bill saw an opportunity to close his unhappy life in Springfield and stay with the family that made him happiest. Having not watched GL in the 60s and 70s, I did not notice how the plot might have been implausible due to established history (did Bill really have two families and also carry on with Maggie Scott?).

But, the story did not end there. Bill had not been completely honest, even in his confession to Mike. It was later revealed that Bill had accidentally killed Victor Kincaid. Kincaid knew about the affair, that Bill had fathered Hillary, and that he had another family in America. He used that to blackmail Bill, and in a physical confrontation, Kincaid fell, hit his head, and died. Bill was to go on trial for murder, but as the result of intensely negative viewer reaction, the story was truncated. Discrepancies were noted in the autopsy report that contradicted Bill's account of the death. Kincaid had actually been murdered by someone else. Hillary learned that Bill loved her so much because he was her real father. It was at that point that she had her name legally changed to Bauer, and Bill left town.