titan1978

Thanks @Frankoand @will81! Can’t wait to spend time looking at it!

I agree Alicia did an incredible job. When I saw they were recasting Kendall I was really skeptical. But she nailed it, I didn’t spend a lot of time comparing them. However, Sarah played the nasty side with so much more visceral rage. Her Kendall was a nightmare for Erica. She showed us how broken and sad Kendall was too. SMG also was on a much stronger written era, a better overall version of All My Children. I also know network execs. The role is SMG’s if she wants it and agrees to their deal. I would be shocked beyond belief if she isn’t approached before anyone else for the role. Even if Kendall isn’t going to be a lead character, I would think she gets the call before anyone else. The question remains though- how does Susan Lucci feel about that?

What is Soaps of Yesterday? I’m blanking on it, and I would love to see this stuff being referenced!

Oh that is very sad.

I saw an interview with Genie where she said that Ceara and the incest story were presented to her in a meeting with Agnes, who had the story mapped out. It was one of the reasons she agreed to it after her stint on DAYS- that it was Nixon herself, that they had a specific character and a story ready.

How cool! I thought he was so handsome when I was a kid, and I loved him with Delilah.

The stories might have been ridiculous and the characters did become idiots, but people forget Reilly featured THE characters on the show. Some newbie nobody wasn’t possessed, Marlena was. And all the stories were rooted in romance and love- having it, losing it, wanting it. People also forget there was an evolution- they wanted the ratings of his last 18 months, but he had laid the groundwork of those stories for years. The show didn’t just become crazy for sweeps one year like everyone else tried and failed at. There was a long period of time between the experiment of Carly being buried alive and then the possession, and then the Secret Room. I didn’t think about it this way back then, not until Curlee complimented it in the interview Toups did with her, but Reilly was great at structure. The plots dragged on, but he kept the interest up with those mini-stories he would tell around the larger plots to build excitement. Back to ATWT- when Riche left GH, I hoped she would go back to daytime on another soap, and I though she would fit well on ATWT. I’m not sure why, it just seems like it would have benefited from her and she would have made a good fit.

People forget it wasn’t just cable that was drawing away the soaps audiences- the decline happened as the TV talk explosion happened. Which was truly the reality TV of its day. I know everyone I knew when I was a teenager watched Ricki Lake, and only a few also or only watched soaps. I think the issues almost always had to do with the quality of the shows declining. I think several things happened all at once. The shows got really expensive- the biggest stars were making more money. Everything explodes in luxury in the early 1990’s- I watched six soaps across all three networks and they were lush in the early 1990’s. I do think they had to up the production values at the time because they needed to stay current, but I think it added to their issues when the audience eroded. The shows stopped being strongly writer driven and became much more under the creative control of the producer/network/production company. Which was happening in prime time too- NBC’s must see tv period is full of instances of those shows dealing with empowered network people that used to leave them alone all of a sudden thinking they were part of the creative decisions on the shows. This was happening on the highest viewed shows in the country at that point, daytime was not going to escape this. The networks and production companies got rattled when OJ took away their audience, and panicked. They started chasing a demo at all costs, and drove out a lot of the talent that didn’t want to fight all the time about every story approval, or be forced to change gears mid-point, or have focus groups tell them who should be used in story. As early as 1998 or so it seemed like growing talent from within (especially writers) was no longer happening, in some instances because they saw how horrible it was dealing with the network. When things had settled down, they were not at their earlier numbers, but still had solid numbers. But everyone, network, soap media, everyone seemed to think all of a sudden they should be back at their all time highs, and because they were not it was over. Enter hack writers, serial killers, shocking storylines and killing off/firing vets.

I always love it when actors don’t trash their soap experiences. How awesome that she paid respect to both how hard she worked and also the benefits of the format for talent just starting out and props to folks that made it their living. I know some people legitimately had terrible soaps experiences. It just seemed for a long time it was always maligned, or never spoken about like it was shameful.

Sometimes I think her throaty voice covered up the times she went over the top compared to others, because she never sounds shrill. But in her defense, it was rare I felt this way, and Tracy is not a quiet character. What amazes me is when they get it so right. I can’t think of a single scene in the BJ’s heart storyline that I felt anyone went too far. Even folks like Tony, Frisco, and Felicia, who were not challenged by grounded dramatic material very often, really did good work. The scene with Felicia and Bobbie, when she realizes it was BJ’s heart that saved Maxie, could have gone way off the rails. But both of them had dramatic reactions to each other that didn’t go over the top.

It was outrageous, and I’m really happy she went public with it. The show is only good with both of them in it. This genre is filled with this crap too. It’s the same thing at GH with Genie and Tony. She spent almost all of her 1990’s era return fighting for parity with him- wages, time off, terms. And she describes it as a battle, and when she left under JFP she was tired of fighting. The only time I remember a huge hit show that’s an ensemble offering a woman more was when Julianna Margulies left ER. Rumors were at the time they offered her more to stay than the deals Anthony Edwards and Eriq La Salle ended up with when they re-signed their contracts, as all three expired at the same time. A lot more! Heather should have been the highest paid. I think I Larry Hagman deserved the most money from Dallas too- they both brought significant audience to these shows and attention. Now considering how much money Melrose made in demos, I think the rest of the OG cast deserved more money too. Even if it was a FOX show. People forget 90210, Melrose, and then X-Files made FOX a real network on par with the big three.

Yeah, it is shocking and her reaction is justified. It’s still incredibly over the top compared to the two other actors in the scene. She was a teenager and that is heavy stuff so I don’t think it’s a bad thing. It’s just so stark especially because Lisa Brown is so understated as Iva.

Oh my god!!! That was great! AAAAACCKKK

It’s funny watching the show now. I watched the show live as a youngish teen when it was airing, and I was all about Jake. Broody, moody, hot as hell Jake. I thought Billy was cute and all, but not like I lusted after Jake. Now I would much rather have Billy! Or Matt! Thankfully I have gotten over bad boys!

Lots of soaps had characters that were larger than life, but the great ones knew how to walk that line. On GH both Lucy and Tiffany could go over the top and had characterizations that were larger than life. But I always felt they managed to reign it in. Tony Geary used to be able too as well, until he became miserable shouty Luke during the latter JFP era. Lucinda on ATWT was forgiven for sometimes hammy work. For example, I never saw Larry Bryggman go anywhere near the camp of Hubbard. I also think Kim Zimmer steps over the line on GL quite often. Susan Lucci owns this type of thing. It might have been in character, but that funeral was totally campy and lacking in grief completely. I didn’t think so back then as much, but in isolation it really does scream over the top in a soap way. It could have been an Emmy clip from Soapdish. The scenes with Lily and Iva where she learns her parentage are so over the top from Lily, and yet Iva is there barely emoting, which creates this strange scene to watch.

I will forever hate ABC (Frons) for canceling AMC and OLTL, let alone at the same time. I truly wish they would have tried what many fans wants them to try- to make them both half hour shows and see if they could make a go on ABC in that format.

I liked the storyline I watched (before it was all pulled from YouTube) with Chelsea’s stalker. She really is stuck in soap ingenue role on GL from what I saw. Blair really gave her the chance to show what she was capable of as an actress.

I just don’t understand dates in soaps. Just don’t include it! A headstone could simply have the name and inscription, you could even wink at the audience with a plant or a vase filled with flowers covering the date born.

The infamous phone call luring Nina/Ryan/Victoria/Cole to the Colonnade Room. I even remember someone from the show being asked about that in soap mags and basically saying that’s not the story, just ignore this mystery element and focus on the quad.

When I watched the show again about a decade ago I felt differently about Blake than I had when I was a kid watching. I think there is ample evidence that Blake could be as ruthless as Alexis, and they probably had much more in common when they were married. I got the feeling that the children and Blake tiring of a home life as competitive as his business life did more to change the dynamic of what he wanted from a marriage. It even plays into how often he was shady and would repent because he needed to be a better man for Krystal. Alexis wanted to be an equal in all aspects of his life, and Krystal often deferred to him.

Thanks to the recent life in this thread, I just restarted from the beginning. I thought about starting when Jo arrives, but I want the whole experience again I think. Do any of us know how involved Aaron Spelling was in his shows? I have heard that on his classic shows- Mod Squad, Charlie’s Angels, Dynasty, 90210 and Melrose that he was really involved in casting, especially the initial casts, tone, and the look of the shows. And not so much in storytelling, outside of basic recommendations (like adding an antagonist to boost ratings).

Zimmer left as Curlee’s more ensemble vision was just kind of starting to take hold. I wonder how Zimmer would have felt coming back to GL under those terms? I remember how cocky she was when the show started to go up in ratings as it focused on her, Josh, and Annie in the soap mags. In her absence Holly, Nadine, Vanessa, etc had become major story driving characters, and they were pretty amazing at it. Jill can take plenty of the blame for her career on soaps. Maybe AW wasn’t all her doing, but as someone that watched her work on OLTL, GH, and Y&R as it was happening- she deserves the heat she has gotten on many occasions.

In all my YouTube watching, I really like Susan Moore. I kind of wish she hadn’t been killed, but I don’t see her leaving Jason with the Q’s and coming and going over the years. I read an interview with Mary O’Brian and she said they tried to get her back but she declined, and then they hired Robin as Heather. Which makes me think even more that Heather was going to have killed Diana, because Monty hated Mary’s portrayal and would never have wanted her back long term.

I thought of another one- the mysterious man with a Cassadine signet ring that was seen on GH, right around the time Stephen Nichols was released from DAYS, and rumors were he was going to appear as Stefan again. Then nothing as far as I remember. And Spencer hacking the election was completely dropped. Wasn’t he even being blackmailed about it? Laura doesn’t know if I remember correctly.

I also feel the first season is essential viewing. Michael’s arc is important to understand how he relates to Jane and everybody else, and the same with Alison and Billy. I strongly feel that because I watched it as it was airing, I fell in love with most of the original characters, which made the insanity they went through matter more. I feel the same way about Knots Landing. I love the early seasons, but the show doesn’t become fire until Gary and Val’s marriage blows up, and Abby takes center stage in her quest for money and power. But I don’t know that you care so much, especially about Abby’s machinations if you haven’t seen those early stories.