DramatistDreamer

Okay, it's taking longer than I anticipated but I've seen about 3 out of 5 of those episodes uploaded by Patricia Bruder-Debrovner. I hope she will upload more episodes, I like it when actors upload episodes of their shows, I know that Margaret Reed has uploaded some, mainly for reels but at least they looked like complete episodes. I know some soap fans are only interested in clips and character/couple edits but from a writer's perspective, I find it more informative and more immersive to watch full episodes. Mr. Big was quite... over the top. It's unusual to see a six and a half minute opening scene compared today's soaps where it's more common to see a three or four minute scene max before seeing the opening theme song. ATWT really made a conscious decision to indulge in these scenes. Brent Collins, Justin Deas and Margaret Colin did seem to be enjoying themselves, playing it up to the hilt as illustrated by the interplay--Mr. Big asking Tom & Margo "Are you lovers?" (it seems that Mr. Big could see into the future) and Margo's comment about cigars stunting one's growth and Mr. Big's reaction was amusing. Also Mr. Big's analysis of Tom and Margo's individual traits (spot-on) made me wonder whether, in some twisted way, was Mr. Big the conduit for bringing Tom & Margo together? Yet the pacing of the scenes seemed to drag, for some reason. Oh, and I would've loved if somehow some of these episodes could be digitally remastered to see if the colors could be made a bit more vibrant. The lighting is also dull, unfortunately. The incongruity of the BGM with the tone of the Mr. Big was highly noticeable but I guess it was a product of those post-disco times. Ellen looking for an apartment for herself? I'd like to see more. COMMERCIAL BREAK NOTE: Lauren Bacall was too good to be pitching some off-brand coffee. Karen and her genie style culottes is a "Lewk"! That scene of Karen 'on the couch' with the psychiatrist proves that Doug Marland wasn't the only writer who liked to put characters in analysis. That scene is positively minimalist compared to what today's soaps would do-- minimal BGM, no flashbacks, mainly a monologue full of introspection delivered by Karen which escalates into a combative dialogue with the shrink during her session. As amusing as Ellen's low-key hostility toward John was, his appearance in the nearly empty Stewart house seemed a bit contrived. If John wanted to know where David was, surely he could've called his office? Perhaps it was a ruse for John to snoop and taunt but it mostly seemed like a way to get out exposition. (*Gasps*) what was in Mr. Big's room? You know something I've noticed through these very early 1980s episodes? I see moments of tenderness, moments of subtle contention and low-key hostility (Everybody Hates Joyce) but I don't see much in the way of passion onscreen. I guess perhaps network standards and social mores for television might have dictated how expressive characters/actors could be with each other--at least for one or two more years to come. It was nice to see Nancy and Chris as a couple and not just the elderly grandparents that I would see them as right before Don McLoughlin passed in the mid 1980s, which was how I mostly remembered them together. Kim and Bob's scenes seem to flow and have a nice pace to them. I'm not sure whether this is owing mostly to the writing or the chemistry between Hays and Hastings. I'd chalk it up to chemistry and the actors setting a rhythm for each other. Strangely enough, I think Linda Dano would have been a better fit for the show down the road in the late 1980s and early 90s and beyond but by then she'd be well into creating an inimitable character on AW. Just as well, since ATWT seemed to have more than its fair share of standout women characters in Dano's age group. In the 3/31/80 episode, I like how the women are styled. Lisa looks very 'rich lady chic' and they even gave Ellen more of a bombshell look. Ellen looked more youthful when her hair was down or they just let her curls be free. COMMERCIAL BREAK NOTE: Sheryl Lee Ralph for a Pampers commercial. I'd recognize that smile anywhere! It was jarring to see Don so combative with his father Chris Hughes. I'm not sure what transpired between them but at the end of that scene, I felt sorry for Chris. His downtrodden expression said it all. So much of what I grew up seeing involved Lisa getting along famously with her ex-husband, so it's interesting to see them being sort of contentious in this episode. Speaking of Lisa- So many times I've talked about the great (combative) chemistry that Eileen Fulton had with Elizabeth Hubbard but I've neglected to appreciate the great long-lasting chemistry that Eileen and Colleen Zenk have. Lisa and Barbara have gone back and forth, from friendly and warmth to combative and sparring back to warm, loving and protective and the two actresses made it work. Still, it is a bit strange to reconcile these scenes of them talking as prospective mother and daughter-in-law knowing what's to come for Barbara and Tom. Also the fact that, for a while, it was a closely guarded secret that Paul was Barbara's (and James') biological son is turning in my mind--in a few years Paul's name would constantly be on Barbara's lips and James would become obsessed with having his son under his influence. Question: Had David temporarily lost his medical license or something? Why mining? Another Question: Was that gym where Brad, then Dee arrived to exercise a company gym? It looked awfully cramped! I would've preferred working out at home to that! COMMERCIAL BREAK NOTE: Theresa Saldana (does everybody know her story?) in a Kraft Zesty Italian commercial. By the way, the dressing looks like cloudy water, ick. I miss seeing the closing credits (was that Suzanne Davidson playing Betsy? If so, does anybody know what she looks like now?) but again, I'd love it if more ATWT alums would upload episodes to YouTube. As much as people might think there are a lot of episodes already uploaded, there are some fun and key episodes that have yet to be uploaded. We were just talking about this in another thread, how much people enjoy episodes like masquerade balls and big parties and weddings, etc. There are some fun 80s parties that I wish were uploaded to YouTube.

Since the very beginning of the tournament I suspected that neither Sloane nor Simona would get back to the finals this year. Just yesterday I was musing on the possibility of having two brand new finalists and lookie here! Madison doesn't surprise me--she reminds me of Lindsay Davenport at RG, can get to the 2nd week, but don't truly expect her to make it to the finals. I think Davenport mostly made it to the Round of 16 and QFs and to the SFs once or twice at RG.

Hm.

Only recently, did I find out the Melina Kanakaredes' middle name is Eleni! MK speaks fluent Greek so when she'd be murmuring in Greek, it was authentic-- she put so much of herself into that character! I do agree that they had no interest in the character after MK's departure, which is a real shame but had they looked hard enough, perhaps they could have found someone who at least had great chemistry with Frank Dicopoulos. The recast might not have been as perfect as MK but I got the distinct impression that they were going for just another woman, who kind of had ethnic features with long dark hair. They were focused on the wrong aspects. Perhaps they believed that lightning could not have struck twice, so they gave up trying altogether.

"Miss Thing" is exactly right. Speaking of trash people who keep potentially earth-shattering information under wraps, Pfizer should be ashamed not to at least fully pursue the possibilities.

At least TPTB were smart enough to appreciate what they had and actually wrote compelling material for them for a time. Betty Rea, who also did casting for As The World Turns, really know how to pick talent. Sharp and Long not only had wonderful chemistry with each other but they fit seamlessly within the group of college age/early 20s of Bridget (Melissa Hayden), Julie (Jocelyn Seagrave) and Dylan (Morgan Englund). It's a shame it had to come to an end. Glad you enjoyed that episode. I'm on a serious nightly GL binge everybody, and I can't seem to get out of it! I'm watching an episode where Nick McHenry compares Roger Thorpe to Rupert Murdoch. The episode

From what I've read, most people under 30 who live in China, don't know what happened in Tiananmen Square, it's basically been scrubbed from Chinese history. This sounds promising until you read the rest. There truly needs to be a Democratic majority in the Senate.

Speaking of the Grants, I was in the Best Soap Scenes thread and got caught up in David Grant and Kat Speakes and fell down a YouTube rabbit hole with some of these episodes and this one is particularly special because it features some really sweet and charming moments between the two and you guessed it-- Kat's first time. The chemistry between Monti Sharp and Nia Long is just 'off the charts' wonderful here. @Darn @DeeeDeeI wanted to alert you to this episode because it's pretty special.

Soleil Moon-Frye and Cherie Johnson remain close IRL so the show probably could get Cherie on the show as well. They could probably get a good number of the original kid cast to make appearances.

I thought everybody knew that Roland Garros, the French Federation of Tennis are an absolute mess. I mean, look at how they screw their own French players. Also the ITF is also a mess. They use players as a human shield rather than take responsibility. The tennis media promotes it because they revel in chaos and the attention they hope it brings to them. Even when they're wrong they still keep on promoting bogus stories.

Trump's tailor hates him.

Thanks @Errol. EDT: Yay, it looks like it's working for me!

The one time I put my hope in Sloane (I mean the only time) and that bruja fails me! Sis can go kick rocks!

Yeah, most of the people that I have on Ignore, I had all the boxes checked yet I'm still seeing their posts in threads. So add me to that list, lol.

Disgusting, is all that I can say.

Did anyone see this?

That Monfils/Thiem match was the worst of the tournament so far. Lackluster and joyless. No entertainment value whatsoever.

P&G soaps definitely had a fascination with bringing back their most roguish characters back from the 'dead' in the 1980s! I'm always fascinated by the careers of bit players on soaps, especially when soaps were at the height of their popularity, so it has been interesting to see actresses like Bai Ling and Sharon Washington (who played Karen Kennedy, a secretary at Spaulding) have careers that are flourishing. I had no idea that Bai Ling had appeared on GL until binge-watching some 1993 episodes.

Stephanie with Debbie Allen and Eartha Robinson, who also has a bit of a soap connection. Or at least she had been romantically linked with an actor, Russell Wong who was once on a soap.

FWIW, her role on the show wasn't really all that prominent in terms of a speaking role. She was really part of the all important dance sequences. Ironically, I think Stephanie was probably featured a bit more prominently when she was on the show because judging from this photograph, her character had dated Leroy at one time.

Don't know if these B&B promos were posted previously but oh my goodness. This B&B promo that takes place during an episode of Guiding Light is particularly amusing. When the announcer says "Yeah, right!" after Brooke's remark shows that even he's not buying her line.

You didn't know that?! She was a professional dancer before she became an actress. I believe I read that she did a stint in The Wiz. Yeah, both Jasmine Guy and Stephanie E. Williams are professionally trained dancers. Before Victoria, there was Stephanie.

In the British Parliamentary system, being the head of the party doesn't automatically mean becoming Prime Minister when elections come around. With the mess that the Tories have been creating, there's a good chance that the Conservatives could get dumped. Jeremy Corbyn is no prize and Labour have their own issues but their party is not the one that pulled the Brexit rip cord, so they have that going for them. And if things really become as chaotic as they are predicted to get, things will look even worse for the Tories. Some things I've learned from my time living/studying in England is that the Brits really hold onto their traditions and their history and their bitterness. A people who still invoke wartime language when speaking of Germany won't soon forget it if they are brought low by the Brexit aftermath. Speaking of being brought low, I am loathe to make any prognostications about politics (presidential or otherwise) but if Trump gets reelected, the U.S. will definitively be at the end of its time as any sort of world power. The two self-immolations that have happened in front of the White House lawn in the past two months will pale in comparison to what will lay ahead. I'm not prone to exaggerations (I said it was going to be life and death for many if Trump got elected, which has turned out to be the case) and I believe that it will be even more dire for many people.