robbwolff

There's so much talk about the show becoming Reva-centric, but I always felt that Guiding Light became Reva- and Beth-centric during those years. The never-ending focus on those two characters caused me to lose interest in the show and prompted me to give Santa Barbara a chance.

I'm not sure which remote you're referring to, but I'm pretty sure Quinlan started adding remotes sometime in the summer of 1979. There was a remote involving a dying Sara Dancy Powers in a park. And then Steve and Carolee were seen walking to a helicopter during the tornado that ravaged Madison that fall.

It lasted about 6 months to a year. I recall one of the characters was named Francesca. I believe she was the femme fatale. Plus there was a Black couple -- Jamie and Julia Scott, I believe. I think he was a cop and she was a nurse. I was always amused by that couple's names as The Edge of Night had infants at that time named Jamey Swift and Julia Scott.

Franz and Saffron were head writers longer than one month. They were still head writers when James fell from the plane in October 1983.

Was there much about Carol in that version of the AMC bible? Knowing that Rosemary Prinz would only play Amy for six months makes me curious about what Agnes Nixon may have had planned for Carol.

No. It's Christopher Durham.

Not to go off-topic, but "Whatever We Imagine" was used for Hope and Bo. A number of popular songs were used for the couple besides "Tonight I Celebrate My Love for You," including Bonnie Tyler's "Holding Out for a Hero."

Who is Scarlet? I have no recollection of a character by that name.

Johnny Bauer was actually a Mary Ryan Munisteri creation as he arrived around June 1986. Sheri Anderson was responsible for Johnny's dreaded sister Lacey who arrived in June 1987 and was gone by August.

A few characters are phased out during the L. Virginia Browne/Gene Palumbo stint, which pretty much runs from early December 1982 to early March 1983. Then there's an interim head writing team with Carolyn Culliton, Richard Culliton, and Gary Tomlin for a couple of months that sets the stage for the arrival of Pamela Long Hammer. They wrap up some storylines and introduce Annabelle Sims, who will be a major player. Then the big changes start happening in May 1983. Beginning in May, about 10 contract characters are written out by the end of the year, while 12 new contract characters are introduced. I had only been watching Guiding Light for about a year when the changes started, but some of the decisions made are truly mind boggling. And the departures continue thoughout 1984 and 1985 with another 12 contract characters who were on the canvas in 1982 being written out.

Thanks for sharing this! It was such a joy to watch. I was impressed by the large cast and the set. I actually loved the window backdrop in the courtroom, with palm trees visible right outside the courthouse. And it was fun to watch these vintage commercials too.

Judi Ann Mason was at Generations from the start. Her name appears in the credits for the first episode. And Frank Dandridge appears in the credits for two early May 1989 episodes posted here in recent days.

I believe the singers were Roberta Flack and the late Billy Chinnock, whose song "Somewhere in the Night" had been the final theme song for Search for Tomorrow.

I recall Carolee was raped by the character portrayed by Robert Burton. But wasn't she also raped when she was in NYC, leading to her catatonic state?

I want to say that the reports of the planned Helsinki location shoot took place in early 1982 -- around February. From what I saw on the AW Home Page, Hugh Marlowe last aired as Jim on April 30. Marlowe died on May 2. And then Steve went to open an office in Finland the week of May 10. I suspect that the plan was for Rachel to join Steve in Finland and for them to become closer there.

If I recall correctly, Jim was said to be in Helsinki, Finland at the time of his death. I also recollect that AW had planned to do a location shoot in Finland in 1982, but it was scrapped for some reason.

Even though I've frequented this board for many years, I wasn't completely familiar with the whole Virginia Dwyer story. So I'm personally grateful that this subject came up over the past few days.

Actually, Linda's first role was on OLTL, not ATWT. Gretel Cummings appeared in the late 70s. Then, from 1981 to 1982, she played the role of Cynthia Haines on ATWT.

Kobe was already producing by that time. She was an associate producer on Return to Peyton Place, which aired from 1972 to 1974. I think she was then producing at Days of our Lives and The Edge of Night.

Texas did location shoots on occasion after the first few months. In 1981, there was an action sequence involving Ryan, Joe, Elena, and Peter Parnell at a zoo. In 1982, we saw Reena and Grant in Palm Springs and then the climax of the Hitopah adventure with Brette, Rikki, Joel, Gretchen, Mark, and Ruby.

Thanks for sharing that! From the synopses on the AWHP site, the day Rachel spoke with Iris, she and Matthew decided to go to Northwestern to see what they could learn. A week later, the synopses say Matt came back with Matt's records that showed he didn't graduate from Northwestern.

I just watched the scene. It's absurd that Rachel had no idea that Mac had gone to Northwestern University for graduate school.

Thanks for sharing this! What a treat to watch this and to see Jada as a child. What really struck me was the announcer inviting the audience to listen to The Secret Storm during the closing credit as opposed to watch it.

I'm thrilled to see a woman back as a head writer. It's been nearly 5 years since a woman has been head writer of a soap.

I've been watching old episodes of Guiding Light lately and there's a June 1982 episode available on YouTube that features Amanda at the mansion on the Wexler estate and Jennifer is living in the cottage on the estate. The house is specifically referred to as a cottage, not a carriage house. In that episode, a shirtless Mark Evans descends the staircase in the cottage and Jennifer reveals to Amanda that they were married in Paris that day. In the same episode, we also see Carrie and Ross in their carriage house as Carrie attempts to flee Springfield. If I remember correctly, Ross and Carrie's carriage house was located next to the Kennedy house as Carrie seduced the Kennedy's teenage son Ron. Perhaps the carriage house was part of the Kennedy's property. I started watching in April 1982 when Texas was shifted from 3:00 p.m. to 11:00 a.m. I recollect that one of the stories at that time involved Alan and Hope moving from their mansion into a smaller house while Floyd Parker, who was embarking on a career as a rock star, moved into the Spaulding mansion. Floyd's career tanked later that year and I believe Alan and Hope reclaimed the mansion.