j swift

It would have also been hard for his long lost son Nick to look him up. It's amusing how some story heroes had questionable morals. Michael Hudson, Mac Cory and Russ Matthews all abandoned women pregnant with their children and then sued their current spouses for custody mostly due to spite.

I was reading today's AW recap from 1981 on tumblr and it occurred to me that Clarice Hobson had an entire family for two years. Two brothers, Denny and Leigh as well as her father Charley. I clearly remember Leigh because he was played Chris Knight from the Brady Bunch and that was a huge deal to me as a child. However, in re-reading the family's history two thoughts come to mind. First, Denny seems almost like a re-cast for Leigh. Leigh came on as a bit of a schemer, was coupled with Sally but, was basically a good guy and left town. Whereas, Denny came on a schemer, was coupled with Sally, and then turned out to be a more interesting bad guy (mostly due to the actor James Horan). Second, I know each writer wants to create their own history but, it would have been interesting if the Hudson's were really Hobson's but the Hobsons flee Bay City just like the Halloways. Micheal and John never seemed to have historical ties to Bay City, despite living there through high school. Having familial ties to Clarice would have been a nice touch.

MJ is certainly one of the missing pieces in the Kevin Anderson story. As a cop she would have been an interesting part of the Jake's cousin as a DA story.

Stacey Winthrop was a character that fell between the cracks. During Cass's dramatic final few years in Bay City there's nary a mention of Stacy (or her Beast-ilke lover). I was never a Mark Singleton fan so I appreciated when Stacy returned as a single gal. The UK soaps are always good about having out of town relatives phone an excuse before a wedding but people become estranged when they live Bay City.

Mr Frons gets unfairly treated by soap fans. I believe it is because the soap press was more likely to interview an outgoing producer with gripes about interference rather than reporting on soap storylines that benefited from his experience. SFT was a shadow of it's former self, the audience at the time did not value it's longevity, and some characters can not sustain for more than a generation. Lest we forget, Mr Frons is the last network executive to commission a new soap so, I think it may be time to re-evaluate his role in soap history.

I disagree. I think the outdoor production stuff in a limited setting was interesting and far more evocative of the the UK soaps than The Hills. However, I think they should have just cancelled GL and let her experiment with her own show. For me, as an 80's viewer, it was too jarring to see Reva, a woman who came to town with a trunk full of turbans and personal maid, start to live in a cabin in the suburbs. To be a bit reductive, the late 90's and early 00's were filled with writers and producers who would have been better off starting with a clean slate rather than trying to make a soap into something it wasn't. Soap fans are forgiving and stars move from show to show. If Ellen Wheeler or David Kriezman were allowed to create a show from scratch, experiment with the setting and cast soap veterans it may have been more successful. Yet, as the saying goes, if my aunt had a smeckle she'd be my uncle..... and if networks were willing to let creative people produce content in daytime then we would have more than four soaps.

Excellent point, Mary's growth is the one part of that story that I can appreciate Another excellent point, I hadn't thought about the fact that Michael wasn't there for the birth of the twins (or triplets?) and I haven't done the math to see how long Mary worked in the house before she hightailed it to Paraguay. Two points from my re-watch, when Mary-Marissa was first shown in South America there was at least some initial conflict. Mary-Marissa believed that her husband was funding her charity work and that was important to her. She seemed sophisticated and comfortable in her role as an ex-pat socialite. The scenes in her villa prior to arriving in Bay City only lasted a few episodes. I guess that's what drove her to further her education? However, I do not appreciate that Mary never got a financial settlement from Reginald. It was seen as a character building exercise for Mary that she refused Reg's money but I reject that narrative. Reg stole many of Mary's good years and she deserved some cash for her troubles. What story brings in MJ? I read that she dated Stephen Yate's Jamie.

OK, but wouldn't Peter, Donna and Michael have known Mary and therefore mentioned her to MJ or Ben? The lack of Michael and Mary/Marissa connection is what really bothered me. I get that Donna and Peter might not have paid much attention to household staff or recognize a maid sixteen years after she left the house. However, Reg knew Michael had impregnated Donna so, why wouldn't Mary have known him as well? Mary's complicity in Reg's plans for Donna's twins seems like a large plot hole in that tale. Which is why I wondered about a writer's strike or some other change in production that seems to have derailed that story. In my own take on the story I wish Mary had been a GL-Diane-Ballard-type who was always loyal to Reg, even at the expense of her family, and then by reuniting Donna and Michael she found repentance and returned to Vince. However, running off with a guy for 18 years to South America and living in a villa never seemed to impact Mary's decision to live about a bar with a husband that changed faces three times.

I appreciated the redesign although I preferred the outdoor/indoor look of the first edition. The problem with the second set was that by that time in the story very few characters lived in the Capwell house. Ted was gone, Eden lived with Cruz, and Kelly had her own place. As a result, we didn't get a lot of scenes with the whole family in one room. Although the 'dinner party from hell' takes advantage of the staircase to give each actress a great entrance. I don't get why they never expanded the Lockridge estates beyond the living room? In 1985 the Duvall's get a bigger set than the Lockridges. However, I do appreciate the glamour that neither family ever gathered in their kitchen. John Conboy made beautiful shows but for me the value placed on sets and costumes didn't jibe with more intimate or character driven stories. Two story sets are meant for dramatic exits, spy stories, and women dragging long scarves across the floor. However, those sets aren't good for the long two person talking scenes that, for me, are a hallmark of vintage soaps.

Ep 191 - Did they eat Kelly's candy necklace after Marcello ruined dinner? Laughed out loud when the whole family dismissed Gina. I also like that Kelly tries to appear down to earth but still expects Rosa to unpack for her.

When Jennifer Richards came out at the trial as Jean Marie, did anyone know about it before the trial? It looks like Nola knew but I can't tell.

Who wrote the Mary McKinnon/Marissa LaSalle story? Do we know why they made the new family McKinnons and not McGowens or any other legacy family since Jake had already left the show? Is it a plot that got disrupted by a writer's strike? Because for a story about amnesia it has a ton of exposition!

I think it would have been very 90's to name it after the loft building, like "75 Bleeker St." or an intersection like "'Prince & Charming"

Maybe but, it would be funny if at Christmas they showed Rosa going down to the tunnels because that's where she's stored the decorations over the years.

Channing's tunnel love den set cracks me up. There's a door that doesn't seem hidden, inside there's electricity that nobody seems to be paying for, and 10 year old book of photos of Channing and Lindsey. No bed, no floor, and no furniture. 1. Who erected the door? Just once don't you want to see a soap story about the guy who builds the secret rooms, tunnels and mausoleums? I'm guessing that's a cash-only business. 2. Where's the tunnel exit on the Lockridge side? 3. Who took the pictures if both Channing and Lindsey are in frame?

I went back to watch the dive sequences with Lionel, Warren, and Summer. Amanda Lockridge the Ship was carrying paintings from Europe when an argument between Amanda's husband and his rival, (CC's grandfather) broke out near shore and sunk the ship. In 1984, Lionel and Warren dive for the treasures. It is assumed that since Channing had some of the coins from the ship, (which Warren stole back on the night of his murder), that Channing Jr and Warren had dove before but were not properly equipped. Channing Jr had the coins and was using them to prove that Sofia was with Lionel when she disappeared in 1968 (BTW I totally forgot that there was a nine-year period between Sofia's disappearance and Channing's murder). When Warren and Lionel dive they find some treasures which are displayed at the museum but not the art. However, at some point, someone got into the ship and put the art in the tunnels between the Lockridge and Capwell estates. Later the art was either replaced with fakes, (or maybe it was always fake?) and causes financial ruin for the Lockridges. [Side note:] 1. I watched Mason confront Lindsay last night. I thought it was so progressive that the story was that Lindsay had blackmailed Channing and Mason used that issue to manipulate Lindsay. I appreciated that Mason never threatens to "out" Lindsay. I also liked seeing that the State Street Bar (which stays open until 1am) is a cafe by day and drug den by night. 2. There is so much more violence than sex on this show! Marcello grabs Eden, and Gina is assaulted in the tunnels by Hank. Cruz and Eden seem to be the only ones getting it on, and they haven't woken up together in bed in two weeks! 3. Cruz's yacht is so cool. Somehow in 1984, there's a wireless computer and the fridge built into the wall. 4. I enjoy the Warren and Mason banter. This is the one Capwell/Lockridge relationship that really seems as if they grew up together as neighbors. Mason is always looking for a snack when he visits with Maggie the Cop and Warren and I think it's funny that he expects Maggie to make him coffee or serve a tuna sandwich.

2 questions: I was reading the Ultimate Soap Trivia book published before the end of Loving and they still refer to The City as LOV(heart) NYC; such a better name, does anyone know why it didn't stick? Maybe because it's hard to write the title in a publication? Did Lisa Peluso go away, get recast, and come back as Ava at some point?

I tried reading the French Santa Barbara site about the history of the Capwell/Lockridge feud but the translation isn't great But well before the love triangle between Lionel Lockridge - Sophia Capwell - C.C. Capwell, another story of impossible love had shaken the small world of Santa Barbara. Because everyone knows that the Capwells and the Lockridges are enemies since generations. Already during the time of Lionel's and C.C.'s parents, namely at the time of Emmett Capwell and Douglas T. McDonald Lockridge, their families were tearing. But at any time is discovered the object of their so tough hatred. I got it but, it may have been easier to read it in the original French. So tough hatred?

Ben McFarren and Alexandra Spaulding? Taking a second nip at the Spaulding tree of love? lol

It is interesting that Lionel Lockridge never got any siblings (I'm not counting Cassandra). In these episodes Minx is trying to get Lionel to get a job. So, we establish early on that the Lockridges are not business rivals with the Capwells. In fact, during the whole tunnel story it seems like the feud is based on being bad neighbors. I know Lionel slept with his wife but I wonder what other gripes CC has with the Lockridges? Did Warren play his music too loud by the pool? Did Brick block the driveway with the car? Did Minx leave the Christmas lights up too long? These seem like minor infractions for such a feud. If Lionel had a sibling who was more of a business rival to CC it may have kept the Lockridges more relevant. I also think it's odd since the Lockridge's don't have a dining room set that they are rarely in the same room. Laken and Warren seem cordial but they rarely hang out. In fact, I can't think of an episode where all five Lockridges had a discussion since before the earthquake. And I know that they disappear for weeks at a time in the next 50 episodes which is such a shame because they bring such lightness to the show.

What I don't understand is why Augusta never references her soon to arrive sister Julia when she meets Jack Lee? Isn't the whole thing that Julia and Jack dated but he doesn't recall because he's a double? Wouldn't Augusta know who Julia dated?

This is total speculation but one imagines that BM would have preferred an Alex/Mike/Roger triangle over Alex/Mindy/Roger - a star would always want to be the crux of the triangle not the older, less desirable one...

ep187 is so much fun - Minx, Lionel and Augusta are hysterical, Mason is really charming and fun, and they have the Flashdance soundtrack in the background of scenes. There is an odd amount of voiceover that seems so anachronistic now. However, Marcello is "counseling" Kelly in Bermuda and tells her "You have so much to live for. Your beauty, your charm and you are a wonderful companion." I laughed harder than at the Minx scenes. The only things Kelly has going for her is that she's nice at dinner? Also, how old is Marcello? Because at dinner he tells Kelly that she lost his entire family in "the war" which I assume is WWII but it is 1985? [Edit:] I just read the SB online site that Marcello was 10 in 1944 when his parents were murdered; so he's 50? And he's unusually close to his stepmother whom he met 16 years ago after Channing's murder when he was 34? Those Countess Armonti Cosmetics are amazing!

BY "good guy" perhaps I should have specified both Mike and Bill as their respective mother's favorites? It is interesting to me that these guys who were a little too old for their respective action stories of the 70's were never adapted to age later in the series. I am filled with memories of actors with hair dyed a little too dark, running around in safari leisure suits chasing villains. Of course there are actor issues but, I wonder if it is easier to keep a female character going (like Reva or Vanessa) than a male lead character? Most soaps had fathers and uncles who aged but I can think of few examples of leading romantic men willing to age into their roles and even be backburnered a bit without a recast.

I would like to offer the comparison of the characters of Mike Bauer and Bill Horton. Both were leading roles that did not age well with their shows and both left huge holes in their wake when they left the canvas. However, Ed Bauer and Micky Horton might never have aged into the avuncular characters they became (given their misspent youth) if their older good-guy brothers hadn't left town.