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I'm not 100% sure but I did read that somewhere. I think GH was the biggest reason why SB didn't do so well too. But I think it was around this time that NBC started to get tired of P&G and wanted AW gone, or at least be its sole owner.

Probably. Wasn't AW being blamed for SB's poor performance at the time by NBC?

I liked her work too. Her and Peggy Sloane's tenures were the last good ones before the problems (sabotage?) began.

I always thought that too, also that after a while she became more interested in creating and writing for Jenna.

I'm not sure but I don't think so. I know when Lucas first came in, there was a scene between him and Felicia where he thought Lisa was their daughter and he accused Felicia of lying to him about her, but I think she was always meant to be Felicia's niece. I think she was brought in as the focal point of the Sin Stalker story. The story was that the Sin Stalker had killed Lisa's parents when she was younger because he was so obsessed with her. From what I remember, Lisa left because she had just given up fighting for Jamie. I wish she had stayed though. I really liked the Lisa/Jamie/Vicky triangle.

Slick, this thread is amazing. Don't let anybody's random posts get you down.

Here's an example of what I mean when I said two different characters. I can't picture Eric Martsolf in this scene. Screaming and crying? No way, he'd be trying to fight the demons.

There was tons of potential for all of these characters, but by the mid 80's, the show was definitely more interested in writing for the Loves and the McKinnons, at the expense of the Matthewses, Ewings and Hobsons.

I know. It must really be a bad feeling to play a part for so long and then one day you're suddenly gone, like all those years you spent there meant nothing. I feel the same way about Jed Allan and Joe Gallison on DAYS.

I would love to see that happen, but at the same time I really don't want it to be cancelled.

They weren't written out. They just stopped appearing during the purge of 1986-87. Their last appearance was at Zane's funeral.

Clarice came into the show in 1975. She was the girlfriend of the guy that Iris hired to seduce Rachel away from Mac. She was the one who exposed Iris' schemes and Iris swore revenge on her. Clarice then started dating Robert and got pregnant by him. Iris then married Robert and threatened to take Clarice's baby from her if she told Robert about her pregnancy. Eventually, Robert found out, dumped Iris and left town. Clarice then gave birth and then met and married Gil's son, Burt. Eventually, they divorced and Clarice met and married Larry.

Of course he loved it. It brought the show from #7 in the ratings to #2

That's for sure. From what I've seen and read, it seemed like things moved way too fast, like she had no sense of pacing or characterization at all. And yes, it did seem like the show got very dark in 1982, plus that was the year that Alma was introduced.

Over 10 years since I first saw the episode and I still can't believe that Al Bundy shot Mac Cory lol I liked their relationship too. Cecile does scheme a little, but actually it's Jamie who messes up his and Sandy's friendship the most.

Sorry. Didn't mean to spoil it for you.

That's just what I think. When I watched the 1981 episodes on YT, overall I enjoyed them. I didn't like that Rachel suddenly had feelings for Mitch and left Mac for him, especially after everything they went through the previous year, but there were a lot of good stories at that time. But I always felt like after the hostage crisis was when everything just got so boring and the stories just got stupid. Restarting Rachel/Steve/Alice with a fake Steve and a fake Alice, Clarice getting raped by Jerry, Jamie's book. I wasn't a fan of any of that. L. Virginia Browne was headwriter in the first half of 1981, but sometime during the year, it might have been during the strike was when Corinne Jacker came in and just ruined everything. She was a playwright, not a soap writer and it could have been Rauch's attempt to find a new Lemay for the show. I'd love to find what was going on behind the scenes during this time. I know CJ was quoted in saying that she hated working on the show, but my question is why? Was there behind the scenes turmoil or was she just an egomaniac that thought she was better than soaps?

The last great moments of 1981. After this, the show just fell apart.

I always thought it was rape too. Maybe they were under the belief that controversy means higher ratings, which is some cases was probably true. I'm glad they revisited it years later and at least tried to provide closure. I think the one of the subwriters at the time was a rape victim herself, and admitted that she was never comfortable with the way GH handled Laura's rape. And though I do give props to Leslie Charleson for calling out how irresponsible it is for someone who commits a terrible crime to get away with it, I find a little funny considering the turn the show took when the mob was brought in. If only she knew what was to come lol

Yeah, I guess. I know NYC, especially the outer boroughs were not very safe in the 70's and the 80's. But the neighborhood that the studio was located, to my best of my knowledge, was always a safe one. It definitely is now.

Did Gloria Monty or Pat Falken Smith ever say in an interview or something why they chose to make it a rape instead of just having Luke and Laura have consensual sex at the disco that night?

Great interview! Thanks for posting! Btw, I love how all these actors complain about the commute to the AW studio (from Manhattan to Brooklyn and vice versa), like its so far and takes so long. Depending on where you are, what time you leave, it could take a half an hour maybe even less. As someone who does commute from Brooklyn to Manhattan to Queens everyday, I can honestly say its really not that bad, especially in the early morning. It can be bad, but it's not all bad all the time.

It's on my "to read" list. Just have a few more books to get through.

I think I may have said this before, but it's like the character of Brittany underwent a complete change under every writer. It was like they didn't know what to do with her. Thanks for posting! Always great to see rediscovered episodes.