Tyro

3 hours ago, Marissa Gallant said:

At the point when Lionel says nothing they've done was a mistake, everyone was still clothed. 

Anyway, they had to change their clothes from last night. They spent the night together, got dressed, maybe had a breakfast. Monterey is further from Santa Barbara than Carmel, it means that at first they decided to continue the trip but then start to argue again (maybe Lionel was too pushing) and Sophia put an end to it. I'm impressed how she screamed at him "Damn you!" No social distance at all. 

3 hours ago, Marissa Gallant said:

I will concede they were parked close enough to the marina. But it is also possible that she spent the night in a hotel and called Ted in the morning. Either way, after the yacht trip, Sophia was done flirting with the Lionel danger. 

She was definitely there all night. The detective was watching over them, and he reported to CC that Sophia left the yacht only in Monterey  

Did you see Sophia and Lionel spend a night together in 1990? The story when Gina made photo report about this and then blackmailed them?

In the morning they were going to run away from each other secretly and accidentally bumped  downstairs.  So typical Sophia and Lionel.

Wow, I missed Dylan cheating at the casino  I don't think that CC knew about... well, now I'm not sure 

I didn't say that santa-barbara-online makes mistakes in every article  I said that mistakes come across in articles about Sophia and people associated with her. Maybe Sophia isn't Lilian's favorite character, and she just doesn't remember and doesn't wish to rewatch Sophia's storyline. Maybe Dylan is her favorite character 

34 minutes ago, j swift said:

Was it ever revealed that CC knew the casino games were rigged or I am just assuming he knew what Dylan was doing?

Rigged? I hear about this at first time. Something like that could happened in any casino but as far as I remember Dylan was interested in good reputation. Brick and Amy would hardly work in a cheating place.

34 minutes ago, j swift said:

And was Haley protesting the opening of the casino or an off shore oil rig?

No, as @amybrickwallace said, this brilliant idea came with Lily Light) But she didn't exist when the casino was opened

We know nothing about Marcy but A openly demonstrates wishing to work with her again. I think he has contact with her. As for Kelly, I like Carrington as much as Robin, and she is back to soapdom. Nothing is impossible

2 hours ago, amybrickwallace said:

While it's great that Judith McConnell will be featured in a Locher Room episode, I don't get why Alan has yet to put together a SB panel. He's done solo episodes with A Martinez and Nicolas Coster. Heck, he even put together a Generations panel. Why not SB?

While it's great that Judith McConnell will be featured in a Locher Room episode, I don't get why Alan has yet to put together a SB panel. He's done solo episodes with A Martinez and Nicolas Coster. Heck, he even put together a Generations panel. Why not SB?

It's needed asking him  He is available on Facebook.

It seems to me that even the idea of reuniting the classic SB cast for a mini-series is not so crazy. Just need to hurry while most of them are alive. I see the problem only in the copyright holders. I mean, who holds the rights to the names and characters? NBC? Disney? Or is it not a problem at all to shoot several episodes with the SB characters no asking copyright?

4 hours ago, Marissa Gallant said:

Because a yacht is in the middle of the ocean. Or at least several miles from shore.

She's telling him to take her to shore, right now. That makes me think they are too far out for her to just hop onto the pier.

Well, well, well  What if I have proof they weren't in the middle of the ocean or even a few miles from shore? 

 The “good night” dialogue between CC and his private detective:

-Not much to report, Mr. Capwell. So far Lockridge’s yacht hasn't moved an inch. They still anchored off Carmel

-They both still on board?

-Yes, sir.

- !!!

CC is so upset because he knows Sophia has the opportunity to go ashore. Carmel is 190 miles from Santa Barbara. Not so far. She could have ordered Lionel to turn the yacht to SB (CC was definitely counting on it), she could have taken a cab. But she spends the night on a board of the parked yacht. It's like if she spent the night with Lionel in his apartment or hotel suite. CC understands what this means.

The next day they sailed a little further, to Monterey, and there was another dispute, and only in Monterey Sophia went ashore.

13 hours ago, Marissa Gallant said:

I just rewatched the Lionel and Sophia yacht scenes and I still don't think it went farther than a kiss. I do believe that the temptation was there. But if they HAD I don't think that Lionel would have backed off as quickly as he did after they returned. I think the different clothes are just because it was a different day.

In the evening Sophia was terrified. The next day she is  in the same condition. The question is: why do you spend the entire night on a yacht if you are so upset, feel discomfortable and can go ashore at any moment? That's illogical.

The answer is: in the evening Sophia was afraid of what might happen, and in the morning she was horrified by what had  happened  (It's a, it's a, it's a-a, it's a sin! )

She says: "This whole trip has been a mistake". And he answers: "Nothing we've done has been a mistake, not when two people love each other". It's more like talking about what happened on this trip than about their love in the distant past. 

You said correctly that Lionel wouldn't have backed off. And he really tried to fight for her. He immediately came to the Sophia's apartment (which he found and furnished for her) and said that she wouldn't run away from him. He followed her relentlessly in the casino. He gambled the all-or-nothing game with CC, he even fought with him! He didn't care how Augusta looked at it all. He made the choice! I so loved it.  And then the authors just dropped this storyline, as they dropped many other things, and switched to Lionel-Augusta and CC-Sophia relationships.

9 hours ago, j swift said:

Wow, it really was egregious!  Not only did she deprive her one of her grandchildren of the benefits of a good education and a relationship with his siblings, but she watched Warren get everything that Brick was denied.  It is a shame that Judith Anderson's poor health truncated that story because it could have been mined for years.

I don't remember the details, but Minx took care of a good education for Brick. Something related to finance or management.They knew each other long before his arrival in SB, Minx sponsored him openly since his childhood, allegedly because of some incident in the past when he saved her life in the circus. Lockridges were shocked to see that their driver deftly deals with accounting, while highly suspicious Minx absolutely trusts him. 

As I said, Warren took after his father and grandfather, who spent the inheritance, while Brick took after her. Minx really saw him as an heir, and she didn't care that he was illegitimate. She just forgot to explain the reasons to the rest of the family. 

They thought that Grandma had gone crazy or Brick had just somehow fooled her. They hoped that this new favorite would soon disappear as quickly as he had appeared. And here is Lionel's first reaction after Minx confirmed that Brick is her grandson: "It turns out that you seriously want to put him above me and MY children!" 

I hate that he firstly perceived Brick as a competitor for Minx money and secondly as something that unites him with Sophia. He will find his way to Brick as his son only in a year. Even CC, to please Sophia, offered Brick his friendship earlier.

Of course, Brick was more Lockridge than Capwell or Wayne. He was connected with this family from the very beginning.  And his role was significantly reduced after the Lockridge family broke up.

5 hours ago, j swift said:

Wait, if Lionel didn't know until 1985, then how did Minx know in 1961 when she switched the babies?

Minx bribed a priest who listened to Sophia's confession on the wedding eve. The irony is that Sophia was not a Catholic, and this aroused Minx's suspicion when she noticed her entering the church. Sophia had just found out that she was pregnant by Lionel and she needed to make a decision whether to abandon the wedding or go on to the end. The second variant meant that she will hide the fact that her child is not CC's (there was no intimacy with him before the wedding).

Minx knew Lionel was having an affair with Sophia, but she has never discussed it with him. 

Her first decision was to tell him about Sophia's pregnancy, obviously considering it as a priority. Maybe she preferred Lionel to divorce and marry to Sophia for their child. But she didn't have time, because Lionel informed her that Augusta was also pregnant. And the scales tilted  to the direction of Augusta because she was pregnant + wife, and Minx kept silent about Sophia. 9 months later she came to hospital to watch her  first newborn grandson. And there happened to be another newborn boy. Minx acted spontaneously. Switching was not by plan.

4 hours ago, amybrickwallace said:

You make great points, but I meant it would have made a great story to have Minx publicly shamed as a baby switcher and have the Lockridge family shunned from decent society. It certainly would have given Warren and Laken material; to see into their psyches. We would see ultimately if Minx felt true remorse for her actions or was only sorry that the cat was out of the bag. What might have been...

It would be a revolution in soap storytelling. Soap operas don't describe real life, but reproduce archetypal and mythical plots in the form of real life. All these twins, amnesias, switching of children...
I don't mean that everything that happens in soap operas is based on myths but there's a lot of mythological stuff.

Of course, kidnapping in real life is a criminal offense. But in soap opera switching of children is a repeating mythical element. In the legends this is job of evil spirits, fairies and other unprosecuted creatures  And in SB the changeling baby was taken from a circus family not by chance. It was well done.

Minx performed the function of a fairy (and she would never regret what she had done). If she were tried for this, it would be the overthrow of the myth, as if the laws of real life were applied to a fairy tale. I like it, it could be fresh postmodern solution, but unfortunately, the authors did not think about it. Only Amy started talking, but as I said, Amy looked like a earthly "black sheep" in the fictional world.

On 10/16/2021 at 5:14 AM, amybrickwallace said:

I think it was a huge missed story opportunity to not publicly shame Minx for switching Brick and Channing at birth. Can you imagine a class-action lawsuit filed by Sophia, Lionel and the Wallaces? It could have been the biggest Capwell vs. Lockridge story SB ever did.

Maybe such a story was in the works, but Dame Judith Anderson wasn't in the best of health to play it? I guess we'll never know.

I just watched these episodes. The idea to sue Minx belonged to the sensible Amy, although Wallaces were the most affected party. They were innocent and punished for nothing. The only consolation was the wonderful grandson Brandon. By the way, I was thinking about why they were never introduced to each other, Katie would be a wonderful grandmother.

The rest received their existential punishment or benefit, and everyone understood it (Sophia punished Lionel, Minx punished Sophia etc). And although this story was not personal for CC, and both boys were outsiders, he promised to punish Minx for kidnapping and fulfilled it. So it was  neutral CC who  became the instrument of retribution that Minx deserved. Full circle.

5 minutes ago, j swift said:

It make more sense that they were on the yacht, rather than on the beach.  It would be impossible for a little girl to see what was happening on the boat from shore, because a yacht that size would need to be miles from the beach in order to sail.  Although, one does wonder how they boarded the yacht without anyone knowing they were present?

The answer is "no way" 

If you were impressed by Lionel's encounter with Channing in 1979 and how shocked Lionel was to learn in 1985 that Channing was his son, then everything that was shown in the flashbacks in 1991 doesn't make sense.

The 1984 and 1991 versions are mutually exclusive. The most glaring difference is that in the early version Lionel didn't know that Channing was his son until 1985, in the version'91 he found out about it back in 1969.

It's a matter of choice, the 1984 version or the 1991 version. Many Eden's fans, for example, ignore the 1984 version and believe that in her presence Sophia told Lionel that Channing was his son. I ignore the 1991 version and focus on the original one. They are incompatible.

33 minutes ago, j swift said:

As for the characterization of the site as fanfic, I think we can forgive anyone for forgetting the details of a plot from almost 40 years ago.  It is still a great collection of magazine stories and character profiles, and I value the entertainment it provides.

Yeah, they have a great collection of magazine stories, interviews, photos, critic reviews of that years. Also Nicolas took exclusive interviews with actors in our days. The site has the accurate dates of the characters arrival and leaving. 

It's just not worth referring to this site as expert at  storylines. There are a lot of factual errors.

1 hour ago, j swift said:

While the French site's translation is still amusingly over dramatic, I really enjoyed their new thoughtful article about the day of Sophia's disappearance.  It put into perspective all of the information that was derived from the event during SB's history, and where all of the major players were at the time of the event.  I'm so glad that they keep updating the site, it is a great resource that I find myself reading at once a month.

http://santabarbara-online.com/Sophiadeath.htm

Unfortunately, I cannot advise to believe the articles about Sophia on this site. I don't know if this concerns to other characters that Lillian writes about, but a lot of about Sophia, her storyline and her men is fanfiction. 

I assume that she tried to unite the 1984 and 1991 versions in this article, but she had a wrong knowledge of the subject.

The version 1984. Eden was not on the beach and nearby. Marcello wasn't a casual beach runner. He is stalking the Capwell family and, in particular, Sophia. He is obsessed with revenge and takes Sophia away to hurt CC. Lilian doesn't know about it.

Channing never hated Sophia. He didn't part with her ring (which he took away from Lionel because considered him unworthy to wear it).

Ted didn't welcome his mother with open arms. He disowned her almost immediately because he was afraid that her comeback would affect his relationship with Laken.

The version 1991. Eden was not only on the beach, she was on a yacht. Moreover, she was not alone but with Channing. The kids heard Sophia's confessions that Channing is Lionel's son.  Lilian  doesn't write about Channing at all.

3 hours ago, Marissa Gallant said:

The fire story was very well done. I don't think anything happened on the boat, she wanted out of there right after one kiss.

SHE DIDN'T LEAVE RIGHT AWAY.  She spent night there and left the boat next morning. Here is the chronology:

1. Sophia provokes Lionel (yeah!), he kisses her, and after a short resistance, she puts her arms around his neck. She is in a yellow jacket, he is in a suit

2. A private detective instead of "good night" informs CC that the yacht is moored, but no one has gone ashore. CC breaks his cane in a rage and goes upstairs. Before that, he had remained calm and confident that she would come ashore before nightfall. 

3. Lionel and Sophia show up the next morning. They aren't dressed like the day before - he is in a sweater, she is in a crimson blouse. Undoubtedly, she spent the night on board. And it's hard to believe that after Lionel's storm they fell asleep on a separate beds because Sophia was too lazy to go ashore previous night.  If she had refused Lionel, she would have left immediately. She was always afraid to stay alone with him because she was losing control.

As for the fact that she's annoyed, it's typical for Sophia to pretend after sex that nothing happened. 

4. After the fire, she  fervently denied that anything had happened between her and Lionel (and it was truth). But now, after the boat trip, she makes it clear to Ted and Eden that it's none of their business.

By the way, she changed after that night trip. Whatever happened on the yacht, it restored her self-confidence. 

But it's a hurtful that the important part of the Sophia's storyline has been stolen from us. 

44 minutes ago, Soapsuds said:

https://www.soapoperadigest.com/content/judith-mcconnell-virtual-interview-scheduled/?fbclid=IwAR0UGNYRULjyuRqh2TRB2Qds65haNAKJVXCOc_Mdxo4j5cYYRsIfkE6wj6I

WAW!

I wonder if it is possible to bet somewhere that she will be asked about Dominique and half of the interview they will talk about this boring storyline, makeup, dressing up -  the period when Sophia herself didn't exist?  Please don't! 

Let's come up with questions that no one has asked her yet.

Ask her if she chose her partners? This is more or less known about Jed. But Chip Myers didn't succeed in casting for the role of Scott, and someone liked him so much that the TJ character was invented for Chip. Why was Stephen Slade recasted after 2 months? Who chose John O'Hurley? She was never asked about it.

Do you have some  unreleased questions to Judith?... 

17 hours ago, Marissa Gallant said:

Also, I can't see Minx preferring a starlett daughter-in-law. But who knows? 

Augusta came from a poor family with an alcoholic father and earned her bread by working as a model (that's how she met Lionel). The Hollywood starlet was a step up the social ladder for her son, lol.

They say that compared to Channing, Brick doesn't look like Sophia and Lionel. But I see that Brick looks like... Minx (and we know how important was the external similarity of the screen relatives for SB casting)  Lionel also doesn't look like his mother. Most likely, he took after Tiger and passed the Lockridge genes to Warren. But Brick was Grandma's grandson. I think she's seen her blood since Brick was a kid, that's why she took such gentle care of him. And after all, it was Sophia who gave birth to the grandson most similar to her.

On 10/14/2021 at 5:50 AM, amybrickwallace said:

Of course, Amy (for all intents and purposes the last remnant of one of the show's original core families) was too quickly forgotten once Kerry Sherman left. As much as I liked Kerry Sherman (who left SB and show business altogether while pregnant with her second child - her first pregnancy had been written into the storyline), I felt Amy should have been recast.

I loved Amy. She was a kind of earthly person who got into a soap opera from ordinary life. It was as if she kept wanting to ask, "What the hell is going on around here? No matter. Let's try to build a normal life inside of this." And Kerry's playing was very natural. I don't know who decided that normal life inside a soap opera is not interesting to watch. On the contrary, Amy and Brick gave credibility to this fictional world.

And in other soap operas, people are allowed to live a normal peaceful life? Without murders, divorces and rapes every two weeks?

1 hour ago, Marissa Gallant said:

Yes. They did. When Sophia first came back, Laiken confronted her and told her to get out of town several times. 

Ok, now I'll know it, because I definitely missed it. The first 200 episodes of SB weren't shown on Russian TV, and I watched 1984 on the Internet partly. 

Our "Santa Barbara" began with a trump card - the investigation of Channing's murder. I started watching, being sure that this detective film would end soon.  Well, the format of the "soap opera" turned out to be a big surprise.

The very first season seems to me quite soapy, especially in acting, so my TOP seasons are:

1) The season 1986. Acting became more natural, the quality of the script was still high, Sophia and CC were one of the main couples, although, to my taste, their reconciliation was blurry (perhaps someday we will discuss what it should have been)

2) The first half of 1990.  I returned to watching after a 1.5-year break because Sophia finally got her own storyline, acting was outstanding, directing and cinematography were amazing, new screenwriters by inertia wrote well and wittily. It was SB's swan song, after the triumphal Emmy Award ceremony it flew down towards the inevitable end.

3) The beginning of 1987 as a continuation of season 1986, until the wedding of CC&S

4) The end of 1988 up to the Train New Year Eve. It was a absolutely romantic period for CC&S. Jed and Judith played themselves (I mean their friendship in real life helped them to act naturally in the romantic scenes)

5) The season 1985. I'm putting it lower because of Jed's absence. But Sophia was at the centre of the plot; there was high-quality writing, including dialogues; and of course there were Mary and Mason (my second favorite storyline).

If Jed hadn't come to SB, I think Sophia and Lionel would have been together, or at least they would have had a real romance. I believed in their love in the Fire story. 

What do you think happened between them on the yacht in 1986 (when Lionel took Sophia away after CC kicked her out of the house)?

2 hours ago, pdm1974 said:

The Sophia/Laken connection through acting could have been interesting.

Did Sophia and Leiken ever have any scenes together? I can't remember. 

2 hours ago, pdm1974 said:

I still remember a scene where Minx is trying to talk Laken out of becoming an actress by saying something along the lines of, "It was an actor that killed President Lincoln." And, Augusta had the great comeback of, "Minx should know. She was there."  The dialogue during the best years really sparkled.

Hahaha, thank you! 

"The curious case of Benj... Minx Lockridge" definitely deserves a prequel. I wasn't satisfied with the Cassandra story. At least there should have been another orphan in her place... No matter.

Sophia had told Minx bluntly in 1985 or 1986 that she herself had used the tunnel between Lockridge and Capwell houses and had no right to reproach her. It even seemed to me that Minx had an inexplicable sympathy for Sophia. After all, she was going to tell Lionel about her pregnancy and changed her mind only because he had announced Augusta's pregnancy. So if Augusta hadn't been pregnant, would Minx have preferred Sophia as a daughter-in-law?

And tunnel... What a pity that the secret of why the tunnel was dug between the houses of the enemies was never revealed 

I'm afraid, Jade was too stupid and empty to be Eve. It could have been more interesting with Leiken. She and Sophia almost crossed paths in the film business in 1990...

But the problem is that Sophia wasn't Margot type at all. She herself was fighting for her place in this world for most life.  I would like her to reboot successfully her career in cinema. But to become Margot, she needed to gain a foothold in Hollywood for at least another 5-10 years.

However we could find traces of this classic plot in SB.

1. Cassandra. Sophia was her childhood's idol, but it was Cassie who ruined her restarting movie career.
2. The Capwell's  dinner in 1991. Dobsons rewrote their story of how Sophia became CC's wife. This time she previously took Pamela as a model and transformed into her. 

(I prefer the 1985 version anyway)

3 hours ago, j swift said:

While we're playing "what if" -  how about if Phyllis Blake admitted to a wartime affair with the Count which resulted in the conception of Gina?  Ms. Blake's backstory was very fluid, so anything was possible.  And it would have made the rivalry between Gina's Jeans and Armonti Industries even more personal.

If we don't take into account that Gina was born in the mid-1950s, then... why not?

By the way, Sophia was born in 1941, that means she was 45 when 30-year-old Victoria Lane made Santa Barbara happy with her arrival. Look at Alicia Silverstone, Reese Witherspoon, Milla Jovovich, Kate Winslet, Angelina Jolie, Drew Barrymore, Eva Longoria, who are 45-46 years old today. Who can they be afraid of in their profession? 

I mean, having adult children didn't make Sophia old or aging. She was a woman in her prime.

Without a doubt, if Sophia was still a working actress, she would have wrapped Victoria in a curtain and thrown her into the orchestra pit. For a real fight, Tori had to be less melancholic than Kristen Meadows.

But Sophia has left the profession since she turned 20, and she held the position of the expert, not the acting prima donna. She had no reason to compete with Victoria. It only remained to become friends, lol.

But I'll try to develop your idea... It is really strange that the plot didn't work out the status of Santa Barbara as the residence of Hollywood stars. Both Sophia and Victoria couldn't be the only divas in this city. If the story had developed in the direction of glamour and the film industry, of course, Sophia would have taken a more important place in the character system (instead of "Oh,CC"/"Oh,Eden" technical support).

And the show would get more locations and plot twists. As far as I understand, in other soap operas a lot revolves around business issues, while Capwell Enterprises looked like a fictitious company for the first 5 years, because the working locations were mainly the court, the police office and the restaurants. No matter what anyone says, I love 1990 for having the theme of film industry. 

The old count could have a real son he didn't even know about.  And this young Armonti could find out his origin, made inquiries about the woman who had received all the inheritance, and made sure that she had no right to it, because the marriage with the count was invalid! He could consider Sophia a fraud and start a war. But then...

*I made up a first name. I wanted Giuseppe, but couldn't remember how to spell it! Lol*

I had a sort of hallucination that his first name was Armando (probably by consonance, lol). I don't remember his name was mentioned.

*Charles Bateman as the count.*

Yeah, it could be. He would have looked better as a stranger. After all, the best thing he did was playing nostalgia for Sophia. As a lover, his CC was inferior even to Lionel. Their duet with Judith lost its charm for me during rewatching. Jed wrote in his book that the producers decided to recast CC precisely because Charles and Judith had problem with the chemistry (and now I really see that Charles had more chemistry with Linda). Jed was invited to enhance the romantic vibes between Sophia and CC.

No chance in reality but... Michael Caine? At least we know how he and Judith look together. 

14 hours ago, Marissa Gallant said:

Aw, new job keeps me busy. I thought people were tired of discussing Sophia. So, I sort of stopped. Tori just came to town and Sophia went to let her know who the Queen actress in town really is. I will say Tori is more annoying when you aren't ffing through her scenes.

Hurray!You're back! I definitely will never get tired of discussing Sophia.  And neutral viewers usually treat her well. She is definitely one of the most underrated and abandoned characters. I got a lot of pleasure reading in this topic the options for the development of her story.

And it always surprised me that every year the writers tried their best to come up with the characters' past, which they never had, but ignored the fact that Sophia's mysterious past in Europe was announced in the first season. No one ever tried to promote this theme, though the Italian mafia theme was brought up a couple of times.

*I also don't think Haley murdering Amy had long enough dramatic repercussions. The animosity that should have existed between Ted and Brick could have provided friction for the rest of the show! And it would have effected everyone. Which son does Sophia side with? Kelly, baby brother or older brother, who had her as his best man? Could have been a frickin GOLD MINE, but tptb were too short sighted.*

It's curious that Sophia didn't really know both of her boys well but she immediately sided with CC's son Ted. She helped to organize the wedding with Hayley so that she could avoid punishment. Brick was stunned by this. But here an interesting thing happened. Lionel came to the fore and became a real father to Brick, supporting him. In this drama, Sophia and Lionel solved their parental problems together for the first time. It was a difficult moment for CС. I'd like to look at it longer.

*There could have even been a recast Brick who comes back with a vendetta.*

Well, his little brother had strange habit of marrying Amy's murderers.  Johnny also could be brought back as an avenger.

*They could have had Count Armonti come back from the dead. That would have been interesting. Especially if they had landed a powerhouse actor to play him. Will Sophia choose CC, Lionel or  Rodolpho Armonti?*

Rodolpho? Is that the Count's real name? When did it sound?

By the way, maybe he was not so old? In the Armonti family, nothing is clear at all with their age and motivation. If the stepson is older than the stepmother, then maybe the foster father is a little older than the stepson. For example, CC could also adopt Marcello (as far as I remember, Marcello was offended that he didn't do this).

The Italian aristocracy is an incredible source of ideas for the plot! By the way, Marcello told Sophia that some people are waiting her back home in Italy. This means that there was someone else from the family who was not told about. The writers cast the bait, but didn''t develop the idea

As for Marcello. How could he devote half his life to Sophia without demanding anything in return? He wasn't a gay. He was a couple of years older than her. And he constantly gave her a massage (a typical reflex for those who liked Sophia as a woman - for example, CC and Stephen Slade did the same)! 

And she betrayed him in the end. So Marcello is nominated as the first candidate to return with revenge plans. Sophia must have her own personal maniac, like every decent resident of Santa Barbara. And I suppose, Katrina Ruyker was the first step to that.

I'm on duty in the topic

As for the departure of Louise Sorel, several circumstances converged here.

1. She didn't want Augusta to have an affair with Dash Nichols, which caused her sister suffering.
2. Paul Rauch was her ex, and they didn't break up very well
3. Bridget Dobson also disliked her for some reason since 1986 (when Louise left for the first time)

Therefore, Louise couldn't discuss the lame storyline with either Rauch or Bridget. She tried to talk to Jerome, but to no avail. And then she jumped over the heads and met with the network manager. And this caused a terrible scandal and a quarrel personally with Bridget Dobson. She promised Louise unpleasant consequences (backfiring). And as a result, her contract was not renewed.

This information is taken from the interview that Louise gave at that time.

All I can do is to refer to  Roscoe's article "Dirty Deeds of 'Soap' World Aren't So Funny", published in the "LA Times", June 24, 1991. He and Roberta just left SB (her last episode was aired a month later). 

* A talented but in the eyes of the producer "difficult" actress with waist-length hair agrees to cut her hair to chin length at the producer's insistence. The day after cutting it, she's fired.

He didn't name the producer's "victim", but I guess there's no need to be Sherlock. Judging by this quote, her dismissal came as a surprise and they both weren't happy about how it happened.

As for Born, he left on his own, he made it clear at the end of 1990 that he wouldn't renew the contract. I agree that after he left, Flame was no longer needed in the plot. But I don't know why the writers ignored the personal chemistry between the actors earlier. Obviously, Roscoe wasn't so interested in acting out love scenes with Carrie, because there was another woman on the set with whom he was really in love. Not only Quinn, but Robert, being a prisoner, also looked at Flame with eyes full of desire.

***

I've been reading you irregularly, but for a long time, since about 2012. I signed up now because a lot of SB fans have recently had the opportunity to rewatch almost all SB seasons, and your conversation is like discussing a show that is still on the air.  I'm looking forward to the return of Marissa Gallant, because if she needs someone who will always be interested in discussing Sophia, then here I am! 

If you'll have any questions about Russian resources dedicated to SB, you can ask me, I'll be glad to help.