Speed Racer

Say what? I don't remember a "golden temple" in Summer, 1982. Am I lost? Or a dunderhead? Was this Quint's intro? When was Nola kidnapped by Silas Crocker? And when did Gracie Middleton first appear as Nola's gal pal? My mental timeframe now is all screwed up.

Hey - wanted to draw everyone's attention to the name Lyle Sudrow (thanks, Paul). Sudrow was an on-stage participant in the 2002 celebration of GL's fifty years on television. He came on stage and his name was announced. I think that's cool as hell - that someone who appeared on the first televised episode of GL was on hand in 2002. THAT is how that kind of celebration should be done. I wonder how TPTB found Sudrow, or if he contacted them instead. His appearance begs the question: Why didn't GL have him appear on the show itself, alongside Meta. TPTB could've blown the minds of many viewers.

Unfortunately, that kind of story was never gonna happen with Reva in Springfield. It's why I gave up on GL. I, too, took Annie's parachuting out of the plane as my queue to exit. I'm not sure I would've had Holly pick up the bottle in response to Fletcher/Meg. I liked Holly best as a neurotic, which you don't often see on soaps. Further, Garrett nailed down "neurotic" with ease. Not easy to do. That said, I have no idea how I would have had Holly react. I haven't thought about it. Alexandra could be involved. Besides, the town drunk (for a while) should have been Phillip. He would have been a real, credible threat as a drunk.

I'm with you on this. Hulswit was great as Ed...and I think Simon was, too. A good many people liked Simon's portrayal. He was nominated for an Emmy at least twice, maybe even three times. I especially liked Simon when his Ed would get pissed off. Fun to watch! If you need some Ed/Simon support, you got it.

This was the only week of GL that I watched in 1999...I was home sick with the flu. Wiggin and Garrett had a very discernable, solid chemistry, and Garrett seemed to be really enjoying herself. I liked this a lot. Of course, any story of merit wasn't to remain in Springfield if it didn't involve Reva or the mob. I also watched about two weeks of 2002 (I think) when there was sudden market praise about a change of writers, and how rapidly things were improving. I witnessed Garrett and Simon having great, extended scenes together. Then, anything worth watching was quickly vaporized and I turned off the show again. Being insulted by "entertainment" is not something I stick around for. Show me some intelligence and manipulate the hell out of me, and I'll stick around as a viewer.

Is that online somewhere? I remember being very impressed, but remember none of the particulars.

Paul: Any details on the relationship between Holly and her poppa? Any storyline details? Deering was on the show from 1970 to 1976, correct? There must be story there. What was the relationship like between Adam Thorpe and Stanley Norris? Did Holly ever gravitate toward Adam in place of Stanley? Thanks.

Now, that's interesting...something you could do something with. At first blush, It could have provided a basis for Will's hatred of Reva, which didn't really exist but could have. Perhaps it should have been Will who tried to destroy her rather than Sonni/Solita. Making Will gay and Josh a closeted bisexual would've worked wonders for the show. It certainly would explain Josh's inexplicable loyalty to Reva, the crying, always blubbering, Diva of the Century. That both Josh and Reva are forever too dense to figure something like that out would add to the fun! Vanessa would figure something like that out fairly rapidly, which in itself fascinates me. Hmmm......there's an entire plotline in there somewhere. And lots of character development. A viable alternative to a scenario like that would be for Josh to become impotent, admitting to Reva that he simply isn't physically attracted to her anymore. Imagine a scene like that! And a very bitter pill for Reva to swallow, something that would derail her. With her stock in trade in permanent absentia, Reva begins to adopt a Baby Jane Hudson-like persona, complete with smeared makeup and lots of cheap booze. An appropriate end for a Diva.

"Also, talking about writing from character, the Dreaming Death storyline had nothing at all to do with the characters, it was totally plot-driven nonsense. But I've always assumed it was nonsense she was commanded to write so they could compete with GH. Yeah, Guiding Light was dumbed down considerably from 1983 to 1988. Idiocy was the strategy to steal viewers from other networks. And for a time, it actually worked. Reva, Dreaming Death, Reva, Infinity, Reva, Art Scam/Paul Valere, Reva, Johnny Cancer, Reva. Typical 1980s tripe. What a crappy decade overall for entertainment, regardless of outlet. It's no wonder quaaludes were all the rage.

"The GWTW obsession was a little much for me. I wonder if Robert Newman hadn't left if we would have found out that Josh actually was more love with a male school friend than with Reva in their Cat on a Hot Tin Roof replay. (Actually, that might have been interesting, LOL)." Dee, you make me laugh - thanks! This would have worked especially well had Josh's male "friend" been a drag queen. Think of the continuity! Josh moves on from one drag queen and marries another (Reva). It's a shame that during its final years, GL didn't turn Reva into Baby Jane Hudson. THAT would have been worth watching!

Yes - Reva driving off the bridge in 1990 does parallel well with Guiding Light driving off the bridge and into San Christobell in 1999! Good call, AMC, and LOL! Yet the first event had a most pleasant effect and somewhat long-lasting outcome. The second??

genteel Henry, not gentile

I don't think it's beyond the scope of possibility. Not at all, sad to say. Elder abuse as committed by adult women is more common than most people realize. And much of it is committed by family members. Unassuming, gentile Henry would make an easy target, no matter how unpalatable the thought. You could have Hawk or HB be the target of the abuse, but that would involve Reva, which means the story would be about her, her blubbering and how misunderstood she is. No thanks. Reva needed to be Patient Zero in a STD story that left some additional Springfield residents sterile. Have her sh*tty, self-centered behavior permanently (negatively) affect the lives of others. Reva deserved nothing less. Buzz needed to flip out in a PTSD rage and commit suicide.

I disagree. AFAIC, Maureen was an open book, especially post Ed/Lillian. GL95 came up with the great idea of having Maureen and AM (with whom Maureen bristled) go to work for Roger. A TON of possibilities there for Maureen's development. A lack of imagination is what limits a character.

That's interesting - even as a teen, my response was just the opposite. I always found the killing off of characters to be a cop-out. There's no challenge in doing so for the writers, actors, etc. It's too easy. Much more fun is watching characters strive, suffer and adapt over time. Working hard to create something worthwhile within established frameworks is much tougher on producers, writers and actors, and I find the rewards (for me) are better. I watched ABC soaps for about a month and didn't like them. Especially General Hospital. I also watched Edge of Night for about a month - it had zero appeal for me. Cops and robbers are a bore. What GL should have had is a story centered on elder abuse. It was the perfect soap to do it - GL had the correct players and structure for it. Maybe have Vanessa smack Henry around a bit during her pill-popping period. Or have Nola or Jenna be the guilty party. But it'd be best if Vanessa beat on him - it would have been a tough story to write, accept and successfully move past, but it could have been done.