Speed Racer

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.

It sucked. I was very resentful of what TPTB did to Floyd. Suddenly obsessed with Beth and then a murderer. Wasn't Floyd employed in HVAC at Cedars? That seems correct, but maybe my memory is off. Floyd might have made a solid romantic partner for Nadine, something I pondered a bit some time ago. There is both natural affinity and familiarity there; plus, Floyd is the understanding soul that Nadine would need to find a firm footing in life. Have Nadine sell real estate, and have Floyd open a bar and you have something. Further, he could have played a role in the Neil Everest/Gary Swanson/Phillip/building explosion storyline. Katie should have stayed in Springfield as well. An enjoyable (and believable!) brother/sister duo.

If someone were to make the argument that Jordan Clarke was among the 10 best actors Guiding Light ever had, I'd certainly entertain the idea. That guy was fantastic. I'm not sure he'd make my top 10, but top 15 is likely. Top 10 would be tough as three of the slots would automatically be taken by Bernau, Zaslow and McKinsey. Not sure if you've watched those three in action over any length of time - I highly recommend your doing so. Well worth it, As PJ said, Clarke's best era on Guiding Light was from 1989 to 1993. I agree.

How odd that seems to me....I never once considered Robert Newman/Josh as a leading man. He was always Reva's b*tch. Did Josh ever have a full-blown story that centered squarely on him? I can't think of a single one. Even where he figured prominently, the story was ultimately about Reva and Reva's reaction. The closest he ever came when the Josh/Harley story after Reva drove off the bridge. Then again, I stopped watching in roughly 1998, so maybe something was actually about Josh and his character development,

PJ said: "Right? It does almost feel like they're ashamed. And while I don't want to trash talk BtG---it's not exactly groundbreaking television." Wholeheartedly agree. It would have been groundbreaking television 40-60 years ago. Speaking for myself only, I am thisclose to seriously trash talking BtG, and I've never watched it. I never plan to. It's quite likely emblematic of the same tiresome pablum that's been repeatedly endlessly for several decades now. Wash, rinse, repeat and rake in the money, right? Right. All so incredibly socially UN-aware.

I probably shouldn't LOL, but I am anyway. Lucy was not one of my favorite characters. I'm not particularly partial to helium balloons.

Yeah - at least one. Add baklava (sp?) maker/seller to that list.

A big yes on that! And the writing was great for several characters. Months ago, I posted about a quick, almost brush-aside scene between Hart and Alexandra that I found unbelievably good. I love that kind of stuff, the seemingly unimportant, almost casual comments/observations that actually are a very big deal. Curlee and crew were quite effective at it and didn't hesitate to employ it. How does this relate to July 1993? Ed and Michelle sitting opposite one another at the kitchen table. They're talking a tad tacitly about Ed's infidelity, but not so much so that any meaning gets lost. The writers gave Michelle/Rachel Miner what might be considered a throwaway line: "I knew, but I didn't". Brilliant! Not only loaded with meaning and consequence, but also a perfect thing for a reasonably smart 11- or 12-year-old to say. It's so on target! Note that Michelle isn't screaming or yelling but rather is having a conversation with her father. And that conversation is done "Ed-style", putting Michelle in Ed's wheelhouse and not the other way around. That's critical. It gives Ed the relief from worry (about Michelle) that he desperately sought. He now understands where she is because she was ready to tell him and she instinctively knew how to tell him! The catalyst of her overt readiness, of course, being the prospect of her father dying at the cliff house. All of that crammed into a maybe 2-3 minute scene. Blows my mind. Note, too, that both characters are seated across from each other, at the middle of the kitchen table, rather than having either seated at the head of the table.

And Kevin McClatchey (Vinnie) would have made an excellent AM recast, post Rick Hearst. I could see McClatchey going head-to-head with Grant Aleksander. (McClatchey also could have been a decent Nick Spaulding, had Irizarry left the show before the character did. But, I'd prefer him as AM).

I suspected you'd like that second week of July 1993! (And I encourage everyone here who is already familiar to go back and rewatch that week. Crammed with good material, nearly non-stop. Not only Roger/Holly and Ed/Michelle, but Gilly/Hamp/Roger as well). Monto Sharp is outstanding in those diner scenes. Just the look on his face! And poor Stavros. I really liked Stavros. GL won for the Emmy for Best Writing of 1993. When you see what you just saw, GL95, it's no wonder. Not sure why some people here admonish 1993 (resentful over the loss of Maureen, perhaps)? Things start to slide late in the year, but not until then.

Eve was re-employed at Cedars, but mainly in an administrative role, with light duty - ie, "consultative" responsibilities as an MD. Ed learned of Blake/Ross' financial predicament, and asked Eve to hire Blake on in a quasi-admin role. She did so. Blake gave Eve endless grief because she wanted Ed and Eve apart. Eve got tired of Blake's crap and fired her. Timeframe? I don't remember. 1994. Thanks for the info re: Ross and money. I now remember Ross telling Alex to take a hike!

I do remember Vanessa and Ross enlisting Holly's help in trying to stop Dinah from marrying Roger. A wonderful scene between Holly and Dinah about Roger ensued. Noting that, your idea about having Holly approach Vanessa re: Dinah/Ross/Blake is smart. Re: Crampton. Her spin as Mindy was unfortunate. She simply wasn't Mindy - and the beating of the dead Mindy/Nick horse sure didn't help. However, Crampton was a good actress. Her best showing as Mindy I thought came when she learned Nick and Alex were ready to sacrifice Lewis Oil to keep Spaulding solvent. Crampton's acting in a particular episode- November 21 1994 - I thought was worthy of an Emmy nod. Excellent work, there. The last 10 minutes or so. It's in the Vault.

Agree re: Blake being a crisis manager...a position often taken on by public relations executives in the real world. A perfect role for a yet-to-be tested, newly reformed/domiciled Blake. There was maybe a six-month period in either 1994 or 95 when Ross and Blake were lacking money, which I always found odd since both were capable of pulling in cash. Did Ross lose lawyer business/contracts in the wake of Roger/Jenna's takeover of Spaulding? Was that it?

Van/Holly anything would have been interesting. There's an undefined obliqueness (for lack of a better descriptor) between those two that I find fascinating. Story? If not a Ross/Holly/Van triangle, then have Roger blackmail Holly of all people, with her ticket out of the mess being the destruction of Vanessa's career. Via WSPR, naturally.

Quite likely, I would think. Swap Sonni for Alex, make some changes, and presto!

July 1993 is a solid month. I just did a rewatch of the second week of July....some very respectable and fairly thorough character development at that time between Roger/Holly and Ed/Michelle. No, I'm not going to give you any details. Aside from those four, something rather significant happens.