Sindacco

Ben I agree with you. That was during the Langan era when Celeste was barely on, it wasn't as bad as under Higley but still. It just makes me so sad to see how much they wasted Renee during all those years. 2000-2003 was the only time period when she really got meaty front burner material. All the other stuff she had over the years, like The Pacifier, finding out Celeste and Stefano were her parents, the affair with Tek, Theo's autism and Abe running for mayor, were B or C storylines. And that was if she was lucky. She spent the majority of those years being a doctor and sounding board to other characters. I understand that she lost her passion for acting during her last years on the show. They treated her horribly. She was fired early in Sheffer's run, came back with all the other DiMeras because she wanted to work with Joe, Thaao, Will and Steve again. Spent the summer on backburner and barely had scenes with any of them. Was fired again, and this time without a real exit. Her last episode was as a background extra at Shawn and Belle's wedding. Then when Sheffer was out and Higley took over, Renee came back again, did alot of research on autism, went out with James and even Higley to promote it. Then Tomlin and Whitesell joined the show, Abe's run for mayor got a rushed ending, and Lexie spent 2009-2011 as a doctor and sounding board again. When Renee announced her retirement in 2012 I wasn't suprised. I'm just happy she left under MarDar before Tomlin and Whitesell came back, they would not have given her the exit that she got. I also agree with you about Abe/Brandon. But the biggest crime in that storyline was not having Abe and Brandon involved with Paul. They spent several years building up his arrival for the Walker family, and then when he finally got out of prison he had a few scenes with Fay and Nicole before going to Puerto Rico. All just because Langan wanted a villain for the Salem High gang. Nicole got to deal with Paul at the end of that storyline but Brandon and Abe got nothing. Not a single scene.

Thanks for posting that chat with Lauren Koslow. That was my favorite time period with Kate. I also miss the wardrobe she had back then.

Denise Alexander was really beautiful.

Jason Brooks, Soap Opera Magazine, March 1998

Same here. I only knew of Lesley-Anne Down because of Sunset Beach so I never really cared about all those actors from other soaps having a couple of lines. The Coronation was great because it was a big climax to two stories that had been going on for two and a half years.

This was early in SSM's run, I liked this time period. Thanks for posting.

I thought Sheffer's first three months were pretty good, then it all went to hell.

Thanks for posting. I miss villain Victor.

Here's a Kate/Hope/Sami promo from June 1996.

I thought Paul F. Antonelli was still on DAYS as music director.

Wow Y&R's new cues are really crappy. So are GH's, did they bring OLTL's music people over to GH? It sounds alot like their "sounds" instead of real cues. B&B is the only soap left with good background music.

Her first episode aired in January 1996.

Jensen Ackles last episodes as Eric Brady.

True This past year have been such a mess I've alreayd forgotten alot of things.

Yes. The only time Jack and Billie never really interacted was when Steve Wilder played the role.

They don't like Obama and his politics if that's what you think. What they and many others have in common is that they consider the democrats to be the lesser of two evils.

You sound like Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer. No it is not strictly and arab thing. Not all muslims are arabs and not all arabs are muslims. The things you desribed aren't done by normal muslims, the are done by wahhabists. They are a sick, extreme branch of Islam and they hate everyone else. Especially shia-muslims which is why they are now in Syria fighting Bashar al-Assad who is not only an alawite but also a secular arab socialist and nationalist. Things they all hate. If the wahhabists (that the western media calls rebels) win, they will rule Syria the same way the Talibans did in Afghanistan in 1996-2001. But they won't win since the Syrian army are better trained.

They are are still creating wars and conflicts in the ME. The difference is that they aren't sending in american troops. Last year NATO bombed Libya and helped the wahhabists to murder Gaddafi and take power. They destroy old Muslim mausoleums, Christian graves of British and Italian WWII soldiers and murdered all black africans that had immigrated under Gaddafi's rule. Some would say it's karma that the attacks two weeks ago happend in Libya. Then you have the current war in Syria were US allies Turkey and Saudi Arabia pay one-way tickets for terrorists to Syria.

It's your close ties with Israel that makes you hated by many in the Middle East. Israel may be your closest ally , but before Israel was created America didn't have so many enemies in the Middle East.

Thanks for posting!

Well said. It's ridiculous how necons always make Iran out to be the bad guy when the biggest sources of conflict in the Middle East are Israel and Saudi Arabia.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hn0CAD1Pyfk