Khan

I am not sure that I follow, @Vee. I mean, yes, he is free now to stink up one more time an already stinky GH. But is this in reference to something else? What hijinks? My only concern is how this might affect NLG and other GH cast members who, unlike Steve Burton, took COVID [!@#$%^&*] seriously.

I, myself, would have loved to see Jane Elliot pop up again as Judy Trent. Yes, her storyline with (no, not that) Paul Rudd, Ted Shackelford and Joan Van Ark reeked, but I don't blame JE for that. Rudd was all wrong as Earl Trent, and Gary and Judy's affair lacked basic motivation and chemistry, too. But the scenes JE had with Donna Mills were divine and made me wish she had stayed on longer as a sparring partner for Abby. I don't know how I would have worked it, exactly, but as soon as Judy returned (freed from Earl, who literally drank himself to death, lol), I would have pivoted her away from Gary and Val as quickly as possible and paired her instead with William Devane's Greg, either pre- or post-Laura, while making sure she and DM/Abby remained in each other's orbit. (Not that Nicollette Sheridan was awful as Paige, but she just was so young and out of her league with Devane and Mills). Another way for Laura to revisit the past: Joshua rapes Cathy at a certain point. Cathy presses charges against Joshua. Laura realizes for the first time that what had happened to years ago was, in fact, rape. Laura looks into the matter privately and learns that, due to the statute of limitations, she will not be able to file charges against that artist. Nevertheless, Laura remains compelled at least to confront him. Except, when she does, she learns he is living in a hospice and (likely due to the effects of the disease) no longer remembers her. Seeing him in such pitiful shape, Laura realizes she has the justice and closure she has been looking for and walks away, never to think or see him again.

Yes!

Yet, here we are, saying all the time: "Where's Wayne? How come Wayne can't play Roman anymore? WOULD SOMEBODY PLEASE GET WAYNE BACK ON THIS DAMN SHOW!!" I guess that explains this photo: (I mean, why is Josh there, "kissing" Deidre, and not Drake?)

Yes.

In retrospect, I probably was more harsh on Black and Stern and their time on ATWT than I should have been. After all, they were contending with an EP (John Valente), a sponsor (P&G) and a network (CBS) who were determined to tear their show apart.

Like another poster said, DALLAS and KL burned through so much story in their initial years with all those self-contained episodes that it is a shame how much of that stuff is forgotten once they became all-out soaps.

By any chance, does anyone who wrote ANDIE with Douglas Marland? Did he write all the episodes himself, or did he have help?

I feel like AMC could own this thread at least in part.

Frankly, @carolineg, I don't think even that would have helped differentiate John from Roman. If anything, it'd almost be like watching Roman being married to Marlena and Isabella at the same time (which would have been fine, if Claire Labine was writing the show back then, lol). I've been curious as to why Deidre made Wayne's return a "package deal," for lack of a better word. Did Wayne need the money? Did Deidre prefer (at that time) working with him rather than with Drake? Did she think it would make for a good scene or two in her biopic? Just what was going through her perfectly coiffed head when she made that demand?

At this point, I am willing to believe that John Black is really a cyborg.

Nah, it was just bad acting.

All that was missing was the name "Phyllis Newman" in the byline.

...Or did he?

I agree. And you are right, @carolineg: Deidre Hall did make Wayne Northrop's return as Roman a condition of her return as well. I remember reading as much in one magazine article or another sometime after the official announcement had been made. However, I don't think TPTB considered all the ramifications in bringing WN back as Roman. Even if "A Tale of Two Romans" had been successful, you still are left with two characters (Roman and John) who fulfill the same function on the show. The only other options the show had, IMO, was either to kill off John, which was not going to happen; or turn him into a villain or anti-hero, which also was not going to happen.

I could never have worked in any network's daytime division, especially during the '70's. Each soap's ratings seemed to fluctuate wildly from week to work. One week, you're nipping at ATWT's heels; the next, you're in the middle of the pack. ATWT staying at no. 1 appears to have been the only constant - and even that was not guaranteed! It's just enough to drive even Grant Tinker (RIP) to the edge.

And I certainly appreciate it when you do have the time, @JAS0N47. Truly, the work you do - both on here, and on your own website - is never short of incredible. Thank you so much!!

It's almost as if he flubbed the line, like you expect the director to yell "Cut!" and everyone around to burst into laughter. And all that was missing from her reaction was her saying, "WTF?"

"This is Miramax, reminding you not to get into your love box." Maybe it's the material, but I find Paul Hecht oddly sexy, lol. And I recognized that one blonde-haired dude in ANDIE as the guy who also played Kimberly's racist boyfriend, Roger, on "Diff'rent Strokes" AND Blair's childhood friend, Harrison Andrews, who tried to make it with Jo at a country club dance on "The Facts of Life." Thanks, @DRW50!

It breaks my heart to know you are not a fan of Douglas Marland's work on GL, @DRW50.

Great photo, but where are the other 480 cast members?

I still think it was a shame that Jordan Charney and Ann Wedgeworth were not on "Three's Company" at the same time. I would have loved to see "Lana" and "Mr. Angelino" in a scene together, lol.

I am so happy that he mentioned Dick Van Dyke and Zach Tinker. They both deserve the praise.

Probably not, @Paul Raven. On the other hand, because it (the daytime series) was being produced after the primetime series - with different actors, producers and writers - it is likely that the daytime series would have diverged from the primetime one, just as the primetime series ended up diverging from the movie, and the movie from the book.