Khan

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.

I wonder if they would have been better off starting the story all over again and calling it, simply, PEYTON PLACE.

I would say so, @chrisml. In years past, GL had three main selling points: its' actors, who were among the best in the industry (God bless Betty Rea!); its' emphasis on families (the Bauers, the Spauldings, the Chamberlains, the Reardons, the Lewises and Shaynes, the Norrises, Thorpes and Marlers); and its' 70-plus years of history. Even when GL would experience a bit of a rough patch - like during the mid-'80's, when the Bauers were being phased out and the show itself was doing crazy things like Largo programming Billy Lewis to kill Kyle Sampson - you still had this feeling that although P&G wanted GL to keep up with all the trends, they also did not want to risk alienating longtime fans too much or tamper with its' reputation within the industry. IOW, there was a consistency to the quality of acting and day-to-day writing on GL that helped the show through many a bad story and that was tough to beat.

I agree, @kalbir. I have read so much about how the Dobsons "modernized" GL. Compared to the 1960's stuff that still is out there, the Dobsons' work - that is, what I have seen of it - feels so fresh and contemporary. I wish there was more of it available.

YES. And Hillary B. Smith could come aboard, too, as a new character named "Barbara." I. LOVE. IT.