Faulkner

I just remember she got called out for being racially insensitive at one point: https://dailysoapdish.com/2019/12/general-hospital-spoilers-star-chloe-lanier-nelle-benson-deletes-twitter-account-after-camila-banus-gabi-dimera-backlash-days-of-our-lives/ I just think someone with a legitimate grievance (or an ax to grind) against her was soliciting Ira to get her cancelled. Oh yes. We *all* know some deeply problematic people who were posting black squares on Instagram recently, among other things, because they felt it was the “correct” thing to do, not how they truly felt.

I know it happens at the Oscars all the time (Alicia f***ing Vikander). I suppose, on soaps, certain Young Hot Thing actors have more airtime to attract the viewing demos, yet traditionally haven’t had the name recognition to compete with high-profile daytime veterans like the Susan Flannerys or Tony Gearys. It’s definitely safer in Supporting. It’s odd to see folks like Scott Clifton winning Lead trophies, though, even though it’s obvious he’s been the male lead at B&B for a decade. I guess the issue there isn’t that he’s a relative no-name compared to older legends. It’s more that he’s not that good as Liam. Just like Cameron Mathison wasn’t that good as Ryan. He didn’t deserve to be nominated for an Emmy at all, Supporting or otherwise, much less as a lead. It was more egregious with CM, who was around when more soaps were on the air and thus eclipsed a wealth of better options. Scott Clifton could only thrive in a diminished daytime landscape. He’d be a footnote in the days when David Canary, Larry Bryggman, Peter Bergman, and Geary were dominating the Lead category.

One other thing to note: if VPR survives this and LVP/Bravo don’t replace these guys with POCs, it’s probably not going to go over well.

From Pereira, Colombia 🇨🇴

With Lea Michele, Hartley Sawyer, et al, this feels like a #MeToo-style reckoning. Who will be cancelled next?

Queen Scheana is coming for her throne lol. So weird that a VPR marathon FILLED with Stassi and Kristen is on Bravo right now. I wonder if they’ll air a statement before tonight’s reunion episode.

Maybe Julian’s next victim is lined up? Nelle is a major villainess on GH played by Chloe Lanier (potentially problematic actress), and Ira Madison III is a podcaster and presence on Woke Twitter who also happens to be a major soap fan.

Oh [!@#$%^&*]. Didn’t Chloe get into trouble running her mouth recently?

Yeah. She needs to reboot this show and quickly. It couldn’t come at a better time, as everyone has said things have become stale on this show. Had she seen the writing on the wall 1-2 seasons ago, she might have avoided this.

That’s really funny and nails SF’s effect. Which is why it got to be too much at times. But she could rein it in and be chilling, like when calmly tried to convince Brooke to commit suicide. Which was awful and cruel beyond words, and something she should not have been able to come back from.

I was trying to find some scenes from the Wards on GH. Michele Val Jean really pushed the envelope with their dialogue, allowing them to use language that black people often only use with each other (making fun of the racism and privilege of the Quartermaines, for example). As played by Joseph C. Phillips of Cosby Show fame, Justus was such a prideful character, like an upright Sidney Poitier figure who suffered no fools and was unconcerned with being liked, and only Labine and team understood that. There was really no black man like him on daytime before him or since. Guza had to punish him for his insolence, he was recast with talented actors who didn’t quite capture his essence, and he was killed off.

Interesting considering how many long-running No. 1s we’ve had recently. Meanwhile “Don’t Start Now” keeps hanging around.

Stassi has been dropped by her PR firm: More on the story: https://pagesix.com/2020/06/08/stassi-schroeder-and-kristen-doute-apologize-for-past-actions/

Talk about having a bad year... My God, this poor woman.

Oh yes. Vail Bloom had that too!

From Serra, Brazil 🇧🇷

I’m obsessed with Scarlett Johansson’s voice obviously, but I love a woman with a sexy, throaty rasp, and Juliet had that. In another era, she would have developed into a great villainess.

Yes, I was going to ask about this. Frame rate change? Oof. This “film” effect makes this sumptuous show look like a cheap foreign ‘70s drama on PBS. Make it stop.

Did KMK get an opportunity for a scene like that in any of her daytime roles?

Yeah, B&B was not a community soap, usually focusing on the Forresters and another family (the Logans, Spectras, Spencers), but I agree. An employee of Forrester Creations could easily have been gay. Before Rome Flynn left, they toyed with a story of Zende Forrester presenting his sketches to Steffy and Thomas, only to be met with condescending rejection. It could have been an interesting story of Zende being the black outsider in the Forrester family, possibly with him absconding to Spectra. But they dropped the story.

Yep, let’s see: Kristoff St. John (1992) Monti Sharp (1993) Kevin Mambo (1996-97) Bryton James (2007) Rome Flynn (2018) Kyler Pettis (2019) Only the Y&R actors stuck around their show (with KSJ winning again as Supporting in 2008 - not that it helped his story prospects). Monti Sharp’s subsequent daytime roles were lackluster. Let’s not talk about the only black female winners being Debbi Morgan (in a tie for Supporting with Nancy Lee Grahn in 1989), Christel Khalil (Younger, 2012), and Vernee Watson (Supporting in 2019, for what—correct me if I’m wrong—isn’t even a contract role).

I’d been watching some Carla/Ed clips from the ‘80s, long after their heyday. Even throwaway clips show their chemistry. Al Freeman, Jr. just has this laidback Humphrey Bogart energy with his deep voice, and Ellen Holly has this classic Hollywood elegance and sparkle. Horrible that they were so carelessly discarded. (Their scenes start at 3:12 and 5:52 in the first two videos.) A clip with them and Phylicia Rashad: