P.J.

Speaking of the underappreciated, I found this little clipset of Tom O'Rourke. There are scenes of him with Robert Newman, Jobeth Williams, and Jane Elliot.

I'm not sure. I haven't made it past Sept '93. Michelle has this idea that there's a secret, and at one point she thinks that it's that Ed killed Maureen. And I've forgotten more of late-90s GL history than I care to admit.

Did Ed and Lillian's affair ever become widespread knowledge? Vanessa, Eve and I think Ross and Holly knew, but I can't really find any reference to other people finding out.

LOL...maybe not as much "boring" as rehashing something you guys discussed 400 pages and 10 years ago. At times it does feel like Maeve and Maureen got overshadowed by the likes of Lenore/Lisa/Kim when discussing even Guiding Light's best actresses. I don't know what the 90's would have been like if Vanessa and Holly hadn't returned. And they managed to do without meltdowns in a red dress *coughcough*

Of course my knowledge of music theory is next to nothing, but it seems to me if they had stripped it down to a more piano-y version, instead of trying to follow every rock/funk/jazz trend that breezed by, they might've been better served.

I never got why they ditched Hold on to Love.

but wasn't that partly the point? That Alan was breaking her down bit by bit during the marriage? Maybe not as viciously as he did Elizabeth, but just as surely. I'm not sure he would've made her an alcoholic, but it wouldn't surprise me either.

Yeah, I just don't get the Dobson's ATWT either. It seems totally inconsistent with what they did at GL. I suppose some of that had to do with the Luke and Laura syndrome. It's really not an era I'd want to go back and watch, tbh.

The chemistry between Mart and Maureen is palpable. It was a bit of a shock for me to watch a clearly less neurotic/sardonic Holly. William worked at both WSPR and The Blue Orchid (or the Blue Moon, or maybe both). I seem to recall him being low key interested in Gilly before Hamp arrived. I don't think he ever even had a major part in a storyline. He was a continuous presence for a while. Like Lt. Wyatt, before Mallet came to town.

Thanks. I just watched more of Lenore Kasdorf's work last night (the events surrounding Roger's trial, and then Roger kidnapping Rita). She and Cindy Pickett really stand out in a sea of sexually frustrated "good girls" that populate the town at the time.

Zimmer chewed scenery from day one. I don't know how she managed to make Reva sympathetic, because in rewatching, I find her to be one annoying loudmouth bitch. I suppose that's because I saw all the tears, justifications, and problems she "didn't mean to cause" over the next 20plus years. Does anyone remember what started Alan's affair with Rita? As played by Chris Bernau, he disposes of his women like newspapers.

May 28-June 1--Bert's surgery, HB/Reva in Hawaii, Phillip and Mindy decide to divorce, Fletch/Claire/Jim/Hillary in San Rios to receive an award, Josh is waiting for Reva to return to tell her he still loves her and Nola brings AJ home 4-8, --this must be the week of Josh's accident/reveal that HB married Reva 11-15, the 13th Vanessa tells Billy she's pregnant, the 14th Reva convinces Billy to talk to Josh, the 15th Billy convinces Josh to have the surgery. Also this week, Lujack/Beth at the beach. Alexandra and Beth were taken hostage in August of that year, just after Reva had a meltdown and declared herself the Slut of Springfield at Billy and Vanessa's party at the end of July. ATWT's wedding of Steve and Betsy also occurred the week of 5/31 (and while it did not garner the rumored 20 million viewers) it's not unreasonable to think it could have positively impacted GL's numbers.

Awww....I'm verklempt. Maeve looks wonderful! I had no idea she and Bill Roerick knew each other prior to the show. I'm just overwhelmed.

While I can't really compare anything about ABC, as I didn't watch, I understand what you mean about the writing. The three really big "moments" I remember from the early 80s' are Nola's comeuppance (which I would defend to the death at least deserved a nomination, which Brown was unlikely to get given her relative newness to the genre and the system at the time), Ashley's breakdown post abortion, and Reva's Slut of Springfield moment. Whether that was just more a CBS or P&G thing, I don't know. Re: Lucinda--yeah, she had her evil moments, but she was never going to grab some mistress by the hair. As justified as going after Roger and even Mindy are---the way she gleefully told Billy about Mindy's affair was a "jump the shark" moment.

I guess I can see that. And to be fair, there is a lot of upheaval in the 80s---you've got Simon, Newman, Clarke and even Bernau weaving in and out. (not to mention the younger leads Aleksander, O'Leary and VI) Maybe in that light, trying to build Fletch up was smarter than I give it credit for. Other than gnashing my teeth over the hook up with Van, Fletch doesn't annoy me as much as it seems. I've just fallen back in love with Billy/Vanessa---HARD. lol

Tru dat: re Younger Actor. I was looking up the nominees, and a) didn't remember BB had been nom'd, and b) felt bad he'd faced the equivalent of a murders' row in terms of competition that in many ways became icons in the industry. Re: Garrett, while I did think she was nom'd in 93, in general it must've harder even to get the nom when politics locked so many out of the Lead nominations and you've got a stable of excellent castmates on your show too.

Well, this is a show that kept Tina Sloan and Frank Dicopolous perpetually employed. They threw Mo, Alex, Vanessa and Holly at him, and I'd argue that other than Zas, none of the other male characters got that level of connection or talent thrown at them at the time.

talk about Emmy unfairness---Bryan Buffinton lost to the likes of Andrew Kavovit, Kristoff St John, Rick Hearst and Monti Sharp. It is a shame that (arguably) Maureen Garrett's stiffest competition in 92 and 93 are her castmates Kinkead and Parker. In my mind, every year between '84 to '92 should've been a slugfest between Bev and Elizabeth Hubbard.

Or was she trying to make Fletcher relevant? God knows how long they would've hung on to Leslie Denniston if she hadn't wanted out. In my mind, Billy vs Roger was a classic rivalry. I wish we'd gotten more of it. (I'm not dismissing Alex/Roger, but after divorcing him, she turns around the next year and makes a deal with him) Billy was the only guy in town who a) wasn't on some level scared of Roger, and b) relished going after ol' Rog. It's a shame it got cut off due to some tragic real life circumstances. I don't mean to dismiss anyone's else's lack of recoginition. GL was criminally under recognized for years. Other than Kim Zimmer, the emmys virtually ignored them in the 80s'. If it was block voting that got Maeve, Ellen, JvD and Zas their wins, IDC. The nom process had been broken for years. You won't ever convince me that Lucci or Sleszak deserved all those noms all those years.

It's just odd. Granted, I skipped like the first half of 87, so it seems to come out of nowhere. Ross has broken it off with Vanessa, but Vanessa pivots back one final time (on Dinah's plea) before getting in deeper with Alan, and she shows up at Ross' to have Meredith wrapped in a sheet interrupt them. For a guy who doesn't get a lot of action---Ross certainly gets a lot of action. Considering how many women Alan/Philllip shared, it doesn't exactly bother me. It's the randomness. I'm not sure Vanessa even knows who it is. (and let's face it, Reva/Blake/Harley making the rounds of family members makes it look way tame). I don't quite get it either. And LEAD to boot. AFAIC, (and I'll admit my bias) that Jordan Clarke never got a Lead nom is a crime. And honestly, Peter Simon. As dour as I think his Ed is, 93 should've been a shoe in for a nom.

Da fug? Derwin was nom'd for 93? FOJ status...SMHj

i certainly would never have picked Deas over Zaslow for anything. But so much depended on what's submitted, not to mention the mood of the panel that day. Zaslow I believe won the next year. Ain't no one crying that perpetual noms Bergman and Canary lost. And JvD deserved his back-to-back wins. Screw some flash in the pan in a socially relevant tear-jerker story. FYI: in the "you probablly don't really want to remember this" file, Ross slept with Meredith Reade in between Vanessa and Amanda. Y'all really should warn a person.

GL probably wasn't the only soap to fall into the trap of the "new clan is automatically loud and obnoxious" just to contrast against the established families in town. While it took multiple members of the Reardon and Lewis families, Buzz seemed to do it all on his own.

Thanks! I'd seen an episode after this, when Vanessa comes back to town frustrated after layovers and such, to Ross chewing her out just before Dinah's graduation. I gotta admit, I wasn't really interested in 87 reading recaps and such. It seemed kind of odd trying to pair Vanessa and Alan when '80-'84 has them pretty adversarial. Now I think I need to watch. Chris could certainly slide into the softer side of Alan when it was called for.

That was a little before the episode with him in drag. But the lounge lizard type come ons/oily charm he tries with Vanessa has her staring at him like he's got three heads. At one point Buzz keeps referring to her as a cash cow (she's been aggressively bleeding Roger/Jenna of clients) and she sweeps past him saying "I suddenly feel the need to graze.." OMG. Otherwise, I'm in complete agreement. While he could occasionally reign himself in, those moments got further and further apart through the years. "King of Fifth Street Buzz" is just annoying.