dc11786

Your point about knowing the source of information is important. In the "Search for Tomorrow" thread, there is a comment from Jon-Michael Reed about the Corringtons wanting to dump all the older cast and shift the show to New Orleans. I can't help but wonder if Mary Stuart was the source of that tidbit given that Martin Tourneur couldn't have shown up in Henderson any earlier than November, 1978 as Aniston was still on "Love of Life" at the time. I have seen Tudi Wiggins say in papers she wasn't going to stay on with the series in papers, but a much missed poster Jon (saynotoursoap) had also stated this suggesting that a) her contract was non-renewed and b) the source was Charles Hill Harben. Regarding Meg's final storyline, I feel like it would have been much richer, and more entertaining, if it wasn't Tom and Arlene that Meg was trying to keep apart with her feigned paralysis and blackmail marriage scheme. Mark Pinter's Tom was more ambitious, I believe, than he was when Richard K. Webber played the part. His Tom was the one interested in the research projects and was sleeping with Meg to get access to the money. I think Meg making life a living hell for Tom and Arlene, with Arlene giving as good as she could get would be absolutely delicious. Especially if Carrie Johnson became aware of Meg's duplicity and had to choose between the happiness of her daughter or her friend. Of course, eventually, we'd have to wonder whether Meg was willing to work with reformed mobster Ray Slater to get what she wants. Ray, in many ways, seems like the kind of man that turned Jean McBride's Meg on. Meg agreeing to marry Ray in order to help Ray get custody of the child he shared with Arlene would make for a great set of sweeps storylines. Which, in turn, would give Ben and Betsy something to cluck about without being the center of the story. Then, you play this out with Amy and Bruce working together to represent Tom and Arlene, while Eliot decides to align himself with Ray and Meg. You can just continue to spin a lot of drama out of this especially if it's played at the same time that Meg has learned that Amy is NOT Bruce's daughter, something Amy only recently discovered from her mother. Meg blackmails Amy to provide her with tabs on Bruce's case providing them with details they couldn't know otherwise. Bruce, of course, would assume that Meg has taken advantage of Vanessa's familial ties and got access through her (access to the files in his home office when Meg was visiting). And, given it's Meg, there would be some elaborate scheme to discredit Arlene (maybe she gets Arlene set up for prositution again) that would be uncovered by Vanessa, who would plead with her sister to tell the truth. Then, Meg would decide to play her trump card and tell Vanessa that Amy is not Bruce's daughter and threatens to reveal the truth if Vanessa discredits her in court. Vanessa, knowing how much Bruce has come to love Amy, is torn. Vanessa confronts Amy, who reveals the whole story about how she honestly believed Bruce was her father when she came to Rosehill and, when she learned the truth, she loved him like he was her father. Vanessa tells Amy she is going to tell the truth and Amy prepares for the fallout. Then, Vanessa offers to share what she heard in court to help clear Arlene, which is the best they can do without having the crooked cop. Vanessa shares her story, and Eliot tries to trip her up by suggesting that this was a ploy on her part because Bruce had blamed her for supplying Eliot with information about the case (possibly at the suggestion of Meg, who, by now, needs Ray emotionally and cannot afford to lose him). Eliot presses her to retell the story hoping to trip Vanessa up, but slowly Vanessa says too much and she is forced to reveal in court that Meg attempted to coerce her into silence by threatening to reveal that Amy isn't Bruce's daughter. Then, the story becomes about Bruce's downward spiral having lost his "daughter" and feeling betrayed by his wife. And on and on...

Byers' appeared on "Search for Tomorrow" in 1985 as banker Melvin Hibbard, who rented a room at the Caldwell House, the historic home that Jo and Stu had converted into a bed and breakfast, with plans on going through the basement to get to the bank, located next door. He was introduced by Stephanie Braxton and Paul Avila Mayer. He was crotchedy at first, but I cannot remember if he was out and out villainous until Gary Tomlin came aboard in September, 1985. His nephew appeared briefly, hit on Adair, and then ended up murdered. Hibbard himself kidnapped Jo for sweeps in November, 1985, in a poor man's version of the Vargas story from a few years earlier. In 1980, Byers ended up being out shortly after the article posted. The heat was turned up on Jim Ramsay as it was becoming clear that David Sutton was getting closer to learning about the deception involving the building's construction (there were expensive fire systems in place for inspection, that were removed afterwards). Also, Ramsay had run into an old aquaintance, Dr. Jamie Larsen, who had known Ramsay in some way that Jamie didn't want let out. Jamie and Ramsay met by the train tracks and an argument ensued that was escalated by the arrival of Ted Adamson that ended with Ramsay in the river presumed dead. Jamie used this to get Ted to break things off with Janet Collins and they would later marry. I believe Jamie's big secret was that she was involved with terrorist activity. I believe this came out in early 1981 before Gabrielle Upton was shuttled off the show as headwriter. I think that Renata Sutton's death was more practical in some ways. I think the show intended to repair David with Kathy Phillips, who was the mother of his son Doug Phillips. Scott, as I recall, was said to be serving time for a vehicular manslaughter charge stemming from his drinking (this happened offscreen). While a divorce was more practical, killing Renata gave the added (temporary and longterm) drama. David raising another man's child, while Scott had raised David's son would have given David perspective when eventually Scott was released from prison and returned to Henderson looking to rebuild his life with his wife and sons (Erich had been around in 1980 and was briefly paired with Wendy). The story involving Renata's introduction and her rape by Prince Antonio were not the most beloved stories of the Corrington period. I wouldn't be surprised if the show was just looking to remove that story element.

Ann Marcus kept Bambi and maintained her relationships with Dr. Paul Graham and Tony Alphonso, a cook working at a restaurant. Tony had served in Vietnam where he had a fling with nurse Kim Soo Ling, who found her to Rosehill to reconnect with Tony and inform him that Kim had given birth to their child and put it up for adoption. This was a story that Ann Marcus had been plotting for years and had tried (unsuccessfully) to tell twice on other shows. Originally, Marcus plotted the story for Mia Elliott on "Love is a Many Splendored Thing," who was set to return to San Francisco and admit she had lost her husband and son while overseas and wanted to look for them. The series was cancelled before Marcus even got to start the story. In her assignment prior to "Love of Life," Marcus proposed telling the story again, but this time with Chris Kositchek having a child from his time in Vietnam. This story was nixed. On "Love of Life," Marcus was finally able to tell the tale. She had time to ruminate on the plot. Kim's return threatened the happiness of Bambi and Tony, who were engaged to be married. Kim wasn't sure if she should even tell Tony as she didn't want to cause problems for Tony. Eventually, it came out and they tracked down their son Tran, who had been adopted by a nice family. The adopted mother was dying, I believe, and the story wrapped in the last week with Kim leaving Rosehill. Bambi's role in it was definitely secondary. It could have been told with anyone. I wonder if the show would have put Bambi back in Ray's orbit given that he and Arlene split in the final week. I don't like the pairing of Ray and Arlene. Ray Slater seems like the precursor to Sonny Corinthos. I don't think Ray was given a whole lot to do until being paired with Arlene. He was on a couple of years before they decided elevate the role after Arlene had become a prositute, got knocked up by her john Ian Russell, and went on trial for Ian's murder. During that time, the show had kept Arlene in the orbit of Tom Crawford, the brother of her romantic rival Betsy. It was Gabrielle Upton, I believe who shifted Ray and Arlene into each other's orbit. I would hope Marcus would have split them longterm, but the setup was for Ray and Arlene to get back together given Arlene was pregnant with Ray's child, but Ray believed the child was Hal's. Marcus' run is something I wish would pop up because it's so close to the edge of when so much other material appears for other shows, but I feel like its a huge shot in the dark. I think her greatest move was to place the college at the forefront. It isn't until recently, with all the information @slick jones has shared about the casting in the 1960s, that it is clear how important the role Wingfield Prep, the private boys' school where Bruce was employed, was to the story. I think reviving that seems very fitting. Also, I believe Vanessa, prior to her newspaper work, was involved in advertising so teaching commercial art would have made sense given her history. Characters like Amy Russell and Steve Harbach seem very appealing. Woody Brown was charming as Skipper on "Flamingo Road" so I imagine he was at least functional in the role of Wes Osbourne, Mia's messy younger brother. Neither Judy Landers' Cheryl Kingsley or Julia Kelly's Kelly Wilson were on long enough to do much. I'm curious what a post-February, 1980 Rosehill would have looked like once the dust settled. Tudi Wiggins had decided to not renew her contract. Meg's absence in Rosehill would have been felt. I'm not sure Ron Harper's Andrew Marriott had the gravitas to be shifted into the heavy in the Tom Crawford/Lianne Wilson romance to keep it a viable story. Also, the rumors of Peter Reckell playing Hank Latimer is intriguing, but I'm not sure how that all would have played out.

Ten episodes of this short lived show from the early 1990s has appeared. The episodes are from the first year. The later episodes include some actors who had done longer runs on "Crossroads" (Paul Henry, Gabrielle Drake). I haven't watched much. I liked the conflict between BB and his ambitious daughter Kiran, who tries to remove a manager from the family warehouse business due to embezzlement. I also thought the pairing between doctor son Vikram and the working class teacher Nina had a nice vibe to it. Maybe it'll pick up a bit, but it definitely feels equivalent to other short lived soaps from that era.

I think this was when Gabrielle Upton was on her way out the door and Cathi Abbi was brought on board. Upton had introduced a bunch of younger characters including Andy Marriott, who seemed to be an attempt at another Ben Harper type rich playboy lothario who was sleeping with most of the younger females. There was also unremarkable characters like Michael Blake, the veteran who was interested in Cal, Mary Jane Owens, who I think was a nurse, Sheree Manning, who was one of Andy's conquests, and a few others. The period following this is the infamous "Bambi Brewster saga" era so it wasn't an immediate improvement until May, 1979, when Jean Holloway was dismissed and Ann Marcus came in and really reset the the show with Dana Delaney's Amy Russell and really emphasizing the college set.

"For Richer, For Poorer" seemed to gain a little life later in the run, but who knows how things would have panned out in the long run. I don't have much interest in mob tied Lee Ferguson chasing after blonde heroine Tessa Saxton while father Les huffs and puffs about their involvement. If they were going to be written out, that would have been preferable. Though, I think the idea of posh Edith Cushing's goddaughter Wendy Prescott hooking up with reformed street hood Paco Morales was much more intriguing. Futhermore, the battle for Cushing & Sons seemed to gain some momentum when Austin returned to the firm at his mother's request, to his wife Amy's concern, to go against Jason for the presidency. Jason and Megan's marriage was destined for failure and what a wonderful trainwreck that would hav eben to see play out. I know the show was intending to kill off Dr. Roy White in November, 1978, had the show continued. I would speculate that Connie or Bill would have been accused, but they would have pinned it on Roy's lover Nancy Snyder's Colleen Griffith or tied Roy to the mob. I also have to wonder if the show was going to pair Dr. Chris Gifford, Amy's doctor brother introduced in the final weeks, with Connie once things settled in Connie's universe. Lemay's version was still stronger, but King's version had some interesting elements.

Shringer's Jeb Hampton was an interesting construct. As Ginny's younger brother, it allowed him to come on the scene as a part of the Marshall set without the blood ties. The heart mumur allowed him to be tied to Kevin and Courtney. The military background also gave him a potential entry into the Eliot / Barrett story, but I don't think that was an angle that ever really was explored. Personally, given his backstory with the drug addicted singer Suzanne, it might have been interesting to have played him a bit more with Paige. I am curious where the Corringtons would have taken the character as I believe they were out by February, 1981. Wasn't Jeb also tested with Lacey Wheeler, too? I don't think Catherine Hickland was setting the world on fire as Courtney, and I don't think it was necessarily the writing. She was saddled with weak pairings in the beginning. Her chemistry wasn't there with Lee Patterson and Joel Colodner was fine as the perennial loser, but he lacked the gravitas that would have been required to hold his own had Courtney committed to a relationship with Bart after Reena was aware of Kevin and Courtney's relationship. I get the sense that Gulf Hospital was originally intended to play a bigger role given that originally Russ was going to be in Houston as well, but the medical group didn't last long and Courtney's lack of true connection to the Marshalls didn't help. I would have brought back Courtney in the fall of 1981 with Harley Jane Kozak in the role. I'm not sure anything could have kept Beverlee McKinsey on "Texas." I think the show was strong with her, but I don't necessarily think the show needed her to survive. I would be curious to see what the show could have been like if they had just kept Iris cunning from the beginning and was manipulating Alex into thinking she had changed, while still meddling in Dennis' life. Then again, I'd also like to see what the Corringtons could have done if they were given two years to develop the show onscreen.

Very interesting to hear. It was wild hearing Dick van Patten as Larry. I think I found the most compelling sequences to revolved around Tracey trying to grapple with her young son Jonathan's passing. The closeness between her and the family friend was also interesting.

I think there was a writer for "Love of Life" from that period (Loring Mandel/Christopher Bell) who would have more than likely come through that program. Hardy went from "Ryan's Hope" to "Loving" to "General Hospital" in the 1980s. I think his claim to fame was that he had guided some pivotal years of "Love of Life" with writer Don Ettlinger before co-creating "Flame in the Wind" and later working on "Love is a Many Splendored Thing."

It looks like John Hess was headwriter until July, 1969 after having the role since March, 1967. I believe Barbara Roddell also assumed the role of Jill Stevens in June or July of the same year almost immediately after departing "Another World."

It doesn't surprise me. I haven't had the time to devote much to "General Hospital" 1993, but I've made it to the climax of the art theft/Victoria Parker gaslighting story. I get what they are trying to do now. It's a bit of a film noir type plot about the mind games Bill and Holly are playing on Richard, with Richard turning the screw by sending Bill on a wild goose chase for Victoria and revealing to Holly that Bill loves someone else. I don't think it works, but I get it. I thought Richard's long confession about being the one behind the kidnapping and how he had loved Victoria even though she loved was very gothic. It was also interesting that despite not being an overtly gothic aesthetic, there was such an added touch by having the show down in the large, empty gallery. I still don't care what happens to anyone involved. Jagger and Karen are great. They are very angsty. Karen's desire to be a doctor was an interesting element towards keeping her in the Quartermaine orbit even as she was slowly breaking free from Jason, who was a jerk even during this period. Jason comes off as very desperate to keep Karen, even though she has no real use for him. I guess this was a first love for Jason, but it's very odd. I can't tell, but it seemed that in 1992 Robin may have had a crush on Jason. I don't see much of that playing out. It is a bit weird to me that there is so much emphasis on the teenage storyline and the one teen actress with longevity (Kimberly McCullough) is on the sidelines. Brenda also comes off as clingy, desperate, and frenetic. Some of Brenda's schemes are terrible. I think taking a picture of Karen naked and spreading it around the school is pretty messed up. Nowadays, Brenda would be in jail on distribution of underage pornography. It's probably terrible to say, but I actually smiled when Brenda read Jagger's letter to Karen and she started to get upset. The writing doesn't help Brenda as there are only a few rare moments where she comes across as vulnerable. There was a conversation at the cabin with Jagger about growing up and how Harlan loved Julia's mother more than hers and that her own mother was an alcoholic, or something like that, that was one of the only times I liked Julia. I also snickered when she tried to go after Jenny Eckert and Jenny just told her she was such a messed up litle girl. I like Rhonda. Her social climbing is intriguing and still pressing for Jason and Karen even after their relationship is over is a nice way to keep that connection together. Alan and Rhonda have just had their first conversation together, just the two of them, and theirs is a pleasant chemistry. I've seen more of that story later on and I really like it. I can also see how Alan and Monica end up there given Alan's plotting to run Nikki Langdon out of Port Charles and Nikki's abrupt wedding day departure being a looming cloud over the Quartermaine crew. A.J. has returned from rehab and is trying to make everything work while also learning the truth about Nikki. He's gotten as far as learning Alan cancelled the search for Nikki the day he hired her. Tracey has put two and two together and is hinting at the truth. It's fun. The battle for ELQ is slowly building. I like that they have tied the Kensington scandal up into the impact on ELQ as it gives the story more weight. I don't know who released the tape, and I don't want to know until it comes out, but it's a nice little mini mystery. Jenny and Paul can be very dull at times. The show has overly relied on catfights to engage in some interest for Jenny first at the opening of the Deception spa with Julia and then later with Tracey in the spa with the mud fight. Cheryl Richardson can be charming, but Jenny is mostly a push over. I appreciated when they finally gave Jenny agency during the whole Kensington revelation and had her book a room at the Port Charles Hotel so that her paparazzi problem was now Julia and Ned's problem as well. Tracey has managed to get some power at ELQ because everyone is convinced Ned is the one who released the tape which means they will no longer have political power in the form of their connection to Jack Kensington. They seem to be setting up Tom Hardy's exit. At a dinner party, Tom says he is planning to do medical work overseas. I imagine he doesn't have much time left. I think Simone will linger around. The Lucy/Scott/Dominque stuff continues to be incredibly strong. Dom pressing Scotty to be the one who will take her off life support if she needs to be taken off. Scotty desperately trying to find a miracle that will save his wife. Lucy trying her best to make Dom and Scotty's final days together as happy as they can be while maintaining her composure as she is chronically accused of hanging around to snag Scott once Dominique is dead. I don't like how they have pulled Lucy back into the art stuff, but I get why they did it. The antics of Felicia and Mac are fun. I can now see why people wanted them together. They just have such a light, playful chemistry that I don't think you could force. In a way, it's what they are trying for wiht Bill and Holly. Michelle has made her way to Port Charles while Felicia and Mac are in St. Louis talking to Michelle's mother about Gloria, who may have been a nutcase herself. I like that the love on the run piece has brought Sean and Jessica into each other's orbit. Tiffany has been pretty miserable since she lost custody, but I don't feel sympathy for her. I'm approaching the 30th anniversary week which should be fun.

Regarding 2005, the paycuts hurt, but the show was already running on fumes by January. When the show failed to secure Peter Simon, and refused to recast Ed, the Santa Domingo revisit immediately collapsed with a very unsatsifying conclusion (didn't Tony give Sebastian the serum provided to him offscreen by Ed). This, in turn, also took some of the wind out of the sail of having Beth and Rick have an affair which also was aborted around the same time when Mel confronted Rick and Beth about their feelings and then all three faded into obscurity for a bit. Bill and Olivia didn't have much story. Harley was slowly start to eat the show. Lizzie and Coop had no energy. Sandy, Tammy, and Jonathan had potential, but it was all so poorly executed that nothing could have saved it. If the show really wanted Driscoll, they should have just fired Bailey and put Driscoll in the role and I say this as someone who enjoyed Bailey, and who is appearing in an Infiniti ad on this page as I type, but acknowledged his range was limited. By January, there was no more arguing that David Kriezman was going to go full steam ahead with Tammy and Jonathan without ever really redeeming Jonathan and making sure that everyone looked like trash along the way. The original seduction/deflowering revenge story was twisted and had potential, but going the route of starcrossed lovers wasn't going to work given the backstory. Danny and Marina were boring, but I thought Danny and Blake had potential. Tony and Michelle were fine as a distraction, but Tony never had overstayed his welcome even before the recast. It was frustrating to see Danny and Michelle replaced by Harley and Gus not because I was a Manny fan, but because I found Harley and Gus equally annoying. Linda Dano should have been a back from the dead Elizabeth Spaulding who was protecting Phillip while he recovered from a psychotic break. There were still glimpses of what could be (the Spaulding/Lewis business feud that was building was interesting), but Wheeler and Kriezman couldn't figure out how to successfully produce a show on the budget they had. I often wonder if the show could have survived if it had adopted a "Days of our Lives" 2008-2010 model where they just focused on telling long term stories with beats, emotions, and payoff instead of trying to recreate Doug Marland's "As the World Turns" with the budget of "Valiant Lady."

I don't know if I have mentioned this before, but I think part of the issue the show faced was it changed studios after 13 weeks when the show shifted from Maljardin to Desmond Hall. As a result, I believe some of the early markets who had bought the show would have run out of first-run episodes mid-December 1969 when the new studio didn't even open until January 1970. I haven't given it a good watch in many years, but the show can be fun at times. The early week (the first nine or so) are wildly uneven. All credited to Ian Martin, but clearly there were people ghostwriting as well because some scripts were marvelously witty and well constructed while others floundered. Some of the religious and medical discussions are interesting surrounding death. I know Martin was involved in early episodes of "The Doctors" so I imagine some of that tone came from there. The show also had abandoned most of its early projections (for the first 13 weeks) pretty late in the game as the projections for the unproduced episodes made their way into local papers. The show's past lives storyline set in the 17th century was originally intended to play out longer and would have seen Paisley Maxwell assume the dual role of the witch that she reminded Jacques Eloi des Mondes of. The show is pretty crazy during the sequence with everyone getting offed in the final 3 or 4 weeks of the first cycle before the whole place ends up torched. The reboot helmed by Ron Sproat, like most periods on this show, also had some interesting story elements that were never completely developed. I liked the early iteration of Ada Thaxton as this battered and beaten woman who was desperately holding onto the past (clearly Elizabeth Stoddard) with Jack Creeley's flamboyant villain Lazlo Thaxton plotting with the village witch Irene Hatter (the underused Pat Moffatt). The local coven plotting against the wealthy Desmond clan had some potential, but alas nothing really came of that either. The final run by Harding Lemay is as uneven as anything, but also a lot of fun, but I think that isn't a popular opinion among most of the show's fans. His past lives story was intriguing with Jacques and his bastard half-brother Phillipe and the Desmond curse. Of course, the revelation that devoted housekeeper Raxl was the source of all the family's woes was as left field as anything else the show produced. I'm glad it got a rerun a decade or so ago.

I'm watching the early months of 1993. Riche has been there for a year and Bill Levinson is head writing. I find the show mostly enjoyable, and fairly strong. The only story that I have absolutely no interest in is the Bill/Holly/Richard Halifax art theft triangle. Prior to starting January 1993, I watched a couple of strings of episodes from 1991-1992 and Bill Eckert is such a hot mess of a character that his story being the weakest in 1993 is not the biggest surprise. It is disappointing to see Emma Samms wasted in such a nothing plot considering I found her quite charming and delightful in the March 1992 episodes I watched where Holly had almost no actual plot, but was just living with Mac and Robin while they all await news about the fate of Robert and Anna (Riche had tried to get Rogers and Hughes to return right after they resigned when Monty was still in charge). The biggest issue with the story is it so disconnected from the rest of the canvas. The rest of the show is fun. The Ryan Chamberlain stuff isn't necessarily my favorite, but Lindstrom is engaging as the Ted Bundy-esque Ryan and Kristina Wagner has such energy as Felicia. York and Wagner are very cute together and play the adventure angle well, and the overall plot impacts the canvas much more than the Bill and Holly adventure. I was very surprised to see a dark haired Woody Brown as the rapey orderly Jimmy Montogomery. Lorna Scott (who I recognized from "Sordid Lives") plays Felicia's friend as the institution. There's a bit too much liberty in the story (Ryan's involvement with the mental hospital is a strech and testifying in Felicia's hearing seems wildly unethical). I do appreciate though that as batshit crazy as Ryan working at the psychiatric facility is, it gives Steve Hardy an excuse to finally give it to Ryan aftetrying to give him the benefit of the doubt. In where I am at now, Felicia and Mac have just escaped so I'm curious to see where it goes. I like the intersections with the custody of Lucas, which is a really engaging plot. In the first episodes I received, Lucas has had a severe diabetic episode which is picked up on by Bobbie, who rushes him to General Hospital in effect saving his life. I like that Tiffany and Bobbie are able to put aside their differences and just be there for Lucas before resuming their animosity. The escalating tension between the two women is interesting, but it seems to have a Bill Levinson trademark that I struggle to get past. There is always a sleazy misogynist angle to so many of the stories. Of course, Tiffany makes sure the social worker learns that Bobbie used to be a hooker, which Tiffany's lawyer John Harmon is sure to bring up in court. Bobbie, since it is now open war, has hired Marco Dane to dig up dirt and discovers Tiffany, during her early acting days, starred in the "Debbie Does Dallas" inspired "Trixie Does Tennessee" or something to that effect. I appreciate the exploration of Tiffany's acting days, but it just seems to be another chance to exploit women. The overall arc though is strong, and the desire on Bobbie's part to be friends is important. Were people upset at the way Tiffany was presented? Her desperation is a lot, but creates a great trajectory for the next few months as Tiffany and Sean's marriage spirals out of control. The emotional stories are really the best. Dominique's tumor is heartbreaking. There are so many beats that are just very sweet. The Dominique/Lucy relationship that develops is probably the biggest surprise in terms of what was going on at the time. It is a little jarring at first (I knew it was coming but it really comes out of no where with Lucy accusing Dominique of trapping Scotty with a (nonexistent) pregnancy. Lucy's humanity has been a nice arc to see. Dominique and Scotty's Valentine's Day wedding is really lovely complete with Lucy again playing savior, Michael Lynch returning to sing a brief refrain from "Someone to Watch Over Me," and beautiful vows. I really liked the way Lee was incorporated into the ceremony and I appreciated the little moments at the reception with Lee and Gail and Steve and Audrey talking about marriage. I'll have to continue to gush about Karen and Jagger another time and try to figure out how I feel about Jenny Eckert and the Jack Kensington saga. I am happy A.J. is back because the Quartermaines were in limbo wihtout him. And I am not sure if this is an unpopular opinion, but early Brenda Barrett is one of the most unlikeable characters I've encountered. I've never gotten so much pleasure out of a character's unhappiness. And when you got me cheering for Jenny Eckert, we got a problem.

Someone shared some things with me a while back. Unfortunately, from my memory, the main things I recall were the three main stories were outlined: (1) the Kelly / Joe romance with Joe clearing his name, (2) Gina's search to gain access to her son via relationships with both C.C. and Mason, and (3) the youth summer story in Los Angles. The L.A. storyline was intended to cash in on the summer Olympics which I believe were to be hosted in Los Angeles that year. Also, the Hollywood story gave the network the opportunity to cross promote (if they so chose) with primetime by having Danny and Ted get stunt jobs on a NBC series like "Hill Street Blues." The main things I recall were mostly about missing parts or serious deviations in the story. Sophia's return was not a part of the original story. Lionel isn't mentioned much. There seemed to be a strange connection between Augusta and C.C. that was never completely clarified. C.C.'s motive for pushing Peter and Kelly together was not just to keep Kelly away from Joe, but because C.C. had found her at least on one occasion on the verge of a nervous breakdown after Joe was arrested and was afraid she would completely go over the edge. Santana was suppose to learn that Gina had custody of her son while Gina was living out of town. Gina would have infilitrated the DeMott household posing as the maid and befriending her son. Mason would discover her and threaten to reveal Santana's true identity which would have lead to a relationship between Santana and Mason by necessity. I was mostly surprised, and not surprised, to see that of the Perkins and Andrade families, only Santana and Joe were fleshed out and given significant story. I don't think Amy was mentioned at all. Nor were any of the other Andrade children. There was a footnote at one point that John Perkins at some point could become in a corrupt trade union in a story resembling "On the Waterfront." The biggest surprise was the reveal that Warren was Channing's killer and that it was all based on the gold coins story. There was no mention of Channing being Lionel's son either, but, since neither Lionel or Sophia were mentioned, this should be no surprise. I believe I may have only seen part of the "Santa Barbara" bible. I think there was a second part outlining characters which I didn't get a chance to look at. I don't have it anymore unfortunately, so this is all form memory.

Part of the issues with characters like Jade and Laken were so much of the foundational storytelling and characterization of other characters (and Jade) seemed to shift between the story bible and what appeared on air in the first few months. From what I've seen, Jade is initially suppose to be a vixen, or at the very least a rebel, not a heroine. I believe casting Melissa (Brennan) Reeves was a mistake as it wasn't really a role that suited her. In the early weeks, Jade used her sexuality to get what she wanted from the boys her own age and even was able to win over her own father with doting words and affection. It was an interesting contrast to Marissa and Joe's relationship where Marissa was so desperate to keep Joe away from Kelly that it caused strain in her own relationship with John. This all seemed to fall away though pretty quick. What is interesting to me is Ted was not originally the sort of goofy All American kid that Todd McKee played. He was a bit of a darker character and casting McKee, like Brennan, seemed to change the direction of the character a bit. This is why Ted was suppose to become involved with the Jackie Baldwin character, who I think had a different name or no name in the bible. Motherless Ted going after an older woman played into some of those intimacy issues he had due to the absence of his mother from his life. The one thing I noticed about McKee's Ted is there seemed to be very little impact in terms of Channing's death on who he was as a person. With that said, the original outcome of Channing's murder would have definitely impacted Jade and Laken's dynamic and not in a way that could be replicated with Kelly, who was originally much more of a neurotic in the bible. Once Eden, original more of a bitch, and Warren were married, it was to come out that Warren had in fact killed Channing Capwell, Jr. before Warren himself ended up dead. Laken's brother being the reason that Jade's brother went to jail surely would have had reprocussions for both women and Ted if they were all involved together. Laken definitely lacked dreams and desires, but I'm not sure if anyone really worked in the Lockridge family. Lionel was off on excursions, Augusta pampered herself, and Warren was a lifeguard so he could go shirtless all the time. Maybe if Laken had been interested in financials and became interested in that world it would have been something.

I believe Teri Keane’s original run was through either January or June 1984. I feel like they shipped Pat and Rose Donovan to Florida in January but that Keene as Rose appeared a few times as Rose afterwards. Keane returns as Rose Donovan at some point in 1990 around the time Jackie Babbin arrives, I suspect. She appears in recurring bits through November 1991. For Christmas 1991, Stacey says her parents are visiting Doug in California.

I love late 1991. I think the quieter show that was more about characters relationships and the fall out was very engaging. By comparison, I think the structure to the plots in 1993 may have been stronger, but there were often tonal issues that I struggled with. For example, Shana and Leo were an intersting couple. The Mason-Julia baby contract redux was intriguing as was Ava as the third wheel, but so much of the day to day material was hammy. There were a lot of dream sequences, which, while funny at times, took away some of the dramatic weight of the story. Taggert might have had a thing about Elvis. She was also at the helm when Todd Jones as going to be an Elvis serial killer. I don't like the train sequences. Before I read your comments, I hadn't been able to put my finger on why. Guza and Taggert attempted to make "Loving" sexier, but at times it was just sleazier. I think Jean LeClerc and Lisa Peluso have chemistry, but Jeremy and Ava don't work. I feel like Jean LeClerc was originally intended to be in a quad with Stacey, Trisha, and Trucker, but Noelle Beck's decision to depart the show jettisoned those plans. Jeremy's best pairing was Gwyn, but it was such a B-story at best. Ava evolves a lot over the different performers and writers. Ryan Munisteri played Ava as almost a Delia Reid type where she could be very nasty and lash out, while also being sympathetic at the same time. Walsh saw Ava as a more desperate, lonely character who was afraid of being alone after Paul left her so she immediately got into a relationship with Leo even though there wasn't much story to tell between them. Taggert and Guza made Ava a screwball schemer as if she was being played by Lucille Ball. Nixon's Ava felt more grounded. Her Ava just wanted to live a peaceful life without all the schemes and the complications that came from the way she was and the way things would be if she returned to Alex. I am curious where Ava would have gone if Nixon had stayed and Ava took control of AE stock based on her grandfather's role in the development of Lady Alden Soap.

@Keri Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I've mostly been watching random episodes I've acquired on DVD over the last several years, but I did catch some clips on YouTube of Cruz and Eden from (I think) 1990 where Robert has been shot and Cruz is frustrated at Eden's need to be at Robert's bedside. They have a rather frank conversation where Cruz pontificates that Eden is two people: (1) the loving wife and mother who wants security and (2) a woman who deplores the monotony of domestic life and desires a need for adventure. I know that the previous writers had set up the split personality plot. I assumed that was there original philosophy. I've only seen small bits of Suzanne, but now it makes sense why A Martinez is doing the Grant Alexander I'm looking for my contact routine earlier in the episode where Cruz stumbles upon Suzanne/Eden. @j swift I find your thoughts on Mason intriguing. I have very little of 1990, but in most of the material I do have from late 1990 Mason (and Julia) are dealing with the environmental group, the Blue Sky Brigade, and the group's protest against the development of the Oasis as it was land they felt needed to be protected. Terry Lester's Mason has a rather nice scene where he tells Julia he has for the first time in his life gotten things together and he still wants her by his side. I know Julia, in what I have, joins the Blue Sky Brigade and then later, in stuff I don't, is raped by Dash Nichols. Lester's Mason still seemed like a character who was trying to work past his daddy issues without actively loathing C.C. I know I've heard people complain about how Mason and C.C. were getting along at that point, but wasn't Mason's animosity with his father crucial to his character? Similar to how fans struggle when Sami Brady isn't actively flailing about her mother and John Black. I would also argue that some of the Mason/Dobsons issues stemmed from the fact that Mason was a doppleganger for Bridget Hursley Dobson who had a very antagonistic relationship with her own parents. I'd be curious if the story of C.C.'s two wives had anything to do with how Frank Hursley left his own family by his first wife to build another with Doris. I think Pamela's return as the catalyst for the animosity returning between C.C. and Mason makes sense, but maybe the big 'revelation' that C.C. knowing Pamela was released should have been knowledge to Mason before the return to form. Mason, privately, acknowledges to C.C. after the dinner party that they had gone some time where they had gotten along, but, in the end, Mason's perception of C.C.'s omnipotence is what kept them at odds. The final straw seems to be that C.C. not only helped Pamela get released, but made it contigent that she not speak to Mason as a stipulation of that release. I believe in the weeks leading up to the Dobsons arrival C.C. had voiced objections to Mason seeing Cassandra, which may have also been a part of Mason's state of mind during the dinner party. It would seem to me that C.C. was meddling a bit, but maybe not to the point to explain Mason's behavior prior to the party rather than afterwards. An underlying piece of the dinner party that often is overlooked is the story about Rosa and Ruben's land. I believe it is later revealed that the land in question is part of the Oasis, which was Mason's shining achievement that not only revitalized his belief in himself, but was a major source of pride for C.C. The Andrades coming into some of the profits of the Oasis is a very intriguing idea given the plans to bring back Santana and pair her with C.C. If Santana had come back and part of C.C.'s motivation to reconnect with Santana had to do with the land, I think that is something that would have strengthened C.C.'s point of view regarding his decision to rekindle a romance with Santana. It would have also been interesting to see if Rosa would have agreed with the Blue Sky and wanted the land protected. Finally, I would have loved to seen Ruben return to unsettle whatever deals were made between Santana, Rosa, and C.C.

Thougths regarding Eden's multiple personality storyline... I'm watching various points of the Dobsons' 1991 return which I know most people don't like. I find it fascinating in the way there was such a strong attempt to reincorporate elements of the show that had been abandoned for so long. I rewatched the Capwell dinner party episodes written by Patrick Mulcahey in the first month of the Dobsons return. There is a certain brilliance of having Eden completely losing it while C.C., Sophia, and Kelly deride Pamela for her mental health issues. Marcy Walker plays it all as very heart breaking. While watching this sequence, there are times that one of Eden's personalities is speaking to her about Sophia lying. We are suppose to assume this is Lisa, but, based on later points, I am curious if it isn't both Lisa and Channing, Jr. talking to Eden during various points of the dinner party. Also, regarding mental health, Mason Capwell is not a mentally stable character, but I appreciate that he isn't treated like a psychopath. He is a black sheep and a bit of a pariah at different points, but the fact that he is mentally unwell is treated with much more respect than I think I've seen bestowed to many other characters. The potential fear, is it even addressed on air?, that Mason may end up like Pamela is definitely a thread that I see playing out. The sequence where Eden as Channing decides to shoot Sophia is wild. I can only imagine what people thought watching this for the first time unspoiled. The crossdressing is definitely a call back to Sophia's own little stint as Dominic. The trigger being Eden watching Sophia "drown" was interesting. I think Eden returning after shooting Sophia to call for help was a nice way to wrap that part of the story, but I can see why fans of Eden and Cruz would be upset that this is how the story comes to a conclusion.

I'm not sure if this will work, but this is a clip from "The Road of Life" from the late 1940s when the show shifted to a spy plot that involved the death of Carol Brent and the arrival of an imposter Carol, who's real name was Beth Lambert. The spy ring that Beth was involved with was trying to take the government project that Dr. Jim Brent had been working on. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/9510964/st-cloud-times-saint-xloud-mn-dec-2/

@te. is right. Carrie Fairchild is not only the highest paid columnist at "Communique" by a wide margin, but she has a ridiculous expense account. Stephanie was known for being a by-the-numbers editor who was able to rearrange the budget to get the most out of the resources. Stephanie is unaware that she is coming into a family squabble. In the pilot, Allen Rush makes Stephanie an ultimatum: Carrie loses her job or Stephanie loses hers. Regarding Carrie's column, it is basically an excuse for her to go to the Zinc Bar ("the place run by drag queens" as Gil informs us) and write off her drinking as a business expense. Carrie isn't a writer. Allen just refuse to pay her to do nothing. Carrie could go work at the Globe with Alex, but there is no way she could maintain the lifestyle she was accustomed to. Though, something I hadn't considered, that @j swiftmade me consider, is that Carrie's position as Senator Fairchild's daughter should get her some sort of status that would make her marketable even if she wasn't very good as a writer. It might have been interesting to see Carrie have to actually work at a real magazine (maybe run by Adam Brock) where she was forced to acknowledge her inadequacies. Carrie and Peter both received trust funds from their late father, the Senator, but Carrie admits that she blew through hers years ago while Peter has managed his better. Allen has been funding her lifestyle through the job, but Carrie really only cares about her job at Communique because it is how she keeps her allowance. On the other hand, Rachel Dennis arrives in New York and immediately is jockeying for Stephanie's job. Rachel needs money. She knows Carrie from boarding school where she was on scholarship. Carrie informs Stephanie bluntly that Rachel screwed over her predecessor in her previous jobs to get ahead. Rachel's purpose for going after Stephanie is to be the next editor at Communique. The more I watch, I think Rachel would have been the next Mrs. Allen Rush as Allen had a history of sleeping with his editors. The office politics stuff is probably what I remember missing most when the show transitions from "Central Park West" to "CPW."

I didn't watch "Central Park West" during its original run, but I was very excited to discover in either late 1999 or early 2000 that CPW was being rerun on a now defunct local cable outlet called Metro. When I first found the show, the episodes were somewhere towards the middle (7-9) and the show soon suddenly shifted to the revamp. So messy. I've caught most of the show over the years, but I am not sure I ever did a proper watch until now. The show is just visually stunning. The look of the show is spectacular. The shots of New York are gorgeous and the whole packaging (the opening, the look of the title card) is very slick. The music is very evocative (for that era). I think the start is incredibly strong. Having never properly watched, I didn't understand why people felt that the show needed to slow down. It's face gave the show a telenovela feel that I appreciated, but, as I settled into episode 5, the last episode I've seen, I'm starting to get it. The Mark/Stephanie/Carrie story is great. Stephanie is a fish out of water in the New York publishing world. Nothing makes that more clear than Linda's response to Stephanie's query about whether or not Allen Rush always slept with his editors. Mariel Hemmingway isn't bad as Stephanie, but given the amount of money she was more than likely being paid, I could see why she was going to be downgraded. Stephanie is a fun character, but the show didn't need a name to carry that character. Stephanie's internal struggle over how to handle everything is great. The machinations of Carrie Fairchild are the true highlight of the show. Carrie learning about Mark's work and luring him onto the plane during Stephanie's arrival party (complete with drag queens, something I have overlooked repeatedly in my original viewings) with the stunning trip over New York City with the U2 song blaring is just wonderful. The Stephanie and Carrie animosity just plays well so that every natural beat (Stephanie cutting Carrie's column) leads to a very real consequence (Carrie having more time to work on Mark's play). Carrie playing her mind games with Mark is wonderful. Tom Verica plays Mark's naivete/learned helplessness well. The allure for Mark is very clear; not only is Carrie attractive, she is available when Stephanie isn't. Every move Stephanie is making is only pushing Carrie closer and closer to her goal. By episode 5, the goal seems more complicated. Stephanie has arranged for Ian Walker to offer Mark a $10,000 option for his play, which, in effect, is meant to end Mark and Carrie's working partnership. When Mark agrees to meet Carrie at the hotel bar only for her to shift it to a suite, it is increasingly clear that Carrie's motives have changed. At some point, it seems like we are suppose to believe that Carrie has actually started to develop feelings for him. I could see how Carrie would be drawn to a fellow outsider like Mark. Or maybe Carrie was just excited to make her mark (no pun intended) on the world. In the Fairchild/Rush clan, Carrie has been in the shadows of her brother Peter all her life. Producing Mark's play is a chance not only to screw over Stephanie, but also to make a name for herself. Mark, and truly Stephanie, are taking that away from her. Madchen Amick is dynamite playing Carrie's hurt when Mark casually ends their relationship. Something I had notice, but never really thought about, was that Carrie really doesn't have any romantic interest in anyone other than Mark. She slept with that rando in the pilot and very coolly told him she wasn't even sure she wanted to go out with him again when he sought out an invite to the Fairchild lung cancer gala. The dynamics in the Fairchild/Rush family are dynamic, but underutilized. Carrie and Peter's relationship is probably the strongest and best played so far. Peter is the golden boy balancing his nonchalant honesty with a true sense of entitlement. Carrie showing up at the lung cancer gala smoking with Linda laying into her for her callowness is a great moment. The pain Carrie shows privately with Peter is also very real. I forgot how complicated, or maybe noticed, her character is. Carrie and Allen's relationship is delightfully twisted. Neither has any use for the other one. Carrie certainly doesn't want a father figure, and Allen would rather never have to see Carrie again. Hiring Stephanie to run Carrie out of the office (and possibly out of New York?) is an interesting move. The other Fairchild/Rush event was a brilliant moment where Carrie invites everyone to lunch (tricking Peter) so that she can solicit money for Mark's play. It's a great time. I wish there were more like this, but I don't remember many from my previous viewings. Peter is a dope. I appreciate that they try to make him earnest and Barrowman is a capable actor. For me, the issue is Melissa Errico, who overplays everything. If anything, Errico's character was the one who needed to be written out sooner rather than later. I like the idea of Alex Bartoli and the plotting back and forth between Alex and Peter is great. It's just Errico goes too big on so many of the moments. In terms of plotting, I can see where they were going... Alex and Peter would get together while Nikki and Allen's relationship would fall apart leading Nikki and Peter to grow closer. In response, Allen would allign himself personally and professionally by luring Alex into Communique while also pressing Alex to break up Nikki and Peter so that he could have Nikki for himself. I'm just not sure Errico made that work. I am now starting to suspect that Kylie Travis' character may not have been brought on so much because of Hemmingway's stiffness but rather because of Errico's broadness. The Nikki/Allen plot also would have benefited from some slowing down. Nikki using Allen as a sugar daddy to fund her art gallery is great. Also, its pretty much established in the pilot that Nikki and Peter use to be a thing ("you said we were going to stay friends"). Nikki and Peter would have been fun. I wish that had been pursued with more energy. Nikki as Allen's mistress is great, but part of the issue is I don't think the fallout is there. Does Carrie react to the revelation that her best friend is sleeping with her stepfather? Lauren Hutton is more lively than I've seen her in many other works. I think she comes to life as Linda, who is such an underdeveloped character. While researching, I came across an article where Hutton stated she had a short term contract with CPW (probably the same one Hemmingway had) and that she was really only doing this because she had a syndicated talk show she was launching that fall. In these early episodes, it shows. Linda is a non-entity though there are some natural places to bring her in. I would have been interested in her figuring out the plot with Mark and Carrie and would have loved it if because Linda suspected Allen and Stephanie were romantically linked that Linda did a bit of manipulating in whatever way she felt best. Ron Liebman's Allen Rush is a great antagonist. The relationship with Nikki gives him another side which I appreciate. My favorite Allen scene though is when Peter arranges a lunch with him (everyone seems to "need a meeting with Allen Rush immediately") and Allen assumes that Peter isn't looking to curry favor only to discover Peter wants Allen to get Alex rehired at the Globe. Is Allen really the wicked stepfather or have his stepkids put him in the role? Linda and Allen's relationship is also underplayed and it would have been interesting to see that fall apart especially as a hint of things to come between Mark and Stephanie if Carrie is to succeed. I also think that Allen would have ended up with Rachel Dennis if only temporarily. I think Rachel would have been the next editor that Allen slept with and I almost wish that it had been Rachel married to Allen when the show went off the air and Allen was left for dead. Rachel as the sole inheritor of the rush empire would have been great. Kylie Travis is a great addition. She fills several holes. She increases the interoffice dynamics between Carrie and Stephanie while also providing a real threat to Stephanie at Communique. Carrie hated Stephanie, but she wasn't going to be able to go toe to toe with her at the office. Rachel swoops in with a devious plot to cast out Stephanie and assume the reigns of Communique for herself. Travis just makes Rachel such a fun manipulator. I don't know what to say about Justin Lazard's Gil. He is just there. The story with Kim Raver comes to an abrupt conclusion, but I am not really sure if there was much more to play with Deanna. I think the set up for Gil is interesting as Nikki declares that Gil is a toxic bachelor. It would have been better to see that play out. Maybe if Alex targeted Gil to get close to Peter, but got close to Gil and then was super hurt by Gil's behavior the Deanna Landers plot would have been more effective. There are also moments where I can't help but wonder if they were going to play with Gil's sexuality. I think it would have been more interesting if Gil's desire to be Peter Fairchild was based in a sexual desire to be with Peter. They never would have gone there in 1995. I'll probably make it through the next five or so episodes by the end of the week.

@slick jonesThanks! @Forever8I was unaware that Richard Dean Anderson and Sela Ward were once involved. It's just an odd choice to constantly feature Hilary's bedroom as a central meeting place for story. Hilary and Simon are great. When Patrick O'Neal was playing Harlan, they were a great family unit. I even like Jill St. John as Deanna trying to squirm her way in as the next Mrs. Harlan Adams. I feel almost nothing for Robert Vaughn's Harlan. @SoaploversI have to agree with your mom for the most part. There is setup for something interesting, but it's never truly achieved. I'm rounding the bend to the final stretch of seven episodes and seems like things are slowly changing for the better. The espionage stuff is mostly now set in Adams Industries and the Navy is being downplayed, which I think it smart. Alexi's attempts at defection give Alexi and Leslie something very tangible to play with some very real ramifications. The 180 degree turn of Andrew Stevens' Glenn Matthews from sap to low level powerplay is very right field, but it sorta works (or I sorta want it to work?). David Marquette is around trying to romance Maggie and that seems to give Thomas a real challenge that wasn't being provided by Harlan. The one thing I do struggle with is the relationships between characters are not as well developed as it should be nor the individual characterization. I love Deanna and Celia, but it would be interesting to see Deanna with the other girls or even more with Thomas. So much of Deanna seems underplayed. Her season long divorce has played entirely offscreen and why she had to be a Naval wife I'm still not sure. Harlan and Tom's relationship seems to be friendly adversaries, but I wish that piece was played more. I also don't know what makes Kay Mallory tick and was pretty shocked when she announced at some point she was a teacher around episode 7 or so (maybe it was mentioned earlier and I missed the reference). I've paused on "Emerald Point" for a bit to watch some of "Central Park West."

Thanks for tagging me @DRW50. It seems like post-Marland, Trisha and Steve are heavy into the action heavy stories. I don't think the idea of Nick Diantos was a bad idea. @j swiftpointed out that the show lacked a longterm male antagonist and Nick certainly would have filled the role. The murder trial wraps up fairly quickly. I didn't make it to the end, but I imagine it ends with the real killer unveiling themselves, and it has lost pretty much all the steam by then. In the broadest sense, Nick was a precursor to Paul Slavinski with the mob ties and the casino. A Nick type would have done better in the long run with Ava, but I could see the potential in a Nick-Ava story post- Trisha as it would create some tension in both the Trisha/Steve story and the Ava/Tony Benedict story. As a reminder... there is an episode from, Monday, March 2, 1987, online. Nick is killed on Friday. I think the two year period post-Marland is pretty tough. Very few characters are sticking around for anything more than a single storyline. To be fair, the show had undergone two significant story shifts prior to Marland's departure in January 1984 and November 1984, but the last shift seemed to set up a pretty strong canvas. Once those stories petered out (Ann/Dane/Alden Enterprises, Ava/Jack/Stacey/baby Johnny, Lorna / Linc, Noreen's return) a lot of the show's energy seems to be gone. I'm sure there are other characters, but almost no one new is around long in this period. Rebekah and Zona Beecham are introduced to enhance the Lorna/Linc story shifting the source of conflict from Lorna's modeling ambitions and Linc's dealing with Dane and Alden Enterprises to familiar conflict regarding Linc's secret wife Zona and her phantom pregnancy before she ends up dead. Lorna undergoes the trial (as Susan Walters departs and O'Hara takes over) and the Beechams are dumped (only for Judd Beecham to pop up briefly to romance Ava in the summer of 1986) and to fall for her attorney Zach Conway. Zach and Lorna's relationship is complicated by Zach's teenage daughter, Kelly Conway, and her lovelorn aunt Jane Kincaid. The initial Kelly-Lorna conflicts concludes with Lorna and Zach marrying and them leaving for a honeymoon they never return from. Kelly, in turn, has a younger set built around her with Rob Carpenter (raised by a single alcoholic mother and embracing the punk rock aesthetic), Ned Bates (brother of Curtis' wife Lotty, who started off as Lorna's prison cellmate), and April Hathway (secret prostitute) before the show quietly dumps Kathleen Fisk's Kelly to replace her with rich bitch Kristen (played by Teri Polo). Everyone in that story is out by the end of the year. Ava jumps from a shortlived marriage to Linden Ashby's Curtis in early 1986 to a romance with Judd Beecham in the summer of 1986 to an end of the year romance with Tony Benedict. None of the men playing these roles were on the show long. In Ashby's case, he was only on slightly longer than his successor Burke Moses who comes on around November 1986, but goes out on leave in August/September 1987 when Moses is cast as the lead in a Broadway show only for the temporary leave to turn into a permanent absence. I'm not sure if Moses returns in October/November for Judith Hoag's departure as Lotty, but Luke Perry follows her out the door as Ned when April announces there is no chance for them and she's jumping ship. Agnes Nixon brings back Doug Donovan in the form of Victor Bevine and slides Doug into Mike's old place as Shana's placeholder because she cannot have the priest. I'm not even sure when the show dropped Victor Bevine to be honest. A Doug and Lily pairing would have at least caused a little unrest in Stacey and Jack's marriage had the character been around in 1988. There are a series of single story villains that are introduced without much in terms of redeeming qualities. Jeff Trachta's Hunter Belden is scummy as hell. He is brought on to cause grief for Keith and Dolly, but all three characters end up being removed from the story once Dolly's child is located. Steve Fletcher's Alan Howard torments and kidnaps April Hathway the following year. I guess you could even say Nick Diantos ends up falling into that role too by romancing Trisha and getting her hooked on drugs. All the characters in the casino set are shortlived (Nick, Tony Benedict, Jenny Baylor) and that story just adds an element that doesn't work for the "Loving" canvas as it is at that point in time. Maybe if they had Shana moving into the district attorney role, that might have generated some story, but overall, it's a big nothing. Mary Lynn Blanks' Jenny just seems to be in a string of second tier blond working class heroines the show cycles through (Rita Mae and Dolly). "Clay" Alden and Lily Slater returning to Corinth seems to be the first smart casting moves in terms of building something longterm in a while.