Paul Raven

This review is of the primetime version. Detroit Free Press Detroit, Michigan 28 Mar 1950, Watch Out, Hazel! He's Up To No Good As radio .serials go, "One Man's Family" is as quiet as a country churchyard. That is to say the Barbour family, whose lives have ljeen chronicled in "One Man's Family" for 18 long years, is less than ordinarily afflicted by murder, disease, bankruptcy, embezzlement, illegitimate children, lnsanity, illicit passion, and insanity the normal lot of most soap-opera families. But soap-opera standards are rather different from any other standards. The fact that the Barbours are less lurid than other radio serial families doesn't mean that nothing ever HAPPENS to them. Let's see now: Clifford Barbour has lost two wives one in childbirth, another in an automotive accident, Claudia nad Hazel Barbour have had a couple or husbands apiece. I'm rather confused about Hazel it's not easy to keep her matrimonial affairs straight here but I think Hazel is now on her way to a third husband or a Fate Worse Than Death. (Matters were still up in the air when I left Hazel last week.) CLAUDIA'S first husband, who was Joan's father, died of pneumonia. Hazel's first husband was an amnesia victim of the first World War and died years ago. During the Second World War, Claudia and her second husband, Nicholas, and their two youngest children were torpedoed at sea. They were picked up by a German submarine and landed in a concentration camp where their youngest child died. So, you see, life isn't precisely torpid around the Barbour household. Last fall, "One Man's Family" Father and Mother Barbour, and Paul, Hazel, Claudia, Clifford and Jack, started existence reasonably afresh on television. I'll bring you up to date on Claudia and Hazel, but you'll have to do your own research on the rest of the mob. I haven't space. ' . CLAUDIA NOW has a new husband named Johnny, who finds the Barbour clan overpowering. (And I don't blame him.) Johnny is carrying on with a babe named Judith Richardson, who is up to no good. And Claudia, poor child, is expecting a baby she doesn't want because she fears it will drive her husband right into Judith s waiting arms. (Johnny wants to be free. Free, I tell you!) And Hazel? Well, Hazel is on a ship on her way to Honolulu. Last time I saw her, she was being powerfully attracted to a tall, dark and handsome character. I don't trust him. He wreathes white flowers into her hair and murmurs into her ear that no man can get anywhere with a woman until he understands her emotional, problems. Also, he's an artist. And you know those people. Watch your step, Hazel. Don't ask me what happened to the second husbands of Hazel and Claudia. I don't know and I don't care. FRANKLY, I find the Barbour family extremely tiresome. The program's merits on radio were never more than relative. On television the threadbare people, the threadbare situations, are glaring examples of how not to write television drama. The action and the direction are conducted on a note of sustained hysteria that passed fairly unnoticed in radio, but seems totally out of place in television. The most exasperating of all the Barbours, and conceivably the most irritating character ever created is Paul Barbour. It has been Paul's duty these 18 years to comfort the Barbours, to observe that a girl must be brave in periods of stress, that honesty is a good thing and that stealing is wrong. So much for the Barbours. I'm going out to get drunk as a form of social protest. And don't you go lecturing me about the evils of drink, Paul Barbour. I know more about the evils of drink than all seven of you Barbours.

I do get a sense of that with EB. He still seems to see himself and Victor in the same light as 20 years ago, but things have moved on. Of course he is entitled to keep working until he drops, but you think at age 82 now experiencing some health issues and having trouble with his lines, he might want to step back -maybe reduce his appearances and Victor's presence on the show.

Anne Sterrett Our Gal Sunday Emily Delaine 1947 Reese Taylor Bright Horizon 1943 The Guiding Light Leonard Taylor 1938 Arthur Vinton We Love and Learn Paul Tracy Portia Faces Life Avery Hamilton Romance of Helen Trent 1947

Ok.. Another illogical poorly written story. Wasn't Colin happily married to Jill, a very wealthy woman? Why would he steal Devon's money and more importantly how? I guess on a show where you can take over a company because you want to in a matter of weeks, getting access to a billioinares fortune isn't such a stretch.

Doesn't Jill live in Chicago? What happened to Colin? I know Jess liked working with Tristan but I couldn't stand that onscreen relationship.

Tara AMC By the time Mary Lynn Blanks inherited the role there had been 4 Taras in 10 years,. It was just too much and the show was ready to move on. Ryan's Hope Recast city. Frank #3 Daniel Hugh Kelly salvaged the role which was then recast 2 more times. Pat Recast 3 times before Malcolm Groome returned Mary 3 attempts to capture the magic of Kate Mulgrew Siobhan After Marg H 2 more attempts

Y&R Greg. Had the final recast been a stronger choice,Greg might have survived the upheaval and continued to represent the Fosters alongside Jill. TD Mike Powers Constantly recast with none of the actors successfully nailing the role SB Kelly By the time Eileen Davidson was cast, the essence of the character was lost. AMC Jeff Martin Again a revolving door of actors that weakened an original character.

Please no story for Kevin under any circumstances. It's enough to know he is still in town and seen very occasionally. Not just millionaires.The Newmans and Devon are billionaires. It's a ridiculous choice that was made at one point in the past and difficult to undo.

OK the artwork is a miss for me. Y&R fails in this area in multiple sets-always cheap looking prints - see Devon's penthouse. That piano area is a waste. I doubt very much we will ever see it being used. And the buffet under Neil's pic doesn't much the feel of the place-should be something more art deco/jazz age. But I like the color palette,furniture and lighting.

In March 1947 Irna Phillips took out a full page to acknowledge and thank her writers of the 3 soaps featured in The General Mills Hour on NBC. They were Virginia Cooke 'Today's Children' 2pm Herb Futran 'Woman in White' 2.15pm Art Gladd 'Masquerade' 2.30 pm Irna called herself 'plottist and supervisor' While in the same issue the Hummerts had a full page announcing the premiere of 'Katie's Daughter' on NBC at 10am., proclaiming they now had 18 shows on the air, 14 of them soaps.

Rita Lakin headwriter for TD from 67-69 has died aged 93. She also wrote for Peyton Place, Flamingo Road, Executive Suite and many other primetime shows. https://mysteryreadersinc.blogspot.com/2023/03/rita-lakin-rip.html

It was a combination of factors that threw Paul under the bus. Firstly making him Police Chief limited his role-keeping him as a PI would have allowed more scope and involvement- he could have been investigating Ashland for Victor, helping Jack find Keemo etc The decision to drop the GCPD set. Paul had a limited role outside his job. Marrying him off to Christine, with LLB reluctant to return meaning no personal stories could be developed. Writing out or killing off his kids. Josh wanting to focus on Abbott, Newman and Chancellor business. Doug being a vet with a pay packet to match.

Well Corrie is on at 8pm at night so there are far more viewers available so I don't know that comparing those numbers proves much. Also the whole production set up is completely different in the UK so that budget may be buying more in terms of filming time, rehearsal etc Not defending Days in any way, just saying...

If that's the case he needs to be more positive on his page and share anecdotes about Paul and the show,and discourage the stream of 'you should be back' and 'the show is worse w/o Paul' type of tweets. It's been going on for years and is a little tiresome.

A Y&R episode from 88(?) has been posted on the Days BTS thread. It's from an Australian broadcast and features a temp Skip, and much hoo-ha over Marc Mergeron posing in skimpy swimming trunks for Fenmores. Has this been seen before ?

Re the actors claims that they were only going to be short term. I think this may be because they were not given a contract as Bill Bell liked to see them on air and write the story based on what he saw. Also. if he wasn't feeling it, they might be replaced eg David Kimball, Sharon, April,John Abbott etc In the case of Kimberlin, Scott etc he liked their delivery, decided to go with it and expand their story-thus they were handed a contract.

Well if TPTB really wanted to they could kill Paul off but it wouldn't be worth their while. I think Kristoff,CLB and DD were all made recurring and asked to keep quiet and that they would be included in the opening and shown as contract in the credits. It was the first shifty move. Doug went down to zero appearances a month and it was noticed ,EB spoke out and Paul returned but again his appearances fizzled. Maybe he was told he would still be on regularly and realized he'd been duped. He spoke out and that was that. He claims to be on good terms with CBS and JG. So it seems Sony is the problem. He should have gone to the party as this might have worked in his favor as it would remind people he's absent and maybe changed some minds. I know some people are anti DD but overall I think Paul should still be on in some capacity.

I've mentioned before that perhaps it would have been better to write Leslie and Brad off (Tom Hallick was going to leave anyway)when Janice departed and allow some breathing time before a recast. Lorie had her plate full with Vanessa, Lance and later Lucas. Leslie could then return (widowed or divorced) and be an added factor in Prentiss saga. That longer break might have worked in favor of a Leslie recast. Your take on Vanessa is interesting and I admit at times I just wished everyone would just tell her they'd had enough and stop her in her tracks. I agree she somewhat lacked that nuance in her portrayal that we could feel for her situation a la Kay. I feel the same way about Phyllis with Michelle Stafford-I've never felt any sympathy or 'love to hate'for that character.

NANNETTE SARGENT THE GUIDING LIGHT Mrs Bentley 1946

AW tidbits Back in March 71 an ad in Variety for a 15 week acting class conducted by Constance Ford at Carnegie Hall beginning March 1. The 3pm timeslot competition was fierce Nov 78 GL#1 8.3/30 GH #7 7.1/25 AW# 8 6.6/22 How the mighty have fallen- in October 79 AW was beaten in the ratings by The Doctors and fell out of the Top 10 with a rating below 6.5.

I think the earlier adult Toms- Peter Link,Peter Galman and C David Colson were all well received. Only Tom Tammi was a bust.

Of course, I forgot EON. Of the newer shows Santa Barbara and Passions didn't use cast pics.

Did Traci ever finish her book about Dina's days in Paris?

I would have loved Leanna to have turned up on the arm of a guest-maybe Matt Miller? Crampton looks amazing for her age-not at all 'done' The tinkly background music is a minus-they really need to get back to music that enhances the scene. Mamie not knowing Lily's twins was odd-I would have preferred it being said that she had visited them over the years - same with the Abbotts-it seems out of character that she had no contact. The dumb masks seem to be there to facilitate the Phyllis plot-they are awkward and unnecessary. Phyliis' lips....

P AMC had a picture of Rosemary Prinz in the photo album for her 6 month stint 'with guest star' billing. There's an ep of Road of Life from the mid 50's where the actors posed in picture frames for the intro (live!). Maybe Never Too Young showed the actors in the opening with kids romping around (or were they just random teens?) So unless I've missed something Y&R with the character sketches was the first long running show to use images. Ryan's Hope followed their lead and then The Doctors and Love of Life when they revamped openings in the late 70's. Then Texas, Guiding Light and One Life to Live.