Paul Raven

Robert Sampson Add Paradise Bay - literary agent

Re First Hundred Years Add Tom Shirley Rusty Lane Eric Dressler Characters George Graham Mary Jane Graham

Some episode summaries from UCLA archives Ep 369 2nd May 52 George Graham has asked the VA for permission to see his daughter Mary Jane and she is anxiously awaiting to see her father in the hospital. She is also anxiously awaiting to meet the former Mrs. Graham, her stepmother. Ep 376 13 May Connie wants to keep her pregnancy a secret. Connie and Chris plan to move out of his parents home and into an apartment of their own. Comp Save

Re Never Too Young Add Ian Whitcomb performing 'You Turn Me On' (#8 Billboard Hot 100) and 'Nervous' (#59)

Ivor Francis Add Romance of Helen Trent 1949 Our Gal Sunday 1949 and 1952 Front Page Farrell 1952 Strange Romance of Evelyn Winters 1951 Kevin McCarthy Found 2 radio roles Hollywood Stairway 1951 (an ABC primetime radio soap - haven't found any other info yet) Right To Happiness 1959 James 'Jim' Boles Snow Village Amanda of Honeymoon Hill 1945 David Harum 1945 Strange Romance of Evelyn Winters 1951 Jan Miner Against The storm 1952 Front Page Farrell 1952 Temp replacement for Julie Stevens on Helen Trent and Stella Dallas 1952 Lorenzo Jones 1953 Rex Ingram Joyce Jordan Viola Berwick Lonely Women hotel proprietor 1943 Hawkins Falls 1951 - Romance of Helen Trent 1959

A disagreement between an orphaned brother and sister running their family, which includes two younger children, erupts into a serious fight--and a stabbing--that brings the older children to court. 19 year-old Maria Schiller has had most of the responsibility for keeping the family together since the death of her parents and she resents her brother's bossiness and assumed role as "head of the family." In this, the third of four parts, 17 year-old Matthew ultimately admits to caseworker John Collier (Abbott) that his efforts in business haven't been too successful. Matthew -Keir Dullea House on High Street from UCLA Archives.

Originally piloted as a nightime once a week show starring Diana Lynn and William Prince (first announced for the role -Eddie Albert) but no sponsors were interested so revamped as daily show.

Correcting this post from 9 years ago!! Secrets debuted Sat Dec 6 @10 with an 11.8/21- the lowest debut of the season so far. The episode in the Dallas timeslot was actually Fri Dec 26 and rated #5 for the week but it was not enough. By Jan 3 the rating was 11.2/18 #62 for the week out of 66 Cancellation was announced Jan 9 to be replaced with Concrete Cowboys.

Re Edgar Stelhi Add Judge Tompkins - From These Roots He was the temp replacement for Edgar Cooper June/July 58 (not Roger Stehil as listed)

June 1953 NBC announces plans for long running radio soap 'Big Sister' which had been cancelled Dec 52, to become part of its morning soap lineup.

May 7 1980 cast List Lorie Monique Lance Michael Victor Julia Vanessa Stuart Liz Waiter #1 Waiter # 2 3 Musicians Edith Baby Brooks Brock This is when John McCook returned briefly.

Add Deniece Williams to the singing guest star roster. I didn't know she appeared.

1971 CBS promotion

Lorenzo Lamas and Linda Hamilton

Thought I'd start a thread for this obsure shortlived show rather than have things lost in the primetime soaps thread. Based (loosely) on a successful Australian nightly soap, NBC hoped the success of Soap and Dallas would flow on this comedy serial. NBC hopes viewers visit `Number 96' New series on sexcapades of apartment house residents is off to slow ratings start, mixed reviews from both critics and affiliates The numbers for the first three episodes of Number 96, NBC -TV's controversial new series, were, in this order, 29, 24, 20. Those were the audience shares, respectively, of the "triple premiere" episodes broadcast Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (Dec. 10 -12). In ratings, the numbers were 18.0, 14.6 and 12.1. In rankings among the week's 66 prime -time programs they were 34th, 55th and 65th. The series, which NBC sources say is a limited series of six episodes, was billed by NBC as "a daring new comedy -drama serial" centering on "the escapades, ro- mances and problems of 16 married and single, kooky, kinky and straight -arrow residents of [an apartment house] at Number 96 Pacific Way." Among the married, single, kooky, kinky and straight -arrow characters are "a nervous new divorcee . .. eager to embark on a swinging singles life "; "a chic, beautiful couple [who] experiment with ways to spice their marriage "; a widowed mother who "gets a taste of freedom and booze and likes both too much "; a retired Navy commander who "leches after beautiful, mysterious Lisa," and "an American 'princess' who wants to be a star and thinks the casting couch is the way to go." There's also a sex expert who's a transvestite. Number 96, based on a series of the same name that was highly popular in Australia in the 1970's, was presented in its NBC premiere as "the most outrageous show on television" and the show "they tried to ban" in Australia. In Soap style it began with questions about the fate of its characters. In the opener, one character identified apartment building 96 as "Sodom and Gomorrah West," and, among other things, a woman's body was described as "made for black leather," another woman invited a new male tenant to give her an oil rub, and a neighbor, seeing a new husband carry his bride into their apartment after the honeymoon, concluded that they must have had a good time because "I see she can't walk." The premieres received, at best, mixed reviews from television critics -and much the same reaction from a sampling of affiliates. One affiliate, for instance, said: "It is not class television" and "will trouble some of our viewers," but that he thought "some of the characters and situations were pretty funny" and, though he con- sidered the program "very suggestive," he "didn't see that it went over the bounds" because "the bounds [already] have been stretched so far ?' Typical of others was an affiliate who said he didn't like- the show, calling it "pretty lamely written and developed" and adding, "'.if you're going to be titillating, good God, be funny about it" There was also a suggestion that "the promotion was a lot more titillating than anything I saw on the show ?' One said he wasn't proud of the show, "but on the other hand, I look at the shows that beat us and I wouldn't be proud of them, either." (The first episode of Number 96 was edged by Vega$ on ABC; the second was beaten by 20/20 on ABC and Knots Landing on CBS; the third was done in by Dukes of Hazzard on CBS.) The affiliate offering that last opinion also suggested that NBC, `tin being good and straight- laced," has offered such shows as Di/f'rent Strokes and Facts of Life that haven't done so well in the ratings as, say, ABC's Three's Company. He added: "So maybe if that's what [viewers] want If NBC said the first two episodes got "pretty good" clearance, with 185 affiliates carrying each, but that clearances for the third dropped off to 174. The first episode's 18.0 rating and 29 share, NBC researchers said, were one of the best premiere performances of the season, and in New York its numbers virtually doubled those recorded by the long -running All in the Family in its own premiere. An NBC spokesman conceded that the ratings for the second and third episodes "didn't move the way we wanted them to :' but also noted that the worst came on Friday night, "a particularly tough night" in view of CBS and ABC strengths. But it is on Friday nights that the series is scheduled to pick up its weekly runs, or, as a memo to editors put it, "snuggle into" the 9 -10 p.m. time period "and just smolder ?' One affiliate noted that advance schedules did not show Number 96 in the lineup after early January. NBC sources said that, as in several other cases, only six episodes had been ordered, but that if the program should yet get hot in the ratings, there are back -up scripts that could be put into production to keep alive the escapades, romances and problems of the married, single, kooky, kinky and straight - arrow residents of Number 96.

Re Helen Shields Add Just Plain Bill 1943 Backstage Wife 1945 Rose of My Dreams 1946 Stella Dallas 1949 Right to Happiness 1956 Re Alexander Scourby Add Joyce Jordan MD Just Plain Bill 1944 Strange Romance of Evelyn Winters 1945 Re Sarah Burton Add Wendy Warren and the News Ma Perkins Front Page Farrell 1952 Re Mandel Kramer Add Just Plain Bill 1945 Front Page Farrell 1945 Re Martin Blaine Add David Harum 1950 Rose of My Dreams

Just read that Gerald Gordon and Sally Gracie, who played so well off each other as Nick and Martha died within days of each other in 2001. He was 67 and she was 80.

Re Kevin. When Melody fell pregnant,wasn't it the case that Bill Bell decided to use this and quickly refashioned the story to introduce Kevin and have him sleep with Nikki? That's my recollection.That was in Jan 82. But strangely enough in Dec 81, Victor had introduced Nikki to Rex Barber and he and Nikki had hit it off. So why didn't Bill just continue with Rex as that story was already in place? Maybe the actor playing Rex wasn't available or Bell/Conboy didn't like him enough to make him a major character?

That is from the Variety Archive (paid site) The radio and TV eps were the same content with slight tweaks to suit the respective medium. For 4 years the cast did the radio show in the am and TV in the pm.

The first TV episode June 30 1952 Cast Joe Roberts - Herb Nelson Meta Bauer Roberts - Jone Allison Kathy Roberts - Susan Douglas Bert Bauer - Charita Bauer Bill Bauer - Lyle Sudrow Joe and Meta have separated and Meta is worried how Kathy will fare. Kathy tells Joe she wants to move out and substitute college for a career. There were two sets and the show just picked up from Friday's radio episode with no background supplied to new TV viewers.

By the end the show had forgotten Betsy Dani Frannie Kristina Ryder Bianca Scott Andy and several others.

I wonder if Modern Romances used a lot of the same sets from week to week, perhaps just redecorated? Seems costly to have to create new sets for each weeks story. How far ahead were they with stories? Seems there was a limit of 4 main parts per week which could have been limiting. Although they were doing over a week what one live nightime drama was acheiving in one episode. A BTS look would be fascinating...

Guess Bill Bell had a lot of respect for Kenney and trusted his instincts. There was an interesting Afternoon TVinterview with Kenney from that time. Hope someone has it and can post it.T he only thing I recall is Kenney talking about dropping the moody lighting. That may have been a production decision as much as an aesthetic choice as there wasn't the time available to light the sets with the hour format.