Malcolm Groome is one of my favorite soap opera actors, but I also enjoyed all of the actors who played Dr. Patrick Ryan - expecially Pat #2 John Blazo!

Wasn't Pat Ashley paired with Adam Brewster?

Sebastian Blayne was a pen name for Ms. Huckins.

Actress Inga Swenson has passed away at the age of ninety.   She did not appear on any soap operas, but I understand that she had been hired to join the cast of Love Is a Many Splendored Thing prior to its cancellation.

I am not attempting to begin an argument, but that this show is the first soap opera to be set in a real city is false.

ABC's The Best of Everything was set in New York City.

CBS's Love Is a Many Splendored Thing was set in San Francisco.

1954's Woman with a Past was set in Manhatten.

I wish to pose a question:

In the late 1970s, there were three popular characters on The Edge of Night:  Raven (played by Juanin Clay. April (played by Terry Davis) and Deborah (played by Frances Fisher).

When Ms. Clay departed the show, the role of Raven was recast.  However, during probably an eighteen-month period, the show lost Draper, Logan, Steve, Deborah, Winter, Kevin, and April.

Had the show made the decision to recast the roles of April and Deborah, what actresses would have been good in these two roles?

(Also, the show should have recast Steve Gutherie.   I suppose that the show knew that Ms. Fisher was going to leave and decided that to not recast would be the best decision.    I still think that there should have been a new Steve!)

I have just been told some information about a performer about whose activities I had wondered for quite a few years!

Kathryn (Kate) Dezina has been in France working in theatre since she was last seen on the ABC series The Hamptons!

I do not know the name of the character, but actor Marco St. John (Dr. Paul Stewart on As the World Turns) played the role of the physician.

Erica had her abortion earlier than 1973.   (1973 was the year that Jason Maxwell was murdered.)

She tried to hide the abortion from the Martin family.  She had complications from the abortion and had to remain in the hospital.  Jeff and Joe were concerned about why she was ill.  I think that this may have been when Mary Kinnecott, R. N. was introduced.   (Jacqueline Bosworth was the first actress in the role.)

What was the reason given for the dual personality of Serena Travis Feriday?

I never cared much for Ms. Booth as Andy, but Wendee Pratt was one of my favorite actresses on the show.   I feel that her storylines with Antonio were extremely good.   I loved them together!

Andy's first husband, Hunter Gutherie, was an attractive young actor, but the storylines were bland to me.

I saw Nicholas Benedict throughout his run on All My Children, and I also kept up with the performers through the various magazines.  I do not remember anything about his love life as has been mentioned.  Did he date another performer?   I cannot recall.

Several of the actors who played Dr. Jeff Martin are still living who was not mentioned above.  The first actor (Christopher Wines) has indeed passed away.  James O'Sullivan and John James are still living.  I am not sure about Robert Perrault or John Tripp.

John Tripp is the only performer who may have not had scenes with Erica or any real storylines with her.

Robert Perrault was probably intended to have a big storyline with Betsy Kinnecott, R. N. (Carla Dragoni).

James O'Sullivan was involved mostly with Robin Strasser (as Christina), but he also was in the storyline in which Erica wanted an church annulment of the marriage of Jeff and Erica.

This information about two writers appeared on the Search for Tomorrow page.   It was posted by RavenWhitney.

"Leonard Kantor was a prolific and successful television writer until his death at 59 (likely from HIV/AIDS) in NYC in 1984. He was brought in to The Doctors in 1982 to help young writer, Barbara Morgenroth, in the final six months of the show.  

"Doris Frankel was briefly head writer of Somerset with Winifred Wolfe in 74. It was a much talked about period when the writers focused on Ellen's May/December romance with a much younger man and the introduction of Carrie along with several other senior citizens.  i watched with my grandmother and it was smartly written and entertaining. Doris also wrote for AMC"

Any information about any of the writers is always appreciated!

Also, my understanding is that The Widening Circle would have been a spin-off from The Secret Storm that would have featured the family of Judge Stevens.

I could imagine that Ken would have had a selfish, hateful sister.

The last names of Nola, Laurie and Wilifred was Hollister - not Lockwood.

I never understood Valerie and Nick.   There did not seem to be an attraction to me.  The initial plan was probably to link Nick and Amy, but the show did not want this to be grounds for the upcoming divorce.   They wanted the divorce to be Paul's fault.

I remember when the character was introduced onto the show.    I enjoyed Tina with Greg Huddleston!

This news is quite tragic.  Prayers are sent on behalf of her family.

She and Wayne Massey (Johnny) have been divorced for many years.

This appeared on Playbill's website.   It is about Jonathan Tunnick, the husband of Lee Beery.

HOW DID I GET HEREHow 2 Phone Calls Changed the Life of Frequent Sondheim Orchestrator Jonathan Tunick

The Tony-winning orchestrator, currently represented on Broadway with the revival of Sweeney Todd, also penned the orchestrations for the upcoming revival of Merrily We Roll Along.

BY ANDREW GANS

JULY 07, 2023

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Tony winner Jonathan Tunick, currently represented on Broadway with his orchestrations for the Tony-nominated revival of Sweeney Todd, was Stephen Sondheim’s orchestrator of choice, arranging nearly all of his musicals. And, we do mean nearly all: Tunick's credits include the original Broadway productions of Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Passion, and Merrily We Roll Along. He also penned the orchestrations for the recent, acclaimed Off-Broadway revival of Merrily, which begins previews on Broadway this fall.

The New York native, who has orchestrated over 50 Broadway productions—including the original stagings of the Pulitzer Prize-winning A Chorus Line and the Tony-winning Nine—won his Tony in 1997 for Best Orchestrations for Maury Yeston's Tony-winning score for Titanic. It was the first Tony to ever be given in that category. 

Tunick, who was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame in 2009, is also one of the few artists who has achieved EGOT status, with an Emmy in 1982 for Night of 100 Stars (Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction), a Grammy in 1988 for No One Is Alone (Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocals), and an Oscar in 1978 for A Little Night Music (Best Music, Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Best Adaptation Score).

In the interview below for the Playbill series How Did I Get Here—spotlighting not only actors, but directors, designers, musicians, and others who work on and off the stage to create the magic that is live theatre—Tunick shares how two phone calls changed his professional life and how he's never worked a day job in his career.

What made you decide to become an orchestrator?
As school children, we heard records such as Peter and the Wolf and Tubby the Tuba that showed me that musical instruments could portray characters and tell stories. This idea grew into an obsession that has dominated my life.

Was there a particular production or performance that influenced your decision?
Bye Bye Birdie, which caught my attention as the first really hip musical, and introduced me to the work of Red Ginzler.

Tell me about a time you almost gave up but didn’t.
Although I was a performed composer at 19 (Take Five) and orchestrated my first Broadway show (From A to Z) at 21, my 20s were a steady stream of false starts and disappointments. Nevertheless, I was very stubborn and persisted.

How did you get your first job in the theatre?
I spent the summers of 1959 and ’60 at Tamiment, a resort in the Poconos that provided entertainment for its guests in the form of an original musical revue each week. There was a resident staff of performers, writers, composers, designers, director, choreographer, an orchestra and…an arranger. I was still working on my masters at Juilliard, and Tamiment was the link between being a student and a professional musician—my first experience as a paid arranger.

I was paying my way through Juilliard by playing clarinet and saxophone or piano in bands. A trumpet player friend told me he’d gotten a job for the summer playing at Tamiment, and thus inspired, I called the musical director, Milton Greene (who was later the conductor of Fiddler), to inquire about the possibility of a job in the band for myself.

“What I really need,” he said, "is an arranger. The arranger that I’ve had for the last few years isn’t coming back.”

“Well,” I said, “I don’t have any experience—or credits—but I am a composition major at Juilliard, and I can do arranging.”

He was over a barrel; he couldn’t find anyone. And so, not without trepidation, he gave me the job. Once at Tamiment I immersed myself in musicals and theatre orchestration. We did a show a week for 10 weeks, the last a full musical, as opposed to a revue. Milton was a bit of a martinet—a real stickler and methodical, but he knew his trade, and gave me a good deal of advice and guidance that’s held true to this day.

It was at Tamiment that I learned many of the basics of working in the theatre, and made some of my first contacts that led to work in the time to come. Some of these were Dorothy Loudon, Mary Rodgers, Fred Ebb, Gary Geld, Woody Allen, and Michael Cohen—who, in addition to being a fine composer, ran the music department at Grey Advertising for many years and often called me in to provide music for TV commercials.

What do you consider your big break?
It would have to be the call, seemingly out of nowhere, offering me Burt Bacharach’s Promises, Promises—the show that first really put me on the map.

What is the most memorable day job you ever had?
I am proud to say that I’ve been able to support myself solely by music, even at the beginning. I have never had a day job or collected unemployment.

Is there a person or people you most respect in your field and why?
Robert Russell Bennett, the Grand Old Man of theatre orchestrators—a great musician and a great man. Red Ginzler, who I consider the greatest theatre orchestrator of all time.

Tell me about a job/opportunity you really wanted but didn’t get.
I really would have liked to do 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue;  I had worked with Bernstein on Mass and found him endlessly inspiring. Also, I really would have liked to have put in some time on the road with Woody Herman’s band.

What advice would you give your younger self or anyone starting out?
Don’t turn up your nose at a job that doesn’t pay enough, or for which someone else will snag the credit. As long as you think the gig will bring you some profit in the form of experience, a promising connection, or some musical or professional growth that will help your progress. In the early stages of your career, you will be exploited. It’s all right to let this happen as long as you’re compensated in other ways.

What do you wish you knew starting out that you know now?
Being right is not an effective defense.

Your work is so associated with the music of Stephen Sondheim. Can you share what that means to you and/or something that Sondheim said to you over the years that was particularly meaningful?
While planning the score for Merrily We Roll Along, Sondheim quipped to me, “Since the plot runs backwards in time, maybe we should put the overture at the end of the show, rather than at the beginning.” 

“Yes,” I agreed. “And the overture should end with a timpani roll.” [Editor’s Note: This humorous plan didn’t happen, though Sondheim did place ‘reprise’ versions of songs before fuller arrangements of the same tunes later in the evening.]

What is your proudest achievement as an orchestrator?
I’m still here.

What was the real reason that James Fitzpatrick left Another World and his role Willis Frame #1?

I am wondering about two performers today:

Paul Carpinelli (Flip Malone on The Guiding Light - and another role on The Edge of Night)

and

Abaigail Kellogg (Robin #? on The Guiding Light - and another role on Love Is a Many Splendored Thing).

I think that Ms. Kellogg may have been the actress who was a temporary substitute for Rosemary Prinz as Penny on As the World Turns around 1965.

I just learned something about Denise Nickerson (Amy, Nora) that I had not previously known:  that she auditioned for the role of Princess Leia in the Star Wars motion picture.

Also still living are Fran Sharon, Tony Roberts, Frances Fisher, Denny Albee, Margaret Colin, Lee Godart, Ernie Physher (Townsend), Lela Ivey, Marianne Alda, all six of the actresses who played Nicole and Geri, Ted Tinling, Leah Ayres, Laurie Vendig, Renee Jarrett, Tony Craig, Nark Arnold, Allen Fawcett, Joe Lambie, Leah Ayers, Lori Cardille, Stephanie Braxton (also a writer), Sandy Faison, Pamela Shoemaker, Chris Weatherhead, Michael Comforti and Gillian Spenser (two more writers), Louise Shaffer (another writer), Kerri Emerson, Marcia Cross, Alan Feinstein, Kathy Cody, Willie Ames, Kate Capshaw, Dorothy Sinnette, Dan Hamilton, Anita Gillette, Leslie Ray, Richard Thomas, Joey Baio, Carolyn Groves, Sam Groom, Margaret DePriest (another writer), Martin Sheen, Dr. Sheldon Collins, Alice Hirson, Lawrence Pressman, James Hall, Lynn Leveredge, Susan MacDonald, Mari Gorman, Jay Gregory, Thom Christopher, Lucy Martin, Holland Taylor, Larry Joshua, Bibi Neuwirth, Bernie McInerny, Mark Rydell (from the original cast), Judith Barcroft, Karen Needle, Polly Adams, John LaGoia, Deborah Goodrich, Scott Glenn, Nicholas Pryor. Cynthia Gregory, Lori Laughlin ...

These are just some of the names that I can think of who could be interviewed.

I would also love to know which actors auditioned for roles for the beginning of Dark Shadows.

I know that Nancy Barrett (Carolyn) auditiioned for Victoria Winters.

I know that Robin Strasser (who was later in Another World, All My Children and One Life to Live) auditioned for a role.    I was thinking that maybe this was for Victoria, but it just occurred to me that it may have been for Maggie.

Tonight, I am watching the early episodes of Dark Shadows.    I must have watched them dozens of times before (including when they were first aired on ABC).   Here are some observations and ponderments that I have tonight:

1.  I wonder about the performers on the show who had contracts and for what length these contracts were.o

The performers who I expect had contracts were Alexandra Moltke (Victoria), Joan Bennett (Elizabeth), Nancy Barrett (Carolyn), Joel Crothers (Joe), Mark Allen (Sam), Kathryn Leigh Scott (Maggie), Frank Schofield (Bill), and George Mitchell (Matthew).     I am not sure if David Hennessy had a contract or not, since he was a  juvenile, and I am basing that on his age.   I doubt if Louis Edmonds had a contract because Roger was originally supposed to appear on the show for a few months.

2.  Maggie, in the first episodes, tells Victoria that everyone who lives in Collinwood is a kook.   I think that the least kookiest would have been Carolyn.   I wonder if the show was preparing the viewers of an eventual conflict between Maggie and Carolyn (over Joe).

(This is not the only time that I think that storylines originally intended for Carolyn were dropped.)

3.  Two of the people in the Blue Whale were played by Robert Viharo (as Harry - but not Harry Johnson) and Alan Yorke (as Alan Feinstein was known around this time).   I wonder if either of these two actors had auditioned for the role of Joe Haskell and lost the part to Joel Crothers (who was more innocent looking than either Mr. Viharo or Mr. Yorke).

4.  The bartender at the Blue Whale is played by Bob O'Connell, who does not receive billing.   (I don't think that he ever did during the entire run of the show.)  The bartended is identified in this episode as "Joe," but he is later renamed as "Bob Rooney."  I wonder why the show would have two characters both named "Joe."

5.  I see in episode #2 that some of the female extras are wearing pants.  Yet, Carolyn is wearing a dress.   I know that Nicole on The Edge of Night is said to be the first female character who wore jeans.  Carolyn, I don't think, wore pants until the 1970-Parallel Time set of episodes.

There was a book of trivia on The Edge of Night that was written, but I do not think that it was ever published.   The writer (whose name I cannot remember at this moment) had written other trivia books - I remember that there was a MASH book from the same author.    I suppose that the publisher thought that there was a much smaller amount of interest in The Edge of Night.

I was really hoping that Lois Kibbe (who was a very published author) and Ann Flood would collaborate on a book about the show.   After the death of Ms. Kibbee, I was hoping that Ann Flood would have written a book about it. 

Now, I don't know who would know that most about the show.   Maybe Millette Alexander?   Is director/writer Don Wallace (the original director of The Edge of Night and a producer/director/writer of numerous shows) still living?

I think that the Jasper Delaney storyline may have been Mr. Slesar's best - although he did not initiate the sotyrline from the beginning.  

I wonder how this would have been if it had been written by Robert Cenedella instead.