Bill Bauer

Somebody in Alan's life needs to have a heart-to-heart with him. His idea was great. He just needed someone else to host. Everybody has different gifts and abilities. 

You're welcome. I'm glad you're enjoying it!

I've said it before but I think Robert Gentry was the quintessential "Ed" but Mart Hulswit was definitely the most likable. I too wish they would have brought him back. I never liked Peter Simon and I thought Richard van Vleet was a bit of a miscast. 

37 minutes ago, NothinButAttitude said:

Liberty and Janet Ciccone on ATWT. As much as they tried force feeding them to us, they never quite fit into the fold. 

 

 

Ugh. I forgot about them. Thankfully. Signs that the end was nigh for ATWT. The barbarians were at the gate.

16 minutes ago, Neil Johnson said:

 

So do you mean that jokingly?   Of course, no sets transitions from radio to TV.   Radio had no sets.  

 

LOL. I mean in the fictional world of the story. I think by the time the show premiered on television, Bill and Bert had bought their own house and Papa was living with them. 

58 minutes ago, antmunoz said:

How dare that materialistic bitch Bert want her own HOUSE?

 

Ross and Blake were raising three kids in a hotel room at The Beacon, for God’s sake. 
 

Now that’s called losing your set but MAKING IT WORK. 

Well, she actually was very materialistic back then. It wasn't so much that she wanted her own house it was that she was pushing Bill to buy a house he couldn't afford in Beverly Hills. Bert had a lot more ambition than Bill. Bert was way too ambitious for her time. In today's world, she would have just gone out and got the things she wanted. Back then, though, the husband was the one who was supposed to be the go-getter. The problem with Bill and Bert's marriage is that she always wanted way more than Bill did. So she used her ambitious energy into pushing him. It was an interesting dynamic to a story that couldn't be told in 2020. Back then, a woman was expected to be just a supporting housewife. In today's world, Bert would probably become the CEO of a company. Because it was the late 40s/early 50s she just pushed Bill (instead of supporting him) because of her extreme ambition. They were extremely mismatched but loved each other on a certain level. Bert was actually more suited for Ted White back then and Bill even mentioned it. Bert loved Ted White's ambition and wealth. She didn't care that he was such an ass. Interestingly, even though they were siblings, Bill and Meta were much closer to each other and more compatible than Bill and Bert were. In fact, Bert was very jealous of Meta because of the closeness she had with Bill. And of course Meta was so unsuited for Ted that she wound up killing him. If they hadn't have been siblings, Bill and Meta would have been a better match and Ted and Bert would have been a better match. 

1 minute ago, Neil Johnson said:

 

So, do you think perhaps the house inhabited by Bill and Bert near the end of their marriage was Papa Bauer's house?  And if so, was it the same house Bert inhabited in the early-80s?   Despite set alterations, of course.   

I don't know for sure but I suspect that Papa and Mama's house didn't survive the transition from radio to TV. Just a guess. 

21 minutes ago, Neil Johnson said:

 

And yes, Papa and Mama Bauer had a house -- at least on radio. Not sure exactly when Mama died, and what happened to their house.  Did Bill and Bert move-in with Papa?  I know for sure, there was a short period in the early-to-mid-1960s, when Papa moved-out on his own  to a small apartment. Later he moved (back?) in with Bill and Bert.   

 

Bill and Bert lived in Papa and Mama's house with Papa and Trudy. Although Bert hated it and was always wanting to move into her own house with Bill. She pushed Bill to buy a house they couldn't afford and borrow the money from his brother-in-law Ted. This caused a lot of financial stress on Bill and was one of the things that started his long battle with the bottle. After Ted was killed by Meta, Bill and Bert were forced to move back in with Papa Bauer in his house. Bert was not happy. They weren't in their new home for long. Just a few months. I don't know when they got their own permanent place. Probably when Mike was born in 1951.

10 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

Last year, Corday sued Sony alleging that they were sabotaging DAYS in favor of Y&R. Most of his claims were dismissed though

As they should have been. Corday is the one sabotaging Days with his dumb decisions. He has nobody to blame but himself and the writers he hires. Sony doesn't make creative decisions. Thanks for the information. 

17 hours ago, antmunoz said:

Exactly. Eileen had that clause in the 70’s because Tom was aged so rapidly and married off to Carol, then Natalie. Eileen had seen what becoming a grandmother onscreen did to Pat Bruder’s Ellen (and it killed off Barbara Berger’s GREAT-grandmother Claire). 
 

He’s somewhat uninformed and disrespectful about anything that happened prior to 1997, it seems. 
 

So I won’t hold out hope for the Kathryn Hays/Marie Masters/Patricia Bruder episode that I NEED. 

I thought it was weird that he didn't know Katie was Casey and Lyla's daughter since she was such a huge character in the last decade or so but I guess that makes sense if he has poor pre-1997 knowledge since Katie didn't talk about her parents much. How sad to only have knowledge of the show after 1997 when it was at its worst. 

6 hours ago, Fevuh said:

I think the lawsuit took the wind out of his sails. I don’t watch DAYS but that would be my guess from what I read. 

What lawsuit?

Scott Bryce seems very likable and I loved him mentioning his dad who I loved as well. 

44 minutes ago, Soapsuds said:

Carlivati is garbage! But there isn't anyone who can save Days. It's a soap that has been on life support for many years. The only thing that will save it....is to pull the plug and cancel it.

I think there is still some slim hope that it can be saved but Ken Corday doesn't seem interested in saving it. Perhaps he's just ready to retire and wants to take the show with him? 

Hopefully this will allow Ken Corday and Ron Carlivati time to do some soul-searching. 

Days desperately needs a new headwriter. I wonder if some of the old Days headwriters from the 60s, 70s or 80s can be coaxed out of retirement. Are any of them still with us? 

2 hours ago, DRW50 said:

 

Did your feelings change any after Rachel began to become a less prominent character in the late '80s?

Not really. It wasn't just about Rachel. By then, the quality of the show had already deteriorated too much. In my opinion. Just personal taste. Everybody likes different things. 

6 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

So I’m guessing that you weren’t a fan of Rachel in the 60s and early 70s and did not like the fact that she became the lead heroine of the show?

No, I wasn't a fan of Rachel ever. I couldn't stand her character in the 60s and early 70s and didn't like her even when the character became more likable and became the lead heroine. I just never liked the character. However, I don't mind characters I don't like as long as they are part of an ensemble and not the main focus. I'm funny that way. I couldn't stand Aunt Liz either but I liked her being a part of the ensemble. I felt the same about Rachel. I always wanted to lock Rachel and Liz together in a room and have them go at each other. Even though I hated both of them, I would love to watch that!  

On 6/17/2020 at 1:47 PM, AbcNbc247 said:

It’s not random at all. So many of those clips are just about Mac and Rachel, which are great, but I’d love to see more of the B and C stories from that time too 

No other soap evokes such extreme feelings of like/dislike for me as Another World does. I absolutely love Another World's first ten years. It was soap opera at its best. I loved it as much as my other favorites (GL, ATWT and DOOL). However, when it went from an ensemble piece to The Rachel Show, I absolutely hated it and did hate it for the rest of its run. Those first ten years, though...Wow! Great stuff!

1 hour ago, Manny said:

After checking files further, I can see there is only first half of 1957. The following years are then more like a recap of important stories, not like this daily recap. But if someone is interested, I can share what I have.

 

ATWT 1957 Storyline

Source for January 2 to April 19, 1957 ATWT synopses:

• *TV Guide, Volume 5, issues 1-15 (Dec. 29, 1956-Jan. 4, 1957 issue through April 13-19, 1957 issue).

Note: As the World Turns was preempted on Tuesday, January 1.

193.                 Jan.2: Dr. Snyder talks to Claire about love.

194.                 Jan 3: Edie meets Jim for a celebration.

195.                 Jan 4: Penny and Ellen are disturbed

196.                 Jan. 7: Don tells Janice that he'll live on campus.

197.                 Jan. 8: Janice confides in Edith.

198.                 Jan. 9: Dr. Snyder discovers what's wrong with Claire.

199.                 Jan. 10: Ellen has dinner at the Hughes's'.

200.                 Jan. 11: Janice tells Don her decision.

201.                 Jan. 14: Claire makes Ellen uncomfortable.

202.                 Jan. 15: Don shows Chris the ring Janice returned.

203.                 Jan. 16: Claire and Dr. Snyder make some progress.

204.                 Jan. 17: Edith refuses the date Chris arranged.

205.                 Jan. 18: Claire forces Ellen into a trip to California.

Note: As the World Turns was preempted on Monday, January 21 for President Eisenhower's inauguration.

206.                 Jan. 22: Claire decides to take a trip.

207.                 Jan. 23: No episode information available.

208.                 Jan. 24: Claire wonders about her decision.

209.                 Jan. 25: Penny and Ellen receive a surprise.

210.                 Jan. 28: Edith has a talk with Chris.

211.                 Jan. 29: Ellen and Judge Lowell discuss Edith.

212.                 Jan. 30: Jeff tells Ellen the truth.

213.                 Jan. 31: Penny asks her aunt a question.

214.                 Feb. 1: Edith pays a visit to Jim's office.

215.                 Feb. 4: Ellen overhears a conversation between Jim and Edie.

216.                 Feb. 5: Ellen tells her father a lie.

217.                 Feb. 6: No episode information available.

218.                 Feb. 7: Jeff and Penny have an argument.

219.                 Feb. 8: Ellen gets angry with her father.

220.                 Feb. 11: Penny wonders why Ellen is so angry.

221.                 Feb. 12: Ellen tells her father what she overheard.

222.                 Feb. 13: Ellen makes an unfortunate decision.

223.                 Feb. 14: Ellen tells Penny about her aunt.

224.                 Feb. 15: Penny's life is filled with confusion.

225.                 Feb. 18: Jim talks to his father about Ellen.

226.                 Feb. 19: The Lowell's and Hugheses reach an incorrect conclusion about Ellen's health.

227.                 Feb. 20: Jim discovers his daughter's hate.

228.                 Feb. 21: Claire has a serious talk with Jim.

229.                 Feb. 22: Penny is alienated from her family.

230.                 Feb. 25: Edie learns what's troubling Penny.

231.                 Feb. 26: Chris tells Edith that their brother, John, will be released from jail very soon.

232.                 Feb. 27: Claire is on the road to recovery.

233.                 Feb. 28: Edith and Jim talk about their future.

234.                 March 1: Janice Turner returns from Florida.

235.                 March 4: Ellen decides to get even with Don.

236.                 March 5: Ellen makes plans to go away.

237.                 March 6: Claire begins to understand her illness.

238.                 March 7: Ellen and Penny make up.

239.                 March 8: Penny has an argument with Aunt Edith.

240.                 March 11: Penny has an argument with her mother.

241.                 March 12: Chris and Nancy have a disagreement.

242.                 March 13: Claire has a talk with Dr. Snyder.

243.                 March 14: Edith pays a visit to the Lowells.

244.                 March 15: Claire talks openly about the divorce.

245.                 March 18: Edith tells Jim she is leaving.

246.                 March 19: Edith causes more trouble for the Hughes family.

247.                 March 20: Jim asks Dr. Snyder some questions.

248.                 March 21: Claire can't get Ellen to believe her.

249.                 March 22: Claire tells Jim she wants a divorce.

250.                 March 25: Ellen tries to rule her family.

251.                 March 26: Edith's anger brings a terrible reaction from Judge Lowell.

252.                 March 27: Chris learns Edith is responsible for Judge Lowell's illness.

253.                 March 28: Jim learns Edith's part in his father's illness.

254.                 March 29: Claire refuses to allow Judge Lowell to interfere.

255.                 April 1: No episode information available.

256.                 April 2: Nancy doesn't want another problem.

257.                 April 3: Jim and his father reach a new understanding.

258.                 April 4: Janice Turner has some good news.

259.                 April 5: The Hugheses' anniversary causes a quarrel.

260.                 April 8: Edith and Chris worry about their brother.

261.                 April 9: Janice Turner has doubts about her forthcoming marriage.

262.                 April 10: Grandpa tries to reconcile Edith and Penny.

263.                 April 11: Chris is concerned about John's threats.

264.                 April 12: Ellen uses her grandfather in an attempt to keep the family together.

265.                 April 15: Janice tells Carl about her misgivings.

266.                 April 16: Janice makes her wedding plans.

267.                 April 17: Edith comes to Jim for help.

268.                 April 18: Ellen schemes against her parents.

269.                 April 19: John Hughes is headed for trouble.

In the intervening months, Janice Turner married Carl Whipple and left Oakdale, and Jim Lowell went on a vacation to Florida to wait out his divorce from Claire. During that vacation, Jim died in a boating accident.

Penny Hughes graduated from high school that June and continued to date Jeff Baker, despite Nancy's objections.

Thank you for sharing, Manny!

8 minutes ago, Soapsuds said:

I liked Iva especially the early version.  Holden was hot . I loved Meg but hated the rest of the Snyders. Ellie and Seth were so damn dull. I liked scolding mama bear Emma.

 

oops and I forgot Caleb...I couldn't stand him until Graham Winton took over.

I actually never really liked any of the Snyders except Iva. Emma was ok though a bit annoying at times. You're right that Seth was dull and he was also very self-righteous. Meg was whiney and snide. Holden could be ok at times but was generally too shallow and opportunistic. Caleb and Ellie were the worst and both completely insufferable to me. I don't even consider Jack a real Snyder. Just a character they tacked the last name on to. But he was a dolt. 

37 minutes ago, All My Shadows said:

 I don't know why, but when soaps start off with (or introduce) siblings, they eventually follow one sibling's family while letting the others fade off. ATWT did it relatively early with John and Edith and then again with Don and Penny. Even with the Snyders, they only cared about Holden after a while.

You're right. ATWT continued that pattern with focusing on Tom and his family and letting Frannie and Sabrina fall by the wayside. GL did the same with focusing on Bill's family with Meta and Trudy fading away, then Ed's family and Mike and Hilary fading away (well, Mike fading away and Hilary blowing up), then Michelle leaving the show with her family and the focus being on Rick. Well, what little focus the Bauers had on them towards the end. What little there was, Rick had it. 

2 hours ago, Manny said:

As I mentioned in the ATWT history thread, I found some old files on my old computer today. For GL, I found a document which had like tidbits from the radio shows. I don't know the source unfortunately, but I thought it might be interesting to share here, in case you guys wanna read it. Sorry, if this has already been shared. 

 

1930s

The Guiding Light premieres on radio, based in Chicago (1/25/37)

Ned Holden and Mary Ruthledge are engaged (1937)

Abe Kransky dies from influenza (1937)

Fredrika shoots and kills Paul Holden (1938)

Rose Kransky has child out of wedlock (1939)

---

1940-1944

Ned and Mary get married (6/41)

Johnny Kransky dies in an automobile accident (1941)

Ellis Smith and Torchy Reynolds Holden marry (1942)

Norma Greenman dies of a heart attack (1943)

1945-1949

Dr. Richard Gaylord becomes minister in Five Points (1945)

GL moves production to Hollywood (1946)

Reverend Ruthledge (Arthur Peterson) dies (1946)

Tim Lawrence dies in a plane crash (7/46)

Dr. Jonathan MacNeill marries Claire Lawrence (10/46)

Theo Goetz originates role of Frederick (Papa) Bauer (1947)

Ray and Charlotte marry (1947)

Dr. Charles Matthews opens the Church of the Good Samaritan in Selby Flats, CA, the story's new location (1947)

Roger Collins marries Susan McClain (1948)

Meta Bauer (Jone Allison) poses as Jan Carter (7/48)

GL production moves to New York from Hollywood; GL story moves from Five Points, USA to Selby Flats, CA (1949)

Bert Miller (Ann Shepherd) and Bill Bauer (Lyle Sudrow) are married (12/9/49)

Mama Bauer dies (12/49)

Please don't apologize. Feel free to share and reshare anything you'd like from the early days of GL! Thank you for sharing.

1 hour ago, YRBB said:

Sigh. That 1967 episode. The only people I know/recognize were Chris and Penny of course (both lovely to see) but I realized I was so invested by that last scene and holding my breath in anticipation of Amanda's answer to changing her plea. Just one episode and I was in.

I thought the actress playing Amanda was really good. She said a lot with her eyes. 

2 hours ago, Mitch said:

 

 

LOL..Iove good old Bridget..so full of herself! Are the Dobson's still with us?

Yes. And apparently living in Atlanta. 

4 hours ago, DRW50 said:

@BillBauer thanks for the 1967 episode. The only one up was in shaky quality so this is a much clearer upload.

My pleasure. I share what I can. 

30 minutes ago, All My Shadows said:

GL was the top-rated soap throughout the 50s, right? I can see why - of all the 15-minute soaps I've seen, they really did the best with the format. This entire episode was just wrought with tension that built and built, and by the time Mike says he needs to talk to Robin before he leaves, you can't look away! And those two tiny but so enormous gestures of Robin shaking Mike's hand as he leaves and then Bert barely able to stop herself from grabbing Robin and shaking her senseless. Topped off with the rising organ and slow zoom in on Robin's face. It's just so beautifully done.

 

I know ATWT came in hot as a 30-minute soap and shot to the top because it could do more with its timeslot, but there's something to be said about these "drop-in visits" that the 15-minute soaps feel like.

I much preferred the 15-minute format. 30 tops. The hour-long format just meant they had to add a lot of boring filler material and the cost of production for an hour-long show is what ultimately led to their demise. If the shows were still 15 minutes, they might still be on the air. Alas, you can't go back. 

It's funny how Bert was so disapproving of her sister-in-law Meta and then disapproving of Meta's step-daughter Kathy and then disapproving of Kathy's daughter Robin. If Robin had had children, I wonder if Bert would have carried on the tradition. Heck, Bert was even disapproving of Meta's little son Chuckie who was a very sweet kid. When Bill was telling Bert how much Meta loved Chuckie, Bert replied, "Oh who could love that little boy?". She was really something else in her younger days. 

4 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

 

I just summarized Soapcentral but I appreciate your kindness.

 

I imagine Gillian would have left, as she never stayed in a soap role too long, but I do wonder what might have been. I think the show ran into problems by the early '70s at not having more complex women in that age range - you just had Sara and then a lot of younger, dewier heroines. 

I think Leslie and Peggy filled Robin's role after she was gone. 

2 hours ago, DRW50 said:

 

Thanks for the extra detail, and for the episode. I'd never seen that one before. It was interesting to hear mention of some of the characters who sort of drifted into the early '60s but were probably on their way out, like Marie Grant. 

 

Did you ever see any of the other Robins? I wonder if Ellen Weston was any better as an actress than she was as a writer. 

I've only seen Abigail Kellogg and Gillian Spencer in the role. I preferred Abigail's version. She was acerbic and fun to watch. Gillian Spencer's version was more neurotic and manipulative. She was good too but I just preferred Abigail's version and I wish there were more surviving episodes with her in them. 

Robin wasn't being reverent with Bert because Bert didn't like Robin and tried to keep Mike and Robin apart. She was the one pushing to have the marriage annulled and one of the reasons Mike is leaving town in that episode is to get away from Bert. Bert was very judgmental and controlling back then. 

2 hours ago, DRW50 said:

 

No problem. I decided to summarize Soapcentral as the site is hard to navigate and in case it ever goes under...

 

Yeah her ending seems incomplete to me - I guess that's how life sometimes is, but it still bugs me. I wonder how viewers at the time felt, as I imagine Robin was a popular character (I'm not sure Gillian Spencer ever played an unpopular character on a soap).

Yes, viewers were upset because Robin was popular. Yes, it was Irna's writing. Irna made the rather impetuous decision to kill off the main female lead of the show (Kathy Holden) in 1958. It's been said Irna was angry at the actress for becoming pregnant. There was a huge angry protest by fans and Irna soon left the show. She came back to the show briefly in 1967 after Agnes Nixon left and made a similar arbitrary decision to kill off the main female lead of the show. It also happened to be the daughter of the previous female lead she had killed off a decade before and she killed her off in a similar manner (Kathy being knocked into oncoming traffic in her wheelchair by boys on bicycles and Robin throwing herself into traffic). There wasn't quite the outrage when Robin died as when Kathy died probably because Robin, though very popular, wasn't quite as popular as Kathy was. Also, by the time of her death, Robin wasn't the main focus of the show like Kathy was at the time of her death. Still, there were a lot of angry fans and Irna, once again, left soon after. It was a brief run the second time around for Irna. In fact, it was almost like she just came back, killed off Robin, pissed people off and left again. Her second tenure is mainly known for the unpopular decision to kill off Robin. She may have been "encouraged" to leave after that but I could be wrong about that. It's been a while since I read about it. I think the producers weren't happy with her decision and how it angered fans and that time around Irna didn't have the power with the show she once did. I think the producers were looking for new blood, new writers, new vision and the Robin decision gave them the impetus to make that happen. 

Also, Karl actually died because he hit his head on Meta's iron patio table when Mike hit him. That's how Mike was acquitted. Karl didn't die from the punch but from him hitting his head on the table. There's a scene from a 1960 episode where Papa Bauer is running his fingers along the rim of the table. That's why. That's also why Robin is surprised Mike wanted to talk to her out on the patio in that 1961 episode.