Contessa Donatella

Breaking News! This Just In! GH fans tune in to see imaginary couple having imaginary relationship. Imaginary Nielsen ratings show an increase of 5,000 imaginary fans.

Thank you so much for your post. I now understand how this confusion came about. Yes, I, too, would classify them as a daytime soap with a primetime encore broadcast. Does that wording work?

Anyone who doesn't understand that Susan Flannery intentionally remained closeted should read what Rita Mae Brown said when she outed her in her memoir, RITA WILL. And, I'm sorry if some people have a problem with the word "closet" in this context. I do not. Although I am open to new terminology. And, if anyone here in this thread is interested in datalounge type gossip, then, I'm sure they can find their way there. As far as I am aware, most gay soap actors remained closeted as far as fans were concerned possibly because they feared losing their jobs, possibly because they feared losing their fanbases, or for whatever reason, which is their own to know & none of our concern. Meanwhile, many fans knew & everyone at their shows knew & they lived comfortably open in their own communities. This is not rocket science. It's just the way things were done. I am in no way critical of them for that. If someone else is, they'll have to support that.

I said weeks ago that they took him off contract. Still don't know if it means staying on recurring or going. I think the person who does Soap Dirt makes stuff up. I have thought that about her for years. I consider her broadcasts meaningless & that is what I tell other fans. Plus, I know a whole cadre of people who agree. Do you find over time that she is good at this? And, BTW, I do not think there is a snowball's chance in hell of Liz being paired with Jason, or anyone which would propel her into front burner storyline status. Her only chances for story are Aiden being bullied or having to take Vile-Ette into her household. Repeat after me: The people in charge do not like Becky & have no intention of her driving major story. Say this over to yourself till it sticks.

Okay, I see what you mean. I can agree with clueless in that sense. There was a time when I was that naive, that sheltered, and it wasn't because I was stupid or not thoughtful, it was entirely because my frame of references offered absolutely no examples of anything but plain jane straight people. It was hideously uncomfortable knowing I was different, so different, and always had been, but having NO CLUE what that meant.

I know many many people for whom that was not true. Whether they were naive or Pollyannas or simply unaware of gay folk in any realistic sense of the word, people who would fight you that no, Tony Geary was not gay, that he was in love with thus & so woman. Etc. Just one example. I apologize. Very strong emotions were provoked by what you said. To me what you said was not okay. But, it is true that I do not hold with name-calling, so I am sorry.

I am not judging anyone! Every one has to choose their own path. The anecdote I shared about James Mitchell, in fact, someone who was in a closet to most of his fans, is in itself a compliment to him & to the leadership at AMC at the time. Not all anybody is always anything. People are different. Me, I become absurdly star struck & shy. Who cares what the HW knows or does not know. It really does not matter. I already said what closet. Are you nuts? I WAS one of those gay kids, in a small town, when there was NO REPRESENTATION. Absolutely no one in society looked or seemed or acted like me. There was no smelling nobody from afar to adore!!!! When I was a depressed teen lesbian girl I would have given my first born child to have known that Connie Ford was gay. It is not a problem that we've had different experiences. It is a problem if someone diminishes someone else's. And, I say again YMMV. And, clearly this is an instance where you & I do have different mileage & it is okay that we do.

I had a FB moron tell me to quit shoving pride in his face. About 6 FB people jumped on his ass right quick, before I even had time to BAM block that sucker. Happy Pride People can turn in an instant! Whoa.

Good Morning! It is Monday, June 3rd, and in the US nationally, it is PRIDE month, so Happy Pride!

Are you familiar with the movie SOAPDISH? In it periodically the HW takes the star to a mall in a nearby town & lets on about who she is so she gets that adoration. To me we are the people at the mall. And, again YMMV. A whole 'nother subpoint could be made about the good that could accrue from having high profile people come out of the closet & while I believe that to be true I don't really think it is germane to this topic.

Easton was present. Dom was on vacation. Tristan didn't want to come in from Palm Springs.

This is Doug & Julie's 1st wedding, 10-1-76. ef

It's true that she was never seen onscreen but her presence & her being a "pro" was huge! Lily was an escort?!

They cared. Tony Geary, Susan Flannery, Ian Buchanan, if they hadn't cared about the fans, or that it would impact their jobs they'd have come out. I absolutely consider it a closet. YMMV.

Chad Rollo's & Dawn Rollo's mother was a prostitute. She was the donor for a blood transfusion which is how Dawn got AIDS.

Well, I am quite sure that an 8.9 with a 31 share made Betty Corday & Sony very happy. There was this huge debate about whether to marry Doug & Julie. Bill Bell was against it. He thought their appeal as a couple would evaporate with "married life". But I will never understand how "press reports" come up with 16 million viewers out of 8! Thank you so much for pulling the info! I'm editing video of this wedding as we speak & I've only had to throw out a small portion because the quality was so poor. (Yes, I edited it last week but ended up doing it over from scratch.) WTG @JAS0N47 !!!

Okay, I found out some stuff. No, I can't provide a link or page number, etc. so those of you who do not want to know this kind of information, please scroll on by. This came to me through a particular gay male community where it is in a Venn diagram with soap opera fandom. I know the parties & know they are being truthful. 1. It was Korte who recommended Patrick. (Makes perfect sense. She had worked with him. She did not want to be sole HW. She was open to working with someone good.) 2. A great deal of extensive begging was required before he agreed. (This suggests to me that he may have had some severe reservations about what working for Frank Etc. would be like.) 3. He quit. Everyone who suggested things like this, right on, very perceptive of you! Also, I'm not going to fight about this. Read it, don't. Say your worst. I'm done. HUGS.

Well, he like so many soap actors was in the closet to most of the fans. But he & his partner lived completely open lives in NYC.

Sure thing! I believe she was really extremely popular & maybe the first woman so something of a trailblazer. And that song of hers is totally burned into my brain. That juxtaposition of dates is, frankly, bizarre!

I did not realize that. But, I am not surprised now that you say it. Thanks!

I was told by a soap journo who interviewed PFS at the time that the reason she was there so short a time was this: What she pitched that she wanted to write, they had no interest in. What they told her they wanted her to write, she said were impossible stories to craft. And, they said that's why we wanted you because we thought you could write the impossible stuff. At that point, things came to a screeching halt. Impasse. What each side wanted was a hard NO from the other side. I think I can actually imagine the consternation she may have had with Potter - and he with her! We have certainly heard of other times & places where every single thing the writer pitched was shot down. The only thing different here is this idea that they thought she could pull a rabbit out of a hat. So take it for whatever you wish.

DW? You mean DS? Anyway, just noting that Swajeski was network & came to writing for the show by jumping that fence. There is some thinking that people who work for the network first & then a show, or shows, have some unknown advantage. Pete Lemay? If so, no, didn't quit. Let go. And, as far as we know, she wrote from his outlines for at least 8 months, perhaps longer. So that would effectively make a theory that they had different visions not really work at all.

Maureen Garrett came out & she was either still at GL or in between times & back after. She thought about it & came out after Joanna Johnson came out. Edit to Add: I found this article & it plainly says "former Guiding Light actress" so you were totally correct in the way you characterized it. Former 'Guiding Light' actress Maureen Garrett sheds light on her personal life | Sputterpop And, that was a derived article & the original article doesn't say former it says Guiding Light actress. 'Guiding Light' Actress Maureen Garrett Comes Out Publicly Joanna was on B&B again after she came out. But, it is true that both of them came out after their heyday was behind them, when they were at the height of popularity they were in the closet as far as fans were concerned, although everyone at the shows, knew, and in Maureen Garrett's case, it was widely known among some fans because her partner would pick her up at the train every day & it was obvious that they were a loving couple. Now, this is an anecdote I just posted elsewhere because it is PRIDE. It fits here okay because he was in the closet, forever, as far as fans were concerned, even though he was out to everyone at the show & he & his partner were well known in various parts of the city. James Mitchell played Palmer Courtland on AMC. When he was much younger, he was a gypsy, a chorus boy, a dancer as well as an actor & singer. So at AMC they were going to tell a gay story about a gay teen, Kevin Sheffield, and a gay teacher & it all coming out & the town's reaction. As it happened, Palmer was in the side of the bigots. Well, James Mitchell who always did what he was told - before now - went to the head office & said, "No, just no, I am not going to say those words." Since he felt so strongly about it, they rewrote it that Palmer was an ally & advocate & Opal got stuck with the homophobic bigotry part.

What about Dinah Shore? "See the USA, in your Chevrolet." 🎶 Yeah, that, and I am anxious to see 10-1-1976, which is Doug & Julie's first wedding, which supposedly had 16 million people watching & caused it to be the first daytime soap wedding to be of interest to mainstream media because of the gross number popularity. (I feel the need to say "supposedly" every other word!! LOL)

Speaking of Margaret DePriest, there are two other things that I would mention. She did not watch the show. That's a pet peeve of mind. I don't believe a writer can really be in touch with their show if they do not watch it. As far as MDP was concerned when it left her written, that was it. She did not follow it past the last period on the page. She came under scrutiny over Frankie Frame's death. She claimed that she did not write it to be gratuitously violent but she had no control over it once a director & actor dealt with it. They said but when you watched it, didn't you blah blah & that's when she said she NEVER watched the shows she wrote. About that same serial killer story, Jill tried to get her to change the plan so there would be some soapy way that Frankie would end up not dead, MDP flatly refused to even consider such a thing.