Mitch

The music video is just so stupid, and not in a campy way, just really, really bad. GL tanked during this storyline, what with the Infinity storyline, Elizabeth Taylor's son the record producer, this Suzette person, Lujack a singing sensation, the evil Infinity gang (have no ideal what they wanted and why we cared) and Kyle Sampson's flaming nostrils! I just remember the funniest thing during the "shoot out," at the Country Club is Bev's Alex grabbing Lujack and saying, "Let's get out of here we might be next!!!" which is the only sane comment that came out of that whole thing. But the "climax." of this crap was during Billy's trial and they pulled out the video to show it to everyone and Billy once again, became hypnotized (Billy went from being a funny quirky character with flaws and brains to the silly, guy we ended up with for most of his run) and pulled an imaginary gun (I think, or he might have grabbed a guards) to shoot Kyle. The Kyle actor went into totally flaming nostril's mode screaming "Love ME brother, Love ME!!" After that day GL went off the dorm television at 2 and it went back to GH.

I will agree with you about Wheeler she did keep people around (hell we saw more of Marj's Alex and MK's Van then we ever saw of Fulton's Lisa on ATWT, and she was on contract) including keeping MOL around and in the story (however lame) when he was off contract and Blake around the whole time. I like that they had Vanessa and Billy come in and out of the story, it made sense, they had settled down in life in their older years and wouldnt be front burning it. PS leaving as Ed was out of Wheeler's control, as it started under Conboy when PS was offered a pay cut on contract or to go to recurring he refused. I believe that she would have kept him in the story if he stayed (and she tried to get him back for whatshisface Roger's son.) There, I could even find a good thing to say about Wheeler!!!

Marland had said when he joined the show it was the Steve and Betsy show, which it was, and he wanted to make it an ensemble and focus on the Hughes as the main core family. By that time S and B were played out, (which would never have stopped a show now, look at GL with Chele and Danny) and he said he was happy to write for them, but not neccessarily together and not as a super couple. Runyeon had his ego stoked by Bunim all those years, who told him and he beleived it, that he was the star of the show (he was the one an actor could not hit on screen as he was "the star.") Runyeon began to complain to the soap mags that they werent writing for him (obviously trying to get his fans to complain) so it was a mutual agreement I think when he left (he thougth another soap would make him the star.) I don't know if Marland wanted to force him out or knew he was leaving but he made Steve more and more unsympathic with him actually yelling at Kim and Bob and Ellen and David (they did stop short of him yelling at Nancy who was in the same scene.) You KNOW when you yell at Bob and Kim you are on your way out!

Louie just disappeared as did that goofy nurse that he was always hanging around with. Its too bad..as GL did keep recurring people around (i.e Dr. Sedwick cared for more paternity cases then any OBGY in history) as it gave it a real feeling. Whatever happened to those goofy maids of Jenna's and then Alex?

1985 was a really bad year for the show, right up there with Conboy/Weston and Wheeler/Kriezman...and it really stood out as the show was great, a year or two before. It had it Number 1 and then the network wanted them to go "BIG" to compete with GH, even though GL knocked it out of the top spot, and focus on weird stories and the Lewis family and Reva. So we got the Lewis and Kyle Sampson and Infinity and the Bauers and the Reardons were backburnered. This Charlotte story was just sped up filler to give the remaining Bauers something to do and it shows, it was sloppy and silly.. and the killer was obvious and over the top.

Darcy had turned her life around after getting treatment for her addiction, and became a drug counselor. She was brought in to counsel that drugged chick that Rusty was seeing (who came between he and Mindy.) Kind of an interesting choice to do that.

Thought the episode was one of the best that Wheeler/Kreizman came up with. A great tribute (and speaking of Ehlers, isnt it funny they chose her to play the sharp, unpleasant, prickly Irna Phillips.) Some of it was the usual Kreizman/Wheeler defensive thing (see, GL has always been about incest....they had a "step," brother and "step," sister in love, see the Bauers unseated other families to be the core family way before we chose the Coopers to unseat them) but the rest was a pretty imaginative nice tribute....I especially loved Zimmer as Charita Bauer...she really caught the actress and the characters big warmth. And believe me, if had sat through "Harley as a superhero" (which believe it or not was not explained away as a dream, Alan's truth sermon, Lizzie ends up on a park restroom doing it with whatshisface, and the STUPID, "Springfield Cops," episode this one was a realistic gem!

Oh god...then we would have just had more snarling, snapping, sharpness, as every man fell in love with this unpleasant character. I wonder what happened with her. Obviously she always had these issues, as despite her protests, you just don't end your marriage cause one kiss from another actor! And they just grew over the years (i.e her and the new Mallet guy..) Too bad, she was so talented when she first came on, she just seems to be an unhappy, (which seemed to be accelerated with her weight loss) woman who needs constant approval from men.

That is weird that they wanted to keep her as Queen Bitch, when she moved away from that a long time ago. The Dobson's moved her into more a mentoring phase, (Lisa and Ariel) and then after Fulton came back again they really moved her into the quirky mother hen who wasnt above butting in and subterfuge to make things "right," for her kid step kids and other strays she picked up along the way. I remember Marland saying that he had younger new cast members have their first scenes with Fulton as she always was good with them and calmed them down and guided them through their scenes. I thought that was appropriate for that phase in her life, instead of backtracking and making her a all out bitch again. I actually liked her best preMarland when she had a family of her own to meddle with instead of being an add on to Bob and Kim's family. Never really like Runyeon since his debut...I think he was supposed to be ATWT's answer to Luke. But he always overacted the angst and the anger and never really showed a side which would make people like him. Yes, it is amazing to look at Deas and then look at what he did at GL. I know people LURVED him on SB, but I think that experience allowed him to go "over the top," way too much. Tom, who was a more subdued character, kind of brought him down. And then Phelps brought him on GL as the new "star," and encouraged his scenery chewing, etc. I do think he was sexy as Tom..thought he was an annoying troll as Buzz. And yes, love the guy who played Mike. Not the greatest actor, but he never tried to act like he was, and he was a totally different "hunk," for soaps, a really masculine good looking guy who didnt pout or preen and his Mike always seemed like one of those handsome guys who doesnt really know how good looking he is...(contrast that with a day I watched OLTL and those brothers all seemed to be preening for the cameras and that werid looking blond dude was basically pouting and acting like a 50s starlet when he wasnt yelling. )

Wow...look at the hair and the simpering pouts most of the actors are doing as they glare into the camera! Damn I hated Fletcher! He dressed like a pimp here or a dancer for Gladys Knight.

I don't know about Block in a speedo, its gotta be a suit and tie. I know what people think about his Craig and I agree....but individual scenes of him are sexy in that he comes off as smart and funny and sarcastic (all things that I like.) Never understood the Carly Lisa animosity..but I never really watched that show that much at time and never got into Carly and Jack and their tedious recycled stories. Lisa should have mentored Carly as she did all the other young uns run amuck. Funny comment on Runyeon...HATED his Steve and his acting. Always flaired nostrils and took himself oh so seriously. Funny, he got knocked down a peg after Marland made ATWT back into an ensemble show and left in a huff, after a short stint on what SB, never to be heard from again.

I could take her as someone who could go over the edge and loose herself, but it should have been played out in a more serious way, that scene played out like a bad scene during the Marlena is the Salem Stalker storyline, and that is not a compliment in acting or writing. I like Babs and Henry...(cept Henry was so gay, but that's okay, I think Babs had enough of the poke and grind and all the drama that entails) nice to see Babs happy. I really liked how she acted during the Bob and Kim anniversary and the Nancys' death episodes, (like how they remembered that Lisa and Babs had a nice odd friendship thoughout the years, as she goes to Fashions and leaves a message on Lisa's voicemail that she loves her and during the prayer how she holds Lisa and looks concered over her.) still a bit brittle and quick to take offense but basically a nice person who been through hell and back. But that scene right before jumping out a widow, was just so bad!! And I know everyone disagrees with me, but damn, Hunt Block is sexy as hell!

God that was bad. I never knew Babs was an over the top psycho. When did that happen, what did Bob, Kim, Lisa, have to say about it. I remember her being scarred and how she moved to Fairwinds and James got a hold of her...(good idea for a story, to turn Babs into the monster she hated..though terrible execution...) was this the follow up?

Zimmer is very, very good here, as Reva being a grown up. This is right before the birth of Shayne right.. and her postpartum and eventual death. I wish they had never resurrected her and tried to revert her back to "Wild Reva ways." At first I thought it was Bev who was chewing the scenery but then watching the clip and it was right after Phillip was committed...so it made sense. Damn, this was the GL I loved..two nemesis finding common ground, even if they will fight another day. Remember when people on soaps had conversations??

LOL..I never knew who the freak "Cabot," was but all I knew is that her Rossane was constantly talking about him! But that's how connected I was to ATWT after the Spa storyline, etc. Just checked in to see the old gang once in a while.

I hated when the PG shows cut down their openings. It figured the only long one we would get would be Wheeler's wretched "Love will always change the world," or whatever that craptastic song was. I actually loved the toliet flushing one, always thought it sounded so "regal," until someone here or elsewhere called it by that name, and now it cracks me up!

Didn't watch the whole thing, but I can see how the format could have worked if they had kept the original sets and filmed outside in the new format. Just from the stills of Olivia in the RevaBend/HollyBend/FarmHouse set compared to the toast in what I think is supposed to be the Spaulding Mansion. I did like that when people went to a park it was a real park, when they went to a cemetary it was real, etc. I just didn' t like that the whole show took place in a park, grave yard, alley, somebody's junked up back yard.

Jeff Hamlin was smoking HOT...who could anyone say he was not a hunk??? Though he was so nice the only drama would have been Emily screwing up again....unless they revealed Jeff was bisexual but that was probably just my fantasy. Hated Larry though.

Marj was a harpy around everyone! It was too bad as I love her scene with FauxAnnie in the Spaulding Attic, "You got quite a bark on you, don't ya honey...well I have faced worse then the likes of you, and always won!" as Annie gets in her face and Marj doesnt blink and just laughs her off. They always seemed to write MarjAlex between a huffing and puffing pain in the ass to being too weak. If they had stuck to street tough Alex like the attic scene, she would have rocked it. BevAlex is of couse my fave, but I LOVED Joan Alex...she had chemistry with everyone and had everything, she was a mean opponent but had a warmth about her, with scenes with Harley (hated, what Weston, Kreizman and Wheeler did to that relationship) Phillip, and even Alan. Embarrased to say this but when confronted with a problem I would love to be like JoanAlex, cool, calm, with a twinkle in my eye, a smart ass comment on my lips and a card up my sleeve! I don't think NSA was terrible as Chele, she was just too old and matronly for the part at that time. There were parts of the amnesia story I liked, confusion and anger but then it became a terrible rip off of the AW Rachel amnesia storyline (which was hilarious...when shown her closet Amnesia Rachel says, "WHO would wear those dowdy things..they can't be mine!!!" If they simply had Michelle forget like, five years of her life, going back to before Manny..could be good. She could have been horrified at the person she became. all because of "Twu LURRVE" as Danny tries to win her over again. And thank you, I could have gone forever without seeing Chele dancing in that t-shirt in that clip! LOL.

Damn the Bauer living room and the Spaulding dining room looked great! Did they always look that good or is Peapack making everything look better? Loved the show during the Rauch/Taggert preWestonConboy era. Loved JoanAlex (and her fake concern for Olivia...good to know RR was still a terrible actor and always looked like he had gas when he was being mean) and hmmmm Phillip and Olivia, hot! Actually liked Matt Bomer in the clip, cute and kind of sexy (never liked him at the time) and of course, loved tough Marina (shades of Nola..saying the wrong thing at the wrong time) funny she would soon become simpering annoying Bruno Marina. Was that MADD we see in the closing (and Harley 's ugly ass coat she wore for years!)

Thanks, I love the behind the scenes stuff! That was an interesting time as the show evolved from the Dobson's era to the Marland era, interesting bridge time.

Would love to hear from her what initiated the show to change direction from the Bunim/Dobson's years, to bringing back the Hughes family as the core family (the Dobson's obscured the Hughes in favor of the Stewarts.) I think at that time Frons was head of CBS daytime...did he have objections to having a middle aged couple (Bob and Kim) take center stage and also object to the return of Chris and Nancy?

I remember the old Datalounge thread about soaps that went on and on and on..which alleged that he and the Paul actor and some network (I think ABC) exec had a three way! Personally I would want Eddie "man." all to myself.. but...

I loved that story, I don't think it changed history that much, as by that time the Spauldings were supposed to have lived in SF forever etc. Plus it starred Mr. Tony Reardon! Still scratching my head why they let him go and stopped writing for the Reardons, and then tried to recreate that with the Coopers and Frankie D, a cheap Tony Reardon rip off. No way could he carry a "Hi YAAAH" with such power!!

That Chris was SO bad!!! And yes, they have New York accents in Oakdale, just like they had them in Springfield with Drew Jacobs...though of course she was not born in SF, but in Califorinia!! "So Michele, I jus' godda know who my mudder is!!!" And I am embarrassed to say it, but I always thought Eddie was kind of hot!