Mitch

Well, you gotta love Bert Bauer calling someone a slut!!! It had to be fun to be involved in the soaps back then, they seem to have a lot of camaraderie back then, like no one was taking it that seriously and ego tripping (though I am sure there were a few who still did.) Stephen Yates was hot, but yea, he pinged off the charts, wonder what happened to him and if he was a Marland conquest?

Remember when they would put Lucinda in those ridiculous Alexis Carrington hats. That went by the wayside with Marland, thank God. So out of place with Lucinda, I mean, how does one throw their hands up and wave them all over the place with that honking ass hat in the way? Rod...that whole storyline gave me the skeeveys, starting with his name. How did anyone not say, "Uh, we need to come up with another name," unless they did it as a joke and unless the ATWT writers were different then their material, I can' t see them doing it. Have we ever had confirmation on Marland's sexuality (I mean, I confirmed it by just watching the show) I think it interesting that you could kinda surmise a writer's neurois back then, the work was so individual. His fascination with straight farm boys (he grew up on a farm) quasi incest, and "Rod," the rapist!!! I love the ad for the hour long expansion...it seems ATWT wasnt in the grip of trying to youthify the show yet, with Nancy and Chris front and center (just three years later they would be obscured by the Dobsons.) I also love the Joyce/Grant/Lisa picture, that was the whole storyline in a nutshell, over and over and over again! I always wondered why those women were so crazy to get him, he was uptight and also kinda dumb ("OH Joyce, I believe you have a brain tumor, just because you told me, even though you have a history of constantly lying, so I will do what anyone would logiclaly do, marry you!"

Who didn't hate Amanda and Eve???LOL! I love those ads, that was at the time that CBS was pushing real hard for GL to be over the top 80s and compete with Dynasty and Dallas. The funny thing was ratings fell from a high of No 1 for GL when it was still a slightly over the top, but still family show! I love the pic of Larkin Malloy, that was his friggen expression in every scene. I also love the second pic with Reva with a mullet and involving one of my favorite storylines, Sonni/Solita "Isolated one!!!" Man, Annie vs. Reva (which I loved also) held no candle to Sonni and Reva wrestling on a convent floor at Christmas!!! Now THAT's how you do over the top!

I would love to read about that "stuff," back then! I just remember Jay disappearing..(this was back when I first started watching as a regular viewer and not because it was "on.") they would mention him, "Oh, Lisa, Jay had to leave the wedding for work, can I get a ride with you and Grant?" but never show him. So they had Carol, kinda flirting with Steve, but no drama, as the husband was not there. I think that it could have been an interesting story, Carol dealing with natural sexual feelings but still staying faithful. They killed him off in a "mine," disaster, so maybe his contract was up in the summer, and the Dobsons wanted to keep him on until November to kill him off then? Who knows about Irna, the broad must have been something else to deal with! I loved Ehlers version of her on the GL anniversary thing. I read she went to talk to Hastings, Fulton and Hays to get a scoop of how Irna acted, talked, etc.

That is way too early for me! I do remember reading that Irna Phillips basically wrote the whole Stewart family out when she came back. What would have she thought of the Dobsons turning that around five years later and getting rid of Nancy and Chris in favor of David and Ellen??? We can see now why Fulton had the grandma clause. After Ellen became a grandma...(Bruder was way too young) I think they just kinda got rid of her as it looked ridiculous having a son(s) that old! I don't know why the Dobson's ignored Lisa and Ellen's "thing." I wish they would have had Lisa have an affair with David!!!

And that wasn't even fun!!! Now it would have been cool to have Sabrina be her boring self in front of the family, but at night she is going to bars and slutting it up, and she kind of laughs at the family and their earnestness behind their backs. Of course she would be redeemed, but not after causing all kinds of trouble. Maybe someone like Susan or Lisa, former bad girls, see that Sabrina is not what she says she is, and it causes conflict with Lisa and the family, or since it is Susan Kim wouldnt believe her, etc. The Hugheses needed conflict within the family, that didnt involve a disease of the week or rape. Sabrina could have been the catalyst to really drive a lot of problems in the family, much like Babs did. But Babs was so entrenched that there still was not that much conflict. Its a lot like the Bauers on GL. I always thought they should have brought back an illegit kid of Ed and Rita's and he would be nothing but trouble. There needed conflict within that family. Its too bad that postMADD that the shows treated both families as outdated and spent of drama, when that was not true.

That rewrite was so stupid..didn't the writers know how to pull up an old episode or old script? They could have still made David Lucinda's lost son, but have James adopt him and bend him to his evil will. LURVED Daniel Markel..why did they fire him for that trashy soft porny looking guy? I would prefer Casey off the show, he was so freakin boring. Not quite as boring as Seth Snyder, but up there. I always thought that after she found out clean cut, wealthy polite successful Doug Cummings was a psycho that Frannie would look for the opposite, some hot, beefy, blue collar cop, or reporter or fireman, who would be rough around the edges, not polished, good, but not overly polite, that she would find love with a great sex..while the rest of the uber clean cut Hughes family would be a bit suprised at her choice. But they stuck poor Frannie with dull down at the farm Seth! Of course, I woulda made Sabrina a boozed up slut, just as the whole family gathered around in their requisite sweaters to have coffee in the morning and to discuss how the lastest drama in Oakdale is effecting Lily, Sabrina saunters in from a night on the town, reeking of ciggies and gin.."Do I hav to hear about what that dumb clit Lily has got up her arse again?? You know, mummy, I got a pearl necklace myself last night!!!!" You are right, 1993 was the start of the end. Marland got away from his original premise of the Hughes, Snyders and Walsh familes and brought in so many characters that he didnt want to get rid of that it became too convoluted and it became so dark and dreary. I know its a crime but I HATED Margo's rape. I know, strong women are raped in real life but I didnt need to see that on a soap..some stuff is just too real and raw to deal with. Likewise giving Mac alzheimers. Why do that to one of the few elderly couples on a soap? It started to make me long for the giddy goofy days of the Dobsons second tenure. Didnt help the bad recasts, the new Emily and new Frannie didnt work for me at least.

LOL on the Iva spoof! So nice to see Lisa Brown get to do comedy again. Why in the world would you take someone who could do comedy so well and saddle her with that drip of a character. Beatrice was dull, but it is amazing how many of Marland's characters were dull. He just had so much going on (can you imagine that many characters and storylines in one episode?)if you didn't like a character, Lucinda and James would come on and scheme against them soon enough. I know you disagree but friggen Lyla (SNOOZE) and Casey (Double Snooze) Shannon and freakin Uncle Earl. I can only imagine they gave Fulton Earl to get her to stop bitching about a love interest (like Lisa better when she is alone and getting into everyone else's bizness instead the love sick romantic) and reportedly, to give the producer's lover a job. Granger was a great looking older guy, too bad they hadn't cast him as Whit earlier, I could see him doing imperious and cruel. And that throwaway line from Earl..."Dont worry Tom, she has nothing to worry about with me!" I know it is the setup to the "Is Earl trying to scam/kill Lisa," but it sounded like a setup to "Dont worry, we two divas will get along just fine!" And sigh, Greg Marx, my 18 year old ideal for the perfect gay husband!LOL. What was in Marland's and the TPTB mind to cast boring, short, annoying Scott Holmes as Tom? You go from that big, strapping guy, who actually had a warm chemistry with his family and everyone, with cold, angry Holmes? And Anthony Herrara was freakin' hot back then. I never thought it back then but wow...he was one villian you could see smart women like Babs and Lucinda falling for..(though its weird to see Lucinda kissing him instead of spitting out "JAAAMESS!") Corrine and her mother were supposed to be annoying. They were North Shore socialites (its amazing how much Marland got right about Chicago and the burbs, you could never fault him for attention to detail.) that Lucinda was trying to get to buy into a deal and James was screwing, I think both of them. It was one of his minor characters that were more caricatures then anything else...(didn't James kill the mother???) I think the Craig thing was more that it got kind of tired watching him wear his guilt. The stuff he did wasnt THAT bad compared to most soap characters. But I do agree, Bryce has great chemistry with all the women he works with...Frost had way more chemistry with him then her flaring nose husband. I think that Craig WAS hard to reconcile with the Hogan version of Craig..you had to forget Marland's and remember the Dobsons to like his Craig. If they had brought him back as conflicted and not so assholey and evil then it could work (actually the last Craig was closer to Byrces version...despite the writing he gave him a conflict and vunerability then Block ever gave him.) AMBROSE..as Lucinda would scream out, WAS great! I wonder what happened to the actor that they wrote him out. Was he sick, because he and Jane just disappeared..(I loved the long suffering Jane and her rolling her eyes at her boss.) Lucinda's supporting team were great. They should have gave Lisa a Thelma Ritter type maid who would roll her eyes and sarcastically tell off Lisa..."Oh yes, there is nothing more attractive then some over the hill broad acting like she is still 18...if you need me I will be downstairs at the Mona Lisa bar!"

Hmmm, I don't know about Lisa and a younger man. They flirted with that with Brad Hollister (but he, however, was a big dud!) But Lisa was written so flitty, silly at that time I don't think it would have worked. If they brought out a more sophisticated side to her I could see it. I also think it was in Lisa's character to go for a more serious "older," controlling figure (which she of course would rebel against. Bob, John Eldridge, Grant, Whit McColl, all more serious men (and with bucks.) That is why I don't think Lisa worked with the Farley Granger character. He was way too soft with her, I think she would have been bored senseless. I think Lisa worked better with younger guys as a mentor figure. As I said before, Marland was always impressed with Fulton's handling of the younger actors, so if he brought someone new in he would have some of their first scenes with her. I though Lisa worked best with the young McColls to work with..Fulton had a young person's energy, and when she just started hanging out with Bob and Kim and Nancy and worst of all, the last Tom actor, who drained the energy out of every scene, it inhibited her. Never understood why Hogan and Gautman reglegated her to the background when their were tons of younger miscreants who she could have mentored. LOL at her "column!" Also, I never knew she had her own line of loungwear for J.C. Penny of all places. Seems Fulton was ahead of the game in terms of Lucci, etc, and their own line of products. Which I am surprised...she doesn't seem the best business mind in the world. I am sure Leblanc was in a daze at that time...imagine him surrounded by all those Chippendales manflesh dancers!

With all due respect for Collen, I have always found the Brian actor scary, and kinda gross. Its like his body is way too skinny for his head. I think he is good at playing skeezy characters, like his GL one(s) or AW, but as a nice, conflicted person...uh no. The Brian character could have been a good one, and was conceived well, (ambitious prosecuting attorney vs. his step brother, the idealistic hippie Tom that Deas played ) but after the recast with Pinter it kinda sucked. And he never seems to have chemistry with his female partners. I thought they should have recast all of Lisa's stepkids after the Diana actress and Kirk left...she needed a family and Brian could have been a good character. Trivia, Lisa was originally supposed to be lovers with Brian and then be attracted to Whit. LOL at Cousin Gerri! I woulda loved her on ATWT, but Marland would have made some boring socially "relevent," story about her being discriminated against. Would have been funny (I know and tasteless) to have her as someone whose disability also prevents her from censoring her words, like Sofia on GG, she can't help saying whatever hits her mind, imagine the uber polite and uptight Marland characters dealing with that..."Does Iva know the guy she is in love with is a f*g??? And why would he like her, he wears more makeup then she does!!!"

This was the one and only time I watched the Doctors, and I love the goofy storyline with the necklace and the grave robbing (wasnt there a youth serum also?) Of course, I also liked Alec Baldwin who was smoking hot at that time (though he may have been killed off already???) I just wonder what the dedicated long time viewers thought of this time???Probably much like I thought of the Reva Clone and Jonathon/James.

No..but the ooomph was taken out of it when Fulton left (as you can see in You Tube and even her last few scenes on the show, nobody can give a bitchy remark with a smile like Fulton.) Diana and the new Lisa didn't get along but BVF was a colder Lisa so there was no fire there and the recast didn't work so I think they just kept thinking of her as a placeholder for Fulton. Its funny but when Fulton returned she has a very protective relationship of Diana. Really the start of Lisa starting to "mentor," the younger set, which worked as Fulton always had good chemistry with kids..which I think is why the Lisa/Carly fued never worked as I see Lisa kicking her ass but with good intentions. I wonder how BVF would have been as Alex? She was to the manor born and a cold customer so it might have worked.

No, Lisa, was having a suprise birthday party for Whit...and the intro of Diana. Lisa contacted daddy's girl and pre Paris Hilton party girl Diana in "Europe," to come to the suprise party. Whit knew about it and played along until before Diana's entrance,(she popped out of a cake) so Lisa got mad and playfully smashed a cake in his face. Diana had popped out of the cake and was annoyed that Lisa's stunt got more attention then her, setting up a Diana/Lisa rivalry. I always thought Fulton was kind of stupid to leave the show at that time...not only was she well into her 50s to go to Hollywood, but the Dobsons, who had gotten rid of or ignored a lot of the vets, built an entire family around her and were starting a Rachel/Iris thing with Lisa/Diana. That was Whit's old office, Lucinda took over his company as revenge for her husbands suicide, which we later learn, with Marland, was not because of Whit but because of Lily's birth reveal, which Marland never really connected ot his storyline.

LOL...I watched this scene the other day when you posted the clip above. I actually remember watching this episode..it must have been the monkeys, I mean, what in the hell were they doing there??? I remember thinking Jay was HAWT and I look at him now and laugh, there is no way in hell would soaps today show a regular cute, but skinny guy as a stud! Everyone of them look alike now and they all have to be shaved and plucked and pumped up. (I was sick so I watched OLTL the other day, just to see "Ross," be evil, and they have this really cheesy embarrasing promo of one of those brothers standing in front of a collage of lips, ripping his shirt open and winking at the camera! The 80s promos don't look so cheesy now!) I like the later episode when Frannie is with Babs, after they just found out Betsy "died," and Barbara is all like "Yea, its so sad, but I don't know how much more I can take...what with my husband running off!" It was all about Babs even back then, so I can see Marland watching that and that lightbulb going off in his head! God Whit was so freakin; gross, they couldnt have gotten a decent looking older guy to play him. His dentures are practically falling out of his mouth and his toupe is about to fly off!

Yes, we always knew she was alive, wish more shows had done that. The question is, why not just have a recast Betsy instead of going through all that plastic surgery amnesia stuff? I don't remember who was trying to shoot who, and why Margo and Maggie didn't just tell them! Betsy Vonwhatever was a terrible Lisa. She subbed for Fulton in 81 or something when she was sick, and they brought her in as a recast. Lisa was boring and wimpy and way too "to the manner born," during her time. Fulton would always give that gross guy playing Whit the evil eye when he was trying to boss her around, but BVF's Lisa just did whatever he said. They were going to kill her off but Fulton said she would come back (I tend to think that Fulton sometimes exagerates, I couldnt see them killing Lisa off at that stage of the game, the show was too silly and lighthearted back then to kill a beloved character off...Wagner had left the show but Nancy was still kept alive and they could have killer her off with a heart attack.) Which reminds me, whatever happened to "Aunt Charmagne," I LURRVED her and how she would get BVF;s snobby Lisa in an uproar. God, the Steve actor was bad!

Alan in a soft corn flick...EWWWWW!!!! I do think that Pilon's voice matched CB's...RR..I don't know, he was so "Foghorn Leghorn," that he could never be considered a serious threat. That clip in pure Alex...a snob, a bitch, funny sarcastic and then vunerable, and even able to apologize to someone. Marj's Alex was just a shrill harpy. Remember when the Spauldings actually had that great set? And remember when Rauch gave it to Carmen of all people???

"Phillip grew up watching your....escapades, no wonder he is acting like this!" This is the Alex I love...Marj's Alex doesn't come close. God, Bev would have chewed Ron Raines and spit him back out on a regular basis. I remember not liking Daniel Pilon but I almost thought he was the "Real," Alan for a minute so I can see why they hired him. God I hated Marj's screeching, wimpy Alex....they should have just made her a new character.

That was indeed Vanessa rocking a leather skirt! This came at the end of Pam Long's de "fusing," of Van after marrying Billy, where she just sat around in matronly dresses, took care of her baby and said "Oh Billy!" a lot. They finally put her back to work at least, dumb as that was. So true about Wheeler cutting Jerry loose. At that time he was the Bert Bauer of the show, keeping it centered. One of Wheeler's stupidest moves to cut him and then keep Frankie D and Justin Deas!?!?!? Especially since he was the father of three kids (by the same wife no less) who could be aged into the "hawt," teens. Also, father of Dinah, etc. Just shows how Kriezman and Wheeler's obsession with Gush and the Coopers really did more damage then the budget cuts.

Your right, they are cheesy but a lot of fun! Also, can you believe they showed so many characters of all ages, with even Nancy Hughes being featured. They would never do that now. Funny too, how Hensley who was the stud of that era, really looks "natural," and not super cut steroid type...he actually had the body of a real farm boy. Amazing how we have come to a different weird idea on soaps and pop culture on how "hunks,' should look.

Louden died?? Of what. I hated Duke (like John or Oakdale needed another long lost son,) but wow, that's weird that he died. Wonder why they never brought him back(to be, edgY I am sure!)

Sadly I do, but I can't remember my mom's birthday! That was in the fall of 85, (when the show started to fall apart, I can't believe Curlee was there, and McTrash was still there) under the horrible Jeff Ryder.) That was Ross who opened his own office (that office was still around during Wheeler, they pulled it out for a celebration of JVD's anniversary and JVD found a copy of a mocked up clip of "Marler gets Mindy Lewis acquital, saves Lewis Oil," or something ) and Vanessa went to work for him as, believe it or not, his secretary!!!! It was supposed to jump start a Ross/Van/Billy triangle. And this was right before I think Mindy going on trial and Infinity??? Side note, remember when Bruce Jenner was cute before he fucked up his face with plastic surgery!

Beth C could make a great bitch. They had the golden opportunity when she married Alan to keep the Spaulding power and so no one could push her around again...after marrying him she had a good scene where she triumphantly proclaims "They will NEVER let him out!" Made perfect sense at that time. Alan needed a "rest," at that time so they could have had him manipulating her from behind bars, etc. but they let him out and she was screwing him and in love with him???? Made no sense at all (and grossed me out. ) From then on Kreizman had her alternating between being a victim of Alan to a vindictive mean bitch (i.e her scenes with Mel and then trying to screw over Rick with the baby thing, she would NEVER do that to Rick of all people.)

I think she means E & B when Harley came back. I remember that Sloan did indeed act dismissively with Harley, which is weird, as that was not very Lillian of her. I remember the whackos on the Pharley board going nuts over it. Phillip and Harley were fun for a while, but when they were treated like this great love, uh no. And yea, they would always play that goofy music when they were on. To her credit Ehlers said in interviews that both she and GA felt they shouldn't have brought the Beth character back so soon, as they had a great love, and Phillip and Harley were just starting to get to know each other. Ehlers felt that there was no way the relationship could have stood that test. But E & B tried to fix that by regressing Beth to a neurotic girl and a raging bitch to boot, so the audience would root for poor widdle Harley.

Sally was arguing with Alex, who was trying to bribe her to keep quiet about Marah, both to protect Alan and to have that info to save for when she needed it (remember the good old days when characters had conflicting motivations that made sense.) Sally conveniently started having a heart attack right in the Lewis spa, I think during Josh and Sonni's wedding, and Alex let her die without going for help( and Bev thought JFP made Alex too mean.) I freakin LURVED Sonni/Solita. It got off to a rough start, as Sonni was boring when Josh first married her. But when Will came in the picture, and the Sonni/Solita ("Isolated one!!" ) came in, it was great. Dark, exciting, and included almost everyone on the canvas in realistic ways! The only time I really, really loved Jeva.

I remember Parker starting and I thought, who is this ugly wimpy broad??? I like Dolan's Mo, but Parker made Mo her own, a nice normal person the rest of the nuts in town circled around. JFP and the rest of the hacks could never understand that a show needed someone like that. And Dolan, as her years as Margo proved, could not be a comforting warm actress to play that type of character.