AMCHistory

Can I just say I hope Brad and Felix are not on the route to becoming a couple. NO ONE was rooting for them to get together the first time. Did they ever explain whatever happened to Lucas? God, that is a character with so much potential. I miss when RC wrote for him. For the first time Lucas had a personality beyond "Tony's Son."

Does Marian Colby Chandler count? She was such a caricature, a snob who could even out snob Phoebe Wallingford! For decades, she would sleep with anything breathing with a six pack. I remember at the 25th anniversary Martin Housewarming her sole role was making the young men in the group uncomfortable, "Oh my, is young Charlie Brent!" As much as I loved Marian/Stuart, I wish she kept more of interloping personality. She was never meant to become a matriarch/ grandmother. She was a trouble maker. I wish there was a place where she could have worked and become the busy body/ pot-stirrer. Like how Pam was the nosy secretary at Forrester Creations on B&B. Maybe she could have become a nosey Hospital Administrator and become the talk-to character for the Angie, Frank, Jake, Cara, Rey, Joe and the other hospital gang. Heck, Opal used to volunteer at the hospital all the time, so she would have her bestie by her side.

I don't think that this is a bad thing. Tucker was such an unmemorable character before. He had no other descriptor than "business mogul." He is evolving from a plot point, and into a character.

Kristina's brutal honesty shows how far this show has come from the dark ages of JFP's reign. I remember an interview a few years ago with Jane Elliot and Nancy Grahn where they called out how they were the only women above the age of 50 allowed to have a contract in the past regime.... and how much happier they were that the veteran actors like Finola, Michelle, and Maura getting lead roles in the current regime. I give Kristina so much credit for holding out for a contract time-and-time again. Yes, it lead to years where she was not on the show (and recast), but she showed integrity in her actions.

Wow! I never made the connection that GH will now have three members of Elizabeth's family in the head nurse position: Lucille, Audrey, and Elizabeth. Was Bobbie Spencer ever head nurse? If so, why wouldn't she apply for the vacant role? Wouldn't she win-out based on experience.

Nadine was such a good example of a "quirky" character. She was not weird for weird sake. She was the random Auntie that you loved sitting next to at parties because you knew you were going to be entertained. She was also a viable romantic lead.

As I re-watched today's GH (it is that good), I had to ask myself how to two actors who has zero chemistry on one show, moved me to tears without a single work spoken. Those two actors? Tristan Rodgers and Genie Francis. They are marvelous together on GH, but AWFUL on Y&R. When was Mariah killed off? I feel like she was the easiest excuse whenever Kristina Wagner's contract lapsed. I also noticed that Kristina is being used in so many of the promo photos and interviews for the 60th. Kudos to FV for trying to write the wrong of her poor treatment under JFP/Guza. Kristina is so beautiful, balances comedic and dramatic material well, and is related to so many people on canvas. Why she was ever written out is beyond me.

Hahaha… I always forget of TOLN. It was like a footnote in PV history. I did not catch Bittle enough to have an opinion. He was still an invalid in a bed when I gave up on the continuation series.

The writing on GH is good right now. Night and day with YR. Today’s script was well paced. The characters got a chance to interact naturally in a big scheme, it was not forced or over dialogued. It was more show, than tell. The payoff of Epiphany not only writing the letter for Elizabeth, but also encouraging her promotion was perfectly plotted. Using Monica creatively via the phone gave the moment the emotional gravitas you only get between cast members who have worked together for 20+ years. …also, I though GH was on the slimmest budget of the soaps. The production looked beautiful. The darker, cooler lighting looked crisp and high end. The sets fit a large cast without them looking squeezed together. The director was able to change between closeups and wide shots seamlessly, the camera movement brought a lot of interest to the viewing experience. You can tell Valentini appreciates a strong director. I am so impressed. I hope this GH creative renewal leads to good ratings.

Isn’t this the truth! Minshew was the bright light in the first half of 2003 with the awful writing by Rayfield/ Cascio, the departures of front burner favourites like Kelly Ripa and Josh Duhamel, and Frons’ directive to use vets like David Canary less. No matter AMC got in the later years (Esenstein Brown, Pratt) I think back to these dark months and knew it could be worst. No one thought Mathison (in his first run) would bounce back from Ryan’s Gillian pairing as quickly. I’m sure everyone wished Aiden Turner stayed in Minshew’s orbit v. that forced and I’ll fated romance with Eva LaRue’s Maria. …and do you remember when they introduced a slew of “hunks” with no backstory or character, it was Minshew who has to carry those introductions and create any interest in these interchangeable characters: Michael Cambias, Boyd, Carlos, Juan Pablo. Judy Wilson never missed the mark more than these back-to-back casting duds (deVry excluded). I would also like to add Teresa Blake (ex-Gloria) to this list. She played leading lady to every major male lead on AMC in the 1990’s: Grant Aleksander, Michael Knight, Michael Nader, and David Canary… twice! Gloria had unique relationships and chemistry with Adam and Stuart. She never had a dud pairing, despite being the follow-up to some beloved and iconic pairings. I wish Gloria stuck around after her breakup with Dimitiri. I would have loved to see how Gloria and Dixie’s relationship would evolved when Cady returned in 1998, especially since they played up that Gloria was one the few folks Dixie kept in touch with. Was it Marsh’s decision to leave?

I am LOVING this version of Tucker. The sarcasm. The rich boy IDGAF. And it’s not one note, there is a nuance to Trevor’a performance. I hope we give this character some air to breathe. The Audra/ Ashley tension is interesting. I think there is more he wants from Devon then to just buy out his debt. I hope he can be a real corporate spoiler for the traditional Newman/ Hamilton Winters/ Jabot drama. I see him as smarter and smarmier Brad Carlton. Powerful enough each circle to influence decisions, and manipulative enough to cause trouble. Once his relationship with Ashley and Audra implodes, as I’m sure it will, where would you like to see him next? I can see him seduce one of Devon’s ladies: Amanda or Abby. Gosh, he and Amanda would be so hot.

The outdoor shoot with Laura and Scorpio was well done. Good sound quality. Even lighting. Kudos to the Gh team for figuring out how to do an outdoor shoot well. Marc Samuel was rusty and missed his mark. I wish they didn’t give so much of the emotional fallout of the episode to a character we see so infrequently. Have we seen Marshall\Curtis’ home set before? It is beautiful, and has an interesting perspective and depth.

I work in an industry with a lot of “aging talent.” How Eric behaves and what he says to me is an indicator of two things: 1) his narcissism 2) his age The picking fights, the quick to react and slow to understand, I see it so often with older narcissist afraid of loosing their public status. What they don’t realise is so often they can maintain their status by being more selective about what they say, versus feeling like they need a headline every week.

Audra is turning out to be a fun floater character, seamlessly weaving between the major families and groups of actors. The actress is still green, but I think will grow into the roll. Anyone taking bets on when she’ll become the next Mrs. Victor Newman? I love Gina, and the explanation of where she has been. B&B should I introduce the LA Gina’s so Patty Weaver can make cameos from time to time. She did not miss a beat as Gina. Man, I miss Y&R’a robust supporting characters from the late 00. They never had much to do, but they provided a familiarity and feeling of a small town, like Genoa City (Larry, Cody, Lynn, Sierra, Mary, and Gina).

I agree that the cast shots and lighting are so much better this time around. I just don’t love the visuals around them - the more I look at them, the more Windows movie maker it looks. There is no rhyme of reason to which cast members they are featuring the opening this go around. Who do you think we have left to see premier in the opening? Contract: Chance Mariah Recurring: Kevin Gloria Noah Allie Tessa Amanda Imani Moses Faith …I never quite know which recurring cast members make the cut and which do not. I love that Jess Walton, Eileen Davidson, Trac[e]y Bergman, Christian LeBlanc, and Beth Maithland get their due after decades on the cast, contract or not. They are familiar and mainstay characters. But how do they make the call between recurring cast members like Cait Fairbanks and Rory Gibson?

Good call, where does Jill live? Her hair in the gala is so much better than the cast photo and the opening. So far, she and Esther are the only folks who look worst in the current opening than the past.

JR Chandler had memorable portrayers: Kevin Alexander was a strong child actor, especially through the Tad/Dixie/Liza triangle. Jesse McCartney was beloved in the role and unnecessarily recast. Jonathan Bennett had to potential to be THE adult JR, if only the show signed him to a contract. He handled Dixie’s death well, and JR’s role in the Proteus saga. Andrew Riddings, miscast and green. Jacob young, deserved an Emmy his first year for his “Judas” speech after Adam returned Miranda to the Kanes.

When did Sean Kanan get so fit again? I think he’s in the best shape he’s ever been.

I have a feeling they are giving Will Lipton the Kimberly McCollough treatment. Let him go to uni during the year, and play him in summer/ holiday stories when he has more flexibility to film. Why would they include him in a story and cast photo if they knew he was one foot out the door?

Lily even should have a comfortable life, being the daughter of an executive, but she shouldn’t be printing money. She should be the girl at school who got a BMW when she turned 16, not a Bentley. Have her mention the twins expensive college tuition from time to time. Or that she used all of Neil’s inheritance money for her first house down payment, and how fortunate she is for it.

Colby Chandler from AMC owns this title. Seeing how well Kathryn Newton grew as an actress, they should have just let her grow up in the role. Seriously, was there any love for any of the teenage Colbys? We had interchangeable blondes through the show’s run and TOLN. She could easily have been the “Brenda” of PV, if only the acting and writing was there. I am rewatching late 90’s AMC now, and I am really impressed with the underrated Michael Lowry as Jake. He was the right balance of Martin nobility, comedic relief, and 90’s hunk factor. Every successor could only play to one note: J. Eddie Peck was a hunk, RPG was comedic relief. Knowing Lowry came back to soaps, I wish AMC could have woo-ed him back.

This is wild. For AMC, to put it in context, Kelly would have had TWO contract renewals before Mark made the scene. That means even with two raises, she was making less than him? It’s not like Mark was a known talent. Was she that underpaid, or was Mark a better negotiator? Her treatment at Regis was egregious. I get why she was afraid to rock the boat when Regis was there, and even more so when he left because she was not the established a-name. Kelly worked hard and navigated so many HR nightmares. She deserves her success.

I agree, not all characters have to be “comfortable.” Yes Chloe and Kevin live at Chancellor, but they are prime for these “wrong side of the track” storylines. Maybe their kid doesn’t get into the right private school leading to Chloe revisiting her schemer past? Maybe Kevin makes a bad investment, leading him to play with some unsavoury characters again. The majority of Americans are paycheck to paycheck. Bell was always good about including these closer to life characters amongst the glitz and glam. Now everyone seems to be a millionaire. No one is middle class.

Is anyone screencaping these new headshots by chance?

Tricia Cast walked right back into her role as Nina, and did not slip a beat. Wow, she has been the shot of energy we needed all week! I loved how she got Christine to crack her optimistic façade. I love her realization that she was turning into a protective mama bear, just like Jill. I hope we get a chance to see handsome Chance in a tux, and that he gets a chance to close out his relationship with Abby on his terms.