AMCHistory

So far, Melody Thomas and Lauralee Bell are both wearing dresses different from their cast photo looks. Let’s see who else diverted from them.

I love Mamie. I love Jill. But god that scene was painful. Mamie’s line delivery missed the mark. The back and forth had a bad cadence. The music did nothing to help. Old school Y&R would have played some sentimental music to lull the audience into thinking there would have been a detente. The cameras would have been a close-up, so you could see deeply into each characters reaction. And when Mamie delivered her closing line, the music would have shifted, and the camera would have focused on her face into a fade to black. This was a moment we have waited for for decades. It was treated like a throw away scene.

OMG - this was worst in full size HD! Watching it on my TV was painful. The cast shots are GREAT. Everyone featured in today's opening looked beautiful. But, everything about the opening around the cast in just WRONG! Where are the pen strokes animating the Y&R logo? Why the spotlights? It makes sense for the gala step and repeat scenes, but it has nothing to do with Y&R beyond these gala episodes. Oh I hope this is mistake...

I am loving Trevor St. John's Tucker and Eileen Davidson's Ashley. St. John is a strong performer, and actually has chemistry with Davidson. What a 180 from Stephen Nichol's forgettable run. One of St. John's strengths is as a background actor. As the main scene partners, in today's case Bergman and Davidson, spar, he is still engaged in the scene and doing his own thing in the background. It is early, but I think he can create a meaningful Chancellor heir character. The Chancellors need a fun dinner scene. It's such a rag-tag group of folks these days: Devon, Tucker, Chance, Billy. I think it would be so funny to see these four figure out how to be a family unit. Maybe Jill can bring them together, and let the sardonic jabs begin.

What will it take for Y&R to look like how it did in the 2000-2005 era? They were already HD back then. The most frequently used sets are the same sets today. But why does the show look so cheap now, when it looked so cinematic then? It can not just be different directors? Can they bring Ed Scott in to reset the production values? That easy reset can do a world of good for this show. God, I miss the dark, moody, and candle lit episodes. These bright lights are not doing the sets, or the cast, any favours.

This can’t be real right? The actor shots are fine. The graphics and typography look like an elementary school project. Did Josh’s grandson put this together. This would be an embarrassment to put on air. The current opening is great. All it needed was updated cast photos. I really hope this is a joke.

Am I the only one that does not understand the allure of the current Brooklyn? Why is she onscreen?

I tuned into Y&R this week in anticipation of the 50th, and God I am bored. How can a show with such a marvellous cast be boring? This all comes down the writing. The scenes are so short, so the dialogue has no chance to be emotional. It’s just plot. I want to laugh, I want to cry. But the whole thing is just dry. I love this cast. I love all the familiar faces. I know what these players are capable of, because I have watched them shine for decades. This writing is letting them down, and letting the audience down. The only weak link the last three days has been Michelle Stafford. He delivery in her scenes with James Hyde and Susan Walters was so stilted. It was like she did not know her lines and reading off cue cards. Give the girl a break to recharge. She can do better.

Looking at the video and the photo, I think when the hi resolution portrait comes out we’re going to be able to tell the following people we’re edited in - Kristina Wagner - Lexi Ainsworth - Lisa LoCicero …their heads look strange on their bodies. And they make no cameos in the making of video.

When you watch the BTS video, you clearly see that Liz Hendrickson and Mishael were both not in the original photo. Liz fits her spot. Mishael, on the other hand stands out, she looks squeezed in with Graz and Mealor. I feel like she would have been closer to Missy if she was on set. I wish Doug would have swallowed his pride and show up for this photo. This show will only turn 50 once. Regimes change. Who knows what lies ahead for Paul. Jess’ pose is awful, especially since she looked so stunning in the last cast photo. I wish they switched where she and Michelle were standing. Michelle would have been a better person to book end that row. Cait only gets more and more beautiful as the years go by. Do you think they’ll take the opportunity with everyone dressed up to refresh the opening shots?

I was really lucky to speak with him in 2008, not too long after the accidental death of his son. I did a write-up about that conversation here. I admit, it was one of my favourite interviews I ever did. He was so kind, so sharp, and so engaged: http://www.pinevalleybulletin.com/Features/InterviewTyloM.html My favourite memories he shared: That Tylo called Susan Lucci "Sweet N' Low" because of her tiny stature That Tylo, Mark LaMura, and Mathew Cowles went to church together every day - can you imagine fan's faces seeing Billy Clyd Tuggle taking communion! It's so sad to think that all three of these Icons have passed. That Tylo was one of the few actors to work directly for the trifecta of great daytime writers: Douglas Marland, Agnes Nixon, Bill Bell

http://www.realitytea.com/2014/10/02/video-real-housewives-of-beverly-hills-film-amsterdam-lisa-rinna-brandi-glanville-feuding/ Is that Brad Bell and Heather Tom making cameos on RHOBH? Could they be shooting an episode of B&B in Amsterdam?

One more just for fun, for this actual 2000-2001 Crystal Ball Photo... Row 4 (L to R): J. Eddie Peck as the very handsome and beadable Dr. Joseph "call me Jake" Martin; Cameron Mathison as the not yet the plague of Pine Valley John Ryan Aloysius Curry Lavery; the underrated and frankly stunning Esta TerBlanche as spoiled princess with no castle Gillian Eugenia Maria Andrassy Lavery; Walt Willey as playing a day player with no romantic interest or storyline at the time Jackson Montgomery; Marj Dusay in the deliciously malicious role of Vanessa Bennett Cortlandt; John Callahan as former heart-throb Edmund Gresham Grey (seriously, Eva should have told the once speciman of a man had to do was hit the gym from time to time); and Josh Duhamel in his all-to-short of a run as conman in leather Leo duPres Row 3 (L to R): Abigail Spencer in the unmemorable role of Pigeon Hallow's Becca Tyree, Vincent Irizararry as the charming and oh-so-bad Dr. David Hawyard, Jill Larson as the always enjoyable Opal Cortlandt, Marcy Walker as the wasted potential at every turn Liza Colby, Michael Nader as high-as-a-kite in this photo Dimitiri Marick, the Count Andrassy; Finola Hughes as counting the days until I get written out Dr. Alexandra Devane Marick, Rebecca Budig as claws-in Greenlee Smythe soon to be duPres, and Sara Hugh as Tina "what's her face" Harding Row 2 (L to R): Cady McClain as poodle-haired Dixie Cooney Martin, Michael E. Knight as still the man of every woman's dream Thaddeus James Gardner Martin, David Canary as the always perfect Adam Chandler, Kelly Ripa as feisty and always drunk Hayley Vaughan Santos, and Mark Consuelos as happy to no longer be an exotic dancer Mateo Santos. Row 1 (L to R): Now legal eagle Zachary Kady (I saw him at the Georgetown Law Center all the time) as one-time cutie James "Jamie" Edward Martin, Julia Barr as the thank goodness she returned Brooke English, James Mitchell as the always handsome Palmer Cortlandt, Ruth Warrick in an all too rare 2000's appearence as Phoebe English Wallingford, the exquisite Susan Lucci as the even more perfect Erica Kane, Eileen Herlie as town sage Myrtle Lum Fargate, Ray MacDonnell as the only man who still makes house calls Dr. Joseph "Joe" Martin, Sr.; and Eden Riegel as the Bianca Christine Montgomery, Pine Valley's every woman

I know that I rarely post nowadays, but I was feeling nostalgic today. I saw teh question above about naming the actors in a version of this group photo. I figured that I would weigh in for old-times sake. Row 1 (L to R): Richard Van Vleet as the dreamy but oh-so-boring Dr. Charles "Chuck" Tyler, III; Nicholas Benedict as the rough-around-the-edges version of town hero Phillip "Phil" Brent; the incomporable and much missed Ruth Warrick as then Phoebe English Tyler (now wearing the wig look she would sport going forward); Peter White as the best brother in the world Lincoln "Linc" Tyler; and Dan Hamilton as the smarmy Hal Short (aka Hal Shea, Kitty's vagabond of a first husband. Row 2 (L to R): Glorified day-player Pat Dixon as Caroline Grant, RN; Stephanie Braxton (now also known as Mrs. Dan Hamilton) as one of the better portrayed Tara Martin Brent; Paul Gleason as Dr. David Thornton (the only man who dared be an asshold to Ms. Warrick, in real-life and not just reel-life), the beautiful Fra Heflin as murderess Mona Kane; and John Danelle as karate master turned MD, Dr. Frank Grant. Row 3 (L to R): Bill Mooney as the dreamy legal eagle Paul Martin; Eileen Letchworth as the memorable and maligned Margo Flax (then Martin); Llarry Keith as oh-so-scrappy Nicky Davis, Ray MacDonnell as handsome Pine Valley pillar Dr. Joseph "Joe" Martin, sr.; Kay Campbell out of retirement as the 3rd Kate Martin; and Paulette Breen as drug-addict Claudette Flax Montgomery. Row 4 (L to R): Judith Barcroft as daytime's last debutante Anne Tyler; Mary Fickett as my favourite Ruth Brent Martin, RN; Francesca James as dancer from the wrong side of the tracks Kitty Shea Tyler; and.... I can never tell who this is, probably somone is forgettable day player role. It's actually kind of sad how after all these years later, I could still name these actors and characters sans reference.

Charlton wanted to pick a fight with Kyle, and she walked right into her trap. Had Kyle said nothing about her religion or anti-semitism, it would have been Charlton who left egg on her face. Instead, Kyle looked equally foolish. That's why we need Faye. Fays is calculating and cunning, and would not hav made such a sloppy mistake when on the attack.

OC: I am always team Brianna, but wow, this husband is bad news. It breaks my hear that they already have a baby too. Poor girl ended up with the short-end of the stick. In one moment, Brianna lost all credibility as the "voice-of-the-audiance" when she defended her douch bag husband. For so long, she was the voice of reason. But now it is clear, that she still has a lot of growing-up to do. Where were all the former Housewives? The party used to be our opportunity to see glimpses of the old ladies. I mean, don't we want to know if Quinn has more plastic wigs in her closet? Has the plastic surgery on Tammy's face settled yet? Or better yet, what does Lynn look like today? Wouldn't it be great to get a Jo/Slade moment? Of course Jeana and Lauri's absence are especially glaring. Jeana not making a single appearance this year... I really hope that changes. I have to say, I actually like Alexis this year. I was able to sympathize with her. She put down her mean-girl heirs and just seemed like a cool girl to be around. I think that fact that Lydia is her a friend is a indicative of what she must be like in real life. I can not see Lydia putting up with overt snobbery and bitchiness in the her 9-5 life. Heather... where do I start. Get off your high hoarse girl. You're from Syracuse for pete's sake!

No Lauri at the finale party? Does not looks like Jeanna is coming either. I miss when the finale party was something of a reunion for all the former cast wives to come together. Even if we only got a few seconds with them, it was good to see that the women were alive and kicking (or in Quinn's case, realise that she is still a hot mess with a fake blonde plastic wig).

With a 3 hour Reunion Show, I wonder if the OC Housewives are locked-in for another season with the existing cast. I have to admit, I have sort of grown sympathetic to Alexis now that I realise that she was being used as Gretchen's pawn the whole time. Gretchen really is the only one on an island to herself. No matter how hard she tries to fit-in with the cool kids, she eventually puts her own foot in her mouth. Dream OC cast: Vicki, Tamra, Jeanna, Lauri, Heather, Gretchen Liklihood of this happening: Zilch. Onto the NYC Housewives, there is all this gossip going around about changing alliances. I wonder if this means that the Ramona/ Sonya unbreakable bound has met its end. Looking at all the photos online from shooting, it does not look like Sonya and Ramona are attending any events together. Sonya has been seen with LuAnn and Aviva. I think that Aviva read Ramona correctly last year when she said that she is a bully and keeps Sonya around to look better in comparison. She does not help Sonya, especially when she is down on her luck, rather exaserbating her bad habbits and fueling her dellusions.

Amen, Chris B. I think Lauri being back really made this season watchable. Rather than a parade of new housewives, or all about the plastics (Gretchen, Alexis), we have Lauri who is actually a Housewife back in the fold. I love it too that Andy admitted that he calls Lauri every year to make appearences. There is more to the story hear, and I hope next season we get to deeper dive into it.

The OC: I have to give Lauri some props. She kept the high road on this argument. I give her 1000 point for going to Alexis and Lydia first to see if she should even go to dinner. Vicki refused to talk, was deflecting, and just got belligerently drunk (moreso than I have ever seen before)... all of which just made her look more guilty of being a hypocrite. Also, she needs to get over the fact that she is in fact a hypocrite. As she had attached Gretchen for her lack of fidelity, she was doing to the same on Donn. It does not matter if Donn and Vicki had some sort of arrangement, she should still have never thrown the stones. I also love that Jeanna is in play, and she is not even on there!! How funny is that. Lauri and Jeanna need to be back full time to keep bully Vicki at bay. I appreciate Vicki for being the OG of the OC, but she does not have any good rivals because she uses that position to intimidate everyone.

I wonder how much Tamra is going to go after Lauri at the reunion. They taped side-by-side and seemed chummy chummy for th 100th episode special which was taped after the mess that was this season. I think that this will only prove that Lauri needs to come back to OC! She and Vicki on opposite sides, the veterans of the show who know each other's deep dark secrets and sordid paths. It's kind of like on NYC, how Ramona is missing a foil since Jill left and can go hog-wild mad. It would be so much more fun to have Vicki and Lauri "checking" each other and keeping each other in-line. I think Lauri will need back-up since she is not the most articulate and sussinct person. But I think it is also clear that andy favours her, and will probably help to keep the OG at bay.

OC: I am so happy Andy admitted that he pursued Lauri to return OC Housewives. I think that Lauri and Jeana need to return full-time to this thing. They are the only two who can call-out Vicki on all her lies and hollier-than-though attitude. They also are formidable oponents for Tamra who uses her veteran status to drive out the other women. Also, quite frankly, Lauri has a life that I want to know more about. Is the modern Brady bunch still working out? The 100th episode made me realise how much I miss Jeanna and her kids. They were relaly honest onscreen. I miss the mother/children dynamic. We do not get that with Alexis/Gretchen/Tamra/Heather because they have little kids or abset kids. The teenage angst is something that always humanizes the Housewives. OC: I am so happy Andy admitted that he pursued Lauri to return OC Housewives. I think that Lauri and Jeana need to return full-time to this thing. They are the only two who can call-out Vicki on all her lies and hollier-than-though attitude. They also are formidable oponents for Tamra who uses her veteran status to drive out the other women. Also, quite frankly, Lauri has a life that I want to know more about. Is the modern Brady bunch still working out? The 100th episode made me realise how much I miss Jeanna and her kids. They were relaly honest onscreen. I miss the mother/children dynamic. We do not get that with Alexis/Gretchen/Tamra/Heather because they have little kids or abset kids. The teenage angst is something that always humanizes the Housewives.

Wow! He sure does love boinking his co-stars.

I want to see some real-life BH bitches, with kids going to Loyola or HWL. I want to see them in the mid-size homes that are still worth more than most of us will make in a life-time. I want to see women shopping at Bristol farms and complaining about how they did not chuck corn correctly. That is BHs.

... and how absolutley handsome he still is.