Jump to content

TVGC SUDS REPORT


Recommended Posts

  • Members

http://tvguide.sympatico.msn.ca/The+Suds+R...lson.htm?isfa=1

The Suds Report: February 1, 2008

By Nelson Branco

Eileen Davidson headed back to 'Y&R'? Plus: Hope’s back — to die! 'DAYS’ John true identity revealed! 'OLTL' commissions Snoop Dogg!

All My Children, A-Channel/ABC — Tad learns Jesse’s alive!

Aren’t you jealous of Ryan, who conveniently erased the past few years from his mind? We should be so lucky. Perhaps the future isn’t so bleak: Ryan wonders why a Greenlee-look-a-like named Annie says they’re married; Kendall’s new book Charm is released but she freaks out when it doesn’t make Oprah Winfrey’s book club selection; Erica gets some depressing financial news; Adam spies on Krystal and JR; and after seeing Jesse alive, Tad agrees to keep his secret in order to keep Angie and Frankie safe. Good times.

As The World Turns, Global/CBS — Lucinda held hostage!

Oakdale still refuses to get treatment for its DID syndrome, so we must deal with a variety of good and bad stories. This week, Paul and Emily join forces to find out why they bore viewers so much; Holden and Lily make a gruesome discovery (I bet it’s Paul’s hair gel); Meg makes a shocking decision regarding Craig (she joins Hunt Block’s fan club); Gwen, Will and Aaron search for Sofie, who calls OLTL’s Marcie McBain for advice; and a really annoying online reality TV winner holds Lucinda hostage! And memo to interim writer, executive producer Chris Goutman: a day without Katie and Brad is a day not worth living. On a side note — why didn’t anyone tell me Jeffrey Carlson was back on daytime as Casey Hughes?

The Bold and the Beautiful, CTV/CBS — Eileen Davidson: Genoa City bound?

It looks like what I hinted at a few weeks ago is finally about to happen. According to insiders, buzz is Eileen Davidson will be returning to Y&R as Ashley Abbott very soon; B&B issued a “no comment,” when I asked for a confirmation. I’m not sure how I feel about this latest soap hop, but with Y&R on the upswing, and Victor being single, it could be the best move for all involved. Too bad Davidson’s true potential was never realized on B&B — but at least we didn’t lose her during her hiatus from Genoa City. Meanwhile, Patrick Duffy’s (ex-Stephen) latest move has me scratching my head: the former Dallas hunk has signed on to host a new 40-episode, half-hour bingo series for Game Show Network called Bingo America. In story news, don’t miss Monday’s episode when Stephers finds out Jack is Brooke’s baby! Run. For. Dear. Life. Everyone.

Coronation Street, CBC — February Sweeps Preview

With several storylines finally coming to an end, daytime’s most realistic soap spins a variety of new arcs — and we have an exclusive preview: Leanne demonstrates her defiance of Paul; Ken sleeps over at Denise’s; Jack has a cunning plan; Denise leaves Deirdre reeling; Leanne endures an awkward meal with the Connors; Kirk’s kennels catastrophe has Maria fuming; Paul cons Steve and Dev; and Fiz and Mr. Spence grow closer.

Days of our Lives, Global/NBC — Kayla’s sperminated! More casting drama!

Fans, who are still reeling from the shocking Brandon Beemer (Shawn) and Martha Madison (Belle) firings, will at least be comforted to know that the couple will get a happy ending and sail off into the sunset with Claire. Madison sent me a lovely note last weekend to thank me for her Soap Opera Spirit nomination — and for reaming Days a new one for getting rid of her. Although I don’t invest in anything Days has to offer me these days, I will say this week’s reveal that John is Colleen and Santo’s son is inspired despite past connections to various clans. The fact that John is a hybrid of the DiMera and Brady families explains a lot — well, until the next time Days revises its history This week: Sami says goodbye to Lucas; Bo has an illness that could kill him; Victor offers Billie a job in London; Kayla is sperminated; Steve sees Ava, a woman from his past. Is there any other kind? This should cheer us up: Soap Opera Weekly is reporting that Patsy Pease, who was at one point daytime’s biggest star, may return as Kimberly Brady. And this should bring us back down to reality: buzz is Shawn Brady (Frank Parker) will be written off in a dramatic death. No worries, Frank: no one ever really dies in Salem; you’ll probably be back!

EastEnders, BBC Canada — Too much sex and violence?

Veteran EastEnders actress June Brown (Dot) isn’t happy over the amount of sex and violence on her soap — and she’s voicing her disapproval! She tells The Sun: "EastEnders used to be set in a more simple and moralistic time - it stood for something.” Executive producer Diederick Santer responded by issuing this statement: "June's fantastic, she will always come to me if she's unhappy about something. Her experience and great knowledge of the show definitely count." Clearly, Brown doesn’t watch General Hospital!

General Hospital, CTV/ABC — Brown Vs. Wright!

After fighting with the Text Message Killer offline, Sam is the victim of a hit-and-run, but the identity of the guilty driver won’t be revealed to us just yet. The suspects are Elizabeth, Carly, Nikolas, and Monica. What — I didn’t make the list?! Let’s hope the slutty twit flatlines — I can’t stand her whiny character anymore. Meanwhile, prepare yourselves for the showdown of the Carlys when Laura Wright and Sarah Brown meet face-to-face in what will surely be one campy moment. On Tuesday, Carly tells Jax she’s pregnant (when did they get a sex scene?) and later this week, Ric and Marianna exchange bodily fluids; and Logan loses it after spying Lulu and Johnny kiss.

Guiding Light, Global/CBS — Marcy Rylan: Heaven sent

I had absolutely no expectations regarding GL’s new production aesthetic that is set to debut at the end of this month, but if it looks anything like the spectacular on-location shoot this past week when Jonathan saved Lizzie from a runaway car, I’m all in! The digital camera work was impressive, and the natural lighting made my fave new young actress, two-time Soap Opera Spirit nominee, Marcy Rylan (Lizzie) look like an angel sent from the heavens. This week, Marina fans will freak when Harley and Cyrus-the-Virus have sex on Wednesday, while Gus and Natalie wed. Look for one of OLTL’s many former Kevin Buchanans (Kevin Stapleton) to visit Springfield on Feb. 6 as Preston, a man Harley takes out on a date. She should be making an appointment with a therapist, is what Harley should be doing.

One Life To Live, A-Channel/ABC — Fo' shizzle my nizzle!

I guess my nagging for a new opening has paid off: OLTL is confirming to me that Snoop Dogg is indeed writing a theme song for daytime’s best soap! Snoop, who is a big OLTL fan, asked ABC if he could work his magic on one of the lamest openings in daytime history after hearing Mary J. Blige was returning to the sudser for another singing cameo. Supervising music director Paul Glass says, “I’m a huge fan of Snoop’s and I'd love to hear what he'd come up with.” Let’s hope the images and graphics measure up.

Isn’t Addie Cramer the most inspiring character on soaps? OLTL has positioned her character as a prophet, and me likes. And I love the chemistry between Miles and Addie! Pamela Payton-Wright is simply infectious and I would be heartbroken if OLTL sent Addie back to St. Anne’s. And speaking of scene stealers, somewhere Tuc Watkins (ex-David) has to be scratching his head, wondering why he left the role of a lifetime to be an extra on Desperate Housewives. With the writer’s strike halting prime-time production, shouldn’t Tuc come back for another mini-visit?

Passions, DirecTV/SuperChannel — Vincent returns!

Now this is funny: Theresa has a run-in with a shark before her boat explodes (I hate when that happens); Luis, Ethan and Miguel head to Mexico to save Theresa and Pilar; and Kay has visions of death (best news ever — please tell me the entire cast dies!). Oh — and Vincent’s back, so expect to see the campy Phillip Jeanmarie on Feb. 5. Everyone lock up your genitalia!

The Young and the Restless, Global/CBS — Victoria weds JT! Hope returns to die!

Just spoke with my pal, Tonya Lee Williams (ex-Olivia), who wanted to thank her fans on theenvelope.com for creating a retrospective thread honouring her Emmy-nominated work on the soap. “That’s so sweet,” she shares, adding, sadly, that “my father passed away last week; I’m on my way presently to St. Kitts to attend his funeral.”

Meanwhile, I want to send a big kiss out to interim writer, Josh Griffith who is clearly trying to fix every mistake Lynn Marie Latham has made — and at warp speed. Genoa City has turned around so much that it’s the third soap I chose to watch at the end of the day. I’m really digging Jeffrey, Ted Shackelford’s new character, and JT and Victor’s growing friendship. I’m also indebted to Griffith for cutting short that insulting Marina debacle before it got started! Also, Hope is returning in the form of Emmy nominee Signy Coleman on Feb. 11, but will die on-screen before revealing to Victor Jr. that he’s a Newman. Also, this week, Victoria courts bad luck when she borrows Nikki's wedding dress to wed JT this week. And prepare to laugh your ass off when Gloria and Jack move in together. Let the best spoiled brat win!

SOAP SYLLABUS: OLTL’s wedding interruptus

Since I have OLTL’s Tina Roberts on the brain, I thought we’d look back at one of the most shocking Freudian slips and entertaining Friday cliffhangers in daytime history: at her wedding to Max, Tina said these four shocking words, “I take thee, Cord.” What an inspired way to interrupt a wedding ceremony! They don’t make soaps like this anymore, folks.

SOAP MALFUNCTION: RANT OF THE WEEK

Y&R’s Adrienne Frantz (Amber Moore)

Just when you thought Adrienne Frantz couldn’t get any worse (especially during her recent turn as Marina), the Emmy winner somehow manages to even surprise me by bringing soap acting to a new low! When Kay suffered a minor stroke, Frantz shrieked her way through the scene, shedding crocodile tears and wailing her arms about in a stereotypical manner. Yikes! Attention future soap starlets: do not attempt this at home — or anywhere else for that matter. Even my poor dog, Kayla, had to find refuge under the couch! Oh, the horror! How did she ever manage to beat Eden Riegel (ex-Bianca, AMC) and Terri Colombino (Katie, ATWT) at the 28th annual Daytime Emmy Awards; will someone please explain this to me?

Top 3 Shows to Watch:

1. One Life To Live

2. General Hospital

3. The Young and the Restless

Top 3 Actresses to Watch:

1. Sarah Brown (Claudia, GH)

2. Robin Strasser (Dorian, OLTL)

3. Melody Thomas Scott (Nikki, Y&R)

Top 3 Actors to Watch:

1. Darnell Williams (Jesse, AMC)

2. Jon Hensley (Holden, ATWT)

3. Tom Pelphrey (Jonathan, GL)

Top 3 Couples to Watch:

1. Katie and Brad, ATWT

2. Sonny and Claudia, GH

3 Rick and Taylor, B&B

Top 3 Soap Moments To Watch:

1. Tuesday: OLTL’s Jessica and Natalie lose Allison!

2. Wednesday: Taylor starts hallucinating again on B&B!

3. Tuesday: AMC’s Erica meets Samuel Woods.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 9
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.



  • Recent Posts

    • Well, her staff pointing out the movie connection never seemed to stop Long from using those plots.  She was right about Vanessa--she needed a man who loved her, which she'd never really had up to then. But as others have pointed out, Long borrowed heavily from Taming of the Shrew to get it done. (which while I kinda disputed that, I get more now, having watched Kiss Me Kate a few times since.)
    • "Holly had her share of the blame..." NO, she did NOT. WOW. That's what you get for trying to be fair and giving these people the benefit of the doubt! The Rita rape episodes do not seem to be available. It sounds like Calhoun thought it was not dramatized, but it was. I saw it when it aired. Yes, it's close to 50 years ago, and memories aren't 100% reliable. I also know that Zaslow reportedly complained that it was written too much like a seduction and that's why the Dobsons portrayed Holly's rape differently. Maybe it started like a seduction and she rejected him and that's when it turned violent. I don't remember that part, if it exists. What I do remember is that Roger threw Rita so violently to the floor that she hit her head. They showed him coming at her from her point of view and he looked all fuzzy. It was an act of violence, not a seduction. Rita kept it a secret until it looked like Roger might be acquited, and then finally admitted it. She didn't make it up, it definitely was not a ploy.
    • I was actually referencing another scene between Roger and Alex, which I think is right after they marry.  But yeah---I'm not really impressed with Calhoun's reasoning. Or the "both recall it wasn't unprovoked" line. Wasn't Holly trying to leave him when he raped her? Oy vey.
    • I know we have discussed the location of Bay City in the Another World thread and the fact that originally Irna conceived of it as being the real Bay City MI, and it was later writers that treated it as a fictional Bay City [probably IL]. This article seems to suggest that that idea was well-established by 1981. I wonder when it started.
    • Desert Sun, 22 December 1983 Guiding Light’ writer looks for fresh ideas By TOM JORY Associated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) - “Guiding Light” has been a daytime companion for millions since 1937, starting on radio and switching to TV after 15 years. Can anything new, really new, ever happen to the Bauers or the Reardons or any of the other folks in Springfield? “I get really upset,” says Pamela Long Hammer, principal writer for the CBS soap opera since March, “because I’ll come up with this neat scenario and someone will say, ‘That’s like “Strangers on a Train.’” “I think, ‘They keep stealing my material.’ “The way I figure it,” she says, “there are only so many stories in the world. It’s the characters who keep the show new and exciting. All of our stories come from them: I don’t come up with a plot, and then work a character into it.” Continuity is important. Someone out there surely knows all that’s happened, to everyone on the show, in 46 years. How about Miss Long Hammer? "Nope. I care about what our core families have been doing,” she says. “I’m always interested in what happened to Bert Bauer (played since 1950 by Charita Bauer) 20 years ago, but as far as going back and reading scripts, no. “Others on the show keep track,” she says. “I’ll suggest something, and be told, ‘You don’t remember, but five years ago, they had this terrible fight. They would never speak to one another now.”’ Miss Long Hammer, a former Miss Alabama who came to New York as an aspiring actress in 1980, began writing for daytime television while playing Ashley on NBC’s “Texas.” She eventually wrote herself out of the story. Her staff for “Guiding Light” includes nine writers, among them her husband, Charles Jay Hammer, whom she met while both worked on “Texas.” NBC dropped “Texas” after two seasons, and episodes from the serial currently are being rerun on the Turner Broadcasting System’s cable-TV SuperStation, WTBS. Gail Kobe, who was executive producer of “Texas,” now has the same job on “Guiding Light.” And Beverlee McKinsey, who played Iris Carrington in “Another World” on NBC, and later in "Texas,” will join the Light” cast of the CBS soap in February. Miss Long Hammer is reponsible for the long-term story, which can mean looking ahead 18 months or more. Staff writers deal with specifics, including the scripts for individual episodes. She says she draws on “imagination and instinct” for the “Guiding Light” story. Often, that involves inventing new characters. “‘I look at Vanessa (Maeve Kinkead), one of our leading ladies,” Miss Long Hammer says. "What could make the audience care more about her? “Then I think, ‘Why can’t she find a man she can love, who will also love her?’ Voila, here comes Billy Lewis (Jordan Clarke). “Another example,” she says, “is Alan Spaulding (Christopher Bernau). All of a sudden, he’s got a sister no one ever knew about. “They come complete,” says Miss Long Hammer of the serial’s characters, including the new ones. “We know who they are and where they came from long before the viewer gets all that information. That’s one of the most interesting things about daytime, the complexities of the characters.” The writers make a big effort to keep the show contemporary, and four of the leading players are in their late teens or early 20s Judi Evans, who plays Beth Raines, Kristi Tesreau (Mindy Lewis), Grant Aleksander (Philip Spaulding) and Michael O’Leary (Rick Bauer). “Guiding Light,” longevity notwithstanding, is a moderate success by that ultimate yardstick of the industry; ratings. The show is behind only “General Hospital,” “All My Children” and “One Life to Live,” all on ABC, and CBS’ “The Young and the Restless,” among soaps. And Miss Long Hammer says she’s convinced writing is the key to even greater achievement. “When I say I love the characters, it’s not a light thing,” she says. “I think what the audience senses is an enthusiasm and an energy among the people who do the show.”
    • I initially read this as Marilyn Manson and did a double take.  Thanks for the screen grabs. The outfits are horrible. Somehow Victoria's Miss Piggy dress is the best. Ashley looks like a French madam bent on revenge, and Abby looks like she hot glued lace scraps to her garbage bag.
    • LOL...I do have the vaguest of memories of Katherine driving her and Phillip Sr to his death. But I don't recall Katherine being as over-the-top as Reva. Surprisingly, I don't even think Brenda Dickinson's Jill was---although lord knows Brenda probably is a real-life Reva. I have read the recaps of earlier Roger, and it surprised me that he doesn't love Holly. He had an affair with Hillary (SHOCK, I tell you, SHOCK when I read that one) while married to her.  Thanks to the cast turnover, other than Jerry and Maureen Garrett, there wasn't anyone else he had worked with, that I can recall. It would've been interesting if Mart Hulswit had still been in the role of Ed, how much more they might've let Ed/Roger clash. I really do have a soft spot in my heart for Krista's Mindy.
    • San Bernardino Sun, 21 July 1981 Soap gets a new lease on life By TOM JORY Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) NBC's Texas premiered Aug. 4, 1980, in the toughest time slot in daytime TV opposite top rated General Hospital on ABC and CBS' enduring -Guiding Light As recently as the first of this year, " Texas appeared doomed, a victim of barely measurable ratings. All that has changed, and the show approaches its first anniversary with a new executive producer, a new team of writers, a new look and a new slant on life. Even the ratings have improved a bit, from 14 percent to l5 percent of the audience in the time period in November and December to 15 percent to 16 percent today. "We have Houston like Ryan's Hope has New York City," says Gail Kobe who took over Texas as executive supervising producer in March,"and we feel a real tie with that city. We've got to reflect in the show what's happening in that real town, and I think we're doing that." It was a significant step, taking Texas- its roots in the fictional Bay City of NBC's Another World -to a real-life setting. "I don't think it's got to be  the kind of place that people can't can't find on the map," says Ms. Kobe "I think the audience in daytime is more prepared for reality today." It meant giving the show a recognizable Houston backdrop, a more contemporary sound -country and western performers like Ray Price will appear periodically and a lighting system that would clearly represent the hot, bright Texas sunlight. . Texas faced difficult odds from the start, the competition and the inevitable comparison with CBS' prime-time superhit, Dallas, notwithstanding. There was the problem of introducing a multiplicity of characters, many of them imports from Another World, as well as a story line, in an hour-long format. "It was the first show to start at an hour," says Kobe, a former actress who had been supervising producer for Procter & Gamble Productions, which owns Texas and five other daytime shows. "It's very difficult to fill that much time with a large cast, and not leave the viewer confused. "With a daily show, you have to let the audience know who to root for," she says. ''And if you're trying to begin a story, too, no one's going to keep track." The changes began even before Kobe took the show from Paul Rauch, who had faced the seemingly impossible task of producing both Texas and Another World simultaneously. Beverlee McKinsey, whose generally unpleasant character, Iris, had come to Texas from Another World as a young ingenue, was given back her mean streak.  "She had become a sweet woman,"Kobe says, "and the audience was used to seeing her do terrible things. It just didn't work." In addition, she says, time was spent establishing the identities of the characters. Joyce and Bill Corrington, who had created the show with Rauch, were replaced as head writers in February by Dorothy Purser and Samuel Ratcliffe.  
    • 1995 CBS was sold to Westinghouse and Les Moonves arrived at CBS. I pointed out 1995/96 Murder, She Wrote as sabotage in the Tank Jobs and Sabotage thread.  
    • I think Flannery did some great work, but I always found Stephanie's underlying hypocrisy off-putting. And while I don't think KKL's the world's best actress (I completely understood why she's received so little attention from the academy for her work), I do think that her appeal as Brooke was responsible for a lot of B&B's success.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy