Santa Barbara Discussion Thread

[j swift]

It is laughable that by the number of times that baby changed caregivers, at the end Eden was still able to recognize her.  All babies look so much alike to me that I don't know if I'd be able to go to Paris and be like, "yep that's the one."

If the show went on another decade and they SORASed Adriana, it would be fun if Cruz eventually realized that he had been raising some random French kid the whole time.

[Marissa Gallant]

Well, Adriana and Eden did have the special SoapVoodoo mother/daughter connection. So she just would have known. (Insert eye roll here). 

A "You brought home the wrong baby" storyline would have been interesting. But they sort of had that with Channing. 

[pdm1974]

I enjoyed Cruz and Eden, but the show put way too many of their eggs in that basket. So, that when the actors left they couldn't fill the void.

[Marissa Gallant]

Oh for crying out loud!!! Heather is mad a Scott because he DIDN'T sleep with Celeste. 

And Cruz has this Sandra woman in his house and someone broke in to kill her. Cruz- FOR THE LOVE OF ST. PATRICK- get better security! There should be locks. USE THEM! 

[Marissa Gallant]

Serious question here: I only watched NBC. So it was Days, Another World and SB. I do not remember the security being as loose on the other 2 as it was on SB. (Like half of the town traipsing through CC's house whenever they want. Or Cruz and his inability to lock his windows). Are other shows this bad about locks?

[Keri]

I've been watching old GH too and I can tell you when Susan Moore was murdered Heather had no problem getting into the Quartermaine mansion to try to incriminate Alan. I think a few others wandered in, too. 

[Marissa Gallant]

Thank you. That makes me feel a little better. I know it happened on AW also. People broke into Mac's. But I do not remember anyone ever breaking into Stephano's mansion. 

[Marissa Gallant]

The baby is with Cruz' brother? Huh. And why? And WTF? 

Sigh- I miss New Stailand

Do they ever explain why CC has no memory of this writer/baby mama? 

[Marissa Gallant]

So, I'm at Bunny's shotgun wedding and Gina says that this might be the strangest thing that's ever happened in her living room. Maybe while she's lived there, but not while the Lockridges did. 

Let's see: Augusta served her daughter's pidgeon as an appetizer, Minx fell into a sarcophagus during an earthquake, Augusta and Lionel’s food fight, Lionel’s impotence cure, what am I missing? 

[Keri]

The only thing I remember is the Circle of Truth. In which Lionel lied I think lol.

The pigeon thing was done in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane first. 

I always thought it was weird in SB.

[Marissa Gallant]

Which is why I'm saying it's weirder than Bunny's non-wedding. It was very weird.

Ah yes, the circle of truth. They both lied every time. I would add Minx shooting CC with birdshot in his keister, but she was sort of justified in that. 

[victoria foxton]

 

  

[Marissa Gallant]

The French site has added a new article which is an interview with Conboy. The interview is right as he took over. In the article, he's bragging about his plans for the show. One of the things is "getting rid of the atrium that minimalizes the characters". He says something like it will be great! Turns out- that wasn't a popular decision, Dude.

[Liberty City]

Full article, via the website:

John Conboy has lots of items on his plate. His current projects include a new soap, Casino, as well as a collaboration with Donna Mills on a prime-time series called Riverside Drive. So why would the ex-Capitol executive producer take over a show sitting near the bottom of the Nielsen ratings ?

"Number one, it's probably my favorite show on the air," offers Conboy. "I always felt that the cast was really dazzling. I can remember watching the opening episode and I thought, "it's going to be a huge hit" and it has been a hit. It's been an interesting kind of road, so that's really the reason I took it. Also, the fact that I wanted to work with New World Television and they own the show and they made me an offer that I felt I shouldn't refuse."

Since Santa Barbara's debut in 1984, the show has won critical acclaim, but not a large audience. "I'm not a show doctor," declares Conboy. "I don't think the show needs a doctor. I think what it needs is a commitment to long-term story. To keep the flair and the flavor of the show together and try to get the audience to resample it.  I didn't have to go in and make major changes or feel that I needed to make my mark on the show. The only thing I really want to do is work with the writing until I feel we are going forward on a track that the audience can come with us on, where we don't tack back and forth and don't disappoint them."

Since he's taken over, Conboy has made an effort to return the show's core characters to the "center of the canvas". Since the show takes place in Santa Barbara, he'd like it to be more representative of the California coast. "I think it needs to get out of tunnels and on to sailboats," he notes.

There have been several physical changes. Out went the Capwell atrium, in came a new set for Santa Barbara's first family. Conboy feels the outdoor atrium "diminished" characters. "You need a set where you can open doors and do things, so I wanted a set that had big doors and big arches. " And since Conboy was "bored" with the beach house, a new residence for Mason and Julia was put on the drawing board.

The executive producer also brought in Susan L. Clare as costume designer. The two had had a successful association on Capitol, and he convinced the designer to forego working with the opera in Chigago. His approach with Claire is definitely laissez-faire. "I think the exciting thing is to hire someone like Susan and let them do what they do best. She knows, she's worked with me."

Some soaps are guilty of the "too many cooks spoil the broth" syndrome. That's not likely to be the case of Santa Barbara while Conboy is around. He comments, "If you hire me, you must hire me for a reason and if not, maybe you don't want to hire me. But what you want to do is try to streamline the decision-making process down to one or two people. I'm not interested in doing a show that a lot of people tinker with and I think the network knows that."

[Marissa Gallant]

Thank you, Liberty City. 

I'm right in the middle of this Megan Richardson mess. I get the TPTB wanting to give CC a storyline. But this is insulting to everyone involved. Up until this point, CC wasn't a one night stand person. And he CERTAINLY wasn't an "I slept with a 17 year old, no biggie, I'll forget about her" type of person. I mean when the 22 y/o tells you, I lied, I'm 17- that would kinda stick in your mind!!