Ryan's Hope Discussion Thread

[~bl~]

When Ryan’s Hope was moved to noon ET did it lose any of its airing stations? Meaning a local news cast meant no RH in that city or If it did air it would be overnight if anything? That could influence ratings a lot. 
 

I liked this chat though it meandered in a way but I wish someone had corrected Jim as he misspoke his character’s last name. And I can totally believe that Iran Contra screwed up the ratings too as that preempted people in different areas. 
 

eta I was glad that Cali stopped In to chat as she was on the program too. 

Edited December 10, 2020 by ~bl~

[Sean]

I'm biased since RH is my favorite soap, but I thought that was really well-done. It was evident just how much they all enjoyed working on the show from how they spoke about it (even in cases where they didn't overlap, like Geoff and Ash/James). It was great seeing Cali Timmins join at the half-way mark as well, and hearing them discuss some of the actors who have died (Nancy Addison, Gloria DeHaven, Bernie Barrow) or weren't in the reunion (Helen Gallagher).

 

 

I'll have to dig it up, but SOD ran an article in 1986 about the decline of the half-hour soap which mentioned that, at that point, roughly 30-40 ABC stations had already dropped it completely and many others were airing it at odd times.

 

I may have misunderstood, but the comments about the cancellation and Loving seemed to go beyond the timeslot change. From what Ilene Kristen said towards the end (roughly a minute before the reunion ended), it sounds like ABC was deciding between cancelling Loving and cancelling RH in 1988, but that Agnes Nixon intervened to save Loving. From what I've read and seen of Loving in the late 1980s, RH definitely seemed in much stronger creative shape, but it's hard to imagine that ABC would have actually chosen RH over an Agnes Nixon soap.

 

I hope there will be another RH-focused installment - it would be great to see the likes of Ron Hale and Louise Shaffer. Alan did mention that he's planning on another installment focused on John Gabriel and Sandy Gabriel (ex-Edna Thornton, AMC).

[Soaplovers]

I grew up in Chicago and RH aired at 11AM till the final episode.  ABC was #1 in the Chicago market so it made sense to air it in the correct time slot.

 

Oh, I just loved watching scenes of Edna on AMC...she was a more whimsical version of Opal lol

[John]

James also Tested For Jax in 1996 on GH

[Chris B]

This was way more interesting than I expected. I only know Ilene and Malcolm, because I’ve only seen the SOAPnet run, but obviously I know the characters of Frank and Little John, so I was still able to connect with everyone. Definitely would *love* more Ryan’s Hope. So many cast members are still out there who I’d love to hear from. 
 

Also since y’all mention it, I still think moving RH for Loving was a huge mistake. RH was critically acclaimed and had good ratings. I feel had they not messed with it, they likely could’ve kept that show on the air into the 00s. I get that Agnes was a name, but if you don’t have space for the show then you shouldn’t have done it. Or put it at noon. I also find it sad that Ryan’s Hope ended when it did because I’ve read that final year was really strong. 

[Sean]

Alan shared a recorded video of Catherine Larson (Lizzie Ransome Ryan, 1986-89) on Instagram; during the reunion they'd mentioned reaching out to her, but that she was unable to join. She left acting to raise her children and is now a hospital chaplain. 

 

I found the SOD article I mentioned earlier that described the affiliate situation (from June 1986):

 

When RYAN’S HOPE was moved to an earlier time slot two years ago it saw a five percent drop in its ratings. Commenting on the move, [executive producer Joseph] Hardy says, “We were affected very badly. We now have poorer coverage. Noon’s a bad time for any ABC station to take us because they usually have on their own local programming.”

 

… As an example, ABC's top-rated late afternoon soap, GENERAL HOSPITAL, is carried by 214 affiliates. Meanwhile, LOVING, aired in an early afternoon time slot, is carried by 191 affiliates. RYAN’S HOPE trails with 179.

 

Here's the full article, which also delves into the creative challenges and ratings woes of Loving, Search for Tomorrow, and Capitol.

[amybrickwallace]

Thank you guys, for info on this chat. It sounds great, and I will watch it this weekend.

[Chris 2]

Noon was a death slot for RH. While ABC’s owned and operated stations in NY, Chicago, and LA (among others) continued to air the show “in pattern” at noon, so many other stations didn’t carry it due to noon newscasts, or tape delayed it.

 

Our affiliate in Boston actually got a pre-feed of the show and broadcast it at 11:30 am (instead of tape delaying), after the show moved to noon on the network. It had always been popular in Boston, and even though that affiliate had never previously shown ABC programming in the 11:00 am - noon timeslot, they made an exception for RH.

 

”Edge of Night” had died a few years earlier for the same reason that RH did. ABC broadcast EON at 4:00 pm, when many stations preempted it or tape delayed it.

[amybrickwallace]

The chat was every bit as delightful as you all said it was. I never knew that James Wlcek was a Teamster. Cali Timmins looks exactly the same!! Hopefully, they can get another chat together in the not so distant future.

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[Bill Bauer]

I watched the chat even though I was a very casual watcher of Ryan's Hope and I really enjoyed the interview. The people interviewed seemed very likable and down to earth. 

 

 

I have a question for Ryan's Hope aficionados: Does anybody remember a storyline where a pregnant woman was on a boat and fell onto a knife on the counter when the boat started rocking causing a miscarriage? I remember this very vaguely from my childhood but don't know if I imagined it. That seems very gruesome. 

[Soaplovers]

 

Yes... Faith was pregnant..and was making sandwiches on Pat and Nancy's boat.  There was a jolt on the boat and she fell forward onto the knife.

 

I think this might have started her husband Tom's descent into villain territory 

[Bill Bauer]

 

Nice to know my imagination isn't as morbid as the writer's. Thank you for the information, soaplovers. I knew someone here would be able to help me. Do you have any idea of the month/year of that episode? I'd like to try and find it on youtube or something.

[Sean]

This would have been in August 1978 - it was the cliffhanger for episode #810 (OAD: 08/18/78).

 

On YouTube:

 

 

Edited December 14, 2020 by Sean

[gimmetoo]

 

That scene ! I remember it vividly. It shocked and scared me as a 6 year old and has remained with me for all these years.  Is it on Youtube ?  I need to see it again.  

Edited December 14, 2020 by gimmetoo

[Bill Bauer]

 

 

Wow! That's it! Thank you so much for that, Sean. I can't believe I remember that scene from my childhood although I remembered it just a bit different (of course). It must have been one of those 70s soap moments that traumatized me. There were several. Even as a kid, I couldn't figure out how the knife went in the way it did. As an adult, the physics are even more puzzling. I remembered it as the knife laying on the counter with the blade outward. I guess that's how my child's mind made sense of it and remembered it. Looking at that video, I'm not sure how she went from cutting sausage to stabbing herself in the stomach. Even with the jolt.