Ryan's Hope Discussion Thread

[DRW50]

From an October 8, 1988 Digest article on happy soap sets.

Edited November 15, 2010 by CarlD2

[Vee]

I think Faith and Delia - as played by Faith Catlin and IK - are two of the most excruciatingly real portrayals of people that I've seen on soaps. It's just fascinating stuff and frankly I didn't know Ilene Kristen had this in her given the fact that Roxy on OLTL is often limited to broad comedy. Her work here is chilling and riveting, you can't take your eyes off her. I know people like this Delia. And Faith - well, the machinery is always working.

[DRW50]

There's a very real, rough quality to Delia in the first year or so of the show, she isn't really the scheming villainess, or the annoying family burden, she's a real menace, yet she's also a vulnerable victim. You can see her weaving her spell on everyone around her. The scenes where she worked overtime to put Mary on the defensive after Mary yelled at her were just brilliant, and her scenes running Jill through the emotional woodchipper are everything soap should be.

[KMan101]

I remember watching the first year on SoapNet and I agree about Delia. Such a different character. Such a force. Loved it.

[Khan]

IMO, to follow RYAN'S HOPE at all, you had to have an extraordinary amount of patience, 1) because their characters, although understandable and real, were not always what you'd call "likable"; and 2) they truly emphasized exploring characters and relationships at the expense of traditional, soap-y plots. Of course, in retrospect, it's no surprise that RH was doomed for ultimate failure: it just was too damned good for daytime. However, I'll always applaud Claire Labine and Paul Avila Mayer for attempting to change the way soaps are written and produced.

Edited November 17, 2010 by Khan

[applcin]

The character who actually surprised me the most (as someone who saw parts of RH as a kid here and there when it was first broadcast) the first time I saw/revisited the show on SN was Jack. The only thing I knew/remembered of Jack from decades-old viewing was as a widower who deeply missed his wife and adored his daughter, and who was basically a stand-up guy. I was surprised to see what a real jerk he was soon after the start of the show.

In one way, I could see how complex a character he was, that here was someone who had abandonment issues so much so that he, while honest enough to say things like he had no intentions of getting married, he didn't want kids, etc., fell so hard for someone that was really not like most of the women he'd been with. I mean, Mary was a lot younger than he was, she hadn't been around, she was still childlike in certain ways as far as basically being a happy person who idolized her brother and hadn't had any significant relationships. As much as I enjoyed their chemistry, and ML and KM had it in spades, there was also something scary about Jack's almost immediate intensity about Mary...like, how could this child/woman make an emotional wreck (from his own doing, not hers) out of this sophisticated, jaded, older man? Then again...I suppose such a story is as old as time!

Anyway, it was really something to see a character whom I had thought was like a benchmark of intelligence, honesty, solidity, be someone who went to such emotional extremes within himself that he caused so much emotional pain to someone he loved.

Edited November 19, 2010 by applcin

[DRW50]

From the August 1976 TV Mirror (The Macfadden Group, Inc).

[DRW50]

[safe]

Carl, I don't know much, except that when Justin Deas was on As the World Turns, he said he asked to be released from his second Ryan's Hope contract. He was very anxious to leave.

That tidbit came from the poster that had the magazine articles that I moved over here for safe keeping.

[DRW50]

Thanks. I wonder if that's because they never gave him anything to do or if they never gave him anything to do because they thought he wanted to leave. Either way, what a waste.

[safe]

Here is a little more that she said was in the same interview - Justin said Ryan's Hope was thinking about pairing Bucky with the new arrival, Siobhan. He thought it could have been interesting - but it still wasn't enough to make him want to stay. He also said that Ryan's Hope had been through so many cast changes that it didn't feel like the same show to him, anymore.

[DRW50]

That's interesting -- I guess I can see what he means. He probably also knew Malcolm was leaving, and Catherine Hicks was going, and Ilene Kristen was about to go.

I think I would have really enjoyed Bucky/Siobhan, even if I loved her with Jack.

So did he ever say why they gave him NO story for basically two years?

[safe]

ETA: I couldn't find anything that Rachel said, that Justin said, about his lack of story. I know she hopes to type up some more interviews, so maybe we'll find out before Soapnet goes off the air/

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Soapnet poster, Rachel, with the magazines, had typed up this little list of some things Rose Alaio (Rose Pearse Melina) said when she was a poster on that forum - it was during Soapnet's first Ryan's Hope rebroadcast. I wasn't around there at that time, but everyone said she was super-nice and very straight forward.

These are a few things that actress Rose Alaio (Rose) shared with us when she visited the MB during SOAPnet's first run.

Rose was complimentary to the cast. She really liked Michael Levin (Jack), Tom Aldredge (Matthew), Michael Corbett (Michael), and Ann Gillespie (Siobhan #2).

She liked Kelli Maroney (Kimberly) and thought the show didn’t give Kelli enough help or encouragement as an actress. Rose would watch her rehearse and question Kelli about her acting choices and motivations.

Rose preferred her Guiding Light experience over that of RH. She said the atmosphere at GL was light and fun; the atmosphere on the RH set was serious (for the most part).

RH taped scenes in sequence and that was h-ard on the actors.

She said the CBS soaps treated their actors better than they did over at RH.

Helena (Guiding Light) was her favorite soap character and Douglas Marland was her favorite soap writer. She adored Douglas Marland and said he was a beautiful person.

Sometime between 11/3/80 and 11/6/80, ABC became sole owners of RH. (Rose got this date off some old script she had - I heard ABC became owners earlier - but this was what Rose said - SAFE)

ABC wanted Joe, Siobhan, and gangsters brought back. They were also responsible for Rose’s storyline with the mob and her daughter.

She said Claire Labine was notorious for getting scripts late to the actors.

It only got worse once ABC purchased the show. Rose felt Claire was doing it vindictively. She said the actors and crew suffered because of it.

Rose did not like producer, Ellen Barrett. She thought she was unduly tough on the actors and abused her power all the time.

ABC made Sarah Felder (Siobhan#1) cut her hair and then let her go a few months later.

She said acting is not an easy vocation.

Edited November 25, 2010 by safe

[DRW50]

Thanks for telling me about this. I loved her work as Rose. I'm sorry it didn't work out. I wonder if she ever said why she left. Was she fired or did she want to go?

I think Claire Labine said she didn't handle the situation with ABC very well, but I don't know if she would have intentionally sent scripts late.

It really does suck when you watch the episodes and see when ABC starts interfering. I kind of think it happened even earlier, around the time of Kimberly.

I can see why she preferred GL (she was so much fun as Helena) but I wish she could have worked things out at RH.

That's interesting what she says about Kelli.

I wonder if she has ever talked about her small roles on OLTL and AW.

[applcin]

Good article on Bernie Barrow.

Saw he made reference to Michael Hawkins' situation at the time...seems like the cast liked MH, he was part of "the family".