Ryan's Hope Discussion Thread

[amybrickwallace]

Thank you, saynotoursoap, for your insights. I'll have to go back and re-watch those episodes.

Even though it was only briefly, it couldn't have been easy for the show to have two actresses named Nancy playing sisters (thus Nancy Addison being mistakenly identified as Nancy Barrett, Faith #2, in that caption). At least it wasn't as bad as it was on GL years later with two actresses named Beth (Chamberlin and Ehlers) being in the same storyline, fighting over the same man, and to top it off, one actress's character was also named Beth. Plus, they worked together for years, not months, like the Nancys of RH. OY!!!

Other than that tiny flaw, great article. It's always a hoot to see Ilene Kristen profiled in an article, whether it's her being interviewed solo or as part of a group. Andy Robinson actually made Frank somewhat tolerable (the Christmas episodes from 1976 where his real-life daughter played his niece coming to visit from out of town were so sweet), and he was the only Frank to get a Daytime Emmy nomination, in 1978. His co-star Michael Levin (Jack) was also nominated, but both lost to Jim Pritchett of TD.

[danfling]

At the time that Andrew Robinson was playing Frank around 1977, I did not like him. He was too different from the original (and my favorite) Frank, Michael Hawkins.

Looking at the reruns later, I recognize now that he was a very good actor in the role.

[Soaplovers]

I do think all four actresses who played Faith played up certain aspects of the character.

Faith Caitlin was great as the passive, sheltered Faith.. one who preferred reading/medicine to socializing with those around her. You could buy that she was totally a daddy's girl, pampered, sheltered and afraid to face the world. You could buy her Faith thinking that her fling with Pat would become more then it truly was. I think her having a breakdown after the Kenneth situation made perfect sense, plus being off screen for several weeks recovering also made sense.

Nancy Barrett, brief as she was in the part, served as sort of a bridge between passive Faith and stronger Faith. She had the quirks of Faith of old, yet seemed more confident in a way. She had more chemistry with Bucky then she did with Pat.. it seemed like she was too mature to be mixed up with Pat.. which is why I questioned the show putting them back together when it seemed like this Faith wouldn't give him the time of day.

Catherine Hicks totally morphed the character into a less strident Mary Ryan. She was very confident, yet you still saw hints of the old Faith flare up. She had chemistry with Pat, but you could tell her Faith wasn't willing to put herself back in the place she was in before with Pat.. nor be like Jill was with Frank.. I did like her chemistry with Tom and I do wonder had she stayed in.. if Tom/Faith would have gone in the same direction as it did when her replacement took over.

KMG had the the difficult task of taking over just as her character agreed to marry Tom, plus had to deal with the climax of the Delia/Pat marriage in her first few weeks in the part. I'm sure the writers/producers would have preferred to have her take over after that had gone down. With that said, I think she handled it quite well all things considering. It seemed like Faith was still written in those first weeks as if Hicks were playing the part still, but KMG had a colder read of the words.. and a more passive delivery of the words as well.. so it stands to reason that the writers eventually tailored the character to her strengths.. hence all the victim stuff with Tom, plus the alcoholic stuff.. and I don't think Hicks' Faith would have gotten involved with Frank since she knew playing second best wasn't for her anymore.

Just my two cents is all.

[amybrickwallace]

I think that was a very good analysis. One thing's for sure, and it's sad, but no soap today would cast a Faith Catlin type. All they want are glamour babes.

[DRW50]

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[John]

That was horrid

[DRW50]

Well, that's Kathleen Tolan for you.

[amybrickwallace]

I miss Ponderosa!!! Are there any left anywhere in the country? They closed down the last remaining one in my area east of Cleveland several years ago, but I digress.

Actually, Kathleen Tolan is only one of three (thus far) RH stars I have autographs from. The others are Ilene Kristen and Kelli Maroney.

[DRW50]

That was nice of them.

[KMan101]

A fan tweeted about yesterday being anniversary of the date Ryan's Hope ended and Rosie O'Donnell re-tweeted it. I wish she could magically resurrect this show. LOL. I'd even take reruns again at this point. Thankfully there's YouTube ...

[amybrickwallace]

Absolutely. I can never hear "Danny Boy" without thinking of Helen/Maeve.

[BetterForgotten]

The last scene of the show is one of the best moments ever in a soap finale, IMO. It just went straight to the heart of the show. Helen looks sort of devastated, I don't know how she got though it as well as she did.

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[applcin]

I've been watching this again on and off on youtube. I really did like Andy Robinson as Frank in the sense of fitting into the family, the sibling interaction, etc. He really got into it and did a good job. I know DHK was the definitive Frank, although I never much cared for him because he was the 1st Frank I remember as a kid and my first impression was of him as Rae's "boytoy" and I couldn't stand her or her daughter. I think it's a little bit nuts that AR got fired ostensibly because TPTB were afraid people couldn't get past the Dirty Harry movie but, duh, they hired him after that and did keep him around a couple of years. Looks-wise, maybe he didn't fit the romantic, leading man role that Frank was supposed to be but with Frank being the only recast Ryan at that point in the show, all those actors played so well together they felt like a real family. I saw an interview where Andy mentioned that, in terms of the acting company, his best experiences were RH and DS9.

Edited January 26, 2015 by applcin

[amybrickwallace]

Yes - and from what I understand, he and Kate Mulgrew have remained good friends to this day.

[applcin]

And in another personal RH/Trek connection, Andy is the godfather to Nana Visitor's (Nancy Feldman) son with Alexander Siddig as he is good friends with Siddig.

Edited January 26, 2015 by applcin