Ryan's Hope Discussion Thread

[Khan]

I am fascinated by the idea or possibility of Frances Fisher as a Siobhan recast.

[Bright Eyes]

I never watched RH, but when you guys refer to Siobhan, should I be pronouncing it like it is spelled or like Shavon?

Edited March 14, 2015 by Bright Eyes

[DRW50]

Shavon.

As for Mary, my main problem with her is if even if they'd successfully recast her, what would they have done with her? To me she just felt played out.

[danfling]

That may be true, DRW50.

I think that Mary's storylines as a reporter may have been transferred to Elizabeth Jane Ryan (Maureen Garrett).

[DRW50]

Poor Maureen Garrett - I thought they did an awful job with that character too.

I actually think Maureen would have been a decent Mary recast, if she hadn't been at GL.

[DRW50]

Is this Karen Morris Gowdy? I can't tell.

Please register in order to view this content

[slick jones]

Definitely.

[applcin]

The Jack and Mary honeymoon in Ireland floored me. I was curious why TPTB went to so much expense on an actress that was leaving. Was it to give the fans a big hoopla, Kate a big sendoff? I mean, over the years, some major characters/actors have had grand exits (ex: OLTL's David & Jenny in Vienna but that involved other characters tagging along for the storyline as well) but it seems RH/ABC went all out to give Kate Mulgrew one heckuva goodbye present.

Edited April 6, 2015 by applcin

[DRW50]

I think it was probably for the fans who'd wanted to see Jack and Mary happy, although I also wonder if they promised that to Kate if she'd finished out the story.

[amybrickwallace]

I did read someplace else that KM extended her original contract an additional six months as a favor to Labine/Mayer. In any case, leaving the show with an all-expense paid trip to Ireland (without having to memorize lines at that, all the words were prerecorded voiceovers) sure isn't a bad perk!!!

[safe]

For me – the timing of the trip was wrong. I never thought Mary to be the type of mother to miss her baby’s first Christmas. They could have left for Ireland on December 26th ---that way we would have also got some scenes of Mary, Jack, and Ryan as a real family before Kate left.

Edited October 7, 2023 by safe

[vetsoapfan]

Yes it is, and the actor is (I imagine you know) Richard Shoberg, from SOMERSEY, THE EDGE OF NIGHT, and ALL MY CHILDREN.

[safe]

Over 40 of John Blazo (Pat #2) songs have been put on YouTube.


Don't know why they didn't have his Pat sing to his lady loves the way Pat #1 did.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfdlWxUtchwqoJz8GABmZZw/videos

[amybrickwallace]

Thanks for sharing those - he definitely has a terrific voice.

[safe]

I'm about a quarter of the way through Kate Mulgrew's new book.

Some RH related items

Up first, this cute tidbit -- Kate was devastated to learn that her Our Town (1975 play she appeared in) co-star, Richard Backus (later Barry Ryan on RH) was married with children because she thought that it would be his professional duty to fall in love with her the same way his character falls for her character.

She talks about her fist meeting with Claire and about her screen test.

Kate on Mary

...Mary Ryan in particular attracted a diverse and sweeping viewership. Women of every stripe tuned in to see what Mary would do next. They loved her because she was an independent spirit, unafraid to speak her mind, passionate, impetuous, and brave. Seldom lauded for her beauty, Mary had something else to offer, something women could grab hold of and understand. She had a powerful sense of self and this proved more magnetic and more relatable than any other single quality.

Claire poured her heart and most of her own unique qualities into the character of Mary Ryan. Claire was Mary Ryan, and Mary Ryan was, in many ways, me (Kate). And mentions how her friendship with Claire has deepened over the years.

Kate describes Nancy Addison as a dazzling beauty and as a salacious gossip (who fascinated Kate’s sister) Although Kate and Nancy were from two different world, she says she and Nancy were partners in crime.

Kate tells Claire that she is pregnant and may have to quit the show. She also tells her that she is having the baby and then putting it up for adoption. They talk, and then, right there, is when Claire came up with the whole Mary & Jack storyline. Claire tells Kate that Mary will find herself pregnant, too. Jack won't want to be a father and they'll break-up. Claire continues on saying that Mary will have the baby (a girl, of course) and Claire even named the baby Ryan Fenelli during that first discussion upon learning Kate was pregnant!

Kate says the ratings soared because of Mary's trials and how Mary handled them with courage.

Kate returned to work 3 days after giving birth (!) to shoot one scene. She says that was the episode where Mary and baby Ryan came home from the hospital.

Wasn't that around the time when the ABC camera operators were on strike? That would explain shooting episodes out of order because Kate's Mary had a number of episodes while Mary was still in the hospital after giving birth (Kate's Mary talked with Sister Mary Joel, talked to Jumbo, talked to Faith, talked to Tom, she reacted to Delia losing Little John in the park - and Kate no longer looked pregnant in those scenes) before she came home.

At that point of time in the show, Kate says the ratings are sagging. Seems like the ratings soared, and then sagged, awfully fast.

Edited April 19, 2015 by safe