The Bill Bell style

[Paul Raven]

The outcry about the deterioration of Y&R over recent years often sights plots and characters that go against Bill Bell's vision and style.

Can it be defined?

We have his work on Days from 66-73,Y&R from 73-98 and the first 5 or so years of B&B to use a guide to what themes and characters he favoured and what soap conventions he used often,sparingly or avoided altogether.

One device I see repeated is a shooting as a result of a character being driven to the edge-

Patty/Jack Y&R

Nina/David Y&R

Thorne/Ridge B&B

Mickey/Bill DOOL

Phyllis/Julie DOOL

Also,there were characters who were authors.

Lorie Brooks Y&R wrote the scandalous Naked at Dawn and In Her Sisters Shadow-a thinly disguised retelling of her sister Leslie's breakdown.

Also,Traci Abbott,Nina Webster and Leanna Love were authors.

On Days Eric Peters wrote In His Brothers Shadow.

Bell kept the casts fairly stable,preferring to write for the same characters rather than having regular comings and goings.

As for soap cliches,he never wrote a back from the dead story to accomodate an actors return.

These were some of my initial thoughts.Look forward to reading yours.

[JackPeyton]

its just.. that slow pace. the build up. the char driven story. those randoms cenes where they almost seem pointless but you care and watch them because you feel for the people and understand what they are saying.

its just... the bill bell style.

[Sapounopera]

Two brothers falling in love with the same woman

DAYS: Bill/Laura/Mickey

Y&R: Snapper/Chris/Greg

B&B: Ridge/Caroline/Thorne

Noboody did within-the-family-triangles like Bill Bell. Think Addie/Doug/Julie on Days.

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I always felt that Nikki Reed and Amber Moore were based on Trish Clayton Banning.

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Kay vs. Jill and Stephanie vs. Brooke... Phyllis vs. Julie... That was based on Bell's Claire vs. Lisa on ATWT.

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The Bell soaps had a very sophisticated style. He didn't care for adventure storylines, the mob, forreign espionage and stories about mythic countries. That's why he kept Y&R the number one soap for so long. No gimmicks. No fooling of the audience. No madness. No recasts all the time. Continuity. Tradition. The Abbott breakfast, the pool parties at the ranch. Good acting. No half-naked models running around all the time. Bell loved his veteran characters. He knew who they were and that's the reason they didn't do anything out of character.

[EricMontreal22]

I'm not trying to rile people up but one of his more controversial stylistic ticks, from early on to the end, were stories that flirted with and surrounded incestuous themes.

DId he really stop writing B&B by 1992? I always thought he worked till the mid 90s at least... I know some complained the ealry years of B&B were far too close to the early years of Y&R

[dm.]

He stopped writing for B&B in 1993, and he stopped producing in 1996.

[sheilaforever]

Bill Bell stopped writing in 1992 bascially. He went on a long vacation with Lee having storyline outlines prepared but Brad Bell basically took over. The official switch aired by May 1993

[EricMontreal22]

Wow I had NO idea Bradley had been HW for B&B since 1993! I do know Bill largely created the show (or at least one soap book said) so he would have something for his kids to do.

One thing I find interesting is early on both Y&R and B&B focused squarely on the lives of poor characters vs wealthy. This comparison has of course been largely lost on most soaps--maybe even since the 80s of making every soap have a huge Dallas style business, etc--but you really notice it, as a casual viewer, on the Bell soaps.

[Paul Raven]

When it debuted,B&B was criticized for using many elements from Y&R.

The two family rich/poor set up - Logan/Forrester Foster/Brooks.

The poor family was headed up by an honest hard working woman(Liz/Beth) who had been deserted by a husband who then returned(Bill/Steven).

There was the son who was angry at the father's actions and refused to use his name(Snapper/Storm)

The innocent heroine (Chris/Caroline)who is raped.

In fact rape storylines were a favorite of Bell's.

On Days Bill raped Laura and impregnated her.He later repeated that story with Susan being raped by Greg's brother Eric and becoming pregnant.

Peggy Brooks was raped a few years after her sister Chris.

Other shootings I now recall are Susan shooting David Martin,Vanessa attempting to shoot Lorie and Mari Jo shooting Victor.

[EricMontreal22]

In the 70s most soap books love to write how Y&R used music--characters apparantly "often" broke into full songs... I've yet to see any clips that showed this but...

It does seem that Bell (and I mean this as a full complement) wallowed in soapyness. WHile Agnes Nixon tols stories quicker than Irna did, if anything Bell told them slower than Irna--but masterfully. Even now Y&R and B&B are the most "soapy" of the shows on the air in terms of appearance--ie reaction shots as a show fades to commercial that seem to last three times as long as those on any other soap, etc (I read an interview with Peter B where he said he actually had to work on learning how to do this after working at AMC, when he joined Y&R)

[DeeeDee]

Bell soaps are Family & Business.

[sheilaforever]

That and great storytelling with beginning, middle and climax. There is an emotional connection to the viewer and storylines deliver pay-off.

[MarkH]

Y&R had that several times, including at least once post-Bill

a. Lorie Brooks loved Dr. Mark Mark Henderson, until she discovered he was her brother

b. Christine Blair loved Dr. Scott Grainger, until she discovered he was her brother

c. Mackenzie Browning loved Billy Abbott, until she discovered he was her cousin

On DOOL, there was the long arc with Sister Marie and her Horton brother (but names elude me).

Yeah, he recycled A LOT. It is interesting that we all gave him a pass for that :-). In the current climate, viewers would be picketing for his ouster.

[Sylph]

Stories I could tell you about Bill Bell... You would pay me in barrels of oil to know them.

[althea-davis]

I've got one barrell of oil over here .. what will it get me?

[marla0518]

and don't forget Bill Bell was also the writer on Another World, the upper middle class Matthews and the working class Davis's (Ada and her daughter Rachel) and I see a pattern also between Rachel on AW and Phyllis on Y &R....both stated out as the "villian" both passed their baby off as the child on a man who was not the father, both would do what ever they had to and both over time evolved into different characters...Rachel by the end of AW was the heroine and grand dame...and I can see alot of Rachel in Phyllis...the love of a good man ( like Mac loving Rachel ) is all it takes.