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Love of Life Discussion Thread


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I know this is an old post, but I thought I would add all the HW info I have. I thought Roy Winsor wrote the show in the very beginning? At any rate here is what I have based on the list above. If I find more I will add it. I didn't want to add all the articles as I figured it would just take up too much room. 

John Hess - UPDATED - Hess is mentioned as writer at shows premiere Sep 24, 1951 in a variety review. Next mentioned as writer of the show in August 1952. He is mentioned again in a profile in April 1958

Harry W. Junkin - A profile on the writer from Dec 1958 states he has been writing the show since July 1958

Jack Paritz - An article from Oct 26, 1959 states Jack signed a deal to write Love of Life. No further mentions could be found

Don Ettlinger - UPDATED Thanks to Paul Raven we have confirmation Ettlinger started in 1960. He is listed as writer on an Aug 22, 1960 script. Only other info I could find stated Ettlinger joined and wrote the show during the time Joseph Hardy was an associate producer on the show which was 1962 - 1965. Ettlinger left the show to be a consultant on Flame in the Wind which Hardy produced.

John Pickard & Frank Provo - Their script archive lists materials from Nov 1964 - Aug 1965

Roy Windsor - Referred to as writer in 1965, but nothing specific, so I wouldn't take this as much proof of anything, but maybe he did write the show during this time

Robert Soderberg - @Paul Raven Lists info showing Soderberg was added March 1966. Another mention is from March 1967 in an article about LOL going to colour. Variety stated Soderberg's first air date was Mar 28, 1966.

Robert J. Shaw - In a Sep 01 1968 article it is mentioned he has been writing the show for a year and a half. So I assume he took over around Mar 67 @Paul Raven Has added info that places Shaw's end date as Jun 1969

Robert & Eileen Pollock - @Paul Raven Has info that shows the Pollock's taking over after Shaw

Esther & Richard Shapiro - Found nothing on them. Except their own interview which states 1969 as a start date

Robert J. Shaw - UPDATED - First mention of Bob Shaw is Oct 1970 in a sort of gossip column about CBS people hanging out a restuarant and he is mentioned as being with Love of Life. In an article on the shows 5000th episode (which aired Dec 7, 1970) Shaw is listed as HW

Donald Wallace & Paul Roberts - Listed as writers of the show in Sep 1971 in article about shows 20th Anniversary

Loring Mandel (Christopher Bell) - Script archive gives us approx dates of Jan 31, 1972 - Sep 14, 1973. First mention in press is September 1972 in article about shows anniversary. Last mention is April 1973 when he claims a Writers Guild award for the show

Claire Labine & Paul Avila Mayer - The first mention of the pair is Sep 1973 in an article about the shows anniversary. The last mention is from Apr 26, 1975 which implies their last episode to air is May 30, 1975

Margaret DePriest - Same Apr 26, 1975 article implies new HW's first episode to air will be June 02, 1975. First actual mention of Margaret is actually an article on her husband from Oct 29, 1975. States DePriest is a writer on Love of Life. Only mention of her I could find for this show. 

Paul & Margaret Schneider - Only thing I could find was their script archive which suggests their first episode was Dec 02, 1975 and their last was Sep 17, 1976

Gabriel Upton - First mention is during an article on the shows anniversary from Sep 1976. Maybe she started Sep 20, 1976

Jean Holloway - Article from Oct 13, 1978 states Jean is new HW. She most likely began airing in Nov

Ann Marcus - Script archive suggests her dates range from May 21, 1979 to Feb 01, 1980. An article from April 1979 states that Ann will be taking over the show at the end of the month. So likely her eps came on late May or early June 1979. She was the last HW

Edited by will81
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Article about Cindy Griver from Sep 28, 1970. She started this week and so did her cat

 

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Have you seen internet archive have posted TV Guide magazine from 1953 - 1955 (so far) It has small daily synopsis of Guiding Light, LOL, SFT, The Bennetts etc..  Guiding Light is the most consistent, so with the other shows it can get frustrating. However you get a small sentence daily, so it adds up for a period where there is little to no information. 

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Small article that mentions Robert Burr (Matt Corby) in Love of Life from Jun 29, 1970. Since Burr was on tour around the US in the play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead through to April 1970, he must have only just joined the show around May/Jun 1970. I believe the Shaprio's created this character, so this would assume they were both still writing the show at this point, but were gone only a few months later. 

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I couldn't find a Jean Holloway only Jane, so I guess the soap press/newspapers got her name wrong, which isn't uncommon

Ann Marcus left Days around Feb 79 (Jason47 lists her end date as Feb 26, 1979) and all the articles I found said she would be starting at LOL in late April or early May. So her eps would have started airing in June 79

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Um...Ann Marcus certainly did not "whip Days of our Lives" into a "top-rated show it now is."

It instantly and noticeably collapsed under her tenure.

Speaking of soaps turning around quickly, I must say that when Claire Labine and Paul Avila Mayer assumed the reigns of Love of Life, the show almost instantly started to soar. Its total rebirth (from a drab and turgid, lethargic oldtimer to a fresh, entertaining and more modern drama) was astonishing. Everyone always praises Douglas Marland for saving a dying General Hospital in the late 1970s, but to me, Labine and Mayer worked similar miracles with Love of Life.

 

 

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