The Doctors Discussion Thread

[DRW50]

I didn't know she was on Roseanne. She played Steve Aldrich and Carolee's daughter, I think. She left the show for Mommie Dearest. There's an interview with her I'll try to post when I find it again. There's a funny bit where she says that Joan gave her a watch after she accidentally hurt her during a scene, and in the interview she says something like it's a Timex and her mother VERY quickly says it's a much more expensive watch.

You may already know this but Hillary Bailey Smith and Jean LeClerc also got their soap starts on The Doctors.

Fortunately you will see this for yourself because Hallmark is going to start airing them...any year now.

That is strange about Kathleen and Kim (if they'd been in Kath and Kim I might have watched it). They also have so much magnetism. Supposedly Kathleen never really did when she was on daytime, but who knows. I'm just sorry some of these soaps had to go off the air, I think with the right care they'd still be on today.

[DRW50]

From the July 1976 Soaps and Serials.

[DRW50]

arms flailing wildly as she held a coffee pot in one hand, the crashing glass, and then - nothing. Poor Elinore! thought Althea, but then she stopped, realizing how incongruous it was to be worrying about Elinore at a time like this. Elinore might be mentally unbalanced, but at least she was all in one piece. She could not with any certainty say the same about herself.

Looking down at her bandages, Althea began to grow extremely worried about the state of her health when she thought she heard the familiar voice of surgeon Nick Bellini at her bedside. Dr. Bellini, Althea's former husband, had left the hospital about a year ago to accept a medical assignment. To be sure, Nick was the last person Althea expected to see at that moment. But there he was, with the cocky grin on his face that had always made Althea laugh, even when she was mad at him. Their relationship had been an emotional one - Nick had a lively temper! - yet through thick and thin, Nick had remained Althea's friend, and she knew he would always be there if she needed him.

Nick explained to the startled Althea that he'd flown in to Memorial Hospital when word had reached him of her accident. She had been in shock, he told her, and he'd operated immediately to prevent serious complications from settling in. One of the problems had been her perilously low blood pressure. He'd brought up her pressure and stopped the edema that was causing troublesome side effects. Still, there were difficulties. The left side of her body was paralyzed. Nick could not conceal his distress about this, but he tried to give Althea hope that the condition could disappear as part of the body's normal healing process.

In the days that followed, Nick and Althea were able to enjoy a closeness that had been denied them in the period following their divorce. They had gone their separate ways when they split up so Nick was not surprised to learn that Althea was at that very moment involved with another man. Nick could only shake his head at the complex problems Althea faced in her romance with Scott Conrad. To begin with, Scott was a married man. That would have been obstacle enough, but in Scott's case, the situation was made even more difficult by the fact that Scott's wife Elinore was wholly dependent on him because of her long history of mental illness. When Althea first met Scott, Elinore was a patient in a mental hospital. She had been confined there for fifteen years, and Scott had been led to believe that she would be there all her life. As luck would have it, the hospital administration decided to release Elinore just at the time when Scott and Althea realized they were in love. Because he wanted to pursue his love for Althea, Scott pleaded with the psychiatrists at the hospital to keep Elinore under lock and key. Scott declared that his wife was unstable and potentially dangerous. Those remarks failed to convince Elinore's psychiatrist Dr. McIntyre that Elinore should be forcibly detained in the hospital. Elinore was well enough to function. Much to his chagrin, Scott was required to accept Elinore into his life again and to treat her with some degree of respect.

Had it not been for Nick Bellini, Althea might have allowed herself to slip into a kind of apathy that would have interfered with her medical recovery. Nick would not let this happen. Sensing Althea's listlessness and depression, Nick lost no time in trying to shock her out of her blue mood. "You think you have nothing to live for?" he'd ask her rhetorically. "Why, if you weren't lying in that bed, I'd pop you one in the kisser right now!" This undignified language hardly accorded with Dr. Bellini's reputation as one of the country's finest surgeons, but his blunt approach succeeded in the end. Althea just had to laugh at his tough talk, so obviously a humorous affectation, and when she laughed, she felt better and stronger. Nick hinted shyly that in order to get well, Althea should love "someone," and it seemed pretty clear that he hoped this someone would be him.

Nick's attention to Althea would probably have provoked the jealousy of his former girlfriend Dr. Anne Larimer if she were not at that very moment caught up in a passionate attraction for Steve Aldrich, another staff doctor. When Steve's wife Carolee discovered that Steve and Ann were having an affair, she walked out on him. Steve was left with three children to care for, a responsibility that Anne would now like to share with him, if his youngsters can learn to accept her. Steve has been receiving psychiatric counseling from Dr. Wilson to help him cope with the recognition that unconsciously he wanted his marriage to break up. Meanwhile, Nick Bellini has made up his mind that he is going to turn Althea's life around. Knowing Nick, he'll undoubtedly succeed!

[DRW50]

From the August 1970 Daytime TV (Sterling Inc). I don't really know anything about this woman.

[DRW50]

[Paul Raven]

Ginger Gerlach died through a drug related suicide.

Marta Heflin is the niece of Van and Fran Heflin (Mona AMC) and cousin to Mady Kaplan (Marie ATWT).I have never seen any mention of her character Shana and what storylines she was involved in. Can anyone help?

[DRW50]

[DRW50]

Oh that's so awful Reading this and seeing she was full of life -- I guess it reminds how much of a front these interviews can be.

Was this the first time you'd heard of Marta being on the show or has it been mentioned before? I'm not sure of her character; if I find more I'll let you know.

[Paul Raven]

I have seen Marta/Shana;s name in some cast lists but never any mention of the character in synopses.

[saynotoursoap]

Ginger Gerlach died December 28, 1971, a year after leaving The Doctors.

Shana was involved with Paul Bennett. Mike Powers, forever unlucky in love, turned his attention to rehabilitation nurse Nancy Bennett after his girlfriend Liz Wilson departed Madison. Mike and Nancy became engaged, and then her husband Paul turned up. A few years earlier Paul had joined the Israeli Army and had been presumed a casualty of the Six Day War. Paul had been rescued in the Middle east and nursed by Shana Golan. When Nancy could not decide if she wanted to stay with Mike or continue her marriage to Paul, Shana announced that she loved Paul. Shana and Nancy became rivals. Eventually Nancy reconciled with Paul, and they (along with Shana) all left town. Mike, on the rebound, allowed himself to become involved with bitchy Julie Forrest.

[DRW50]

Thanks for all that information. It was unusual for soaps at this time (or at almost any time) to tell a story involving Jewish characters, wasn't it?

Someone on IMDB, and it may have been mentioned here too, I'm blanking at the moment, mentioned that Gerlach played a wild child who was killed during an argument with Greta, during the story where Greta had been bitten by an animal. I think you mentioned that story before.

[soapfan770]

Regarding Kim Zimmer on the show I remember in the late 90s or so SOD in one of those highlight sections did a thing about current stars talking about their canceled soap experience and I remember reading Zimmer saying she basically shed no tears over The Doctors ending. Anyone remember this?

[Paul Raven]

For Michael GL and others interested in TD, a summary of SOD synopsis from SEt 14th 1982 issue.

Maggie is worried about Matt and confides in Althea, who is torn as she knows Matt may be dying, but has promised to keep the secret.

Billy tries to recover the $75,000 from Frankie and Dennis ,which he gave them for the 'wrong' necklace,but it's too late - it has been spent.But Billy threatens them with pictures he took of their 'deal' with Mona, so they agree to pepay.

Frankie and Dennis plan to skip town with the money,but Dennis collapses and Frankie checks him into Hope as a John Doe.

Mona is thrilled with her new 'Faberge' necklace and pressures Lt Reed to stop his investigation into the grave robberies.He bullies her into revealing more info but she faints and is rushed to hospital.

Danny agrees to Mike's offer to join the Trauma unit and his first patient is Mona.No one can make a clear diagnosis.

Natalie is frantic as she has made Like sign the'option to buy' paper for Phillip Manning and fears for her marriage and the future of The Medicine Man.

Greta tells Maggie that she's prepared to fly to California to be with Theo.

Mona fears death is imminent and Steve and Carolee privately fear the worst.

Matt tries to win back Maggie and Althea urges her not to waste time in recommitting to Matt,

Jeff offers little resistance to Adrienne's seductive plans.

Greta is thrilled when Theo shows up at her doorstep.They declare their love and plan their future,but a phone call detailing Katy's worsening condition means Theo must leave immediately.

As Phillips 'assistant', Billy makes his arrogant presence felt at Hope,aggravating Matt and having him battle with Phillip as to who is actually in charge.

Frankie threatens Mona and she fakes a fainting spell to avoid Lt Reed's question as to who sold her the necklace.

Matt learns his bone marrow transplant has less than 50% chance of success.

Greta decides her place is with Theo as his wife. Matt wishes her all the best,knowing he may never see her again.

Billy threatens Frankie to stop him skipping town.Scared frankie agrees to work for billy.

A frantic Adrienne,after examining herself in the mirror, makes a call to Jean Marc.

Theo creates a problem for Phillip when he transfers the Whitney fortune from the Madison Trust.

During Theo and Greta's engagement party,Natalie tries to steal back the 'option to buy' paper, but is caught by Billy,who forces her to have sex.

At the party,Greta gets a gift-a crushed wedding cake inscribed'better luck next time"

After sex,Billy refuses to hand over the paper,and blackmails her into further sessions,so Nat steals the necklace and plans to turn the tables on him.

Realizing Jeff is growing tired of her antics,Adrienne urges Phillip to put Jean Marc on staff as another weapon against Matt Powers.

This issue reports the arrival of Jean LeClerc as Jean Marc,Mark Goddard as Paul Reed and Nancy Stafford as Adrienne. Departures were Lori nan Engler as Greta.Kim Zimmer as Nola,Maia Danziger as Katy and Jeannie Costigan as Lee Ann.

[DRW50]

Thanks for summarizing this. I guess a lot of the actors who were leaving must have known the show was almost done, but it seems like a big hole was left in the canvas, if Greta, Nola, Billy, and Mona were all going. Which characters did they plan to fill the void with?

Did they ever actually plan to kill Matt off or was this just a disease of the month type story?

[Paul Raven]

Not sure what the plans were for Matt but with other major characters leaving,maybe they were going to take the risk and kill him off.

As for future plans,who knows?

Stephie and Erich Aldrich were SORASED before the end and maybe Mike's son was alsoo going to be aged. They brought on James and Marilyn,Mona's new son so perhaps their kids might have been the focus of a new family as the Dancy's had been obliterated(apart from Luke).