The Doctors

[SoapDope]

He comes across as a blowhard and shouts his lines. 

[amybrickwallace]

At least he was absent from both of yesterday's reruns. Meanwhile, we have the saga of Mike and his spiral into pill-induced oblivion, with Julia Duffy's Penny trying to sink her claws into him. She was very young at this time but she was already so poised. I can see why she went on to such success later on in primetime.

[amybrickwallace]

UGGGH...after watching today's Mike/Penny scenes, I'm glad Julia Duffy was of age in real life - though she looked younger and was playing a teenager. Yesterday's reruns had the first mention of Dr. Alan Stewart, Matt's nephew. A pre-"Buck Rogers" Gil Gerard played the role in what was his first TV gig.

[SoapDope]

It will be interesting to see Gil Gerard on The Doctors. Yes, the Mike/Penny story is too much. He would be arrested this day and time. 

[amybrickwallace]

@SoapDope, the only good thing about the Mike/Penny thing will be the reactions of Matt, Maggie, Althea, Toni, Hank and Martha when they find out. I see a lot of heads exploding!!!

[SoapDope]

Yes. I hope we don't have a pregnancy scare, but it being a soap, that's probably what will happen. I like your "No Way" slogan under your profile pic. They sure liked to repeat that song. 

[amybrickwallace]

 

You know what's really funny? I've connected with Marie Thomas-Foster (Lauri) on FB, and she said even SHE got tired of the song being played ad nauseaum! Had TD and Lauri had continued on into the mid-1980s - can you imagine a possible re-working of the song to coincide with Nancy Reagan's war on drugs? "Just Say No Way"? *shudders*

 

Marie is watching the reruns, and so are her two grown kids - one who was too little to remember much of the show, and the other wasn't even born yet. She says how great it is to see her dear friends Palmer Deane and Sally Gracie, to name a few, every day. Sally was even the godmother to her daughter. They stayed friends for the rest of Sally's life.

 

I haven't watched today's reruns yet, but I can't wait to see what happens. I'm also sorry that this is the tail end of Peter Burnell's work on TD. Sadly, the role stayed so one-dimensional for the five years he played it - yet he never, ever phoned it in. There was such a soulfulness about him that transcended what was on the written page. Believe it or not, he would be turning 75 later on this month (4/29/1942) had he lived.

Edited April 13, 2017 by amybrickwallace

[Paul Raven]

John Shearin,Mike Powers in the late 70's has died aged 72.

 

http://wnct.com/2017/04/10/ecu-school-of-theatre-and-dance-director-passes-away/

[SoapDope]

LOL at the Nancy Reagan slogan. That's great Marie and her kids are watching. It's like a living scrapbook from a time in her life. Peter does not look like he's in his 30's in these current episodes. I wish he continued in the role. I did see some clips of him in the 80's on Search For Tomorrow. It's kind of strange seeing Julia Duffy so young playing drama and not doing the comedy she became famous for on Newhart. I saw her not too long ago in a 1979 episode of Eight Is Enough ( I have the DVD's). Her husband Jerry Lacy was also in a 79 episode and so was Melody Thomas Scott (Nikki Y&R). Melody was already playing Nikki when she did the episode.

Edited April 13, 2017 by SoapDope

[amybrickwallace]

 

She basically said the same thing...and that watching these episodes over four decades later has brought back a lot of happy memories.

[SoapDope]

That's great. When did she leave The Doctors ? Was it her choice or did they write her out ?

[amybrickwallace]

I think that Marie and Palmer stayed until about 1976. I don't know whether or not it was their choice to leave. In a vintage soap magazine interview, Palmer Deane mentioned that the character of Hank was written with no particular actor - black or white - in mind. Hank and Lauri's stories are not racial (though they might be down the line), but problems that any person of any color could face. They have both suffered injuries/losses that threatened their dreams...he was shot trying to rescue Matt from a junkie and lost the use of his arm, critical in his goal to be a neurosurgeon (though he is coming along well in his rehab at this point in the story), and she lost her singing voice and along with it any hope of continuing her singing career. I think anyone watching today could relate to them.

[slick jones]

John Shearin roles  I have:

TD   Dr, Mike Powers

LOV...Roger Forbes

Flamingo Road...  Deputy Tyler

Santa Barbara...Sgt. Bob Olliver

Y&R   Evan Sanderson

Falcon Crest...Deputy

Dawson's Creek   Emmett Creed

[amybrickwallace]

When was he on SB? I don't remember him from there.

[slick jones]

Shearin appeared in '84. According to Santa Barbara Online (le Site Francais), Sgt. Olliver questioned Augusta about Joe Perkins.