Well, I had always heard that Edge of Night, or EON, was different from other soaps, what with the focus on mysteries and its popularity with males. So I've been checking it out, and I am truly hooked. I usually watch two or three an evening, as they only run for twenty minutes. Right now, Draper Scott/Kirk Michaels has amnesia and is recovering in the bed of Emily Gault while back in town, Raven Swift is trying desperately to get her child back. From what I understand, what I'm watching first aired in the spring of 1980. Although there is a little too much repetition for my liking (which I probably wouldn't mind if I weren't watching back-to-back, but day-to-day), I have thoroughly enjoyed the Mansion of the Damned and the train wreck. Looking forward to what I think will be something about a carousel, as Crazy-Dream April (as I've come to know her) has been tossing and turning in her sleep again.

15 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

I only ever know of Laurie from that time and I agree it's hard to see her as a sub for Emily. Thanks for the other suggestions.

A while back I did get to read a number of TV Dawn to Dusk issues and I agree with you about the quality. They looked very cheap, especially the covers. The cast list/character bits might have been the best part, along with some interviews here and there (I think they interviewed Diane Ladd - can't remember if anyone else did). Afternoon TV, Daily TV Serials were the best for me, Daytimers and the first decade of Weekly after that. 

There are a few short lived soap magazines I wish I was able to read more of (like All About Soap or Mid Day TV, etc.) but this has probably dragged on enough - sorry.

Afternoon TV and Daily TV Serials were my favorites as well, although Daytime TV was a classic under editor Paul Denis. 

Those were the days. It was hard to watch the soap press crash and burn so badly.

I have located scripts from EON (until 1965) in  Boston University Library. 
Does anyone live nearby and would be interested in helping collect info ?  

Haven't reviewed the show in a while so catching up now:

The film is underway. Nola is plotting her revenge on Deborah (although that has been tabled as recent episodes have been more concerned with the filming of the movie). Lee Godart is now in the mix of the film which was a nice turn of events.  He's doing excellent work as a thrown out Eliot. The man isn't just good looking; he's a first-rate actor.

I've written this before, but Ann Williams is just sensational. 

Ann Flood, Lois Kibbee, Denny Albee and Joel Crothers have been pretty much MIA.

I feel like I write this next sentence every review. The show still has the same problem: Draper is still the weakest link. He's such a wet blanket. Tony Craig was so charismatic on Family Feud when Edge of Night was on there.  April has more chemistry with Logan, and the writers have no idea what to do with April and Draper. She spends most of her time with other characters. She's now a psychic consultant on the film set which is amusing. It gets her involved with the other storyline and away from Draper. It's a nice change of pace.

Paige and Brian have cooled off and I can't say I'm all that bothered by that. I know Brian isn't well liked in these parts,  but Paige is the character I'm less enthused by. 

Still enjoying the show. Just took a break and now back to watching.

8 hours ago, chrisml said:

Haven't reviewed the show in a while so catching up now:

The film is underway. Nola is plotting her revenge on Deborah (although that has been tabled as recent episodes have been more concerned with the filming of the movie). Lee Godart is now in the mix of the film which was a nice turn of events.  He's doing excellent work as a thrown out Eliot. The man isn't just good looking; he's a first-rate actor.

I've written this before, but Ann Williams is just sensational. 

Ann Flood, Lois Kibbee, Denny Albee and Joel Crothers have been pretty much MIA.

I feel like I write this next sentence every review. The show still has the same problem: Draper is still the weakest link. He's such a wet blanket. Tony Craig was so charismatic on Family Feud when Edge of Night was on there.  April has more chemistry with Logan, and the writers have no idea what to do with April and Draper. She spends most of her time with other characters. She's now a psychic consultant on the film set which is amusing. It gets her involved with the other storyline and away from Draper. It's a nice change of pace.

Paige and Brian have cooled off and I can't say I'm all that bothered by that. I know Brian isn't well liked in these parts,  but Paige is the character I'm less enthused by. 

Still enjoying the show. Just took a break and now back to watching.

I watched live back in the original broadcast days. I was obsessed with this show. Henry struggled with the stories between the time Sharon Gabot leaves as Raven in Sept 79 until the conclusion of the Margo/April/Draper story in August 1980. Things get better when Raven's story starts to pick up upon her return in February 80 but the Margo/Draper twists were not great to watch from March through about June.  I think Henry was thrown off his game when Sharon quit and he extended Kim Hunter's contract beyond 3mo. He also misfired with Brian/Paige partly because both actors were green and Edge audience wasn't used to controversial real life stories such as the hint of incest with Brian/Paige. But even when Henry struggled the show was better than most on the air at the time. And my understanding is that once GH started to take off under Monty, ABC and P&G tinkered more with Henry's story ideas and casting. Henry certainly regains his footing from late summer 1980 through February 1982  before he struggles again in the final year before he's fired. The show needed a dramatic makeover of sets and costumes to keep up with the lavishness of the other daytime soaps but Henry/Erwin spent more on increasing the cast size and getting some famous actors for guest roles. Henry also needed another dialog writer. He was doing all the outlines and three scripts a week. Lehrman then Kibbee got two a week. But overall, Henry was brilliant and there's never been another daytime writer like him.

What the heck is this?🤔

https://www.lib.ncsu.edu/news/special-collections/the-edge-of-night%3A-a-drama-in-six-parts--how-cooperative-extension-service-booklets-connect-nc-state-a-soap-opera-and-dc-comics

 

 

On 7/25/2025 at 10:02 PM, chrisml said:

April has more chemistry with Logan, and the writers have no idea what to do with April and Draper. She spends most of her time with other characters. She's now a psychic consultant on the film set which is amusing. It gets her involved with the other storyline and away from Draper. It's a nice change of pace.

I won't spoil it, but this all pays off in a kind-of satisfying way..  

We'll discuss it when you get there.  

But, clock April's ESP, because it seems to disappear at the most inconvenient moment.  I mean, it is nice that she has a job on the movie set.  But, later, April will need her psychic abilities, yet somehow she seems to no longer possess the skill.

Structurally, that's the problem with giving any soap character ESP, because suddenly the character is imbued with omnipotence, which instantly takes away their dramatic potential as victim. The writer has to excuse why they wouldn't predict the threat to their own existence.

Edited August 2Aug 2 by j swift

sorry — wrong board. 

Edited August 3Aug 3 by wonderwoman1951

Edge was my all-time favorite when it aired live and I even sat through the last 18 months of hell under Lee Sheldon. I never cried so hard as when the final credits rolled. The show was so satisfying to watch for so many years (consistently) despite low budget and some misfires by Henry Slesar over his final three years.  Some of his best stories revolved around  the Raven/Logan relationship which Henry nurtured for a few years, culminating in this episode's story. I won't say much more for those who are watching it and don't want to be spoiled. But for others reading this: in my view this episode is a masterclass specimen of the best of Henry's Edge including the flashback from a year earlier which isn't shown in its entirety (from Sept 14 79) but is also one of the best scenes Henry ever wrote for Sharon Gabet. Speaking of Sharon, she's spectacular in this episode and should have been nominated. And I absolutely love Eric Conger as her attorney; he could have been a great Draper replacement or a new character. There isn't a false note in this episode. Henry had such command and vision and wove so many threads for months and years.  Miss this show and glad some of these episodes are still around.  Of course, Erwin Nicholson, the directors, etc. all contributed to a great show in those years.

 

I wondered if anyone had saved the material from the defunct EON Homepage or if we could access some material still online? I wish I had saved the summaries  

7 minutes ago, FrenchFan said:

I wondered if anyone had saved the material from the defunct EON Homepage or if we could access some material still online? I wish I had saved the summaries  

Perhaps one of the internet archive services has some of the material on them? I have found material that way. It's probably a longshot but it's possible.

I have referred to this site on the web archive.  Some great info is still available on it.

https://web.archive.org/web/20000823060234/http://lavender.fortunecity.com/casino/403/

There is also this one.

https://community.fortunecity.ws/lavender/casino/403/

 

1 hour ago, Efulton said:

I have referred to this site on the web archive.  Some great info is still available on it.

https://web.archive.org/web/20000823060234/http://lavender.fortunecity.com/casino/403/

There is also this one.

https://community.fortunecity.ws/lavender/casino/403/

 

Thanks a lot !!!

19 minutes ago, FrenchFan said:

Thanks a lot !!!

You are welcome!

@DRW50, regarding your inquiry about my opinions on the various actresses cast as Laurie Ann Karr on TEON, my favorite by far was Emily Prager.

The children who had played the role before her were fine as child actors go, but Prager was the first young-adult Laurie and quite well cast. Her Laurie was sweet but did not fall into the trap of being a passive and simple-minded ingenue who was a perpetual victim. Her Laurie was bright, confident, and had some backbone. Lou Grant would say she had "spunk," LOL. I found Prager's Laurie to be refreshing because young heroines back then could be written and played as simply "good girls" with not much personality.

When Prager left the show, Laurie was not seen for several months, and when the character did reappear, viewers were treated to a new Laurie who was markedly different. To me, Prager could easily have passed as the daughter of Teal Ames, who had played Laurie's birth mother Sarah Lane Karr. Ruskin's Laurie looked more cultured and refined and lacked the earthy spunkiness Prager had brought to the part. Ruskin struck me as more self-contained than Prager, and not as warm. She was a decent actress and I accepted her overall, but I never got over calling her "the new Laurie." (Peter Simon was "the new Ed" to me for 27 years, LOL!).

Ruskin's replacement, Linda Cook, restored Laurie's vulnerability and warmth, but to me, the character swung too far back into the sensitive and emotional direction. Granted, a lot of this could have been due to the writing, but Laurie really lost her strength and spunk, and became oversensitive, dependent and (IMO) weak. It was hard to see the character turning into a nebbish, so I was never able to see Cook's version as the "real" Laurie, either.

I do want to say that, with the material they were given, both Ruskin and Cook showed talent. The character just kept changing to much for me to feel comfortable with the drastic personality swings. Laurie felt like three separate characters, just using the same name, as different actresses took over.

Thanks @vetsoapfan (and @Tisy-Lish in the other thread). I appreciate such detailed responses into a world I'm never going to get to see. I wish I could see some of Prager as Laurie Ann. She is a big "what if" as she was a cast member on SNL that is never actually ever on air during the episode she was there, and her sketches in dress rehearsal were cut and all she did that made it onto the air was a short film which aired a season later...where she stands there while Tom Davis pushes a button. 

I remember someone here saying a long time ago that Linda Cook's favorite soap role was Egypt. From the little I've seen of her as Laurie, I can understand why, although I did think she was touching in the brief appearances where Laurie Ann returned in the final episodes. 

I'm still surprised they remembered her, even if Timmy was still forgotten. That one is left for the EON fics, I suppose.

Edited November 9Nov 9 by DRW50