Edge of Night (EON) (No spoilers please)

[vetsoapfan]

 

It was. Clueless PTB simply did  not pay attention to the established facts and history of the soaps, and would change things at will.

[RavenWhitney]

Wrong. Those towns were deliberately named because it was a nod to sister P&G shows. EON and ATWT started on CBS back to back in April way back.  Draper and April''s house was supposed to be outside of Monticello. And Jody was to have come from Springfield in the same state. I thought it was cool that they named those towns in a nod to sister soaps.  Especially since EON was on ABC at that point and the other two on CBS but all three owned by P&G.

[j swift]

Agreed, Henry Sleasar's scripts continued to reference Springfield later in the story.

 

In 1982, Jody returns to Springfield to see her dying mother, (who had a prior affair with Ben Travis, Nicole's father).  The mother (who is referenced as either Billie-Lorraine, Leonie, or Billie-Mae in different texts) was smothered to death soon after Jody's arrival leaving her an orphan (Jody's step-father and brother had been killed by the mob) and prompting the Republic of Eden plot, (possibly the nadir of the show).   At the time it seemed to be a P&G "generic" Springfield, and not necessarily the place where Reva Shayne et al lived. 

 

It does bring up an interesting question of why the character was named Jody Travis.  Of course, she and Nicole shared a father, but she was the product of an affair which she found about after her stepfather and stepbrother died.  So, why did she refer to herself using the surname of her biological dad, whom she had never met, as opposed to her step-father who raised her?  Obviously it was a plot devise to clue in the audience regarding Nicole and Jody's relationship, but upon reflection it doesn't make much sense.

Edited September 28, 2020 by j swift

[vetsoapfan]

 

When did P&G start to reference the various towns all being in the same state? When I was watching the shows decades ago, various P&G soaps were definitely in different states. Bay City was said ON AIR to be in Michigan but later mysteriously transported itself to Illinois, for example. And there's the infamous example of TGL suddenly being referred to as set in Springfield, even though viewers do not remember (and don't seem to be able to find information in history books about) how the action left Selby Flats.

 

Just curious.

 

A lot of things on soaps are not logical, like on AW when Jamie Frame said that Sally Frame was, "...a cousin or something."

 

Um, no. Sally was adopted by his father's widow. That in no way, shape, or form makes them cousins. Also on AW, didn't an Ordway or two pop up in Bay City using the last name "Frame," even though they were Ordways? Inconsistencies about locales, names, family relationships, etc., have always given soap fans headaches.

 

On SFT, Jo's best friends Stu and Marge originally had a son named Jimmy who disappeared for a while, and when he returned everyone referred to him as the Bergman's nephew. It's really annoying.

[robbwolff]

 

When was it established that Monticello was set in New York? Granted, I only watched the last decade of Edge, but I don't recall that at all. I remember car license plates on the show read "Heartland" where the state name should appear. And wasn't the connection to Oakdale set in the mid-1970s? I thought Nicole and Adam's barn was also in Oakdale. I recall Danfling mentioned that Somerset was referenced at one point too.

[Mona Kane Croft]

 

If I'm not mistaken, Alice began the adoption process while Steve was still alive, but working in Australia.  And since Sally took the name Frame, I would say Sally was Jamie's sister (step? half?).  But certainly not his cousin.  The idea that he did not recognize Sally was his sister, and actually went on a date with her was really creepy!    

 

And yes, Frankie Frame was really an Ordway.  They made-up some silly reason she used the name Frame, but it was ludicrous.   Soap fans are smart enough to learn who's related to whom.  Good Lord, Days of Our Lives is well populated with members of the Horton family, but almost NONE of them carry the name Horton.  Still, we realize they are related

 

And back to EON, I always thought Monticello was in Ohio!

Edited September 29, 2020 by Neil Johnson

[zahc94103]

 

Edge was always in the mythical Midwest as seen when they showed Brandy Henderson's car license plate Heartland as she drove away from Adam and Monticello. Adam and Nicole's barn (I believe) was in the country up in Graham County (I imagine) somewhere between Monticello and Capital  City since Adam was always going back and forth from the barn to work in Monticello or Capital City when he met Serena. I think Emily and Molly also came from Graham County. Or maybe Grand Falls where Draper's train crashed was above it...

[Broderick]

 

I don't think they ever specifically said it was in Ohio, but that was always kinda the implication, that it was a fictional version of Cincinnati.  They were always going "upstate" as though to Columbus or Cleveland, and there was that big old picture of Cincinnati in the opening credits for years.   Wasn't there even a bar near the courthouse called the "Ho-Hi-Ho"?  

[vetsoapfan]

 

Yes, Jamie and Sally could have been siblings in some fashion. I don't remember if the adoption was fully formalized before Steven died. If it were, I supposed Sally would have become Jamie's "half sister" (same legal father, different mother). If the adoption was only granted after Steve's death, then Sally was Jamie's stepmother's daughter. Maybe after the passing of a parent that wouldn't legally amount to much, but your stepmother's daughter is certainly not your cousin.

 

There are historical references floating around that ATWT was originally set in Ohio. They used a shot of a Cincinnati skyline in the opening and closing of TEON for years. I've seen references to NY as being the original setting for EDGE too (there really is a Monticello in New York). At this point, who knows, LOL? On soaps, "facts" change at the whim of a writer's pen (or their ignorance about established history.)

 

 

In the beginning, Somerset was definitely set in Michigan, as was Bay City. It was mentioned on air. Heather Lawrence )Somerset) complained to her mother Eve that she did not want to move with her to "that little town in Michigan!" But I know that in their final decades, most of the P&G soaps had been switched to Illinois.

 

[RavenWhitney]

Henry and Erwin never played Monticello like a nameless midwest city; while the opening credits for years was a Cincinnati skyline, the show was so New York feeling. That darker noir, street wise, set of characters with stark humor and NYC accents. Loved it.  Great atmosphere for so many years that the basic sets never mattered.  Until Lee Sheldon train wreck came in and they changed the opening and closing credits (and hired a series of bad actors for precious few contract roles i.e. Sany Faison and Jennifer Taylor).

[Franko]

When I first heard the name Monticello, I assumed it was somehow related to Jefferson's place and thus in Virginia. Kinda fitting, since EDGE and CAPITOL frequently come up in discussions of soaps that could/should be revived.

[victoria foxton]

 

 

  

[amybrickwallace]

 

Here's a screen cap of the chat:

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[Soaplovers]

@vetsoapfan, as promised.. here were some of my thoughts on TEON (at least from watching on Youtube since I was too young to watch in person) during the Lee Sheldon years.

 

I haven't watched a lot of the Henry Sleasar years (that's my next project.. the 1979-1981 waterfall of interconnected mysteries.. Mansion of the Damned, Margo Dorn's murder, Draper's amnesia, Puppet Clown murders, and the Nancy/Dr. Bryson story.... all of which sound juicy).

 

So my 1st thought of the Slesar/Sheldon switch... I think it was probably the best way to end one era and start a new era.  Slesar's last week/days involve the resolution of the Nora Fulton murder case, while Sheldon's 1st day is everyone leaving the studio to go drink and socialize.  

 

Best things about Sheldon's 20 month stint:

 

ISIS story:  a 6 month umbrella story kicked off by the murder of Nicole C on air.  Given the amount of times she'd escaped death.. having her be killed on camera must have shocked the audience.  It involved the whole show in one way or another with the end of the story involving Mike Karr winning the election.

 

New Characters:  Chris Egan was a good addition.. and filled the void left by Deborah Saxon's departure... plus she and Raven had that love/hate thing going.  I liked the ''Wait Until Dark' 4 episode climax to her stalker story.

                                Alicia Van Dine... perfect villianess.. even though the show didn't really do anything with her for a few months other than sleeping with her assistant, and spar with one of her clients Shelley.  Once she was reinvolved in the Sky/Raven/Logan orbit, than she started serving her purpose.

 

The Logan Swift murder Case:  A back to basics story with a murder, list of suspects, a court trial with lots of testimony especially from Alicia.. and a nice team up with Sky Whitney/Chris Egan to solve the crime in a satisfying way.

 

Liz Corral mystery:  A new character that actually turned out to give Mike/Nancy a decent story as the show wrapped up that involved the return of Laurie and a hint of her going to find her son.  

 

Final Episode:  A wedding, a return of a villianess/villian/henchman, a murder, and the start of an interesting myself I'm bummed didn't get followed up on.  Great end to a show that ended too soon.

 

What I didn't like about Sheldon's 20 month stint:

 

Everyone is islanded:  After the Isis story, the characters become islanded in their own stories/myteries in the 1st half of 1984.  After the 2 week Olympic hiatus, the show seemed to be remedying that.

 

Standing Oak:  If people in 2020 can't talk about what happened to the Native Americans.. I doubt in 1984, this story went over well.

 

Shelley Franklin:  Character with potential.. it seemed like she was supposed to be a young Raven.. but the show didn't really do anything with her other than her suicide attempt, fighting with Jody over a guy, or aruging with Geraldine over playing rock music.  Her brief stint going undercover as Millie to spy on Alicia was nicely done though.  Wasted potential.

 

Jody's recast:  Sweet girl, but no Lori Laughlin.  Instead of people getting to know her, the show insists on centering a mystery around her even though the audience was still missing Lori.

 

Beth Coral: ugh...I was rooting for her sister Liz to make her life miserable.

 

Sky/Raven:  They wouldn't play in 2020.. 2 rich people that bend the rules.  Wouldn't fly in 2020.

 

[RavenWhitney]

Sheldon was a disaster.  Casting of Beth and Chris were huge misses.  Totally wasted opportunity with Shelly and Alicia who should have been related and connected to a big Sky/Raven story.

 

The final episode was an insult to the show's long history with that mad hatter B.S.

 

Finally, whomever decided and green lighted the revised opening and closing credits and music changes should have been fired immediately.