Edge of Night (EON) (No spoilers please)

[danfling]

Adding to the list of performers from The Edge of Night who died of AIDS is Amanda Blake.

[Paul Raven]

July 1978

 

While some 20 people looked on, a brown foreign sports car yesterday roared around a sharp, 90-degree curve on Fern Road, skidded into a gravel driveway and slammed against a shoulder-height dirt embankment at 30 miles per hour. When the car came to a halt, and the injured driver slumped down against the convertible's open door, several of the startled witnesses ran to the scene. But along with the cries of "Are you all right?" came an oddly elated remark from among a television filming crew. . ' "Beautiful, that was perfect!" yelled . Dick Pepperman, director of the ABC-TV soap opera 'Edge of Night'. 

 

Pepperman's reaction to the accident on Fern Road was not as inappropriate as it may seem, for the 'accident' was, in fact, the work of stunt driver Pete Hock of Basking Ridge who was employed yesterday to perform the dangerous crash for an actress of the Edge of Night cast. The filming crew of the successful soap opera yesterday came to the rural section of East Brunswick with the permission of the Director of Public Safety Frank Pasch to film a bogus accident for the show's character April Cavanaugh Scott, played by actress Terry Davis. The fake blood, the cracked windshield and even the painted-on skid marks at the accident site near the Fern Road water tower were all very convincing, orchestrated by the film crew for Edge of Night - a 22-year old television serial. But what was particularly impressive was the way in which the stunt driver performed the deliberate crash, going about 30 to 40 miles per hour around a curve with a 15 mph speed limit.

 

According to the show's associate producer, Niles Goodsite, who moved to East Brunswick with his family almost three weeks ago, yesterday's filmed episode will be aired next Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. The accident simulation was so realistic that many of the film crew members thought the stunt driver was injured by the impact. However, after the signal to stop filming was given, Hock emerged from the 1976 Fiat "Spider" sports car which missed hitting of stand of paper birch trees by less than one foot with a smile on his face. "You've got to have control of the car when you go into that turn or you're in deep trouble." he said after the crash. Hock also works as a stuntman on the program "One Life to Live".

 

Davis was filmed driving the sports car along Fern Road approaching the sharp turn, but the actual stunt of lodging the car in the dirt embankment was Hock's job. "We wanted to shoot the scene on a very rural road, which is in style with the fictitious town of 'Mayfield' in the show," Associate Producer Goodsite said. "My family and I moved out here recently, and I felt this location was perfect. Once the car was lodged into its position at the dirt embankment, the special effects people took over. A cracked windshield was in real life , plastic decal taped over the glass and the blood on the injured' actress' face and arms was provided courtesy of make-up. Later yesterday afternoon, township first aid squad members First Lt. Tim Bonsper and Captain Herb Lundin joined actor Jack Swanson in coming to April s rescue. "You know, people are going to get a little tired with April with this death wish of hers," Davis said after the accident scene s shooting.

 

Is April seriously injured in the crash? We're sworn to secrecy. Tune in for the latest episode...

 

1.  

[Paul Raven]

July 66 newspaper summary

 Mrs. Marceau is distraught. Phoebe's girl friend, Liz, says Mrs. Marceau must not tell the police that Phoebe forged a signature. Rick had a record. Phil didn't want Phoebe to begin with. Liz's father, Art, and stepmother, Laura, have been to a party Laura didn't enjoy. They're having after party drinks at home. Enter Liz. She tells Laura she's all for hiring Rick Oliver for youth camp director. We are unable to bring you news of Cookie, Lee, and Ken. Except that whatever was bothering them at 2:30 still was at 3.00 

[DemetriKane]

thank you.

[robbwolff]

Thanks for sharing this, Paul! I lived in East Brunswick and remember when Edge came to town in 1978. Years later, probably around 1985, my old elementary school (Chittick) had a silent auction, including the final script from Edge, signed by the entire cast.

[Paul Raven]

Glad you enjoyed it and it brought back some good memories.

[Broderick]

Some folks enjoy seeing these "character appearances" lists, over a period of a month or a year.   I recently re-watched episodes #6051 - #6380, which cover the Summer of 1979, through early November of 1980.   I jotted down how many times the contract characters (and a few of the recurring ones) appeared over those 330 episodes.   The storylines covered are the "Tobias Gang", "Mansion of the Damned", "Margo Dorn's Murder", "Kirk Michaels & the Crazy Girl", "Nadine Drinks the Tea", and the beginning of the "Clown Puppet".  Here's how many times everyone appeared:

 

#1  APRIL SCOTT -- 223 episodes

Henry Slesar clearly loved Terry Davis.  This girl rarely got a day off. 

April Scott was at the "heart" of ALL these storylines, and I think the show suffered terribly when she left in 1981.   

 

#2  DRAPER SCOTT -- 216 episodes

Same as above.  Henry Slesar seemed to love Tony Craig.

His exit in 1981 left a great big hero-gap, right in the center of the show.

 

#3  LOGAN SWIFT -- 187 episodes

Another big loss to the show in 1981.

 

#4  DEBORAH SAXON -- 182 episodes

Yet another terrible loss in 1981. 

She would've probably had even more than 182 episodes, but Denny Albee's exit left her high & dry for several months.  

 

#5  NICOLE DRAKE CAVANAUGH  -- 164 episodes

Jayne Bentzen's exit was yet another loss for 1981.  

 

#6  MILES CAVANAUGH -- 160 episodes

He got a lot of mileage during the "Nola poisons the water cooler" storyline in late 1979 and early 1980.  

 

#7  ELIOT DORN -- 156 episodes

Was used very heavily until a Clown Puppet stabbed him in October of 1980.  

 

#8  RAVEN ALEXANDER JAMISON SWIFT -- 147 episodes

She would've probably come in at #3, had she not taken a leave of absence for 107 episodes.

She left at #6095 and returned at #6202.  

 

#9  NANCY KARR -- 122 episodes

Except for a brief interlude with a drug pusher, she mainly fretted about Draper Scott & Kelly McGrath.  

 

#10  MIKE KARR -- 121 episodes

100% supporting character, who delivered good courtroom appearances and fretted about Draper.  

 

#11  DEREK MALLORY -- 114 episodes

A brand new character who got a LOT of airtime.  

Strangely his first several episodes previewed the return of his ex-wife "Ivey", who ultimately never materialized.

 

#12  EMILY MICHAELS -- 107 episodes

Didn't appear until early 1980, but was attached to Draper, so she ended up in the center of the action.  

 

#13  STEVE GUTHRIE -- 107 episodes

Used practically daily, until his sudden (and unfortunate) exit in 1980.  

 

#14  CALVIN STONER -- 102 episodes

Steady & consistent throughout the 18 month period

 

#15  NOLA MADISON -- 101 episodes

Short-term, entertaining character, who was used practically daily during her contract

 

#16  CLIFF NELSON -- 85 episodes

Used sparingly at first, but once he joined Karr & Scott was used regularly

 

#17  GERALDINE SAXON -- 79 episodes

Rarely used, until she inexplicably became station manager of WMON TV.  

 

#18  MOLLY SHERWOOD -- 75 episodes

Arrived with Emily Michaels in early 1980, and by working for April & Draper, and being a villainess in a major storyline, racked up a great number of appearances.

 

#19  OWEN MADISON -- 73 episodes

By being in-between Kim Hunter & Frances Fisher, got a lot of episodes prior to Kim Hunter's exit. 

 

#20  MARGO HUNTINGTON DORN -- 71 episodes

A major driver of storyline up until her death in early 1980.

 

#21  KELLY MCGRATH -- 64 episodes

Floundered while played by Joey Alan Phipps, but became a young lead once he was recast

 

#22  PAIGE MADISON -- 60 episodes

Margaret Colin was used almost daily during the Tobias story and Mansion of the Damned, but then was moved to As the World Turns. 

 

#23  JODY TRAVIS -- 59 episodes

Arrived like gangbusters in the summer of 1980 as part of the Kelly/Jody/Gavin triangle.  

 

#24  BRIAN MADISON -- 54 episodes

I didn't find him very impressive -- mainly whined about Paige.

I was sorry when Paige left, but wasn't sorry to see Brian go.  

 

#25  GAVIN WYLIE -- 35 episodes

Introduced the Dance Studio to the show in the summer of 1980

 

#26  MICKEY DIALS/TOBIAS -- 25 episodes

To me, everything about this strange character was entertaining, all the way up to his death.

 

#27  NADINE ALEXANDER SCOTT -- 16 episodes

Recurring character, who drove a lot of storyline, for Raven, April, Draper, & Molly Sherwood.  

 

#28  STAR WILSON STONER -- 13 episodes

Recurring.  I'll always believe they missed the boat in not using the cute, personable Yahee in more episodes.  

 

#29  WILLARD MASEFIELD -- 10 episodes

This old guy appeared with the contract actors, but was only used as the lead actor in the "Mansion of the Damned" movie.  

 

#30  MARTINE DUVAL -- 9 episodes

Appeared as a dancer in late 1980, and gosh she was pretty!

 

#31  BILL MARCEAU -- 9 episodes

Ditched in late 1979 after only limited, sporadic appearances

 

#32  CHRIS RAFFERTY -- 9 episodes

I'd forgotten him.  He was signed to a contract as the young lead in "Mansion of the Damned", was barely used, and disappeared once the movie had been filmed.  

 

#33  MATT SHARKEY -- 7 episodes

Chris Goutman & some temporary replacement.  Used only in the psych ward where Emily Michaels was incarcerated, but would ultimately move to the Bryson Clinic. 

 

#34  SCHUYLER WHITNEY/JEFFERSON BROWN -- 4 episodes

Appeared with Martine Duval near the end of 1980, and would of course ultimately become a lead.

 

#35  ANSEL SCOTT -- 2 episodes

I was expecting him to play a bigger part in Nadine's death and Raven's affairs, but -- well, he didn't.  He just appeared on the phone a couple of times with Draper, Raven & the police.   

 

 

 

 

  

[j swift]

So, I'm reading the 1984 pre-Olympics synopsis on Tumblr.  I recall Sky and Preacher's escape from the baddies in Mexico.  However, I hadn't remembered how forced the storyline was that created the need to go to Mexico and the literal cliffhanger.  

 

While everyone in Montecello was trying to solve the masterfully setup mystery of who shot Logan, (in a locked room with a closed window), all of the sudden Alicia Van Dine gets caught up in a scheme to steal a chemical from one of Del's cronies.  The whole plot was a red herring, which wound up having nothing to do with Logan's murder.  Looking back, I would posit a guess that the network had a mandate for Loving, Ryan's Hope and EON to come up with an Olympics cliffhanger.  Then, EON wrote the Mexico trip (actually shot in Montauk), in order to not disrupt the planning of the ongoing mystery.  The same day a bomb was discovered at Greenberg's Deli on RH, and Jack got in a motorcycle accident after finding out that Dane was his biological father, while Mike and Jim were in a dark room when a shot went off on Loving.

 

The reports at the time were that there was a lot of network arguing about airing the Olympics in daytime.  ABC was losing ratings to CBS due to the expansion of Price is Right.  There were fears that the audience would sample the other networks and never return.  However, ABC sports was heavily invested and needed the commercial income because of the 1980 winter Olympics that were cancelled.  The compromise was that LOV, RH, & EON went on a two week hiatus, and AMC, OLTL, and GH produced 40 minute episodes.   It is interesting to read the behind the scenes stories while reading the synopsis because it provides so much additional information that I was not privy to at the time (to be fair, I was in middle school when this all aired originally).  It is particularly interesting to think about a time when ABC daytime and ABC sports were run like two separate companies, before acquisitions made everything merge into one being.

 

It is amusing to me that production used that footage in the opening montage, (which today looks like it was shot against a green screen to very poor effect), when the actual plot was so inconsequential.

Edited March 7, 2021 by j swift

[Soaplovers]

So Emily Michael's had a 15 month stint and involved in numerous plots..and wouldn't leave Draper/April alone.

 

And all of a sudden, in the June 8 1981 episode (first rerun episode on USA network).  Draper confronts her over her lie, than April tells Emily she's pregnant right after Emily says she isn't out of their lives.  

 

And poof..she just stops appearing when I think there was mileage still left in the character.  I wonder if Slesar had further plans..but with Draper and April leaving..those plans were scraped?

 

I wondered why he didn't just place her in a different orbit like Slesar did with Bobbie (who came in due to the Bryson case..and than played a part in the Sky/raven orbit once April left).

[RavenWhitney]

Tony Scott was in contract negotiations and quit. Terry Davis became pregnant.  The writer's strike also happened at the same time.  Slesar may not have been the one making the Emily decision.  Lois Kibbee and Lori Durbrow were writing the strike episodes using Henry's bible with Erwin Nicholson supervising. This info came to me when I met Ernie Townsend in NY years later and I asked him who wrote the show during the strike.  He told me.  He was so hot in person. And loved gossiping. He said Henry had full power over most stories, that ABC didn't really interfere. It was P&G who tinkered with plot and casting but that Henry/Erwin had a lot more control than P&G gave other shows.  

[gimmetoo]

 

Wow -- any more gossip you can share ?  Love all the BTS details...

[Broderick]

 

Yeah, I think the show went into a decline when Tony Craig, Terry Davis, Jayne Bentzen, Joe Lambie, and Frances Fisher all left within such a short period of time, including a writer's strike in the midst of it all.   Henry Slesar was clearly the "brains" behind keeping EON on-track, and without his daily input, the pacing suffered.   Yes, we got "The Schuyler & Raven Show" for a while (and that was indeed an interesting storyline), but I never felt like it was enough to build an entire 30-minute serial around.   

[robbwolff]

 

Edge's Mexico trip wasn't taped in Montauk. It was taped in Los Cabos, Mexico. As for Alicia's involvement with the plastics formula, the storyline had been going on since late March. Julianne Moore was even featured as Carmen Engler early in the storyline.

 

A lot of people forget that Edge ended with a second Olympics cliffhanger: the arrival of Marcia Cross as Liz Correll, who showed up in Derek Mallory's office with human bones. I thought it was a brilliant way to introduce a new intriguing character and mystery.

[j swift]

I'm reading the 1984 recaps on Tumblr.  Who did the bust/bones turn out to be and why did people try to destroy the bust?

 

 

Edited March 17, 2021 by j swift

[Broderick]

 

The biggest "mystery" of that storyline to me was why the parents named one daughter "Liz" and another daughter "Beth".   Were BOTH of them named Elizabeth?