Texas! Discussion Thread

[Chris B]

I've loved the chance to watch a soap from the beginning and see how a sprawling saga is started off. Unlike Ryan's Hope, I don't have years of story to look forward to, but Texas had a super strong, albeit short run. Many people say that the show began poorly, but I thought the opening storylines were mostly good. The Corrington's created a strong enough set of characters that future writers kept many of them on as the series progressed. It was a tad bit slow, but within a month or two things were firing on all cylinders. Allowing Iris to show her bitchy side was another helpful development. Her interference with Dennis and Paige after using Paige to get Dawn away from him was fun. A good case of "be careful what you wish for."

My favorite character is probably Reena Decker who should've been shipped back to Another World when the series was canceled. I absolutely cannot stand Elena Decker, Ryan Connor or Jenny Marshall. They all annoy me and bore me to tears.

Any other fans of this series?

[SteveFrame]

Big fan here.

Ryan & Ginny to me got a lot more interesting as the show went on. They were one of the most popular parts of Texas during it's original run.

In the Daytime TV readers polls which a big guage for popularity back then Philip Clark & Barbara Rucker were two of the only Texas stars to ever make the list - always in the Runner's Up area. Beverlee McKinsey made it a few times too.

I have not watched any of the AOL run wished I had but just haven't taken the time. So not sure where they are at.

I loved so many of the couples for the show. I loved Elena too but only after they teamed her first with Tom Wiggin and then later with Billy Joe.

My favorite all time couple on the show though was Reena and Max Dekker - but only when played by Chandler Hill Harben. I love Jay Hammer as an actor but his casting and the later writing for Max ruined the character and the coupling.

Texas was a great show from the beginning for me too. But I will admit to you that the show really blossomed and geled when Pamela Long Hammer started writing and Gail Kobe took over as producer.

[Sylph]

Where is this woman now? She is in her fifties and nowhere to be found. Not even doing, I don't know, primetime or theatre or something... Y&RWorlTurner told me that her stints on Santa Barbara and OLTL weren't well regarded, but that the fault really isn't hers. 

It is difficult to assess her, she only had one successful stint (GL), but I think she is miles better than some hacks still around (Passanante, for example).

Edited September 28, 2008 by Sylph

[SteveFrame]

Well her stint on Texas is considered successful too - by critics and historians.

It was just the fact that NBC was cancellation happy at the time. Well nervous is more like it.

I mean just look at Days in 1980. They had forced Betty Corday to make changes just as they had AW. Catch GH was the directive. Make the shows younger was the directive.

The new writers and changes at Days were too drastic. The show was just weeks away from cancellation. Ken Corday was right about that statement recently. Gary Tomlin came in and changed things. He literally saved the show. But it wasn't enough for NBC. They still worked to have him canned when Pat Falken Smith became available. Of course the Corday's showed NBC in that instance by firing Smith.

Pamela Long and Gail Kobe really turned Texas around. And there was a lot of buzz that they might even get a writing or Best Series nom when the Emmys came about in 1983 but that was in the midst of the ABC domination of the Emmys. And when I say domination it was a domination with all capital letters.

While The Doctors did need to go in December 1982 since it had done gotten way too far off course, Texas should have been given more time.

[EastMA2]

I loved Texas! I wrote Gail Kobe alot of letters in support of what she was doing and she wrote some letters back thanking me for the support. As sad as it was to see Texas go off the air, who would have known that Gail and Pam would move on to GL and create magic.

[Matt P.]

You know I was thinking the same thing the other day. I could only hope that GL would scoop her up again.

[Matt]

Truthfully, no matter how good Texas got under Long/Kobe, the show was doomed once NBC moved it from 3pm to 11am. I can't think of a single soap that's ever had any ratings success when aired before noon. The closest example I can think of would be 'Love of Life' in the 1970s, but they're ratings were so iffy most of the time and the best the could ever do was middle of the pack with Labine/Mayer writing.

[Sedrick]

Actually, the show's ratings improved when the timeslot was switched from what I understand.

[YRBB]

I watched the first two episodes, but just couldn't get into it.... I found them extremely slow and boring (and, believe me, I love slow pace) apart from the Iris scenes.... I kinda gave up after that.

[Chris B]

I remember hating the show for t he first full two weeks at least. I only stuck with it because I had it on DVD so I felt I may as well watch them. I'm glad I kept watching because the show picked up speed VERY fast and they began work on developing the characters.

The fatal blow to this show was introducing most of the characters and storylines on Another World. Hell, Reena was on that show as far back as 1979. By the time Texas premiered, all the stories were midway through and they did nothing to recap viewers or introduce them to a new show. It was just your average, dare I say slow and uneventful, week. I felt like I was just tuning into a soap, not being introduced to a brand new one. I'm sure other new viewers (perhaps Dallas fans looking for a daytime fix?) felt the same way.

[Aaron]

Yes, the transition was poorly done. It truly felt like we were joining the show mid-way through the first season. There were so many important events that happened PRIOR to the first episode (Mike Marshall's suicide, the whole Sheik Zhedi thing, Alex seeing Iris at the opera, etc...)

I actually found myself quite drawn to the structure of the show. I loved how the families were crafted and intertwined. The Dekkers and their friendship with the Marshalls, the assorted Bellman/Walkers, Nita and Billy Joe...

The show was a lot more cerebral and character driven initially, I felt. Almost TOO much. Some of those long Shakespearean speeches between Alex and Iris got to be a bit much, but I always enjoyed the psychological drama between Justin and Reena or Justin and Paige or Max and Reena.

There were a few storyline stinkers right from the start. Courtney and Kevin were a snoozefest, bordering on creepy. Courtney was a Marshall in name only, since it took nearly 2 months for her to interact or even mention any of the other Marshalls. I liked Sam Walker, but she was far too modern and smart for Justin, so she sort of fizzled out. Alex stumbled through most of his lines, so I was glad when he was taken off canvas (temporarily at first, and later permanently.)

I really like Ryan and Ginny, although I find Ryan to be a bit of a bully most of the time. He tends to shout her down whenever she tries to speak her mind, but you can also tell he truly loves her. I thought Barbara Rucker played a great "earth mother" character. Josephine Nichols' Kate Marshall was a true steel magnolia. She reminded me so much of my own southern granny... that sense of everlasting love, mixed with a healthy dose of condemnation and judgement, lol.

Nita Wright was one of my favorite characters, but I hate that she's taking Billy Joe back. I get that they wanted to keep the character around, but I never felt like he truly changed, just that he got away with a lot more than he should have.

All in all, Texas was a true daytime gem.

[SIPort]

Reena Decker - loved her.

[EricMontreal22]

Nelson or one of the current soap scribes called Pam Long one of the GREATS--only having watched her AWFUL run at OLTL I'm left dumbfounded.

[SteveFrame]

Eric, You have missed out. She was wonderful on Texas and then tremendously wonderful on GL. She is truly a gifted writer but as with most writers some shows are not her forte. Sadly One Life To Live has been the downfall of a few (i.e. Claire Labine).

Pamela really cemented Texas and if NBC had not gotten back into cancellation fever I think she could have really turned the show around and made it successful.

She had some of the best couples and stories going on soap operas toward the end. I watched all of Texas but I have to say the last 6 months was some of the best. She blended comedy, romance and drama so well.

She borrowed a lot of TExas in her vision on GL. I have always said and maybe even said in here (don't remember right now) but Reena Bellman Cooke Dekker was the pattern for Reva Shayne. But in many ways I actually think Reena was a better character.

Vanessa Chamberlain on GL under Pamela became a lot like Pamela's character Ashley on Texas. And Billy/Vanessa were a lot like Justin/Ashley.

She didn't rob the stories she wrote there but so many of the same elements were transferred.

And I loved that she even used so many of her friends and castmates from Texas. I just wish she had found some use for Jerry Lanning and Carla Borelli who were wonderful as Justin and Reena on Texas. They had such great chemistry as did Donald May and Carla Borelli. Donald May would have been a wonderful Michael Bauer on GL after Don Stewart left but I guess they just didn't want Michael anymore. Or he would have been a lot better recast for Alan Spaulding after Chris Bernau left.

Texas was a great little show. I still miss it.

[SFK]

An article from Texas Monthly (page 138):

http://books.google.com/books?id=yioEAAAAMBAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q=&f=false

Edited September 15, 2009 by SFK