Sue Scannell probably knew a few months in advance that she was getting out of her contract with CBN. The network allowed her to relieve herself from the contract and start working for SFT while she was still filming for AL. The entire story she had with Dave Cohen was the dramatic vehicle for her to get out of Kingsley and the one-on-one scenes she had with Dave in a secluded hotel room somewhere in the Big Apple while he was recording her first album were a way to ease her workload. It was also the catalyst for Russ to be lured by Sheila and for Dave to play the predator...and when she came back to Kingsley for the college graduation ceremony, she caught Russ with Sheila redhanded. Not coincidentally you had Carrie Weaver providing the 'proof' that Russ and Becky were never legally married by the justice of the peace which meant that Carrie would also finish her role on the show around the same time. How convenient...the point is they 'milked' that trainwreck the best they could so that Becky would rationalize she had no more feelings for Russ whatsoever and was ready to conquer the stage on a high note more determined than ever. Her send off scenes proved that the show runners knew how valuable she was for the success of the soap. I can't really speculate what would have happened if she stayed or returned. Her story went full circle for me, even if at the time Russ and Becky were a couple in real life. It's kind of hard to explain why would Sue want to move away when she had a good thing going. They separated in 1985 and I'm not sure if it was before she got the role on 'Dynasty' or as a result of it. In any case, there's no question Russ and Becky were the show's 'rebels without a cause' or if you'd like, its two young firebrands...On a personal note, way back in 1994 when I was in my twenties, I was sitting at a Doctor's office browsing through some magazines when all of a sudden I stumbled upon an entire page with a Russ and Becky photo. I don't remember if it had to do anything with AL or with them as a real life couple, but the magazine publication was from 1985, so I suppose they had some sort of 'soap notoriety' if you wish. Boy was I surprised seeing that years after the show ended.
I didn't remember Sebastian alluding to Ted Kennedy's car crash in Martha's vinyard back in 1969...im any case, I suppose Amber and Lee could have found a romantic common ground with the kind insatiable ambition they both possessed. But Amber became so radioactive as the show progressed that she practically alienated everyone. She was heartless. Her only breakdown came when her planned miscarriage came to haunt her at a photo shoot and right before she left she called Dave 'Daddy' when she came to see him at his flat when Terry was there with him. There was really no where to go with her character, just like Marianne couldn't serve any purpose after Russ. There were no other men around and Peter was designated to repeat mistakes with women...
As for Carla, Kari page left because she got pregnant in real life and was about to deliver in early 83'. I have no idea why Elaine Graham left to begin with and what made her return because this was never meant to be a temporary absence. I think her relationship with Eyon was explored when Gene and Carla fought over Jimmy and when they were trying to resolve their differences. When Kari Page joined, they were already patching things up and there was no conflict, plus she didn't have the temperament nor a good script to sink her teeth into. It was mostly lovey dovey all the time.
I have to say that Babs' name was not coincidental. Julie Jenny's mannerisms and speech always reminded me of Barbara Streisand's role in 'What's Up Doc' or perhaps a combination of comedic roles. Plus Babs would sometimes spice her language with Jewish language. Can't put my finger on it but I'll identify it when I hear it. Maybe it was deliberate, like ''Dave Cohen' was deliberate and not 'Dave DiAngelo' since the actor who played him was Italian. I also always wondered why would Harold Webster bring the Davidsons a Menorah on the 1983 Christmas episode? I mean since when do people celebrate Hanukkah and what does it actually have to do with Christ? So I thought it somehow suggested that Harold may have been Jewish because there are a lot of Jewish lawyers or Jewish lawfirms in general. I would later find out that Alan Sader's father was Jewish. That isn't to say he was brought up Jewish. By the way, Michelle Seidman (Jill) is half Jewish. Her father was Jewish. How do I know that? because on her social media, she mentions the Jewish holidays plus talked about her late dad on one occassion. Kari page actually converted to Judaism. She married a Jewish guy and moved to Florida. Her acting career pretty much ended after she left AL. It's not like you can call it a career. She started as a model.
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YTG ·
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