Another World Discussion Thread

[DRW50]

 

Is she the one you liked least or was that Linda Borgeson?

 

Other than the bit with kissing Mitch, which was alright, she doesn't seem like Alice at all. Alice could be gossipy and fun at times from the little I've seen of Courtney, but in the first clip she's mostly overly unprofessional (with a woman she barely knows) and a bit desperate, then veers into huge bitch territory. She does the same in the second clip. I wonder if some of Rauch's dislike for Courtney stayed in the writing for the character (I don't know much of what she was like with Susan Harney in the role). And she's so basic too. 

 

I don't get what Rachel meant when she said Alice had caused Jamie problems. 

 

I cringed when Alice said she was at "the Matthews house." Bizarre dialogue. 

[vetsoapfan]

 

The Alice whom I detested the most was Wesley Ann Pfenning, whose casting was mind boggling. She was so awful and so wrong for the role, it's hard to believe she even passed the audition process. Linda Borgenson was very bland and colorless in the role, and she was my second least-favorite Alice.. Unfortunately, NONE of the replacement Alices captured the essence of the character.

 

And in reality, Alice never caused any of the problems with Jamie. The writers were either ignorant and/or confused about history, or they wanted to show Rachel's inability to think rationally about her history with Steve and Alice. One could argue that because Alice never wanted Steven to be alone with Rachel, even when Rachel used the excuse of "having to talk about Jamie," that Alice made it more difficult for Rachel and Steven to manage their son's upbringing. This is BS, of course, but in Rachel's mind, that could be how she saw it.

[DRW50]

 

Oh right. That's the one I keep forgetting. Geez they had a lot of Alices in that period. 

 

Did any of them between Harney and Courtney have much to do with Sally? 

Edited July 30, 2017 by DRW50

[vetsoapfan]

 

And they were all pretty dreadful. JC was the only one, true Alice.

[denzo30]

I would have to agree as Wesley Ann Pfenning at the worst actress to play Alice Matthews Frame.  It made no sense from the acting to a completely looking different Alice.  At least Susan Harney looked somewhat like J Courtney.  No disrespect to Pfenning as an actress but just very unusual and the obvisoulsy she had no fan base considering the actress was gone less than 6 months later.  I also thought L Borgenson was also my second least fav Alice.  

 

I think the dr in this episode also played the pastor at Mac's funeral

[John]

what were thoughts on Susan Harney (Alice #2)?

[vetsoapfan]

 

She had a sharp and sarcastic way of reading some dialogue which did not sit well with me. She could not cry convincingly and it was distracting to watch her struggling and failing to do so. I did not think she had much chemistry with some important co-stars. She was not the worst actress in the world, of course, and she was (IMHO)  the "least bad" replacement Alice, but she simply did not capture the essence of the character. She remained on the show for years but I never accepted her.

Edited July 31, 2017 by vetsoapfan

[watson71]

With all the talk of the various Alices, how many think that if TPTB had waited until 1984 when Jacqueline Courtney returned, if the Steve Frame/Edward Black story would have been more successful with Courtney's Alice?  Do you think it would have been OK with a Steve recast or would only work with George Reinholt playing Steve?

 

In hindsight, AW could have used the character of Steve to help steady the show with a male character with history after Douglass Watson's sudden death in 1989.

Edited July 31, 2017 by watson71

[Khan]

I don't think the audience would have accepted anyone other Reinholt as Steve.  After all, it seems like a large part of Steve's popularity was due to Reinholt's on-screen charisma and chemistry with Jacquie Courtney and Robin Strasser.

[danfling]

I felt that Susan Harney was an excellent recast in the role of Alice.   However, I would loved to have seen Judith Light in the role.

 

[vetsoapfan]

 

 By 1984, Reinholt was humbled and older and wiser about his stint on soaps. He made it clear he was eager for a comeback. The best idea would have been to rehire him and Couirtney in 1983 or 84, if the show really wanted to give the reignited story a fighting chance. If not, since Canary is an excellent actor, it might have worked with him, Courtney, and Wyndham. But the writing needed to be good as well, and it clearly was NOT when Canary and Borgenson were hired to play the new Steve and Alice. Corinne Jacker loathed writing the series, and it showed. 

 

 

I tend to agree there would have been massive audience resistance, but having a good writer and Courtney on board would have helped.

 

Just out of curiosity, did you watch AW between 1964 and 1975?

Edited July 31, 2017 by vetsoapfan

[adrnyc]

It was interesting to watch that clip - I didn't know any characters except for Mac!  (Well, and little Amanda)  It's like Another World was a completely different show back then! Someday I may go back and watch older episodes - it's seems as if many from 79/80/81 exist on YouTube, yes? 

[vetsoapfan]

 

Yes, many eps from the early 1980s are available on youtube. The show's best years were from 1966 to 1975, IMHO, and I wish there was more material available from that golden era.

[Efulton]

I enjoyed the Edward Black / Steve Frame story with David Canary in the role and with return of Alice and Sally as written by L. Virginia Browne.  The problem was the casting of Alice and then the horrible writing by Corrine Jacker.

 

[teplin]

IMO, 1980, 81 82 and much of 83 are better left forgotten in the annals of Another World, with the exception of a handful of performances and stories.