Another World Discussion Thread

[Tisy-Lish]

Well, it was over 50-years ago.  But it seemed to me at the time, both the snake and Jamie were in the same shot.  Jamie was seated on the (fake) grass, while the snake slithered closer through the grass.  But perhaps it was carefully cut to avoid any real danger.  It was just too long ago for me to confirm either way.  Still, it seemed so surprising to see a real snake on the set.  This was probably very early in Paul Rauch's time on AW, so maybe he was pushing the envelope.  

Although obviously, Lemay would have written the scene, the decision to bring in a real snake was probably Rauch's.

 

Edited July 22 by Tisy-Lish

[vetsoapfan]

My recollection is, the shots of the snake were real (they looked like filmed stock footage inserted into the scene; different in texture/quality from AW's usual videotape), and we just saw close-ups of it by itself in a patch of grass. The actual attack was not seen. We only heard the commotion from off-camera.

It's like Walter Curtin's fiery car crash footage from the early 1970s. AW used a filmed clip of an automobile, outside at night, getting into a terrible wreck. That specific material was edited into the episode and looked noticeably different from the rest of the day's videotaped footage.

Edited July 23 by vetsoapfan

[Contessa Donatella]

So, in those instances, you're saying they used B roll? I am fascinated by these details & I love that y'all both have such distinct detailed recollections!!!

 

[Xanthe]

Thanks @vetsoapfan and @Tisy-Lish for your recollections. I read some of the 1972 synopses on the AWHP and was surprised to learn that the snakebite story coincided with Robin Strasser's departure -- immediately afterward Rachel took Jamie out of town and when Steve tracked her down she was Victoria Wyndham.

[Contessa Donatella]

Sounds like an excellent recast reveal!

[Tisy-Lish]

Our memories disagree.  But I promise not to be disagreeable.  My recollection is that the snake was in the studio and shown on the same "park" set as the characters -- and not stock filmed footage edited into the taped scene.  Although it was over 50 years ago, and I was only 13 years old in 1972, even then I had a fairly discerning eye and could recognize the difference between film and videotape.  For example, anytime Steve and Alice visited their house in St Croix, I noticed all the filmed stock footage used as the various establishing shots. And I easily recognized the green-screen effects showing the beach beyond their terrace.   And I also recall Walter Curtain's car crash, and noticing immediately that the "crash" scene had been shot on film and was likely stock footage. So you and I are in agreement about that.

I later learned that the filmed fiery car crash which killed poor Walter was actually footage taken directly from a prime-time drama.  I don't recall the title of the prime-time show, but that information is fairly well known and shouldn't be difficult to discover.  It may even be documented on the Another World Home Page.   

Both of use are looking back over 50-years.  So who knows which of us is correct??  And in the end, I guess it is of little consequence either way.   The fact remains, the "snake scene" was compelling and dramatic. And I guess that is all that really matters.   

Edited July 23 by Tisy-Lish

[AbcNbc247]

I just checked.

According to AWHP, the footage was taken from an episode of The Mod Squad

[chrisml]

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[vetsoapfan]

LOL, I did not think that you would be.

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I get a bit of chuckle when folks go absolutely ballistic over different opinions, different recollections, different preferences regarding popular culture. Folks can disagree amicably. It's not as if anyone is fighting over the single correct path to saving the planet from extinction.

Memories can get hazy and/or distorted over time. People can swear on a stack of Bibles about remembering incidents from long ago, which other people's memories contradict. C'est la vie.

I remember all that St. Croix stuff, quite clearly, too.

We're aligned about most facts. But different memories and perceptions can lead to additional conversation fodder and even jog further memories, which just keeps conversations lively.

Your bringing this up made me remember reading the same story.

It is.

You know, someone I interacted with a while ago was insistent that Paul Williams had given Nikki Reed an STD on Y&R way back in the 1970s. I was sure it was the other way around. Both of us "remembered" being right. In the end, we both agreed that if the story was memorable enough for us to be discussing it decades later, it was a success, and that was the most important thing.

Edited July 23 by vetsoapfan

[vetsoapfan]

Thanks for doing the leg work. I was just about to see if I could find this information.

[AbcNbc247]

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[Contessa Donatella]

Now, St. Croix, I have very vivid memories of the big drama there but not other visits. My memory says that the sky was so blue it was almost surreal, and same with the blue water. Then, all the rest of my mental capacity is full to the brim with worry over Mac as I honestly thought maybe he was going to die & he looked like death warmed over!! Plus, he was so very weak. Janice & Rachel & their fight, into the water, Janice produces a knife, they struggle for control of the knife & Janice ends up getting fatally stuck! Whew. Then, Mitch who we have only known as this evil guy helping Janice poison Mac does a one-eighty "about face" turn & begins to help Rachel get Mac to a hospital, which absolutely saves his life. Mitch confused me for years!!!

[Tisy-Lish]

Thank you for being so cordial.  Wow, I'm not accustomed to that type of response online!

And I agree -- if two Another World fans are discussing a scene from over 50-years ago, and praising it as compelling and believable, then Lemay and Rauch must have done something right.  Regardless of the details.   

[Tisy-Lish]

Thank you for looking this up.  Now, the question is -- did AW secure permission to use this footage? Or did Paul Rauch just pirate the footage somehow?  If I'm not mistaken, The Mod Squad was broadcast on ABC.  So Another World (broadcast on NBC and owned by P&G Productions) likely had no legal, network, or business connection to The Mod Squad. Why would the producers of The Mod Squad agree to allow AW to use footage from one of their episodes?   I realize there is likely no sure answer, but I'm just bringing up the question. . .

Edited July 23 by Tisy-Lish

[vetsoapfan]

I wonder if, 50 years from now, soap fans will be reminiscing about anything that took place on any daytime drama in 2025!

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