On 3/12/2026 at 10:13 PM, Tisy-Lish said:

Here's a way back question for very long-term fans of AW -- I have a vague memory of Mark Lenard returning to Another World for a few episodes early in the Lemay era (sometime between 1971 and 1975). I do not remember the name of the character, but he was treated like a returning character. His character was friendly with John and Pat Randolph, and had scenes in their home. And I believe he also had scenes with Jim and Mary Matthews. He was not involved in any plots, and was treated like an old friend who returned to town for a few days. The only reason I remember is because I recognized Mark Lenard from Star Trek. At that time (early-1970s), I was not aware that Lenard had previously played Ernest Gregory on the show.

So, does anyone else remember this? And is it possible Lenard returned as Ernest Gregory for a couple of days? Maybe Mark Lenard was in New York performing in a play or something, and Paul Rauch got him back to AW for a few days, hoping to boost the ratings?? Did he return as Ernest Gregory? I have no idea. But he was treated by the other characters as if he had returned to town.

I've discussed this with Eddie Drueding a few times, and he has been unable to find any evidence in scripts or synopses to support my memory of Lenard's brief return. Just thought I would ask the question here, and see if anyone has any memory of this??

That is so interesting. I love the rare times when soaps do stuff like that. Unfortunately, it draws a blank for me. I do not remember anything like it, and the hefty scrapbooks I kept chronicling the show's history does not include any information about Mark Lenard making a return engagement to the show.

I wish there were a definitive way we could find out the answers to your questions.

According to IMBD Mark Lenard also played Judge Fred Billings.

7 hours ago, vetsoapfan said:

That is so interesting. I love the rare times when soaps do stuff like that. Unfortunately, it draws a blank for me. I do not remember anything like it, and the hefty scrapbooks I kept chronicling the show's history does not include any information about Mark Lenard making a return engagement to the show.

I wish there were a definitive way we could find out the answers to your questions.

The only way to find out would be to find the scripts of those episodes. But since I don't know the dates or even the year, it would be nearly impossible. Perhaps someone will come upon those scripts by accident sometime, and share the information.

6 hours ago, Efulton said:

According to IMBD Mark Lenard also played Judge Fred Billings.

I saw that same information, but I'm assuming his appearance as Judge Billings was in 1977 (based on the dates listed above). And I'm nearly 100 percent certain that my memory of a possible return was much earlier than that -- probably between 1971 and early 1975.

9 hours ago, Tisy-Lish said:

I saw that same information, but I'm assuming his appearance as Judge Billings was in 1977 (based on the dates listed above). And I'm nearly 100 percent certain that my memory of a possible return was much earlier than that -- probably between 1971 and early 1975.

You have probably considered this as well, but he would have been in the studio in late 1975 for his role as Peter Goodwin on Somerset. I don't see any indication that the minor character crossed over between the shows or that John and Pat appeared on Somerset as late as that or that Jim and Mary would have appeared at all.

I don't see any broadway credits for Lenard in the 1970s on the ibdb but that doesn't mean he wasn't working in NY at the time.

Most of the AWHP synopses for 1971-1975 appear to be daily, so I don't know if there is any passing reference to the character there that might ring a bell and give a new trail to investigate.

1 hour ago, Xanthe said:

You have probably considered this as well, but he would have been in the studio in late 1975 for his role as Peter Goodwin on Somerset. I don't see any indication that the minor character crossed over between the shows or that John and Pat appeared on Somerset as late as that or that Jim and Mary would have appeared at all.

I don't see any broadway credits for Lenard in the 1970s on the ibdb but that doesn't mean he wasn't working in NY at the time.

Most of the AWHP synopses for 1971-1975 appear to be daily, so I don't know if there is any passing reference to the character there that might ring a bell and give a new trail to investigate.

Thank you for all this additional information. Although it does not solve the riddle, it is very helpful. At times I have wondered if somehow this all is just a false memory. But I was never a particular fan of Mark Lenard. I mostly remember him from Star Trek. So why would I have a false memory connecting Lenard to AW, when at the time I didn't even know he had previously been on the show as Ernest Gregory??

About 15-years ago, I started reading the 1971 synopsis on AWHP hoping to read far enough to find Lenard's visit. But that quickly became too time consuming, and I gave up. And it is possible (maybe even likely) that the appearance I'm remembering would not even be mentioned in the synopses, because Lenard's return (as I remember it) was little more than a two or three day cameo appearance. As I mentioned earlier, he had no impact on any plots, and interacted with only three or four characters. If my memory is correct (and that is questionable LOL), he was just an old friend passing through Bay City for a day or two, and he wanted to say hello to some old friends. That type of thing could have easily been left out of any synopsis, since it was of little consequence.

If a researcher reading through the old scripts ever discovers "an old friend visiting John and Pat for a couple of days" in the scripts, it will probably be entirely accidental. But perhaps that researcher will post something online about it. This is difficult to research intentionally because I do not remember the character's name (although I speculate Lenard may have returned as Ernest Gregory) and I don't even know what year it was (although it was between 1971 and April 1975). That makes it a needle in a haystack...

Thanks again for your interest and input.

Edited 1 hour ago1 hr by Tisy-Lish