Am I wrong, or didn't we read somewhere that it was Susan Sullivan, and not necessarily Harding Lemay, who first saw the chemistry between VW and DW and suggested to Paul Rauch that they should try pairing up Mac and Rachel? I mention this, because when I heard/read that it was also Sullivan who had suggested to producers at FALCON CREST that they should pair her character, Maggie Gioberti, with David Selby's Richard Channing, I remembered the story about her hand in Mac and Rachel's eventual union and thought, "That lady's got a real knack for story," lol.

49 minutes ago, Paul Raven said:

I ALWAYS LOOK for actors who have solid theatrical training and background, not necessarily TV experience.” says Rauch. A few of the stellar stars in his soap opera firmament include Broadway theater giants Anne Meacham, Douglas Watson. Irene Dailey -Louise, Mac and Liz on “Another World”), Nancy Marchand. Stephen Joyce, John Heffernan and Margaret Barker (Edith, George, Lester and Sophia on "Lovers and Friends”). “All actors are basically selfish.” states Rauch, who is a former actor. “But performers who were nurtured on serials, who haven't done anything else, are generally more spoiled than others. The kind of fan adulation that soap actors receive tends to inflate the egos of undisciplined performers. They resist the idea of an ensemble effort and they usually only enjoy playing the climaxes of a story. An actor trained in theater, on the other hand, only knows how to hit peaks, but how to ride valleys. They usually have impeccable vocal skills and they're able to retain dialogue' a skill that's vitally important in serial work where a miniplay is rehearsed and taped every day. Those who survive Rauch's meticulous scrutiny invariably .find themselves repertory members of Rauch's and his head writer Harding Lemay's family. Nancy Marchand recently advanced from a subsidiary character (Therese Lamonte) on “Another World” to be the matriarchal lead (Edith Cushing) on “Lovers and Friends.”

This is the type of snobbishness which came back to bite his run. It's also impossible to do on a soap, which you can see by the surviving 1979 episodes, which, yes, have some strong actors, but also have some very dodgy work.

On 5/13/2026 at 2:10 AM, Paul Raven said:

“All actors are basically selfish.” states Rauch, who is a former actor. “But performers who were nurtured on serials, who haven't done anything else, are generally more spoiled than others. The kind of fan adulation that soap actors receive tends to inflate the egos of undisciplined performers. They resist the idea of an ensemble effort and they usually only enjoy playing the climaxes of a story. An actor trained in theater, on the other hand, only knows how to hit peaks, but how to ride valleys. They usually have impeccable vocal skills and they're able to retain dialogue' a skill that's vitally important in serial work where a miniplay is rehearsed and taped every day.

I don't know about the selfishness and resistance to working in an ensemble. I'm sure that stage actors must also be prone to diva behaviour. But I am definitely skeptical about the claim that memorizing lines for the stage where you have a significant rehearsal period and perform the same script for weeks or even months maps directly onto the short rehearsal and single performance of soaps.

I recall stories about actors (Jacqui Courtney?) finding ways to have notes on set so they could refer to their lines. Did AW ever use a teleprompter? If so when did they stop?

The more I hear about my favourite soap period, the more sour I feel. And the more clearly I see how it all came crashing down.

1 hour ago, Xanthe said:

I don't know about the selfishness and resistance to working in an ensemble. I'm sure that stage actors must also be prone to diva behaviour. But I am definitely skeptical about the claim that memorizing lines for the stage where you have a significant rehearsal period and perform the same script for weeks or even months maps directly onto the short rehearsal and single performance of soaps.

I recall stories about actors (Jacqui Courtney?) finding ways to have notes on set so they could refer to their lines. Did AW ever use a teleprompter? If so when did they stop?

Everything you say is true.

As for teleprompters, can't say for sure, but there were times when Constance Ford, as Ada, appeared to be reading from one. But I'd forgove her anything.

Acoording to Lemay, Jacquie Courtenay was writing crib notes on her hands. It was either Courtenay, or Virginia Dwyer who played her mother, or both, who were supposedly also leaving crib notes

I've read his book a few times, I have it on an old tablet. Each time there seems to be a lot more between the lines.

So why was it okay for Connie Ford to look directly at the camera and read the teleprompter episode after episode, but not okay for Jacquie Courtney or Virginia Dwyer to discreetly look down to read crib notes??? I was watching AW every day during the 1970s, and I can tell you -- Connie Ford's dependence on the teleprompter was far more noticeable than any crib notes that Courtney and Dwyer supposedly ever used.

2 hours ago, Tisy-Lish said:

So why was it okay for Connie Ford to look directly at the camera and read the teleprompter episode after episode, but not okay for Jacquie Courtney or Virginia Dwyer to discreetly look down to read crib notes??? I was watching AW every day during the 1970s, and I can tell you -- Connie Ford's dependence on the teleprompter was far more noticeable than any crib notes that Courtney and Dwyer supposedly ever used.

Because Connie Ford was a movie and stage actress and Dwyer and Courtney were “soap” actors in Lemay’s eyes.

After Philece Sampler was introduced as the Donna recast, she and Michael had a big fairytale wedding and spent their honeymoon in the Love stables reminiscing about their youth. At one point the characters Gino and Dominic are brought in to serve them hotdogs and pizza as the owners of a restaurant (if that's not too grandiose a term) they had frequented in high school. The restaurant shows up occasionally for a little while after that -- I seem to recall Amanda and Sam running into each other there, and I think maybe John sees Brad Pitt there?

I can find an entry for Dominic (Louis Zorich) on the AWHP Day Player list, but I haven't found Gino. The resolution in this episode isn't great but I feel like the actor looks familiar. Any ideas?

21 hours ago, Tisy-Lish said:

So why was it okay for Connie Ford to look directly at the camera and read the teleprompter episode after episode, but not okay for Jacquie Courtney or Virginia Dwyer to discreetly look down to read crib notes??? I was watching AW every day during the 1970s, and I can tell you -- Connie Ford's dependence on the teleprompter was far more noticeable than any crib notes that Courtney and Dwyer supposedly ever used.

Lemay loved her. And so did I. Others should have been goven that option

Edited 47 minutes ago47 min by Stevel

Yes. Lemay had turned into a snob. His humble background not withstanding.

5 minutes ago, Stevel said:

Yes. Lemay had turned into a snob. His humble background not withstanding.

I loved Lemay -- he's one of my favorite soap opera writers. But I also acknowledge he was very flawed, especially in his attitudes toward actors. I also adored Connie Ford, Virginia Dwyer, and Jacquie Courtney. Paul Rauch saw that Lemay was successful as head writer, and then gave Lemay too much authority over the entire show, including hiring and firing of actors. Big mistake on Rauch's part.

Edited 31 minutes ago31 min by Tisy-Lish

56 minutes ago, Xanthe said:

After Philece Sampler was introduced as the Donna recast, she and Michael had a big fairytale wedding and spent their honeymoon in the Love stables reminiscing about their youth. At one point the characters Gino and Dominic are brought in to serve them hotdogs and pizza as the owners of a restaurant (if that's not too grandiose a term) they had frequented in high school. The restaurant shows up occasionally for a little while after that -- I seem to recall Amanda and Sam running into each other there, and I think maybe John sees Brad Pitt there?

I can find an entry for Dominic (Louis Zorich) on the AWHP Day Player list, but I haven't found Gino. The resolution in this episode isn't great but I feel like the actor looks familiar. Any ideas?

He does look familiar, but I can't place him.

25 minutes ago, slick jones said:

He does look familiar, but I can't place him.

I had a sudden flash to Big Business -- could it be Joe Grifasi?

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0341055/?ref_=ext_shr