I believe so.

Looking through the 78 storylines on the AWHP it seemed that Lemay was running out of steam.Did he talk about that much in his book?

I know he didn't like writing for younger characters .Was there pressure from P&G/NBC to age Dennis and Jamie and bring on Joey etc?

Those characters Sharon & Dino Amati who were supposed to become involved with Rachel and were quickly dropped.What was that about?

The character Rick Ludlow on AW, a college coach involved with Kate Donovan and Pat Randolph was portrayed by Scott Palmer[ Tim Sullivan Y&R, Joshua Fallon, DOOL]. The AWHP doesn't have the actor's name, so I figured if anyone had ED's e-mail they could let him know. I found this in a Jon Michael Reed column in the google newspaper archives. I didn't write down the date, but I believe it would have been 1978.

Wow, never heard of either Rick or Kate and I don't think it is in the synopsis. Esp if they were very minor characters

From the AWHP:

Kate Donovan {Gordana Rashovich} college English Instructor. August 1-December 28, 1978

I'm sure there is more in the 78 synopses, so I'll try to report the highlights a little later for both characters, Kate and Rick.

Hi where did you find this on the AWHP?

under minor characters, Kate and Rick are both among the characters. There is also the major cast, and dayplayers

Around that time (1978/1979) there was a character played by stage actress Mary Joan Negro. I remember she was to play a new love interest for Mac during one of his numerous bust-ups with Rachel. She didn't stick around, though.

She was on in 1981 or 1982 I think. AWHP mentions a story about depression in the workplace.

Lemay said in his book that he was burnt out from the AW workload, which is one of the reasons, along with money, he wanted to create L&F.

Looking back, there were several things that went wrong for AW from 1978-80:

The 90-minute expansion

Killing off John Randolph (while fans hoped for a reunion with Pat!)

Harding Lemay leaving

Breaking up Mac & Rachel over Blaine/Jamie and Janice (huge mistake!)

Being opposite a reborn General Hospital and a steadily rising Guiding Light

De-emphasing the Matthews clan

Losing Iris to Texas

A mass exodus of Frames

Does anyone want to add to this list? I really think that this period was the start of the show's long decline.

Not to mention the numerous writers and producers that followed Lemay and Rauch.

Around that time (1978/1979) there was a character played by stage actress Mary Joan Negro. I remember she was to play a new love interest for Mac during one of his numerous bust-ups with Rachel. She didn't stick around, though.

Sounds like a Harding Lemay type storyline. I also heard the character of Pammy Davis, Rachels sister from Somerset was being casted in the 80's but that never happen either. what if? Seems like in 1978 or so, there were many characters written in and either recasted or written out pretty quickly

Looking through the 78 storylines on the AWHP it seemed that Lemay was running out of steam.Did he talk about that much in his book?

I know he didn't like writing for younger characters .Was there pressure from P&G/NBC to age Dennis and Jamie and bring on Joey etc?

Those characters Sharon & Dino Amati who were supposed to become involved with Rachel and were quickly dropped.What was that about?

I thought I knew this show like the back of my hand. Never heard of Dino and Sharon.

Mary Joan Negro was in several L&O episodes in its early years. She was a dynamo.

Mary Joan Negro's character was Anne Whitelaw. She was introduced by Corinne Jacker in late 1981 and was only around for about six months. Her character took Pat Randolph's job at Bravo after Pat left town.

Sounds like a Harding Lemay type storyline. I also heard the character of Pammy Davis, Rachels sister from Somerset was being casted in the 80's but that never happen either. what if? Seems like in 1978 or so, there were many characters written in and either recasted or written out pretty quickly

I thought I knew this show like the back of my hand. Never heard of Dino and Sharon.

Mary Joan Negro now teaches acting at USC. Here's more info:

http://dramaticarts.usc.edu/mary-joan-negro/

Losing the character of Pat was another nail in the show's coffin. The character was a favorite of both Irna Phillips and Harding Lemay, though each wrote for a different actress- Phillips for Susan Trustman, Lemay for Beverly Penberthy. She should have been brought back to the show, along with her children Michael and Marianne, as part of an effort to restore the prominence of the Matthews clan. But then, the writers in the late-to-mid 80s botched up the returns of both Alice and Russ, the latter merely a prop for what became 'The Adventures of Sharlene'.

Had Harding Lemay stayed past 1988, I wonder what he would have done. I wonder if he would have been able to work with Jacquie Courtney amicably. I know from reading his book that Beverly Penberthy was one of his favorites.

I've heard rumors that Lemay wanted to bring Bev Penberthy back and make her a spoiler for the John-Sharlene relationship. Pat & John seems like an odd pairing to me, but who knows?