18 minutes ago, vetsoapfan said:

That's right. The family had to move away, at least for a while, to accomodate Courtney's husband's career. But Lyle B. Hill, the producer at the time, told Courtney that they would hold the role of Alice open for a while, in hopes of her return. During her absence, she made several guest appearance on the program.

Which was, as you said, definitely the right move. Once the show started assuming actors were just meaningless seemed to be when the decline started.

2 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

Which was, as you said, definitely the right move. Once the show started assuming actors were just meaningless seemed to be when the decline started.

Yes. They would have been better served to remember how well things worked when they accommodated Jacquie Courtney in 1970-71.

6 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

Which was, as you said, definitely the right move. Once the show started assuming actors were just meaningless seemed to be when the decline started.

TPTB often don't understand that the familar, beloved faces we see on our screens for years or decades are a prime reason we tune in.

9 minutes ago, vetsoapfan said:

TPTB often don't understand that the familar, beloved faces we see on our screens for years or decades are a prime reason we tune in.

Either they don't understand or they just don't care.

The scenes I've seen of her 1st replacement were good (SUSAN harney).  However, when she left in 1979..the character should have been rested until Ms. Courtney was available to return.

2 hours ago, vetsoapfan said:

That's right. The family had to move away, at least for a while, to accomodate Courtney's husband's career. But Lyle B. Hill, the producer at the time, told Courtney that they would hold the role of Alice open for a while, in hopes of her return. During her absence, she made several guest appearance on the program.

That was lucky for her, considering all the stories going around about Lyle B. Hill. Even Nic Coster referred to him as the producer “who shall not be named”

5 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

That was lucky for her, considering all the stories going around about Lyle B. Hill. Even Nic Coster referred to him as the producer “who shall not be named”

Didn't Hill fire Coster from Spmerset?

1 minute ago, amybrickwallace said:

Didn't Hill fire Coster from Spmerset?

Yeah. He talked about it on the Locher Room.

Apparently, Hill physically assaulted Wynne Miller and Nic Coster then threatened him if he ever did anything like that again. They were both fired, but one day Nic Coster ran into Paul Rauch at the studio and offered him the chance to bring Robert back to AW.

Just now, AbcNbc247 said:

Yeah. He talked about it on the Locher Room.

Apparently, Hill physically assaulted Wynne Miller and Nic Coster then threatened him if he ever did anything like that again. They were both fired, but one day Nic Coster ran into Paul Rauch at the studio and offered him the chance to bring Robert back to AW.

Oh, my goodness. I haven't read Nic's book yet but I assume it's there. 😳😳😳😳😳

4 hours ago, amybrickwallace said:

Either they don't understand or they just don't care.

Frankly, I think it's a combination of both. 

3 hours ago, Soaplovers said:

The scenes I've seen of her 1st replacement were good (SUSAN harney).  However, when she left in 1979..the character should have been rested until Ms. Courtney was available to return.

I think Harney might have been more accepted by the audience if she had come aboard as another, new character, but the longtime audience never warmed up to her as Alice. Even Harding Lemay, who vocally derided Jacqueline Courtney at every opportunity, admitted that although he continued to focus on Alice when Harney played the role, her version of the character never gained the popularity that Courtney had engendered. Courtney simply had an indefinable "star quality" that the viewers reacted strongly to.

2 hours ago, AbcNbc247 said:

Yeah. He talked about it on the Locher Room.

Apparently, Hill physically assaulted Wynne Miller and Nic Coster then threatened him if he ever did anything like that again. They were both fired, but one day Nic Coster ran into Paul Rauch at the studio and offered him the chance to bring Robert back to AW.

Ahh, Paul Rauch, another producer with an atrocious reputation.🤮 He fired Coster from AW, too.

3 minutes ago, vetsoapfan said:

Frankly, I think it's a combination of both. 

Yes.

2 hours ago, amybrickwallace said:

Oh, my goodness. I haven't read Nic's book yet but I assume it's there. 😳😳😳😳😳

I thought I remembered this incident in the book but when I hunted for it all I found was an incident where a "Napoleonic" producer was bullying Alice Hirson, Coster stood up to him, and that led to Coster's being fired from Somerset and hired at AW.

9 minutes ago, vetsoapfan said:

Ahh, Paul Rauch, another producer with an atrocious reputation.🤮 He fired Coster from AW, too.

Apparently for habitually not bothering to learn his lines.

I would very much like to know the name of the "little twerp of a kiss-ass actor" who remonstrated with Coster for accusing Beverlee McKinsey of being more concerned about the script than the emotions in their performance on the day of the Mac-bust-smashing.

 

Just now, Xanthe said:

Apparently for habitually not bothering to learn his lines.

He's said that he and John Considine were constantly playing backstage pranks and getting into trouble, so maybe that's why he was fired.

58 minutes ago, vetsoapfan said:

Frankly, I think it's a combination of both. 

I think Harney might have been more accepted by the audience if she had come aboard as another, new character, but the longtime audience never warmed up to her as Alice. Even Harding Lemay, who vocally derided Jacqueline Courtney at every opportunity, admitted that although he continued to focus on Alice when Harney played the role, her version of the character never gained the popularity that Courtney had engendered. Courtney simply had an indefinable "star quality" that the viewers reacted strongly to.

Ahh, Paul Rauch, another producer with an atrocious reputation.🤮 He fired Coster from AW, too.

Only time Lemay admitted he was wrong without admitting it.

Thankfully, there is footage of most of her stint on OLTL, her 1 year return to AW, and her 2 1989 visits to prove she had a natural, low key acting style.

Lemay seemed to want a more dramatic theater style of acting..while JC had a more subtle style.

The few scenes of her 1970s work on AW showed she had ability, just not in the manner that Lemay wanted.  

And the one 1964 episode showed a more free spirited Alice...talking about boys, and seemed more Rachel esque to me...imho

23 minutes ago, Soaplovers said:

Thankfully, there is footage of most of her stint on OLTL, her 1 year return to AW, and her 2 1989 visits to prove she had a natural, low key acting style.

She also had that Kathleen Turner-esque low voice! Definitely an unusual (but not bad) trait in a soap ingenue.