Another World Discussion Thread

[Paul Raven]

And everyone signed a new contract except for Brenda Dickson and John McCook.

[Contessa Donatella]

But, what about Jamie Lyn Bauer? Is that not when she told him she wasn't planning to sign another contract? Or do I have the time frame wrong for her?

[Paul Raven]

In 1982 JLB announced she would not renew, so Bill dropped Lorie and by years end realized the Leslie/Robert story wasn't working so they were axed.

David Hasselhoff also left as did Wings Hauser so he was faced with too many recasts and decided to drop those characters.

[Contessa Donatella]

In the way Michael Maloney tells the story going to an hour is set up as the cause of these things happening, even though it begins in winter 1980 & Bauer tells him she needs a rest etc. in the winter of '82. He talks about the show losing 4 full share points which took him 3 years to regain. He lists having 2 Leslies, 2 Lances, 2 Snappers & 4 Gregs. 

Maloney, M., & Bell, L. P. (2012). The Young and Restless Life 0f William J. Bell. Sourcebooks, Inc.

However, even though the recasts & contract issues seem to conflate two time periods as if they were one big time period, smashed together, it is also clear that her reasons for wanting to leave only had to do with the hour show because working so much had made her so exhausted that she felt she had to have some downtime. I'm sure Bell's attitude about being forced to go to an hour, also colored his thinking of this all as a mess he hated. 

[Paul Raven]

Back to AW and those controversial firings, I think a number of factors came into play.

First of all it all happened alongside the expansion to 1 hr which meant viewers were already adjusting to new characters and storylines, so this was another change to deal with.

In terms of Mary/Virginia I think the show could have survived. Soaps did have a history of killing off major characters Kathy/Robin/Bill on TGL, Arthur on SFT, Jim/Jeff on ATWT etc.

Re George/Steve-he had been troublesome  for some time so it's understandable he had to go.

How would posters feel about a recast? Have Steve be in an accident, injured and voila John Fitzpatrick is the new Steve! Or who else could you think of for Steve?

I think losing Jacquie was the most damaging. She was an original cast member and beloved. Viewers might have accepted  a new Steve or a widowed Alice if JC was still there.

But the double whammy of losing both the actress and her co star was just too much over time.

[Contessa Donatella]

Completely agree about this facet of soap opera fandom!

Apparently this was the sources of an ongoing feud between Beverlee McKinsey and Nicolas Coster. She had this kind of photographic memory & learned everyone's lines, not just her own. He had trouble with lots of lines. So, they were set up. Feud may be too strong a word. We could just say they didn't like each other. 

If I recall there were errors about many things, not just OLTL. 

 

[BetterForgotten]

I know some people have a fondness for this opening/theme, and obviously JFP’s follow-up opening alienated some folks, but how the hell did this opening last until 1996? Such 80’s cheese that was long out of style by this point. 

[Xanthe]

What is the cost/benefit in changing it though? If your brand is not cutting edge, maybe keeping the existing opening has more value because it appeals to the demographic you have. It's not as if Crystal Gayle was particularly in style in 1987.

[Contessa Donatella]

You can count me as one of "those people" who loved this & hated ER/NYPD BLUE! 

[Khan]

I'm just glad no one decided to bring that particular opening into the late '90's.  The last thing we needed was a '90's boy band version of "(You Take Me Away to) Another World."

[Contessa Donatella]

Oh, no, groan. Just the thought of it. Now I have a mental picture of the choreography. 

[j swift]

At the risk of once again being in the minority, I liked David Canary as a Steve re-cast.  He was blustery like Reinholt, but there was also a vulnerability that made his appeal to Alice more relatable.  I also thought the idea of Steve's re-entry was creative, because there was so much talk about his company Blackhawk before his arrival. 

But, the recast Alice, and the poor excuse for his return from the dead ultimately doomed the character.  Along with the fact, that they may have underestimated the appeal of Rachel and Mac as an "endgame" couple. 

[Contessa Donatella]

My opinion of David Canary as a wannabe Steve Frame was so bad. Contrast that with my admiration of him on AMC!

[Efulton]

 

I agree.  If L. Virginia Browne has a remained as head writer and they got the casting of Alice correct I think he had the potential to be a long time lead on the show.

[BetterForgotten]

You know, from what I’ve seen of L. Virginia Browne‘s work on both AW and GL, I didn’t think it was too bad.