1 hour ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

Well, except that Liz never really liked Jim and Mary.  And living in their middle-class house would have been beneath her, and probably the last place Liz would have ever wanted to live.  But other than that, yeah.   

In the AWHP synopses for 1982 there is just a mention that Liz, Susan, and Julia decided to move into the house with Sally. There is no mention of whether there was any financial motivation although Liz had apparently invested in Jamie's movie and been let down by a romantic interest in Milo the producer. Sally had recently split with Denny who had extracted money from her. Julia might have been living with the movie people but I suppose Susan must have been staying with Liz. 

I remember in that Carol Roux audio interview from the 2000's she mentions how big the AW sets were in the 60's. 

What happened to the house that Steve built for Alice after the 70's ?

On 3/18/2024 at 6:59 PM, Mona Kane Croft said:

I totally get your point.  To make it worse, Liz's first job at the Cory Complex was as the switchboard operator (not secretary). Which made Liz almost laughable as a complete stereotype -- the nosey meddling old lady working at the switchboard. During this period, Pat Randolph was Mac's secretary. A couple of years later when Pat was promoted to editor, Liz took Pat's old job as Mac's secretary. And weirdly enough, all of this was written by Harding Lemay, who typically prided himself on writing "true to character".  It seemed Lemay wanted to have it both ways with Liz, and wrote whatever he wanted for her. For the most part, Lemay preserved Liz's wealth by having her and Iris become very close friends; by reconnecting Liz with her old wealthy friend, Helen Moore; and by having Liz date Mac briefly.   But on the other hand, there was almost no explanation as to why Liz would accept a job as a switchboard operator.  There were a few vague references to her being bored with life, and that a job might help prevent her from meddling in the lives of her nieces and nephew.   And as the years went by, and later head writers diluted Liz's backstory more and more, Liz became rather middle-class, and was used mostly as comic relief.  Audra Lindley played Liz as the Phoebe Tyler of Bay City (minus the drinking problem), but Lemay wrote Liz differently.  And post-Lemay head writers continued that trend, sadly.  

I really enjoy your posts Mona.  Please keep them coming!!

On 3/18/2024 at 9:59 PM, Mona Kane Croft said:

...   And as the years went by, and later head writers diluted Liz's backstory more and more, Liz became rather middle-class, and was used mostly as comic relief.  Audra Lindley played Liz as the Phoebe Tyler of Bay City (minus the drinking problem), but Lemay wrote Liz differently.  And post-Lemay head writers continued that trend, sadly.  

Well, point of view can make so much difference. I didn't find "Aunt Liz" to be sad. Obviously her subtext was one of loneliness & not necessarily having the stature in the family that she'd have liked to. But, largely, I found her to be likable, if a stereotype. And Irene Dailey had an Emmy which neither Victoria nor Beverlee did! 

Here is the last poster for the anniversary event. 

I just saw yesterday that Alan Locher has got Petronia Paley coming up!!!! So excited! I think it's great he's reaching back into the past this much! And with her the actress who played Thomasina. I believe it is the afternoon of the 27th. CORRECTION: Not Thomasina! And 3 pm. 

Edited March 20, 20241 yr by Contessa Donatella

1 hour ago, Contessa Donatella said:

Well, point of view can make so much difference. I didn't find "Aunt Liz" to be sad. Obviously her subtext was one of loneliness & not necessarily having the stature in the family that she'd have liked to. But, largely, I found her to be likable, if a stereotype. And Irene Dailey had an Emmy which neither Victoria nor Beverlee did! 

I also found Aunt Liz a likable character (actually lovable at times).  And Irene Dailey was an amazing AMAZING actress.  Dailey was perfectly cast as Liz.  But it was the writing that disappointed me at times.  Most of Lemay's writing for Liz was extremely good.  He helped the audience to understand the reasons for Liz's meddling behaviors -- loneliness, abandonment, lack of love. She had been in a loveless marriage, and both her children left town to get away from her (among other reasons).  And her favorite child, Bill, had been killed.  However, I did not like Lemay's choice to make Liz a switchboard operator -- I thought that was the stereotype.   But most of the post-Lemay writers didn't understand Liz at all, and wrote dreary semi-comedic stuff for her.  Donna Swajeski even had Liz telling the audience how loving her relationship to husband Will was (Valentine To Singles, 1989)!!!  And long-term viewers just rolled our eyes, because we all knew that was a rewrite of history.  I did love the character, and I loved Irene Dailey.   

15 hours ago, SoapDope said:

What happened to the house that Steve built for Alice after the 70's ?

When Alice left Bay City in 1979, it is assumed she sold the house, because she didn't move back into it when she cam back to town in 1981.  I believe the house was mentioned only one time after 1979 -- when around 1982, David Canary's Steve Frame told someone (probably Quinn) he was trying to buy it back for Alice, but the new owners were not interested in selling.   He even held up a photo or illustration of the exterior of the house in this same scene.  

Edited March 20, 20241 yr by Mona Kane Croft

56 minutes ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

I also found Aunt Liz a likable character (actually lovable at times).  And Irene Dailey was an amazing AMAZING actress.  Dailey was perfectly cast as Liz.  But it was the writing that disappointed me at times.  Most of Lemay's writing for Liz was extremely good.  He helped the audience to understand the reasons for Liz's meddling behaviors -- loneliness, abandonment, lack of love. She had been in a loveless marriage, and both her children left town to get away from her (among other reasons).  And her favorite child, Bill, had been killed.  However, I did not like Lemay's choice to make Liz a switchboard operator -- I thought that was the stereotype.   But most of the post-Lemay writers didn't understand Liz at all, and wrote dreary semi-comedic stuff for her.  Donna Swajeski even had Liz telling the audience how loving her relationship to husband Will was (Valentine To Singles, 1989)!!!  And long-term viewers just rolled our eyes, because we all knew that was a rewrite of history.  I did love the character, and I loved Irene Dailey.   

I understand your point about her employment status at Cory. And, glad to get clarification on other things about Irene Dailey's Aunt Liz tenure in your view. Good. 

2 hours ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

I also found Aunt Liz a likable character (actually lovable at times).  And Irene Dailey was an amazing AMAZING actress.  Dailey was perfectly cast as Liz.  But it was the writing that disappointed me at times.  Most of Lemay's writing for Liz was extremely good.  He helped the audience to understand the reasons for Liz's meddling behaviors -- loneliness, abandonment, lack of love. She had been in a loveless marriage, and both her children left town to get away from her (among other reasons).  And her favorite child, Bill, had been killed.  However, I did not like Lemay's choice to make Liz a switchboard operator -- I thought that was the stereotype.   But most of the post-Lemay writers didn't understand Liz at all, and wrote dreary semi-comedic stuff for her.  Donna Swajeski even had Liz telling the audience how loving her relationship to husband Will was (Valentine To Singles, 1989)!!!  And long-term viewers just rolled our eyes, because we all knew that was a rewrite of history.  I did love the character, and I loved Irene Dailey.   

When Alice left Bay City in 1979, it is assumed she sold the house, because she didn't move back into it when she cam back to town in 1981.  I believe the house was mentioned only one time after 1979 -- when around 1982, David Canary's Steve Frame told someone (probably Quinn) he was trying to buy it back for Alice, but the new owners were not interested in selling.   He even held up a photo or illustration of the exterior of the house in this same scene.  

Thanks for the info. It would have been nice if the house had been kept around for the duration of the series with some updates. 

3 hours ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

Donna Swajeski even had Liz telling the audience how loving her relationship to husband Will was (Valentine To Singles, 1989)!!!  And long-term viewers just rolled our eyes, because we all knew that was a rewrite of history.

Well tbf, she probably had no idea lol

I really liked the Swajeski era, but it was chock full of history rewrites/mistakes. 

3 hours ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

He helped the audience to understand the reasons for Liz's meddling behaviors -- loneliness, abandonment, lack of love.

Did Liz ever have any romantic relationship that wasn't one-sided and/or with a creep? I believe she was disappointed in Wayne Addison, Mac, and Milo the producer.

3 minutes ago, Xanthe said:

Did Liz ever have any romantic relationship that wasn't one-sided and/or with a creep? I believe she was disappointed in Wayne Addison, Mac, and Milo the producer.

There was one more -- I believe his name was Fred Douglas (might be wrong), and he was also involved with Liz's daughter, Susan.  So quite scandalous at the time.  But to answer your question more directly, I believe the only somewhat healthy romantic relationship Liz ever had was with Mac.  I mean, Mac was sincere at least.  But that relationship was rather short.    

3 hours ago, Contessa Donatella said:

I understand your point about her employment status at Cory. And, glad to get clarification on other things about Irene Dailey's Aunt Liz tenure in your view. Good. 

It seems one of my flaws as a soap opera critic is that I sometimes emphasize the things I don't like without also sharing what I do like about a particular character, writer, actor, storyline, etc.  I'll try to remember that in the future.  But sometimes I just get on my soap-box...  LOL.    

11 minutes ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

It seems one of my flaws as a soap opera critic is that I sometimes emphasize the things I don't like without also sharing what I do like about a particular character, writer, actor, storyline, etc.  I'll try to remember that in the future.  But sometimes I just get on my soap-box...  LOL.    

WE ALL DO!!! You do fine. Don't change a thing. 

4 hours ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

I also found Aunt Liz a likable character (actually lovable at times).  And Irene Dailey was an amazing AMAZING actress.  Dailey was perfectly cast as Liz.  But it was the writing that disappointed me at times.  Most of Lemay's writing for Liz was extremely good.  He helped the audience to understand the reasons for Liz's meddling behaviors -- loneliness, abandonment, lack of love. She had been in a loveless marriage, and both her children left town to get away from her (among other reasons).  And her favorite child, Bill, had been killed.  However, I did not like Lemay's choice to make Liz a switchboard operator -- I thought that was the stereotype.   But most of the post-Lemay writers didn't understand Liz at all, and wrote dreary semi-comedic stuff for her.  Donna Swajeski even had Liz telling the audience how loving her relationship to husband Will was (Valentine To Singles, 1989)!!!  And long-term viewers just rolled our eyes, because we all knew that was a rewrite of history.  I did love the character, and I loved Irene Dailey.   

When Alice left Bay City in 1979, it is assumed she sold the house, because she didn't move back into it when she cam back to town in 1981.  I believe the house was mentioned only one time after 1979 -- when around 1982, David Canary's Steve Frame told someone (probably Quinn) he was trying to buy it back for Alice, but the new owners were not interested in selling.   He even held up a photo or illustration of the exterior of the house in this same scene.  

I recently watched a few of Sheri Anderson's episodes from 1988.  She wrote great scenes between Nicole and Liz where they bonded.  Liz was lonely but not pathetic and it was the beginning of Liz investing in Nicole's company.  

1 hour ago, Efulton said:

I recently watched a few of Sheri Anderson's episodes from 1988.  She wrote great scenes between Nicole and Liz where they bonded.  Liz was lonely but not pathetic and it was the beginning of Liz investing in Nicole's company.  

That would be fun to see again.  But I disliked most of what was happening on AW at that time, so I've forgotten most of it. And then all the writer's strike stuff was frustrating -- since we already knew Lemay was back in charge, but had to wait months to see his credited episodes.  And then, within three-weeks, Lemay turned the entire show around, grounded it, and made it believable again.  And he changed Another World forever, again. . .  

Edited March 21, 20241 yr by Mona Kane Croft

I had no idea that Ada was played by another actress for a time: Peg Murray. Was this a temporary recast or one that went for much longer?