7 minutes ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

No, not at all. The writers wasted most of Ada's death episodes by trying to make the whole thing funny.  Dear God, back then soaps were obsessed with comedy -- they tried to make everything funny. Even the death of an important character and an iconic actress. "Let's make it funny!!!"   

It would have been great, if Jordon Charney had returned for a couple of days. Of course the only two characters Sam would have known were Rachel and Liz.  But it still would have been great to see Ada's brother Sam.   Maybe Sam could have flirted with Clarice.   

The whole schtick about Ada's body going to Peoria. OY. 

@vetsoapfan @Mona Kane Croft Another Jacqueline Courtney scene (in her last weeks before her exit, presumably). A nice little family moment. 

Even here you can see Hugh Marlowe struggling with his lines a bit.

 

1 hour ago, DRW50 said:

@vetsoapfan @Mona Kane Croft Another Jacqueline Courtney scene (in her last weeks before her exit, presumably). A nice little family moment. 

Even here you can see Hugh Marlowe struggling with his lines a bit.

 

Wow, so great to see Courtney during her final weeks.  Courtney is clearly not the focus of this scene (Marianne is the focus), but watch Courtney's detailed acting.  The looks she gives her father, while Marianne speaks. And the way she strokes her niece's hair near the end of the scene.   

Now, imagine Susan Harney playing the same script.  It would not have been terrible. In fact, Harney would have been quite acceptable in this scene.  But none of Alice's subtext would have been exhibited.  None of Jacquie Courtney's nuance.  The scene would have been played rather flat, with Alice being a side character.    

History shows it is nearly impossible to successfully and permanently replace a TV soap opera ingenue.  Think about efforts to replace the following: Alice Frame, Tara Martin, Nina Cortlandt, Penny Hughes, Marley Love Hudson, Lily Walsh, Lily Winters among others. And even Mary Ryan (who I hesitate to describe as an ingenue, but perhaps). For reasons I do not understand, soap opera ingenues seem almost impossible to replace.    

Edited July 7, 20241 yr by Mona Kane Croft

23 minutes ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

Wow, so great to see Courtney during her final weeks.  Courtney is clearly not the focus of this scene (Marianne is the focus), but watch Courtney's detailed acting.  The looks she gives her father, while Marianne speaks. And the way she strokes her niece's hair near the end of the scene.   

Now, imagine Susan Harney playing the same script.  It would not have been terrible. In fact, Harney would have been quite acceptable in this scene.  But none of Alice's subtext would have been exhibited.  None of Jacquie Courtney's nuance.  The scene would have been played rather flat, with Alice being a side character.    

History shows it is nearly impossible to successfully and permanently replace a TV soap opera ingenue.  Think about efforts to replace the following: Alice Frame, Tara Martin, Nina Cortlandt, Penny Hughes, Marley Love Hudson, Lily Walsh, Lily Winters among others. And even Mary Ryan (who I hesitate to describe as an ingenue, but perhaps). For reasons I do not understand, soap opera ingenues seem almost impossible to replace.    

Courtney was a very warm actress, but not in a gooey way, more in a very dignified way, like what you imagine royalty to be. I can't speak for her OLTL run as much, but you can always feel that in her AW work. It was especially striking to me when she came back one last time in 1989 as the show by then was populated by performers who were so different to her. She was almost ethereally vulnerable even as she was mature and restrained - those moments she had with Rachel were beautiful. 

I remember Lauralee Bell going on about how hard it is to play an ingenue or a "good" character. I'd generally agree with her.

Recasting can work sometimes but in many cases it doesn't, especially when viewers have a special connection with a performer. That performer is what strings the character together for them. You have to have that poise and integrity to make the inner life of a long-suffering character work. There are some performers where I don't really love watching them that much, but I respect the obvious effort it took (like Lauren Marie Taylor and Noelle Beck on Loving).

Edited July 7, 20241 yr by DRW50

25 minutes ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

Marley Love Hudson,

AW managed with this one, although there was one misstep in the middle. 

26 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

It was especially striking to me when she came back one last time in 1989 as the show by then was populated by performers who were so different to her. She was almost ethereally vulnerable even as she was mature and restrained - those moments she had with Rachel were beautiful. 

Totally agree.  That final brief scene with Rachel, where they share a few words.  Rachel scurries off, and the camera focuses on Alice.  The look on her face said more than any words from a script.  Thankfully somebody (I assume the director) allowed Jacquie to play Alice according to her instincts, and it worked perfectly -- even in 1989.   

5 minutes ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

Totally agree.  That final brief scene with Rachel, where they share a few words.  Rachel scurries off, and the camera focuses on Alice.  The look on her face said more than any words from a script.  Thankfully somebody (I assume the director) allowed Jacquie to play Alice according to her instincts, and it worked perfectly -- even in 1989.   

That's very true. I do respect the efforts the show made for the anniversary compared to many soap anniversaries - there were certainly issues (the Gwen mess, and as much as my heart went out to Iris in spite of her many failings, I'm not sure Robert would have been so forgiving, even all those years later), but Alice's return was a big success. I wish they'd had her come back for the 30th too but I suppose the show had changed even more by that point.

Thank you for the birthday wishes everyone. Much appreciated.

23 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

That's very true. I do respect the efforts the show made for the anniversary compared to many soap anniversaries - there were certainly issues (the Gwen mess, and as much as my heart went out to Iris in spite of her many failings, I'm not sure Robert would have been so forgiving, even all those years later), but Alice's return was a big success. I wish they'd had her come back for the 30th too but I suppose the show had changed even more by that point.

Courtney never should have been let go in 1985.  Just as she left, they were setting up a good story with amnesiac Rachel digging into her past with Alice.  At that point, Rachel wanted nothing to do with Mac, and she moved out of the Cory mansion.  This was the perfect opportunity to have Mac date Alice again and set up a triangle- this time with Alice having the upper hand on Rachel.

41 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

That's very true. I do respect the efforts the show made for the anniversary compared to many soap anniversaries - there were certainly issues (the Gwen mess, and as much as my heart went out to Iris in spite of her many failings, I'm not sure Robert would have been so forgiving, even all those years later), but Alice's return was a big success. I wish they'd had her come back for the 30th too but I suppose the show had changed even more by that point.

Hmm.  Maybe I got my dates wrong, but I was referring to the Alice/Rachel scene at the end of Mac's funeral.  That was at least several months after the 25th anniversary, but maybe still in 1989.  Not sure.   Anyway, that was Courtney's final scene on AW.   

But the 25th anniversary episodes definitely had both high points and low points.   That much is for sure.    

3 minutes ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

Hmm.  Maybe I got my dates wrong, but I was referring to the Alice/Rachel scene at the end of Mac's funeral.  That was at least several months after the 25th anniversary, but maybe still in 1989.  Not sure.   Anyway, that was Courtney's final scene on AW.   

But the 25th anniversary episodes definitely had both high points and low points.   That much is for sure.    

Oh sorry - I thought you meant the last scenes they had together on the boat after Rachel saw Steve's ghost. The scenes at the memorial were also beautifully done.

On 7/5/2024 at 6:23 PM, j swift said:

While we'll probably never know the truth, I wonder how much of that story was planted to humiliate Laura Malone.  Christopher Rich, Nancy Frangione, and Ms. Malone had a falling out according to the reporting by Jon Michael Reed.  And the Ryan's Hope Oral History gave a lot of insight into how actors manipulated the press to their advantage.  So, much like the gossip about Sarah Felder on RH being fired for her looks (which was unsupported by the network execs in the book), I've begun to question the Laura Malone story.  Just food for thought…

Maybe I am misremembering, but I thought Malone sued and won and that she publicly discussed her claim that her firing was because of her weight. And that her version of the falling out was that she didn't know why Rich and Frangione had become cold to her. Which sounded like we were expected to infer that Chris Rich thought it reflected badly on him for Sandy to have a fat wife so he wanted Malone pushed out. 

I have not been able to find any references to the lawsuit other than mentions in this and other forums. Maybe they settled out of court?

1 minute ago, Xanthe said:

Maybe I am misremembering, but I thought Malone sued and won and that she publicly discussed her claim that her firing was because of her weight. And that her version of the falling out was that she didn't know why Rich and Frangione had become cold to her. Which sounded like we were expected to infer that Chris Rich thought it reflected badly on him for Sandy to have a fat wife so he wanted Malone pushed out. 

I have not been able to find any references to the lawsuit other than mentions in this and other forums. Maybe they settled out of court?

Well, this may just be "piling on" but what you describe here, about her taking it to court, is exactly the way I remember this. 

I question the story about Laura Malone suing and winning a settlement because there is nothing on-line about it - and as a faithful reader of Soap Opera Digest (I have all the back copies from the 80s & 90s) nothing was reported about any lawsuit by her

I wouldn't think she would have any grounds to sue - her contract expired and the show decided not to renew the contract. That is not wrongful termination. The contract expired and the show decided they didn't want to negotiate a new contract, nothing illegal about that.

This whole story about Laura Malone suing and getting a settlement seems to be a urban legend, because there is no evidence this ever happened. 

19 hours ago, Mona Kane Croft said:

Wow, so great to see Courtney during her final weeks.  Courtney is clearly not the focus of this scene (Marianne is the focus), but watch Courtney's detailed acting.  The looks she gives her father, while Marianne speaks. And the way she strokes her niece's hair near the end of the scene.   

Now, imagine Susan Harney playing the same script.  It would not have been terrible. In fact, Harney would have been quite acceptable in this scene.  But none of Alice's subtext would have been exhibited.  None of Jacquie Courtney's nuance.  The scene would have been played rather flat, with Alice being a side character.    

History shows it is nearly impossible to successfully and permanently replace a TV soap opera ingenue.  Think about efforts to replace the following: Alice Frame, Tara Martin, Nina Cortlandt, Penny Hughes, Marley Love Hudson, Lily Walsh, Lily Winters among others. And even Mary Ryan (who I hesitate to describe as an ingenue, but perhaps). For reasons I do not understand, soap opera ingenues seem almost impossible to replace.    

Also, Victoria Winters, Emily Quartermaine, Jody Travis, Patti Tate, Morgan Richards, and my all time favorite soap ingenue: Allison MacKenzie of Peyton Place as played by the irreplaceable Mia Farrow!