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Harding Lemay makes it quite clear in Eight Years in Another World and in interviews that he did not respect Dwyer and Courtney’s talent.  They were “soap” actors and he preferred stage actors.  He was more than fine with Constance Ford changing Ada’s lines but was insulted when Dwyer did it.  

I loved Lemay’s Another World but so many of his new characters only lasted 1-2 years. In my opinion getting rid of Courtney and Dwyer were the biggest blunders in the shows history. And there were many blunders. 

Edited by Efulton

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53 minutes ago, Efulton said:

Harding Lemay makes it quite clear in Eight Years in Another World and in interviews that he did not respect Dwyer and Courtney’s talent.  They were “soap” actors and he preferred stage actors.  He was more than fine with Constance Ford changing Ada’s lines but was insulted when Dwyer did it.  

I loved Lemay’s Another World but so many of his new characters only lasted 1-2 years. In my opinion getting rid of Courtney and Dwyer were the biggest blunders in the shows history. And there were many blunders. 

Both Pete & Paul were great fans of the theatre. They attended many plays together & actively recruited from them. That fact has been pointed to many times by various different people as one of the aspects that made AW so very good at that time. But, AW wasn't the only one to use actors from the theatre. All the NY shows did, at one time or another.

I would agree about JC that it was definitely a blunder. 

I am totally unaware of Connie Ford ever changing her lines. Pete says quite clearly in his book that she didn't know it but she was what he referred to as his conscience. He meant by that after Connie would say her lines according to her comments about them, that kept him as a writer "honest". 

After one monologue possessed of a great deal of flowery language, he said she commented as she was leaving the set, "Whatever the hell that is supposed to mean!!"

 

 

Edited by Contessa Donatella

1 hour ago, watson71 said:

Given what I’ve seen of Hugh Marlowe’s Jim Matthews, any actor would need to substitute lines given how “robotic” he acted on the show.

LOL, but, seriously, I know just what you mean. When I think about that generation of the Matthews family what pops into my head is the word "dour."

 

  • Member
1 hour ago, Efulton said:

Harding Lemay makes it quite clear in Eight Years in Another World and in interviews that he did not respect Dwyer and Courtney’s talent.  They were “soap” actors and he preferred stage actors.  He was more than fine with Constance Ford changing Ada’s lines but was insulted when Dwyer did it.  

As a fellow actor... I find this demeaning attitude towards us one of the oldest cliches. Some people... writers, directors, producers... don't realize that actors are not beneath them. TV-production is a collaborative process. So is theatre. (Unless you are doing a mono-drama - acting, directing and writing it yourself). If you don't respect an actor's talent, you can't expect them to respect your writing talent. And vice-versa. I'm talking in general. I have no way of knowing if all of this about Lemay is the truth. Maybe it's not. Maybe it is.

But also reading in the previous page of the topic, how he "seemed intent on destroying" these two women's careers... I'm just dumbfounded. And want to look into this. Maybe starting with his book. Not that I will ever fully believe an autobiography. People skew the reality when they tell their version of history. But my curiosity is heightened and I have to start somewhere.  

I adore Harding Lemay's work from the little I have seen (I haven't watched a Harding Lemay episode I didn't love). That's all I can say. @Mona Kane Croft put it perfectly  -"Ya' take the good, ya' take the bad..." and that's what we have to do sometimes. There are no saints in this business or any business for that matter.  

 

  • Member
30 minutes ago, Maxim said:

As a fellow actor... I find this demeaning attitude towards us one of the oldest cliches. Some people... writers, directors, producers... don't realize that actors are not beneath them. TV-production is a collaborative process. So is theatre. (Unless you are doing a mono-drama - acting, directing and writing it yourself). If you don't respect an actor's talent, you can't expect them to respect your writing talent. And vice-versa. I'm talking in general. I have no way of knowing if all of this about Lemay is the truth. Maybe it's not. Maybe it is.

But also reading in the previous page of the topic, how he "seemed intent on destroying" these two women's careers... I'm just dumbfounded. And want to look into this. Maybe starting with his book. Not that I will ever fully believe an autobiography. People skew the reality when they tell their version of history. But my curiosity is heightened and I have to start somewhere.  

I adore Harding Lemay's work from the little I have seen (I haven't watched a Harding Lemay episode I didn't love). That's all I can say. @Mona Kane Croft put it perfectly  -"Ya' take the good, ya' take the bad..." and that's what we have to do sometimes. There are no saints in this business or any business for that matter.  

 

Fair warning, as good as the book is, he might've stretched the truth or flat out lied a little bit too.

Edited by AbcNbc247

  • Member
Just now, AbcNbc247 said:

Fair warning, as good as the book is, he might've stretched the truth or flat lied lied a little bit too.

Lied... a writer... lied? How scandalous! I mean... they do this for living... so... all is to be expected. 😛 

Thank you for the fair warning.  ❤️  I'll report on the book when I get to it. 

  • Member
2 minutes ago, Maxim said:

Lied... a writer... lied? How scandalous! I mean... they do this for living... so... all is to be expected. 😛 

When he gets to the part about how he wrote Alice's breakdown vs. what we saw onscreen 😂

  • Member
Just now, AbcNbc247 said:

When he gets to the part about how he wrote Alice's breakdown vs. what we saw onscreen 😂

I just ordered it on amazon. 😁

  • Member
22 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

When he gets to the part about how he wrote Alice's breakdown vs. what we saw onscreen 😂

I've never really understood Lemay's statements about this in the book.  Apparently he felt Courtney over-played her scenes during these episodes.  But if she was so badly over-playing the emotional breakdown, where the hell was the director?  And why didn't the director receive any of Lemay's wrath?  I was watching every day during this period, and the only thing I found over-done about Alice's breakdown was Courtney's physical appearance, which was a bit shocking.  But Alice's appearance would not have been Courtney's decision.  Wouldn't that have been a collaboration between the director and the hair/make-up department.   So again, no idea why Lemay gave Courtney all the blame...

  • Member
32 minutes ago, Maxim said:

I just ordered it on amazon. 😁

The book is a wonderful look back at the Golden Age of Another World.  And yes, Lemay is very opinionated and more than a little egotistical.  But I would not go so far as to suggest he lied in the book.  But the book is a memoire -- one man's thoughts, opinions, and experiences of a particular period in his life.  Had the opinions of others been included, we might be reading a very different book.  But aren't all memoirs like this?  

  • Member
9 minutes ago, Tisy-Lish said:

I've never really understood Lemay's statements about this in the book.  Apparently he felt Courtney over-played her scenes during these episodes.  But if she was so badly over-playing the emotional breakdown, where the hell was the director?  And why didn't the director receive any of Lemay's wrath?  I was watching every day during this period, and the only thing I found over-done about Alice's breakdown was Courtney's physical appearance, which was a bit shocking.  But Alice's appearance would not have been Courtney's decision.  Wouldn't that have been a collaboration between the director and the hair/make-up department.   So again, no idea why Lemay gave Courtney all the blame...

Based on what he wrote, apparently that was all improvised by JC 😂😂😂😂

Ok.

  • Member

Lemay wrote a long speech for Ada berating Ted on his life choices, saying he needed to own up, take responsibility, change his life. 

Connie skipped half a page of dialogue and just said, “CHANGE IT!!!”

After that, he kept track of which phrases he wrote that she would say and which she wouldn’t.  He credited her with teaching him how sometimes less was more.

So, yes, she changed dialogue.  He respected her and allowed it.  He also allowed Vicky “improvisational” liberties.

Lemay disliked Dwyer and she hated him back.  The story of her lunch with him in his book is epic.  
 

Why she wasn’t cast again on another soap is a mystery.  Perhaps her reputation preceded her.  Perhaps she retired out of embarrassment or shame or anger.  
 

Lemay wasn’t terribly concerned with the Matthews other than Liz and Pat, only because he loved Beverly Penberthy.  If any writer had wanted a Matthews matriarch, Liz was there, until she wasn’t.  She should’ve succeeded Ada as mother-to-all  

 

Edited by anthonymolchan
Mispelling

  • Member
11 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

Based on what he wrote, apparently that was all improvised by JC 😂😂😂😂

 

Well, if that was true -- where was the director?  Taking a nap in the control room??   A good director would have nipped that in the bud.  Unless the performance was good and the director liked it.  Imagine that.  

  • Member
1 hour ago, Contessa Donatella said:

Both Pete & Paul were great fans of the theatre. They attended many plays together & actively recruited from them. That fact has been pointed to many times by various different people as one of the aspects that made AW so very good at that time. But, AW wasn't the only one to use actors from the theatre. All the NY shows did, at one time or another.

I would agree about JC that it was definitely a blunder. 

I am totally unaware of Connie Ford ever changing her lines. Pete says quite clearly in his book that she didn't know it but she was what he referred to as his conscience. He meant by that after Connie would say her lines according to her comments about them, that kept him as a writer "honest". 

After one monologue possessed of a great deal of flowery language, he said she commented as she was leaving the set, "Whatever the hell that is supposed to mean!!"

 

 

“But I was also taught a great lesson the first month I was at ANOTHER WORLD by Connie Ford, who played Ada. I had written a final tag speech in one of the crucial scenes. And when I got to the rehearsal, Connie cut the entire speech and did just one line from it. Now she was a wonderful actress, a very laconic actress, and didn’t need a lot of language. And I realized something: you write to what the actor does. And I never overwrote a scene for her again.”

I would consider this changing her lines.  He wrote to what the actor does unless he did not like the actor. 

We Love Soaps: Harding Lemay Interview: Part Two

2 minutes ago, Efulton said:

“But I was also taught a great lesson the first month I was at ANOTHER WORLD by Connie Ford, who played Ada. I had written a final tag speech in one of the crucial scenes. And when I got to the rehearsal, Connie cut the entire speech and did just one line from it. Now she was a wonderful actress, a very laconic actress, and didn’t need a lot of language. And I realized something: you write to what the actor does. And I never overwrote a scene for her again.”

I would consider this changing her lines.  He wrote to what the actor does unless he did not like the actor. 

We Love Soaps: Harding Lemay Interview: Part Two

I stand corrected. Thanks for the heads up. 

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