Another World

[teplin]

Anna Holbrook was so good. I know she won an Emmy, but I still think she was underrated. Though that's true of a lot of AW actors and actresses ... always the red-headed stepchildren of the soap world. 

[NothinButAttitude]

 

I totally agree. Still boggles my mind that Vicki Wyndham, Carmen Duncan, or Bev McKinsey never won for their roles when all three women were strong, stellar actresses. 

[vetsoapfan]

 

Wyndham, McKinsey, Beverly Penberthy, Jacquie Courtney...so many fine performances, so little Emmy recognition.

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[juniorz1]

 

I'd add Tom Eplin and Anna Stuart to that list..

[watson71]

 

I'd  also add Constance Ford (Ada) and Nancy Frangione (Cecile) to the list of overlooked AW performers.  These two should have won a supporting actress Emmy, but they were never nominated.

[NothinButAttitude]

I know @DRW50 will wanna kick me for this, but today marks the 21st anniversary of the debut of AW's final (and infamous) credits--the ER credits! 

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I think I am in the minority that I was one of the few that loved the theme and the opening. Especially, the shots of the spinning gyroscope. 

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[vetsoapfan]

 

Virginia Dwyer (Mary Matthews) was also stellar, when the show gave her something to do. I'd kill to see this series' episodes from 1964 to 1975 again!

[DRW50]

I tried to get through some of the scenes that someone put up from not too long before then - when Sharlene confronted John about the affair - and it was all so empty and precise, and not reminiscent of the AW I ever knew. So cold. Which is what the opening reminds me of. But at least it gave me some laughs by the time it came down to Victoria Wyndham turning to the camera after 50 people had been edited out...unintentional as they may have been.

 

The clip also reminded me of how miscast Robin Christopher was as Lorna. 

[watson71]

 

By 1996, the You Take Me Away to Another World credits were beginning to look dated.  This opening did not bother me, even though the opening was clearly an ER copycat right down to the er / aw.  The spinning gyroscope was a modern take on AW's interlocking rings from openings past.  The thing I did not like about this opening was as the cast was dismantled, the shots used to replace the departed actors never matched the look of the original 96 opening.  By the time AW went off the air, this opening was reduced to approximately 15 seconds. 😔

[DRW50]

What gets me about this opening seeing it again is that surely JFP knew some of the people featured in it, like that dull-ass Courtney, were on the way out shortly. So it was just planned poorly from the beginning. 

 

I get why people like it, I guess, especially if they were fans of her AW work. It just never felt like AW to me at all, and I thought it was very dumb from an editing standpoint.

[teplin]

 

The story was ridiculous and I didn't buy for a second that the John, Felicia and Sharlene I knew would behave the way they were being written. The only saving grace was that Holbrook and Dano got some meaty material to play -- out of character, for sure, but I was happy the actresses got to strut their stuff. The transformation from earth mother to scorned woman irrevocably damaged the Sharlene character, though.

 

I liked the opening when it debuted, still do actually, but it didn't match the spirit of the show, no matter how much JFP tried to morph it into something else. And yes, it was terribly impractical. 

[jam6242]

Michael M. Ryan (John Randolph) has died.

 

http://obits.dignitymemorial.com/dignity-memorial/obituary.aspx?n=Henri-Ryan&lc=2770&pid=184333657&mid=7315244

[NothinButAttitude]

 

I think that's why I love so much b/c it is a nod at the interlocking rings and their significance in the show up until the You Take Me Away theme took over. 

 

 

I just loved the theme and the shots. I do agree that they had to keep editing it because people were in and out of the show from 96-99.

 

Speaking of Courtney, I didn't realize that Bellamy Young (of Scandal) was the original Courtney until watching a few episode of AW from 95. 

[DRW50]

 

Sad to hear. It's too bad most of his work is gone. It seems like Lemay took a hammer to the character in later years but I'd still say killing John off was short-sighted.

[jam6242]

Lemay did destroy John.  He made him really stupid in regard to his involvement with Olive (Jennifer Leak).  At least John went out a hero by trying to save Alice from the fire.  I always liked him and hated to see him killed off though.