Members Efulton Posted March 23 Members Share Posted March 23 I’m glad you found this! Hopefully it will clear up the debate about it back in the thread. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mona Kane Croft Posted March 23 Members Share Posted March 23 OMG, LaGuardia's book is possibly the best soap opera analysis and history I have ever read. I still have my copy from 1974. And regarding Another World, the timing of the books publication (1974) gives LaGuardia a unique and almost naive viewpoint on the show. Harding Lemay was firmly in charge, three years into his time as head-writer. But AW was still almost completely focused on the Matthews family, and was still a 30-minute soap. Rachel was still a very very bad woman, but now with shades of gray. Steve and Alice were still the young romantic leads (and the two most popular stars in daytime). And the firings of 1975 seem to be in the distant future. If my memory is correct, LaGuardia's view of Lemay's writing is tinged with an uneasiness about Lemay's writing style. As an everyday AW viewer during this time, I also felt a similar uneasiness -- despite the fact that I was absolutely hooked on Lemay's character-driven drama. Some people (not the Contessa) have used LaGuardia's story about Virginia Dwyer's clothes closet as a way to slam the actress and justify Lemay's decision to kill-off the show's matriarch. But reading the Contessa's post (which I assume is a direct quote from LaGuardia), it is easy to see that Dwyer did not see herself as particularly similar to Mary Matthews at all. She threw away the clothes that reminded her of Mary, and she described Mary as ultra-conservative. So we must assume Dwyer herself was not ultra-conservative. Dwyer did not live her life as Mary Matthews, nor was she obsessed with the character. In fact she felt quite different from Mary. It is great to read this account from LaGuardia again, after so many years. But the quote in no way tarnishes the career or the reputation of Virginia Dwyer. Quite the opposite. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Contessa Donatella Posted March 23 Members Share Posted March 23 Me, too! I had so much trouble trying to get across that this was what I always treasured as a delightful anecdote from Virginia Dwyer's own words & point of view that made me think highly of her as well as appreciating that she seems to have a wicked sense of humor! When people thought I was reporting a slam! Of course, we know that if I had an anecdote that was a slam, I would post it, too! But, that's just a theory! Please register in order to view this content Hooray!! I thought it was lost & I found it!! Thanks so much for outlining this perspective! Robt LaGuardia has several soap books but this is my favorite. Yes, quote/unquote. EXACTLY!!!! And I think it shows a fine sense of humor! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members slick jones Posted March 24 Members Share Posted March 24 I copied the full book from the Library. While it can be considered a gold standard overall, many of the "facts" have been debunked by members of this board. An example from @Paul Raven re: The Guiding Light Guiding Light Nora Hansen Gibbs Joanne Linville May - Sept 59 pregnant mother who models at Bowden Gallery and befriends Marie Grant. Her husband Al deserted her when discovered she was pregnant and she asks Marie to adopt her baby but Marie refuses. Gives birth to a girl whom she names Marie(August 59) With Dick out of town Marie lets Nora and the baby move into her apartment. Hearing from Al,Nora goes to Las Vegas in hopes of a reconciliation and leaves the baby with Marie. She and Al are killed in a car crash but only Al's body is found. Marie hopes to adopt the baby. Al Gibbs Never Seen 1959 Nora's husband who deserted her. Dies in a car crash in Las Vegas. Amy Sinclair runaway drug addict that gave birth to a daughter, Nora that the Grants were going to adopt, involved with Joe Turino. Joanne Linville 1959-60 Connie Lembcke 1960 This is the Nora character. I see that 'Soap World' lists this character as Amy so somewhere along the line this misinformation became fact. Also, Katherine MacGregor was in the cast list for Love of Life (as Scottie MacGregor) portraying Tammy Forrest, but in reality played Vicky Harcourt. It's a great resource,and a personal favorite, but I wouldn't consider it to be completely accurate. Many of the storylines in the various show synopses are parts of stories that were combined, as well. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Xanthe Posted March 24 Members Share Posted March 24 (edited) This is really before my time, but I was reading the New Yorker article that @VelekaCarruthers linked in the writers thread (for some reason although I wanted the link to the post I got the link to the article instead) and the author drops in a lot of plot references from this period including mentioning that Lenore was interested in Bill Matthews. I must say some of the plot descriptions are rather dizzying but I found them interesting. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1972/02/12/afternoon-television-unhappiness-enough-and-time Post link: Edited March 24 by Xanthe Link 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members adrnyc Posted March 24 Members Share Posted March 24 Ugh - I'm having such a struggle as to whether or not I'm going to the AW reunion in May. It's my 10th wedding anniversary and I promised my husband I'd not spend any money so we take a France vacation in August. But the event is only a half an hour from where I live. Anyone planning on attending. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Contessa Donatella Posted March 24 Members Share Posted March 24 Can't go. Would if I could. My god, that close! Can you talk it over with your guy? One person from my forum is going & one of my oldest friends online is going so I will get a great report after. Nadine Stenovitch has just popped up in my forum saying no one got in touch with her so I'm going to put her together with the woman who is doing this shindig. This won't happen again, this event, or one like it. This is it. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Xanthe Posted March 25 Members Share Posted March 25 This is not a new find or anything since the AWHP has the info in both the Actor Guide and the Minor Characters list, but I had not remembered/recognized that Jake's amnesia girlfriend Alison was played by Marin Hinkle. Actually I had forgotten all about the character and when I saw her I was trying to figure out whether it was a temporary Amanda filling in for Christine Tucci. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Contessa Donatella Posted March 25 Members Share Posted March 25 I love her. She's been in so many things I watched but I remember her best for ONCE AND AGAIN. I have Renata Adler's book of essays & this is in it & is my favorite. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members j swift Posted March 25 Members Share Posted March 25 (edited) On his Instagram Reels, Adam T Ghani played the iconic Rachel/Alice fight when Rachel kicked her out of the house. Did that occur while Steve was in jail or after his presumed death? And how long was it between when Steve was released from prison and his death? Because Rachel seems so cruel. But, in hindsight, if Steve went to jail for bribing her father to perjure himself to get custody of Jamie and then died without taking care of Jamie in his will, she had good reason to want that house. I'm not a fan of Alice, but if Rachel waited for a time for her to be emotionally stable, Jamie would've been out of med school before she got that house. Please register in order to view this content Edited March 25 by j swift 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mona Kane Croft Posted March 25 Members Share Posted March 25 Rachel did not kick Alice out of the house. Rachel tried, but Alice chased her out instead. I believe this scene occurred while Steve was in prison. And Rachel did not end up with Alice's house. When Steve died, Alice lived in the house until she left town in 1979 -- long after Rachel had married Mac. Also, when Steve died he did provide for Jamie in his will. So Jamie was always well taken care of, financially at least. And Steve did not pay Gerald Davis to purger himself in order to get custody of Jamie. Steve paid Gerald in order to get the divorce from Rachel. The divorce occurred in 1974 (I believe) -- back when many divorces were contested and could be denied by a judge. So when Rachel contested the divorce, Gerald testified to help Steve win in court. Gerald betrayed his own daughter for money. But it was not about Jamie's custody, it was in order to get the divorce granted. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members j swift Posted March 25 Members Share Posted March 25 (edited) Gerald is such an interesting contrast to Jim Matthews, just as Ada was unique from Mary. I enjoy when the soaps use the parent's dynamic to explain the behavior of their children. Not just a reaction to the relationship, but the effect of growing up with specific personality types as caregivers. Thank you for filling in the blanks, it is nice to know a dependable source. Edited March 25 by j swift 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mona Kane Croft Posted March 25 Members Share Posted March 25 Somewhere on YouTube there is a wonderful scene between Ada and Rachel from 1979. Ada describes how Rachel felt as a little girl without a father, and how Ada couldn't protect Rachel from those feelings. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AbcNbc247 Posted March 25 Members Share Posted March 25 I imagine that, at the time, a lot of fans were glad to see Gerald betray Rachel lol 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mona Kane Croft Posted March 25 Members Share Posted March 25 I remember not being particularly happy about it. Although Rachel was still a sneaky bitch, her scenes in the courtroom were very troubling -- as Rachel slowly realized Gerald was not telling the truth on the witness stand and had gone over to Steve's side. Betrayed by the father that she knew never really loved her in the first place. This was really the first time the audience truly felt sorry for Rachel. I'd say Rachel's slow reformation began with those courtroom scenes. But it still took a couple of years to be complete (if it ever really was complete). 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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