Search For Tomorrow Discussion Thread

[DRW50]

Thanks. Saying it was one of the oldest soaps after 3 years. I guess at that time they didn't expect any to last.

[Contessa Donatella]

Which short-lived soaps are you referring to, here?

That's very interesting. As you might recall I've been endeavoring to find the date that Kathy got an abortion & the researchers at Syracuse University have narrowed it down to one period of time when she went to NY state to get a legal abortion. That time is reflected in lines from scripts. The two most pertinent are as follows:

-March 28^th, 1972: Kathy speaks to a nurse in an admitting room and discusses the procedure that will happen the next morning.

-April 11^th, 1972: Kathy mentions that she has said yes to Scott’s proposal and that she finds it strange that it happened on the day she got back from “visiting Albany.”

So, it's notable, perhaps, that she doesn't say "NY state" but instead says "Albany."

But, then, if she lived in NY state why would she have to travel at all? Henderson must not be in NY state. 

[DRW50]

Just any of the early '50s soaps that only ran for a year or two (or less) and only have one or two episodes available.

Thanks. So not in New York then.

[Contessa Donatella]

excerpt from a blog: Between 1949 and 1960, CBS had 19 soaps. Same time frame NBC had 22 soaps. Out of all of those are 6 successes: in order: SFT/CBS, LOL/CBS, GL/CBS, Secret Storm/CBS, ATWT/CBS and EON/CBS. Note they were all CBS. Their longevity ranges from 20 yrs to 57 yrs. Another grouping from here would be considered marginally successful with longevity ranging from 3.5 yrs to 8.5 yrs. They are Hawkins Falls (NBC), From These Roots (NBC) The Brighter Day (CBS) and Young Dr. Malone (NBC). 31 failures.

So, you're talking about the ones I'm calling failures, like Miss Susan, etc., right?

Yes, it seems so. 

I asked Bing CoPilot which is AI so it could be wrong. Its reference was https://fantasy-television.fandom.com/wiki/Search_for_Tomorrow & it replied: 

Henderson, the fictional town in the soap opera "Search for Tomorrow," is set in an unspecified state. The show's creators never explicitly mentioned which state Henderson is located in1. It was intentionally left vague to allow viewers to imagine it in their own state or region.

So, darn, shucks. 

Edited February 20 by Contessa Donatella

[Contessa Donatella]

Okay, here's that list only in the 50s, period, not just the first few years of the decade. Alphabetical. 

The Bennetts NBC 1953-54
Concerning Miss Marlowe NBC 1954-55
A Date with Life NBC 1955-56
The Egg & I CBS 1951-52
Fairmeadows USA NBC 1951-52
The First Hundred Years CBS 1950-52
First Love NBC 1954-55
Follow Your Heart NBC 1953-54
For Better or Worse CBS 1959-60
Golden Windows NBC 1954-55
The Greatest Gift NBC 1954-55
Hotel Cosmopolitan CBS 1957-58
The House on High Street NBC 1959-60
Kitty Foyle NBC 1958
Miss Susan NBC 1951
Modern Romances NBC 1954-58
Portia Faces Life CBS 1954-55
The Road of Life CBS 1954-55
The Seeking Heart CBS 1954-55
Three Steps to Heaven NBC 1953-54
A Time to Live NBC 1954
Today Is Ours NBC 1958
Way of the World NBC 1955
A Woman to Remember DuMont 1949
Woman with a Past CBS 1954
The World of Mr. Sweeney NBC 1954-55
These Are My Children NBC 1949
 

Edited February 20 by Contessa Donatella

[Contessa Donatella]

I vaguely recall someone in this weird long-handle name followed by the word Hall & they were waiting on word to find out if they were being picked up for another 13 weeks! So, BITD contracts & renewals were totally different from today. 

[robbwolff]

I was a big fan of "Somewhere in the Night" and bought Billy Chinook's CD back then. Didn't he record Guiding Light's theme song "Hold onto Love" with Roberta Flack? I forgot that Billy used to live in Asbury Park, NJ, where my family vacationed back in the late 60s/early 70s. Sadly, Billy took his life in 2007.

[DRW50]

Very sorry to hear that. 

You're right - he did record Hold Onto Love with Roberta. A lovely song.

[slick jones]

Thank you for posting this.

 

[anthonymolchan]

Mary Stuart said in BOTH OF ME that Lynn and Gretchen were the only Pattis she was close to. 
 

It’s nice to see more of Melissa, though. 
 

Is there any footage of Abigail, Gretchen, Pat, Leigh or Tina that I’ve missed?

 

Abigail as Robin on TGL was chillingly effective. I’m curious about her Patti. 

[SoapDope]

You are welcome. I googled her second husband John C. Ewing. I think he is actor John Christy Ewing who appeared on Dallas and many other guest appearances. 

[dc11786]

Someone with more knowledge could probably explain the Reynolds backstory, but I believe the gist was Andrea and Sam had twins, Len and Jamie, and while they were little, Andrea was carrying on an affair one afternoon with Larry Carter when a fire broke out and Jamie perished. Andrea had manipulated Len into believing Sam was the careless one and, as a result, Len changed his name and hated his father. I know there was some script posted several pages back about this from a few years later, like you referenced later. 

@FrenchFan 's summaries from January 1965 show that Marge was pregnant than so the baby would be only a round a year old in 1966. I haven't watched the episodes yet. There are 6 sets correct? So the 42 or so episodes I had been told earlier was correct. 

I think the simplicity of plot that explores the nuances of the story rather than deeply intricate plotting can be effective. I appreciate the emotional richness that comes from diving into the complexity of character rather than the complexity of plot.  

I'm finding with the radio shows how solid the 15 minute format is. You can ideally tell about 1-2 stories at a time with some side plots. I think something the vanity projects that were online a decade or so ago when the televised series were fading missed teh boat. A tightly written story with a few characters rather than trying to do Doug Marland on an internet budget would have been much more effective.  

[chrisml]

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[Khan]

ICAM!

And even Douglas Marland supposedly was aiming to "keep it simple" with his own soap, "The Soul Survivors," which he was working on at the time of his death; talking with SOD about his plans to focus only a handful of (meaning, 6-8) characters at the start rather than bombard viewers with a whole lot of characters they don't know and don't care about.

[DRW50]

@chrisml Thanks. I find that plug-pulling murder mystery type story distasteful for what Search was meant to be even at that time.

@dc11786 Appreciate your help as always, and the reminder to listen to those radio soaps. There's so much potential for 15 minute soaps, especially in these budget conscious days.

I wonder if it was ever said why Len calls his mother Andrea. Maybe she didn't want to ever be called Mother or Mom.

The second set of clips is marked as 3 hours and 20 minutes but ends around 2 hours and 20 minutes (and the last episode is the Christmas 1966 episode we've had online for years). Not complaining as I'm so grateful to get so much of this, just letting people know if they haven't dived in yet.

I wonder if there's a bit of a time jump (only a slight one) in this third set or if it's just some overworked actors rotating out for a short period. The stories haven't really progressed, but we suddenly get Eunice, who wasn't seen or even mentioned in the first two blocs. We also see Emily with her other beau, Cal - I assume this is the professor she had a snotty phone call with earlier on...? Do we know who played him? (I haven't gotten to any other cast crawls yet).

Every word out of Emily's mouth is so florid, I almost wonder if just one writer was assigned to her and no one else.

Andrea says she's leaving in this set - I wonder if Gilmore comes back in the last few blocs or if this actually is her end.

As time goes on in these episodes, I feel sorry for Patty as she tells not one, but two men that she doesn't want to be with them, and they insist to her that she is their girl whether she wants to be or not. 

It's interesting to see Ann Williams here without the more stylish coifs she often had. She looks younger. She also reminds me of Geena Davis in these, for some reason.

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Edited February 22 by DRW50