That interview reminds me of a story Kay Alden told. She said that when she first met Bill Bell and interviewed him, he was surprised she was so enthusiastic about soap writing. He had been interviewed by a journalism class shortly before and they pretty much dismissed that he wrote soaps and and ripped him apart. They thought people in soaps were low life trash.

Sun April 2 1978

Soap Report ‘Search’ Troupe Is Switched by Jon Michael Reed.

NEW YORK - Out one soap door and in another is a serial-performing habit or hazard. Peter Simon played Scott Phillips on “Search For Tomorrow” since 1968. Scott's romantic foil was fellow attorney and future wife Kathy Parker, portrayed by Courtney Sherman. Peter and Courtney played their love scenes off camera and were married after divorcing previous mates. thrice. Recently. Peter departed “Search" and is starring in off-Broadway's “P.S. Your Cat Is Dead." His leading lady in that show, incidentally. is Claire Malis (Dorian Lord on “One Life to Live”).

MEANWHILE. Back on “Search,” Courtney finds herself with a new screen husband in the person of Peter Ratray. who only a few months ago was playing Quentin Ames on “Another World."

“Search" has had lousv luck finding suitable writers for the past year or more. Scriptors have come and gone in a thrice.The situation was once so unbearable that several cast-members raised cane about the material they were given. Now, Henry Slesar has been named headwriter. Slesar has scripted “The Edge of Night” for many years and will continue on that show also tackling",Search’s" headaches and heartaches. At least until he breaks. Writing one serial is tough enough, let alone two concurrent ones.

WITH SLESAR'S arrival three performers have been given the heave-ho. Lenka Peterson (Evelyn Reedy), Tina Orr and Bob Rockwell (Meredith and Greg Hartford) departed last week. Rockwell, you'll remember, was Mr. Boynton on the “Our Miss Brooks" TV series in the 1950s. but his character's romance with “Search” heroine Joanne Vincente failed to make the grade. Taking up the slack on “Search" will be two new arrivals that bear the kinds of odd-ball names Slesar is known to be fond of, Chance Halliday (Donna's ex-Mr. who will be played by George Shannon) Chance's sister. Kylie Halliday. portrayed by Lisa Buck.

That writer liked to use the word "thrice" a lot, unless that is a typo. I don't think I have ever met a person in real life that used that word in a conversation.

Gena Rowlands won an Emmy Award for portraying Mary Stuart (yes that Mary Stuart who played Jo on SFT) in the TV film "Face of a Stranger" - Here is her acceptance speech below where she thanks Mary Stuart for her wonderful life story she was able to portray on-screen.