Guiding Light Discussion Thread

[wonderwoman1951]

rarely mentioned, but crucial; from wikipedia: 

“Overall, the first half of the 1980s saw a revival in Guiding Light's popularity, with a top-five placing achieved in most years and even a brief dethroning of then-powerhouse General Hospital from the #1 ratings spot for three consecutive weeks. However, as the decade progressed, the ratings slipped a bit, although it was still performing solidly. In 1995, beginning with CBS flagship station WCBS-TV in New York, Guiding Light began airing at 10 a.m. Eastern time in several markets. Its once-solid performance began to crumble by the mid-1990s, when its ratings sunk as low as ninth place out of ten.^[25] However, during the controversial clone storyline in 1998, the ratings experienced a brief resurgence, moving up to fifth for many weeks that summer. Nielsen reported Guiding Light had 5 million viewers in 1999.

Up until its CBS finale in 2009, stations in a number of markets aired Guiding Light in the morning either at 9 or 10 a.m. local time: Miami, Chicago, Baltimore, Boston, Detroit, New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Dallas-Fort Worth, Orlando, Atlanta, Columbia, SC, Fort Wayne, IN, South Bend, IN, Portland, OR, Quad Cities, Buffalo, Reno, Portland, ME, Milwaukee, Albany, NY, and Scranton-Wilkes Barre, PA. Guiding Light aired at 12 noon local time in Honolulu, Hawaii. In Savannah, GA, it aired at 4:00 pm local time.”

[Khan]

Of course, the ratings spiked during the clone storyline.  Even if you thought the premise was ludicrous - which I did - you still tuned in, if only to laugh at the utter insanity of it all.  (Rapid growth serum?  GMAFB!)

However, the storyline set a bad precedent for GL.  No matter how...over-the-top GL could be in past years, you always could count on it being, for the most part, a realistic show.  The clone storyline changed all that.  Now, nothing was off-limits, not even pure sci-fi.  (The same thing happened to DAYS once Marlena became possessed by the devil).

[Dan]

I'm inclined to believe most of GL's awful writing post-2004 is squarely on Kreizman's shoulders but one thing I've never gotten is why the show relied so long on so many former failed headwriters in the top tiers of the writing staff, namely Lloyd Gold and Chris Dunn. Their work was not great but were never fired. Just demoted. Hell even Eleanor Labine lasted past her mom's tenure for multiple years. As far as JLH, I haven't seen enough to condemn or praise her, but if she was responsible for the brief bits of good in the show's final few weeks, then good on her. 

Edited December 5, 2023 by Dan

[kalbir]

I'm pretty sure Nicolas Coster was on As the World Turns by Summer 1994 so the timing doesn't work. Jed Allan first appeared on 90210 in Spring 1994 so timing also doesn't work there either. I'm thinking JFP's choice might have been either Roscoe Born or Lane Davies.

[China Jones]

I agree with you, Khan! It's not that I can't accept change, but I'd grown so accustomed to the indoor setting of soap operas that I found the outdoor shots too jarring. And because just about every scene was now outside, it was overwhelming!

I don't know how these things work, but I've often wondered if GL could have partnered with a real estate company that could have granted the show access to empty houses and buildings it was listing, and with HGTV to stage them with appropriate furnishings like a spacious hospital lobby, a larger office for Alan Spaulding, etc.

[Khan]

RB and LD would have been too young to play Alan, but who knows?  I'd put nothing past JFP.

The thing is, Chris Bernau made such an indelible impression as Alan that it's literally impossible to picture anyone else playing that role.  Daniel Pilon couldn't replace Bernau.  Ron Raines DEFINITELY couldn't replace Bernau.  I'm not sure anyone could've replaced Bernau.

Another casting mystery: before she left GL, Joan Collins told the press that they had recast Roger Thorpe - "and you'll never guess who's playing him," or words to that effect.  Of course, because she left soon after, whatever plans they had for bringing back Roger fell through, but I've always wondered: who was this mysterious actor she was so clearly enthused about?  I doubt Dame Joan ever followed daytime, much less GL, so it had to have been either someone she'd worked with in the past, or someone who was well-known outside of daytime.  My hunch?  Gordon Thomson (ex-Adam, DYNASTY).  He had played her son on one show; and now, he was set to play her ex-husband on another.  Again, just my hunch, nothing more.

 

Knowing Ellen Wheeler and her plucky, can-do spirit, I'm surprised she didn't have cast members literally pitch in and build sets in Peapack!  "Come on, everybody, it'll be just like doing summer stock!"

I know I'm coming across as someone who hates EW.  I don't.  I think she's a fantastic actor who deserved the two Emmys she won.  But she was not EP material.  I suspect, too, that P&G knew that, but hired her anyway, because they knew she could be the one to finish off GL (which she did).

Edited December 5, 2023 by Khan

[Mitch64]

I have no idea..I just heard that some people were offered it (could have been more of the usual suspects) and no one wanted it..due to PG and network interference...the pay...and everyone knew GL was going to be cancelled.  

I will take JLH over Kreizman anyway..she has written a few L & Os and Kreizman was writing for pro wrestling for a while and the crap show Days...well, nuff said. As much as I don't agree with her on many things (the Cooper family is her comfort family..yuk) she got GL and she was responsible for writing the returns correctly and the great scene with Ed and Lillian at Mo's grave..which came about 10 years too late but....I know she was one of GA's favorite writers. 

 

Born is only a few years younger then Raines..and at least Alan would have been sexy again...but I think he would make a better Kyle Sampson recast..he always seemed for "feral" under his business suits.  But I do agree, both Alan and Alex should have never been recast..I get that they needed to recast Bev as she left abruptly but it should have been a temp recast or JFP should have begged Bev to come back just to wrap things up...(i.e. make peace with Nick and Mindy..) Bring back a recast Amanda (sorry, Cullen was a washed out bore) or have Van run Spaulding...then AM...then Phillip.  Alan should have never been recast but they also kept RR around too long where his snidely whiplash antics were a bore...Alan should have died years ago and the new generation could have taken over and fought it out. 

[Liberty City]

While TOLN's outdoor work, especially for All My Children, did look better than what Guiding Light did in Peapack, I still think they were some of the worst-looking things about the production. But those productions, for me, mirrors Hollyoaks a lot in terms of look and feeling. It's a shame things were not more progressive when the Peapack era happening.

Watching Christopher Bernau's work as Alan Spaulding, I can see why Ron Raines was brought in. Was he different? Sure. But he fit the role.

The casting of Dame Joan Collins worked, on paper, but it was clear she wasn't capable of handling the material / work schedule of a daytime soap.

I think, had it been a different place and time, the Peapack era could have worked. Invest in building permanent sets ⏤ a-la English soap Emmerdale ⏤ and invest in some high-definition cameras. Yes, the hand-held high-def back then wasn't brilliant, but it could have been done right at some point.

[Vee]

We'll agree to disagree. I was very impressed with the Prospect Park location work, in part because it was used sparingly and looked atmospheric and very much (to me, anyway) like I'd imagined Pine Valley. Whereas GL managed to make Peapack/Springfield look like Ozark.

[Khan]

I can say this much: years ago, Karen Harris (GH, PC) revealed at a seminar that she'd been offered the HW'ing gig, but that after talking with several people, she turned down P&G's offer.

I agree, @Mitch64.  I, too, would take Jill Lorie Hurst over David Kreizman anyday.

IIRC, Beverlee McKinsey left GL around the same time that Barbara Rush joined AMC as Nola Orsini.  One of the soap mags - either SOD or SOW - picked up on the resemblance between the two and asked Rush if she would play Alexandra if asked.  Rush said she certainly would consider it (again, if asked, which GL never did).  In retrospect, GL probably should have asked, if only on a temporary basis, so that they could have wrapped up the story properly.

I respectfully disagree.  I think JC was capable of handling the material and the workload, but I don't think MADD was all that enthused with her.

The only thing missing from "Springpack" was a shot of Ned Beatty running through the woods in his skivvies. 

[Liberty City]

MADD?

For me, it was the camera work. My biggest pet peeve ⏤ and I know this isn't always workable ⏤ is when outdoor scenes look like they are shot on entirely different cameras than on a set, and post does not try and match them more. yes, TOLN matched more than Peapack (or even P&G's final As the World Turns years), but it was still a bit... jarring. But again, for the time (TOLN meaning) it was very well done.

[Soapsuds]

GL was in trouble as far back as 1985 when it started losing the #2 spot to ATWT.

The writing was bad and ratings fell. I don't think GL really recovered after that. It had some bumps but it wasn't the GL from before 1985.

Btw nice to see you around posting again @Dan. Hope things are going well. We haven't talked in ages.

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Edited December 6, 2023 by Soapsuds

[Khan]

Mary Alice Dwyer-Dobbin, who replaced Kenneth L. Fitts (?) as P&G's last Executive in Charge of Production.

[Soapsuds]

Who fired Scott Defrietas and Andrew Kavovit from ATWT because they weren't hot enough.

[China Jones]

I agree with you, Khan! Much of Dame Joan's short GL stint has been posted on YouTube and I loved what I saw! I think Ms. Collins handled the role in a mischievous slightly comedic way. A couple of examples include Alexandra's takedown of Olivia at the Thanksgiving dinner table and Alex's playfully ribbing Alan about faking his heart attack.

 

LOL, Khan, once again I totally agree! Whenever I saw an overgrown field, I practically expected Grandpa Jones, Lulu and the rest of the Hee Haw gang to pop up!

Some posters on this board have said that Peapack is actually quite lovely, and I bet the residents thought it was a great idea to have GL tape there. However, the camera work did the town such a disservice that it will probably take the Chamber of Commerce years to undo the damage.