GL now joins some illustrious company in the cancelled soap thread.

Let's share memories and ask questions here.

22 minutes ago, Soaplovers said:

He seemed like he could be someone you would run into if you ventured into a more high end department store and/or neighborhood.

That is SO FUNNY you said this because a while ago I watched some of the Peapack era. There was a scene of Raines in a drugstore, holding a shopping basket, and picking shampoo or whatever off the shelf.

Something about that seemed so ridiculous, I couldn't stop laughing.

Again, not entirely Raines's fault. Why did they write that scene in the first place?

But, yeah, I could see Bernau doing that and it not seeming bizarre.

Edited 10 hours ago10 hr by DeeVee

5 hours ago, Speed Racer said:

I don't think Raines was all that horrible, at least not to the extent that others here think. The guy had more talent than what we typically saw. Much of any skill he had was held abeyant.

My problem with Raines is he was simply willing to go with the cards he was dealt. Pure supposition on my part, of course. I suspect he didn't spend much time watching Bernau. I suspect he never complained to the brass about character assassination. I suspect he didn't complain about the eradication of the Spaulding brand.

A twirling mustache persona is light years away from who Alan Spaulding was. Dope-peddling is light years away from who Alexandra Spaulding was.

3 hours ago, Soaplovers said:

The thing about CB's Alan was that he could be just at home in an upper crust establishment, yet also had a warm down to earth aura about him. He seemed like he could be someone you would run into if you ventured into a more high end department store and/or neighborhood.

Ron Raines was too much of a cartoon and too Broadway to play Alan properly.

I agree Bernau managed to find the line. I think Raines could have too, but not as easily.

My biggest issues with Raines were a lack of charisma and lack of chemistry with leading ladies. Clearly, he had that in his stage career, but I rarely saw this in his work as Alan. Bernau is fascinating in every glimpse, whereas Raines would have been a slightly sourer grandfather in the Werther's Originals ads.

There also seemed to be no real long-term plans for him after the Mr. Tashiwa nonsense, maybe due to the frequent writer turnover in JFP's last year. The best they figured out being a pairing with Tangie does suggest JFP had another actor in mind, although I have no idea who. I wonder if she may have wanted Jed Allan. I think pages ago there was a list of potential Alans mentioned in Soap Opera Update or another magazine at the time. I can't remember the names. Joe Gallison may have been one, but I am not sure.

Edited 7 hours ago7 hr by DRW50

2 hours ago, DeeVee said:

That is SO FUNNY you said this because a while ago I watched some of the Peapack era. There was a scene of Raines in a drugstore, holding a shopping basket, and picking shampoo or whatever off the shelf.

Something about that seemed so ridiculous, I couldn't stop laughing.

Again, not entirely Raines's fault. Why did they write that scene in the first place?

But, yeah, I could see Bernau doing that and it not seeming bizarre.

There was a scene with Alex in the drugstore, eating some ice cream on a stick. It was hard for me to imagine Marj's Alex doing that, although Marj did seem to have fun with the moment (and her Alex was initially given a more common touch, like playing basketball with Buzz - I'd love to see Bev in those scenes).

5 hours ago, DRW50 said:

My biggest issues with Raines were a lack of charisma and lack of chemistry with leading ladies. Clearly, he had that in his stage career, but I rarely saw this in his work as Alan. Bernau is fascinating in every glimpse, whereas Raines would have been a slightly sourer grandfather in the Werther's Originals ads.

Raines definitely did not have onscreen chemistry with his romantic partners. He could have had that on stage, but that doesn't always translate to a different medium. Watching him have love scenes with Tangie and Claire...just, no.

It's not that every pairing for Alan worked with Bernau (the one that gave me major icks was Christine Valere) but he could be flirty and funny and sexy. I loved watching him and India skirt around the possibility of a romantic connection, or when Alan and Rita had their, "I would love to tear your clothes off right now but our spouses are in the other room, let's talk about tennis instead" encounters.

I probably would have enjoyed him and Kim more if Alan wasn't (at least at first) using the fact that she worked for him to try to get her into bed.

Edited 2 hours ago2 hr by DeeVee

11 hours ago, DeeVee said:

I got the feeling that the reason he got bored with Elizabeth and Hope was because they were very easy to control. Hope forgave everything (which was SO anticlimatic, after years of all the secrets Alan kept from her). So it's not unbelievable that he would be attracted to both Van and Reva. (Trish being so much like Hope was the one thing about that storyline that seemed off to me).

He knew Vanessa during her "vamp" years. Maybe he thought they were both cosmopolitan enough to turn a blind eye to any flirtations. I doubt he expected a dutiful, faithful wife like Elizabeth or Hope.

There is so little up with Alan/Trish, it's hard to tell what exactly drew them to one another.

Early Van was a lot like Alan, in that she had that roving eye. I guess the difference was that Alan always reverted back to type, while Vanessa fundamentally shifted after Billy. The only time she had a couple of brief affairs, she ended up nearly getting raped.

10 hours ago, DeeVee said:

Again, not entirely Raines's fault. Why did they write that scene in the first place?

Because randomly meeting in a field or abandoned playground seemed stupider? Some of those Peapack sets...RME. Alexandra Spaulding eating random Quick Mart hotdogs....the world shudders.

14 hours ago, Khan said:

When it comes to Ron Raines, I could look past the cartoonish bombast and utter inability to generate heat with any of his female co-stars, but you know what I couldn't look past? His stout-ness. Call me shallow, but he was entirely too fat to play Alan Spaulding.

Hey now..we all gain weight as we age...are you a "Fattiest"??? : ) I get what you're saying, but Alan in reality (if we divorce him from Bernau, which I can't) is a midwestern guy, who conceivably could have become a "fat cat" I think the Spaulding's should have been from the east coast, or even southern, like Savannah or Charleston, some place that would give a southern gothic vibe that both Bernau and McKinnesy would be great at. RR and MD did seem more midwestern so that COULD have worked with the proper writing and direction. Clips of RR when he first was introduced was weird cause he is kind of sexy..he gives off a total different vibe then Bernau as his Alan is more physical and mischievous then what we were used to. Marj could have played a more down to earth Alex...but both of them simply became Snidely Whiplash and Myrn Clegg 2.0