18 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

Reva was always heavy in story, yes. I didn't really mind because I thought Zimmer sold what she was given and never became cold the way Beth Ehlers did, but I really don't believe B&E knew what to do with her most of the time. She's at a real loss by the time they leave. That continues for a long while where things just happen to Reva (she's blind, she's stalked, she is a psychic, etc.). For as much as she disdained Ellen Wheeler, Wheeler was the one who put more of a jolt back into Reva's identity and storylines.

I only wish we had episode counts from that era. I bet there was never a year Kim wasn't on top, even with maternity leaves.

Poor Reva would have to wait eight years and menopause to have another child-- baby Colin O'Neil.

20 minutes ago, Spoon said:

Poor Reva would have to wait eight years and menopause to have another child-- baby Colin O'Neil.

😂😂😂

How was this pitch ever approved? I'd say someone should've lost their job, but Guiding Light was all but dead at this point. I really wish the show could've gone out with more dignity (and not just because of this foolish story).

8 minutes ago, CrazySexyQ said:

How was this pitch ever approved? I'd say someone should've lost their job, but Guiding Light was all but dead at this point. I really wish the show could've gone out with more dignity (and not just because of this foolish story).

There were a lot of menopausal women on soaps who had babies. She was hardly the first. Ruth on All My Children, who had to be well into her 50s, had a surprise baby. I had always assumed the reason she adopted her sister's child was because she was infertile.

The only characters who don't have babies are the ones who've literally had their reproductive organs removed. And who knows, someone might come up with a work-around for that scenario one day (other than the obvious, a surrogate). Nothing is permanent on a soap opera, whether it's infertility or death. 😂

As far as crazy Reva stories, it's WAY down on the list.

Edited 6 hours ago6 hr by DeeVee

11 minutes ago, DeeVee said:

There were a lot of menopausal women on soaps who had babies. She was hardly the first. Ruth on All My Children, who had to be well into her 50s, had a surprise baby. I had always assumed the reason she adopted her sister's child was because she was infertile.

The only characters who don't have babies are the ones who've literally had their reproductive organs removed. And who knows, someone might come up with a work-around for that scenario one day (other than the obvious, a surrogate). Nothing is permanent on a soap opera, whether it's infertility or death. 😂

As far as crazy Reva stories, it's WAY down on the list.

Erica's un-abortion on AMC comes to mind. Now, that was a first.

Admittedly, I wasn't watching GL when Reva got pregnant. And even all these years later, I still don't want to watch full episodes of anything past Jan. 2007. So, maybe there was a meaningful story about Reva becoming a late-in-life mother again. But as @DRW50 noted, was the story told properly? Everything around Reva usually became a farce. Hey, I don't mind since it's a soap opera. But this random kid with Jeffrey is one of those stories I never could just roll with. The writers knew they were nearing cancellation and still chose this story. But again, if it was a meaningful story and not a Reva ego stroke, I'm happy to stand corrected.

But you're 100% right that Reva having another baby is at the bottom of her other wild stories.

Edited 6 hours ago6 hr by CrazySexyQ

9 minutes ago, CrazySexyQ said:

Everything around Reva usually became a farce. Hey, I don't mind since it's a soap opera. But this random kid with Jeffrey is one of those stories I never could just roll with. The writers knew they were nearing cancellation and still chose this story. But again, if it was a meaningful story and not a Reva ego stroke, I'm happy to stand corrected.

But you're 100% right that Reva having another baby is at the bottom of her other wild stories.

I wasn't really watching by then (when I came back to the show she'd already had the baby) but I imagine they didn't delve into her post-partum past or do much with the story. It seemed like a very random choice for the character - maybe they just desperately wanted to cement her relationship with Jeffrey for viewers. I will say it's probably in character for her to be a late-in-life mother and if the show had stayed on that would have been compelling to watch...if they'd actually shown us her being a mother instead of the kid being offcamera.

It was also after she'd nearly died from cancer. There's nothing like nearly dying to up the odds you'll get knocked up. (See Vanessa, circa '98.)

Reva was hardly the first "older" mother. Kim Hughes did it two decades before. But there was no one less suited to being a mother, yet knockin' out kids she barely(or never) raised.

IIRC, the show claimed that despite Reva going through menopause that her cancer treatment reversed it(?). I believe Ellen Wheeler claimed that it could happen.

How many of the older women on soaps went through menopause? We know Reva had menopause because it was a big plot point. Rachel on AW was older but she didn't get menopause yet when she had Carl's twins.

Re: 1985. You had all the departures plus the loss of Charita Bauer. TPTB thought the cast was largely replaceable as long as they had her as the constant-- kinda like Jo on Search. They wanted to maintain an illusion that Bert was traveling (like Sally Specra on Bold) but fan demand rightfully caused them to change their mind. Unfortunately, by the time they addressed her passing- most of the people she was on with were gone.

Edited 5 hours ago5 hr by Spoon

And other than Ellen Dolan and M'OL, hardly anyone still with the show had worked with her. Still, they could've come up with a better concept for the tribute. The anniversary week in '87(?) handled it better.

30 minutes ago, Spoon said:

IIRC, the show claimed that despite Reva going through menopause that her cancer treatment reversed it(?). I believe Ellen Wheeler claimed that it could happen.

How many of the older women on soaps went through menopause? We know Reva had menopause because it was a big plot point. Rachel on AW was older but she didn't get menopause yet when she had Carl's twins.

Re: 1985. You had all the departures plus the loss of Charita Bauer. TPTB thought the cast was largely replaceable as long as they had her as the constant-- kinda like Jo on Search. They wanted to maintain an illusion that Bert was traveling (like Sally Specra on Bold) but fan demand rightfully caused them to change their mind. Unfortunately, by the time they addressed her passing- most of the people she was on with were gone.

They could have easily brought back Meta or Trudy - recasting Trudy and bringing on Ellen Demming if possible or recasting. They just didn't give a damn.

Nora on OLTL was peri-menopausal before she got pregnant the next year.

I'd never heard that Wheeler said that about Reva. Maybe it happens, I don't know, but I think she should have just said, "It's a soap."

I googled it, technically Reva had Peri-menopause (un-completed menopause) where women can still give birth. Still silly.

P&G would carry some existing contracts from their cancelled show (Sharon Gabet, Libby Larson, Harley Jane Kozak(sp), Larkin Malloy, David Forsythe). They should've moved Mary Stuart right over to GL as either Meta or Trudy after SFT was canned. Maybe Marcia McCabe as Hope.

Edited 3 hours ago3 hr by Spoon

1 hour ago, Spoon said:

P&G would carry some existing contracts from their cancelled show (Sharon Gabet, Libby Larson, Harley Jane Kozak(sp), Larkin Malloy, David Forsythe).

I read an article where Sharon Gabet said she had the opportunity to move either to AW or OLTL, and she made the choice to stay with P&G after EON. Which makes me wonder why on earth GL never thought to bring her over, especially when they cast Larkin Malloy. The two of them were very good friends and said in interviews they never had as good chemistry with anyone else.

Not necessarily bring her in as Maeve (ugh, boring). I always thought she would have been a good recast for Rita. With Alan off the canvas at the time, she could have gone after the Daddy Deeppockets who took his place. Might have spiced things up a little during that dreadful period.

1 hour ago, Spoon said:

P&G would carry some existing contracts from their cancelled show

That explains the Texas invasion in the Kobe/Long era.

1 minute ago, kalbir said:

That explains the Texas invasion in the Kobe/Long era.

I do wonder how this worked as Lisby Larson joined GL almost three years after Texas ended. Would her contract have held that long?

@DRW50 That I don't know, but I thought P&G carrying contracts would explain the actors moving among the shows.