Guiding Light Discussion Thread

[DRW50]

Thanks. Maybe it plays more in the summaries.

[P.J.]

True enough--I forgot that weird period when ATWT aired from 1230 to 130.

[Paul Raven]

Found this tidbit in a 1970 newspaper report on soaps.

When heart transplants were in the headlines, "Guiding Light" quickly had one of its characters undergo a successful operation. It was found that the subject was painful and gimmicky and the completely recovered character was unrealistic. He was quickly dispatched by having his plane disappear on an overseas flight: accidents are great conveniences in serials.

When Bill Bauer returned I'm sure the heart transplant was forgotten. Although, it could have been used as a reason for Bill faking his death. He could have believed he was dying anyway so when the opportunity arose he took it. I have read that a lot of those early recipients had issues after the transplant and difficulty mentally. That could have been used for Bill to explain his motives eg not thinking clearly/depressed. Also he could have claimed to have access to new drugs and other treatments while missing that prolonged his life.

[Reverend Ruthledge]

Interesting. Thanks for sharing. At the risk of being highly pedantic (which I've come to accept over the years), Bill's plane was not "overseas" but I wouldn't expect completevaccuracy in that article or anyone to know or care about the error. 

The problem I had with Bill faking his death was that the main struggle the character had over his 21 years of story before the plane crash was being tortured by his conscience when it came to his family obligations. Even when he tried to separate from Bert to be with women he loved more, he would always go back home because of his sense of responsibility. Bill was constantly trying to deny himself and his desires for the sake of family. I just can't buy that he would suddenly be ok with them all thinking he was dead to run off to be with another woman. Especially Papa and Mike (who he was very close to). He cared too much about family. To his personal detriment. 

[Khan]

I agree with @Reverend Ruthledge and with @Paul Raven: it didn't make much sense for Bill to let his family think he had died just so he could live in Canada with another woman.  Was Hillary conceived before he was presumed dead, though?  If so, then maybe Bill was afraid to let them know of his child on the outside.

[Reverend Ruthledge]

Well, soap timelines are screwy as you know but, if one were to look at it from a realistic perspective, yes, she was already conceived since the plane crash was in 1969 and Hillary was a grown woman when Bill came back from the dead in 1977. 

[Khan]

I guess that's the only way to justify Bill's motivation, lol?

[Reverend Ruthledge]

I still don't buy it. After all, Bert forgave Bill for his past infidelities with Gloria and Maggie and even befriended both women(albeit not closely). And she practically adopted Hillary when she found out about her. I just don't see the need for Bill to go to the drastic measure of faking his death and letting his whole Springfield family think he was dead. That's just a level of cruel and selfish that Bill never was. I just look at his back from the dead story as just hack, revisionist writing. Which I MIGHT have forgiven if they brought Bill back for good. I just didn't see any purpose in it except to introduce Hillary. But they could have done that without Bill having faked his death and come back from the dead. Why bring Bill back just to have him hang around for a few months and then disappear? As much as I loved the character, I wish he really would have died in 1969. 

[Mona Kane Croft]

I was only about 9-years old when Bill had the heart transplant, but even then I knew this was not a wise storyline for such an important character. Back then, it was well known that heart transplant survivors lived in a weakened state for their remaining years (unlike today, which is a very different circumstance).  And I knew the writers were not capable of writing the reality of a heart transplant patient, nor would the audience want to watch Bill (and actually the entire Bauer family) living that reality.  It was not a terrible idea to do a heart transplant plot, but they should have chosen another, less important character.  And then perhaps they could have played out the aftermath a bit more believably. Had TPTB chosen another character, Bill probably would not have been killed off in 1969.  

Edited February 24 by Mona Kane Croft

[DRW50]

Rest in peace, Roberta Flack. One of my favorite singers and one of my favorite soaps. I miss them both.

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They should have kept him around in some capacity. I think the reason given for his being written out so quickly was fans being extremely angry about the storyline.

[TEdgeofNight]

Huge thanks to Jill Farren Phelps for bringing on Roberta Flack for Hamp & Gilly’s wedding. 

[Mitch64]

Ha... I think they were looking for Kyle's flared nostrils to find a place to hide their contraband....(if they even had contraband..who the hell knows...) 

I think the Mindy wedding was just a jumping off point for the "New GL" totally written around the Lewis family and Reva.  What did they think they could do with Kurt and Mindy after this and God I hope their big idea was not to have them argue over her role as the "Sampson Girl" (to promote what..what did Sampson Industries actually produce???) Poor Kurt was just introduced in the worst way, Married to Amnesiac Prostitute Roxie, then, with a speargun  forcing Reva and Kyle to jump out of an airplane..with Reva in full mink just to land in an Amish barn..Mark Lewis was so cute, but WTH?

[P.J.]

If the goal was to focus more on Mindy (my guess being they knew Judi would test other waters) they could've at least gotten her a costar she had an ounce of chemistry with. Kurt was pretty to look at, but not interesting in the least.

[DRW50]

I never understood what the urgency was in breaking her up with Rick and pairing them with other people. I know there have been claims of some issues between actors in that group, but I don't remember ever hearing of any between Krista and Michael. Was Long just trying to make sure her creations had more of a following, given that Rick and Mindy were both popular with viewers? 

It doesn't even seem like Kurt was on all that long. When I read synopses, it goes from their marriage to Mindy burning down the house to him dying in Venezuela in what seems like less than two years. 

[P.J.]

I don't know either. On one hand, I could understand not wanting them tied down in their first adult romance, but it seems they just got derailed trying to sell Roxie as the latest golden Shayne hoo-ha. 

Kurt was on less than two years. He didn't start until March of '85, and he's gone before November of '86.