Guiding Light discussion thread

[Paul Raven]

From what I have read of consultants, they are simply there to offer advice and opinions that are not necessarily followed up on.

 

It's a lucrative job for them.

 

It's another long standing tradition, like focus groups, that TPTB believe to be necessary or useful for whatever reason.

 

As for 'the Bells' being the real consultants, I don't believe they have had any control or influence for many years.

[JarrodMFiresofLove]

 

I think there's a lot of misinformation and correcting on these boards instead of insightful discussion and exchange of ideas.

 

The Bells still own a large stake in Y&R. Sony has the larger share, but the Bells are still financially involved. You can be sure that Kay Alden's suggestions were meant to carry forward what the Bells wanted to happen with the storytelling and overall tone of the show. The problem is that the executive producer, Mal Young, got rid of his first head writer (Chuck Pratt), then got rid of his next head writer (Sally Sussman) and took over the writing himself. So as a writer-executive producer he had more power than those other head writers. Alden could serve no purpose with him unless he was receptive to her ideas but he wasn't because he intended to start moving the show in a new direction with Sony's approval.

 

Consultants on soaps work best if they are not part of the "old guard" resisting change. They have to still be cutting edge, working in tandem with the head writer to make sure the show stays relevant, innovative and adapts to changing times and cultural values.

Edited November 26, 2018 by JarrodMFiresofLove

[Vee]

 

And I'm telling you that much of the time in the last 20 years a lot of those "consultants" were ignored unless they were network stakeholders like Brian Frons, Barbara Bloom or Angelica McDaniel. When you say they're accountable to the consultants, you're saying these writers' work has to get past them to air. It very regularly did without approval from many of the people who had a glorified title. 

 

 

The Bells have very, very little involvement with Y&R today. They are not controlling that show or its creative direction and have not in a number of years, going as far back as perhaps Lynn Marie Latham. This has been widely reported for over a decade. If you believe otherwise you are deeply misinformed.

 

This sums up your posting history well.

Edited November 26, 2018 by Vee

[victoria foxton]

Interesting Roxie looks like she was already starting to lose it. Roxie singing  Lullaby and Goodnight to herself. As Johnny was going to commit suicide, flying the plane was eerie. I'm not a fan of Roxie & Johnny. But Johnny's throat cancer had more depth than the Valere nonsense. I like Jeva being apart. Reva involved with Alan. While Josh was with Sonni. The fiery passion Pam Long wrote GL was in full effect in the Oct episodes. 

 

Edited November 28, 2018 by victoria foxton

[Franko]

Over on the soap hoppers thread, it was revealed Sarah Michelle Geller played flower girls on both EON and GL. While I didn't have any luck finding her on the former, here's what I'm taking as proof she appeared on the latter. Also, please drink in the opulence of this affair.

 

Edited November 28, 2018 by Franko

[Khan]

 

Of all the sanctimonious things that people have said on this board over the years, this really takes the metaphorical cake.  It's also laughable as hell, because if anyone's misinforming and/or correcting others around here, it's you.  As if you had any knowledge at all of the BTS pecking order at these shows, which you clearly do not.

 

Honestly, why in God's name are you still here?  Didn't you threaten to go away and not come back not too long ago?  What made you turn back?  Was it the fact that the rest of the world didn't give a damn about you or ill-informed opinions either?

 

Since our repeated demands that the 'Ignore Users' feature on SON be fixed continue to go unheard, I'll just come right out and say it: get lost.  Seriously.  Take your ignorant, self-serving, holier-than-thou ass and go, you literal waste of space.

 

 

No, he's not "deeply misinformed."  He's a fool and a damn liar -- and if there's a God in Heaven, and a genuine moderator at the SON switches, he'll soon be one less jackass we have to tolerate.

Edited November 28, 2018 by Khan

[Soaplovers]

 

It's interesting that the seeds of Roxie's eventually breakdown started in the fall of 1987.  I always thought having Roxie go crazy was kind of a cop out but the actress decided to up and quit.. so I guess Long couldn't write out Roxie as dumping Johnny since the character was too devoted/true blue to Johnny so I guess having her have a breakdown made sense storywise.  Why the show never thought to have her recover and come visit I'll never understand (though in 1990, Long had written that Roxie was recovering and making progress so Johnny broke things off with Chelsea to go be with her... but future writers had her still in mental hospitals up till 2002 at least).  I liked Roxie/Reva's sisterly relationship much better than the Cassie/Reva one that the show kept trying to push down our throats.  

 

While Reva/Roxie both suffered from mental illness issues... I always saw Roxie as being warmer, full of spirit, and not a social climber like Reva was.  I wish Long and other writers made more of a point of showing how Roxie/Reva differed from one another.

 

[Mitch]

Yea, I found the Reva/Cassie relationship as annoying as hell, but then, I HATED Cassie and wasn't to fond of PostResurrection Reva either.  Besides that I think the main thing was the Roxie wasn't as shrill as Reva, who became self-righteous in her old age by the time Cassie came along, and Cassie owned the title of the self entitled cheerleader who could be sweet as pie until she didn't get her way. The two of them together were too much. ( I loved when they brought Vanessa back for the anniversary and Cassie was glaring at her and Van strutted by with her old elegant "Couldnt be concerned with the trash"way. )

 

I think that Roxie acted like a scrappy young woman with not the greatest self esteem, and Wright never came off as the down on her heels former stripper. I never understood why they made Cassie a heroine..she would have been so much better as a trashy social climber who found herself in the lap of luxury being related to the Lewises.  Wrights natural shrillness would have worked if they just didn't act like she floated on a cloud all the time, even Reva would get a kick in the ass from the other characters but no one said a word to or about Cassie. Though, I think those bar afternoons Wright got with E & B helped them see Cassie in a certain way. I do think that they could have turned her with the mercy killing of Richard, where she becomes estranged from Reva and the Lewises and goes dark. I would imagine Wright would have liked the challenge.

[JarrodMFiresofLove]

 

My favorite GL story of all time, the mercy killing of Richard. I loved all how all the fairy tale romance stuff of San Christobel led to that, and how it drove a wedge between the two sisters. Millee Taggart wrote it. The episode where Reva helped Richard die was heartbreaking. Then when Cassie found out. Soap gold. Giving Richard's heart to the similarly named Rick seemed to have a fitting irony.

 

 

 

 

 

There was nothing to keep later head writers from recasting the role of Roxy, after enough time had passed, if actress Kristy Farrell wasn't interested in returning. But when Esensten & Harmon Brown introduced Cassie and Cassie took off with viewers, it probably made Roxy redundant and unnecessary to the show's ongoing drama with Reva. All she really needed was one brother and one sister.

 

I think a mistake later writers made is that Reva had kids outside her marriage to Josh (like Dylan and Jonathan) but Josh did not. It would have been interesting if they'd given Josh a child outside their marriage, If not with Sonni, then we could have found out Tangie had a kid of his after she'd left Springfield. Or that Annie/Teri gave birth to a child in the nuthouse. Or they could have said Josh had fathered a kid with some other chick during his wilder younger days in Springfield before Reva showed up. Not having a kid of his own gave him less drama to play. In the later years we typically had Reva stories about HER kids, with Josh there as more of a supporting character, instead of a story or relationship that was just all about Josh.

[vetsoapfan]

 

Yes, that is right.

 

Going back to at least the 1960s, consultants on the soaps have been paid quite handsomely for offering their opinions and advice, even though TPTB who run the shows on a daily basis have not necessarily followed through and used their ideas or input. Irna Phillips, William J. Bell, Harding Lemay and other giants of the industry have consulted on various soaps but had their ideas dismissed or reworked by the daily show runners. If these legendary talents can be "ignored," any other consultants could surely be, as well.

[Mitch]

 

 

I remember that at the time, TPTB told them to "Make GL..GL again" for the anniversary. I think Taggert really went to town bringing back Ed, Alex, and having Eddie be pissed off at the Bauers...and I don't think the heart transplant story line was ironic, I think Taggert was saying, "Were putting the heart of GL back where it belongs..." Too bad that great year went to [!@#$%^&*] and its all because of MADD as usual.

 

Josh having a kid would be great and I would have ignored Jonathon..because her missing years and San Crud were all really stupid and totally took the earthy character of Reva and made her..something else.  Josh having a hellion from Soni....(when she fell of the cliff she was preggers, left the baby at the convent as she didn't know it it was Josh or Will's ) and her really giving Reva hell. I know the focus was always to give Zimmer the scenes but she was best when she pulled it in and seeing Josh have a kid that had "nothing to do with her" for once, and the kid was the offspring of her old enemy could have given Zimmer good stuff to chew on.  The male hellion would have been Peter Reardon to take Jonathon's place.

[JarrodMFiresofLove]

 

Yes, it would have worked best if it was a child Josh had with Sonni, a boy. He could have come to Springfield in the 2000s with a huge chip on his shoulder against Josh. To get revenge, he could have seduced Reva. Then there would have been this great new triangle of Reva with two Lewis men again (father and son) which could have referenced the earlier stuff with H.B. and Josh. So she would have slept with grandfather, son and grandson. That would've been wild. If they could have brought Sonni back, even better-- with her pushing her son to seduce Reva, so she (Sonni) could get her hooks into Josh again. Then you get the other two, Marah and Shayne, reacting and playing off all this.

[Soaplovers]

 

I kind of disagree with Roxie being redundant and unnecessary because of the Cassie/Reva sibling relationship.  Roxy was more the type to be open and accepting while Reva was always on guard and eyed anyone with caution.. so I could have seen Roxy coming for visits.. bonding with Cassie while Reva feeling left out.. and we all know how Reva hates to be left out and not the center of attention.  Plus, early Cassie was very rough around the edges and cynical like early Reva was.. so I could have seen Reva/Cassie butting heads because they too alike.  

 

And I do agree it is surprising Josh never fathered a child with anyone other than Reva.. given how much of a ladies man he was when he first came to town in 1981... I do agree that there was a period where Sonni was thought dead so I could have seen Sonni perhaps having a child and in her Solita personality given the child up... and that could explain why even though Sonni had been treated for the split personality.. she felt ill at ease staying in Springfield because of the guilt of giving her and Josh's child up (and could have tied into that open ended final scene questioning if Sonni had been Sonni.. or was Solita the whole time).

[j swift]

I always thought that both the casting and characterization for Jonathan were poorly executed.  Here's a kid who was born on a fairy tale island, the son of Prince Richard and Reva, raised by Olivia's sister in the Midwest.  So, why was he long-haired motorcycle jacketed thug who looked ten years younger than his father?  

 

The whole idea that he was seeking revenge because of his childhood abuse made no sense because why would he blame Reva (who had amnesia) and not Olivia or Richard?  Also, if Edmund was threatening her baby while she was the princess, why didn't Reva have any agency over him getting punished?  Why didn't Olivia check in on the progress of Jonathan as he grew up?  Why didn't the Royals give the Randalls a lot of money to raise the prince in order to ensure a good education?  Weren't they ever going to bring him back to the throne? 

 

Overall, it lacked logic that Jonathan's main motive was Mommy-issues rather than wanting to run a kingdom.

[Khan]

Remember when Josh left SF because he thought he spotted Reva, who was still presumed dead, in some sort of travel video?  Did they ever explain that loose end when Robert Newman came back to the show?