Guiding Light Discussion Thread

[FrenchFan]

Thanks for the classic upload ! Will read more about Kathy's story. She went through a lot !

[vetsoapfan]

As he grew into his late teens, Joey left for a life in the military, and never returned home.

Thanks @DRW50 for the link. These vintage eps always make me feel like I'm watching old home movies; very comforting.

Edited July 28, 2023 by vetsoapfan

[DRW50]

No problem. You provide so much for fans, it's the least you deserve. 

I wonder if they ever even mentioned Joey in Meta's last years on the show. (I mean as Ellen Deming)

[vetsoapfan]

Thank you for your kind words.

After Joey left, I don't remember him being referred to much, if at all, on the show. Particularly once Aunt Meta became involved with and married Bruce Banning.

When Mary Stuart took over the role of Meta, I really hoped that TPTB would study up on the character's history and reintroduce Joey and his offspring to the show. It would give Meta an expanded family (God knows, the Bauers had mostly been hacked away by then), but when Meta showed up in Springfield, no one even mentioned Bruce Banning or what had happened to him. Yet another dead husband for Meta, I suppose. I doubt TPTB at the time even knew who Joey was.

 

 

[Liberty City]

@DRW50 Amazing find with that episode! Thank you so much!

[Sapounopera]

Thank you so much @DRW50!

[Soaplovers]

Kathy was the heavy/anti heroine of the soap in the 50s.  From what I have 4ead, apparently Irna Phillips grew tired of the character and killed her off in the late 50s.

However, it would have been interesting to see how her character would have fared in the 60s especially with the teen romance between her daughter Robin and Meta's nephew Mike that happened...maybe Robin would have given Kathy as much grief as Kathy gave Meta.

[bboy875]

Great episode! Thanks! 

[dc11786]

Potential mystery solved regarding the July 10, 1952 episode. A newspaper article from July 1, 1952 lists the original TV cast of "Guiding Light" as:

Jone Allison as Meta, Herb Nelson (as Joe Roberts), Susan Douglas (as Kathy Roberts), Lyle Sudrow (as Bill Bauer), Charita Bauer (as Bertha Bauer), Theo Goetz (as Papa Bauer), Anne Marie Gayer, Bill Redfield, Ed Prentiss (as Richard Grant), Alice Yourman (as Laura Grant), Florine Seres, Santos Ortega, Anne Burr (as Gloria LaRue), and Phil Sterling (as Sid Harper). 

Some of this is easy to identify and I added in the names. It would seem that Anne Marie Gayer is the actress playing Trudy. 

https://www.gettyimages.co.nz/detail/news-photo/portrait-of-cbs-radio-actress-anne-marie-gayer-she-performs-news-photo/1163382053

Soap Central has Anne Burr and Phil Sterling appearing later in the year as Gloria and Sid, but it seems safe to say they are there at the beginning as Meta says she is going to see them. I also have a late August, 1952, episode description that says that Sid is excited about Alice Graham so Sid sticks around and we know that Gloria's infatuation with Bill Bauer seems to be receding by January, 1953, so I imagine Sid and Gloria return with Meta or shortly after. 

Ed Prentiss and Alice Yourman are seen in the 1953 episodes as Richard and Laura Grant so I imagine they are here, but I just don't know what there story would be. 

The bigger guessing game is the remaining actors: Florine Seres, Bill Redfield, and Santos Ortega. I'm gonna wager a guess that Florine Seres may be Alice. Similarly, I'd venture a guess that Bill Redfield is the actor playing Bob Lang as it is established during the trial that Bob and Kathy married around Labor Day. Despite what it is said online, Dick Grant does not seem to be present. I thought Redfield might be playing Dick, but I found an November, 1953, article describing the episode in which Kathy told Dick about Bob Lang being Robin's father and Kathy states she hadn't heard from Dick in six months when she married Bob. My only other guess is Redfield is Joey Roberts. I'm wondering if Santos Ortega is playing Dr. Bruce Banning, who would have appeared in the episode prior to the one that is online. If not Bruce, maybe the editor at the City Times John "Mac" McIntyre, who I think is referenced in the 1953 episodes online by Joe at one point.  

Edited July 29, 2023 by dc11786

[slick jones]

@dc11786 I shared this with a friend that used to write for SOD about histories, and he shared this.

Fascinating! I saw the guy who played Mac in an old tape and he was kind of a fat guy who doesn't match the descriptions here. I suspect Billy Redfield played Bob Lang.

 

Other speculations from the early years are that Nat Polen ( @Paul Raven discovered he played a reporter), the writer believes this was Don Crane, 

Don Crane   ????   1952  muckraking reporter that knew Joe Roberts

Carl Low may have been Clyde Palmer, at least in 1952.

 

Clyde Palmer    Married Gertrude ""Trudy" Bauer and moved to                                       New York City

                               ?????  1952

                            ?????  1957-58

Dr. Bruce Banning was played by Les Damon from 1952 - 55.  There's a magazine article from 1952 somewhere in my memory or facebook storage, but he may have come in after another actor, like Ortega.

As for Joey Roberts, Tarry Green is reported to have been the only actor, save a brief replacement by Richard Holland.

Joe "Joey" Roberts  

                      Tarry Green    1952-56

                      Richard Holland  1953 (Temporary)

Clyde and Crane are just speculation so far.

For Alice Graham, our historian told me that Jean Gillespie played the role, but she, too, could have been a replacement.

Anne Marie Gayer:

Radio

THE GUIDING LIGHT Gertrude "Trudy": Bauer Palmer 1951

Gloria LaRue Harper 1952-53

Anne Burr likely originated the role of Gloria for a stint in 1952. 

[DRW50]

@dc11786 @slick jones Thanks for the added info. I never knew who that Trudy was. There were claims she was Helen Wagner, which never made a great deal of sense. Did Helen play Trudy in episodes we haven't seen, or did she never play her? 

I never will understand why the show just decided Trudy didn't exist. 

[slick jones]

@DRW50

Here's what I have as far as Trudy goes:

Gertrude "Trudy" Bauer Palmer    Sister of Bill and Meta; married Clyde and moved to New York City

                     Laurette Fillbrandt  (Radio only)   1948 - 49

                      Charlotte Holland  (Radio Only)  1949 - 51

                          Anne Marie Geyer (Radio Only)   1951   

                                 Helen Wagner    1952  (?? Radio Only)

                                     Lisa Howard  1957-58

According to SoapCentral, (Whose Guiding Light info is notoriously known for fanfic stories) Wagner left before the show doubled up and was on both radio and television. 

Didn't realize I had McIntyre:

John "Mac" McIntyre     Arnold Robertson   1953    boss  Don Crane and Joe Roberts

Edited July 30, 2023 by slick jones

[DRW50]

Thanks @slick jones 

Given that Geyer was on TV, I do wonder if Helen may have been as well, but I guess we'll never know.

[dc11786]

@slick jones Thanks for sharing. I think any early information about casting on the soaps needs to be called into questioned and examined. Clearly, we've been told for years that Helen Wagner was in the original television cast of the series, when this is clearly not true. The ninth television broadcast episode is there and it is clearly not Wagner. The picture isn't clear, but there seems to be a familiar close resemblance between Anne Marie Gayer (who is credited as playing Trudy Bauer in 1951) and the actress playing Trudy in the TV episode. 

For Trudy's casting, this is what I have:

Gloria Grant (at least 1948) 

Laurette Fillbrandt (at least late 1948) [Fillbrandt suceeded Gloria Grant in the role]

Mary Patton (c. January 1950)

Anne Marie Gayer (1951, 1952)

I don't doubt Holland played the role, but I haven't seen her listed in the newspapers. She was definitely in the cast in June, 1951, but the way the shows reuse actors is wild. 

The radio casts change all the time. 

re: Joey Roberts

I found a picture in the paper from November, 1952 of Tarry Green as Joey. The character is described as a 16 year old. Green looks younger. There was also a picture of the Roberts clan from February, 1953, as they prepare to send Joey off to military school. I find it hard to believe that nearly 32 year old Richard Holland is subbing as Joey and then they bring back Tarry Green. I suspect Holland either subbed on radio or was brought back to town when Joe Roberts died as a slightly older Joey. Either way, I suspect Tarry Green departs as Joey in the February, 1953, episode. He isn't mentioned much in the multiple 1953 episodes that are available online. 

re: Gloria and Bruce

Bruce is in the story as early as November 1951. I found an episode teaser stating that Joe has called Meta in New York to come back to Los Angeles, but Meta is intrigued by Bruce, a sophisticated doctor. 

Similarly, it would seem, based on the available story summaries, that Gloria was also around in 1951 as Gloria and Bill's initial emotional affair proceeds Gloria's TV career which is happening in 1952. 

[DRW50]

I wish there were some radio episodes with Geyer available to listen to - that would be more confirmation, or close enough. 

The 5/13/54 episode on Youtube has Meta on the phone talking to Joey's fiancee, Lois, saying they will marry in June once Joe's service is up. Given how incomplete material is for those years, I wonder if the two of them ever showed up for visits.

Edited July 30, 2023 by DRW50