Guiding Light Discussion Thread

[Liberty City]

Yes, that user is amazing. IF you're in the Dusay years, you can likely watch this:

[Maxim]

Thank you! I am watching about 3-4 episodes a night - up to October 1993. 

 

[Liberty City]

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[Contessa Donatella]

If you are ever interested in the Minority Rapport on Ellen Wheeler's tenure, I am always around. 

[Maxim]

Good to know I can count on you! 

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[Contessa Donatella]

I have been told that this is actually the former "Bandstand Mike". Because of his years of full episodes of GL this great show used to be the best represented on YT but then they were all zapped in a purge. And, if you ever see this person advertise Hard Drives full of GL episodes for sale, do not send them any money because they scammed people before & would again. Watch all you want but do not buy. At any rate I am delighted he has decided to re-upload. 

I've been enjoying GL again through this YT user. 

Such fun that we keep running into one another in thread after thread. 

[Maxim]

Thank you for this heads up. I have already downloaded everything from this channel on an old hard drive to have as a backup if episodes start missing. I have been, in the past, a victim of not downloading when I had the chance... I remember a time when there were many All my children episodes and just when I started watching, everything was deleted. So this time I have backed up. hope they stay online and there are even more episodes from the 80s up in the future. As in buying episodes, I don't plan to do this, since scammers have tried to scam me in the past with episodes.  

 

 

P.S You are this forum's talisman. What will we do without you!

Edited January 24, 2024 by OpportunisticSlut

[Contessa Donatella]

I just like to warn people. In his case people knew that he actually did have the episodes so likely they felt safe trying to make the purchase. I think he was charging $200 per 50meg HD and he had two to "sell." So right there that is a lot for people to be scammed out of! OUCH. 

It's nice that I have some fans because I definitely also have my detractors. It's all okay. 

[GL Oldtimer]

I agree that the episodes posted on YouTube by "Blake Marler" have absolutely been a Godsend. I watched Guiding Light in realtime from mid-1989 to about 1999, and it's been such a treat to revisit the years I originally watched. As I've said before on this board, I'm a big Roger and Holly fan and I think the early 1990s were some of the best years for these two characters. Now that I've been rewatching some of these years, I also felt the show had a nice balance of romance, mystery, scandal, drama, and comedy. Also, no one character seemed to really have the spotlight, at least not from my perspective from 1989 through 1993. I do think things started to shift a bit in 1994 when there was a lot of attention paid to Buzz. Regardless, it truly has been fun to rewatch episodes from over 30 years ago. I also admire actors like Michael Zaslow, Maureen Garrett, and Beverlee McKinsey so much more now than I did as a teenager because I can really see all of the nuances they brought to their work and characters. Soap opera actors truly don't get the credit they deserve.

I've seen glimpses of the show from when Ellen Wheeler took over and introduced Peapack, but I find it a tough watch. I don't have much to add from what people on this board have already said about those years, but from someone who didn't watch the show then, I can appreciate that there was an attempt to save the show by trying new things. However, in my opinion, the production values and the storylines from what I have seen from the Wheeler era are so poor, that I found it hard to stay engaged with the characters. 

Annette

Edited January 25, 2024 by GL Oldtimer

[Contessa Donatella]

Given that the two main storylines were Otalia and Jami that is so hard for me to hear. But, anyway, that's not the reason I am posting. 

For anyone who has not seen it, here is a link to the best Beverlee McKinsey interview, "City Lights", a Canadian talk show. 

https://www.facebook.com/shallotpeel/videos/922613816201111/?idorvanity=3144711669180711&notif_id=1706131203227089&notif_t=video_processed&ref=notif

 

This is at or near the end of TEXAS, so before Pam Long created Alexandra for her. 

[Maxim]

The show really did look bad during the final years. Believe it or not, I didn't know it wasn't always like that and that was a part of me not wanting to try this soap out. I had watched some very badly shot scenes that looked like a bad reality television and though wow this looks like it was made from high schoolers with their phones. But when I opened the 1992 playlist and started watching.. it really blew me away how prime and how beautiful the show looked and felt. Why did they allow this horrible reality tv type of shooting.. Who's idea it was... it was BAD. 

[Contessa Donatella]

First CBS asked Bill Bell in public to create a new soap to replace GL. Bill Bell wisely stayed out of it. P&G and CBS fought until they reached the point that P&G said do anything as long as you don't cancel us & CBS handed down changes to both ATWT & to GL. For GL that's where the "new production model" came from. However, at the same time budgets were slashed & CBS didn't assist in implementing, so GL was on their own. That's the nutshell version. If Ellen Wheeler had not done what she did, GL would've been off the air 4 years before it was. 

[Maxim]

What a sad story.

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 It's sad what the soaps have come to... to survive. 

[Mitch64]

That makes no sense..PG wanted to get out of soaps for years...why would they say, "Don't cancel us" when they wanted to [!@#$%^&*] can the shows, AND they could blame CBS.  

Regardless, I wish they would have just said, "Give us a year and we will wrap both up" and did so with class and respect. I think trading the shows cancellation for Peacock is a no brainer..except for those people who would loose their jobs. 

Also, since they mentioned Marj just taking over..she was much better at the beginning..maybe they were still writing for Bev...and she had a different energy but she was good..for a while. 

[Contessa Donatella]

P&G didn't even begin to divest themselves of household domestic products until 2000 & that would be the first they'd have seriously thought about not having soaps to advertise those products on. I don't believe that there was any interest on their part in getting out of soaps "for years". If that were so why did they fight tooth-and-nail so hard with NBC trying to keep AW on the air? And, AW's end was end of June 1999. CBS pulled the stunt in public in 1995 & there was fall-out from it in 1996. P&G continued to have the position MADD held, Exec in Chrg of Production until ... well after 2000, I'd have to look it up.

So, you're saying I make no sense. Right back atcha. And, when this stuff happened 95/96 it was right after P&G had two old-timers retire, which is why CBS thought they could pull a stunt & get P&G in a disadvantageous position. 

Peacock? Peapack NJ?