Guiding Light Discussion Thread

[DRW50]

I also would have given it to Beaty of the three.

JFP did know how to use her ties/good will. AW won a number of Emmys when she produced the show.

[P.J.]

i certainly would never have picked Deas over Zaslow for anything. But so much depended on what's submitted, not to mention the mood of the panel that day. Zaslow I believe won the next year.  Ain't no one crying that perpetual noms Bergman and Canary lost.

And JvD deserved his back-to-back wins. Screw some flash in the pan in a socially relevant tear-jerker story.

FYI: in the "you probablly don't really want to remember this" file, Ross slept with Meredith Reade in between Vanessa and Amanda. Y'all really should warn a person. 

Edited June 23, 2024 by P.J.

[kalbir]

Michael Zaslow got his only Lead Actor Emmy in 1994 and was nominated in 1992, 1993, 1995. He deserved more wins than the one he got.

These were the 1992-1994 races

1992: Peter Bergman (winner), David Canary, Nicolas Coster, A Martinez, Michael Zaslow

1993: Peter Bergman, David Canary (winner), Mark Derwin, A Martinez, Robert S. Woods, Michael Zaslow

1994: Peter Bergman, Charles Keating, Peter Simon, Robert S. Woods, Michael Zaslow (winner)

It was speculated that P&G did not submit very good episodes for MZ in 1992 and 1993, thus the losses. I would have had him win in 1992 for the country club episodes and for the episode where Roger tells Holly that he still loves her. I also think he should have been nominated and possibly win in 1991 for the Acapulco episodes.

Edited June 23, 2024 by kalbir

[P.J.]

Da fug? Derwin was nom'd for 93? FOJ status...SMHj

[DRW50]

I don't really let things like this on soaps bother me, but given that Ross was often Philip's father figure, and Ross was best friends with Rick's father, knowing they all slept with the same woman is...something.

[kalbir]

I didn't think much of Mark Derwin acting when he was on Y&R so I was surprised he became so popular on GL, first winning Hottest Male Star at the 1993 SOD Awards over Antonio Sabato Jr. and Robert Kelker-Kelly, then being nominated for Lead Actor at the Daytime Emmys that same year. We know Mark Derwin became a Friend of Jill as she brought him on One Life to Life.

Edited June 23, 2024 by kalbir

[P.J.]

It's just odd. Granted, I skipped like the first half of 87, so it seems to come out of nowhere. Ross has broken it off with Vanessa, but Vanessa pivots back one final time (on Dinah's plea) before getting in deeper with Alan, and she shows up at Ross' to have Meredith wrapped in a sheet interrupt them. For a guy who doesn't get a lot of action---Ross certainly gets a lot of action.

Considering how many women Alan/Philllip shared, it doesn't exactly bother me. It's the randomness. I'm not sure Vanessa even knows who it is. (and let's face it, Reva/Blake/Harley making the rounds of family members makes it look way tame). 

I don't quite get it either. And LEAD to boot. AFAIC, (and I'll admit my bias) that Jordan Clarke never got a Lead nom is a crime. And honestly, Peter Simon. As dour as I think his Ed is, 93 should've been a shoe in for a nom.

[MichaelGL]

They really tried to make that Meredith Reade character work didn't they? Wonder what Pam Long was trying to go for in writing for her? Seemed like towards the end of her run they tried to make her similar to Rita Stapleton.

It does suck that Clarke never got a Lead Nom (although I was soooo happy for him to win in 2006, one of the few positives to come out of Wheeler's tenure) along with McKinsey never winning a Emmy at all. All in all GL's cast was undervalued by the Emmy panel for decades. 

[Contessa Donatella]

I can't help wondering if she had allowed her name to be entered into the competition while at GL, possibly, she'd have one now. 

[kalbir]

Beverlee McKinsey not being nominated for her work on GL is the most egregious error by the Daytime Emmys. She could have easily won multiple Emmys, especially in the early 1990s when the Lead Actress races I thought were rather weak. 

I already pointed out Michael Zaslow deserving more Lead Actor wins than the one he got. Also Maureen Garrett had three nominations for Supporting Actress but the years she was nominated (1991, 1992, 1994) those races were tough.

GL did pull off the biggest upset in Daytime Emmy history with Cynthia Watros winning Lead Actress in 1998, in the sense that a rookie beat four 15+ year veterans.

[P.J.]

Or was she trying to make Fletcher relevant? God knows how long they would've hung on to Leslie Denniston if she hadn't wanted out. 

In my mind, Billy vs Roger was a classic rivalry.  I wish we'd gotten more of it. (I'm not dismissing Alex/Roger, but after divorcing him, she turns around the next year and makes a deal with him) Billy was the only guy in town who a) wasn't on some level scared of Roger, and b) relished going after ol' Rog. It's a shame it got cut off due to some tragic real life circumstances.

I don't mean to dismiss anyone's else's lack of recoginition. GL was criminally under recognized for years. Other than Kim Zimmer, the emmys virtually ignored them in the 80s'. If it was block voting that got Maeve, Ellen, JvD and Zas their wins, IDC. The nom process had been broken for years. You won't ever convince me that Lucci or Sleszak deserved all those noms all those years.

 

Edited June 23, 2024 by P.J.

[chrisml]

I didn't care for JVD's submission for his second win. The first episode was so annoying, but obviously the panelists liked it. The supporting acting categories always have some of the most bizarre wins. 

As for GL, there were some egregious omissions. MY top omissions would be Michelle Forbes and Beverlee McKinsey not winning lead actress emmies. Yes, Susan Lucci hogged up a spot she didn't earn because most of her material throughout the years was incredibly shallow and one note (hence, her one win was something substantial). On the other hand, Erika Slezak deserved her noms except for the year that McKinsey submitted because even press at the time said Slezak had been supporting the last six months of that eligibility window. AW and GL were definitely "undernominated" in the mid to late eighties.

[P.J.]

talk about Emmy unfairness---Bryan Buffinton lost to the likes of Andrew Kavovit, Kristoff St John, Rick Hearst and Monti Sharp.

It is a shame that (arguably) Maureen Garrett's stiffest competition in 92 and 93 are her castmates Kinkead and Parker.

In my mind, every year between '84 to '92 should've been a slugfest between Bev and Elizabeth Hubbard. 

Edited June 23, 2024 by P.J.

[DRW50]

Maeve isn't one of those characters I can see staying around too long even if Leslie hadn't wanted to leave. The Fletcher pairing feels more like an attempt at keeping her around as at this point Fletcher had more ties to the canvas than she did. 

I can see Fletcher/Alex as an attempt at keeping Fletcher around.

[kalbir]

Michelle Forbes was nominated for Supporting Actress in 1990. The rest of the race was Julia Barr (winner), Mary Jo Catlett, Lynn Herring, Jess Walton.

That illustrates the inherent problem with the Younger categories, in that kids/teens are competing against grown adults.

Bryan Buffington was nominated for Younger Actor in 1990, 1991, 1993-1995, so he was 10, 11, 13-15. The winners in those years were Andrew Kavovit (19 in 1990), Rick Hearst (26 in 1991), Monti Sharp (26 in 1993), Roger Howarth (26 in 1994), Jonathan Jackson (13 in 1995).

Maureen Garrett wasn't nominated in 1993 when Ellen Parker won. 1991 Maureen lost to Jess Walton and the rest of the race was Darlene Conley, Jill Larson, Kathleen Widdoes. 1992 Maureen lost to Maeve Kinkead and the rest of the race was Darlene Conley, Linda Dano, Lynn Herring. 1993 Ellen won over Kimberlin Brown, Jane Elliot, Jill Larson, Tonja Walker. 1994 Maureen lost to Susan Haskell and the rest of the race was Signy Coleman, Hilary Edson, Sharon Wyatt.

In that 1984-1992 period, Erika Slezak and Kim Zimmer were dominating the Lead Actress races. I broke down Elizabeth Hubbard's losses in the As the World Turns thread.