What a performance from HBS:

I loved that storyline with Barbara/Tom/Margo. How lucky were CZP and HBS to work with Gregg Marx. Gawd..Gregg Marx is a total hunk! Too bad he left after he won the Emmy. I miss seeing him on tv.

I like all the actors who have played Tom, that I've seen, but I do think that Marx probably fit the bill of all Tom was supposed to be (handsome, all-American, funny, yet with feet of clay).

I love this clip too. The back and forth between Margo and Barbara is superb, the dialogue, the use of history. My favorite part is when Margo says Barbara truly is a designer, or when she says she has to leave before she throws up on Barbara.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYD0ulM82Gg

I like all the actors who have played Tom, that I've seen, but I do think that Marx probably fit the bill of all Tom was supposed to be (handsome, all-American, funny, yet with feet of clay).

I love this clip too. The back and forth between Margo and Barbara is superb, the dialogue, the use of history. My favorite part is when Margo says Barbara truly is a designer, or when she says she has to leave before she throws up on Barbara.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYD0ulM82Gg

Going to see it now. ...It doesnt hurt that the rumors were they couldnt stand each other.

I don't know very much about this Janice (I think she was married to Don, and didn't she have a sister or daughter named Alice who was played by Leslie Charleson?), but I like the way Nancy spits out her name like bad candy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycGhMfMWgUs&feature=related

The clip after this has Bob lighting up a smoke in the Hughes kitchen. Good luck seeing that on TV today. Perhaps Don Hastings could light one up and then crush it under his foot for ATWT's last scene.

Janice was in the story twice. She was an older woman involved with (and eventually marrying Don)Fiirst time round in 56/57 she was played by Virginia Dwyer -later Mary Matthews on AW.At that time Janice married Carl Whipple and left Oakdale.

In 1962,A now widowed Janice Turner Whipple(now played by Joyce Van Patten) returns to Oakdale with her two teenaged daughters, Debbie and Alice. Alice is a responsible young lady who briefly develops a crush on Donald Hughes; Debbie, however, is a "party girl" type who resents her mother's renewed romance with Don. Debbie is ultimately sent away to a strict boarding school after one wild late night too many.

Donald and Janice's renewed romance doesn't sit well with Nancy, but Chris gives his blessing to their marriage. So Donald and Janice finally marry, but Nancy's coldness toward Janice would cause a rift between her and Donald that would take years to mend. Donald and Janice soon left Oakdale.

It seems that when Don returned as a widower in 1966,his step daughter Alice(now played by Leslie Charleson)came back with him and stayed in town a short while.

Edited July 22, 201015 yr by Paul Raven

Thanks Paul!

A quick clip in this 50 Years of Soaps, from 1974. Nancy is cross because Jennifer wants to work outside the home, and Nancy feels this means she won't be doing enough for daughter Frannie. Bob seems to be playing devil's advocate. It's interesting because when I read Schemering's book I think he said Bob also objected. Anyway, Jennifer decided to stay at home.

Here's a longer clip of Lisa's "Robert Redford" line to Joyce. It's bitchy goodness. Eileen Fulton could throw barbs like few others. I'd never seen Joyce before -- she seems like a mess.

I love all of this. Poor Anne Sward, you can see how emotional she is at the end.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRM84dxzdy0

Thanks Paul!

A quick clip in this 50 Years of Soaps, from 1974. Nancy is cross because Jennifer wants to work outside the home, and Nancy feels this means she won't be doing enough for daughter Frannie. Bob seems to be playing devil's advocate. It's interesting because when I read Schemering's book I think he said Bob also objected. Anyway, Jennifer decided to stay at home.

I forgot that clip was in that set. It truly gives me hope that there's more out there than we know! I just have to see more.

Thanks Paul!

A quick clip in this 50 Years of Soaps, from 1974. Nancy is cross because Jennifer wants to work outside the home, and Nancy feels this means she won't be doing enough for daughter Frannie. Bob seems to be playing devil's advocate. It's interesting because when I read Schemering's book I think he said Bob also objected. Anyway, Jennifer decided to stay at home.

Wow, Nancy was a total biotch in that clip...Bob looked like a total wuss at 45 years old not telling his mother to mind her own business. In Lemay's book he talks about another shows "matriach," and how he thought it was so odd that she would meddle in her grown children's lives and still be considered one of Irna's "saints." I think it had to be Nancy and that was one of the reasons he created Liz Matthews, meddling mother, buttinsky and actually considered a pain in the ass by all the other characters! I can also kind of see why the Dobsons didnt want to write for her, coming off of kind, forgiving, and warm Bert Bauer to write this stoic woman would have been hard. Though it would have been interesting to see a writer send Nancy on an evolution as she softened up and realized that she couldnt control everyone. It was like, the Dobsons wouldnt write for her, she left, they brought back, she was full of vinegar, and then Marland came on and she turned into a sweet grandmother overnight.

Funny though that the clip with Nancy and the show was being topical without having one of those Agnes Nixon/Doug Marland socially relevant (i.e. boring ) storylines. I remember my mom (who LOVED Nancy Hughes) who was and is a ball of fire and didnt let my dad tell her to do sh*t walking around with a key chain in 74 which said "Stop ERA!"

Wow, Fulton looks full on glamourous in that clip. I never understood why they toned Lisa down so much and why Fulton went for that red hair in later years, it looks awful on her!

I wish all of that story about Jennifer's ambitions was available, as I wonder if Nancy mentioned that she had had a job as a teacher before settling down, and had chosen not to continue that job (of course back then sometimes you weren't allowed to teach after you got married, were you?). There were a lot of women like Nancy in that generation who worked when they had to but would never have dreamed of it after they got married. I think GL did a story where Bert felt she had no choice but to leave the home to get a job at the hospital and make extra money, and Bill was emasculated and she had to end up quitting. Was that Agnes Nixon?

I guess it might have been different with their own daughters, sometimes -- didn't Penny have a job for years (running the Wade bookstore until Neil Wade died)? Nancy seemed to have a lot of issues with her daughters-in-law in general...aside from Lisa. When she first came back she also seemed wary of Kim, somewhat, until, as you mentioned, Marland made her much warmer. There's a clip from November or so of 1985 where she has to counsel Frannie and that transition seems to be there and there's a bit of rustiness, whereas later on Helen Wagner was always very good at playing warm mother and grandmother.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxHXsHMW-k8&feature=related

Edited July 25, 201015 yr by CarlD2

I guess in Penny's case,she did not have children,so it was more acceptable that she work outside the home.

What jobs did Lisa have over the years.I know she worked at the Wade bookstore in the 70's and in Our Private World,she took a job at a hospital.Did she do anything else?

She seemed to be running some kind of a gift shop or bookstore at the hospital in a May 1981 episode.

She also owned and worked at Fashions and Caroline's/Mona Lisa, and I guess Metro, or when was the last time she was involved in that? I don't remember.

SOD synopsis April 76

Valerie Conway is the sort of woman who knows what she wants and usually gets it. She's not used to being ignored and denied her wishes. Dan Stewart, her doctor at Memorial, doesn't care about her childish demands and treats her as he would any other patient. Does Valerie hate this treatment? Yes. Does she hate Dan? No, in fact, quite the contrary is true, she seems to be very much attracted to this young doctor. Dan, so far, is ignoring her signals.

In the "It's a small world department," Valerie's past seems to include two residents of Oakdale, and strange as it may seem both of them are part of Dan's world.

The first is Susan's new amore, Kevin Thompson. The second is Kim Dixon (her hatred of Kim runs so deep that she tells the nurses not to let Kim in her room). Valerie is about as talkative as the CIA when questioned by Dan and Susan about what these people mean to her.

For the last few weeks Natalie's been going through the motions of being an efficient wife and worker. She's been too preoccupied and on-edge to devote her full attention to both of these activities; all she can think of is: "Does Lisa know?" It's a terrible way to live one's life and Natalie half wishes it were over. Well, it seems someone has granted her wish. Bob calls and says he wants to see her; it's most urgent.

From the moment she enters Bob's office, she knows he has found out the truth about her. Bob confirms her suspicions but says he hasn't told Tom yet. He feels her husband should hear the news from her. With great conviction Bob says: "Honesty is very important to a marriage; everybody makes mistakes. Tom will understand."

Natalie is not quite so sure, she begs Bob to let things be. Bob says he can't do that, Tom may hear the "truth" from a stranger and that would be worse. Before leaving Bob's office, Natalie assures her father-in-law that she'll tell Tom.

Before taking this step, Natalie feels the dire need for advice and counsel. She takes account of all her friends in Oakdale and realizes there's only one person who would understand and that person is Jay Stallings.

Jay's not too happy about Natalie involving him in her life (he's afraid people might get the wrong idea, if they were seen together) but he can't let her down. He advises Natalie to tell her husband the truth.

Some women are born independents but Joyce Colman isn't one of them. She always needs a man to cling to and advise her. She still holds a faint hope that Grant might come back; but with each visit from her ex-husband this hope becomes fainter and fainter. To fill this man-gap in her life, Joyce is now reaching out towards Bob. His compassionate soul and platitude-filled dialogues seem to give Joyce the strength and encouragement she so sorely needs.

Natalie's Troubles

Natalie's thinking of late is, to say the least, quite cloudy. Her thoughts are quite dominated by Bob and Lisa's ultimatum: "Tell Tom or else!" She's being ripped to shreds by anxiety and fear, and this causes Natalie to make moves she would ordinarily consider out of the question -- and one of these self-damaging moves is to bring her visits to Jay right out in the open. Natalie and Jay are not having an affair, but her little visits -- and Jay's awkwardness afterwards -- make it appear as though they are. Their conspicuousness has already led Sandy and Jay's secretary to believe that Natalie and Jay are filling their lives with horizontal enrichment.

It's not horizontal enrichment, but verbal enforcement that Natalie gets from Jay. Jay convinces Natalie to tell Tom the truth. He says it's her only move.

Tom forgives Natalie for her past mistakes, but he can't forgive her for the reason why she told him at this particular time. It hurts Tom to hear his wife say it's because Lisa and Bob found out. Tom doesn't know how to cope with this and he storms out of the house.

About the only thing that isn't a secret with Valerie Conway is the reason why she came to Oakdale. Valerie tells Bob she came to their quaint little town to take care of some personal business. She inherited the Conway farm from her husband, and now she wants to sell it. She asks Bob to recommend a lawyer. Bob refers her to Grant.

Kim has explained away part of the mystery concerning her connection with Valerie. Kim tells Bob that Valerie was the sister of her first husband Jason. "I haven't seen her," Kim adds, "since Jason's funeral." Bob presses Kim for more information, but she is quite reticent saying she made a promise to Jason that she wouldn't tell anyone.

Grant's life has been touched by sadness. Mary Ellison calls him and says Brian's been involved in a tractor accident: he may be dying. Grant tells Mary he'll fly right out to Laramie.

Divorce: Crumpled Papers, Crumbled Man

Life is a double-edged sword or so it seems to John Dixon. He's been getting it -- deservedly, some residents of Oakdale believe -- from all sides. The only hope he had left was that somehow he and Kim would get back together. But now with the receipt of the divorce papers; he knows this can never be. The reality is hard to bear. He dashes over to Kim's house, quite shaken, and throws the divorce papers in her face. Kim coolly replies he knew that she was getting a divorce; the papers shouldn't have come as that much of a surprise. Kim adds she's not going to fall for his weak little boy act anymore. It no longer works. She feels absolutely no guilt. She orders John to stay out of her life.

A Forgotten Wallet; A Finished Marriage

After a rather horrendous, sleepless night Tom is looking forward to a new day and a new beginning with his wife. He has decided to forgive Natalie and start their marriage anew. It's a happy time in Tom's life, but unfortunately, a ringing phone puts an end to this happiness. Tom picks up the extension, unaware that Natalie is already on the line. He hears Jay tell Natalie that she left her wallet on his couch last night. Tom can't believe it, he thought the lies were over (Natalie told her husband she was just driving around) but now he realizes all Natalie is good for is lying. He confronts his wife, Natalie doesn't deny the charges. She just cries: "I thought you weren't coming back. I didn't know what else to do." Tom looks at his wife with disgust and hate and orders her out of the house. He says she has 24 hours.

Tom's a cauldron of fire and violent anger as he storms into Jay's office. He grabs Jay around the throat and starts strangling him. Jay would have been a dead man if his secretary, Laurie, hadn't interfered. It is her screams that bring Tom to his senses. When he regains his voice Jay advises Tom not to tell Carol what happened between him and Natalie. It was only a one night stand and it wouldn't be worth the anguish Carol could be caused. Tom agrees to Jay's request.

It seems that a lack of companionship is not going to be one of Valerie's problems once she leaves the hospital. Bob asks her to go out with him. He says he's like to show her the Conway farm. Valerie graciously accepts his offer.

An Unexpected Encounter

While heading for the sun room, Valerie runs into Kim getting out of the elevator. It's an awkward moment but Kim tries to relieve the tension by apologizing for what happened in the past. Kim says it wasn't her intention to hurt Valerie. She was just trying to protect her. Val doesn't buy any of this and she's quite cold towards Kim. She tells her former sister-in-law that she won't be staying in Oakdale so there will be no need to see each other.

Kevin takes Susan up to his cabin in the country. Susan can't believe that this rich, dapper, debonair man lives in such a rustic setting (the cabin has no central heating or electricity). Kevin's very mysterious and he doesn't explain why, all he says is "I'm a man who should be dead but isn't and I'm also a man who wants to live with you." He tells Susan he means it when he says he wants to marry her.

Tit for Tat for Nat

Natalie arrives in Kilborn, Pennsylvania. She has returned to her old town to take up where she left off with Luke Porter. She hears a knock on her motel door. She hurriedly does a last minute adjustment of her hair and make-up, then opens the door. She mutters a gasp of amazement when she sees the person standing there is not Luke but his wife, Margaret. Margaret pushes her way into the room saying she thinks they have something to talk about. Margaret then proceeds to lay it on the line. She tells Natalie that Luke no longer wants her. He would have told her on the phone that she was wasting her time coming to Kilborn, but she wouldn't let him get a word in edgewise. Natalie may find this hard to believe but Luke now loves his wife.

When Margaret leaves, Natalie calls Luke hoping he will deny all the vicious, hurting words she just heard. Luke adds a large dose of salt to her wound, by hanging up on Natalie the minute he hears her voice.

Keep the Pain Away

When John learns from Kim's lawyer, Grant Colman, that the divorce hearing is scheduled for next week, John's reaction to the news is to coat reality by heading for the bottle in his desk. John's inebriated state becomes quite noticeable to the nurses on duty. Pat Holland worries greatly that this would definitely mean the end of John's career, so she goes to see Susan and asks if she would speak to John. Pat says she knows Susan is John's only friend at Memorial. Susan tries to help John but it does no good. John's too lost in self-pity to relate to anyone.

Dee has found a new friend and advisor in Joyce. Joyce's free-thinking and hip ways are quite a contrast to the ultra-conservative and rigid attitude of Dee's mother. Joyce may not be meaning to -- for once -- but her helping Dee is adding fuel to an already slow-burning fire between mother and daughter. Ellen and Dee have already had words over a party Dee wants to attend. It's co-ed; it's a sleepover; and there are no adult chaperones, so Ellen vetoes the idea. Dee runs to Joyce and Joyce tells her she can't see why Ellen won't let her go.

Valerie spends her first night out of the hospital having dinner with Dan (she asked him). Kim learns from Betsy about Dan's recent dinner date and is quite distressed.

Joyce's New Beginning

Joyce is beginning to etch a new life for herself. She has decided to remain in Oakdale and asks for her old job back at the Medical Records Department of Memorial Hospital. Bob is quite pleased with Joyce's progress.

Bob gazes upon Valerie as she sits before the fireplace of the Conway farmhouse. He thinks to himself, the atmosphere outside may not be perfect (it's raining cats and dogs) but the company sure is. Bob's quite attracted to this free-spirited, independent-thinking young woman. He thoroughly enjoys their little tête-à-têtes. Valerie seems to like Bob, too. She's even considering doing something totally out of character. She's taking under consideration Bob's suggestion to fix up the Conway place and remain in Oakdale.

I wish I could see this stuff. Valerie sounds like a fascinating character and Judith McConnell is a great actress.

I never knew that Michael Nader's character Kevin was ever involved with Susan.

Brian, was that Grant's son?

Interesting to have Joyce and Ellen Stewart cross story paths. You'd think they might bond over their issues with Lisa. You can't blame Ellen for not wanting Dee to go to wild parties -- she was only about five or six years old

Pat Holland was the one who later kidnapped Andy for John right?