How should ATWT end and who should come back??

[DRW50]

Danny was better than I thought he'd be in that little scene. I guess I just remember him from the sitcom. I guess they were probably right to deemphasize Dusty as a character when Marland took over, since Brian Bloom didn't seem overly thrilled about his soap run when he left, but he had a lot of presence, and ties to so many core characters, I wonder what might have been for the future of John and other longtime favorites if he'd stayed around.

Don't you love when Barbara tells Paul that some wishes can't be granted, and his father isn't coming back? That wish kept being granted, and granted, until Paul was probably out there in full muggy Roger Howarth mode going #$*(&#$# YOU, SANTA!!!

I must say that CZP works a lot better as a heroine than I had expected. I'd never heard she was bad, just that everyone always said the making of the character was when Barbara became more of a vixen. I did prefer bitchy Barbara of later years, but she also works in the more boring role.

For some reason I thought Andy was older than this by 1983; I knew Scott D wasn't playing him but I thought he was a little older. I guess kids in 1983 were just less grown up by this age than they are now.

I was hoping to see Randall Edwards as Annie. I guess that probably won't happen, since Soapcentral says she was only in the role for a month in summer 1982. Do you remember her? This Annie, she's OK, although she looks a bit old.

Who was that talking to Ariel near the end of the clip? Ariel had such big eyes, you're drawn into them. I wonder what would happen if she was ever in a scene with Judith Chapman. The choir scene is nice, I miss when soaps used to do that. I love that they have the one guy in the blue vest who looks at the camera and seems somewhat annoyed.

I wouldn't mind seeing HBS and Justin together again on something, just to see how they would be together now. Justin is so manic, he was running around like a demon. The little extra touches, like Cris LeBlanc trying to put ornaments on Justin's earlobes, or Tom with a big bow on the back of his head, make it seem more real. One of the things I miss so much about Tom is his humor. Even Scott Holmes's Tom had a lot of humor until somewhere around the mid-90s.

I guess that's Maggie (with some unfortunate mullet growing) with Kim in the third clip. I've never understood why that character just left and never returned, never even really mentioned again, when she had so many relatives left in town.

[Khan]

Does Charlie have a younger brother? Never mind. He does now. ;-)

Seriously, it would be awesome to see Deas as a spoiler for Bo and Nora. If it had been years ago, pre-cabana sex with Sam Rappaport, I would've added "short-term" to that sentence. Unfortunately, though, I think Bo and Nora are one couple whose day has come and gone.

Deas is so good at playing rascally, wastrel types, too, that he could work in two ways: as someone who constantly exasperates and agitates his younger brother (Charlie) with his shenanigans, like Todd and Tina invariably do for Viki; and as someone whom Nora can't help but find adorable and attractive - as well as someone who brings out her much-needed sense of humor - despite her knowing better.

The thing is, if they made his character a law-enforcement type, viewers would complain that Deas was essentially repeating his work on WT and SANTA BARBARA; and if they made a con artist or proprietor of a restaurant or nightclub, they'd say it was too close to what he did on GL. OTOH, Blair, or Todd, or whoever's running THE SUN these days probably could use a good muckraker. The flip side of RYAN'S HOPE's Jack Fenelli, as well as someone opposite Viki and THE BANNER.

[SFK]

I think of Justin Deas and Hilary B. Smith and I immediately imagine their characters sitting at the bar drinking stiff drinks, smoking cigarettes, and laughing way too loud.

[Khan]

Yeah, me, too.

(beat)

I love it.

Then, just for kicks, I'd beg/plead/cajole Margaret Colin into showing up and spoiling their romance as Deas' character's ex-wife, another journalist, who comes to Llanview briefly to attempt to win him back. Colin, Deas, Kerwin, Slezak, Smith and Woods, all together, in the same scene. You can't tell me that wouldn't be wonderful to watch. (It'd also make Brian Frons s**t a few bricks, but that's just a bonus in my book.)

[DRW50]

This is a GREAT article with Rosemary Prinz. She dishes the dirt about Irna Phillips and about her views on ATWT back then. I hope they might ask her back for the end.

http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/tv/when_the_world_began_097MzMllJwGGFjR9Hh6lkJ

[All My Shadows]

Oh God, between her getting her hair done with hookers and Irna putting subtle insults against her in the scripts, I couldn't stop laughing. Yes, she needs to return, even if just for one episode.

[Soapsuds]

I had forgotten Justin Deas and Hillary Bailey Smith worked together as Tom and Margo. Good memories...love Betsy and STeve..and a big wub at Gunnar....Love seeing Fashions again!

[SFK]

A very entertaining read! My favorite part:

Irna would have a fit. She’d write something for the show, she’d have me say to my then husband, “You know, Gloria and I are very much alike.” And he’d say, “Now Penny, Gloria is beautiful and talented.” Things like that.

[Paul Raven]

I think the guy terrorising Barbara was Richard Fairchild.i remember the name but not much else.

The show seemed to be a bit all over the place storywise at this time.The constant writer changes-the Dobsons/Paul Roberts/Tom King/KC Collier/the Dobsons again/Franz and Saffron etc meant the show lost focus and new characters kept popping up.

[Franky]

Well, it's not looking good for the return of old fan favorites. Goutman and Passanante have both given interviews saying that they're not ready to slow down and do the "nostalgia thing." They have lots of story to tell.

On the one hand, this seems to imply that they're rather hopeful of the show getting picked up by a new outlet. But, given past experience, I think it likely means that ATWT will get nowhere near the ending any of us would like.