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AMC 1970 Agnes & Rosemary


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Summary of an April 1970 news article.

Agnes Nixon met up with Rosemary Prinz in October 69,to discuss the possibility of the daytime star returning to soaps after her 13 year stint as Penny on ATWT.The venue was a NY restaurant near Lincoln Centre called Ginger Man.Rosemary was appearing in a play 'Three Men on A Horse'.

Rosemary had vowed not to return to soaps."I didn't enjoy perpetuating everything that was sick in American society".

Agnes said her new show would be different, as it would deal with issues affecting the country today.

Rosemary listed two issues which she would return to soaps to discuss-civil rights and the Vietnam war.Agnes chose Vietnam and Rosemary capitulated and returned to daytime as Amy Tyler,a liberal political activist dedicated to the peace movement who married into a conservative family with considerable wealth and staure in the community.

The My Lai incident was mentioned.Amy stated that the atrocities at My Lai shouldn't be the reason that decent people were appalled."The very act of war is an atrocity',she explained.

Amy Tyler also made soap opera history by going to her wealthy father in law and asking for a contribution to send mrdical supplies to North Vietnam.While a charitable project along these lines had been organized in real life by the Americn Friends Service Committee,the father in law was aghast.

Rosemary Prinz does not watch herself onscreen,or television in general.However,she agreed to watch an episode where Phillip was brought to hospital,unconscious.Did Phillip try to commit suicide by shutting all the windows in his car?Or had he been on a bad trip?

"We both know that young people today do a lot of experimenting with drugs",the doctor says to Phillips mother."You're not helping the kid by getting upset like this".

"I shouldn't have forgotten that I was a nurse",the mother says admonishing herself.The doctor replies,"You're a woman first".

Rosemary watched in silence for 30 minutes."Were those real tears?"I asked.She stalked out of the room."I was crying from the start of the show and you couldn't tell"?She seemed on the verge of tears again.

To Miss Prinz,this proved what was wrong with daytime television."I wish the set was better lit",she explained."It was very tiring to do all that crying.I should have faked it".

"They lack control with live tape shows.A take has to be pretty bad for a director to stop and reshoot the scene.The only time they do it is if the set becomes noisy.It has to sound like a bowling alley.But they don't care if the lights show bags under my eyes."

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Rosemary is INTENSE! I have noticed that in other interviews as well. I wonder what she would have been like in the soap magazine era. I think she would have been putting people on blast left and right.

No wonder she and Irna Phillips didn't get along.

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LOL, ITA, she is an entertaining interview subject. She kind of reminds me of an edgier Robin Strasser, and honey, that's sayin' sumpin'. :P

I have had two opportunities to see her onstage which I missed, I really hope I get another chance.

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Wow, soaps touched issues like the war? Today all we get is the battle between lust and love.I will say that Rosemarry seems like a soap snob with her soaps being about everything that is wrong with American society. A lot of my college professors said the same thing and it just comes off as elitist to me.

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Rosemary's next soap, How to Survive a Marriage was one she only did cuz of the feminist psychological issues (I think she played a shrink in it) but everything I've read says the show was SOO overtly educational, that it was dry dry dry.

Some of the war stuff this past year on AMC with Brott--especially using real soldiers talking about their experience reminded me of reading about this time in AMC history (the two Lost epson Agnes Nixon's website have a lot of Rosemary's character Amy talking about it too). I actually really ahve liked what I've seen on her on screen, but in interviews she comes off a bit of a pill to me.

Was this when Philip was found passed out because of a gas leak or whatever--the first half of the episode with him passing out was shown on Daytime to Remember

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Ms Prinz first love is theater but obviously she was tempted twice by the dollars being offered and the fact that she could call the shots(limited runs on both AMC and HTSAM)

I read that at HTSAM,she became daytimes's highest paid actress,earning $1000 an episide for a 3ep a week guarantee.

It's interesting that,according to the article,as of October,the role of Amy hadn't been cast.I wonder if Prinz had turned down the role,whether Amy would have continued on the show and the original plan was for Amy to be a long running character.

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