Headwriters who change with their shows

[DRW50]

Was Marland even involved with Diana's exit? Soap Opera Central's profile said she left in March 1985, to join the witness protection program. I didn't think he started until months later.

I don't think he declawed Barbara, Lucinda, or Lisa. He was the one who gave Barbara her edge in the first place. His Lucinda was a lioness for most of his run. Wasn't Lisa already just a mentor figure when he showed up? If anyone declawed her I would think it was the Dobsons (whose work helped drive Eileen Fulton off the show in the first place), or the writers in the late 70s.

[Saving ATWT]

I remember Lucinda being a 'slum land lord' before Marland joined on. Her character was certainly more evil at the start. As for Lisa, I remember a few Marland storylines that were all about her becoming a nice, better woman. At the start of Marlands run, Lisa was a bit isolated. I remember the one year she, filled with self-pity and vanity, spent New Year's Eve alone. I actually liked that Lisa more than other incarnations of the character.

As for Diana, maybe that wasn't Marland. She was a Mc Coll, right? I remember he was the one to finish off that family.

[DRW50]

I haven't seen a lot of the pre-Marland Lisa, but the bits I've seen of her from the 80s seemed to be her as mentor to Marcy and Kirk McColl, along with troubled wife to Whit McColl.

You've also seen more of the pre-Marland Lucinda than I have. I thought she had a pretty raw edge even with his writing, especially early on, with the fling with Craig and her attempts to cover it up, all the histrionics over the Snyders, trying to kick them out of their farm, etc.

I think by the time Marland showed up, the only McColls left were Kirk and Brian, and Kirk seemed to be on the way out. I thought it was Kim Johnston's decision to go, then whoever was writing in early 1985 gave her the witness protection exit.

[Khan]

Not necessarily. ;-)

[Saving ATWT]

I loved Lucinda trying to destroy the farm...good times. I remember her calling them the Waltons and she wasn't all that far from the mark. I've never felt like the Snyder family really belongs on a soap. I know they have had their share of secrets but they are just to pure and campy for me. By campy, I mean, just check out the busted kitchen. The least Lilly could have done was bought Emma a new fridge and covered up that damn hot water heater. I've always been into every family aside from the Snyder clan. I still want more Stewarts and Walsh peps.

[Khan]

With all due respect, I have to disagree about the Snyders not belonging on a soap. Growing up, I didn't have a lot of brothers and sisters (well, I do, but that's another story!); so, I always get a lot of joy when I see families on TV that do.

[JackPeyton]

When i interviewed her in Nov she mentioned this. Bell offered her the role and said he created it with her in mind. She declined. I dont know why, and should have asked her at the time but she mentioned it mid way through a story. I do wonder why tho, as i dont believe she had been on days for a few years when the role would have been offered to her and she didnt return until 1990.

[Mitch]

Diana was long gone before Marland came on. As you said, he totally "clawed," Babs, who was a sappy heroine before that. Lucinda before Marland was a two dimensial villainous, they tried to make her a cross between Alexis on Dynasty, and Alexandra on GL. Luckily Marland gave her depth. Lisa was declawed back on the 70s..the Dobsons made her a flighty busy body who was dumb as a rock (one thing Lisa would never be was dumb.) The Lisa that was alone on New Years was the Lisa who lost her husband and who thought she was in love again with Bob, hence why she was alone. She was a mentor figure by the time Marland came around...helping Marcy and the rest of the kids. She did, however, have a huge fued with "Lucy," and was a bass out bitch to her but Marland did soften that.Fulton was always wanting to be a bitch again but Marland would say that "Thats not our Lisa."..but I have to agree, that horse left the barn long ago and Lisa worked better as a mentor figure who would kick anyone's ass if they f*cked with hers. I do think Marland probably calmed her down as we had one matriachal figure who was a tough mother hen, and Lucinda who was a live wire.

I do think that Marland de-"balled," his men. They were either outright villains (James, Antonio) or simpering Alan Alda types trying to get in touch with their feminine side (i.e. they start out as hard boiled corporate types but then fall in love and end up eating yogurt and doing yoga.)

Marland actually got the ratings stabalized and rose them to number 1 several times during his run, so he was much more successful then the Dobsons. IF they had stayed we would have had a gutted show that would have limped to its death earlier, much like GL.

[EricMontreal22]

Schemering blames much of the gutting of ATWT not on the Dobsons' but on the EP at the time...

[Mitch]

Which one, Bartholomeuw (sp?) or Bunim? Bartholomeuw was around during the time that Helen Wagner quit....and Bunim was around for their second tenure....(which I thought was better.)

[Khan]

I tend to think he (Schemering) blamed Mary-Ellis Bunim, and not Fred Bartholomew.

[EricMontreal22]

Without checking, I think that's right.

[koos]

I wish there was some Bell-era Days available for viewing. Everything I've read about it suggests that it was an entirely different show, but I've not seen any of it at all.

[EricMontreal22]

There was... some online wasn't there? I know Youtube had some anyway. Of course some of it may have been from the time he was more of a longterm story consultant for Pat Falken Smith (from 73 to 76 I believe) but the how still had his tone then. And yeah it was quite different--very much Y&R feel if maybe even more dark, psychological (Schemering called it "psychosexual"). I really like it. I believe in '76 the Times magazine soap article gave it their top rating as show to watch (they gave poor ATWT their lowest)

Do people feel the Dobson's work on Santa Barbara was similar to their earlier work on Gl and ATWT? I know in the Worlds Without End companion book to the Museum of Braodcasting exhibit, Gary Tomlin talks about being a script writer for Santa Barbara and he claims he felt it was less of a soap than the P&G, Bell and Nixon shows. He says they always won the awards because they did such great stand alone episodes and the scripts were always so witty but that the stories were much less long term, often wrapping up in 2 weeks which is why they never had the large viewer loyalty. I never really watched, so can't comment.

[koos]

The earliest I can find from the '70s is a clip from Doug and Julie's wedding... nothing but fluff. '76, I think. There was a full episode from 1979, but that's too late, and it's gone now, AFAIK. I do remember it being awesome; a woman with plastic surgery burned her hands on a stove in an attempt to remove her fingerprints.