Carol Burnett was actually supposed to do the role that Gwen Verdon played, Judith Sawyer. Judith was Brandon Kingsley's sister and the mother of Melanie Sawyer, Chuck Tyler's girlfriend. At the last minute, Carol couldn't do it, so Gwen stepped in. Carol also had a small cameo role as Mrs. Johnson, a hospital patient, in the '70s.

And if it isn't obvious/apparent to younger or newer fans, it was Carol's devotion to the show that got Dorothy Lyman (the original Opal) on Mama's Family. Rue McClanahan (who just had a stroke btw, keep her in your prayers) played Aunt Fran and her character was originally intended to be Thelma's sassy foil. But Carol was so in love with Dorothy and thrilled to get her that the story was revamped and her character Naomi took on that role. Aunt Fran became more of a stuffy old maid (before being killed off by choking on a toothpick).

Edited January 15, 201015 yr by SFK

And if it isn't obvious/apparent to younger or newer fans, it was Carol's devotion to the show that got Dorothy Lyman (the original Opal) on Mama's Family. Rue McClanahan (who just had a stroke btw, keep her in your prayers) played Aunt Fran and her character was originally intended to be Thelma's sassy foil. But Carol was so in love with Dorothy and thrilled to get her that the story was revamped and her character Naomi took on that role. Aunt Fran became more of a stuffy old maid (before being killed off by choking on a toothpick).

I read this in Rue's autobiography and needless to say, she was not too thrilled with Dorothy essentially taking over her function. If she had stayed she wouldn't have done Golden Girls. It's funny if you look at the big picture...we might not have gotten Golden Girls (or at least in the configuration that we did get it) if not for Dorothy Lyman being so great on AMC.

So true, and thank God it worked out the way it did. Rue was the best actress on The Golden Girls and she played Blanche down to her toenails. It totally worked out for the best. BUT, I too would've been heated had the part I signed up for been "gieven away". I just wish we could get Dorothy Lyman on OLTL as an Opal-like character, but I suppose Roxie's already occupying that spot. Dorothy should get to do a fun little arc with her bud Robin Strasser.

I'd love to see Dorothy on daytime again.

The Naomi character is one of my pet peeves with Mama's Family. I loved her when the show was on broadcast network. Smart, sarcastic, sexy as hell, and more than a match for anyone. Then when they got to syndication, she became a huge moron. What they did to she and to Vint was hard to watch.

OK who am I forgetting?

Donald Trump, for one. And Lesley Gore. And Paul Anka. And Archie Manning (with the rest of the New Orleans Saints). Oh, and Barbara Bush! She made a cameo during Molly's leukemia storyline for the Bone Marrow Donor registry.

I got Trump, Khan.

Hmmm, I know they must have bumped into somebody else at Nexxus...

Oh, Cheryl Tiegs at the disco!

Edited January 16, 201015 yr by SFK

I'd love to see Dorothy on daytime again.

Amen (to this, and to seeing her on OLTL w/ RS).

True, Naomi and Vint were dumbed down considerably in the syndicated run of "Mama's Family," but I think that was done in order to make Vicki Lawrence's Thelma the audience's advocate. Before, when MF was on NBC, Thelma came across more as an irritant than as someone you wanted to root for.

Hmmm, i know they must have bumped into somebody else at Nexxus...

Ah, Nexus. I still miss that club. The Chateau, too.

And Foxy's... there was an episode of Diff'rent Strokes where Arnold and Duddley caught their teacher (Jayne "Sex Tape" Kennedy iirc) moonlighting at a Foxy's-like club. At least that's where my little AMC fan mind went, I didn't even know about the Playboy Bunnies yet.

Foxy's! OMG! How I wish "Center City" (and "Sea City") still exists....

Two other "special guests" on AMC: Robert Morse, as Harry the Bookie; and Jimmy Buffett.

RuPaul was also on the show. I remember Marlena de Lacroix complaining about all the missed camp opportunities, since she was a guest on Erica's talk show.

And didn't some music group like Blessid Union of Souls appear when Pine Valley High had some kind of Harvest Ball?

O-Town, the original "Making The Band" band was on there. Rihanna was on there too.

Cheryl Tiegs was on the show too wasn't she? She was at Erica's disco debut and Erica was furious when Cheryl won a beautiful model contest over her or something?

Who am I, Mr. Cellophane? First Khan and now you Car-Car, I mentioned Tiegs a few posts back.