It's funny though, as soon as the JFP/McTavish combination went over to GH, GH started hitting all time lows in the ratings, and their GH wasn't that much different from their OLTL.

That's because GH and OLTL are different kettles of fish, apparently. A leading male falling for a woman who wears white and lives in the woods might succeed on ONE LIFE, but GH? With Sonny? GTFO!

Not necessarily, lol. If anything, JFP and MMT have to be the female equivalent of a pissing fight. I don't know why, but I always get the feeling Megs was foisted on Jill, b/c ABC felt she was good at lifting the ratings. Plus, OLTL had been head-writer-less for almost a year, so they were probably desperate for someone to come in. Otherwise, as much as Pamela K. Long's run turned out to be a real "miss" w/ the audience, I feel like there was a sort of symbiosis between her and Jill that translated into some of the most exciting hours of OLTL in quite the while.

Totally disagreed--I didn't like JFP's One Life much at all, but it was never worse IMHO than under Pam Long. Ugh--McTavish made it slightly more watchable again.

I do think Megan is a total "yes-woman" and (though this is true of course of most soap writers) only as good as her EP. So even with OLTL it seemed she basically just did what JFP liked. But the show as slightly better (especially over the mess that apparently JFP was ghost writing for a while)

It's funny though, as soon as the JFP/McTavish combination went over to GH, GH started hitting all time lows in the ratings, and their GH wasn't that much different from their OLTL.

Really? I thougth McT's GH was much more campy (which frankly I'd rather have now than what we're getting).

Edited March 1, 201015 yr by EricMontreal22

It didn't help that Benard supposedly hated the story and tanked it.

Her GH had a lot of campy stuff, like Stavros's return, and Sally Struthers as Jennifer Smith holding Luke and Laura hostage. Some other moments were not as bad, like Courtney's arrival (even if her mother was a bad caricature) and her relationship with AJ. Most of the stuff which wasn't bad was jettisoned when Guza returned.

I admit I'm biased--I got into soaps through McTavish's first stint (well maybe just before--the first story I remember was Janet in the well which was stillunder Agnes, right?) Yes some of it made little sense (the Ted Orsini Canada location, etc), but overall I think quite highly of those years--92-94 especially (as everyone has said, by 95 Megan was starting to lose it...) Just so much great stuff, IMHO.

It didn't help that Benard supposedly hated the story and tanked it.

Her GH had a lot of campy stuff, like Stavros's return, and Sally Struthers as Jennifer Smith holding Luke and Laura hostage. Some other moments were not as bad, like Courtney's arrival (even if her mother was a bad caricature) and her relationship with AJ. Most of the stuff which wasn't bad was jettisoned when Guza returned.

Right, for some reason it seemed to be a hommage to early 80s GH.

Edited March 1, 201015 yr by EricMontreal22

Really? I thougth McT's GH was much more campy (which frankly I'd rather have now than what we're getting).

I meant in terms of all of JFP's friends being in frontburner stories at the expense of actual GH characters people cared about. Not to mention, the show was hideslously dark, but that's an aspect that got worse with Guza's return.

A lot of it was campy nonsense though.

It didn't help that Benard supposedly hated the story and tanked it.

Can't blame him.

What I remember most about McTavish's GH was, of course, the "Thawing of Stavros" nonsense. Suddenly, we're supposed to believe (and accept) that Helena Cassadine had an underground cryogenic chamber built 30 floors below the hospital...with no one noticing. Yeah, right.

and Roy and Melissa's great "love story" because we all cared so much.

Maggie DePriest came aboard (as HW) when Felicia Minei Behr, fresh from the just-cancelled RYAN'S HOPE, assumed the reins of the show from Steve Schenkel in '89. Before then, Lorraine Broderick and Victor Miller were HW's, but remained on staff w/ DePriest as AHW's.

Khan, your account is pretty much spot-on... except for that part about Victor Miller being a head writer. As far as I can recall (or research), Miller was never anything beyond Associate Head Writer (alongside McTavish & Peggy Sloane).

I've seen that mentioned somewhere else before, too; I'm not sure where that comes from, but I'm pretty sure it's a misconception. Broderick head-wrote solo between her time as co-HW with Washam, and DePriest's appointment to the post. (Not to mention Miller is a big-ol' McTavish ass-kisser!)

Edited March 1, 201015 yr by YurSoakinginit

Miller mentioned his time Co-Hwing with Broderick during his podcast interview with Daytime Confidential a few years ago. And no big surprise, he's one of McTavish's BFF's...

Miller mentioned his time Co-Hwing with Broderick during his podcast interview with Daytime Confidential a few years ago. And no big surprise, he's one of McTavish's BFF's...

Ah, that explains where the idea comes from... Well, he possibly shares her inflated ego, too - as I'm almost 100% certain that the credits have never shown him as a co-head writer.

He was Associate Head Writer during this time (as I said, with Sloane & McT) - I should probably give him the benefit of the doubt and say that maybe he was just getting his terminology mixed up.

Edited March 1, 201015 yr by YurSoakinginit

Can't blame him.

In the long run I'm not sure if it was all that much more ludicrous than the stuff like Sonny shooting Carly in the head while she was giving birth, or the Sonny/Kate and Sonny/Olivia stories.

I've heard Gellar, Eva LaRue, Kelly Rippa, and Sydney Penny were one big bitchy clique on the AMC set in the mid 90's.

I can see it, but it's to be expected. They were all the new girls.

and Roy and Melissa's great "love story" because we all cared so much.

Melissa Bedford.

Ah, that explains where the idea comes from... Well, he possibly shares her inflated ego, too - as I'm almost 100% certain that the credits have never shown him as a co-head writer.

He was Associate Head Writer during this time (as I said, with Sloane & McT) - I should probably give him the benefit of the doubt and say that maybe he was just getting his terminology mixed up.

Well, that's very gracious of you.

It's always interesting about the dynamics onset because SMG and Eva LaRue must have been friendly enough with some of the vets, as I think Eva said both she and SMG were upset by Julia Barr's firing. (I can't remember if Kelly Ripa said something).

Totally disagreed--I didn't like JFP's One Life much at all, but it was never worse IMHO than under Pam Long. Ugh--McTavish made it slightly more watchable again.

What did Pam Long do at OLTL that was so bad? It's weird, some people praise her so much, but she's had so many failures. First she did admittedly do a GREAT job with Texas, but I feel that show was always good. It started off rough because so many of the stories began on AW, so it was confusing as a new viewer. But I liked the pacing and most of the characters, it just happened to get better and better over time. Then she went to GL and created memorable characters like Reva and Josh, but she also eliminated many core characters and is partially responsible for the loss of Nola and Quint, two of the most popular characters GL ever saw. Then she went to Santa Barbara and flopped, same for OLTL a few years later.

Whats the deal? Is she just a decent writer whose majorly overrated?

Well, that's very gracious of you.

Is it, really? (Trying to ascertain what you meant by that...)

ETA: Thank you. I love you, too.

Edited March 1, 201015 yr by YurSoakinginit