OLTL History Question

[Bright Eyes]

I was wondering if anybody might have any more knowledge or recollections about Marcy Wade, played by Francesca James in 1970-71, according to IMDB.

The only information I could find is that see stalked Steve Burke, who then was put on trial for her murder. According to wikipedia, it was a returned from the dead Joe who freed Steve?

Any details about this story are much appreciated, such as, why was she stalking him? How did Joe know Steve didn't kill her? Who did kill her? How did she die? Did she work at The Banner?

[DRW50]

From the OLTL History Pages archive at Oocities

[Bright Eyes]

Thanks Carl. I swear I should be blond. For some reason I never thought to look in the '71 and '72 recaps on that site.

[Sylph]

[DRW50]

Don't worry about it. I hadn't even been sure if the site was still around after Geocities went away.

I remember finding that website over 10 years ago and it was a real resource, and seems to have continued up to about 5 years ago. There were so many great soap websites that went away over the last decade. I guess that's part of the decline of soaps...

[Bright Eyes]

At least what's there now will always be around thanks to the wonderful "Internet Archives."

And hey, I have another question. Was Steve Burke around Victor Lord's age? IMDB says the actors were only a year apart in age.

[DRW50]

I think he was supposed to be more than a younger than Victor but he was definitely older than Viki. He was a daddy figure for Viki.

[Vee]

I'm not sure whether they had originally intended for Steve to be a viable replacement for Joe in Viki's heart or not. I believe the actor, Bernard Grant, may have been a "get" from ATWT at the time.

I remember reading somewhere that, like so many other failed leads who strike out with the frontburner women, Steve eventually gravitated to a fling with Cathy Craig or another secondary character before exiting once and for all.

[DRW50]

Did Lee Paterson actually leave the show during the time Viki began dating Steve or was he just gone for story purposes?

[Vee]

I thought he actually, seriously left for awhile. I may be wrong.

[DRW50]

I thought he did too. If he did then I wonder if they did plan to make Steve a serious love interest for Viki and not just there while Joe was gone, but obviously they changed course when they got Joe back.

It was smart of them to always give her love interests over the years who were very different from each other. I think that's one of the reasons she's never really been in an unpopular pairing, even if the viewer might like one more than another.

[Bright Eyes]

I would tend to agree with this, seeing as he was gone for nearly two years.

[Paul Raven]

Bernard Grant was actually on GL for many years so Agnes was familiar with his work.Also,remember that the Joe/Viki romance was first played out by Gillian Spencer so Steve/Viki with Erika Slezak might have been easier for viewers to accept.

Agnes had also written for Spencer at GL.

Here are some details of Joe/Viki/Steve.

Viki realized that she couldn't choose between Joe and Steve if she was caught between them at The Banner every day. The tensions ran too high, and the men were constantly jockeying for position in her affections. Finally, a slanted drug interest story by Joe that made it appear policeman Ed Hall was railroading an innocent teen caused flaring tempers. Even Joe’s apology and retraction of the story barely appeased Ed and Steve. Also contributing to the difficulty was Steve’s admission that he was considering a job offer with a rival newspaper and might leave his position as editor of The Banner. Viki realized that she must go away to decide. When she was with Joe, she wanted him, and when she was with Steve, she wanted him, as well. Ironically, Wanda’s love for Joe was as obvious to Joe as Cathy Craig’s designs on Steve were to him. Not knowing Victor has already assigned Viki to cover the Greenfield avalanche disaster for the Banner, Steve allowed Joe to cover the story, too. When he arrived at the hotel, Joe discovered Viki’s name in the register.

At the hotel, Joe decided to leave without seeing Viki, but they accidentally met one another in the hallway. Viki suggested that since their meeting was coincidental, they should just cover the disaster story together. They worked very well as team –as they did in the past- and celebrated over dinner when the assignment was completed. Carried away, they spent the night making love together. In the morning, Joe was crushed by Viki’s announcement that she had already chosen to remain with Steve. She informed Joe that the last night was her fault –a mistake. Her decision was based on the fact that Joe could survive without her, but Steve couldn’t. The conversation escalated into a bitter argument, ending with Viki fleeing the room. She drove off too fast, her car skidding on the icy roads and crashing into a tree.

Joe called Victor with the news of the accident. Victor and Jim flew to Mt. Jefferson hospital. Although she only has a hairline fracture, Viki suddenly slipped into a coma before Steve arrived. Meanwhile, Joe refused to tell anyone the circumstances of the accident. Steve was furious that he had not been told that Viki and Joe were together covering the story. Neurosurgeon Dr. Cardwell and Jim Craig felt that there wasn’t a physiological cause for Viki’s coma. They considered the possibility that it was a psychologically-induced, hysterical coma. Steve signed the consent for Viki to be transported back to Llanview. Joe’s quick-tempered outburst, triggered by his feelings of guilt, upset all of his friends, and they wonder about the cause. Larry and Victor considered Joe’s possible involvement in Viki’s car crash.

Viki awoke from her coma but suffered from selective amnesia. She couldn't remember the last eighteen months: declaring Joe dead, the murder of Marcie Wade, marrying Steve, the birth of Meredith’s baby, Dave Siegel’s death, or Joe’s return to Llanview and her inability to choose between her first and second husband. Everyone was careful to go along with her amnesia as Dr. Polk felt that suddenly learning the truth could cause Viki to retreat farther into the past. Joe admitted to Larry that he spent the night with Viki the night before the accident and that she had decided to return to Steve. Wanting desperately to see her, Joe was furious that she wasn’t being told he was really alive. Viki dreamt about Joe and Wanda, whom she didn’t remember knowing. The music from the carousel Joe bought for her kept haunting her, though she didn’t recall where she heard the tune.

Realizing Viki was growing more and more suspicious, as well as uneasy, Dr. Polk finally told her about her amnesia, and that she was actually married to Steve Burke. He refused to divulge any more as it was crucial that she'd try to remember for herself. She did suddenly recalled Julie and Mark’s wedding, the first step in regaining her memory.

Steve confronted Joe, pushing him until he finally admitted that he and Viki fought just before she drove off and crashed her car. Angrily, Joe revealed that yes, Viki had chosen Steve over him, but insisted she only did it because she felt Steve needed her more. He continued saying Viki really loved him, not Steve, and he loved her, too. Steve couldn't deny Joe’s words as carrying the conviction of truth. He was convinced more than ever that something else happened between the two while they were together at the hotel.

Physically recovered from the accident, Viki was sent home to Llanfair. She was impatient to recover her memory of the last eighteen months and confused about why she didn’t go home to Steve’s apartment. Looking through the archives of newspapers at The Banner, Viki recalled Marcie Wade’s death and Steve’s trial for the crime. Still unaware that Joe was alive, Viki moved back to Steve’s apartment. Joe, learning that Viki remembered the carousel tune from the music box he gave her the night before the accident, gave the box to Dr. Polk, who showed it to Viki. She suddenly remembered that Joe was alive and painfully recalled spending the night with him at the hotel in Mt. Jefferson. Viki asked to see both Steve and Joe.

During Viki’s absence for the Greenfield story, Cathy sought out Steve and cheered him up. When he accidentally injured his wrist, she prepared dinner for him and drove him to work. Steve was very grateful to her, though completely unaware of the depth of her feelings for him.

When she finally admitted her feelings for Steve to herself, Cathy became upset. She reminded herself that he was married to Viki and loved his wife deeply. She attempted to push her feelings for Steve aside by accepting a date with Jack Lawson.

Trying to block out strong feelings for Steve, Cathy continued to date Jack. Later, Steve refused an out-of-town assignment she requested, telling her that she was still needed in the office.

Unable to forget her love for Steve, Cathy confided her feelings to Julie. Meanwhile, Viki and Steve promoted Cathy to a full-time reporter.

Her amnesia cured, Viki told Joe that she wanted his friendship, but she was staying with her husband Steve. Joe was thunderstruck and insisted she was doing it for the wrong reasons, but he couldn't change her mind. Viki assured Steve that she loved him and wanted to spend her life with him. Steve was thrilled but harbored a nagging doubt that she did not choose him for love. When Viki wasn’t eager to rush off on a second-honeymoon, Steve’s doubts grew stronger. Joe, bitter and empty over Viki’s decision to go back to Steve, wrote goodbye letters to everyone and packed to leave town. Wanda accidentally learned of his impending departure, and as he got in his car to leave, he found her there, also packed and ready to go with him. Incredulous, he pressed her for her reason, and she finally admitted it was because she was in love with him. She explained that loving someone means wanting to make them happy, so she prayed Viki would choose him. But, now that he’s lonely and miserable, she wanted to make him happy because she loves him, and it didn’t matter that he didn’t share her feelings. Despite Joe’s assertion that he’d always love Viki and didn’t deserve Wanda’s love and concern, Wanda insisted that if he goes…she goes, too. And that’s that!

Vinnie was upset about the departure of Joe and Wanda, though Anna suspected he missed Wanda more than Joe. In New York, Wanda and Joe took apartments in the same building, and he looked for reporting jobs, insisting she'd take it easy for a while. Realizing he hasn’t let Eileen know he’s all right, Wanda started a letter to her.

Viki tried to convince Steve her only reason for avoiding a vacation in New York wasn’t because she feared running into Joe, but because she’d rather avoid all reminders of the past. However, her second honeymoon plans for Rome with Steve were somewhat dampened by her thoughts of Joe and Wanda together in New York.

Depressed over being unable to find a job, Joe became very distraught after learning about Steve and Viki’s trip. Wanda’s patience was strained, and she finally advised him to stop feeling sorry for himself and acting so childish. When he angrily stormed out and stayed away, Wanda returned to Llanview and sought consolation from Vinnie. Vinnie went to New York to visit Joe, telling him that he had to face the fact that he has lost Viki for good. Vinnie angrily insisted that Joe didn’t appreciate how wonderful and loyal Wanda was, and he should give her a chance to make him happy. Joe explained that he cared about Wanda, so he didn’t want to hurt her by “giving her a chance” because he just didn’t love her. Anna realized Vinnie’s anger over the situation stemmed from the fact that he had feelings for Wanda that he didn’t even realize.

Joe admitted to Wanda that he had treated her badly and promised to be more considerate and appreciative in the future. Soon, he landed a job as a reporter for a New York newspaper.

Steve was upset by the presence of Joe at Llanfair during the Lords family crisis. Steve suffered great anxiety every time he saw his wife and her ex-husband together and was deeply disturbed to find the music box with a Mt. Jefferson label in Viki’s old room at Llanfair. He realized it must be the same music box that figured so prominently in her recent recovery from amnesia. Joe’s very presence made Steve unsure of Viki’s love for him. Cathy realized her one-sided love affair with Steve was hopeless and resigned from The Banner. Victor suggested hiring Joe to replace her. Steve swallowed his insecurity and fears about Joe’s presence and agreed that Joe should be approached. Stunned by Steve and Viki’s apparent lack of emotion over the possibility of his working with them, Joe went out and got roaring drunk. He then called Viki late at night to accept the position. Joe, who still deeply loved Viki, added sarcastically that they’d all be good friends, and he had the rules memorized just as she had. Steve was furious at Joe’s calling Viki, and they had a terrible argument in which all of his resentment for Joe poured out. Meanwhile, a drunken Joe resisted Wanda’s concern for him, and while quarreling, he fell over a table and cut his head. Badly frightened, Wanda called Larry. Joe was conscious but groggy by the time Larry arrived. Larry insisted he went to the hospital the next day for x-rays and cautioned him about drinking.

Joe began working at The Banner, writing a daily column. Joe’s cool formality, prompted by Viki’s remark about proper office behavior, infuriated Viki. She angrily suggested that he’d carried correctness to a point where she couldn’t even talk to him. Joe told Cathy he was very impressed with her short story about a married man dealing with a young girl’s love for him and encouraged her to expand it into a novel. He offered advice and encouragement as she began her work.

Viki tried hard to forget her marriage to Joe and concentrate on her present marriage to Steve, but the reminders were always there. Joe wondered about her true feelings when he saw that she had kept an old love letter he sent her, but was later enraged upon learning she gave his music box to charity. He bought it back and presented it to her saying her behavior was contradictory. Viki insisted he didn’t know her thoughts. Badly shaken by ambivalent feelings for Joe, Viki asked Steve to cut short his business trip as she needed him. Joe visited Cathy for comfort, but when he drew away after kissing her, she angrily questioned his denial of their attraction to one another. He replied that if he continued, he’d be using her, while she argued this withdrawal was using her more.

Viki was increasingly disturbed by Joe’s cool formality toward her. She magnified the situation until she was finally compelled to confront Joe, arguing that the tense artificiality of their relationship was making them both miserably unhappy, and they must talk it out. Joe, however, insisted he was happy with his life, and if there was a problem, it’s Viki’s…not his. Angry at her preoccupation with Joe, Steve said Joe was playing a role to deliberately unsettle Viki and warned that it was damaging their marriage. Viki vehemently denied this by admitting that Joe was simply hurt and lonely. Steve went to Joe and angrily accused him of manipulating Viki’s emotions, but Joe retorted that Steve could only judge him based on his journalistic abilities, and if that was not good enough, he could fire him!

Cathy was overwhelmed when Joe managed to secure an option on her first novel from a publisher, though she was hurt that he didn’t reciprocate her growing feelings for him. He later admitted there is chemistry between them but cautioned her about emotional involvement. Wanda too dreamt of marrying Joe even though she knew the odds were one in a million.

While awaiting the publisher’s decision about her novel, Cathy asked Joe to accompany her on a short vacation to Mt. Jefferson. He begged off, using her family as the reason, she maintained that the real reason was Viki, that Viki dominated his life even without being a part of it anymore. She told Joe that this was wrong, and he must do something about it. Steve still bristled at Joe’s presence, feeling that Joe’s uber-formal behavior is a deliberate attempt to unnerve Viki. Finally, Viki informed Joe that if he wanted to treat her like “the boss”, that was just what she’d be. Steve was pleased to hear Viki’s comments, but later, Viki was disturbed when she dreamt of Joe again. Depressed about the scene with Viki, Joe followed Cathy to Mt. Jefferson and realized that Cathy ironically had the same hotel room he shared with Viki last winter.

With Cathy now in Joe’s life, Wanda was miserable as she was hopelessly in love with him herself. To console her, Vinnie took her out, and they discussed their respective pasts, deciding that they were both losers in love. Vinnie quietly recalled that Joe once suggested that Vinnie was falling in love with Wanda.

[Bright Eyes]

Hot damn, that was beautiful Paul. Where did you get such a detailed synopsis of these events?

[Paul Raven]

I never reveal my sources!!

Seriously,I have saved heaps of stuff from the net,as i soon learned that sites can disappear overnight.

Recently the Classic ATWT page went but fortunately I had saved or printed most of the info contained there.