Falcon Crest

[Soapsuds]

Im watching season 4 and Gina Lollobrigida is just horrible. Whose idea was it to have her on the show?

Edited May 10, 2023 by Soapsuds

[Khan]

IIRC, their original choice was Sophia Loren, but when she turned them down, they asked Gina.  Also, IIRC, Gina said she was enthusiastic about getting the part, because she was always getting parts that Sophia had turned down (not knowing, of course, that that had happened again).

[kalbir]

Gina Lollobrigida was 57 in 1984 and she looked pretty good for her age. It was either good Italian genetics or good Italian doctors.

Ratings for Gina Lollobrigida episodes and how they compared to the rest of the primetime soaps and 1984/85 two rookie hits.

November 9, 1984: The Intruder, rating 21.1, 8th for the week. Finished ahead of Knots Landing (November 8: Ipso Facto, rating 19.4). Dallas (November 9: Homecoming, rating 26.2) was #1, Dynasty (November 7: The Verdict, rating 25.7) was 2nd, and The Cosby Show (November 8: Play it Again, Vanessa (episode 8 ), rating 21.2) was 7th. No Murder, She Wrote on November 11.

November 16, 1984: Pain and Pleasure, rating 20.5, 11th for the week. Finished ahead of Murder, She Wrote (November 18: Lovers and Other Killers (episode 6), rating 19.1). Dallas (November 16: Oil Barons Ball III, rating 26.5) was 2nd, Dynasty (November 14: Amanda, rating 23.5) was 5th, The Cosby Show (November 15: How Ugly is He? (episode 9), rating 22.5) was 6th, and Knots Landing (November 15: Truth and Consequences, rating 20.7) was 10th.

November 23, 1984: The Trump Card, rating 18.8, 11th for the week. Finished ahead of The Cosby Show (November 22: Bonjour Sondra (episode 10), rating 16.7) and Knots Landing (November 22: Love to Take You Home, rating 16.3). Dynasty (November 21: The Secret, rating 24.3) was 3rd, Dallas (November 23: Shadows, rating 22.6) was 5th; and Murder, She Wrote (November 25: Hit, Run and Homicide (episode 7), rating 19.7) was 9th.

November 30, 1984: Tarantella, rating 21.1, 12th for the week. Dallas (November 30: Charlie, rating 25.9) was 2nd, Dynasty (November 28: Domestic Intrigue, rating 25.2) was 3rd, and Knots Landing (November 29: Tomorrow Never Knows, rating 21.4) was 11th. The Cosby Show was a repeat on November 29. No Murder, She Wrote on December 2.

December 7, 1984: Going Once, Going Twice; rating 20.7, 12th for the week. Finished ahead of Knots Landing (December 6: We Come Together, rating 20.2). Dynasty (December 5: Krystina, rating 25.3) was #1, Dallas (December 7: Barbecue Five, rating 24.7) was 3rd, The Cosby Show (December 6: You're Not a Mother Night (episode 11), rating 23.1) was 4th; and Murder, She Wrote (December 9: We're Off to Kill the Wizard (episode 8 ), rating 22.3) was 6th.

[Khan]

I think FC's biggest problem, aside from the questionable cast choices, was that it never knew what kind of soap it wanted to be.  Did it want to be gritty, for lack of a better word, like DALLAS; or did it want to be glamorous, like DYNASTY?  Instead, FC tried to have it both ways, and it just didn't work.

Edited May 11, 2023 by Khan

[yrfan1983]

Shannon Tweed said as much in an ‘86 SOD interview, when she was on Days, and reminiscing on her time on FC. She was grateful for FC showing her the ropes of television acting, such as which camera to face when. But she criticized the lack of glamour on FC… she wondered why the show didn’t go “all the way”, like Dynasty did.

[kalbir]

In the main cast or the guest stars?

I'm no expert, but is California wine country associated with vast wealth and jet setters?

[Khan]

Both.  Not EVERY cast member was wrong for the show.  Ana-Alicia, David Selby, Susan Sullivan and, of course, Jane Wyman more than made up for what the rest of the main cast lacked; and although she was never a great actress, Lana Turner, as Jacqueline Perrault, lent the show a certain "old Hollywood" aura that pushed the rest of the show over the top in the glamour department.  However, FC also featured plenty of actors who were either wrong for the show or the characters they were chosen for (Kristian Alfonso, Morgan Fairchild, Ken Olin) or who were just plain wrong (Gina Lollabrigida, both Vickies, all of Emma's husbands/love interests).

Furthermore, stunt casting, in general, is never a good idea.  It comes across as desperation; and FC, I'm afraid, indulged in stunt casting too frequently - to the point where I think it hurt the storytelling.

Wow.  It's not everyday when I find myself in agreement with the likes of Shannon Tweed, lol.

Edited May 11, 2023 by Khan

[kalbir]

The two biggest stunt castings in the peak years were Lana Turner and Gina Lollobrigida. There was still more story that could have been told with Jacqueline but Francesca was more plot device than fully developed character.

Edited May 11, 2023 by kalbir

[j swift]

I'm always amused when soaps cast Jewish actors like Ken Olin as priests. 

[Chris 2]

I thought Ken Olin was a good addition and thought they could have done more with Christopher. But I know Olin hated being on the show and removed it from his resume.

[Khan]

If I ever meet Ken Olin - and I doubt I ever will - the very first thing I'm going to say to him is, "Loved you on FC," just to see his reaction, lol.

[kalbir]

Christopher was another that was more plot device than fully developed character.

That lake scene, was Christopher trying to purify himself in the waters?

[yrfan1983]

Wow, you're weren't kidding... ep 12 changed the game! Night and day. The ep had a much-needed narrative propulsion, and an umbrella story to bring all the characters together in a compelling way.

Lana Turner floated down to Tuscany like an angel from heaven. Her performance is glossy in that classic manner - she is acting on an entirely different show than all of the other characters. But it didn't matter - Jacqueline vs Angela in the cemetery was a clash of the titans. And Lana did have palpable maternal chemistry with Robert Foxworth.

Even Vickie wasn't as annoying as usual. I'm glad I stuck it out in watching all the previous eps. I needed to see ep 9 "Dark Journeys" to understand how Vickie is flailing in her life and would grasp her grandmother and life in France like a life-preserver.

Emma continues to be the MVP scene-stealer. I also enjoyed Julia's enjoyment at Angela's discomfort.

Can't wait for Lana's return!

PS - how sad that Dolores Cantu's entire stint in ep 11 as Melissa Agretti consisted of a scene with one line "Oh, that would be wonderful!" They could have just cut her scene entirely. Bring on Ana-Alicia!

[kalbir]

Two messy wealthy matriarchs facing off and taking each other down with words and not with bitch slaps. Hells yes I am here for it.

[soapfan770]

I know it’s polarizing but I thought the crime noir identity that the Jeff Freilich era established seemed to work well for the show. I’m sorry that Lorimar felt the need to bring FC “back down to earth” by bringing back Stern & Black who promptly ruined it. 

The Dallas with grapes premise could obviously take the show only so far, so I think that’s why the New Globe storylines as well as Richard’s international business dealings ended up driving a lot of the show’s plots. In addition to being an old gentry landowner Angela was a Katharine Graham in a sense as she controlled a powerful newspaper and bought a lot of influence of politicians and such which really established her reputation.