As The World Turns Discussion Thread

[chrisml]

I read criticism from the soap press about Marland's second tenure on ATWT. They complained that his storylines went on too long and that he was not pacing the stories in a way to get viewers to tune in. A lot of the more vociferous criticism was aimed at the Caroline Crawford storyline which many felt went nowhere and took too long to get there (paraphrasing as I don't have the harsher comments in front of me). I read viewers' letters to the editors who also complained about how dull the show had gotten. It only got worse once he died, and then Margogate happened. 

I remember when SOW covered the Emmy race the year that ATWT won for Angel's rape. The columnist who watched the submissions said that GL had the best submissions but that voters would simply choose ATWT because of the subject matter. In another article (can't remember the magazine), a writer said it was obvious voters only gave ATWT the win for the story because they didn't even nominate Alice Haining who was the actress playing the main character of the story. 

[DRW50]

I do remember seeing a fair amount of criticism of ATWT around 1990 or 1991, although Marlena de Lacroix, IIRC, praises the show around 1991 (and points out the improvement). The Crawford story definitely got panned.

I don't know what GL's submissions were for that time but I don't really know why they had their nose in the air over ATWT getting an Emmy for that story. 

I'm not sure if they are implying that the show got an aware solely because of a rape/incest storyline; if so, I don't agree. AMC had a similar story around the same time, and it wasn't exactly racking up nominations. Genie Francis, a big star on soaps compared to Alice Haining (who should have been nominated), didn't even get a nod.

It's a very strong storyline. I went back and watched some again for the first time in a long time and there are some very ugly moments I had forgotten, moments I'm surprised even got through, like the various flashbacks Henry had to his mother controlling and abusing him. It wasn't just awards bait, the way a number of soaps treated those stories. 

[DRW50]

I don't disagree with you, but for some reason I do connect more with Marland's last years (not all of it - Rosanna, the John/Iva pairing, and yes, the therapy-speak and defanging of anyone beyond guest baddies). They seem most authentic to him and are a fascinating window, with some years-long arcs that aside from Carolyn Crawford have sizable payoffs. His first years are better soap, in many ways, certainly livelier, with a number of very strong set pieces, but they are also so Lily-heavy, plus the attempts at camp and comedy don't feel overly genuine to me. I also dislike the Margo/Tom stuff of that period more every time I try to watch it. 

That middle period, 88-90, may be the most interesting of his run, if we are analyzing, due to the producer changeover and Marland clearly struggling with where to go after the strike and a number of actor departures. 

Edited 16 minutes ago by DRW50

[Contessa Donatella]

Okay, does that mean they'd vote FOR the ATWT incest/rape storyline or against it? Or does it mean they'd vote FOR whatever was on GL's reel?