As The World Turns Discussion Thread

[Paul Raven]

Bill Bell left to write Days in June 66.

I agree,great episode. Nothing compares to seeing an actual episode. So many references eg Chris writing to his brother.I wonder if Irna made other references to John Hughes with the possibility of bringing him into the story at some point?

That mention of Lisa coming to town - I don't think Eileen came back till 67 so either it happened offscreen or Lisa cancelled.

Tom should have been about 4 at this time and Frankie Michaels was 9. I can forgive this sorasing as he was such a natural and talented actor.They should have let Tom age more slowly.Only a few years later he was off to Vietnam and then up on a murder charge.

Sylvia and Al Suker did marry in 1966.

Looks like they were hinting at a Sara/Don/Bob triangle,but that never happened.Sandy was around also she and Bob married in 66. Gloria DeHaven was 41 at this point but looked younger.

Boy Nancy Hughes is a beyotch!! Constantly needling and interfering under the guise of 'caring'

Great to see a cast list.Judy English,Claire's British niece is listed- she didn't stay long.Ellen was listed as Ellen Cole. I thought she always used Lowell as her surname.

[slick jones]

So, for the Suker's , I'm figuring Al was married to Martha and Helene was his daughter? Or was Martha his mother? Anne Hegira was born in 1917, Gerianne Raphael was born in 1935. I'm not sure what year Ingram was born, though...

[Paul Raven]

Yes Al and Martha were married. They divorced maybe 65?

[slick jones]

That's what I had, but I wasn't sure. Thanks , Paul!! I don't like not being sure my info is accurate, and lets face it, a lot of the smaller storylines are hard to find legitimate confirmation. It was cool to see the cast list from 66! I figured Ellen was Stewart by that point...

[Paul Raven]

No Ellen and David married in June 66.

[slick jones]

Wow, I thought it was earlier, I probably knew that, but I've been overloading on search sites the last few days!

[danfling]

Ellen Lowell was Ellen's maiden name. She married Dr. Tim Cole and became Ellen Cole. Tim died, leaving Ellen a widow. Then, following her prison time (which is when Sandy was introduced), she married Dr. David Stewart.

When Ellen and David married, there were on-screen announcements inviting the audience to the studio to see the wedding. It was phrased the way that a real wedding invitiaton would be worded. The invitation was from Claire Cassen and Judge James Lowell. The announcer delivered this over the credits.

The same thing had been done when Penny and Jeff had married.

I guess that the above episode was after Ellen had killed Franny Brennan. She and David had decided to marry, but the wedding was postponed due to Ellen's trial and her imprisonment.

Before she and David became engaged, Ellen was involved with Donald. I wanted Donald and Ellen together!

Also, before Ellen married Tim, he had to get a divorce. His wife, Louise, was played by Mary K. Wells. The divorce decree came after a big legal drama.

Edited July 8, 2015 by danfling

[TimWil]

I remember Fulton repeating the "Sterile Carol" line on a special daytime soap leading actresses panel on The David Susskind Show back in the mid 1970s!

[Franko]

Is it possible Tom went to visit Lisa? A month later, Frankie Michaels would be off doing the out-of-town tryout for Mame. When Tom returned to the canvas (May '66, says soapcentral), he was played by Richard Thomas.

[danfling]

If I am not mistaken, Richard Thomas as Tom returned to the story at or about the same time as Lisa. Lisa, at the time, had divorced John Aldridge.

[SoapDope]

How long did Richard Thomas play Tom ? In 1969 he did that weird movie "Last Summer" with Barbara Hershey and Catherine Burns. I saw Catherine in a 1969 episode of One Life To Live as Cathy Craig. How long did she play Cathy ? She was nominated and lost the Oscar to Goldie Hawn for Cactus Flower. I read people expected big things of her, but it appears she stayed mostly in TV, before turning to writing. She wrote some episodes of Guiding Light in the 80's.

[danfling]

I think that it was 1967 when Richard Thomas played Tom. (This is just from memory. I don't have any exact dates.) I don't know when A Flame in the Wind/A Time for Us was cancelled, but he was on that show. Irna Phillips was conneted to that show, so she probably wrote Tom back into As the World Turns after the cancellation of that show.

Mr. Thomas did not play for very long. I know that my mother did not like him. He was replaced by Paul O'Keefe, who had previously played Dan Stewart on the show.

Mr. O'Keefe was better received in the role (at least in my house).

By 1970 (or probably 1969), Peter Link was playing the role.

I don't think that John Hughes was being considered by Irna Phillips as a possible addition for the show.

In the beginning, both John and Edith were seen. John was played by Lawrence Hugo (Mike Karr #2 on The Edge of Night, Rex Twinning on Search for Tomorrow).

John was never a fulltime character but would be brought into the story at times. Edith was a fulltime character, but, after being written off the show, she would return for holidays.

John and Pearl (Nancy's never seen sister) were mentioned occasionally in the scripts. Whenever Helen Wagner was off the show for vacation, she was said to be out-of-town visiting Pearl.

[DRW50]

I think it was Richard Thomas that Don Hastings said was fired because he didn't seem like Tom, or he wasn't seen as a good actor by Irna, or something, which seemed to bemuse Hastings in an interview at the end of ATWT, given how big Thomas became a few years later.

Edited July 9, 2015 by DRW50

[SoapDope]

It's interesting that Paul O"Keefe was on the show twice as two different characters. O"Keefe is best know as playing Patty Duke's brother Ross on her 60's sitcom. Rita McLaughlin Walter (Carol) played the back of Patty & Cathy's head when they did double takes.

Patty Duke said they shot her sitcom in New York because child labor laws were not as strict as California and they could over work her long hours. Her managers who abused her moved her back to L.A. in the sitcoms final season when she fell in love with a director (who was her first husband) to try to keep them apart.

[amybrickwallace]

Exactly how many actors - both child and adult - played Tom?