As The World Turns Discussion Thread

[Mitch]

Yea, it seems that anything earlier then 1980 has disappeared for ATWT. Would love to see some of the early Dobson stuff, the transition from the old stuff to the "new," stuff, etc. Would love to see of Annie Brad and Dee were as dull and lifeless as I thought they were!\

Would also love to see a scene in Nancy's kitchen, I have memories of it as a kid but I never have seen a clip on you tube, etc.

Edited August 17, 2011 by Mitch

[DRW50]

All I've seen aside from a few quick clips is the 1978 episode. At least these clips show it's out there somewhere. Too bad they won't make it available - they'd make a quick profit, even just for online streaming.

[DRW50]

I think we talked months ago about the episode where Liz Hubbard played Lucinda's mother. I found an article on it and am going to try to post it later today. Did you know she also asked to play Lucinda as a young girl? They said no.

It must have been a real balls to the wall experience working with Liz, but it seems like if you knew how to work with her (which most not named Felicia Minei Behr apparently did), you got an unbelievable reward.

[Mitch]

Hubbard reminds me of Bev McKinsey and Michael Zaslow and Peter Simon, really good actors who were prickly and demanding but it was all because of wanting quality and the best work, not that they have to be the big "star." I know that I read an article at the time where Marlnand liked to open the show with Lucinda because of Liz's energy, and Bryne wrote that when she first started working with her it was like Tootsie, it would freak her out as Hubbard would start out with her first line, go off on a tangent as she would paraphrase the writers, and then land on her last line and say it exactley on script for the next actor to pick it up. She says she and many others who worked with her the first time would stand there with their mouth open looking befuddled and forget what their line was! That had to be a huge stretch for Marland , or any other writer who was meticulous and a control freak to let Hubbard let go and it was a smart move.

Which reminds me, Don Hastings always says that Bob has that beffudled look on his face in his scenes with Lisa as he never knew what would fly out of Lisa's mouth because Don never knew what Fulton would come up with as she would go off script so much.

[DRW50]

This is the story that Soap Opera Magazine readers chose as ATWT's best for 1992.

[saynotoursoap]

I am delighted that it was enjoyable. I believe that I have a 1960s episode with scenes set in the Wade Bookstore. If I can find it, I will upload it. I usually avoid World Turns and GL because so much of those soaps are already online, but 60s ATWT seems relatively rare.

[saynotoursoap]

Soaps Out of the Kitchen Into the Fire

by Jon-Michael Reed 1977

Daytime serials have a reputation of confining scenes to domestic settings. But in recent years, as the shows have become more sophisticated and have grown out of the confines of the kitchen, there have been an increasing number of spectacularly-staged non-domestic disaster scenes. These are small screen’s daytime versions of the “Towering Inferno” and “Hurricane”.

Whenever CBS-TV incorporates disaster scenes into its soap operas, the network calls upon its special visual effects department. The unit contributes everything from rain and snow showers to cars colliding or veering off cliffs and bursting into flames.

Two weeks ago on “As the World Turns” an apartment building on the show went up in flames. Special effects director Neal Schatz devised and executed the blaze with co-special effects director Mort McConnell.

“In this instance,” says Schatz, “I was informed three weeks in advance what the writers wanted in terms of the story, although the visual effects department sometimes works on an overnight’s notice. We had time to plot the progression of the fire with the show’s production staff, and then prepare all the equipment needed. The scenery flats were covered in a fire-retardant material. Then a specially prepared fire compound was applied. The compound burns itself but not the material. It’s a process akin to pouring lighter fluid on a table –the fluid ignites immediately, but not the table. The flame produced by the compound only lasts a minute or so and can be raised, lowered or extinguished by a propane burner.

“Of course, great care and control must be maintained when working within an enclosed stage set like ATWT.” While taping the fire, eight men were stationed around the set to control the flames and the smoke. The smoke produced by the special-burning compound is not noxious and is propelled by small fans that direct the desired wind currents. But it is a potentially dangerous situation and our prime concern is the effectiveness of the visuals and the safety of the cast and crew. The flames are as hot as the real thing and can burn just as severely.

In the storyline, Dr. John Dixon leaped through the flames, crashing through the door of Mary Ellison’s apartment to save Mary and her son Teddy, whose path was blocked by flaming debris. The leaping figure was a professional stuntman who wore a fire-proof suit under pajamas. One of his shoes briefly caught fire. Although it quickly extinguished itself, there was an asbestos tarp just outside of camera range that he could have rolled onto if the spark had flared. Men with fire extinguishers were standing by as an additional precaution. The total fire sequence, which resulted in about five minutes of airtime, required four hours to stage and tape. But it was a tribute to the wizardry of the CBS-TV special visual effects department.

In the last several years, “ATWT” has required similar assistance on occasion. Two years ago, a villain attempted to kill Lisa Shea by tampering with the brakes on her car, an accident shot on location on Long Island, and tried to burn her alive in a fire at the Wade Bookshop. The villain met a grisly end under a truck after running into the street to escape police. The crew’s other notable soap opera efforts in the last few years include the collapse of a construction-site scaffolding and a raging tornado, complete with flying debris propelled by giant wind machines.

Perhaps the department’s crowning daytime achievements were produced for “The Edge of Night” when that show was aired on CBS (it is now shown on ABC). In addition to a car careening off the road plunging into a ravine and the explosion of a honeymoon yacht, there was the stunning burning of the New Moon Café. An entire set was set aflame, with collapsing beams and walls that turned to apparent ashes. That sequence required a full nine-hour taping and involved several characters running amok the blazing rubble. Despite the intricacies of the effects, no one was injured-a testimonial to the stunningly executed visual effects and painstaking planning.

Edited August 17, 2011 by saynotoursoap

[DRW50]

Thanks for finding that article. Who was the villain who tried to kill Lisa?

I wonder if John had any story from this time to when the Dobsons arrived.

I'm always fascinated by how they do the stunts in this era.

I love that you upload the soaps which aren't as known today. There is so little of 70's ATWT online that I would love to see more, but I appreciate everything you share with us.

[Paul Raven]

Would Lisa's assailant be Gil Stallings?

[edgeofnight]

Reel life vs. Real life: Shades of Dr. Reid Oliver.

Within weeks of the first anniversary of Dr. Reid Oliver's fatal encounter with an oncoming speeding locomotive comes news of a real-life similar accident. The New Haven (Connecticut) line of the Metro-North railroad was backed up for several hours today after one of its trains collided with a vehicle. Miraculously, the driver, who is 92 years old, is okay. May God bless him.

[saynotoursoap]

Correct. The article refers to the attempts made on Lisa's life in January/February 1974 by Jay's evil father Gil.

[DRW50]

Wasn't there some kind of flirtation between Lisa and Jay?

[saynotoursoap]

Yes, but more so from Jay's point of view. Lisa was intrigued by Jay at a time when she did not have other suitors. However, Grant and Tom made her suspicious of Jay, especially following the attempts on her life. By the time it was revealed that Gil had started the fire that killed Jay's mother in Utah and had been responsible for the attacks on Lisa, she had fallen for Grant. This, in turn, sent Jay closer to Carol Hughes.

[soapfan770]

Saynotoursoap I have to thank you for all the information and details you provided in answering my questions earlier as well as providing me with a better idea of the timeline of 1970s ATWT. I wasn't offended at by the attention spans remark because I think it's true! Actually I've always been fascinated by the Centerville story since I first heard about it and I wish there we're clips available to see it.

Thanks Carl for sharing that video. Props to whoever put it together I didn't see anything in it later than Diego's shooting so I was very impressed they strung all those vintage clips together.

I've probably asked this before so sorry if I'm repeating myself but did ATWT do anything special for their first one hour episode?

[DRW50]

saynotoursoap put the video together.

In one of the 1976 SOD issues there is a photo of Lisa posing with a shovel. Did she ever dig anything on the show or was that just a press shot?