As The World Turns Discussion Thread

[Soaplovers]

You guys do know that this is 1985 and that Marie's Cyndi Lauper/Madonna get up was kind of in during this era along with the 80s theme music so I don't think it was out of date for the time, but I can see how it could be out of date in 2019

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With that said, the start of Marland's reign at least had a spirit/fun that is gone by 87/88 where it becomes too dark, too serious, and kind of boring.  Stories/plots can be tightly woven and spun, but if there's a coldness and lack of fun.. people aren't going to watch.

[P.J.]

I never found ATWT "cold." No matter what was going on, there was always a sense of warmth and family. 

[danfling]

When Susan Burke Stewart had her self-induced miscarriage (by jumping off the chair), what actress was playing Susan?

[DramatistDreamer]

 

I don't think people are saying it's not of its time.  I think that when you go too trendy with the look of a series, it just tends not to age very well.

If you go with timeless (certain items of clothing OTOH never go out of style), you rarely encounter that issue. 

Personally, I don't have an issue with it.  It looks like a time capsule but that's okay.  If nothing else, it gives a sense of where the show was production-wise at that moment in time.

[Mitch]

Wow..I never found ATWT "warm" by any means...but I still loved it. I think ATWT and GL were really led by their matriarchs...Nancy, cold, controlling would brook no compromise, never raised her voice but was disapproving (Marland changed that a bit with Nancy being more Grandma typical but she was never one to go to for a hug..)  and Bert, former "desperate housewife" matured into a loving, warm, hugging woman who could lay your ass out when it was needed.  All family fun and love on ATWT was polite, ordered and not too "huggy" and GL was more "Bauer BBQ" loud and yes, sloppy sometimes.   That is why I think Marland's style perfectly matched ATWT and Long's style matched GL.

 

I do wish Marland would have kept Nancy's dominate ways...she could have been the Dowager Countess of ATWT,  a strict woman with a good heart underneath it all.

[P.J.]

I guess I have a different perspective, as by the time I remember them, Bert and Nancy were definitely more in the grandmotherly/sage advice mode. 

 

Other than Y&R, all the CBS shows in my memory were centered on strong matriarchal women. Jo, Van, Bert, Nancy, Kim, Emma, Lucinda, Reva, Stephanie and even Clarissa McCandless. 

  

[DRW50]

When I started watching ATWT, I do remember some warmth, through Tom and Margo (who hadn't become so miserable and shouty by then), Bob, Emma, Hal, even Lucinda (she was a real harridan but Liz Hubbard gave so much life energy). I do agree it was colder than GL though, and from what I've seen of the show in earlier years it seems very cerebral. 

 

Speaking of that, Rob Wargo put up a 1968 episode - audio only. It's the first time I've ever actually heard Claire. The good thing about this is that Barbara Berjer had such a rich voice it doesn't even matter that much if we can't see the images. It's a good quality audio as well.

 

No wonder Ellen hated Lisa and Michael Shea so much, based on this audio. Michael just ran rings around poor Claire. 

 

I did laugh when the script was dancing around having Michael call Lisa a big ol' whore. 

 

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[Mitch]

Interesting...I actually though the writing was better and made mores sense then anything you see today..though the long pauses...Claire is a dimbulb.  "There are very few questions which can be answered yes or no.." I wanted her to scream..."Okay, here is one, did you or did you not screw that blonde ho-bag Lisa!"

 

"Well, Nancy Hughes introduced us.." Damn, dragging Nancy into your sleazy affair, you ARE a villain Dr. Shea.

 

Wow, weekends in New York, her apartment building , hotels in various cities..damn Lisa, you  WERE a slut! And I can see why housewives across America  both hated and admired you!!! "Wow, an affair in a hotel in New York sure beats making meatloaf!"

Edited January 12, 2019 by Mitch

[Khan]

Poor Claire.  Poor, naive, aging boozehound Claire.

 

The beauty about Irna's (and Bill Bell's) writing is that you never need the images to understand what's happening.  Dialogue moves so much of the story.

 

IDK who was HW'ing at that point, but they definitely copied that signature style quite well.

Edited January 13, 2019 by Khan

[DramatistDreamer]

How I wish there was a Soaps Classics (the one that CBS used to feature during holidays in the late '90s and early '00s) that featured episodes from this era when I started watching as a kid in the '80s. 

 

You're all correct, episodes like this one provide so much context for the enmity between Ellen and Lisa.

 

Henderson Forsythe's voice was instantly recognizable to me.  How ironic because after '85, David Stewart was often absent  from the canvas. I guess that goes to show just how distinctive his voice was.

 

Just hearing them discuss John Eldridge and how there is no doubt that he would've made sure to be an ever-present father to a child, should he and Lisa had one.  This must've formed the basis of that Scott Eldridge storyline that happened in the 90s.

[DRW50]

 

Per Wikipedia it looks like Katherine Babecki (looks like that might have been Irna's daughter, so maybe Irna still had major input over the material at this point).

 

I think Eileen Fulton initially wondered if they were going to bring back Chucky when they told her of the long lost son story. I wonder if that would have made more sense. 

 

Lisa really was living the most insane of lives in this period. Within, what, 4-5 years she and Bob split up via affair, she was gang raped, she married and divorced John Eldridge, and then she had an affair and a baby with Michael Shea. 

 

I wonder how much of this took place oncamera. 

 

(does anyone know what this Dr. Steiner case was about? The medical drama buzzing on ATWT in the '60s and '70s is always so interesting to read about)

Edited January 13, 2019 by DRW50

[Khan]

 

I've wondered that myself.  Michael Shea could have faked Chuckie's death in order to raise him away from Lisa.  Then, after Shea himself had been murdered, whoever was secretly taking care of the boy (perhaps Michael's mistress?) either could have continued doing so, or they could've turned over Chuckie to the foster care system.

[DRW50]

That sounds like a great idea. It also could have been used to make Scott's heel turn after his recast more logical.

[Franko]

Maybe go one step further and have it turn out that Scott Eldridge was Charles "Chuckie" Shea all along. That way you have the option of either having Scott Eldridge be genuine down the line, or just a plausible trick.

[Khan]

Yeah, Scott could have come to Oakdale, passing himself off as Chuckie in order to con Lisa and Tom; and then -- SURPRISE! -- he learns he is really Lisa's son after all.

 

 

Initially, Douglas Marland had it in mind to resurrect Chuckie.  Then, he went in a different direction, and retconned a secret pregnancy for Lisa that occurred between the end of "Our Private World" and her return to Oakdale.

 

My guess: he changed his mind, because he had already done something similar in the Frannie/Sabrina story.

 

 

Early Lisa makes Y&R's Sharon look like a [!@#$%^&*] recluse, lol.

Edited January 13, 2019 by Khan