DAYS: Behind the Scenes, Articles/Photos

[carolineg]

I find most of 1992 to be pretty boring outside of Izzy's death.  I think you know I am not a Carly fan, so that has a lot to do with.

As far as the Pit/Affair story-it isn't bad writing.  I love it.  One of my favorite stories ever that has long lasting consequences throughout the canvas.  You just start to see where Roman gets slightly thrown under the bus and becomes the heavy.  It's still a well crafted story that begins in 1991 and John's closeness with the entire family keeps weaving it's way through until he finally re-connects with Marlena. It's 3 good people trying to deal with love and feelings in an insane situation.  It's just clear John/Marlena are the 'root' for couple here and that's always been SA and JER's writing and Roman gets pushed aside.  

[Contessa Donatella]

If you can say that you love an awful experience like the pit, well, I join many many fans in loving that story & even Stella! Such a good actress & well drawn character! 

Sheri, well she created John Black, and writers always have soft spots for their creations. PFS created & loved Wayne & there lies the historical Roman. JER, well, who really knows about him. He didn't create any of these characters except for the Banks siblings. Mostly he just manipulated the hell out of what was there. And, sure, J&M at some point became End Game & that was that. 

[carolineg]

I think the Lombard story is really well crafted.  It takes a little long to get there, but it's worth it.  Roman and Marlena's fight right before she gets thrown in that pit is amazing and perfectly sums up where the characters and their relationship is at.  If you decide not to watch the entire story I would recommend those scenes alone.  

The John/Marlena stuff when they think they are going to die is great too and sets up the affair and how their feelings never died and were just buried.  Man, I have almost convinced myself to re-watch it now 

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[Lye-C]

That reminds me, we’re quickly approaching the 20th anniversary of my favorite Roman moment. 

Do not diminish Reilly’s accomplishments. He created Kate, Lucas, Kristen, Peter, Curtis, Belle, Philip, EJ, Will, and others. He revitalized the Horton and DiMera families. He also brought Days such high ratings that NBC rewarded him with his own soap. 

[carolineg]

When he died?

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[Lye-C]

Yes!!! It was deliciously gruesome (pun intended)!

[Contessa Donatella]

Bo holding him on the beach as he dies? Yes, it is an upcoming anniversary. 

[carolineg]

When Marlena as the SSK "kills" him. 

[Contessa Donatella]

It wasn't as much a reward as it was an expectation. The execs at the time were a bit low on knowledge & experience with soaps. They really thought that he would do the impossible, which was to bring in first ratings that were like nothing anyone had ever seen. They were so disappointed with what the reality was that at first they didn't even do a good job of supporting the demos that they did have. They were not very good to him nor were they very good to the niche fans the show did attract. 

The real people on the ground that he worked with at both shows, now they understood him & appreciated him & revered him. 

But then you would not often find people saying good things about NBC leadership & there was a reason for that. 

Oh, a different anniversary. 

[Joseph]

YEP It was his new year's wedding to Kate when he was killed by the Salem Stalker and Kate Reappeared with her Wedding Dress Drenched in Blood

[Khan]

It would have been something if Josh Taylor's Roman was the one whom Marlena "killed," but when he showed up on Melaswen, it was Wayne Northrop again.

[Contessa Donatella]

That's very funny. A stunt in that context. Typically I ignore Melaswen. I wasn't watching & I'm not at all sorry that I was on a break. 

[carolineg]

That would have been fabulous.  Wayne shows up not too long after anyhow as Alex North so I assume he was available.  Why have I never thought of this idea before?

[Contessa Donatella]

Have you seen the Santa Barbara stunt where the US saw one scene but Australia saw a stunt? Terry Lester was on the way out as Mason & Gordon Thomson was coming in. Fistfight & Mason went down below camera view, as if hit to the floor, in Australia, when he came back up, he was Gordon Thomson. YouTube has it with both the US version & Australian back to back. What adds a surreal quality to it is that the Australian clip is in Russian so we see Nancy Lee Grahn speaking Russian! 

[Lye-C]

Twenty years ago we were deep into the Salem Stalker story which was the last time Days was must-see TV for me. I followed the mystery religiously and had determined that each character had an alibi for at least one of the murders other than John, Marlena, and Brady. As a Marlena fan I was rooting for her to be the serial killer because I loved when JER put her in prominent storylines. So when the reveal happened I was so excited! “Time of death: any minute now”.

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Deidre is so good at playing the darker side of Marlena. Had Corday not forced JER to bring the dead back, I think it would’ve been revealed that the Marlena we had seen since 1991 was not the real Marlena and Deidre would’ve begun playing the Marlena we saw from 1986-97 after the other Marlena was executed.

I have never liked Dee’s Hattie. That’s Andrea’s role and she was fabulous in it. Dee never could quite pull it off. I’m still hoping Dee can convince Andrea to return for a few episodes some day soon.