DAYS: Behind the Scenes, Articles/Photos

[carolineg]

Yes!  It was something to do with arms dealing in Israel.  I was going to say that, but was second guessing myself.  Obviously not counting Stefano's obsession or John,  I still swear that RC's Mike was the only character that even hinted at a romantic interest in Marlena during those post-Roman JER years.  Even if it was only the slightest hint.

You make a good point about Mike.  The first ladies that popped into my head were Kristen and Billie.  I also think Lexie could have worked with him as well.  Kate/Mike would have been a great idea.  I feel like at the time Kate was still a fairly straight laced business woman loyal to Victor.  It would have been fair game in 2000 lol.

I actually think moving Mike in Carrie's direction was a fabulous idea.  Austin/Sami/Carrie got too played out and it worked great at the time, IMO.  It just stinks RC had to sit around a few years before he got the Ali story, Craig/Nancy or anything with Carrie

[Titus Andronicus]

It would have been two very similar stories for Lexie. She was not long removed from the affair with Jonah and the whole Pacifier rogue cop by night. Wasn't Jonah trying to be a doctor at that time?

Billie and Mike could have been interesting. Maybe Billie looking for stability while Bo waffles on who he really wants.

[carolineg]

Jonah got kicked out of medical school and Lexie got fired from the Police force after the Pacifier stuff.  Jonah started to work at the hospital in a different role (in the lab, maybe?), dated Wendy and I believe got back into medical through Stefano possibly and disappeared.  Lexie at some point decided she wanted to become a Dr.

Anyhow, I was thinking more along the lines of Abe not forgiving Lexie after the Jonah debacle and she moves on to Mike starting over.  I am sure she would have eventually gone back to Abe, but Mike/Lexie's careers and interests seem to align.

I think Billie/Mike would have been decent too.  At the end of the day even if he was paired with Kristen, Billie, or Lexie he would have probably ended up the third wheel of a triangle, but at least it would be something for him to do.

[Franko]

This reminds me of Kate's cougar year with Victor Webster's Nicholas Alamain. What the hell was that all about?

[Wendy]

I think Mike Horton became problematic because the show aged him WAY too quickly. From baby to adult - from all I have read - in SEVEN YEARS.

Complete with marriage and a wife dying of cancer.

So by the time MTW came on the scene, Mike's age was in stasis. The character was in his 30s for a good two to three DECADES. Because RC wasn't much older than MTW, if I recall.

So TPTB probably didn't know where to place him love interest wise, because even if it was remote, his past was still part of him. So the generation issue became an issue. (I liked Mike/Carrie way better than Carrie/Austin, but it was hard to argue against those that brought up Mike being a grown adult/widower when Carrie was just a little girl!)

So that mistake from ages ago ended up perhaps hurting the character in the long run. And yes, I know other soaps have such an issue, too, but to me, they seemed to just roll. Days seemed to want to remember Mike's history and hand wave it at the same time. Should have picked a lane.

This all said, the character is a Horton male, which are in short supply. He should make a comeback in a more permanent fashion, be it RC or yet another recast in a LONG line of Mike recasts. (My wish would be MTW, but I know he supposedly didn't leave the show with the fondest of memories, so...yeah.)

[carolineg]

Strange story.  Kate was already moving in to sexy, cougar villainess territory by then.  I think they hired Victor Webster to romance Krista Allen's Billie and he ended up having better chemistry with Koslow.  Setting up a silly mother/daughter triangle.  They de-aged Nicholas Alamain and the whole thing was completely forgotten, but Victor Webster was super hot lol.

[DRW50]

Tom Hughes vibes (both shows that involved Bill Bell and Irna), although Tom did have story for a longer period than Mike did.

[Franko]

That reminds me of the Who's Who in Salem book (circa 1998) having Ken claim that Mike and Carrie rode their bikes to school together, or something like that.

Billie & Nicholas? Interesting. Thank goodness Rinna's Billie never babysat Nicky in 1993.

But yeah, Victor Webster was hotter than Satan's stove in 1999. (I've said it before, 1999-2004 on the NBC soaps helped me realize it wasn't a phase.)

[carolineg]

Gosh, I can't remember anymore, but I don't think anything serious happened with Billie.  They may have casually dated?  Billie was definitely interested. Nicholas eventually rejected Billie for Kate, but Kate was like "nah, not super interested in anything serious lol".  I think Billie went back to romancing Roman and then KA's Billie left town not long after.  

Unfortunately for all of us looking for Victor Webster eye candy, he didn't last long, but there were plenty of shirtless scenes.

And for the first part of your post-I am pretty sure Carrie/Mike actually spoke about growing up together on screen too.

Edited October 15, 2024 by carolineg

[j swift]

I would submit that DAYS's strangest pimp to romantic hero story goes to Vivian's long-lost son Quinn Hudson.  It was a sudden transition from forcing Chloe into prostitution to yoga master.  And somehow Vivian went from a doting aunt who would have done anything for Lawrence and his age-hoping son Nicky, to a mother of three sons (none of whom ever met).

Edited October 15, 2024 by j swift

[JAS0N47]

That wasn't supposed to be his exit. He was supposed to come back. He stayed in the contract cast list for several months, but then ended up not coming back.

[Bright Eyes]

Mike certainly could have fit into that Nicholas Alamain mess if it was MTW, but Victor Webster on DAYS was one of my sexual awakenings so the course of my life could have been changed forever ... until Jason Cook and Jay Kenneth Johnson came along a year later. 

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I think Abe and Lexie should still be together for my Mike/Lexie idea, and would be endgame. As her and Abe grow further apart, Abe thinks she'S cheating on him with Jonah again, while her and Mike are still innocent, physically anyway. This pushes her full throttle into Mike's arms and bed. When it's finally blown apart, Laura rages at Mike for breaking up a marriage, lending a surprisingly good shoulder to confide in with Abe. Maybe they have a messy divorce where people fear Lexie is tapping into her DiMera genes. Of course, during this time, Laura will have been considering closely on whether she should take Bill back, but Mike's affair brings up all her hurt feelings. Bill and Kate end up back together and all that sordidness is finally played for what it's worth, because it's the show's biggest waste that they never did. Bill and Laura would eventually reunite (Kate and Abe would never be a thing, don't worry). Lexie would definitely have Mike's kid at some stage. Abe would have a long lost daughter, like Lani but interesting, who at first is an obstacle in Abe and Laura's relationship. There's a lot of the meat and potatoes missing, but you get the gist on all the complications that could be elicited. I could bring Marie back for Abe once everything with Laura goes south, and if Alex Marshall comes back and Abe finds himself on the outs for the third time, it could lead to the once strong and dependent Abe Carver to finally have a breakdown. Here, I would show Marie really did fall in love with him, chose him, and helps him back to his feet, their relationship solidified. Alex, my 2nd favourite DAYS character next to Margaret Mason's Linda, could then do something with Kate, or Vivian, or crazily enough Celeste, or hell all three (the cad!), and on and on it goes like sands through the hourglass ...

As for Carrie, on paper I always wanted her endgame to be Jonah. The original Theo/Ciara, albeit on a smaller scale. Quite frankly, though both actors were gorgeous, I'm seriously surprised Austin was never killed off. 

[dc11786]

I think JER could have had a field day with a long slow burn between Mike and Kate with Billie used as an early arc where Laura disapproved of Billie because she was Kate's daughter. I don't think enough was done with Kate's connection to the Horton family, and that might be for the reason that you are alluding to. Essentially, Kate was suppose to be a mostly nice character and the affair with Bill and Lucas' conception was a reminder of her messy past. With Billie and Austin, at least you could argue that Curtis was scum, but the Hortons were the "good" people in Salem. I get that Kate and Vivian were more exciting, but it became too played out because no other angle was played. Leaning into Kate and Laura for a bit would have stretched the shelf life of Kate and Vivian. 

I think you could have played Kate's guilt about how her affair with Bill impact his family. I would have had her secretly funding some project for the Horton Center (or maybe helping to get Laura's counselling license back) with Mike discovering Kate's generosity and slowly becoming friendly with her. To Kate, Mike could confess what actually happened in Israel, which I think should have also set up some sort of situation with a woman that could have been mined down the road as a complication. Realizing Bo would never get over Hope, Billie decides to move on with Mike, but, of course, Bo is possessive which upsets both Billie and Gina/Hope. Kate encourages Mike and Billie, but Vivian points out that maybe Kate's desire for Billie to be with Mike is her own desire to reunite with Bill. Of course, Vivian would run with this idea to Victor in order to complicate things. 

Billie and Bo would have one final moment and, in true soap opera fashion, Billie gets knocked up, but confesses to Mike who feels many complicated feelings because of his own situation involving his two fathers, Mickey and Bill. Mike speaks second hand to Mickey, who admits that he still loves Mike as a son even though he is not biologically his. Laura would overhear this and start to ruminate about the past herself. Vivian lands herself a seat on the hospital board and initiates a plot to bring Bill Horton back to Salem permanently by securing funding for the Tom Horton Cardiac Unit with the stipulation that Bill be in charge of the department. Titan and Kate are also donors to the project so that when Bill returns he assumes Kate has been the secret donor. 

The Israeli incident comes to light and Mike is up on charges for his part in this and turns to Mickey for help navigating the situation, which upsets Bill. Laura learns that Kate has been involved in helping the Horton Center and specifically helping her secure her license and begins to suspect that Kate is trying to worm her way back in. Bill and Laura have a push-pull dynamic complicated by Laura's inability to forgive Bill that is often fueled by Bill's desire to connect with his son, Lucas, especially when he continues to find Mike turning to Mickey for advice. 

Kate and Bill spend more time together when Victor suffers a heart attack, but Kate starts to realize that Bill is emotionally incapable of true love at this point in his life and is more after lust and rejects him. Kate does find solace and comfort in the arms of his son, Mike, and Kate starts realize that Mike reminds her of the man that Bill use to be. Bill, who is scarred by his time in Africa, decides to seek therapy with Marlena. 

Bill wants Victor to be in a trial for his new cardiac device and Vivian intervenes feeling like Bill is trying to rid himself of the competition by setting Victor up with a faulty device because this is Vivian and she doesn't operate in the world of logic 24/7. Vivian suspects that Kate and Bill are in cahoots. Meanwhile, Mike speaks to Billie and agrees to stand by her after she has told Bo the truth. Billie does tell Bo, but Bo thinks this is a ploy. Seeing this as a win-win situation, Billie runs back to Mike and says Bo knows. 

In the meantime, Kate has started to suspect the timing of the pregnancy and confronts her daughter during an appointment with Dr. Bader, while Kate is in the hospital visiting Victor. Future grandfather Bill stops by to visit Billie after learning she's hear from Dr. Bader and overhears an argument about the baby's paternity. Bill is torn on what to do, but when Dr. Bader has some tests ordered, Bill adds an order to determine the baby's blood type and learns it is impossible that Mike is the father. 

Laura has been stewing over Mike and Billie's news of a baby and a quick wedding in the Horton garden. Alice is thrilled, but Laura is surprised to have an ally in Bill. Bill confesses to Laura that the baby cannot be Mike's leading to an ugly confrontation between Bill and Laura over both Mike and Lucas' paternities. In the heat of the moment, Laura tells Bill she wished to God for so many nights that Mickey was the father. Given the mess that Bo has made of Hope's life, maybe the child would be better off with Mike. Laura suggests that Mike isn't an idiot and knows the baby isn't his, but Bill insists that he tell Mike before Mike ruins his life. In the meantime, Marie has suffered a health crisis and Bill rushes off to his sister's side. 

Kate is worried that Mike might be saddled with a child that isn't his and tries to worm it out of Mike, who admits he knows the baby isn't his. Mike tells Kate that the child deserves a good life, and if Bo won't step up, he will. Kate knows the pain a paternity lie can cause, and reminds Mike that he knows as well. Kate tries to get Mike to call off the wedding to Billie, which Billie overhears. Billie and Kate go at it, and Billie viciously lets Kate know that Kate has no leg to stand on here. Kate instead goes to Bo and begs him to own up to the situation, but Bo still thinks this is all a ploy to get him and Billie back together. 

Laura lets Mike know that Bill knows the truth about the baby. Mike and Billie considering postponing their wedding, but decide to go through with it with Kristen and Jennifer as the bridesmaids and Lucas and Austin as the groomsmen. Everyone gathers in the Horton garden as Mike and Billie prepare to exchange vows. Kate finds Bill before he arrives and Kate insists that Bill listen to her. She tells him Mike knows about the baby, but Bill thinks she is just helping Billie to pull one over on his son. Kate agrees with Bill that she thinks Billie and Mike's marriage will only bring them each heart ache, but that it's there choice to make. Arrogant Bill shows up in the backyard to object to the wedding and fight breaks out between Mike and Bill leading Billie to storm off and end up in a traffic accident where she loses the baby. The driver being Sami Brady who speeds off unaware of what she has set in motion.

Billie loses the baby, falls into a depression, and she and Mike marry anyway. At this point, Billie refuses to seek help and slowly becomes more and more detached from reality and starts to become obsessed with Will Roberts, her nephew, who Sami brings by often because of her own guilt regarding her role in Billie's loss. Mike continues to seek solace from Kate, who is equally concerned about Mike and Billie. Billie is also determined to have another child, and Mike knows that's the worst thing for them right now. Mike goes as far as seeking a vasectomy in order to prevent this from escalating, but is talked down by his mother, Laura, who says that Mike needs to stop hiding things and treat Billie with compassion and not dishonesty. 

To avoid Billie, Mike starts to spend more time at the hospital where he starts to clash with his father, who has now been appointed chief of staff. Mike, in turn, is there for Kate when Kate learns that Vivian is the surrogate mother for hers and Victor's child. Kate and Mike keep Vivian's pregnancy from Billie, but it is Laura who speaks with Billie openly about Vivian's pregnancy. Billie finds comfort in her mother-in-law, Laura, and continues to turn on Kate. Vivian also uses Billie's fragile mental state and the growing connection between Kate and Mike to suggest to Billie that her mother and husband are having an affair. This leads to a public confrontation between Mike, Billie, and Kate at the Penthouse Grille when Vivian spots them together and calls Billie. Laura intercepts part of the call and tries to talk Billie down, but Billie is enraged. Vivian awaits for the showdown while Bill shows up to meet with his brother Mickey to discuss a legal issue at the hospital and is front row for the verbal altercation between his son, daughter-in-law, and his former lover.  

I apologize for being long winded, I kinda got lost on that tangent. 

I think the other piece of the puzzle that wasn't addressed is that Nicky was Vivian's nephew and had been raised as Vivian's adopted son. Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe Victor Webster came on right before Vivian left the first time so I suspect the Vivian angle was dropped because Louise Sorel left. 

I liked Quinn 1.0. I loved the seediness of it all, but, after some time away from those years, I could see how it was all too much with Chloe's post-partum and Carly's drug addiction also intersecting into that story. 

I didn't hate Quinn being Vivian's son because I felt it could explain why Vivian was so controlling involving Nicky. Her own child was taken from her. Later sons, not so much. There's no way the Vivian I know and love would have let Ivan live after letting her believe her child was dead. Ivan would be buried alive for the next decade. 

[Franko]

@dc11786, as always when I read your posts, I think of Whoopi Goldberg in Soapdish. (I mean it as a compliment, if it wasn't obvious.)

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Edited October 15, 2024 by Franko

[DRW50]

Would you have ever reintroduced the story of Mike thinking he was gay (which was just used to have Linda help "make him a man") to have the character later question his sexuality? Having a bi Horton would have been interesting to me, back when there were traditional Horton figures around to react to it.

A gay story also would have made sense to me for Lucas.

Not that this has anything to do with the above, but I remember a fan talking about how dull they found Marina and the Marina/Steve story until Marina became obsessed with the key and what it meant. Would you agree with that?