Recasts

[danfling]

I am not sure what Patricia Bruder meant about being replaced. She and the original actress who played Ellen (Wendy Drew) were the only actresses that I can remember who played the role.

There was a single episode that I can remember in which there were two temporary actresses playing Penny and Ellen. One of the actresses (I think playing Penny) looked like, and may have been, Abagail Kellogg. I don't remember how the temporary Ellen looked.

I know that Patricia Bruder was written off the show several times, once in the 1960s and once in the 1970s.

Maybe that actress playing Ellen was not temporary, and the show had actually replaced Patricia Bruder. Then, the producers and headwriter Irna Phillips were not satisfied and re-hired Ms. Bruder in the role.

[danfling]

Dennis Parker (Wade Nichols) had once been involved in adult films, but that had passed by the time that he was cast on The Edge of Night. He had even changed his stage name.

The incident about Joey Alan Phelps happened FOLLOWING his being cast as Kelly.

[robbwolff]

To reiterate, his name is Phipps, not Phelps. I'm not sure when they were filmed but according to Nichols' filmography, six of his porn films were released after he joined Edge. Whether P&G knew about his background is another story.

[rlj]

Gay or straight porn?

[robbwolff]

Both. From what I've read, he initially appeared in gay porn and then segued into straight porn.

[saynotoursoap]

I knew Dennis Parker. Dennis' real name was Dennis Posa. He used the stage name Dennis Parker for his career as a "legitimate" actor and performer. The name Wade Nichols was solely for his porn career. Unfortunately, it is the "Wade Nichols" pseudonym under which he can be located on IMDB instead of his real name or legitimate stage name. But, I digress.

P&G knew about Dennis' moonlighting in porn, as did his fellow actors. Sharon Gabet confirmed it in an interview on the old WOST site a number of years ago. There was an era in the 70s known as "porn chic". Even the most plebian of couples went to see films such as Damiano's Deep Throat or Radley Metzger's The Opening of Misty Beethoven, which had a first-run in D.C. lasting seven years. In this pre-AIDS time, porn was considered somewhat hip in certain circles. Also, in those days, soap journalists had more integrity and class than the ones foisted on us today. Reporters such as Paul Denis and Jon-Michael Reed maintained enough discretion to not broadcast an actor's or writer's or director's business.

As for Joey Alan Phipps, he played Kelly for approximately eight weeks. I have never heard of Phipps being replaced due to a "morality clause". I assumed it was due to his inappropriateness for the role. If Edge had invoked such a clause, a number of personnel (in front of the camera and behind it) probably would have been terminated!

I wonder if danfling is confusing a situation with Phipps' replacement Allen Fawcett? After leaving Edge, Allen Fawcett was arrested and convicted on a charge of forcing a young woman to consume alcohol and cocaine and then Fawcett and another actor allegedly made her pull a train. I believe this was during his Puttin' on the Hits tenure.

[robbwolff]

Thanks for the insights on Dennis. I, too, never heard anything about Joey Alan Phipps being replaced because of a morality clause. Rather, it always seemed as though he had been replaced because he was woefully miscast as Kelly. Plus Allen Fawcett seemed much more in keeping with the whole Luke Spencer lookalike craze going on at that time (e.g., Sandy on Another World, Travis on Search for Tomorrow). By the by, thanks for posting all those amazing videos on your YouTube page!

[danfling]

I had never heard that about Allen Fawcett. I was not confusing what I heard about Joey Alan Phelps (which was not all that much) and Mr. Fawcett.

My ABC affiliate, which was terribly misinformed, dropped The Edge of Night from its schedule from April of 1979 until August of 1980. So, I did not get to see Mr. Phelps in the role. I had seen some episodes on YouTube, so I guess that I confused the ones that I seen thinking that he had only been in the role for about two episodes. I appreciate your sharing the correct information with me.

[danfling]

The name of the actress who was hired to play Victoria Lord was Sharon Loughlin. She appeared in some of the commercials for the program. She was replaced by Gillian Spencer before the first episode was taped.

Joanne Dorian and Erika Slezak later played the role.

Trish van Devere created the role of Meridith, the sister of Victoria. I think that Ms. van Devere was also on Search for Tomorrow.

[danfling]

I have a question about two soap opera recasts.

Why did Ernest Graves leave One Life to Live? Did he choose to leave, or was he replaced in the role of Victor Lord by the producers. Shepherd Strudwick, for whom Agnes Nixon had written on Another World, became the second actor to be cast as Victor.

Also, why did Shepherd Strudwick leave the role of Jim Matthews on Another World? Did he choose to leave to join One Life to Live, or did the producers decide to replace him with Hugh Marlowe?

I think that Ms Nixon may have written for Ernest Graves also when he was on The Guiding Light.

[robbwolff]

Again, Danfling, his name is Phipps, not Phelps.

http://movies.nytimes.com/person/1091330/Joey-Alan-Phipps

I had never heard that about Allen Fawcett. I was not confusing what I heard about Joey Alan Phelps (which was not all that much) and Mr. Fawcett.

My ABC affiliate, which was terribly misinformed, dropped The Edge of Night from its schedule from April of 1979 until August of 1980. So, I did not get to see Mr. Phelps in the role. I had seen some episodes on YouTube, so I guess that I confused the ones that I seen thinking that he had only been in the role for about two episodes. I appreciate your sharing the correct information with me.

 

[robbwolff]

SayNo...a bit off-topic, but do you know anything about why Denny Albee was dismissed from his role of Steve Guthrie on Edge? I recall Daytime TV reporting that Denny had been fired due to ongoing backstage conflicts between himself and Lee Godart (Eliot Dorn). Do you know if that's true?

 

 

[saynotoursoap]

I cannot attest to the validity of the information. I was not told this by Godart or Albee. But, at the time Albee left, Edge was in a baseball league with other New York soaps. It was a way to promote the shows and give fans an opportunity to interact with the cast. It was my understanding that a few cast members were quite competitive and took the games very seriously. Godart was on Edge's team, but he was French. He had not grown up with baseball, and was not a particularly skilled athlete. Apparently, Albee was annoyed by this. He berated Godart's performance and made fun of his nationality. Godart, who was there to support his soap and have fun, was highly offended. He complained to the EP Nick Nicholson. Nicholson called Albee to his office and stressed that he had zero tolerance for harassment of fellow actors. Either Albee did not take Nicholson's warning seriously or felt that he would not be seriously punished. He continued to harass Godart. When the next option on Albee's contract rolled around, Nicholson did not pick it up, and Albee was dismissed.

I believe the situation was further exacerbated by the fact that Albee was unhappy with the direction of his character, and like Don May before him, had been openly vocal about his displeasure. The Steve/Deborah romance had become an endless series of starts and stops. Albee felt that Steve had begun to look like a chump with Deborah constantly leading him on, dumping him for other men, and then coming back. Albee wanted them to marry or for the show to give him another romance where he was stronger and more in control.

From what I heard, ABC was not happy with Nicholson's decision. The network liked Albee, so he was quickly moved over to One Life to Live as Peter Jansen. I recall reading interviews in which Albee raved about how much better it was to be part of OLTL, but in the long run, I do not think it served his career well. Albee only lasted about a year there, and when I remember Peter Jansen, it's Jeff Pomerantz who I recall. If Albee had stayed with Edge, he probably could have stayed until the end of the series, if he had so desired.

[robbwolff]

Thanks for the information. I agree with you. When I think of OLTL's Peter, I remember Jeff Pomerantz, not Denny Albee. It's a shame that things couldn't get worked out with Albee on Edge since Godart's Eliot Dorn was murdered a few months later.

[John]

Anyone hear that Agnes wanted Juia Barr as Brooke so ABC pulled her from RH and fired Elissa Leeds