4 minutes ago, janea4old said:

from watching broadcast tv as it aired:
The Woleks, Lords, Rileys, and Carla/Ed.

primarily:
Victoria Lord (Erika Slezak)
Joe Riley (Lee Patterson)
Larry Wolek (ultimately Michael Storm. I saw both Storm brothers but was too young to notice the recasting)
Meredith Lord Wolek (Lynn Benesch)
Anna Wolek Craig (Doris Belack)
Vinnie Wolek (Anthony Ponzini)
Wanda Webb Wolek (Marilyn Chris)
Carla Gray (Ellen Holly)

secondarily
Dorian Lord (Nancy Pinkerton)
Jenny Wolek (Karen Glass)
Joe's sister Eileen Riley Siegel
Eileen's son Timmy Siegel
(For Timmy and Eileen, it was more about the character storyline to me and I have little memory of the actors).
and --
Karen Wolek Wolek
For Karen, I saw Kathryn Breech's portrayal on first-run tv broadcast, but my memory of that actress is a blur to me, so I remember the character and not the actress. I came to see Judith Light on TV when visiting friends who were watching her, or later in repeats on soapnet, and then she became the Karen I remember, as she was so amazing.

Thank you for responding.

I am always curious about the characters whom other viewers fee emotionally attached to the most.

Often I agree, and occasionally their choices boggle my mind, LOL.

I cared about all the original characters, but just mentioned the ones who meant the most to me.

The romance between Jenny Wolek and Timmy Siegal was sweet and memorable.

Not to be crass, but actor Tom Berenger as Tim was sex on a stick, LOL. (Kathy Glass echoed the same sentiments.)

Kathryn Breech was fine as Karen in the character's shallow, selfish early days, but Judith Light fleshed Karen out into a three-dimensional woman and made the role her own. She may have been the best recast in daytime history.

13 minutes ago, janea4old said:

She came on the show just as I left highschool, so I rarely saw her, and I have to look her up when she is mentioned in soap discussions.

She had been a major star on Another World, and OLTL scooped her up quickly after she left that show, in hopes of luring viewers over to OLTL.

There was a brouhaha at the time, because the network immediately started her off at a salary that was almost twice as high as the other leads.

11 minutes ago, janea4old said:

I have memories of the atmosphere of OLTL from the time I watched the most. Viki, Anna, Eileen, and Wanda, in various combinations, especially the women sitting in kitchens talking with each other.
Every time I see a rerun of Law&Order with Doris Belack as a judge, I am instantly brought into a kitchen with Anna Wolek. I want to have coffee with her.

I think we all have those fantasies! Along with daydreaming about coffee klatches with soap characters, I always wanted to hang out with Mary and Rhoda in Mary Richards' gorgeous first apartment on the Mary Tyler Moore Show.

I was a child in the 80s and early 90s and a teen in the 90s/early 00s so my choices would be different:

To Me:

Tina Lord (Andrea Evans and Karen Witter) - I always saw her as someone that was her own worst enemy that confused wealth/power for love and acceptance thus chasing away any chances of love (Cord).

Dorian Lord (Elaine Princi and Robin Strasser) - Princi was the first Dorian I remember and I eventually came around to accepting Strasser. Seeing Strasser in clips from the 80s and in tv movies made me realize that she was capable of not chewing the scene and could play subtle beats.

Blair Daimler (Mia Korf & Kassie) - I enjoyed both versions of the character though the switching of ethnicity was certainly a choice in the early 90s. Eventually she became the only reason I was interested in checking out the brief Hulu revival in the early 2010s.

Bo & Nora - I liked them better together then apart. They just seemed to bring the best out of one another.

I liked other characters, but the above characters are who I always enjoyed and considered my go to characters (I always would tune back in whenever AE would return as Tina for her guest stints).

I have a searing memory of Nancy Pinkerton's Dorian having sex with Tommy Lee Jones' Mark Toland. I was a preteen/teen who was not allowed to watch primetime, but sneaked in watching soaps while adults were at work. The Dorian/Mark scenes were the most scorching things my young self had ever seen, just riveting! (but they were probably actually quite bland).

Trying to remember things from five decades ago, that I saw first run, with no context, and have never watched since, my memory is very fuzzy and I may have mixed things up.
So question: . . . I seem to remember Melinda Cramer secretly observing Dorian/Mark together, and that's what sparked Melinda's mental illness. But I haven't read that anywhere, so did I misremember or misinterpret?

25 minutes ago, Soaplovers said:

I was a child in the 80s and early 90s and a teen in the 90s/early 00s so my choices would be different:

To Me:

Tina Lord (Andrea Evans and Karen Witter) - I always saw her as someone that was her own worst enemy that confused wealth/power for love and acceptance thus chasing away any chances of love (Cord).

Dorian Lord (Elaine Princi and Robin Strasser) - Princi was the first Dorian I remember and I eventually came around to accepting Strasser. Seeing Strasser in clips from the 80s and in tv movies made me realize that she was capable of not chewing the scene and could play subtle beats.

Blair Daimler (Mia Korf & Kassie) - I enjoyed both versions of the character though the switching of ethnicity was certainly a choice in the early 90s. Eventually she became the only reason I was interested in checking out the brief Hulu revival in the early 2010s.

Bo & Nora - I liked them better together then apart. They just seemed to bring the best out of one another.

I liked other characters, but the above characters are who I always enjoyed and considered my go to characters (I always would tune back in whenever AE would return as Tina for her guest stints).

Most people do become primarily drawn to the characters who were prominent when they started watching.

Tina was a demon child when she was first introduced. My palms always itched with the desire to slap her.

The show had remarkable luck in recasting Dorian. Nancy Pinkerton, Dixie Carter, Claire Malis, Elaine Princi and Robin Strasser were all commendable, in their own way.

I found the switch in Blair's ethnicity to be demeaning, and when they joked about it later on-screen, just stupid. Not a choice I would have allowed.