B&B: Old/Classic Discussion & Articles

[Pedro]

YouTube official channel episodes have some pitiful quality... However, I'm sure CBS has better quality

[sheilaforever]

YESSSS! I can't wait...

As someone else suggested: this would be the perfect timing to watch B&B AND Y&R in sync to actually relive the crossover-mania... In another 100 episodes or so, Sheila sends the blackmail photo puzzle with a picture of Brad&Lauren in bed to Genoa City. Then, there is endless back and forth of of all of these characters. An we do have quite a few of Y&R episodes available from this timeframe.

[boldau]

It’s my understanding that Bell-Phillip TV are uploading episodes to YouTube, not CBS. 
I posted a few weeks ago about the YouTube episodes being in a weird zoomed/cropped format. I posted a photo of the video properties for reference. 

Edited November 29, 2021 by AusBoldFan

[boldau]

In the Vault, the majority of episodes 250 to 750 came from the YouTube user named “Amy”. Alot of her episodes have the original music muted because of YouTube’s copyright claims.

Videoland still has episodes 501 onwards, however it’s only a matter of time before seasons 3, 4 and 5 are deleted due to expiring rights. If someone is able to rip VL eps 501-750ish in better quality with the original music that would be amazing. We’re missing some fab music from the fashion show episodes in the Vault.

[Liberty City]

Watched scenes yesterday where Eric & Stephanie were discussing both Brooke & Ridge and Caroline & Thorne going up to Big Bear, and they both burst out in laughter. Genuine. Loved it. That's the kind of quality and charisma this soap is missing in 2021.

[Videnbas]

Indeed! The first time around, I started watching from about early 1988, which caused me to root for Brooke over Caroline because I missed the beginning of that storyline. Watching from the beginning it's clear to me that Brooke was the rebound and Caroline was the unavailable one that Ridge really wanted. But it's equally clear watching the late 1990/early 1991 episodes that there Brooke's role is reversed - there it's Brooke who is the one Ridge prefers, although she is unavailable, and Taylor is the rebound.

That being said, I don't necessarily think Ridge kept preferring Brooke over Taylor as he grew closer to Taylor. I just personally don't think Taylor had a lot of chemistry with anybody (with the possible exception of Storm). 

[sheilaforever]

Now that I have in arrived in July 1992 I wanted to gush about the Sally/Clarke-storyline in those early years. While in the first few weeks, Bill Bell did some back and forth with Sally who started way more vicious and cold-hearted before becoming the woman reaching for ambition and respect – plus a crazy bunch of clowns going for laughs.

 

As soon as Clarke became Beau Rivage things got REALLY good. IMO, the show could have used this potential a while longer because… Clarke going full speed into Sally’s (personal) orbit happened not as organically as you would think in light of their long history eventually. At least; I thought that the wedding in June 1990 lacked some proper build-up and happened rather quick for the context of the time. Nowadays this would serve as an epitome of thought-out storytelling. LOL

 

Anyhow, Bill Bell was so smart to envision the sheer power of this couple and the storyline possibilities by not just having Sally draw up a one year term of the marriage contract but two years. 24 months is a long time… Again, it seemed like the final decision to have Clarke&Sally crash and burn happened more sudden than it was typically Bill Bell’s style: Clarke’s development from philanderer to perfect husband with some interest in Clarke Jr. stopped rather sudden. The show then came up with some good motives like the lack of sexual attraction towards Sally and the temptation that is Kristen, so that it made a brilliant story over all and Clarke was an equally fascinating character to watch. And the final climax in June 1992 was just divine. Darlene Conley killed the material, the script was crisp and the whole climax was just delicious. To my surprise, the show did not write off Daniel McVicar immediately, but again milked some aftermath material out of it

 

In the years in between we got the affair with Julie Delorean and Sally’s pregnancy. What a perfect umbrella story! Unfortunately, Sally never got this good, multi-layered and center-stage again like from 1990-1992. So I say THANKS for the uploaders of the classic episodes who gave me the chance to relive this magic!

[Soapfan8]

Who to you all’s opinion contributed to B&Bs success the most?

[Videnbas]

Yes, I really think Sally/Clarke was a stroke of genius! They were both character types that just don't exist on the show these days. And their union, absurd though it may seem, still made perfect sense for them. Sally's desire to win respectability by making Spectra a legitimate fashion house and getting herself a handsome young husband in the process, and Clarke's desire to succeed in his career even though it meant marrying Sally whom he was not at all attracted to. And in business, they were quite a team, but outside the office, their incompatible expectations eventually caught up with them.

Clarke was really quite a fascinating character because his main focus was always his own ambition rather than any romantic interest. And because he valued his own ego above all, he always carried within him the seed to his own destruction. Time and time again, he got himself into trouble and it was always his own fault. He was the archetype of a man whose arrogance becomes his downfall.

And it was clear that in the *very* early days of Sally Spectra, Sally was supposed to be more of a mob boss type of character. But I think Bill Bell was really quick with the "course correction" when he saw the true potential of the character. I think I can pinpoint the exact moment where Sally's heart and humor were born - it was a tiny nonverbal gesture during an interaction between Sally and Saul. They are talking about work and Sally is having lunch at her desk. And without stopping the conversation, Sally casually offers Saul her sandwich (or whatever it was) and he casually declines. Neither of them mention the tiny interaction, it's just a natural thing that happens while they keep talking about other things, but it speaks volumes about their relationship - they are a lot friendlier and more equal in status than we've been led to believe so far. (Imagine Eric Forrester offering food from his plate to one of his tailors - unthinkable!)

Going back to watch the early Spectra scenes they are full of moments of nonverbal comedic brilliance. The dialogue just keeps going as if nothing at all is happening, and meanwhile they are making secret hand gestures, wiping lipstick off each other's faces, trying to carry too many office props at once, you name it.

[rlj]

Caroline is Ridge's first love, Brooke is the love of his life imho!

KKL & RM were on the cover of TV Guide  in the early 90s, featured in an article bout on screen chemistry!

[Videnbas]

I think Stephanie was the show's center of gravity, so to speak. Everything and everyone existed in relation to her and had to take her influence into account.

From Stephanie, two main "force fields" emanated - Stephanie/Brooke and Stephanie/Sally. That is why I'd say Brooke and Sally were the second most structurally important characters on the show after Stephanie. 

After these three characters, the rest is a matter of personal preference IMO. I may have tuned in to watch certain characters, someone else tuned in for some other characters. But there wouldn't have been a show without Stephanie. And it would have been a very different show without Brooke or Sally. 

[sheilaforever]

Sheila/Kimberlin Brown for shooting B&B to number 2 in the US ratings. Sally/Darlene Conley for giving the show recognition (she got the first acting nods at the Emmys AT ALL for B&B!) and a unique flavor. Stephanie/Susan Flannery for creating a love-to-hate-character and always spot-on acting performances which nutured A LOT of talent on the show... 

KKL&Ronn Moss&Hunter Tylo aka Ridge & Brooke & Taylor in Ridge's life for their longevity on the show and creating hardcore fan rivalry and supercouple appeal.

[Soapfan8]

I think Brooke was like the Face, she was Bold she was beautiful, but Stephanie was the heart and soul

[Althea Davis]

The success, which is mostly outside USA.... Bold was like iconic back in the day in Europe... was... the setting - fashion, rich and beautiful. It was like Dynasty, but in the fashion world. Also it had that Beverly Hills vibe, that is so interesting to people outside America. People in my country wanted to see how americans behaved, loved and fought through this show back in the 80s. I think to this day this is the best sold outside CBS soap opera. Bold has been watched by practically the whole world.

[kalbir]

@divinemotion I wouldn't compare B&B to Dynasty. B&B started on CBS when primetime soaps were past their peak. If any daytime drama tried to be a daytime Dynasty, I'd say it was Santa Barbara; it's NBC premiere in 1984 overlapped with Dynasty at the height of it's popularity.

In the 1997 book Worlds Without End: The Art and History of the Soap Opera, Bill Bell Jr. comments on B&B and Y&R around the world. He mentions B&B was a big hit in Italy and Holland while Y&R was not, but the opposite was the case in France and Turkey. He also mentions there wasn't a country where both shows were a big hit; I thought Australia would fall into that category.