7 minutes ago, titan1978 said:

I honestly think JFP just didn’t like women standing up to her, or asking questions, or demanding parity with the men. Wendy Riche is who all the extended leaves happened under. The only thing with Jill was she wanted to be gone the same time Geary was for his summer vacation, which was allowed, but she had to give more notice than he did, which pissed her off. Jill told her no, and then told her she was going to enforce her contract to deny it. Genie, like a lot of the bigger soap names back then had her own out clauses, and threatened to quit. She has said that JFP basically fired her. In the end the story was disrupted anyway and had to be changed.

She said in her exit interview that she had fought hard for parity in their contracts, including the same pay, time off, etc. And that he wasn’t required to give the same length in notice for time off. This was before he was gone every quarter btw, which he negotiated in the 2000’s. He had a noticeable annual vacation and was usually gone several weeks and pre-taped. Now her maternity leave was ridiculous. And they did give her a first out filming schedule, which ruffled feathers and isolated Laura. But I also know that it touched a real nerve with her about ABC treating her differently or as expendable, and I get that even with the other issues on her part.

Another post bashing JFP from me lol. But the damage in her wake, especially with strong women is just too hard to ignore. I also think she doesn’t like featuring women that are not thin or fit her definition of beauty, and Genie has struggled with her weight repeatedly. Reminds me a bit of Ellen Parker in that way. To me the issue shouldn’t have even blown up the way it did, and that rests on Jill’s inability to manage talent. She drove off Genie, Amber Tamblyn, Sarah Brown, and wouldn’t work with Vanessa in 2002. None of these women were as difficult or prone to throwing fits like Maurice and Geary. Plenty of stories of them acting out, yelling, kicking trash cans, etc. Steve Burton refusing to play love stories, nasty to scene partners. These men get away with being so awful and she listened to their demands.

Oh, I think JFP is awful and I agree with pretty much everything you stated.

I do think JFP had a very dated view of women and thought strong women were difficult or complaining while men were passionate and intense when they were asking for the same thing. It's so odd a woman in the industry would hate other women so much.

1 hour ago, carolineg said:

It's so odd a woman in the industry would hate other women so much.

If life and our current political situation have taught me anything, it's that white women deep down hate each other and will throw each other under the old bus any chance they get.

6 minutes ago, Khan said:

If life and our current political situation have taught me anything, it's that white women deep down hate each other and will throw each other under the old bus any chance they get.

Ouch! As a white woman that hits!😂

I would not doubt that JFP was treated poorly because she was a woman in the beginning of her career and instead of changing the behavior she emulated it instead. If she had to suffer so does every other strong woman. But, hey, I don't know her. She could just be evil lol!

2 hours ago, carolineg said:

Ouch! As a white woman that hits!😂

I would not doubt that JFP was treated poorly because she was a woman in the beginning of her career and instead of changing the behavior she emulated it instead. If she had to suffer so does every other strong woman. But, hey, I don't know her. She could just be evil lol!

What makes me shake my head is that this genre from very early days on television had a lot of women in power positions running shows. More than other film and tv did! In the 80’s and early 90’s alone we had EP’s like Mary Ellis Bunim, Jackie Babbin, Monty, Gail Kobe, Riche, Francesca James, Jean Dadario-Burke, Gottlieb, Susie Bedsow Horgan, Jill Farren Phelps. Doris Quinlan ran OLTL from the start to the late 70’s, Agnes Nixon was HW and EP, Betty Corday took over Corday productions.

GH had women in all levels of production from writers, directors, line and associate producers, etc. The fact that only BTG had women at the top now is just sad, and I think a big reason why they have lost so much audience over the last 20 years.

Edited Tuesday at 07:51 PM3 days by titan1978

4 hours ago, titan1978 said:

The fact that only BTG had women at the top now is just sad, and I think a big reason why they have lost so much audience over the last 20 years.

TPTB long ago lost sight of the fact that daytime drama was and should be a woman's medium. The day this industry stopped telling stories that empowered women was the day they sealed its' own fate.

7 hours ago, carolineg said:

Ouch! As a white woman that hits!😂

Sorry, lol!

But seriously. It's not that WOC can't be just as messy as their white counterparts. All you have to do is to watch an episode of "Real Housewives of Atlanta" to know that, lol. But it's been my experience to see more solidarity (for lack of a better word) among WOC than I have among white women. There have been plenty of instances where they should've supported each other, but didn't; and even when they did, it was hardly ever for purely altruistic reasons.

But that's for another thread, lol.

Edited Wednesday at 12:42 AM3 days by Khan

18 minutes ago, Khan said:

But it's been my experience to see more solidarity (for lack of a better word) among WOC than I have among white women. There have been plenty of instances where they should've supported each other, but didn't; and even when they did, it was hardly ever for purely altruistic reasons.

I am not a huge Housewives person. But I have seen enough that even with them, the Atlanta ladies are still more fun than let’s say Beverly Hills. They can be tearing each other to shreds, but if someone gets a good read in those Atlanta ladies still laugh, even if it burns them too. They can cut up and are serious but don’t take it seriously. Their reunions are more fun to watch because of that. The white ladies of Beverly Hills are deadly serious about everything. I think that’s why Tilly has been such a big hit.

23 minutes ago, Khan said:

Sorry, lol!

But seriously. It's not that WOC can't be just as messy as their white counterparts. All you have to do is to watch an episode of "Real Housewives of Atlanta" to know that, lol. But it's been my experience to see more solidarity (for lack of a better word) among WOC than I have among white women. There have been plenty of instances where they should've supported each other, but didn't; and even when they did, it was hardly ever for purely altruistic reasons.

But that's for another thread, lol.

Lol! I wasn't offended or anything. There's truth to that. I have had many white "besties" screw me over for men or something else stupid, but I also surrounded myself with dumb people lol.

1985 Entertainment This Week Report on General Hospital

Thanks for the fun video @DRW50

The nostalgia hit alone from the ET theme music was great. I didn’t realize it had always been there!

I don’t think I have ever seen or heard Norma Monty before.

Edited 5 hours ago5 hr by titan1978

What a great find, @DRW50.

The Decline and Fall of the Monty Empire

Week 18 (April 28-May 2, 1986) -- Part I

Bryan: "I've never seen one hospital so concerned over one patient."

Lorena: "Well, Buzz is hardly your ordinary patient. In many ways, he is General Hospital."

Buzz Gets Brained: This storyline runs a close race against Laurelton for dominance of the week. While attempting to break up a fight on the waterfront, Buzz gets his skull fractured by a tire iron. As the week goes on, it's revealed that Buzz was apparently tortured while serving in Vietnam and has a steel plate in his head. He also has to deal with seizures (as a complication from the attack, not as something they're retconning into Buzz's everyday life). A specialist is called in to operate on Buzz's subdural hematoma, and of course, there's no guarantee that he'll be able to survive such a dangerous procedure, let alone fully recover. On the other hand, doctors can beat the odds: Jimmy Lee reveals that back in his youth, Buzz was able to prevent his needing an amputation.

There's a lot to, well, respect here. I appreciated how just about everyone gets to react to Buzz's plight. We're also reminded of just how intertwined Buzz is in so many lives and environments. Alas, I'm watching while knowing Buzz isn't going to be a long-term player, so all the attention just seems funny in hindsight.

I'm giving this week's acting crown to Finola Hughes. Anna has a nice heart to heart with Frisco on Monday. She feels guilty about not being in love with Buzz, even if she cares about him and loves him as a friend. As Anna talks out her confusion over not being able to love Buzz romantically, Frisco has the answer. Buzz is not Robert.

Anna: "I don't know why I can't get on with my own personal life. I mean, it seems such a ridiculous, stupid torch to carry. He's thousands of miles away, he's married to a wonderful woman. I'll never be anything more than a friend to him. But can I accept it? No! Why can't I just fall in love with another man?"

The rest of the week is spent anticipating the big surgery. Friday includes an especially sweet Anna and Robin scene. Robin's been thinking about how people don't stay around very long: Robert, The Ancient One, and Filomena. Anna reminds Robin about how all of those people can be visited or contacted, that Buzz is fighting for his life and has people fighting for him, and how much she (Robin) has been praying for Buzz.

Anna: "And you know something else? I'm going to be around for a very long time."

Robin: "Oh, Mommy!" hugs her

Laurelton, the Lucy stuff: I love that we start the week with Lucy in lingerie. Seriously, it's part of Monday's first scene, when Lucy's bidding farewell to her unseen beau. It's like, okay, we get it, she's not actually frumpy. Speaking of that, there's a clever bit on Wednesday. Robin tells Felicia that Lucy's beautiful and recognizes that Lucy's intentionally trying to look plain. You gotta love how kids can cut through any bull.

GH hasn't tried to make much of a mystery out of "Who's Lucy's guy?" There's no attempt at red herrings, which prompted me to try making my own. Monday's teaser takes place at night, and act one begins the following morning. Near the end of the episode, Lucy tells her lover to have a good day at the hospital. We know that she couldn't have said goodbye at the start to Buzz, Tony, or Yank. We also know that she and Patrick have no previously established intimacy, and their interactions over the rest of the week further that idea. This leaves a motley crew of remaining guys: Kevin, Bill, Steve (as if!), Alan (wait a few years), and ... Rick. Apparently Lucy is going to flirt with Rick later in the year.

Barring any flashbacks (I don't think there were any), Lynn Herring and Kevin Bernhardt share their only scenes together on Thursday. That's another indication that her survival on the show did not depend on him. While Jake's found the key to Lucy's apartment in Kevin and Terry's toilet tank, Kevin's giving Lucy lackluster kisses (See?! I told you he's a dud, not a stud!) and reminding her that they can't be seen together. Kevin and Lucy's last scene, happening after he's found out Jake has the key, has her assuring Kevin that she'll maintain their lie if it's to her advantage. If Lucy's sentenced to jail, she'll turn on Kevin. Luckily for Lucy and Kevin, she gets a suspended sentence including 100 hours of community service.

Lucy's scenes in her librarian persona include some interesting maybe-a-lie, maybe-the-truth stuff. In retrospect, she's lying when she tells Frisco she doesn't have family. It's not certain that Lucy's lying when she tells Jake that she's not used to getting compliments from a man, and later that she was a disappointment to her late parents.

On deck: Laurelton, what's left of the mystery, plus Sean Swindles the Quartermaines and the Domestic-Relationship Roundup.