GH: Classic Thread

[Dion]

I think you are correct about Alan having the position before Harrison. It was Buzz who originally had the job and when he left Monica was selected for the position much to Alan's chagrin. The stress and bureaucracy eventually got to Monica so she quit the position and Alan replaced her. I think this may have contributed to Monica going off to the spa to unwind, where she would meet a young man named Ward...

[DRW50]

Bundy is so twitchy and flighty even in the LSD episodes that you'd think she is the one having a breakdown. I too wish more of Starrett was around. I can see why fans seemingly did not accept her replacement.

[carolineg]

So was Tom that last person to hold the role?  Or was he replaced when he left?

[Dion]

I don't know but it does seem that way

[dc11786]

I think Alan may have returned to the post. Tom departs in March, 1993, rightbefore the anniversary episodes. Tom wasn't appearing much anyway in 1993 before he was dumped, from what I recall. I might just be making that up though. Around the same time, you have the Ryan Chamberlain story peaking and everyone is involved in gaslighting him at the hospital leading to the Hardys being held hostage so they may not have taken a moment to replace the position. 

Regarding the history of the position, I believe Alan stepped down in late 1989 because he had assume the presidency of ELQ following Edward's death. It was used to bring Harrison Davis to town to continue telling the story of Tommy Jr.'s paternity.

I may have mentioned this in the "Port Charles" thread, but I think they should have considered using the Hardys as an anchor family on the spinoff. I would have had Debbi Morgan's Ellen tied to Harrison Davis somehow, either a blood relative or a wife/ex-wife, and revisited that dynamic. Matt Ashford left GH I think right before the spioff so they could have recast. 

[carolineg]

Thanks!

I don't remember Tom being used much in 1993.  He popped up quite a bit in the Karen/Jason/Robin teen hotline stuff, but I think that was 1992 and hardly a substantial story for him.

Interesting idea!  It makes a lot of sense since PC used Audrey in the beginning.  I wonder if MA tanking as Tom just squashed the whole idea.  

[AMCOLTLLover]

I’ve finally watched November 2016. 
What a great month. Morgan’s funeral and death still hanging over us and I loved it.

u can hate or love them but the acting of Mo and Laura was top notch. Jax came back for the 636383th time for a short arc so that we figure out a bit of his involvement in Joslyn’s kidney story and a grief kiss with Carly + concern over Alexis. I enjoyed him quite a bit again. 
The writers have developed Nelle slowly into a schemer against her beloved Carly she was so thankful for and against Sonny. It didn’t came off randomly and felt natural developed. I still don’t get the hate Nelle got

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What bothered me was the fake-sex she staged. There were so many deep talks/conversations between Nelle and Sonny where a REAL hook up would’ve made sense and even would’ve felt natural. What a shame the writers decided to go for a fake hook up. A real one would’ve created much more drama. BUT I do enjoyed to see Bobbie getting on to Nelle and sensing that she ain’t as nice as she seems to be.

Valentin took over the show and he’s so charming. He won the custody battle against Griffin. I love Griffin but I don’t why but I did rooted for Valentin. Charlotte is such a sweet kid and I adore her more than the obvious favorites! 
 

I love Cynthia Watros since GL and a bit as Nina BUT oh gosh. Everytime I see Michelle as Nina it breaks my heart. She was the real Nina and made u feel things. I loved the deep conversations between her and Valentin. We learned some backstory’s and got some real and natural chemistry going on. Gosh I miss her on GH.

But I do wonder about child actors.. Do they get confused to tell like 3 actors daddy? Like Charlotte ? Lol

the little story about Morgan’s pills got us some great scenes from Lucy Coe. Lucy messing with Ava and even playing along with Scott just to let him end up empty handed was amazing. I love Scotty and Lucy but I also ship Ava/Scott. I was with Lucy.. How could Scott try to betray a life long friendship with Lucy for Ava? Lol but good scenes regardless.

they have brought back Elizabeth’s rapist Tom Baker. I enjoyed the episodes. It gave Roger Howarth finally some more serious scenes to deal with. He’s so good in acting quirky and funny but the minute he’s concerned about his love of his life he gets all  Psycho. The way he sneaked into Tom’s house and attacked him really made me chuckle because that rapist deserves it. Liesl trying to make Franco stop spying on Tom with that app was such cute scene.

I hate Alexis character ever since they’ve decided not to let her be a real Cassadine! But in this month I actually felt for her. That year she went through so much [!@#$%^&*] and Julian just won’t leave her alone. I still can’t believe Julexis fans would’ve been fine with a reunion. The Hell? But her alcoholism story was handled well and NLG really pulled it off and reeled me back into her character. The thanksgiving episodes where she struggled to keep her hands off the booze made me feel Sorry for her. That she took off and got drunk and hit Julian with a car was so epic! He had it coming even though it was an accident. I really forgot how annoying Julian could be. I always loved him but he got on my nerves in 2016.. Now there was a twist that he seemed to be working for someone. Interesting. He didn’t came back to the crime syndicate for Ava . He had no choice. Interesting!

Finn-Tracy-Hayden are such a hilarious trio and Hayden got infected with the same disease like Finn.   
 

[dc11786]

I've made it to the end of December, 1990. It's hard to tell who has done what because the credits aren't always included in my episodes. As of December 26, 1990, no executive producer is credited. Earlier in the month (c. December 6-7), Joseph Hardy is still being credited. According to the newspapers, Gloria Monty's first day back in the studio was December 4, 1990. So I imagine that Monty was at least making some choices by the on-air mid-December episode. 

December was a month of change, which wasn't uncommon on Palumbo and Hardy's GH. There is definitely some noticeable shifts in dialogue towards the end of the month that suggest that Monty may have been on set. On the December 17 episode, the Quartermaines are preparing for Christmas and Lila announces she has decorated the tree in yellow ribbons for the troops in Saudi Arabia. Monty stated the dialogue would include more real life references. A few episodes later (December 21st), Shep Casey is quickly shipped out. The papers state Bradley Lockerman was the first of Monty's victims.

Shep's departure would seem to mark the arrival of Monty and the purge sets in motion upon her return to the show. In the course of two episodes, Shep learns that Cheryl has been hoarding Christmas presents for Robert, which leads Shep to the realization that Cheryl is still hung up on Robert. In the next episode, Tiffany learns that Shep has optioned the out in his contract and is leaving the station and Port Charles. He leaves a cryptic comment to Tiffany and Sean saying that they should be careful about who their friends are. 

In other news, Decker has returned to town from Watson's break with a shift in personality. He now appears to have a bit of money and he wants to win back Dawn. They are leaning into Edge being after Dawn's money. The triangle isn't very engaging, but there are some nicely lit scenes where Decker confesses to a "sleeping" Dawn where her face is lit by the light coming through the blinds. I am realizing though that Watson is either not good at, or not interested in, the emotional scenes. I can see why Monty would want to dump them. Had Hardy stayed, I imagine Decker vs. Ned in business deals would have been what occurred much in the manner that Jenny/Ned/Paul/Tracy was a thing later on. 

The Willow Shore mystery is functional in the way the Conmargo surgery hostage situation was functional. The mixing of the hospital staff and the police crew works well. I noticed this worked well during the early Riche years as well with stories like the original Ryan Chamberlain story and even, to an extent, the David Langton story. In the last variation, the Willow Shore mystery now has brought in the police crew after keeping them sidelined (it seems like Tristan Rogers was off the show for a few weeks). It is Robert's return that seems to kick things up a notch when he realizes that there is a connection between Bobbie Jones and Broxton.

The show has centered a lot of the drama (smartly) around Bobbie Jones. Realizing the connection between Lucas and the Jeromes, Bobbie has become involved in a flirtation with Mark Broxton, the former Jerome attorney. Broxton has emerged as the sorta short term big bad that the show has engaged in a lot in recent months. He is not only the owner of Willow Shores, he was at the center of the search for Evan Jerome, Jr., and now he has proof that Lucas is Julian's son. Bobbie is slowly self-destructing. She is skirting around Broxton's attempts to sleep with her, she is keeping the truth about Lucas from Tony, and she is having a panic attack almost every time she sees Cheryl. 

Bobbie's emergence as a leading lady again after a year with not much story (Zeman's pregnancy kept her limited in her story) has been a pleasure. It is hard watching Bobbie be her own worst enemy, but the stakes are high enough (Lucas) that I can understand. It is hard to picture where they were going to go with Bobbie after this situation. I imagine Tony and Rita would have gotten together. 

Lucy and Alan's relationship is pretty much over. Tracy and Larry know about Scotty being the father of Lucy's child. There is a brief Larry/Tracy attempted romance where Larry proposes to Tracy, and Tracy considers saying yes not because of love, but because she wants to go after Lucy without people thinking she is bitter about losing Scotty. 

Colton and Carla are back. They get engaged pretty quickly upon return. Their current story is money issues with Colton looking to possibly sell the health club to get out from his debts. 

Cheryl is losing her grip on reality buying gifts for her dead son, who obviously is alive and is Lucas. Since Shep left, there is a shift that this is a Tiffany story, and it only feels more like that in early 1991 when Cheryl slips into a coma. Cheryl collasping into Robert's arms on New Years' Eve while presumably trying to tell him that he has a son is pretty dramatic, but doesn't even warrant an end of episode cliffhanger, which is a shame. 

Onto 1991... 

[Liberty City]

[carolineg]

I seriously understand Monica's point of view, but I was always annoyed Alan/Monica had to ignore Sonny/Carly/Jason's actions just to get crumbs of attention from Michael.  I didn't like this era of GH much.

[Liberty City]

It was a dark era but the acting was top notch, and love seeing Quartermaines not only on-canvas but on the hospital set.

[carolineg]

There were some high points.  I do think Guza did really well with big "events" during this time.  Day to day the show sometimes dragged along and the bias was clear, but I always considered it exciting.  Obviously, some of those decisions were short sighted like killing off main characters with years of story left, but Guza did go for it.  

It's what I feel has been lacking on GH (before PM/EK) for years.  The show was okay, but it lacked excitement. 

[Liberty City]

I agree on all accords.

[Franko]

Just speculating, but I wonder if it was related to his role in The Rescuers Down Under. Maybe he was required to go plug the movie for a little bit?

[titan1978]

They missed such a great opportunity to have an intact Quartermaine family for Michael to have his teenage rebellion and run to them instead of Sonny/Carly/Jason. Even better if they had done it after his prison stint when Carly and Jason were admitting their decision to put him in Sonny/Jason’s world had cost everyone dearly. Imagine if we got to see him bonding with Alan and how upset that would make Sonny at that time.