Most miscast soap roles

[EricMontreal22]

I've only seen those scenes of her as Christina in the 1978 Erica/Tom wedding episode but I kinda liked her in them. But obviously that's not a way to judge the role... Didn't Agnes recommend her for Dorian even though Agnes' had already stopped being much involved in OLTL?

(She's in the opening scene here, and throughout the episode for those who may have not seen)

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(the last part of this episode shows one of the Tara recasts and for the longest time I didn't realize it was Tara--I'm just so used to seeing all those old clips--and the 90s return--of the original Tara who seems so different).

[DRW50]

I know they eventually rewrote the role but I never entirely understood why Mark Pinter was cast as Grant Harrison on AW. He did a good job with later Grant, but the Dack Rambo Grant - loving, fun, charismatic, not so much.

As for Robin Strasser/Christina, I wonder if the role was too confusing. Weren't there all kinds of daddy issues Christina had going on?

[EricMontreal22]

It does sound like the Christina role was never fully conceieved--or sorta went all over the map anyway. I don't have a clear sense of character or story from what I've read of her (and so much was going on at AMC around that time I think she may have kinda got lost in the shuffle, story wise).

I had no idea that Dack Rambo played Grant first!

[DRW50]

Dack originated Grant and played him for about a year and some months. He left in order to spend his last few years on AIDS awareness.

[saynotoursoap]

=

To each his own. As far as I am concerned, Laurie Caso was last good producer ATWT had. The show still resembled a Marland show, two years after his death. When Caso was out, that was the beginning of the end for the soap. It became progressively inferior henceforth.

Glynnis O'Connor was horribly miscast as Margo, and no, she did not get a raw deal. O'Connor herself has gone on record as stating that she agrees she was miscast in a role where she came off as "fake" when she had to play the tougher Margo.

Also, Doug Marland was not the writer who tied Amanda to the Spauldings. The plot twist of Amanda being Alan's daughter was created by the Dobsons. Marland was only the one who brought the story to completion with the Jennifer/Lucille plot.

[DRW50]

At the time I thought O'Connor was very forgettable and missing that Margo energy. Looking back, she's OK, to me, but just kind of there.

I think another problem is the show seemed to have no idea what to do with Margo after her rape and HIV stories wound down. I'm not sure what Marland's plans were for her after this, but after those stories she just ended up reacting to things and losing more and more of her personality and humor.

One recast I find confusing is Jason Kincaid as Tom Hughes. I know he was popular on AMC and that Deas had paved the way for a nontraditional, fun leading man, but...really? The few clips I've seen of him, he's either goofy or fading into the background. It's also tough to imagine him with HBS.

[DRW50]

Alexandra Wilson as Josie Watts, AW. A Frame should never be vapid and boring. Josie was raised near the poverty level and should have been tough, jaded. Instead she was just whiny and princessy.

The first Ben Price on OLTL. Just plain goofy - I had no idea why Rachel would break up with Kevin for a man who could barely speak. The old OLTL history pages named him one of the worst ever on the show.

Terrell Tilford as Greg. Totally wrong for whatever they were going for. The poor man became a laughingstock.

[saynotoursoap]

I never thought Glynnis O'Connor was forgettable. I had enjoyed her in many roles prior to ATWT, and I still like her. She was "ok" as Margo, but a role as prominent as that needed something more than ok. O'Connor may have made a good Maureen Bauer, but not Margo. Margo was never warm and sweet in any of her incarnations. And, I think Marland was having problems figuring out what to do with the character before the HIV scare. From the moment Ellen Dolan stepped into the role, it was doom and gloom for Margo and Tom, starting with the mercy killing of Casey. Part of it may have been that comedy was not Marland's forte. He preferred everything to be uber serious with occasional dashes of comedy. When he did go for out and out comedy, such as Harriet and Shannon, it was often forced. He probably did as well as he did with HBS because she plays the comedic side of roles almost effortlessly. Ellen Dolan could have played humor had she tried, but it would have been a stretch for all involved with Scott Homes' constipated Tom.

[DRW50]

I thought he gave Margo and Tom a lot of fun little moments, everyday life, and they had a fairly long, for soaps, period of happiness, with minor upheavals (I think it lasted from late 1990 to mid-1992). It's one of the reasons I cared about them. But I do think his writing helped turn Margo into being more of someone things just happened to - I like a lot of his material for her, but have to admit I enjoy what I see of the pre-Marland Margo more (especially with HBS in the role - Colin is a little too shouty for me).

[You're Soaking in it]

That's Heather Stanford in the clip (who replaced Taylor Miller as Nina in a now-you-see-her-now-you-don't moment). I thought she was a good actress, but lacked warmth in the role. Her Nina was far more a neurotic spoiled, entitled princess. She lacked passion, and was at times dumbed-down to make the storyline fly. After a about a year, during the aftermath of Zach Grayson's murder, she actually seemed to be settling into the role - and then the show decided to ditch her for another recast, and sent her off to the psyche ward.

Then came the auburn-haired Barbara Kearns, who was much warmer in her portrayal, but SO wrong for the part. (@Carl, I see a little bit of the Carell Meyers as RH's Siobhann syndrome right here!) The writing worked against her, too - with Nina having retrograde amnesia and forgetting most of her adulthood (and therefor Cliff, her son Bobby, and her renewed relationship with her mother Daisy). This meant no obstacles to an affair with Palmer's then-driver Benny Sago - who was married to Donna. Cliff basically got to stand around and watch. A disaster on all counts, Nina got her memory back, Benny dumped her, and she left town... paving the way for Taylor Miller's return. In hindsight, it probably would have been better if they had just kept Stanford in the role until Miller came back.

[Khan]

I wouldn't say Laurie Caso was a terrible producer, only that he wasn't as effective once he no longer had a strong HW such as Marland. If Robert Calhoun still had been EP when Marland passed, I think ATWT would have stayed solid for much, much longer.

Yeah, I didn't realize I had said the opposite until way after I'd posted that. Sorry. (I'm usually very good at knowing who did what at GUIDING LIGHT. Don't know what happened in that instance.)

[Carolyn1980]

Stanford was TERRIBLE in the role. I'll never forget a courtroom scene where she was supposed to be hysterical on the stand, and Gillian Spencer, whose Daisy was on trial for Zach Grayson's murder, could barely keep from laughing over how awful her acting was. Shortly after, Stanford's Nina was sent to an institution.

[Khan]

She's mistaken. DAYS had a character for her. Unfortunately, it was a character that was easily interchangeable with about a half-dozen other characters on the show. LOL!

I'll go ahead and add this one to the list: Peter Bergman as Y&R's Jack Abbott. (If it's been added already, though, my apologies.) PB puts on a good show, but...he just ain't Smilin' Jack.

[DRW50]

I never saw Lester in the role, and appreciated Bergman's take, and I'm not sure Lester would be any better with what Jack has become, but as time has gone on Bergman is just empty mannerisms. Jack is the most pointless character on the show.

[Daphne]

I think Emma Samms as Fallon Carrington was a miscast. The original Fallon was written and played very differently from Samm's Fallon.