Soap Traditions such as AMC's "Great and the Least"

[allmc2008]

Do other soaps have a tradition that was said at the end of an anniversary like AMC's "Great and the least" poem?? Just wondering.

[SFK]

On a couple of special occasions, they had Viki work in her "One Life to Live" but that's hardly the tradition of the poem. Do we know the first time the poem was recited on air?

I'm surprised AW didn't work in its, "We do not live in this world alone..." prologue someway somehow over the course of the years.

[allmc2008]

I am not following. What do you mean Viki worked on her "One life to Live"? She worked on her own soap?? Did not watch that show too much.

Oh. I think the first time the AMC poem was read was for its 20th anniversary. It was supposed to be read on the first episode of AMC but that episode never aired. I wonder if Agnes has that episode?? I know the poem Agnes actually wrote down is different from the one used on AMC. I watched an opera special from 1990 plus an archive interview where she recited it differently.

Another World should have used that prologue more often. It has a good message.

[All My Shadows]

I think SFK meant that Viki worked the phrase "One life to live" into her dialogue on certain occasions on OLTL. Like how DAYS has had various characters refer to the "days of our lives."

I always thought that AW line was a little clunky in regards to trying to fit it into the script. In the early episodes of AW, didn't characters constantly agonize about the struggle of living in different "words" of reality, fantasy, and fear? I remember reading that somewhere.

[SFK]

Thank you AMS, yes, that's what I meant. Upon one anniversary, she said something to the effect of, "I thank God for my family, and my one extraordinary life to live." Paraphrasing. She also sang "I Will Survive" at karaoke with Ben and kind of punched the line, "I've got all my life to live". Then in ES's anniversary episode, Viki had a line about her "one life to live" yet again.

ITA that the AW prologue is a little clunky to be fluidly worked into dialogue, I thought that even as I wrote my post above. It's more like something Rachel would have had to read aloud from a book or something when she and Carl were having one of their extra poetic moments.

[quartermainefan]

On DOOL at any wedding instead of asking you if you take this woman/man as long as you both shall live, the minister always asks if you take this woman/man all the days of your life.

[All My Shadows]

Mhm. I like that AMC always established that the poem was a poem. It would have been funny if a character who'd heard it more than once just threw up their hands like "Oh my god, not this thing again..."

Sometimes, characters would refer to "all [their] children" in rather pointed ways.

ATWT worked its title in several times for special occasions, too.

[SFK]

The one time the poem really had me welling up was when Bianca read it from Mona's letter, and frankly, it had nothing to do with Bianca but EVERTHING to do with how Susan as Erica was silently choking up "hearing" Fra as Mona say it.

[JackPeyton]

a lot of times on days, they include Days of our Lives in speeches or wedding vows. Or they mention hourglasses.

[allmc2008]

Thanks know i get it.

[allmc2008]

That was always my favorite time. It worked just perfect IMO.

[ER Tosh]

It is hard to do that with the Bell show titles " May you always be Young and Restless".

[All My Shadows]

YES!!! That will always be one of my favorite poignant AMC moments. The underscore they chose for that moment was perfect, the quick montage of all of everyone celebrating Joe's anniversary, Erica (really Susan) tearing up amongst three of her closest male co-stars while they're all thinking of good ol' Mona...just flawless.

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[DRW50]

Off and on for years ATWT had a poem which was first heard when Jennifer Ryan was having a crisis and went to a church for comfort. I think they brought this out again at the end, and when Jennifer appeared to a near-death Kim in 1997. In Eileen Fulton's tribute episode she also sang "As the World Turns", although I thought it was maudlin and depressing.

[CSF]

Nancy read the "As the world turns, we know the bleakness of winter, etc..." to the boys in the 40th Anniversary episode.