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Soaps back stage crap, feuds, and irna phillips


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Kim D. is the most notorious for drug use during her time, but supposedly there were others in that clique. Meg Ryan, I believe, also had the same issue during her time on ATWT.

J Eddie and Heather T. on Y&R did not have a great working relationship, but it had a lot to do with her being so young in a romantic relationship with a much older actor. She was uncomfortable.

Hunter T. and Kimberlin B. absolutely hated each other after some supposedly sordid stuff went down between them and their husbands.

MEK and CM, JB and JC supposedly had their issues over the years - I often wonder if the BTS had something to do with Brooke/Tad being paired up in the '90s. I believe all of them resolved whatever issues they had.

Eric B. and Peter B. on Y&R got into a physical altercation, which most people know about - Eric B. was forced to apologize to the entire crew and cast.

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There are papers about her, in a library or something; she was planning to write her autobiography but passed away before she finished.

You probably already know most of the feuds she had with actors, and then that she helped her adopted daughter create the soap A World Apart (which was semi-based on Irna's life, as the matriarch was a soap writer with adopted kids).

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I know she hated Rosemary Prinz and Helen Wagner. Why was she so bitter to actors? I have heard from Ruth Warrick that she did not allow them to use there real names in public, only the names on the shows. Did she do that as a way to advertise? Did her daughter do anything afterwords?

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Irna felt like the actors should keep the illusion to the public that they were the characters.

She also had conflict with the actress Jane House, because House was playing a stripper on Broadway while also appearing on ATWT.

And of course she was a control freak when P&G or the network would ask her to try things like a special color episode (she set it in a white surgical room, making the color useless).

You never hear that much about her having issues with GL actors. Maybe she wasn't as invested.

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I think she became disconnected with GL once it went to TV. Didn't GL loose its luster on TV when she changed its focus from being about a reverend to the Bauer family? I know ATWT was her "Dream Life". I wonder why most radio soaps did not make the transition well? Of course I can see why shows like Helen Trent did not crossover because they were about individual people.

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I thought I read somewhere that not long after Kristian Alfonso returned to Days as Gina/Hope that she and Lisa Rinna had some type of conflict with each other that lead to screaming matches on and off set and one locking themselves in their dressing rooms, refusing to work with the other and halting production for at least a few hours.

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John's issues with flirting and such are well rumored. JB's issue with JC supposedly had more to do with the fact that he liked to direct her during scenes, he apparently did it with ELR as well. During JB's first round with JC it annoyed her, and ELR barely noticed.

During their 2nd round, it apparently didn't phase JB, she just accepted it as something he does, and ultimately does pretty well. JB noted in some publication, I don't remember which that JC understands the process by looking at it from the outside while JB simply wants to act the scene, but she learned to appreciate his eye. However, it apparently annoyed ELR during her return, which probably makes sense given the factors in their marriage at that point.

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I'm with the camp that believes that Irna probably had to be unyielding (i.e. difficult) because she probably would've been run over otherwise. I see this even at my level and I'm not nearly as illustrious a writer. You have to fight for your ideas and in most cases, you may be the only female in a roomful of men. When you are pitching an idea, someone is only too ready to either belittle or tear down an idea before you've even able to flesh out your concept-- and so you get a bit ornery at times. I consider myself a reserved person but even I've had a moment where I had had to walk out of a room and slam the door behind me. On another occasion I simply put up my hand and said "Stop" in a raised voice. I was told later that it was a very 'dramatic' gesture, but I had to stop the director who was taking my words in a completely wrong direction. If that means I'm difficult, then I guess I will accept it.

It is kind of hard to back off when it is your words that come from your creativity and you feel that perhaps they are not being dramatized to their fullest-- or worse being twisted in a manner that makes them unrecognizable.

Although, I did hear one story of Phillips that made me think that perhaps she was good at holding grudges and might have used her talent to exact a measure of revenge on an actress through a storyline or two.

Still, these backstage intrigues are fascinating. Keep 'em coming!wink.png

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Here's the court filing that Irna Phillips made in her lawsuit against Screen Gems about her ownership of "Days of Our Lives":

"On November 1, 1961, Irna Phillips, Theodore Corday and Allan Chase entered into a so-called ownership agreement. On September 15, 1964, Corday alone entered into a so-called agency agreement with Screen Gems. The first agreement recited that each of the parties owned a one-third interest in a dramatic serial composition which they wished to have presented and disseminated to various media for public presentation. Each party was to be entitled to one third of fees received in connection with this property resulting from any type of exploitation. In event of an outright sale, each party was to be entitled to one third of the net price but there would be no sale or other exploitation without unanimous written consent. Each party agreed not to sell or assign his or her interest without giving the others a right of first refusal to purchase such interest upon the terms proffered. This provision was not to impair the right of any party to transfer his or her interest to a corporation which such party controlled. Phillips agreed to serve as story editor of the project with Corday to serve as executive producer and Chase to be editor of the script. The agreement also contained provisions which would reduce the interest of any party in event of his or her failure to perform under certain circumstances with such diminution to accrue to the benefit of the remaining parties. The so-called agency agreement of September 15, 1964 was prepared upon the letterhead of Screen Gems showing an address in Hollywood, California. This letter was signed by Screen Gems, addressed to Theodore Corday and accepted by him in writing. In this letter agreement, Corday warranted that he, Phillips and Chase were the co-owners of the dramatic, literary property in question and that Corday had full written authority from co-owners to enter into the agreement. The letter granted Screen Gems sole and exclusive right to offer the property for sale and license in any manner in any medium. Screen Gems was to receive a stated percentage of proceeds from licensing for daytime television use. For television licensing, Corday was to receive $750 per week for each week of the first year of such broadcasts, which was to be paid on behalf of all co-owners, with an increase to $1000 per week for each week after the first year. The agreement also contained provisions for compensation to Phillips and Corday for certain sums specified as having been advanced by them. Screen Gems' rights to distribute and license were to continue for one year, but in the event that it caused a 'pilot' program to be produced, its right to distribute was to be extended for an additional year after completion of production of said pilot. And, if Screen Gems licensed the television program to a national network, it should retain its rights 'in and to the property in perpetuity.' Plaintiff's complaint alleged that Phillips had been informed that offers had been made for purchase of the television serial. By her attorney she had requested advice of existence of said offers and defendant Screen Gems had refused. The complaint alleged that Screen Gems considers itself to be the owner of the production to the exclusion of the agreement which identified Phillips as a co-owner. It alleged that Phillips was informed that Screen Gems may have received remuneration in excess of the percentage provided in the agency agreement and, if such were the case, plaintiff as one co-owner would be entitled to the excess thus received. The complaint prayed for declaratory relief and an accounting for plaintiff's portion as one of the co-owners. After the court had rule that Corday and Chase were necessary parties, Phillips filed an amended complaint. The administrator of the estate of Corday and Chase were added as parties. The amended complaint alleged that numerous meetings, conferences and creative and contractual activities took place in Chicago, Illinois, where Phillips lived, in connection with the development of the serial program and that the program was being broadcast to television viewers within Illinois."

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