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Questions about Unexpected Soap Actor's Deaths and How The Soaps Handeled Them

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  • Member

That was so incredibly sad and unexpected. I just see her wide-eyed bright smiling face chasing after Steve Urkel ("Myra!"). She had been in a relationship with Malcolm-Jamal Warner and they spent a lot of time together towards the end. He said some really lovely things about her.

That was truly sad. Wasn't really a fan, but it was so shocking and she seemed like such a great person!

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  • Member

Those were the days before the internt and I had no soap mags so I was SHOCKED when Saul died. You cannot achieve that kind of on-screen moment anymore.

Recap from August 1996: http://www.boldbeautifulfan.com/bbarchiv/1996/bnbupdau.htm

Thanks, I wish I could see those scenes again, it sounds like a nice little tribute and I'm glad Eric and Stephanie payed their respects.

  • Member

Mary Stuart once talked about how she and Larry Haines got the call about Rae's aneurysm (I think it was an aneurysm) and then spent days at the hospital, waiting as she died. I guess I can see why they didn't want to deal with that again. Viewers must have been confused, as Marge was like a family member to many of them.

This is interesting to me, considering that era of soaps is so different from the last 20-30 years as far as real life vs. reel life matters. Of course, just two years later, Theo Goetz of GL died and we know that they acknowledged this by having Papa Bauer die. Aside from these two and Santos Ortega, did any of the other soaps have to confront this issue in the 60s or early 70s?

Watching soaps in the 2000s meant having to endure a lot of tentpole cast member deaths, that's for sure. It seemed like every other year, a soap lost a long-running star.

  • Member

Ed Zimmerman on GL, although they recast his role instead of killing the character off.

Walter Greaza (?), who played Mike Karr's father-in-law on Edge of Night for fifteen years, also passed away around this time. I'm not sure what the show did to acknowledge it.

  • Member

On Love of Life, actor Fred Stewart played Alex Caldwell beginning in 1966, who either romanced or married Van and Meg's mother Sarah. When he died in 71,lookalike actor Charles White took over.

  • Member

Of course, just two years later, Theo Goetz of GL died and we know that they acknowledged this by having Papa Bauer die.

Martin Short did a brief monologue about Papa Bauer's passing in one of his primetime specials.

  • Member

General Hospital's Norma Connolly died from complications of a stroke. Aunt Ruby died in her sleep.

Also on GH, Mary Mae Ward was given a funeral that was as close a memorial to Rosalind Cash as you could get while still keeping things in character. Several of her real life friends (Esther Rolle, Lou Rawls, etc.) were part of it.

A bit off subject but I was curious to see if Peter Hansen (Lee Baldwin) was still among the living and he sure is--just turned 92!


Edited by applcin

  • Member

He watched GL?

Yes, I guess he and his family watched while he was growing up in Canada. It's on YouTube, I posted it once before but I forget in which thread.

  • Member

I remember Bernard Barrow passed away when he was on Loving. His character was the step father to Ava Rescott. I think the show had his character leave town and then said he passed away off screen.

Also, Bob Hughes stepfather ( the police officer) died in real life but it was a year or so after his real life passing before they acknowledged it on screen when the character died.

  • Member

That's not true. Dan McCloskey, who married Nancy Hughes, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in the mid-90s. He was killed off in 1996. Actor Dan Frazier, who played the role, was still very much alive when the character died. Frazier died in 2011.

I remember Bernard Barrow passed away when he was on Loving. His character was the step father to Ava Rescott. I think the show had his character leave town and then said he passed away off screen.

Also, Bob Hughes stepfather ( the police officer) died in real life but it was a year or so after his real life passing before they acknowledged it on screen when the character died.

  • Member

AMC, Louis Edmonds' death as Langley wasn't acknowledged until Ruth Warrick's passing when Aunt Phoebe was reunited with her Langley.

  • Member

The biggest one I can remember was Douglass Watson on Another World. He passed away unexpectedly in 1989 and they killed off Mac shortly after.

That had to be so hard on all of the actors, especially Victoria Wyndham. Not to mention the loss of Mac really affected AW for several years after.

It was really well done. The scenes of everyone finding out about his death, the story it created. Very fitting IMO.

  • Member

In regards to Douglas Watson on AW, hadn't they already written/planned the 25th Anniversary episodes at the time of his passing? I thought that they unexpectedly had to re-write/say that "Mac" was away during the big celebration which was supposed to be in honor of Brava/Cory Publishing...and then tackled his onscreen death after the anniversary eps where done.

  • Member

When Bernie Barrow died, Loving temp recasted the role and then had the character die

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