With the recent Days of our Lives head-writer switch that was announced, people are wondering how the show will further be eroded, or improved. It has gotten me to think that certain head-writers have certain tropes (elements) that they use on each show they head-write...case in point..

Douglas Marland:

He had a teen romance and introduces a working class family

Doctors: Billy/Gretel teen romance, working class family introduced were the Dancys.

General Hospital: Scotty/Laura teen romance, working class family introduced was Luke/Bobbie/Aunt Ruby

Guiding Light: Kelly/Morgan teen romance, working class family introduced were the Reardons.

As the World Turns: Lily/Holden teen romance, working class family introduced were the Snyders.

Lorraine Broderick:

The most consistent stamp she has introduced on shows she's headwritten, is the evil villian that is 'killed' and three women hide the body, but it vanishes.. and he pops up later. One of the three women are usually fragile.

All My Children: Kinder.. Janet, Erica, and Skye hide the body.. he vanishes, then pops up alive...

As the World Turns: David Steinbeck.. Julia, Lily, and Carly hide the body.. he vanishes and pops up alive.. Julia eventually goes nuts.

Days of Our Lives: Nick Fallon.. Sami, Kate, and Gabi hide the body.. it vanishes and he pops up alive. Gabi goes nuts and kills Nick for real.

Any others?

I was gonna add that in there but I couldn't remember if it was the monkeys or the bio balls.

GH had three bio hazard stories plus the hospital blowing up over a very peculiar surgery. LOL. And then the water pathogen! That's what, all within 6 years, yeah? Laaaaaame

It wasn't Carly that had anything to do with hiding David's body, I think you mean Emily carting around Diego's body. (and the women didn't hide David's body, Holden and Julia buried him in the woods. After David/Reid died, Julia shot his corpse, after a reading of David/Reid's "will" at which Lily, Emily, Julia and Denise attended) Carly helped Lily clean up after Julia Larrabee's murder, but otherwise, she stayed away from dead bodies.

Marland sure did have a thing for damaged heiresses. Didn't he create Vanessa Chamberlain too? And runaways.

Edited February 14, 201510 yr by P.J.

Doug Marland has also written murder mysteries as a way to explore and deepen the relationship between a mother and a daughter--not necessarily biological. The person murdered was generally obsessed about the mother-character, and the daughter was misled to believe that he cared for her instead.

GH: David Hamilton - Lesley and Laura

ATWT: Doug Cummings - Kim and Frannie

Also, didn't the Dobson's have a fascination with rape?

SB: Carnation killer, Eden's brutal rape, then Julia being raped.

The Dobsons did do a lot of rape stories on SB, but weren't responsible for Eden or Julia's. Eden was JFP and Anne Howard Bailey and Julia was under Convoy and Pratt. Also, I'm pretty sure the Carnation Killer, Peter Flint, was just a serial killer, not a rapist.

However, the Dobsons did have Christie, Mary, and Hayley raped all within a 3 year period.

*Conboy

The Dobsons did do a lot of rape stories on SB, but weren't responsible for Eden or Julia's. Eden was JFP and Anne Howard Bailey and Julia was under Convoy and Pratt. Also, I'm pretty sure the Carnation Killer, Peter Flint, was just a serial killer, not a rapist.

However, the Dobsons did have Christie, Mary, and Hayley raped all within a 3 year period.

*Conboy

He raped his victims, including Kelly.

Bill Bell also did the 'raped by a stranger in a park who is actually known to the victim' for Laura and Susan on Days.

Irna Phillips liked her children who discovered their real parent on ATWT.

Dan and Ellen

Neil and Doug

Amanda and Sara

Peter and Wally

Brad Bell

- every major character has to fall of a height. Every single one.

- siblings are made to share romantic partners.

- there's constantly an outsider looking in a wealthier family.

- there's seldom a first pregnancy going well for the first time. Heroines miscarry their child.

- If you're in a relationship, you should propose 3 months in tops.

Sounds like Sheffer's early writing for EJ on DAYS, minus the once a hero part.

EJ started out as a romantic hero for Sami when he first came on Days in mid 2006. His characterization was very similar to that of Austin, Brandon, Lucas and Rafe.

Sheffer eventually rewrote and retconned that as a DiMera cover, which launched his most popular characterization as a villian from 2007 onward. Honestly that was better for his character anyway. Otherwise he would have just been another Austin clone not unlike all of those others before him, vying for Sami's attention in the form of another white knight.

Donna Swajeski: The one thing I noticed of her when she was headwriter of two soaps was her introduction of family members never before mentioned.

AW: Frame Family..with the introduction of Dean, Frankie, and Jason.

AMC: Cortlandt Family.. with the introduction of Caleb and his son Asher.

During both her 80's and 90's stints of AMC, Lorraine Broderick did substance abuse storylines. In the 80's it was Mark's cocaine addiction and in the 90's, it was Erica's pill addiction.

Pat Falken Smith had two rape victims--both named Laura, weirdly enough--ultimately fall in love and marry their rapists (okay, technically Thom Racina wrote L&L's wedding, but still).

The fact that Laura on GH became Laura Spencer (Laura Horton's maiden name) after she married Luke makes the connection even weirder.

To be fair, though, L&L were not originally meant to fall in love.

Isn't Margaret DePriest the serial killer queen? Someone correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't she the writer responsible for the Salem Strangler and Salem Slasher on DAYS, and the Sin Stalker and Bay City Stalker on AW? That's a high body count for one writer on 2 shows.

During both her 80's and 90's stints of AMC, Lorraine Broderick did substance abuse storylines. In the 80's it was Mark's cocaine addiction and in the 90's, it was Erica's pill addiction.

In 2010/2011 she also started one with Frankie Hubbard turning to pain killers when he re injured his hand, then it was suddenly dropped & resolved off screen and she later started the same story with Asher (and oddly connected it with Frankie's).

Edited February 21, 201510 yr by AllMyDaysatGH

Bill Bell always had characters on his shows named after his real life children. William (Bill), Bradley (Brad) Lauralee

Y&R: Brad Elliott

Brad Carlton

William (Bill) Foster Sr. and Jr.

William (Billy) Abbott.

Lauralee (Lorie) Brooks

Lauren Fenmore (which I assume Lauren was a play on Lauralee's name)

B&B William Spencer (Bill) Sr. & Jr.