Recasts on shows: good, bad, in between

[amybrickwallace]

Didn't the original Ann actress only last one day?

[danfling]

Yes.   I heard Jack Stauffer (Dr, Chuck Tyler #1) being interviewed, and he said that Diana de Vegh (the original Ann) was so nervous and scared that she proclaimed that if God would get her through the first episode that she would never act (maybe on this show or maybe permanently) ever again.

 

So, Joanna Miles, who had played Geri McGrath Pollock #2 on The Edge of Night (which is said to have been a favorite show of both Agnes Nixon and her husband) became the new Ann.

I have wondered for years about how these soap operas make replacement casting decisions in such a rapid manner.  I know that Erika Slezak had auditioned for ABC to play Mary Kinnecott, R. N. (played by Jacqueline Bosworth and Susan Blanchard), but One Life to Live hired her to replace Joanne Dorian as Victoria Lord on One Life to Live one afternoon and that she was in the studio the next day.

 

It makes me wonder if Ms. Miles had perhaps auditioned for the role of Ann, or was this unexpected and she had not auditioned for the role.

 

Sometimes, these roles are said to have the performers who were the first choice replace the performers who were originally hired.    

 

Here are two examples:  James Hall created the role of Willie Loomis on Dark Shadows, but the show was not happy with his performances (which I thought were quite good - except for his pronouncing the name of his character "Willie LOO Mis with a long "o") so they hired John Karlen as Willie #2.   But I have heard that Mr. Karlen had been the first choice all along to play Willie.

 

Likewise, Kari Gibson was Dixie Cooney #1 on All My Children.   Cady McClain replaced her as Dixie, but I heard that Ms. McClain was the first choice to play Dixie.

I know that the character of Kate Martin (also on All My Children) was created with the late Kay Campbell (who had retired from The Edge of Night as Rose #3; again, she probably had been seen by Ms. Nixon and her husband, although Ms. Nixon had written for Ms. Campbell on The Guiding Light).   Ms. Campbell declined the role, and another actress was cast.    This actress was later replaced by actress Christine Thomas.    I have been told that Kate was to be written off All My Children, but Ms. Campbell was asked once again and agreed to play Kate.   She remained on the show until her death.

 

Going back to Dark Shadows, both Mark Allen and George Mitchell were in the original cast.  However, they were replaced by David Ford and Thayer David.   I wonder if Mr. Ford and Mr. David had auditioned for the roles of Sam Evans and Matthew Morgan.   (In the case of Mr. Mitchell as Matthew, casting Thayer  David to replace him was extremely good.   As far as I know, he had never appeared on a soap operas although his wife had been on The Edge of Night and The Nurses.)   Mr. Allen was replaced due to sexual complaints from some of the actresses (and I don't think that David Ford had appeared on a soap opera previously), but Mr. Mitchell was replaced because he choked on some unpleasant eggs which were being used as props.    How were these roles so quickly recast.

I wonder about the replacement of Kathryn Hayes as Leslie Jackson Bauer Bauer, R. N. on The Guiding Light (by Barbara Rodell) or Geraldine Count as Kim Reynolds (by Kathryn Hayes) on As the World Turns.

 

If anyone knows stories about how replacements came to the soap opera screens (including temporary recasts), I hope that these will be shared.     I am very anxious to know about these.

[amybrickwallace]

Thank you. Joanna Miles did go on to win a Primetime Emmy in 1974 for The Glass Menagerie.

[danfling]

I remember when her version of The Glass Menagerie aired.   I was, at the time, a freshman in college.

Katherine Hepburn played Amanda in the same production.

[Paul Raven]

Geraldine Court came on as Jennifer in late 1971. Irna Phillips official return was Jan 72 and a short while later Gillian Spencer became Jennifer.

I wonder was this because Irna was not happy with Geraldine as Jennifer?

Or had she in fact been working on ATWT before the official announcement and created the role of Jennifer?

Many questions and unfortunately no concrete answers.

Edited December 21, 2021 by Paul Raven

[DemetriKane]

AMC 

Ryan Bittle as JR Chandler in the Hulu reboot was a more than serviceable job.

[John]

He was great as JR

[Joseph]

Couple of Questions:

On Y&R which Leslie is considered Better? Janice or Victoria? Never got a chance to compare their acting skills et al

Also Someone could Talk me about Bond Gideon as Jill? She was beautiful and a Dead Ringer to Kate Jackson but I couldn't see anything that Showcased her talent (or the lack of it)

[Khan]

I think the general consensus is that Janice Lynde was better as Leslie.  Victoria Mallory was beautiful, but she was very wan or colorless.

In the scant footage that I've seen of her, Bond Gideon's Jill comes across like Jess Walton's: a scrappy, blue-collar girl trying to "make good."  Brenda Dickson was Brenda Dickson, of course, but to me, she was too glamorous to be Jill even the first time around; and Deborah Adair...?  Well, looking at HER Jill, you'd never think that the character supposedly grew up on the proverbial wrong side of the tracks.

Edited February 14, 2022 by Khan

[Joseph]

Thanks for the Info, I was also Curious on Melinda O. Fee's Take on Jill, but she was a Temporary i would be just too lucky to have someone having watched her and remembering enough to tell me

Janice was certainly a Complete Actress, i couldn't compare her with Victoria Mallory but of what i saw she did give a lot of Nuance to the character

[danfling]

Melinda O. Fee was a recast on The Guiding Light.   She replaced Victoria Wyndham in the role of Charlotte (which had begun as Tracy).  She was an excellent recast.

[Joseph]

Charlotte certainly has an interesting casting history, Victoria Wyndham, Dorrie Kavanaugh and Melinda Fee, i understand she was a really bad girl

[danfling]

How do the posters here feel about the recast Laurie Hollister Stevens Reddin on The Secret Storm.    I love Stephanie Braxton (although I did not like how the show treated Laurie - the "other woman" - as a heroine and did not punisth her for marrying Ken) but I love Linda DeCoff, who created the role.    I really prefer Linda DeCoff in the role.    (I think that Stephanie Braxton may have been the best of the four actresses to play Tara on All My Children.)

Edited April 8, 2022 by danfling

[Joseph]

I would pay good money to get to see her Tara

I've realized that Y&R has a history with Recasts, Jerry Douglas, Sharon Case and Diana Barton were all EXCELLENT recasts

[Joseph]

does anyone know how Kathryn Hays was as Leslie Bauer???