Vetsoapfan's Treasure Trove: Vintage Soap Material

[All My Shadows]

I absolutely ADORE that photo of Espy, McCarthy, and Houghton! Those first two years of Y&R had to be heavenly.

And of course, the ladies who lunch. Daytime used to be its own entity, and those people were happy to be who they were, doing what they were doing. The genre had dignity.

[vetsoapfan]

 

The first two years of Y&R were a soap fan's heaven. It was mesmerizing every day, and that original cast had charisma to spare.

 

I think I have a couple of interviews, from two different years, with the Ladies Who Lunch, which I'm sure you guys will enjoy. All those gals were such fun!

[DRW50]

Thank you for sharing those Daily TV Serials reviews, which I love. I guess that last one was the last as I don't think the magazine saw 1978. It's fascinating getting a look in at each soap, especially as this is the only look in we'll ever get. And hearing Robin Mattson described as lightweight and not worth watching is so startling knowing what would be to come. 

Edited July 19, 2019 by DRW50

[vetsoapfan]

 

As Hope Bauer on The Guiding Light, Robin Mattson lacked substance and was simply...colorless. She was not awful, per se, but she was dull. After seeing two other dreadful actresses in the role of Heather Webber on General Hospital, I cringed when Mattson was hired. I thought that if they could NEVER hire a decent actress for the part, Heather should just be eliminated from the canvas ASAP. Surprisingly, Mattson had matured as an actress from her days on TGL and ended up being a decent recast on GH. She was pretty good on AMC too (although not-so-great as Delia Reid Ryan on RH). Some performers just click better in some roles than in others.

[DRW50]

The other thing that gets me in those reviews is how blunt Jon Michael Reed is, like when he says Somerset is better off dead. Imagine a soap reviewer saying that in later years. 

 

I would love to see the scenes of a drunk Susan at Emily's hospital bed. It sounds exquisite.

 

 

[Paul Raven]

Yes and he also rightly complains of things being dragged out, which anyone who has witnessed those 2 person 10 minute scenes from the 70's can attest to.

[SoapDope]

That write up of Peggy Brooks rape was interesting. It slams Pamela Peters Solow by saying she should not have been asked to  stretch beyond the limits of her talent and also mentions " Lets face it, she's no Trish Stewart. OUCH !

 

 

 

 

[vetsoapfan]

 

The soap press of today is pablum and lacks any integrity or purpose, but back in the 1970s, editors like Jon-Michael Reed told it like it was, and I appreciated their blunt honesty so much. Often what critics wrote corresponded quite well to what the audience was feeling. You don't see sharp, insightful commentary about daytime TV in SOD anymore.

 

 

I am one of those viewers who loved the long, intimate, drawn-out scenes focusing on character delineation and subtext...if such scenes ultimately had a purpose, a point. Masters like Harding Lemay, William J. Bell, Pat Falken Smith, Irna Phillips and a few others were so gifted that they could make the audience feel like we were eavesdropping on actual conversations between real people, so even the longest of scenes could be fascinating. The trouble is, many soap writers did not have the talent to write extended, character-driven scenes effectively, so the 10-minute conversations ended up sounding like endless "filler," which was deadly, and a struggle to sit through.

 

 

Pamela Peters was very cute and had a pixie-ish quality about her, which was quite appealing. Unfortunately, she was not the best dramatic actress in the world, which became obvious during Peggy's rape storyline in 1976. (Useless trivia, LOL: Peggy was raped on June 16, 1976.)

 

When Peggy was raped, Y&R showed flashbacks from when Chris had been attacked in 1973. This allowed the audience to compare the performances of Trish Stewart and Pamela Peters, and it was easy to conclude that Stewart was the far-superior actress. (Still, IMHO, Peters had more skill as an actress than many of the hair models we have had to endure on soaps during the last few decades.)

[SoapDope]

Pamela Peters kind of reminds me of Judy Strangis (remember her) ? Strangis was best known for Room 222 with Karen Valentine and as Dyna Girl with Deidre Hall as Electra Woman. Pamela Peters appeared several times on 222.

 

I have 2 comedy movies of the week All My Darling Daughters (1972) and My Darling Daughters Anniversary (1973) where Robert Young plays widowed Judge Charles Raleigh the father of 4 very different daughters. It reminds me so much of the Brooks family. Strangis played the youngest red headed daughter (ala Peggy Brooks). In the first film all 4 daughter wind up getting married on the same day. Eve Arden is the exasperated wedding planner. The other daughters are played by Sharon Gless (pre Cagney & Lacey), Fawne Harriman (Somerset), and Darlene Carr. Fawne's fiancee is played by Colby Chester (Michael Crawford Y&R). In the second film where the widowed Judge (Robert Young) gets remarried and the girls celebrate their 1 year anniversary,  Fawne must have been busy on Somerset and her role was recast with Laura Parker. Ann Lee (GH) appears as the Judge who marries Robert Young and Ruth Hussey.

Edited July 19, 2019 by SoapDope

[vetsoapfan]

From Daytime TV Super Special # 1: 1974

 

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From Daylight TV, August 1975

 

George Reinholt Fired from Another World

 

 

 

[vetsoapfan]

From Daytime TV, April 1974

 

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From Daytime TV Super Special # 2, 1975

 

 

From DaytimeTV, February 1975

 

 

From DaytimeTV Library Series #2: All My Children

 

 

 

[vetsoapfan]

From Daytime TV Super Special # 2, 1975

 

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From Daytime TV, April 1973

 

 

From Daytime TV, April 1973

 

 

[victoria foxton]

I'm loving this vetsoapfan. I thought Emily McLaughlin also had a daughter? 

[vetsoapfan]

 

I'm happy to hear that you are enjoying the thread. It's hard to know what to post; what will interest the SON community, but I am trying to upload material from many different soaps and stars and hope something, anything, hits a bulls-eye with readers.

 

Yes, EM had a daughter, Mary Ann Anderson, whom the actress adopted later on. I spoke to Anderson personally, when she was selling a biography of EM which she had written. Very interesting.

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That's an apt comparison, comparing Pamela Peters to Judy Strangis. Both young actresses were cute and perky, and quite pleasant to watch in light roles, but I would not cast or expect them to do well in heavier parts, like...Anne Frank or Helen Keller. On Y&R, Peters was appealing as Peggy until she was asked to stretch beyond her range. I definitely wanted her to remain on the show, as part of the Brooks family and as an original cast member, but I preferred when the heavier material rested on more capable shoulders like Trish Stewart, Janice Lynde, Julianna McCarthy, Jeanne Cooper, etc.

[SoapDope]

I wonder how Strangis would have been in the role when Peggy was recast in 1979 ? I know Patricia Everly briefly assumed the role before Peters returned in 1980.  Strangis supposedly left acting in the mid to late 80's because of a stalker. She has done voice work only.