SOAP OPERA FANS ARE SEEING STARS
By Marianne Costantinou
Feb. 7, 1982
If Ellen Stewart, the long-suffering heroine of CBS's ''As the World Turns,'' is having second thoughts about asking her husband of 25 years to move out, she won't after this Wednesday. That's when she will meet Suz Baker, the carefree divorcee who will help her readjust to life as an unmarried woman.
Suz, a new character on the daytime soap opera, will be played by Betsy Palmer, who has agreed to appear in the role for six months. Miss Palmer is best known to television audiences for her 10 years as a panelist on ''I've Got a Secret,'' and to recent filmgoers as the psychopathic murderer in the 1980 horror film ''Friday the 13th'' and its 1981 sequel.
Last week, viewers of ABC's daytime serial ''General Hospital'' saw Marie Windsor, who played conniving girl friends and faithless wives in a score of films beginning in the late 1940's and through the mid-60's, take on the role of Vivian Collins, a physician who re-enters Dr. Steve Hardy's life after seven years.
And last month, Gwen Verdon, the dancer who has won four Tony Awards for her portrayals of sweet-natured coquettes in Broadway musicals, was a prim, mean-spirited mother on ''All My Children,'' another ABC soap opera. These actre sses are only the latest in a procession of established actors and ce lebrated personalities who have had ''guest roles'' on one of the ne tworks' 13 daytime serials. During the past year, the list has incl uded Elizabeth Taylor, Milton Berle and Kansas City Royals' cente rfielder Amos Otis on ''General Hospital''; Sammy Davis Jr., Arlene D ahl and Rip Taylor on ABC's ''One Life to Live''; boxer Gerry Cooney on ABC's ''Ryan's Hope''; and Celeste Holm, Dina Merrill, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Henny Youngman and Dr. Joyce Brothers on ''Asthe World Tur ns.'' Also on ''As the World Turns'' will be Pearl Bailey and Ed ie Adams, who will guest star on Feb. 22.
Why should such relatively successful performers want to app ear on the sort of television shows long disdained b y serious actors? What has happened to soap opera that has made it s uddenly attractive?
There are doubtless a variety of reasons. One of the most important seems to be the fact that in recent years soap-opera-like shows such as ''Dallas,'' ''Falcon Crest,'' and ''Flamingo Road'' have proved enormously popular during prime time. This phenomenon has given a new ''respectability'' to the genre once derisively referred to by James Thurber as ''Soapland.''
Other explanations for the change include the following: For a number of performers, appearing in a ''soap'' can be a chance to try a different kind of role; for others, it offers exposure to a national audience at a time in their careers when such opportunities are few; for still others - especially older performers - the soaps provide a chance to be seen by the young viewers who watch daytime television in great numbers; and for well-known personalities with little or no previous acting experience, the soaps offer a sort of screen test. Finally, there are those who perform on soap opera simply because they genuinely enjoy them.
''It's better to be on a soap opera to renew your career and following than to be on any other medium,'' says Joan Fontaine, who earned an Emmy nomination for her five-day stint playing a theatrical agent on ''Ryan's Hope'' in 1979. The 64-year-old actress was one of the first stars to appreciate the career possibilities which soap opera might offer.
''It changed my image,'' says Arlene Dahl, who played Lucinda King, meddling mother of Mimi, the college co-ed, in 30 episodes of ''One Life to Live'' last December and January. Miss Dahl says that when her film and stage careers were more active, she had usually been cast as the ''glamorous, sophisticated woman who dresses well and has romances. I'd never played a family woman before.''
''It gave my image an added luster,'' says Dick Cavett of his three cameo appearances on ''All My Children'' in 1979 and 1980. Mr. Cavett admits that he originally viewed these soap-opera appearances as exercises in ''respectable slumming.'' His patronizing attitude disappeared, however, when bags of fan mail began to arrive. A large number of letters were from teen-agers and college students who said they had never seen his talk show. ''I reached an entirely new audience,'' says Mr. Cavett.
The relatively new-found popularity of soap operas, especially among teen-agers and college students, is an inducement frequently cited by these recent guest stars.
Traditionally, Hollywood luminaries have disdained television soap operas as only for the has-been or the untried aspirant. (Among the more successful actors who recent broke into the business through soap-opera are Cicely Tyson, Martin Sheen, Richard Thomas, Barnard Hughes, Jill Clayburgh, Swoozie Kurtz and James Earl Jones.) There have been exceptions, however. In the mid-1960s, Joan Crawford filled-in for her hospitalized daughter Christina on four episodes of CBS's now-defunct ''Secret Storm.'' But, by and large, established actors steered away from soap operas, long the butt of ridicule both within and outside the television industry. Indeed, the twodimensional characters seemingly forever snared in convoluted plots have provided fodder for many take-offs - one of the best known being Carol Burnett's ''As the Stomach Churns'' skits on her weekly comedy series.
Today, however, Miss Burnett is almost apologetic about her comedy routine: ''I used to be snobbish,'' she said recently. ''It's so easy to be so about things you don't know. Now I know better.'' The comedienne has become a convert to soap operas: She habitually watches ''All My Children,'' has done two cameo walk-ons on the serial, and even asked Agnes Nixon, its creator and chief writer, to create a dramatic role for her.
When Milton Berle was recently asked why he agreed to play the role of theatrical agent Micky Miller on three episodes of ''General Hospital'' last December, he said: ''Anytime I get a chance to do a straight part, I jump at it.'' But when ''Mr. Television'' was pressed further and asked why he had ignored the medium's daytime cousin for so long, he admitted: ''I've always been very busy before.''
Others offer similar explanations as to why they have recently joined the casts of soap-operas. Miss Verdon, who was asked to fill in for Mi ss Burnett whose husband suddenly became ill, put it more bluntly: ''I wasn't asked before.''
Roughly three years ago, Jacqueline Smith, vice-president of daytime programs at ABC, was searching around for ways to attract new viewers to soap operas and to keep her network's soap operas in the ratings lead. One of her ideas was to induce stars to do guest spots. Her initial attempts at recruiting leading actors were not especially promising. Though she offered them ''meaty roles,'' even a party, her efforts were rebuffed, and the party canceled. ''I couldn't get enough stars to come,'' she says.
But now, Miss Smith says her office recieves frequent inqueries from interested celebrities. According to M ichael Ogiens, vice-president of daytime and children's programs at CBS, a major reason wh y soap operas have become more palatable to stars has been the s uccess of such primetime serials as his network's ''Dallas.' ' Mary Ellis Bunim, executive producer for ''As the World Turns,' ' concurs. ''Daytime television has taken on a new credibility now that prime-time has successfully mimicked our formats,'' she says .
''I'm very pleased to see it happen,'' says Tony Geary of the trend. Mr. Geary, has played the role of Luke Spencer on ''General Hospital'' for four years now. ''We've always been considered the low-life, the dregs of the industry. Now, people have got to stand back and say 'Hey, maybe I've been wrong. Maybe acting on a soap isn't such a disgrace.' '' Indeed, for some of these celebrities, a guest role on a soap is viewed as an honor.
''Oh, it's very fashionable, darling,'' says Zsa Zsa Gabor, who played a mysterious Corsican on 10 episodes of ''As the World Turns'' last November. ''I'm very flattered.''
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