42 minutes ago, dc11786 said:

I remember a soap fan from danfling's board claiming that the Emily Benson storyline involving Royal Dunning was written from a story projection developed by the Dobsons.

That is wild to me. The twist that Emily Benson was the killer seemed to come into the story late. In fact I could swear that at one point Royal Dunning admitted to having killed David Thatcher and then later they had Sally remember that she had seen a woman wearing a ring holding the gun that shot David. From that point onward I'm sure that Emily was the plan but it felt like a disconnect from where the story started.

30 minutes ago, te. said:

I don't know, but I do know Moviecraft does buy and transfers tapes themselves. So it's possible it might be new, but someone else might have a list of what has survived from Hawkins Falls.

Most of their soap episodes I've never seen on Youtube before (not all but most), so this may be another. Wiki says 15 episodes survive so maybe this is one of those 15. (I don't know if they had a record or if they had just found 15 on Youtube over the years).

11 hours ago, DRW50 said:

Most of their soap episodes I've never seen on Youtube before (not all but most), so this may be another. Wiki says 15 episodes survive so maybe this is one of those 15. (I don't know if they had a record or if they had just found 15 on Youtube over the years).

This one is new to me. From what I could find, it's #13.

1954: "A man who's conscience never troubles him, must have it pretty well trained." - Philip Lord
At the shop, Floyd seeks Judge's advice about making Carol's lawsuit against him private. Lona worries about Roy as Carol reveals her part in how he feels and that she's giddy for a fight.

Maurice Copeland as Dr. Floyd Corey
John Galvarro as Toughy Padgett
Philip Lord as Judge Willard Sharp
Bernardine Flynn as Lona Corey
Ros Twohey as Millie Flagle
Geraldine Kay as Carol Corey

First time seeing Carol, Floyd's bitchy sister, who seems like she was a real piece of work.

28 minutes ago, Bright Eyes said:

This one is new to me. From what I could find, it's #13.

1954: "A man who's conscience never troubles him, must have it pretty well trained." - Philip Lord
At the shop, Floyd seeks Judge's advice about making Carol's lawsuit against him private. Lona worries about Roy as Carol reveals her part in how he feels and that she's giddy for a fight.

Maurice Copeland as Dr. Floyd Corey
John Galvarro as Toughy Padgett
Philip Lord as Judge Willard Sharp
Bernardine Flynn as Lona Corey
Ros Twohey as Millie Flagle
Geraldine Kay as Carol Corey

First time seeing Carol, Floyd's bitchy sister, who seems like she was a real piece of work.

Thanks for the extra info.

NY Times

Soap Opera Buffs Tune In a Tour By Judy Klemesrud.

• Oct. 21, 1971

Lynne Rogers is probably best known to her fans for her “nice girl” roles on television soap operas. Rita Lloyd, on the other hand, almost always played the meanies.

Yesterday, the two fortyish actresses joined forces to inaugurate their new escorted tour service for women, Command Performance, designed to show out‐of‐towners “provocative aspects of life in New York” as well as introduce them to some of their heroes from Sudsville.

“More people than you think watch soap operas, and I don't want to denigrate them,” said Miss Lloyd, in explaining why she and her partner had begun the tours. “People just don't want to meet Tuesday Weld any more. They want to meet the soap opera stars.”

Recognized Everywhere

And how does she know that? “Well, neither Lynne nor I have been on a soap opera for three years,” said Miss Lloyd, who played the wicked spy, Jessica Webster, on “Edge of Night,” “but we are still stopped on the streets by people who recognize us. It's incrediblel”

Yesterday's tour group—seven women from the New York area who paid $25 for the day's entertainment—all remembered Lynne and Rita, and could even recall some of the plots from the soaps they had acted in.

“I remember Marie [Miss Rogers] when she was on The Guiding Light,’ “ said Mrs. Alda Nielsen, of Huntington, L. I., wife of a marine engineer. “She was so sweet. She still looks the same as when she was married to Dick.”

The first stop on the tour was a 10 A.M. visit to the Eighth Avenue studio of Andy Thomas‐Anselmo, a singing coach.

Mr. Thomas‐Anselmo had some of his students on hand to sing for the women, and then led the tourist group in vocal warm‐up exercises in which everybody sang a scale to the words, “Let us wander by the bay.”

An Impromptu Solo

“If we make beautiful music,” Mr. Thomas‐Anselmo said, “then we won't have to use guns.” The women applauded.

When he asked if any of the women had ever sung, Mrs. Florence Perchuk of Manhattan, a designer of kitchens, raised her hand. “I'm a coloratura with rusty pipes,” she said, as Mr. Thomas‐Anselmo tried to coax her to come to the front of the room and perform. Finally she gave in, and sang a very passable version of “Summertime.”

For lunch, the women dined on canneloni at the Barbetta Restaurant on West 46th Street, where they also viewed a lashion show of raincoats by Naman Rainwear.

The fashions were interesting enough, but the real star of the luncheon was Nat Polen, a distinguished‐looking actor who plays, Dr. James Craig on “One Life to Live.” He drew admir ing glances when he dropped by at the request of Miss Rogers and Miss Lloyd, both of whom had worked with him on various daytime serials.

Only Mrs. Nielsen seemed unimpressed. After Mr. Polen had left, she commented: “When he died on ‘As the World Turns,’ I guess I lost some of my interest in him. It's hard to remain loyal to someone when they go off to another program.”

The day's last stop was the C.B.S. television studios on West 57th Street, where six popular soap operas originate. There, the women saw a rehearsal for “Secret Storm,” toured the wardrobe and makeup ‘rooms, and, much to their delight, ran into Walter Cronkite in a hallway.

Special Programs Available

Miss Rogers and Miss Lloyd said there would be a Command Performance tour once a month, and that future groups would view an acupuncture demonstration, visit a belly dancer, attend, a wine‐tasting party, have their horoscopes cast by an astrologer and, of course, meet more soap opera stars. Special programs are also available for groups of 15 or more, and persons wanting to join a tour can call RH 4‐6768.

“This is such a nice lovely social thing for women who get lonely,” said Mrs. Gladys Krayer of Manhattan, a toy demonstrator, who, like the other women, seemed to be thrilled with the day's activities. “I might even bring my husband along on the next one.”

Thanks @Paul Raven I really enjoyed this article. A look at such a world gone by for soaps. I love the fan who said she lost interest in Nat Polen after he left ATWT. An example of that very specific soap or network loyalty which you don't have now, for obvious reasons.

I didn't even remember that Lloyd's soap career started so long before GL.

I also love the excitement at meeting Walter Cronkite.

That tour sounds great. I wish I'd been on it.

Promos for Episodes and the Soap Talk hotline.

This is mostly about current soaps, but some mention of AMC and OLTL.
Casting director panel from the SAG-AFTRA Foundation
This panel took place on May 23, 2026, at the Meryl Streep Center for Performing Artists in Los Angeles.
Moderator: Jim Halterman.
They discuss the process of casting for daytime dramas along with the differences and expectations for auditioning.

Greg Salmo, Y&R (formerly AMC, Law&Order, OLTL)

Kim Coleman, BTG and multiple shows
https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/kim-coleman

Christy Dooley, B&B

Marnie Saitta, DAYS (formerly Y&R)

Edited 23 hours ago23 hr by janea4old

A Review of 1978 from Jon Micheal Reed. Seemed to forget All My Children...

BUFFALO COURIER EXPRESS. Saturday. January 6, 1979

NEW YORK — As the New Year begins, let's take a look at a few of the notable soap opera achievements of the past year. The ‘'Miracle” soap story of 1978 was the “rebirth'' of ABC's 15-year-old aerial, “General Hospital.” A year ago this show was approaching cancellation. A new producer, Gloria Monty, and a new headwriter, Douglas Marland, infused a new visual glamor and vigorous storylines for the ailing warhorse. Today, “GH” often ranks number one in the daytime Nielsen ratings. Despite the healthy symptoms, the prognosis isn’t entirely positive. The cast includes a number of weak, awkward performers, especially Mary O’Brien as Heather Webber.

AND WHILE cast newcomers receive a large share of storyline activity, the “old pros" who’ve been on the show for umpteen years are generally relegated to subsidiary inactivity. There also has been a marked and somewhat annoying storytelling tendency to focus on one storyline at a time and for an agonizing length to boot. That flaw, however, seems to be shifting in favor of more balanced, multistoried activity in the las couple of months.

Another notable soap “recovery” occurred on “Edge of Night.” In 1977, a glut of newcomers replaced the long-running characters. The emphasis was on romantic pap that didn’t jell with the show’s basic crimemystery format. IN THE PAST six months, the younger cast members have improved noticeably, and headwriter Henry Slesar gratefully returned to his incomparable storytelling mixture of romance laced with intrigue and set amidst melodramatic action. Slesar also incorporated topical subjects to his plots, such as the Children of the Earth cult and April’s psychic phenomena experiences.

For some reason, “Days of Our Lives” sank in the ratings at a time when the writing, at least to this viewer, seemed to sparkle with intelligence and well-rounded motivation.

“The Doctors,” too. hit the ratings pits, even though the writing of Linda Grover challenged the usual soap opera tendency of black and white stereotypes. But, again, there seemed to be too much and too prolonged concentration on one story at a time.

THE CASTS of “Guiding Light'' and “As the World Turns" proved in 1978 that they are among the most underrated in daytime television. When story material is weakly motivated as on *GL” or in a state of flux as on “ATWT and the performers still manage to make the stones interesting and “bookable,” the vitality of the actors can’t be ignored. "ATWT" generally failed in its attempt to join the more contemporary serials in both physical appearance and plots. It was however a noble effort that shouldn’t be completely shunted aside.

“RYAN’S Hope,”which sports the snappiest, wittiest dialogue on the tube, suffered from a severe case of massive ast turnovers and replacements. It was difficult to empathize with characters whose faces changed quarterly.

“Another World" experienced a similar problem with periodic cast dismissals and newcomers who ended their run just as they were beginning to trot. The emphasis on the Perrini family, however, was, io this viewer, a refreshing addition to the show, as was the spotlight on the superb talents of Dorothy Lyman (Gwen Frame), Brian Murray (Dan Shearer), Jay Morran (Vince Frame), among others, and let's not overlook the sometimes neglected Beverly Penberthy (Pat Randolph)

FOR THOSE critics who complain that soap operas don’t move at a rapid pace, “One Life to Live,” proved that soaps can progress unlethargically and excitingly. No small thanks to be given to headwriters Gordon Russell and Sam Hall for giving the sublime Al Freeman and Ellen Holly (Ed and Carla Hall) strong story material after years of virtual do-nothingness.

“Search For Tomorrow” and “Love of Life” underwent sweeping changes in story and character focus. “Search” is recently settling into a comfortable and attractive niche, but it’s too early to tell whether “Love of Life” can be saved by its new producer, Cathy Abbi, and new headwriter, Jean Holloway.

@Paul Raven That article also forgot Y&R.

Thanks so much @Paul Raven . Sadly, this is the closest we will ever get to seeing most of that run, aside from clips (and RH, which I agree was hurt due to cast turnover, although was still a good year overall). I find the comment about GL's weak plotting interesting - I guess most of it was building up to 1979. The backhanded praise of ATWT's attempts at modernization sounds about right.

10 hours ago, Paul Raven said:

The cast includes a number of weak, awkward performers, especially Mary O’Brien as Heather Webber.

Thank you! I've been saying that for I don't know HOW long, lol. Her performance during Heather's LSD trip was especially bad.