Classic Soaps Guiding Light

[Jason73]

I don't know why I have been craving classic soaps lately. Maybe I'm trying to escape 2020. I'm still thoroughly enjoying my time in 1985 Santa Barbara and Another World. I decided to check out a soap I had only seen very little of. I watched Guiding Light for a little while when Marcy Walker joined and watched a little of Marj Dusay as Alexandra. I can't remember if that was the same time period or different times.

I've been watching some episodes from 1989. I picked this time period because I remember reading about the Alan-Michael, Harley, Dylan triangle and it's just getting started right now in March 89. I love Harley and really like Carl T Evans' Alan-Michael. Dylan hasn't shown up yet, but Alan-Michael is acting jealous and possessive of Harley after finding out Harley has a kid with Dylan that she gave up.

Harley and Frank's mom Nadine has just shown up in Springfield--in time for Alan-Michael and Harley's wedding.

It's fun to see Beverlee McKinsey's Alexandra. She and Fletcher have crash landed on an island.

It's the middle of the Sonni/Solita story which I have vague memories of reading about. Josh has been arrested for something--maybe killing Sonni? Or Solita? Reva has just tracked down Sonni who seems to be having some sort of breakdown. I can't remember the details with Sonni and Solita. Were they twins or a split personality?

It's characters I'm familiar with but haven't ever spent much time with. It's all very watchable, but then it would have to be pretty awful for a soap lover like me not to find it enjoyable.

I don't know how long I'll stick with GL. I've also been craving As the World Turns episodes.

I love soap openings that show the characters.

 

[Jason73]

Were they twins or a split personality?

Another episode in and it seems it's a split personality story, although it also seems they were twins and one died--leading to the split. Josh has been convicted and sentences to prison. I really like Robert Newman. He has such a commanding presence. Reva and Sonni are currently trapped in a burning home in Caracas. It appears Phillip, Blake, Johnny and Chelsea are in Caracas too. I forgot Kassie DePaiva was on GL. I also forgot about this version of Blake who looks and sounds just like Glenn Close.

Nadine is pretending to be rich. She stole a dog from the airport to complete her rich person costume. She shows up at the Spaulding mansion with stolen gifts and the stolen dog that has now peed all over the living room of the Spaulding mansion. Nadine has convinced Alan-Michael to let her stay in Alexandra's room. I can't wait for Alexandra to get off that island and discover who's been sleeping in her bed. Jean Carol is really fun

Fletcher and Alexandra think they are stranded on the island their plane crashed on, but they are being spied on by someone in a bunker watching them on video. They haven't shown the face of the mysterious man who is watching but I'm thinking maybe it's Roger.

I love Alan-Michael more with each episode I'm watching. He's so charming and charismatic. I wonder what Carl T Evans is doing these days?

 

[Daniel Avery]

You're picking up GL about the same time I stopped watching! Nothing personal against GL....they got aced out by my VCR. It would only record one "event" per setting, so it was either set it to record Another World on NBC or ATWT and GL on CBS. It sounds so low-tech now, where you can store up 35 days of programming on a DVR, but that was all we had back then. And you can guess who won that contest.

That version of Blake you mention (I think her name was Elizabeth Mitchell?) indeed looked like she going to boil a bunny at any minute. The fact that she looked nothing like either Holly or Roger was chuckle-worthy. Alan-Michael was one of those heavily SORAS'ed characters (he was born onscreen in 1981--I remember Hope giving birth!) that kept being recast and not aging any more for decades.

 

[Jason73]

It would only record one "event" per setting, so it was either set it to record Another World on NBC or ATWT and GL on CBS. It sounds so low-tech now, where you can store up 35 days of programming on a DVR, but that was all we had back then. And you can guess who won that contest.

Obviously you made the only choice possible. I remember those days of having to make difficult decisions when it came to setting that timer on the VCR. I remember having to leave the VCR on the channel I wanted to record in the morning because our VCR couldn't change channels to record.

That version of Blake you mention (I think her name was Elizabeth Mitchell?) indeed looked like she going to boil a bunny at any minute. The fact that she looked nothing like either Holly or Roger was chuckle-worthy.

Elizabeth Dennahy--Brian's daughter. She's not bad, but she's not Sherry Stringfield or Elizabeth Kiefer.

Alan-Michael was one of those heavily SORAS'ed characters (he was born onscreen in 1981--I remember Hope giving birth!) that kept being recast and not aging any more for decades.

When I watched GL it was Rick Herst playing the role. He wasn't bad either.

The actress playing Sonni/Solita is a real powerhouse--more than holding her own against Kim Zimmer. Michelle Forbes seemed so familiar to me I had to google to see what I knew her from--The Killing and True Blood. Watching her and Zimmer play off of each other is riveting. Sonni has just reverted back to her Solita personality and Reva has taken her to Solita's grave to attempt to shock her out of it. But it doesn't work and the episode ends with Solita shoving Reva into the open grave.

Nadine has just helped Josh escape from jail by disguising himself as a woman. There's something I really like about Robert Newman's voice.

What's up with the actor playing Rusty? He mumbles his words in a monotone with hardly any expression and often seems like he's working hard to remember his lines. Is that typical for him?

 

[Daniel Avery]

Terrell Anthony (Rusty) was a model who moved into acting, and it took him a while to catch on to the soap format. He will get better. Eventually. He did a short-term gig on Another World as the government agent who was helping Kathleen McKinnon stay in Witness Protection (when she was revealed to be alive in 1991).

Is Reva and Rusty's little sister Roxie still in town? I always liked that character, and still resent how they "Nicole Love-d" her out of existence.

Michelle Forbes also recurred in a role on Star Trek: Next Generation after GL and seems to be one of those reliable actresses who ought to be more famous than she is.

Obviously you made the only choice possible.

:sure:

 

[Jason73]

@Daniel Avery Do you know who this character is? I don't recognize her. All I know is she seems to be friends with Blake.

 

[Jason73]

Michelle Forbes also recurred in a role on Star Trek: Next Generation after GL and seems to be one of those reliable actresses who ought to be more famous than she is.

I agree! She's always memorable, no matter what role she's playing.

s Reva and Rusty's little sister Roxie still in town?

I have not seen any sign of Roxie.

 

[Jason73]

"Nicole Love-d" her out of existence.

What happened to her? She went crazy and murdered someone?

 

[Daniel Avery]

The picture doesn't ring a bell for that time period. She does resemble a character named Doris Wolfe, who was Springfield's career-obsessed DA during the final years of the show (2000ish-2007 or maybe longer). I recall she kept trying to send all the popular characters to jail and losing. She got elected mayor eventually. They later established she was a lesbian who had kept it a secret in order to advance her career. But of course the dates don't line up for what you're watching.

What happened to her? She went crazy and murdered someone?

Roxie, the spunky younger sister who lived in the shadow of her larger-than-life sister [familiar?], ended up falling for Johnny Bauer. All was going well until Johnny developed aggressive cancer. She seemed to just lose her mind with worry over his (seeming) death sentence, and ended up having to be committed to a psychiatric facility. Then Johnny had some sort of religious experience/miracle that cured him of his cancer. But they conveniently forgot about poor Roxie in the facility and Reva, her parents, and everyone seemed to forget she even existed....just as Donna, Michael, Vicky and Marley forgot about poor Nicole.

 

[Jason73]

The picture doesn't ring a bell for that time period. She does resemble a character named Doris Wolfe, who was Springfield's career-obsessed DA during the final years of the show (2000ish-2007 or maybe longer). I recall she kept trying to send all the popular characters to jail and losing. She got elected mayor eventually. They later established she was a lesbian who had kept it a secret in order to advance her career. But of course the dates don't line up for what you're watching.

I just rewatched the first scene I saw with her and Blake. I think Blake called her Meridith. That led me to read up on Meridith which then tied into the cancer story with Johnny that you just mentioned. According to what I read she had issues with Rick wanting to treat Johnny's cancer holistically and had him brought up on charges. Holistic treatment is not a story I've ever seen covered on a soap, that I can recall.

She seemed to just lose her mind with worry over his (seeming) death sentence, and ended up having to be committed to a psychiatric facility.

What an odd way to write out a character. Was the actress fired or did she want to leave the show?

 

[Daniel Avery]

The actress who played Roxie (Kristi Ferrell) seemed to drop off the face of the earth after leaving the show...or at least I don't recall seeing her in anything. I never did look to see if she jumped or if she was pushed. She was there for three years, which is typical for a soap contract. When it came time to write Johnny out of the series (further down the road, probably a year or two after the period you're in) they claimed that Roxie was showing signs of recovery and he left to rush to her side in the clinic overseas.

Oh, that must be Dr. Meredith Reade, Fletcher's sister. That's not at all what I remember her looking like.

I assume GL felt they were being respectful of their origins with Johnny's cancer story, since GL was originally (in its radio days) a more religious-centered soap. The central character was a minister and the "guiding light" of the characters' lives was of course their minister's advice and guidance. But a lot of people thought Johnny's "miracle cure" (after all that talk of being terminal) was a cop-out. I was never a fan of James Goodwin's acting style (on GL or AW) so I wasn't really paying much attention to him, especially since there were so many other Bauers they could have brought back rather than 'creating' a distant cousin.

 

[Jason73]

The stuff with Sonni and Reva in the jungle was so good. Standing on a rickety old rope bridge in the middle of the jungle Reva pushes "Solita" to remember the truth--that she's really Sonni and that Solita commited suicide years ago. She does remember, reverts back to Sonni and then promptly falls off the bridge. Reva saves her life just as Josh arrives. Josh realizes that Sonni has forgotten the past four years and thinks they're still married. He plays along as Reva watches on, heart broken.

After things settle down a bit for Josh, Reva and Sonni the action shifts to Alan-Michael and Harley's wedding. It's nearly ruined by someone Nadine owes money to, but ends up being a really sweet wedding ceremony performed by both a Catholic priest and a clergyman from the Greek Orthodox church to honor both the bride and the groom's heritage. Alex is presumed dead and everyone is working hard to keep that news from Alan-Michael on his wedding day.

Maureen and Ed have appeared for the first time. Things are strained for them because Ed thinks Maureen is in love with Fletcher and it seems like maybe he's right. I'm working hard to figure out how everyone is connected--particularly what the connections are between the Spaulding and Bauer families, but things aren't clear to me so far.

Speaking of Fletcher, he showed up at the Spaulding mansion with his little son, Ben--who I know grows up to be incredibly hot Matt Bomer and also a serial killer who dies because of a lethal injection to his eyeball, if I remember correctly.

Alex is still stranded on the island. It still hasn't been revealed that it's Roger that's holding her prisoner, but I'm sure that's who it is.

Oh, also I keep thinking Clint Buchanan is hanging out in Springfield, but it's just Ross Marler.

There are a few familiar faces that I associate with the show that I've been waiting to see that haven't shown up yet--Billy, Vanessa, Holly. I don't know it that's because they just haven't been in the episodes I've seen or if they're not on the show during this time period.

There aren't very many 1989 episodes left, so I'm going to have to make a decision about what to watch next--either switch back to Another World, seek out a different year of Guiding Light or maybe see if I can find a big chunk of consecutive Edge of Night episodes--a show I've never seen but would like to check out. I tried watching the first few episodes of The Doctors, but I couldn't really get into it.

Oh, that must be Dr. Meredith Reade, Fletcher's sister. That's not at all what I remember her looking like.

She hasn't been in it much in the episodes I'm watching. She's pregnant, married to Rick and friends with Maureen. That's all I've gathered about her.

I was never a fan of James Goodwin's acting style (on GL or AW) so I wasn't really paying much attention to him, especially since there were so many other Bauers they could have brought back rather than 'creating' a distant cousin.

I didn't like him on Another World either and I'm not caring for him on GL.

@Daniel Avery Do you know when the Spauldings were brought onto GL? Are they a creation of the 80's?

 

[Jason73]

I sort of know Fletcher because he's been in a few episodes and I don't know who Claire is, but I know Susan Pratt from All My Children. This reunion was fascinating mainly because of a section of the interview where Susan discusses the direction they took her character, Claire in, in the end of her run on GL. It's fascinating how angry and hurt she is about it all these years later. I love little glimpses like this that show how, for the actors, soaps are just a job with internal politics like many of our jobs have.

 

[Daniel Avery]

Maureen and Ed have appeared for the first time. Things are strained for them because Ed thinks Maureen is in love with Fletcher and it seems like maybe he's right. I'm working hard to figure out how everyone is connected--particularly what the connections are between the Spaulding and Bauer families, but things aren't clear to me so far.

In a storyline from long ago (well, okay, 1983 or 1984) Ed. Maureen, and Claire went to Beirut to search for missing Fletcher, who was reporting in a war zone. Fletcher and Claire were a couple at that point, and Claire worked for Ed at Cedars. Soon it appeared that both Maureen and Fletcher were (separately) presumed dead, leading Ed and Claire to have Grief Sex. Naturally both Mo and Fletch showed up alive, leading to the usual "we have to keep this a secret" plotting between Ed and Claire....but it didn't really work out because Claire ended up pregnant (with Michelle). In the end they had to turn Claire into the villain of the piece so that Ed and Mo would not look like jerks for taking Michelle from her. So the residual tension between Ed, Maureen and Fletcher was there even if no one really talked about it by then. Fletcher had moved on with others (including Maeve Stoddard, Ben's mother) and other than a brief return to town to stir up some trouble, Claire was not a factor in their lives.

From what I recall, the Spauldings were introduced around 1977-1978, with millionaire Alan, his wife Elizabeth (whom my mother absolutely hated!) and their son Phillip, who was ill with...something, which meant he kept turning up at Cedars. Ross's brother Justin was a doctor at the hospital and it was revealed that Phillip was the biological son of Justin and his wife Jackie. I can't recall just why they gave Phillip up for adoption, but everyone worked really hard to keep him from learning he was adopted for some reason (I guess in that time period it was shameful or shocking or something). Elizabeth was soon out of the picture (I think she died?) and Alan soon began romancing Mike Bauer's daughter Hope. Both Ed and Mike knew Alan was bad news and tried to keep him away from Hope but she ultimately married him. He was a liar and philanderer, and after she gave birth to Alan-Michael she became an alcoholic and decided to sober up, dump Alan and leave town with A-M.

maybe see if I can find a big chunk of consecutive Edge of Night episodes

A guy named Mr. Edge80s (or however he spells it) put up a lot of the series on youtube (it's how I got to rewatch it), including stuff around 1980-81 and again from 1983 to the end in December, 1984. I can't recommend it highly enough. I watched some of The Doctors and though it was enjoyable (very young Anna Stuart!), it didn't feel like "appointment TV" the same way EON did (or AW continues to be). If 1980-83 Guiding Light were available some place, I would love to see that again.

 

[Jason73]

In a storyline from long ago (well, okay, 1983 or 1984) Ed. Maureen, and Claire went to Beirut to search for missing Fletcher, who was reporting in a war zone. Fletcher and Claire were a couple at that point, and Claire worked for Ed at Cedars. Soon it appeared that both Maureen and Fletcher were (separately) presumed dead, leading Ed and Claire to have Grief Sex. Naturally both Mo and Fletch showed up alive, leading to the usual "we have to keep this a secret" plotting between Ed and Claire....but it didn't really work out because Claire ended up pregnant (with Michelle). In the end they had to turn Claire into the villain of the piece so that Ed and Mo would not look like jerks for taking Michelle from her. So the residual tension between Ed, Maureen and Fletcher was there even if no one really talked about it by then. Fletcher had moved on with others (including Maeve Stoddard, Ben's mother) and other than a brief return to town to stir up some trouble, Claire was not a factor in their lives.

That's the story that Susan Pratt was talking about in that reunion I posted! She hated it, felt it came out of no where and took it personally the way they altered Claire's character. She was trying to remember who was writing the show at the time and you could tell she was still angry and also mystified about who had it in for her.

Alan soon began romancing Mike Bauer's daughter Hope. Both Ed and Mike knew Alan was bad news and tried to keep him away from Hope but she ultimately married him. He was a liar and philanderer, and after she gave birth to Alan-Michael she became an alcoholic and decided to sober up, dump Alan and leave town with A-M.

Thanks! I could tell there was some connection between the Bauer's and the Spauldings via Alan-Michael but I couldn't figure out what it was. So Ed is his uncle?

A guy named Mr. Edge80s (or however he spells it) put up a lot of the series on youtube (it's how I got to rewatch it), including stuff around 1980-81 and again from 1983 to the end in December, 1984.

I found a a playlist with 2211980 episodes. I think I might give it a go.

If 1980-83 Guiding Light were available some place, I would love to see that again.

There's a playlist for 1981* that has a nice stretch of January and also late August early September episodes. I've added it to my favorites to watch at some point.

*As I was scrolling through the playlist I came across Josh Lewis' first episode. He was talking to his sister and also Hope's dad and apparently Hope and little Alan-Michael were missing.

 

[Daniel Avery]

Alan-Michael is obviously named for his father and his grandfather. He is just as much a Bauer as he is Spaulding, and that always got on Alan's nerves. When Alan-Michael returned all grown up, he actually parachuted into the annual July 4th Bauer Barbecue. The Bauers had been the core family since the late 1940s (!!) with Ed and Mike growing up on the show. Mike was the town's policeman while Ed was the town's doctor. When Don Stewart left the role of Mike, he'd been in the part so long that the show decided not to recast, even as they had recast Ed several times. That back-and-forth between the two brothers was a major part of the show that was ultimately lost.

I came across Josh Lewis' first episode. He was talking to his sister

Just goes to show how a soap changes over the years: Trish Lewis was the first "Lewis" to arrive at the show, and when they decided to give her a brother, they kept writing all these off-camera relatives that became so interesting that the writers ultimately brought them in (Billy, then Mindy, HB and ultimately Reva and her family ). Trish looked so dull in comparison to the others that they ended up writing her out even though there would not have BEEN a Lewis family if not for Trish. Josh was quite a cad when he first arrived, trying to sleep his way around town...quite the contrast with the saintly Josh of the 2000s.

 

[Jason73]

The Bauers had been the core family since the late 1940s (!!) with Ed and Mike growing up on the show. Mike was the town's policeman while Ed was the town's doctor.

Wasn't Mike the Bauer that came to Another World for a little while? How cool that Alan-Michael's grandpa hung out with Pat and John Randolph.

Just goes to show how a soap changes over the years: Trish Lewis was the first "Lewis" to arrive at the show, and when they decided to give her a brother, they kept writing all these off-camera relatives that became so interesting that the writers ultimately brought them in (Billy, then Mindy, HB and ultimately Reva and her family ). Trish looked so dull in comparison to the others that they ended up writing her out even though there would not have BEEN a Lewis family if not for Trish. Josh was quite a cad when he first arrived, trying to sleep his way around town...quite the contrast with the saintly Josh of the 2000s.

She seemed boring to him in comparison right from their first scene together. I really love Robert Newman. I'm looking forward to him taking over the role of Kirk for a bit in my Santa Barbara viewing.

 

[Jason73]

Having a child that was half Spaulding and half Bauer seems sort of genius. Did they wring a lot of conflict out of Alan-Michael being split between the two families? What happened to Hope?

 

[Jason73]

A guy named Mr. Edge80s (or however he spells it) put up a lot of the series on youtube (it's how I got to rewatch it), including stuff around 1980-81 and again from 1983 to the end in December, 1984. I can't recommend it highly enough.

I watched the first two episodes of 1980. I was shocked by what high quality the recordings are. I don't know anything that's going on or anyone on the show yet (though I recognize Joel Crothers) but right now it's revolving around a red-headed actress that seems familiar to me and some soup that may be poisoned by her neighbor. I enjoyed the episodes and will definitely check out more.

 

[Canon]

see if I can find a big chunk of consecutive Edge of Night episodes--a show I've never seen but would like to check out.

There's a playlist of consecutive episodes from 1979 to the end of 1980. I believe these came from the AOL video service site.

Edge of Night, July 1979-December 1980

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