Forgotten soaps of the 90's

[Willie Oleson]

I remember being a bit shocked to hear Maggie Gioberti using the F-word on television.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

I remember being a bit shocked to hear Maggie Gioberti using the F-word on television.

She never actually dropped an f-bomb but she did deliver “a statement to the press” to a media helicopter that was hovering over the family estate after one of her husband’s ex-mistresses was revealed to be a Soviet spy.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

Valley Of The Dolls

Not one of the best, but they showed some nice buns every now and then.

Somebody remember The Valley of the dolls in 1994 with Sharon Case and Sally Kirkland?

A few English language episodes have shown up, alongside those Polish dubbed ones that have been knocking around for years. I’ve watched the first two episodes. It’s not a great show by any stretch but it’s not the worst either. It’s kind of like a cross between Models Inc. and Eden, the soft porn soap that the USA Network / Playboy Channel made in the 90’s.

Interestingly, Helen Lawson is rewritten as Jennifer North’s mother in this version. Also, I couldn’t place the actress that plays Neely but I see that she was one of the female leads on The $treet in 2000.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Interestingly, Helen Lawson is rewritten as Jennifer North’s mother in this version.

I guess that made it easier to write for her as a soap regular. They have to have a reason to be in the same space.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

I guess that made it easier to write for her as a soap regular. They have to have a reason to be in the same space.

Completely agree. Neely is still a struggling waitress / dancer and Anne has just arrived in town. Having Helen as Jennifer’s mother means that she is there from the get go, instead of having to wait until the storyline progresses enough that the girl’s careers had gotten to a point that they’d be crossing paths with Helen.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

It’s only taken six years but I’ve managed to watch more of The Monroes. Six of the eight episodes that Soapnet aired in the mid-00’s have surfaced.

Having watched three episodes now, it is even more laughable that Devane had an issue with it being called a soap, because it is even sudsier than I imagined. Most of it is driven by sex. Four episodes in (episode 3 isn’t available), and two of the patriarch’s former mistresses have shown up, one daughter is having an affair with the president, the other is about to embark on an affair after only being married for two months and the youngest son is falling for the oldest son’s wife. There may also be an illegitimate Monroe out there somewhere.

Susan Sullivan and William Devane do most of the heavy lifting and are a joy to watch together but the various kids do start to come into their own as the episodes progress. It’s not a bad show but I think the timeslot, up against Seinfeld and Caroline in the City on NBC and New York Undercover on FOX, was too tough to survive in.

I’ve now watched all available episodes of The Monroes. For anyone that’s interested, it originally only ran for five episodes on ABC between September and October 1995, before being pulled from the schedules. In 2005, Soapnet acquired the eight episodes that had been produced and ran them at 11pm on Saturdays, as part of its Dysfunctional Family Night (episodes were followed by Dynasty at midnight). Six of those eight episodes are now available.

I have to say, I quite enjoyed the episodes that I watched. It’s a bit of a slow burner to begin with and is a gentler strain of soap compared to the wildness of the Spelling soaps that were on FOX during the same period. For example, we see a dramatic assassination attempt but then in the next scene, it’s played for laughs after it’s revealed that the injured party was only shot in the ass. As I mentioned before, Susan Sullivan and William Devane are the main attractions but the relationships between each of Monroe offspring are nicely fleshed out as the series progresses and their work and personal lives become more intertwined.

By episode eight, it’s really starting to build momentum and become more layered, as we see the Monroes’ business interests be explored, in addition to their political lives, as the family branch out into banking and news media. There’s also a cliffhanger ending where the clan face trouble from within, that could spell catastrophe for all of their futures. And then it just ends. It’s a shame that ABC didn’t stick with it as it was shaping up to be a good nighttime soap. It is understandable why it was axed though, considering it was the lowest rating show on ABC that season, and finished 126th out of 160 shows on all networks. A poor lead in, tough timeslot competition and a general aversion from audiences towards soaps that weren’t on FOX, all played a part in its demise but it definitely wasn’t a bad soap.