The 2020 Bauer Barbecue

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2020 Bauer Barbecue @ The Locher Room, 6/27/20

That was way too fast to be muriel’d. Ugh.

My own family started an annual 4th of July bbq because of the Bauer bbq.

We're going so fast these days, it's no surprise we get Mur'd so quickly.

Thanks for the great thread title, OP!

r3 r4 WHET Rachel Cory made it to 241 before Murielization took place.

R5 Yes, which might be close to a new record for our Marvelous Midwestern Towns!

Parachuting into the barbeque, as one does.

Lacey Bauer had such potential...NOT. The girl was a professional gymnast, wasn’t she? I vaguely remember Lacey was hoping to go to the Olympics.

I get to snack on Carl T Evans hotdog.

[quote] I vaguely remember Lacey was hoping to go to the Olympics.

If so, they should have made her a figure skater, CBS still broadcasted the Winter Olympics at that time. I doubt CBS wanted to air anything that could be seen as promoting the Summer Olympics on NBC.

I once attended the Bauer Barbecue.

I can’t see 11. Hmmmmm

Charita Bauer was top billed on Guiding Light

Guiding Light

Starring

Charita Bauer

As

Bert Bauer

R12 It means it's someone you blocked.

[quote]It means it's someone you blocked

In this case, with good reason.

R14 I said that on purpose. I know who I blocked here. Lol

Funny, I have that one blocked as well.

what does Muriel mean? You have to pay? I know times are tough but it's $1.50 a month. Do-able?

Lacey was cast, I believe, before Pam came back and she jettisoned her in favor of Harley, yes, the actress was of limited range, but at the end of the day Harley was a pissed off Reva wanna-bee, ball-busting men left and right.

Harley wore thin after awhile. You could see Beth Ehlers making acting decisions to make her relatable. It’s hard to explain.

To pay at yet another site is yet another site where my information is out there. I just feel like I’m nickel and dime to death and too many sites have my information. I dunno maybe that’s stupid but it is what it is.

Did anyone see the Locher Room with Maura and Michael Park?

He tells this story about how Jon Hensley told him that the writers were going to reveal that Jack was gay (because Park wasn't connecting enough with any of his leading ladies).

Park tells the story and West says...nothing. Finally, she chimes in...and if they had made Jack gay that would've been okay....that wouldn't have mattered.

LOVE HER.

got to 7:30

Today would have been 68 years on TV for GL.

R12 11 is Scoche Marin

Let's not even say that name here, please.

The primetime special to mark the 40th year on TV - which played 5 years after the 50th anniversary (confusing).

Featuring the Goddess herself, La Bev.

Any of you remember the GL TV movie with Lauren Hutton. I don't remember any details but I know I watched it and was disappointed.

Something about the Cradle Rocked. There were about four GL characters in it but none significantly. Ross had the biggest role and at least Bert and I think Hope appeared.

Yes, Lauren Hutton was Hope's best friend. I think Leslie Ann was there too, maybe for a few seconds.

R18 I would pay if there were more premium features to make it worth it. From what paying members have said, the board is still barely functional even after you pay. Plus, I just feel wrong funding Muriel’s drinking habit.

The Cradle Will Fall is the movie.

I saw Hope, Ross and Ed. Supposedly Charita was also in this but it must have been for a second and I missed it.

Didn’t Warren Andrews first appear in The Cradle Will Fall, then he was brought onto the show ?

[quote] Charita was also in this but it must have been for a second and I missed it.

Charita appears at the one hour nine minute mark

Bless your heart, R32, I knew someone would find out for us!

I loved the year GL won best show Emmy in the 80s and during the closing credits they were all "Yeah, bitches, we won!"

I wish American networks would do like the BBC, they have some shows like Father Brown, Land Girls, The Coroner, etc. that are daytime programs that only run for a week or two at a time. The networks here could do that with their cancelled soaps, instead of fully bringing them back they could do one or two week a year versions based on the originals, that would just focus on select characters. With some of the older ones like Search For Tomorrow, they could make them a period piece going back to the original source material.

Or have them several times a year. They should have tried GL and ATWT at 30 mins first.

Channel grazing tonight and happened upon a scene in a Law & Order rerun on WE with Mary Kay Adams and Jean LeClerc playing parents of a young boy who, I think, had posed for some “gay” photographs. LeClerc’s character gasped out “Gay?” and put his head in his hands and I nearly choked on my fish sticks. Adams’ character reassured her husband that their son wasn’t gay.

Someone said this in the previous thread:

[quote]Rick Bauer, son of Leslie and Ed, should NEVER have been comic relief and secondary to Phillip Spaulding. Making him a Fred Mertz was too stupid to believe.

I was always disappointed Rick played second fiddle to Phillip throughout the show. Rick being subordinate to Phillip to the point that Phillip slept with all of Rick's women in the 1980s was really distasteful. At least they moved away from that in the 90s.

I suspect a large part of that was casting. Michael O'Leary as we're hearing over and over was the jokester and prankster on set. That likely influenced how they wrote for him.. Meanwhile, Grant was very serious and didn't seem to crack a smile often. That influenced how they wrote for Phillip.

Plus Grant was a stronger actor.

The much beloved Gregorzik from the early days of these DL soap threads would have agreed with you r38. He believed the Bauer should have been the stud and I tend to agree.

Well, the first teen Rick (Philip McGregor, brought on the same time as Aleksander) was very pretty but a very weak actor. He was let go from Loving in a contract role the year after, I think. McGregor and Aleksander apparently stayed friends for many years. I like to think it was because McGregor gave expert blowjobs which helped Aleksander relieve pressure at times.

Otalia were supposed to come out together as a couple at the 2009 BBQ.

I would have helped GA relieve any pressure at any time.

Man, it would be amazing to gulp that down.......

Go to 1:25:04 The 9th Annual Daytime Emmys (1982); it was a 90 minute show on CBS.

Charita Bauer and Don McLaughlin (!!!) present the Emmy for best soap.

GL wins and the new disco theme blasts throughout the room.

Think about it; this was for the year 1981 -- Luke and Laura's wedding, the Ice Princess...Cassadines... yet they were no match for Nola Reardon and Carrie Todd; the Spauldings, and the Bauers...Henry and Vanessa.

R43 Fantastic!

R43 wow, nice find!

Go to the writing clip about 12-15 minutes before; once again Chris Bernau presents, this time with Elvera Roussel, the writing award;

they show some clips (Sky and Raven!) and a great GL clip with Tony and Katie and the camera dissolves from the clip of Katie to the ballroom live on her portrayer Denise Pence....they don't do beautiful stuff like this anymore.

To go from that to a Zoom ceremony or even the online stuff they did the last few years; Just awful.

Thanks r46 but nah, I'm not hopping around to your tune like some slave.

R39

I really miss Gregorzik on these threads. I also miss the guy whose family worked for P&G. His name was something that started with the letter "E". Ehrenstein or something like that. He had loads of info.

Yeah, Gregorzik was great. But he took a lot of abuse so I don't blame him for being on the down low.

Thank you for the 1981 Emmy link! Funny how Chris Bernau calls the show "THE Guiding Light". It's great seeing Doug Marland accept the writing award. I can't believe how long the clips are before the writing award is announced. Lisa Brown was VERY excited to see her show win! LOL.

Yes, that Emmy video is great! Thanks for sharing it.

A young Patrick Mulcahey standing behind Marland during the acceptance speech was quite a looker.

R51 OMG THAT was Mulcahey? Wow, I didn't put that together, Liz!

That whole thing is a find! I've never seen so much of Marland speaking at one time!

They must have had tables where shows would "mingle" together because there are several Y&R performers at the GL table where Charita is sitting - I think Jamie Lyn Bauer is there and if I am not mistaken, Terry Lester, too.

And this is 1982. Was it before or after Douglas flounced because Allen Potter cancelled the Carrie Todd story?

At 32 minutes in you can see Richard Simmons win an Emmy.. lol

Jane Elliot's final air date was July 2, 1982. Emmy show aired on June 8, 1982.

Marland left the show in August 1982 with his final scripts airing in mid Sept. So, not sure whether he'd turned in his notice by the time of the Emmys. He certainly didn't seem like a man who was about to leave his HW position as he accepted that award.

As I recall, Carrie Todd's departure was abrupt. Just one episode, maybe two, for goodbyes. Perhaps Jane Elliot was fired right after the Emmy show and Marland hastily wrote her final episodes. Back in those days, typical tape date for all NYC soaps was 2 weeks before air date.

FYI If anyone wants to discuss Brian Bloom, there's a new thread about him linked below.

R54 That sounds about right. Lots of joy at the Emmys and then the Carrie Todd decision probably happened soon after they went back to work.

Speaking of GL writers

Today at 3 pm Eastern is the Locher Room with various GL writers

[quote] Today at 3 pm Eastern is the Locher Room with various GL writers

Will he ask them watch they've been watching during the quarantine?

Doug was praising Aggie Nixon in this speech; why do that unless he was planning on going to ABC to team up with her for LOVING?

Imagine those GH folks sitting there, coming off the best year ever and losing to GL, and the writer whom Gloria let walk out the door.

She supposedly wanted Doug in LA; he wasn't moving. She also wanted conflict for newlyweds Scott and Laura, but Doug wanted them to be happy for a bit.

I heard someone asked Kin what made Scotty turn so evil...He took a beat and said...'Well, this guy RAPED his wife...and suddenly, Scotty was the bad guy..." Ouch.

I forgot they worked together after this, R59. I was originally thinking Doug's shout out to Aggie was a bit of shade.

R58, he’ll no doubt ask them if they’ve been watching Ozark. Yeah, yeah, yeah, Tom Pelphrey is great in the latest season, we got it, already.

DO YOU REMEMBER YOUR FIRST DAY?????????????????

I don't remember seeing much of Anna Stuart's time as Vanessa on GL but indeed here it is!

[quote]I don't remember seeing much of Anna Stuart's time as Vanessa on GL but indeed here it is!

With Jennifer Leak, who famously cuckolded John Randolph as Olive on AW.

Now I'm hearing that creepy music when Evan Webster died.

And I'm seeing the black screen over which the credits ran while Olive wailed after discovering Evan's dead body.

(I wish I could hear that piece of music again.)

Another find!

Alan telling Reva "You will NEVER be a Lewis!"

R67 great find. What a cast back then!

I found it r66. It's the whole episode, audio only,

Thank you, R69! I FFed to the end to hear the music -- almost Dark Shadows=esque.

Yes! Very Dark Shadows-esque.

R51

Mulcahey is still an incredibly hot man.

Alan's relationship was Reva was far from over.

They reconnected in 1987 when Reva, having lost Josh, was living it up at the country club, flirting with married day player men, pissing off their wives. Regis asks Reva to leave as her membership was long revoked and the Lewises were over her.

Alan steps in: "Regis. Miss Shayne is my guest. See to it she gets everything she wants."

And it was on.

Alan takes Reva home, she tells him about eating garbage out of a can. She says it's over between her and Joshua.

"And how many times has it been 'over' between you and Josh Lewis -- it's time for a new regime." (only he says it 'RAY-geem.')

Then it was on...and climaxed at the Spaulding Centennial; Phillip takes control #goldenage

R73 I have been looking for that episode (or series of them) on YouTube for eons and eons.

I know it's near September 1987 but GL on YT skips from August to December in 1987,

I’m still looking for the GL episode which introduced Roxie. I think it was in September or October 1984.

According to this, Roxie debuted in Sept 1984, but does not have the exact date. Usually SoapCentral has the exact dates for most of the other GL characters.

Weird to hear Marland thank Brian Frons in that acceptance speech.

I'd forgotten that Frons' path of destruction went through all three networks, starting at CBS.

Olive Gordon Randolph was such a great villainess on AW. Jennifer Leak did such a good job with that role. And she was a major force on AW for three years, 1976-1979.

There's virtually nothing of Olive on YouTube. . Such a shame! If there were, I guarantee you we P&G queens on DL would be talking about her frequently.

300 disposable, three-ply, nonsurgical face masks.

Something that always puzzled me as a kid. If Alan Spaulding (as played by Chris Bernau) is such a rich man, why doesn't he wear a better toupee?

r79 Wrong thread?

I'd love to stop by, but I'll be at the Annual Horton ⏳ Brady Fourth of July Blowout.

Does anyone know the AW date where Cass told Vicky about Marley's rape? She went into the court bathroom & tore it apart.

So many folks are uploading AW episodes but I have no idea what the date might be in order to narrow it down.

No, r81.

Look for the red pick with the flag on the roof.

I'll be selling masks and fireworks from the back of my truck.

Then I'm heading out to Genoa City for some real fun.

Oops .....red pick-up !

the youtuber that uploaded the daytime emmys from 1981, 1985, 1986 & 1990 just got this account terminated for copyright infringement

good thing I downloaded them before he got yanked

R78, I’ll always remember that Olive (via Lemay) was fond of using the word “undermine.” And after she was gone Rachel used it, mostly to describe Iris.

[quote] She supposedly wanted Doug in LA; he wasn't moving. She also wanted conflict for newlyweds Scott and Laura, but Doug wanted them to be happy for a bit.

Actually it was more than that - Marland said while there were major conflicts between himself and Gloria, that wasn't the straw that broke the camels back

It was the fact all the credit went to Gloria Monty for GH going to number 1 - and the fact Gloria would never acknowledge Marland part in the rating going up. You can have the most slick production values for the soap. But it goes nowhere if you don't have a story.

He wanted credit where credit was due. And he wasn't getting it with Monty taking all the credit, so that is the main reason he left.

R86 It's why we should be careful about posting stuff here...

R88 Why did she get all the credit anyway? On our beloved and righteous P&G soaps, Writer was credited first before Executive Producer until the mid-90s. Was that not the case on the heathen, barbarian ABC soaps?

I remember it mentioned several times that when one went to Marland's Connecticut estate and used the guest bathroom, one was greeted with a photo of Monty.

The writers' version of the Locher Room was on today.

Interesting, though not truly groundshaking.

Thing I learned today by watching: Millee Taggart's name is not pronounced "Millie" but almost like M'Lynn from Steel Magnolias: M'Lee.

[quote] Why did she get all the credit anyway?

It is an LA vs NY thing, where Gloria went where no soap had gone before. Making the producer one of the stars of the show. She gave countless interviews in an effort to promote the show. General Hospital & Gloria Monty became one and the same.

R93 I think it also had to do with the fact that Marland was already at GH and it was still close to getting cancelled. Monty was brought in as a last ditch effort to save it, and it was. It seems obvious that it was a combination of the talents of the two of them, but they both had large egos. And, Monty was better at playing the game.

Not that I want this to turn into a GH thread, but I thought Monty hired Marland?

Denise Pence came off pretty badly in that GL reunion. Like, bitch, a new producer and headwriter came on board and decided you weren’t a good fit for their show, get over it. And then she harped on and on that they sent her character away with...a DAY PLAYER! So she thought another contract player should have been written off solely to escort Katie out of Springfield? Give me a fucking break.

Damn, Mulcahey was a fine piece of ass in 1981.

not bad today for an old grizzled leather top but seeing him all big and blond.....well, as Madeline Kahn would say, WOOF.

R91, in a podcast Pam Long mentioned Gloria Monty’s photo being in Marland’s john.

I think it's been mentioned in one of these Locher room sessions, too. Maybe one of trhe ATWT ones, I think.

R95 No. Marland started in 1977, right after leaving The Doctors. Gloria Monty didn't start until Jan. 2, 1978.

[quote] Marland started in 1977, right after leaving The Doctors. Gloria Monty didn't start until Jan. 2, 1978.

He first day on the job she threw out the previous 5 shows that were just filmed and demanded a rewrite and reshoot PRONTO

That must of really endeared Monty to Marland.

Even the Wiki article says that Monty hired Marland.

He was, in any case, only at GH for two to three months before Gloria arrived.

[quote] That must of really endeared Monty to Marland.

That must HAVE really endeared Monty to Marland, you mean.

[quote] That must HAVE really endeared Monty to Marland, you mean.

yes thank you

My mother switched back to Guiding Light around the time of the ice princess story. She said General Hospital got so ridiculous and stupid she couldn’t watch it anymore. She’s always been a lifelong Guiding Light viewer but checked out General Hospital for the hype but quickly regretted it after a year.

r83, it's December 26 of that year (1989 or 1990--I am blanking) but it's never been uploaded anywhere, though the episodes bordering it have. I have been dying to see it--Anne Heche is incredible registering Marley's rape as Vicky (pretending to be Marley) and then trashing the bathroom once she could get away from Cass.

R102 I saw that on Wikipedia, as well. But the dates just don't add up. She couldn't have hired him since he went straight from The Doctors to GH in 1977, and she didn't start until Jan. 1978. I think the idea that she hired him was part of her PR. If she had hired him, she wouldn't have been able to throw out the episodes he had written and demand they be rewritten. In fact, both of them were hired by ABC executives to try to save the show. They managed to save the show, together.

To bad they saved it. They became so smug after they shot to #1. All ABC shows were. But GL was right there in the thick of things. Then Y&R dethroned them in 85 for good.

[quote] Something that always puzzled me as a kid. If Alan Spaulding (as played by Chris Bernau) is such a rich man, why doesn't he wear a better toupee?

I don't think it's so bad. Not at all. I have seen much worse.

I think Spaulding-Bernau's toupee looks pretty standard for the era (e.g. Howard Cossell, Sam Donaldson, Frank Sinatra, etc.), and probably points to the reason why the term "rug" came about.

[quote] And then she harped on and on that they sent her character away with...a DAY PLAYER! So she thought another contract player should have been written off solely to escort Katie out of Springfield? Give me a fucking break.

I didn't understand her to be saying that at all. I was watching at the time and Louie was always pestering her to date him and he totally seemed beneath and unworthy of her, especially since Katie had been a much loved character so long. It was very lazy and sloppy writing. Sending Katie away to a better job or teaching position or something would have been much more dignified and appropriate.

Writers should respect the characters. If they don't want to write them, get rid of them in a way that respects the audience's investment in them.

R110, it’s exactly what she said-“I was written out with a DAY PLAYER!” Katie apparently got married to a basketball player (obviously not Louie).

In all my years of discussing GL or reading message boards/soap sites that did, in all of the many pre-1985 GL characters where fans cried out for their return, I can't remember more than a few random mentions of Katie Parker.

I've seen interviews with Denise elsewhere where you'd have thought Katie Parker was the Victoria Lord Buchanan of Springfield.

I do think perhaps her opinion/perspective and the reality of her time at GL are, shall we say, a few miles apart.

Miss Pence Speaks, Part 1

Miss Pence Speaks, Part 2

Includes the "Katie married a day player!" complaint

I was trying to watch that Locher Room earlier today w/Pence, Jerry ver Dorn and Michael Tylo.....

I wondered if Tylo has Parkinson's disease because his hand was shaking in some unusual ways.....I mean, it's not an unusual think for someone over 60 to have, though it usually hits later.

His son, who died, had a seizure disorder. It could be something he has as well.

R115 I was pretty sure he was jerking off with one hand and holding the phone with the other.

SOAP THREAD!

Webmistress, please spray the soap trolls with Raid! before they spread!

Do fuck all the way off, R118.

Doug should have stayed at GH and hired himself a personal publicist. Back then, there was Daytime TV and Soap Opera Digest.

You hire a publicist, who calls the magazine editors and say, 'Doug wants exposure; let's get him a four page QA; you can have some story teasers, previewing the fall -- the rest is about him. Plus, he'll do an at home spread at his house and you can show him having tea with a few actors."

But I'm glad he went to GL and I'm glad he went to ATWT. I'd love to see a magazine spread or even a book on the Marland Girls: Bobbie Spencer, Nola Reardon, Lorna Forbes, Ava Rescott, Iva Snyder, Meg Snyder....there were many others.

R112, did you see the 1982 Daytime Emmy writing clip? Doug played her up big. Andy Norris' betrayal, how she withdrew and how Tony helped her come out.

Most writers didn't know what to do with her; she was a nurse so that helped keep her around.

The woman is ballsy. I like her.

[quote]I was pretty sure he was jerking off with one hand and holding the phone with the other.

I also thought Michael Tylo was perhaps jerking off while holding the phone.

Ironic that Doug Marland went to such lengths to thank Agnes Nixon in his acceptance speech.

A year later, he would be HWing the brand new Loving. And we all know what a dud that was. The soap never took off and the partnership between Agnes and Doug didn't work well either.

R120 I'm always surprised that he and Agnes Nixon co-created Loving. He wrote it for the first two years then she took over for two, and then they both just kind of forgot about it, until she came back for a year in the 1990s.

I do love the fact that Jane Elliot, the actress Marland seemed to really love, above all his leading ladies, served as Loving's final co-producer.

Makes you wonder how GL would have fared had Marland stayed with it. Would it eventually have gotten to #1? It briefly did with the 4 Musketeers and did well with the younger demo.

R123 One problem with Loving was it didn't feel like a Marland show nor a Nixon show. It didn't even seem like a mashup of the two. I can go back and watch Marland's time writing for The Doctors, GH, GL, ATWT, and they have a certain feel to them. AMC and OLTL always had that special Nixon touch, regardless of whom was writing them at the time. But, I don't get any of that from the episodes of Loving I've seen. It just seems generic. It is even worse that it basically caused the end of Ryan's Hope, which was unique.

Well said r126. You summed it up nicely.

Loving didn't feel like Doug Marland. Not in the least.

The basic premise and initial characters all felt very Agnes Nixon to me. But once the show got going, the feeling quickly faded. It just felt like a mess.

As you said, Loving's debut spelled the beginning of the end for Ryan's Hope, especially when Loving moved to the 12:30 p.m. time slot, bumping Ryan's Hope to 12 noon, a time slot in which many stations didn't air it since they had local news instead.

And by the way, what kind of name is "Loving" for a soap opera?

Except for giving us Lorna, Ava, and classy grandparents Cabot and Isabelle and crazy bitchy Gwyneth, LOVING should have never been born.

It hurt Ryan's Hope.

Doug was better off at GL or ATWT.

Silly name for a soap.

How did Nixon/Marland come up with such a dud? Too many cooks?

Working title "Love Without End," was probably deemed too old-fashioned and kinda clunky.

That Andy Norris Katie storyline was fantastic! When I was watching that Emmy clip of her and Tony I couldn't remember why she was being portrayed as someone who had no confidence in herself, but then the poster upthread reminded me Tony brought her back to life after the shattering Andy experience. Great stuff!

Yeah, my argument was not that Katie was NOT sent off with a day player. It was that sending her off that WAY was disrespectful to the character and audience. Which I think was her argument too.

Well, R132, she needs to get over herself and you need to get over yourself. How was her exit disrespectful? Katie could have gone to the john to douche and was never seen again. Or she could have been found gagged and mutilated in the back of a pick-up truck. Come ON,

And...uhhh...yeah, you WERE challenging me on her “day player” comment. Because it was confirmed by another poster you’re backtracking.

R127, Loving’s original title was Love Without End.

I definitely got the feeling that Tylo had some sort of condition. His speech was extremely slow along with the jerky hand movements.

OK, you seem really invested in this, so I'm just going to say I'm sorry I upset you so much.

This is probably why I imagined she left with Louie. Her final scenes were with him, and my ancient addled brain got facts all mixed up.

Interesting that she credits Addie Walsh here, as I remember her interim stints as head writer on ATWT as very good.

Is K-k-k-Katy pence related to Mike Pence?

For all intents, Katie was a day player once Pam Long took over. Pam wrote for her characters and neglected most of the Marland characters. Katie fell victim to that and essentially became recurring even though she was on contract. At least they gave her a send off. Louie, the guy who proposed to Katie was at least a fellow recurring character (albeit one who was barely developed) and not just someone brought in for a single episode to whisk her off the canvas.

As much as I loved Pam Long's first tenure (at least the first 18-24 months of it before it began faltering with Infinity, Sampson Girl, the record company bullshit), she didn't know what to do with the Marland characters. She tried to write for Nola and Quinton but failed to capture their essence. She tried to write for Tony, pairing him with Annabelle, but he lost his vitality under her pen. She paired Kelly Nelson with Claire, but that was a lackluster pairing. But so many others were completely neglected like Floyd and Katie.

And of course, she didn't even try to do anything with Sarah MacIntyre, Amanda Spaulding, Hope Bauer Spaulding, Mike Bauer, or Trish Lewis. All of them were characters I loved. I was so disappointed they got backburnered upon her arrival and let go when their contracts expired. And she foolishly killed off Hillary Bauer.

The two Marland characters who benefited most under Pam Long were Josh Lewis and Vanessa Chamberlain. And to a lesser extent Maureen Reardon Bauer.

Of course, Phillip became front and center under Pam Long, but he wasn't a Marland creation. In fact Grant joined the cast in Dec. 1982, after Marland was gone. Same with Freddie (Rick) Bauer.

About Sarah MacIntyre, the actress left on her own accord. She wanted to make a career change as a concert pianist and hasn't looked back

Didn't Marland set up the whole Philip paternity story though with the young red-headed Philip?

3 of the 4 musketeers all left around the same time(91/92?), did they all decide to leave around the same time or were they let go?

Alan Spaulding came on the canvas in Nov 1977 at the time the show expanded to 60 minutes. The Dobsons were writing GL at that time. They tied Alan into the Marlers, who had come on the show in 1976, again while the Dobsons were writing.

Grant Alexander and MIchael O'Leary left on their own accord - because they finally reunited Phillip & Beth, the decision was made to write off Beth & Phillip together

So it was not Beth Chamberlain choice to go. A year later Kimberly Simms would be dismissed after contract negotiations broke down.

But back to Grant, both his parents died at the same time and he needed to grieve those losses. So TPTB wrapped up his storyline as quickly as possible,

Thanks, r141. I watched back then, but was too young to be aware of who the writers were.

Yeah, both Grants parents died in 1990. He'd been front burner for four years since his return in 1986. He said he needed time off to grieve.

As I recall, his father died in Sept or Oct 1990 and there was a temp recast for Phillip a few episodes that aired in Oct 1990. I forget the actor's name. He had been on Edge of Night in 1981 or 82. I think he was also briefly on Search.

Several years ago, we discussed that temp recast and someone figured out who it was. Unfortunately, I've forgotten the name again.

Yes, Phillip and Beth were hurriedly married and written out once Grant decided to leave. I wish they would have had Phillip go to jail, leave Beth and see what they could have done with Beth/ Nick. I think they’d have brought back Lujack instead of Nick or both- Nick first then Lujack. Vincent said they had a story ready for the return of Lujack.

Btw- I know characters coming back from the dead is somewhat controversial but I loved that about soaps.

[quote] Several years ago, we discussed that temp recast and someone figured out who it was.

Craig Augustine

Thank you r146.

[quote]In fact Grant joined the cast in Dec. 1982, after Marland was gone.

I'm sure Marland noticed Grant once he hit the airwaves.

[quote] I definitely got the feeling that Tylo had some sort of condition. His speech was extremely slow along with the jerky hand movements.

Those are all signs of Parkinson's. He also had a bit of the "Parkinson's mask" where the face is a bit expressionless.

I have a parent suffering the same and all the signs just really reminded me of the same symptoms.

And it's none of our business, and I love Michael and his work. Just thinking that may have explained his actions that day.

[quote] In fact Grant joined the cast in Dec. 1982, after Marland was gone.

Doug Marland & Allen Potter were fine with Jarod Hall and Phil MacGregor playing Phillip and Rick

But when Gail Kobe took over, she fired both and hired Grant Alexander and Michael O'Leary to play those roles

I don't think anyone would complain about that.