Brendad Dickson: Did Helen Keller Direct Her in 'Y&R'?

The writing was pretty bad, too. But yeah, BrendaD (and the music) took it to way over the top.

Is Brendad missing some teeth?

The things that jumped out at me were the tacky jacket the old lady is wearing and the HORRENDOUS Hyatt Motel art on the wall.

And the writing was trying to be so witty. And wasn't.

I actually think Brendad is the only thing interesting in that scene.

The music was the third character in that scene.

She's still using, that same "press release" photo.

The scene of Mrs. Chancellor shooting Jill was Y&R at its campiest.

Y&R has always been a laughably bad show, with its flaws masked by superior production values.

"I've gone from being the paid companion of a lusty old drunk.... to the EXECUTIVE SUITE of... JA'BOT!" LOL!!

The camp of the 1980's dwarfs even the highest of cheesiness of any Telemundo soap opera of the 1990s. I LOVED Mrs. Chancellor. My mom watched this shit every day, it was her only soap. I would plan my reasons to stay in the living room on summer days to be able to watch. Because, in rural Mississippi, boys weren't supposed to like seeing such things. So I planned by viewing with the dedication and strategy of the landing at Normandy.

"What TANK would you like to dry out in THIS time?"

"Goodbye TRAMP!"

LOL!! Gawd I love it. Thanks OP!!!

Saw Jeanne Cooper on an old Perry Mason. Her acting style is the same. That clip is really a classic. Over the top and great fun to watch.

"That old lady", R3. Bite your tongue. That is Katherine Chancellor, played by the late Jeanne Cooper, real life mother of former hottie Corbin Bernsen.

"Firsht, let's take a look at what I've accomplish."

R8, another rural Mississippi baby gay here who was shamed by his soap watching. Could never get in Y&R..I spent my summers obsessing over the action in Pine Valley.

She was really an atrocious actress. Like a badly done soap opera parody. I've seen better acting in porn of that era. Not surprising she never worked again after getting fired from the show. Bullshit on Bill Bell getting her blacklisted, he didn't have that much power in Hollywood. But according to her, everything going wrong in her life since then is his fault.

Crazy that some fans that watched when she was on go on and on about how great she was. Her replacement, Jess Walton, is a master thespian in comparison.

I still don’t get how she’s supported herself after being fired over 30 years ago.

R15 Husbands who made decent money.

And her dead mother left her money and a condo in Century City.

You could see her trying to emulate Susan Lucci in those scenes. LOL. But let's face it, Dickson only got that job for two BIG reasons.

I saw Jeanne playing the tough womens Roller Derby coach in Kansas City Bomber and although she only had a few scenes, she was impressive.

If Y&R producers are feeling daunted at the prospect of uploading every episode to youtube they needn't be. All they have to do is start with the voiceover "Brenda Dickson returns today as Jill Foster Abbott", and just about every queen in existence will be watching.

Oooooh dat bad.

Would anyone tune into to hear "The role of Jill Foster Abbott is being played once again by Bond Gideon"?

R8: "So I planned by viewing with the dedication and strategy of the landing at Normandy." Good God, being gay is indeed a blessing when you ready choice statements like that.

“The Bells stolded my money!!”

That’s a good one, OP. The office set reminds me of some things they were doing on Dynasty around the same period but my favorite detail is the bafflingly sepulchral music. You could find something like that on an 80s proto-drone playlist on Spotify right now. Good shit.

Leigh Phillippp Ball stealded ALL of my money and i want it bak!!! They steal from me.

To be fair their both doing a lot of 'mustache twirling' in that scene and I don't see Dickson as being any worse than Cooper, who also appears to be struggling for lines.

Brenda was a hypnotically bad actress. It's like viewing a car wreck. You just can't your eyes off her.

Bill Ball stealded my Emmys!!!!!!! I want them back.

Jesus...it's John Waters' School of Acting.

Well, hello! Welcome…to my offish.

And yet only a year before, Dickson's acting was much more natural and subtle. By 1985, she was a Dollar Tree version of Alexis. Her line readings were stilted and you could tell she was looking at the teleprompter.

What happened between 1983 and 1985? Some say it was because she was told to act like that but especially by 1987 she was so stiff and lifeless, it's like both Jill and Brenda had a personality change. Did she have a mental breakdown around this time?

Check out how she "photoshops" herself

Looking back, she was great for a couple of years; from the time Dina caught her drinking in the afternoon, right up to her divorce from John in 85 when she moved into the Jabot office.

It's weird. I have a photographic memory of my childhood and used to watch the show during this time yet I have no memory of her.

One word that comes to mind- “simpering”.

Jeanne Cooper played Katharine Chancellor for another 28 years after that scene (until 2013).

She would finally win the Emmy in 2008:

No emmys for Brendad? Blasphemy!!!! I thought that she claims to have won a Lifetime Achievement Award?

American soap operas are so strange they seem to take place on another planet. Cheap, darkly lit interiors, people dressed to the nines having the time to drop in unexpectedly on their friends and enemies, ridiculous plots and terrible dialogue. None of it bears any resemblance to real life.

The characters of Jill and Jack seemed awesome when played by BrendaD and Terry Lester. As a kid, I was really disappointed when they were recast and became boring.

Um, why was there a voice-over at the beginning of each of BrendaD's episodes?

According to wiki, Jack has been married nine times!

Wiki

Whenever I watch Les Feux de L'amour (Y&R en français), I feel I need a glass of non burnt champagne with me.

That scene is entertaining. Just what you'd expect from a soap. Y&R had the most attractive people; best lighting; best music... Other soaps looked cheap and garish in comparison.

[quote] What happened between 1983 and 1985? Some say it was because she was told to act like that but especially by 1987 she was so stiff and lifeless, it's like both Jill and Brenda had a personality change. Did she have a mental breakdown around this time?

1983 was the year when her divorce proceedings (ex-husband Jan Weinberg, attorney in Hawaii) began. They both acted nuttier than squirrel shit. Brenda ended up in jail for contempt of court and, also, got evicted from the house where she was living. Weinberg fled the jurisdiction.

Brenda's eviction, Part I. Wearing a turban, no less.

Brenda's eviction, Part II. Forgot to say, it was a "fraudulent" eviction.

[quote] 1983 was the year when her divorce proceedings (ex-husband Jan Weinberg, attorney in Hawaii) began.

Huh R42 ? The internet says they were married from 1997 - 2006

Brendad’s ALWAYS the victim. Always. She’s batshit crazy.

Agreed R41- The sets in many cases were cinema quality, and the lighting was on another level on Y&R.

My other soap, OLTL in the 80's was lit like nuclear bomb just exploded (although I kind of appreciate it now, as the show then had an electric and exciting quality and the lighting matched it)

Both of these shows also had the best background music, by far. One very synthy and 80's modern (OLTL), the other sounded like it had an orchestral score (Y&R)

Welcome to my office!

R42 It is hilarious how Brenda puts all that bad acting to use when the judge declares her ex-husband in contempt of court.

R45, shit, I'm sorry! 1983 was the year she divorced her other husband, dentist Robert Rifkin. First a dentist, then a lawyer.

[quote] [R42] It is hilarious how Brenda puts all that bad acting to use when the judge declares her ex-husband in contempt of court.

She also participated, dramatically, when her handcuffs got removed. Also, she said, "Heil, Hitler," and "Third Reich" to her husband's lawyer. (The reporter said she expressed that to the judge, but she was facing the lawyer's table, not the judge.)

There's a reason Deven Green's parodies went viral.

Deven knew nothing about Brenda and still managed to nail her vapidity and OTT delivery.

She thinks of herself as a Hollywood celebrity, but she hasn’t worked since 1987 and no one knows who she is. She is totally delusional.

[quote]Deven knew nothing about Brenda and still managed to nail her vapidity and OTT delivery.

I think Deven had some help by watching the vapid OTT delivery in "Welcome to My Home."

Thank you r52. Thank you.

[quote]First a dentist, then a lawyer.

Mama always told me to find a professional man.

Her first husband stealded all of her monnie.

Scoche Marin is the definitive Katherine Chancellor.

Liz Foster was a snatch eater.

Did Brendad ever dabble in the snatch eating????

R60 My last name doesn't start with "DICK" for nothing!

Snake and jeans are a great look!

A snake *in* jeans is even better!

Did Brenda ever stick her toe in the lady pond?

She’s one step above mental retardation—is it shocking she’s not a good actress?

Let's face it, Mama- Y&R was never the same after Brenda Dickson left. The other Jill(s) paled.

Leslie, Laurie, Snapper, Brock, drunken Mrs. Chancelor... I used to watch it during the summer with my older sister. Good memories.

Step. Turn. Recite the words on the cue card. Raise your eyebrows. Glare.

There should be another word other than "actor" for people who "star" on soap operas.

R66 Everyone in that pic looks like a product of the Reface app.

Victoria Mallory died in her 60s and looked startling like that photo, even at the end. One of the best examples of aging I've seen.

Latina Leslie looked nothing like Janice Lynde.

My first memory of Brenda Dickson was when she as her character was saying the word amniocentesis. This has stuck in my head for 40 years.

Jill deliberately fell off a chair because she didn't want to give birth to a baby that might have had developmental problems and Mammy saw it all. I think it might have even been Jack's baby. Ah, memories!

A friend took me to a Millie Jackson concert while Brenda was on The Young and the Restless. Millie told a joke about Brenda's character, but I didn't watch the show so I didn't get the reference. It was only when "Welcome to My Home" came out that I knew who Millie was talking about."

MILLIE: "OK, so I'm watching 'The Young and the Restless,' and some of the shit, it just tells me that there ain't no [n-words] on that writing staff. I mean, Jill goes through the ghetto in a negligee, passed all them horny [n-words] and makes it to her mama's house with that negligee still on. And you know what REALLY made me realize that there weren't no [n-words] on the writing staff? Jill done steals her mama's boyfriend and is STILL ALIVE!"

R72, this is the bit and boy did Millie use the n-word a lot.

I went to Gelson's and got some of the potato salad. It was actually good. I told Brendad about it on IG, and she laughed and said thanks. It was a brush with fame, and now she sees me!

Brenda is amusing in a trashy way but I don't get the fan dedication.

It's not 1986 any more.

Some of the male actors from that era are fucking hot. No acting talent whatsoever.

Of all the actual good looking men who were on the show it boggles one's mind to thing that the one still on it after 40+ years is fucking Braeden, who looked like worn shoe leather even back then.

R20, Bond Gideon’s husband used to have clips of her as Jill posted to YouTube. It looks like they’re gone.

R71 — I remembered this pretty clearly. Although I thought this was the pregnancy that produced Billy (named for Snapper or their father?).

If I remember right....the pregnancy that produced Billy was later, maybe late 80s or early 90s. There was a point Jill and John remarried after Jess Walton played Jill, and that was when Billy was conceived

I remember blasting a few loads to both Andy Richards and Paul Williams, especially when Paul Williams was a centerfold in a Playgirl type magazine.

Then "Paul" showed up in a miniseries and kissed a MAN! (Or was leaning in to do it, anyway.)

And I hated Faren. HATED her. How could a wet dishrag like her with that dumb ass name have such a hot piece of ass for a boyfriend?

I used to call Faren "the Basset Hound." She was so beige I'm surprised she could even be photographed.

Yes, it was Helen Keller, she didn't really listen to notes and she didn't really have a broad scoping vision on the production, but she did signal to the cast through a lot of hand signals.

R81: And I don't remember the character of Faren interacting with any of the other cast, except Paul and Andy.

I love it, op. And I love the flashback to the 1980s

I can't remember - did this show have a white dude pretending to be black, or a black dude pretending to be white?

I think it was a black guy but can't totally remember. Bill Bell always wrote slightly kinky weird stories, very incesty, very "he loved her so much he raped her" sort of thing, so a dude in blackface isn't completely out of the realm of possibility.......

Her acting along with her appearance is hit and miss, very good here

When Days of Our Lives gets canned, our beloved Dee Dee Halls can simply step back into her best known role as Nurse Barbara Anderson. Of course, they will need to find a logical explanation of why Barbara has not aged a single day in over 50 years.

R47 Was the Sally Field character from Soapdish actually based on Erika Slezak from OLTL. It seems to fit somewhat better than Susan Lucci, as Erika is apparently quite a bit more zany in real life. The character of Celeste was written with hopes that Patty Duke would play her.

The 1980s One Life to Live set would be my reincarnation time and place of choice, if I could choose to come back as a fly on a wall.