Marvelous Pennsylvania Towns: The Bestseller That Wasn't

She has intense Joan Crawford vibes.

Wait, how did I not know Maureen Garrett is a lez?

I’ve met Megan. A thoroughly unpleasant woman.

Seriously, she seems like a cunt, and not the fun kind.

This little book was JUICY

I always KNEW that Lucci was a cunt-5 plastic surgeries too!! (She looks excellent)

Robert S Woods plastic surgery was late 2000 or early 2001, we were all. laughing about it here.

Friend of Jill were a REAL thing (Jill Farren Phelps)

James Kiberd/Kate Collins- by far the most disturbing

Cady McClain being a complete bitch

This was beyond great-

[quote] Robert S Woods plastic surgery was late 2000 or early 2001, we were all. laughing about it here.

Bo-tox Buchanan

[quote]Friend of Jill were a REAL thing (Jill Farren Phelps)

It's somehow reassuring that the cast and crew were just as mystified as the as the audience about the need to shove Sam Rapport down our throats.

Also, her recapping of the whole "Endgame' saga on GH made me think that we'd finally found a silver lining for 9/11.

Fuck that pig James Kiberd and TPTB who backed him over Kate Collins. Maybe she would have stayed longer on the show. I know she later came back as Janet, but I wanted NATALIE, my favorite character ever on AMC.

I wish McTavish had told something about the Lucci/Gellar feud.

Omg why the hell would she ever write this and think it could ever be published? Is she really saying Julia Barr and Roscoe Born were fucking?

[quote]Is she really saying Julia Barr and Roscoe Born were fucking?

That was revealed right here on Datalounge years ago.

Thanks r10, I never heard it before although it’s not surprising in the least. I love how McTavish is the victim and everyone else is her enemy.

Please tell me that there's nothing bad about my Nina Cortlandt

Not about her r12, it primarily discusses McTavish’s reigns of terror in the 90s and 00s. Nothing is the bitch’s fault. If you hate Jill Farren Phelps, Cady McClain, Susan Lucci, Tony Geary, Julia Barr, and Roscoe Born, you will find plenty to like here.

Oh good I hate Tony Geary I don't know what anyone would have against Roscoe born. Even Robin strausser has said that every female he ever worked with tried to get into his pants. What did she have bad to say about him

This is indeed an interesting read. Thank you for sharing! Quick question, when was this written and how did it leak?

I can’t vouch for precisely when, but judging by some of the content, it appears to be at least ten years old, probably closer to fifteen.

And it was found in Agnes’ papers that she left to Northwestern after she died. I don’t know how it got into the wild, but that’s where i was found.

[quote]Not about her [R12], it primarily discusses McTavish’s reigns of terror in the 90s and 00s. Nothing is the bitch’s fault. If you hate Jill Farren Phelps, Cady McClain, Susan Lucci, Tony Geary, Julia Barr, and Roscoe Born, you will find plenty to like here.

Although she complimented Julia Barry’s facelift, and girlfriend basically looked like a chipmunk when Prospect Park happened.

She was a hack writer just like most of the other ones constantly recycled by soaps in the late 90s/2000’s (some of whom are still being recycled). The fact that she liked Brian Frons says it all.

If she wants to know what killed soaps, she should look in the mirror.

Why did Agnes have this? What is Megan doing now?

Megan could have self-published this like my memoiah.

I saw her play a hunch-backed spinster with Lilla Heston (Charlton’s sister) as her cruel mother in “The House of Bernarda Alba,” directed by Frank Galati. She seemed perfectly cast.

[quote] She was a hack writer

As demonstrated by how clever she thinks her title is.

“Eight Years in Another World,” it ain’t, and Harding Lemay she definitely ain’t.

[quote] Why did Agnes have this?

I’m curious about that too. If she’d been close to Agnes at that point, I can see giving her a copy for feedback, but considering how cunty she was towards the old girl…

I also question some of her vitriol about Susan. Like, okay, Susan is like a lot of actresses whose primary talent was being beautiful and had real issues with aging, but Lucci seemed to be universally liked with exceptions like SMG.

I note the common denominator in these stories is the presence of Megan McTavish.

I was wondering if there is a kernel of truth in there about Agnes-that Agnes would suddenly turn on people, and would always take the network’s side. I wonder if that’s what happened at Loving with Agnes and Doug Marland, probably over the Lily Slater story-ABC wanted it ended quickly.

[quote]Lucci seemed to be universally liked

This is a woman closing in on 80 and, I believe, is still not on speaking terms with her daughter. Was Lucci universally liked or was it politics and just easier to be on her good side and say nice things? I don't think Lucci is Cruella, but I don't think she's the sweetest thing in daytime, either.

[quote]I was wondering if there is a kernel of truth in there about Agnes

Everyone decided to cast Ellen Holly as crazy and a villain, but I never thought that, and totally believed her when she said that Agnes just sided with the network and left her hanging. Agnes dined out on the Carla Gray story for years, but she washed her hands of the actress and eventually OLTL, once she sold it to ABC.

Great writer aside, I think that Agnes was a company girl at heart and didn't like to make waves. As for her relationship with Doug Marland, quite frankly, I think Marland didn't like women or women with power. I know it's controversial to speak poorly of Doug Marland, but given some of the stories that have come out over the years, it sounds like he could be quite the handful.

I have no opinion on Megan McTavish, but I do appreciate when these little tidbits come out and confirm various fan gossip and speculation.

Agnes was a cold fucking cunt and most know this. Frankly I believe every word of Megan's.

I loved the part about the writer set up to be her spy (He is a Y&R writer now)

Susan WAS a diva but was kind enough to cast and crew that everyone had her back.

You will notice that the book would touch on something and then it would move onto other things- This was only PART of the book, clearly which is why it was 70 pages.

I was trying to find the RSW facelift episodes on YT- It had to be 2000-2001 when Megan was there, but I could not find them. It was SO obvious as we all joked about it here. I joined here in late 2001, so I may have answered my own question! It was definitely during the Melanie McIver time when he once again had a femal co star 20 years his junior

People on Datalounge were pointing out Bob Woods facelift stitches. That thread was a hoot.

From what I recall about Susan and Liza, the issue was that Liza had an issue with one of her children (I can't remember if she was pregnant or had already given birth), and Susan opted to continue competing on Dancing with the Stars rather than immediately respond to Liza's situation. Which feels like something that definitely would have happened with Erica and Kendall.

Where is Megan now?

R23, I knew Doug and he had no issues with women. The only women I recalling him hating was Gloria Monty.

R26, thank you, I’ve wondered what happened with Susan and Liza. If I remember correctly, Liza didn’t go to her dad’s funeral. I surmised this from looking at Liza’s Instagram in which someone extended condolences. Liza commented that she was estranged from her parents. I wonder what Susan’s relationship is like with Andreas, the son.

Obviously I know nothing about this personal situation, but I gather that Susan knows she’s gotten everything she has by constantly working her ass off and showing up, no matter what. She and Helmut probably justified themselves by saying she had made a commitment and Liza has reaped the benefits of such commitments her entire life. Liza probably has always felt as if the career has taken first place. Liza seems as if she’s made an aggressive point of being a supermom. I can see both sides. Of course, Lucci is a diva, but I think she’s a real phony and strongly believes in what she does.

I cannot wait to read this! I was a superfan of AMC during the 90s.

I love Cady and adored Tad and Dixie, but Cady is a hot fucking mess.

Is there anything about Marcy Walker?

FINALLY!

some good ol’-fashion datalounge shit.

AMEN!

R27 Reports indicate McTavish, who will be turning 76 next month, resides in Colebrook, Connecticut, with her occasionally being mentioned in local news and community reports doing things like directing theater projects at the local Congregational Church, teaching creative writing seminars in a summer program, or reading the Christmas story at the public library. She's also active in the Colebrook Historical Society Museum & Rock Schoolhouse. Raising Bearnaise Mountain dogs is (or has been) another activity of hers.

[quote] Is there anything about Marcy Walker?

Nothing salacious, if she’s even mentioned. Most of her ire is aimed at James Kibberd, Susan, Agnes, and Tony Geary.

She seems to really hate women. She is nasty about every female network exec, and then drops to her knees for Frons.

Do I think Angela Shapiro was a better head of daytime? No. But she gives Pat Fili-Krushel a lot of shit, and the shows were at their apex (at least in my lifetime), under her.

She also says that Agnes was homophobic towards Marland, while also saying shitty things about Geary and Gary Tomlin.

She’s also got a few blind items about pure gossip. The only one I can clearly identify is about Geary, but that’s more of a myopic item, not a blind one.

I was at her house in Colebrook ages ago.

Let’s just say it wasn’t a pleasant evening…

OP, thanks SO much for posting.

What a great, fun read.

Looks like this was written to get her a book deal… I bet if she’d gotten a deal muck of the juice in the treatment would’ve been altered/deleted. I bet she never meant for this to be read by the general public.

I wish there was more.

This was written in 2012. She writes that Agnes was born in 1922 and was going to turn 90 “this coming December.”

Do tell r33.

She’s nuts and unpleasant. And her kitchen has bowls filled with dead lighters, kind of a museum to her chain smoking habit.

So much good shit- She basically calls Aggie out for being a cunt, fake, homophobe, and that she brought nothig to the show in later years. I believe every word.

I 100% believe Lucci is a fake too, always did.

Loved how she described the late John Callahan's eyebrows- I thought the same thing- Due to drinking he ending up aging fast and hard- His hair looked dyed and his eyebrows did that Larry Hagman thing giving him a demonic look.

The darkest shit was the Kate Collins/James Kiberd story. Good god. Felicia Behr was a CUNT.

I was a OLTL fan, not an AMC fan, but even I watched Kate as Janet/Natalie and the well- She was CLASS- Just a really lovely actress.

I felt bad for my man Roscoe Born- He clearly had serious depression issues and I don't know- And he fucked Julia Barr? Eeek.

Also- One of the blind items was Catherine Hickland/Michael E Night- How the network only employed her trying to keep MEK happy until they divorced. And the timing jibes. It was them.

Ruth Warrick said Agnes stopped talking to her after she made a comment about Proctor and Gamble that embarrassed Agnes.

[quote] Also- One of the blind items was Catherine Hickland/Michael E Night- How the network only employed her trying to keep MEK happy until they divorced. And the timing jibes. It was them.

MEK is NOT a fag, and I’m just the dame to prove it.

Just want to add- Liza not even going to Helmut's funeral, and not even showing any NEED for sympathy on her Instagram (at the time) told me there were likely a lifetime of issues, minus just her child's health issue..

Ahh, this was some sample chapters to get a book deal. That makes sense. Thanks.

I was wondering who writes an autobiography that's only 70 pages long. But it was a juicy read. Likely she put all the juicy bits in there trying to get the book deal.

I liked Agnes bitching that Doug Marland left his house to his partner in his will. Did she think she was going to inherit it?

[quote] I was wondering who writes an autobiography that's only 70 pages long.

It's more of a memoir.

R42- There were easily 5-6 parts where she hinted at major shit and then it moved onto something else.

It was a great teaser..

All of this shit about her being crazy, unpleasant- frankly I believe every word about what she said. And the executives were just like nearly every executive I have ever known at my own company- generally- frauds. The Susan Lucci shit was KILLER.

And I hated Megan's writing on OLTL- she was a plot driven nightmare. The only one worse than her on the show was Dena HIgley.

I am so glad that she sided with Kate Collins, it does say alot about her.

It’s a book proposal; it’s not the book itself.

I still want to know how Agnes had a copy of this.

R47 Good question. Have to assume Megan shared it with someone she worked with and it somehow got passed to Agnes.

No way was that book going to sell. It was too niche… and the lawyers never would have let half that stuff go.

all I know is they pulled they pulled the plug on soaps way too soon. COVID lock down would have brought back viewers.

[quote]No way was that book going to sell. It was too niche

That's what print on demand books are about. It only has a small, niche audience to be published by a mainstream publisher, but there is still an audience out there. Thus print on demand.

The just released Oral History of the soap opera Texas book is print on demand. Not a very large audience for this book, but still there are people who are interested in it.

There's no reason why Megan's memoir couldn't be released as print on demand.

Did you read it? Imagine the attorneys signing off on all the mud she was flinging, including implying a 15-year-old actress (whom she names) was left alone by her parents in NYC and gave an adult co-star a blowjob.

Megan is not a stable figure.

Even if attorneys vetted it, doesn't mean that some might try to bring a lawsuit. So whatever minimal profit might be made via an on-demand printing of a mere 70-page memoir could easily be eaten up just wasting time responding to such civil suits. Also, the people she claims are "unimpeachable eyewitness sources" could get cold feet, if they actually had to face interrogatories.

It's a book proposal, and there's not a lie in it. Megan's soap writing may not be lauded as the best thing since sliced bread, but she had no reason to make up any of this. Could it be published, yes, with the names removed.

[quote]including implying a 15-year-old actress (whom she names) was left alone by her parents in NYC and gave an adult co-star a blowjob.

Before #metoo, this went on all the time. No one is more willing to whore their child out than a stage parent, trust me.

Some snitch probably sent this to Agnes as a heads-up.

R29, re Lucci's relationship with her son - Lucci got a special daytime Emmy award the year before last, and in her acceptance speech she made a point of praising her son. At the time I was aware that Lucci was estranged from her daughter (must have learned that here on DL!) but I didn't know if she still had a relationship with her son, so that answered that question! It was basically a fuck you to Liza Huber. I'm so old I remember she Susan was pregnant with Liza and how they addressed her weight gain on AMC (because Erica Kane wasn't pregnant). It's sad.

[quote] Before #metoo, this went on all the time. No one is more willing to whore their child out than a stage parent, trust me.

I mean, speaking of FoJ’s, there’s Robert Kelker-Kelly…

R56, he gets a shoutout by Megan T.

Who was the 15 year old? Initials? Show? Years active ?

[quote] [R56], he gets a shoutout by Megan T.

She didn’t mention child bride, Just saying,

I certainly enjoyed reading Megan's memoir. Great dish there. Nice to have some tea spilled.

I especially was glad to get a glimpse of the true Susan Lucci. I always knew the perky, squeaky clean, loved by everyone in the cast image of Susan that was so carefully choreographed to the public wasn't entirely true. Nice to know she was indeed self conscious about her age and pushing for Erica stories that landed flat.

Of the four blind items, it's obvious the GH actor with the Amsterdam house was Tony Geary and the OLTL actress who held onto her job because ABC was trying to keep her AMC husband happy was Cat Hickland and Micheal E. Knight.

But what about the other two?

The happily married AMC actress whose salt-of-the-earth character was super sweet, but the actress serially cheated on her husband with many of the actors she was paired with.

The A-list AMC actor who had better off-screen chemistry that on-screen chemistry with a co-star and briefly left his wife for that co-star.

It was pretty hilarious watching all the ways they would avoid saying “grandmother” about Erica.

[quote]And I hated Megan's writing on OLTL- she was a plot driven nightmare. The only one worse than her on the show was Dena HIgley.

That was all Jill Farren Phelps who was pushing the plot driven mess. Megan indicated Jill kept insisting on rewrites to match her ideas for where the stories should go.

Interesting to hear Agnes was a homophobe considering there were so many gay men in the AMC cast.

Was Agnes blind to Louis Edmunds, James Mitchell, Dack Rambo, Robert Gentry, Darnell Williams, Michael E. Knight, Peter White and others?

Agnes was a pretty conservative woman, all things considered. Her father was very much the original template for Victor Lord.

I assume there was a link in OP that's now gone since it's grayed out. Can any brave soul help a latecomer?

Jill has always been a more “hands on” EP when it comes to the writing. For those who like her, one being Harding Lemay, who said that she had a real gift at pumping up stories and pacing - she knew when to play what beats. For those writers who like more hands off EPs, I can imagine that Jill can be a lot to handle. But that what’s interesting to me is that when Jill fired Michele Val Jean and I think Liz Korte as headwriters of GH, she brought on Megan.

I don’t think Jill is the spawn of satan the way many do, but I was not a fan of what she did at Another World, but the lady did get results where it mattered.

Ramblin^^??

Here is the manuscript.

Agnes' father finger banged her?

Levin Rambin was the underage (at the time) actress who, if Megan's magnum opus is to be believed, was pounced on by Aiden Turner and was caught blowing Jeff Branson.

If the Internet is right, she also made out with Steven Tyler of Aerosmith.

Mimi Torchin and Mo Garrett were eating out each others snatches, according to Megan. No wonder Soap Weekly was constantly pushing Mo. She must have some magical snatch that Mimi was munching on.

[quote]Her father was very much the original template for Victor Lord.

I shan't let you cast aspersions like that. Not a'tall.

All joking aside, Ag said that in her book.

I would tend to believe Megan's account of Susan over the various "oh we love her" sort of accounts. I think a lot of people claimed she was great because they knew AMC was Susan's show, and to survive they had to pretend to like her.

The fact that Sarah Michelle, a young and relatively new actress who wasn't laboring under years and layers of industry BS, reacted as naturally as she did to Susan's manipulations is the bit that rings true to me.

R74- THANK YOU--

All, if you want to see the real Susan, unmasked and LIVE-

Watch the emmys- I believe it was the year after she won and was nominated again-

The two fucking IDIOTS from Bold and Beautiful screamed SUSAN FLANNERY in such a manner that you could barely understand what they said.

Anyway, Susan may have been hosting this year as well, and was backstage.

Apparently raging bulldyke Rosie was like "YOU WON!! YOU WON!"

The camera stayed on Susan for a good 20-25 seconds and she started to walk out on stage- You could see how fucking cutthroat she was in that brief "real" moment... You could also see her turn into "gracious Susan" the minute she made it out onstage- Within 2-3 seconds someone must have stopped her. It was hilarious. And telling.

"SUSAN FLANNERY. NO SUSAN FLANNERY. -ME??? ME????? walks perilously out on stage- you can see the spotlight hit her face-

Bylldyke Flannery roared onto that stage like Sasquatch and proceeded to lift the chick (Adrienne Franz) up in the air- identical to Best In Show, when bulldyke Jane whatshername lifts Stiflers Mom in the air. It was epic.

It was one of the FUNNIEST moments in awards show history- it has it all, bulldykes, fake ass Susan, two idiots from B&B- It was great,

And before you all bitch and ask for the link. Here you go!!!

Hilarious that she mentions all the Friends characters were named after AMC characters and yet....

Ross!

Chandler (Adam)!

Joey!

Phoebe!

I can't remember a Rachel or Monica on AMC, though.

I just watched R76's link and have no idea what he is talking about. She mouths the name "Susan Flannery" and then she reacts to someone telling her it was Susan Lucci so she says "Me?" and starts walking out. I didn't get any indication she is evil from that.

Rachel *Green*... Janet *Green*.

Sarah Michelle *Geller*... Monica *Geller*. Yeah, I know the former is the actress, not the character she played.

Dorian Lord!

Megan spills major GL tea- Frank Beaty had a BIPOLAR meltdown on set, stripped naked, and ran into the NYC streets. We never knew all of those details.

Was she fired from GL (and who did it), or was she lured away?

What's your candlestick doing in my luggage?

But, Megan says many times she left shows in good ratings shape. She lists some stories she wrote which got acclaim. Her Brent/Marian story on GL was fucking amazing. It was dark (and darkly funny) as fuck, intense, scary, thrilling, moving. The actor was phenomenal. And hot.

I want to say during Megan/Jill on OLTL the show hit a solid #3 in the 18-49 demo- I think that this lasted for awhile..

Yes, Brent/ Marian was one of the best storylines daytime ever produced. It was amazing with powerhouse acting from Rick Hearst, Frank Beaty, Jean Carol, Justin Dees, and a lot of supporting players. There's never been a story like it in daytime history.

Does anyone have video of Frank Beaty running naked in the streets of NYC?

R86 Only Meg McT dished on what Frank did. No one has ever dished (did La Zimmer in her book?) that I can recall. He had his meltdown in front of the entire Guiding Light cast.

Damn, Agnes was cold saying LaLucci could get hit by a truck. If indeed that’s true that she said it.

I follow Lucci on Instagram, and she’s always out and busy, either acting, or hanging out with girlfriends, or at events..and it always makes me wonder..

What does Julia Barr do all day?

I looked up the ratings and demos for GL’s Megan reign- the 18-49 demo went from 5 or 6 out of 11 soaps to a consistent 8 out of 11. It got to #3 in the demo once- when Reva came back which may have been before her time. She tanked the show, despite the brilliant Brent/Marian. Though GH’s , ATWT’s, and OLTL’s demos were shit, too.

Megan told no lies in this proposal. She may have shaded some things to make herself look better, but in many cases, soap headwriters are paid a shit load of money to take the blame for a lot of bad choices forced on them by others. I also hope every soap fan who reads this takes note of the part where she says that after the scripts are turned in, that unless the writer is also a producer, sometimes even the writers don't know what the final air show is going to look like.

She was also not a well-respected head writer, so yes, was more often brought in because the EP wanted someone competent but whom they could control.

(I know people in the industry who knew her. They all thought her a piece of work.)

Yes, soap writers had a very terrible job. Ruth Warwick said P&G was the worst at micromanaging their content. She said they were very regressive, yet Guiding Light was always seen as ahead of its time. She said they fired Agnes Nixon as GL HW due to the Uterine cancer story which she slipped past them. Guiding Light had some intense stories like the graphic, disturbing martial rape of Holly by Roger.

I believe Megan about how interference by various people fucked up their stories. The great Pam Long quit GL over too many TPTB interferences.

BTW-Ruth Warwick also said P&G could have sold AW to NBC as they wanted, and it would have given the show a longer life, but P&G said no knowing they wanted out of the soap business.

I don’t know that that’s true about P&G.

Doug Marland mentored me at ATWT and the EP, P&G and CBS never interfered. When he presented his long-term story, they all nodded along and signed off.

(I left the industry because it wasn’t for me.)

When were you at ATWT r94? The ratings for ATWT during the latter half of Marland’s tenure were high (I think at one point was in 2nd place ahead of GH), and the show was critically praised. Maybe they were more hands off, especially since they saw that Marland left Guiding Light over storyline interference and the show struggled to regain its footing before Pam Long took over.

Didn’t the networks really start to interfere during/after the OJ trial, when all the shows plummeted in the ratings except DAYS?

It was 90-91, maybe.

[quote]Didn’t the networks really start to interfere during/after the OJ trial, when all the shows plummeted in the ratings except DAYS?

No, you can thank Gloria Monty for that. Up until Gloria Monty, soaps, for the most part, were driven by strong headwriters. The primary function of the EP was to bring the headwriter's vision to the screen and manage the show. All HWs had to run story by the network, but it was usually a unified front between the EP and HW. That all changed after Gloria totally changed the way GH was structured and took complete control. Slowly, other soaps followed suit and the strong HW, except for a few, went the way of the dinosaur.

HW's are paid well, but they earn every freakin' dollar and spend many hours a day avoiding landmines and knives in the back.

DLers: For those of us who only check in periodically – and are, at present, completely fucking baffled what you're talking about – can you either describe, or link to, whatever McTavish wrote?

To respond just a bit:

"I always KNEW that Lucci was a cunt-5 plastic surgeries too!! (She looks excellent)"

Not sure how she's defining "surgeries," but La Lucci had WAY more than five. Also, now that she's pushing 80, the cosmetic work is NOT aging well, and Lucci has the same anorexic look routinely seen on actresses – along with NYSD society doyenne types – who starve themselves to remain thin. And, tragically, she's still wearing short skirts and sleeveless dresses more appropriate for women half her age.

"Susan WAS a diva but was kind enough to cast and crew that everyone had her back."

Yes, she was a diva, but doesn't this fit nearly every iconic female soap star? (Also, there's nothing wrong with being a diva if you've *earned* it. It's the cunts who haven't who stink up the place.)

Here you go r98. PDF of her book proposal from 2012. Only 70 pages long, but lots of tea spilled.

Susan has always been presented as one of the nicest actresses in daytime. The only actor who ever publicly had an issue with her was Sarah Michelle Gellar. Everyone else has praised her. This book treatment makes her seem like the neurotic, age obsessive diva most would assume she is.

I am ERICA KANE and Megan McTavish is a FILTHY BEAST!

R100- She is GRACIOUS. But she is incredibly fake and "put on".

She is no different from any other corporate professional I have met-

SMG called the bitch out and gave zero fucks about it. Susan is incredibly vain and insecure.

I believe every word Megan said. But that being said, Susan was a star and really daytime's queen (despite me finding her fake and utterly overrated)

I disagree with the above poster, her surgery was excellent and she looks pretty amazing for her age.. I will check out her Instagram. I followed her until a year ago, I found her incredibly vapid.

I wonder if Greg Beecroft, who fucked any woman, fucked Megan McTavish after seeing her as Lola Fontaine in those shiny hot pants at Company.

I think it can be true that Lucci is both a gracious, nice person AND neurotic about her appearance and place in daytime. She didn’t get to be the most famous soap performer by being a pushover. That said, she really should have gotten over being a sex kitten. I sometimes think what would be happening if AMC was still on the air. She would have teenage grandchildren by now who would never be allowed to call her “grandmother” and she’d still be chasing after men in strapless dresses.

R104- Fair enough.

You are much kinder than I. But I agree!

Lucci is fake nice with an emphasis and several exclamation points on fake.

Dee Hall doesn't pretend to like anybody; her default setting is a business relationship - if it becomes something else, it will happen gradually over time.

Zimmer is loud and in your face. If she has a problem with you, she will not dance around it. What you see is what you get.

Slezak is cold.

Melody Thomas Scott is standoffish.

Genie Francis is an angry version of Dee Hall.

Kristian Alfonso is a snake.

Robin Strasser is a flake.

Laura Wright is strategic.

Maura West is shy.

R106- Slezak was always very well liked and respected on the show. I never heard of her being cold before, but it was definitely just her job and. She clearly did not socialize with anyone. (I know that she is friends with Linda Dano)

She was dedicated to her family and because she had her scenes shot first (generally- if there were party scenes, events, she would be there as long as it took) I don't think that makes her cold-

I sense that she is probably deeply depressed these days to her daughter. Her husband is very old too..

They really babied their kids and had a very close relationship, so. I am sure it makes it even more devastating-

It’s time for Miss Viki to do another interview with Miss Fairman.

I don’t think Julia Barr has given an interview or even been seen publicly much at all since the AMC Hulu reboot. Which would have been a hit a couple of years later-Hulu and streaming were still too new for a lot of people. It wasn’t perfect but it was pretty good. Felt like the old AMC, and didn’t suffer from a lack of Lucci. The OLTL reboot, on the other hand, was TERRIBLE.

Shoutout to Mitch64 over at SON. Ms Helen Wagner was as vinegary as me.

R110 what is SON?

Ignore it r111, it’s Soap Opera Network, a message board for old pissy soap queens. R110 is a troll who presumably has migrated here because it was banned there.

It likes to go on the Proctor and Gamble soap threads and discuss things like elderly closeted lesbians “eating snatches;” Kim Zimmer using piss for facials; Beverlee McKinsey’s work ethic; and elderly soap actress Eileen Fulton clogging up toilets.

I can't say I have ever really cared for McTavish's writing.

But this proposal/book is maybe the best thing she ever did.

Some of it is really good, hilarious stuff. About fans really wanting to watch reruns, for example. (She isn't wrong.)

I loved AMC from 1991-3 and the first year of her return (2003) was an incredible shot in the arm for the show (in a good way). But the woman is ridiculous, mean spirited, and personality challenged. Everything that ever went wrong is everyone else's fault and everything that ever went right was because of her genius.

She basically calls Agnes senile (or at least out of touch) by 2001 but then defends her "un-abortion" story by saying Agnes agreed it was a great idea. She says her best friend - Victor Miller - actually came up with the Bianca is a lesbian story, too.

She rails against all these network executives, producers and many other writers but then drools over Frons who destroyed four separate shows during his tenure at ABC.

McT lambasts Lucci for being vain but then comments crudely on people's looks throughout her book.

How she ever got the green light for the insanely dark (in a good way) Brent/Marian story on Guiding Light. I’ll never know. I am shocked both CBS and P&G let her tell it as graphically as she did. It was downright scary sometimes. Especially since she was a fairly new HW.

[quote] It was downright scary sometimes. Especially since she was a fairly new HW.

That's what P&G wanted. GL was in danger of being cancelled in 1994, but lucikily was spared. So, P&R shuffled all it's EPs around in 1995 -- resulting in JFP moving to AW and Michael Laibson becoming EP of GL.

Although JFP hired McTavish to be HW, Laibson told her to up the thrill factor and do things you don't normally see in daytime. Thus we got Brent pretending to be Marian to get revenge on Lucy.

That's also how we got other ripped from the headlines stories such as Blake thinking she was pregnant with twins fathered by both Ross and Rick (a story Days would do a decade later with Sami being pregnant with twins fathered by two different men).

R116 yet, the story shockingly didn’t help GL. It was Annie/Reva/Josh that got the ratings up. An old fashioned love triangle (and Cynthia Watros’ powerhouse acting).

Chapter 11 in Megan’s book: Greg Beecroft fucked me!

[quote]She rails against all these network executives, producers and many other writers but then drools over Frons who destroyed four separate shows during his tenure at ABC.

Writers tend to be favorable to those who leave them alone. It sounds like Frons had her back on a few occasions.

As for Frons, I don't know the man from Adam. Just reputation based on a soap fans and rumors. I always find most soap fans to be unreliable narrators because they rarely have the whole story. Maybe Frons was horrible, but he managed to keep the shows on air in an environment where everything was turning against soaps.

McT says in her book that when MADD was an ABC honcho she had the writers propose three outrageous stories. All three of McT's "outrageous stories" were greenlit on AMC. Of course, because she's a genius. Maybe MADD did the same thing when McT was hired at GL and the outrageous story she came up with was the Brent/Marian & Lucy story.

R120 Well, they were brilliant on GL.

I didn’t watch AMC, but did the outrageous stories work? They were riveting TV on Guiding Light. Some of the best soap opera I’ve ever watched, and I was an on/off Guiding Light watcher. As mentioned above, it did not help it in the ratings except a brief #3 in the 18-49 demo, but Annie/Josh/Reva DID move Guiding Light up as high as 3 or 4 many weeks. It was routinely 4-6, usually tied with GH, ATWT, OTLT, BB, or AMC.

The clone story was the most outrageous of all. And that was B & E who replaced McT.

The clone story didn’t work until the end when it got a lot of heart. GL is not the “outrageous” story type of show, and I don’t consider Brent/Marian outrageous. It was fabulous and based in obsession/hurt/anger/trauma.

Did McT put Natalie in the well? That’s the AMC story that a lot of people remember, especially the ones who weren’t regular viewers.

I’m r122. I wanted to clarify what was riveting on Guiding Light. It was Brent/ Marian. That was some of the best soap opera I’ve seen from writing/acting/lighting/music/drama/suspense, and I was not a regular Guiding Light watcher. The clone stuff wasn’t riveting. The two fathers for twins (was that McT?), was very good.

R125 I never watched AMC, but yes, that was McT.

The Brent/Marian story was compelling. Really must -see TV at the time. Frank Beaty gave an amazing performance.

Biggest problem with the storyline was the stakes weren't very high. Alan-Michael and Lucy were not an especially popular couple. Their pairing was adequate but nothing earths hattering. They were far from a super-couple like Josh and Reva or Phillip and Beth had been.

If Alan-Michael had been paired with someone with whom he had explosive chemistry -- like that of Bo and Hope or Luke and Laura -- then the audience would have cared about their well being and would have been determined to see them get together. With Brent/Marian an impediment to their romance, then that storyline would have been at the top of the ratings.

Frank Beaty fell in love with Rick Hearst. That was the most beautiful part of that storyline.

Yes R127. Lucy all of a sudden appeared in Springfield, we were told to care about her, she dominated the show for a year and then disapepared. And was hardly ever mentioned again.

Lucy was part of the Cooper invasion that ate the show in 1993, starting with the arrival of Justin Deas as Buzz Cooper.

Show tried to make Lucy to be the greatest arrival since Reva Shayne.

Sonia Satra was no Kim Zimmer.

Sonia could not act, and on a show known for its incredible acting, that isn’t going to cut it. Should’ve recast.

Thanks to Mitch S, there are a couple of rare uploaded episodes of OLTL that feature the fabulous Nancy Pinkerton as Dorian, more than I have ever seen of her work before.

Compare the same year, Claire Malis as Dorian:

Pinkerton's Dorian is good, but I do notice she has an unusual habit of her eyes darting past the camera, or sometimes she seems to look directly at it. Is this a technique to make her character seem more unnerving?

Pinkerton's Dorian was more of a snake. I love Robin, but her range was limited.

I would love to see Dixie Carter's take on Dorian.

And that, r137- just so you will know - and your children will someday know - is the night the lights went out in Georgia!

There's a public radio podcast about soaps

haven't heard this yet but I think this episode talks a lot about Agnes Nixon shows

For those of you who love Kate Collins (as I do!) she's appearing in this play in Chicago.

Thanks r139! I love her too. I wish I could go to Chicago before it closes. I would love to see Kate on stage!

R139 Kate looks like she has bingo wings/lunch lady arms in that pic. And a big arse.

So what?

Lucci is releasing a new memoir next February.

I hope we’ll get some tea about the rift with Liza.

Working title: All My Facelifts.

Yes, La Lucci seems to have had several facelifts in just the past year. Can she move anything above her upper lip?

In order to be a best seller, La Lucci will have to talk about the split with Liza. Rumors have always been its about money. Spill the tea, Looch. This memoir will probably instead be about losing her beloved Helmut, which we need to hear more about and her heart issues, which we’ve heard ad nauseam. Does she date? She’s still sexy, new faces and all.

Yeah, she needs to address the Liza thing and the SMG rumors, finally.

I could venture a guess about the average age of her readers. 78?

R143 I wondered the same.

R148 what's your point?

My point is there is little market for this book.