Machinations

Anyone with even a passing familiarity with the history of GUIDING LIGHT has heard the name "Diane Ballard" and probably more than once. We hear of the famous "Who Killed Diane Ballard?" mystery. We hear of her legendary and years-long pining for Alan. But if you're like me, you've never had a chance to see anything more than the episode in which she dies unless you were an actual viewer during that time period.

Machinations spans most of the month before Diane's murder and gives a fascinating picture of who this woman was in her final days in Springfield. Examined in special depth are her fiery relationship with Joe Bradley, her easy comraderie with Carrie Todd (new in Springfield, but not new to Diane), and of course her single-minded fixation on Alan Spaulding, which verges on a weird sort of obsessive tenderness. Ross, Henry, Vanessa, Jackie, and Mike also appear prominently in this clipset.

Sofia Landon (now known as Sofia Landon Geier and writing for DAYS OF OUR LIVES) displays an incredible screen presence and command of the script as Diane. Watching her in these nearly 26-year-old clips makes me really sad that her character was killed. Diane and Sofia are both extraordinary.

Some of you may know that Geier experienced a great personal tragedy in 2004 when her daughter, Hallie, was accidentally run over by an SUV (I am not a fan of the SUV anyway.) The following comes from lovehallie.org :

"Daytime Unites for Africa was developed and coordinated by LOVE, HALLIE Foundation. LOVE, HALLIE was founded by soap opera writer and actress Sofia Landon Geier and her husband Ted Geier after their eleven year-old daughter Hallie died in 2004 after being accidentally run over by an SUV. LOVE, HALLIE and its youth division – Hal’s Angels – chaired by Hallie’s 16 year-old sister M.J. – encourages kindness, respect, and positive action among young people. Hallie had been saving money to help children affected by AIDS in Africa and had written extensively on the subject. LOVE, HALLIE takes it’s name from the words Hallie wrote on the first page of her kindergarten notebook: “People, be nice to each other. Love, Hallie”

I knew about this foundation and had heard this story before, but that was before I was familiar with Geier's performances on GL. She organized an industry-wide recognition of the AIDS crisis in Africa during which all nine soaps recognized the emergency on air in order to raise awareness. Some of you may remember this clip from late 2005 (click here) in which Dinah came into Harley's office at Spaulding with a plan to cut back on the coffee spending at the company and donate the money to AIDS prevention in Africa. That was part of Geier's project, as was ONE LIFE TO LIVE's AIDS relief album that came out last year.

But I digress! From late Summer of 1981, here's Machinations. And one last note: this series, occurring as it does as Maeve Kinkead goes on maternity leave, contains two Vanessas. Kinkead appears through most of the set, with Anna Stuart (ex-Donna, ANOTHER WORLD; ex-Mary Smythe, AMC) taking over toward the end.

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Loyalty

In my last entry, I identified 1988 as a "year of recovery" for GUIDING LIGHT. Similarly, 2001 saw the show emerging from a few years of rather sketchy storytelling. Beginning in the last part of 2000, headwriter (and RYAN'S HOPE creator) Claire Labine brought the show back to more realistic, earth-based stories such as the death of Jim Lemay and the break-up of Harley and Phillip.

"Much-acclaimed writer Claire Labine took over as head writer in 2000, but her stories focused on character development and clashed with (EP Paul) Rauch's plot-heavy style. Labine's team lasted barely a year amidst rumors that she was being sabotaged backstage."--- from The Guiding Light Encyclopedia at cristobel.org

Taken from May and June of 2001, Loyalty comes from this period. It deals with how the lives of Claire Ramsey and (to a lesser extent) Meta Bauer are affected by Harley Cooper and new-in-town crooked cop Gus Aitoro's investigation into the supposed death of Carmen Santos. The primary performance here comes from Susan Pratt as Claire. Pratt is a 12 course meal in her portayal of the misunderstood Mom of Steel to mob wife Michelle. Always thrilling, vigorous, and strangely sympathetic, Pratt's work is a joy to behold as Gus slowly tightens the noose around squirmy Claire's neck.

This clipset also heavily features one of my all time favorite actors ever on GL: Mary Stuart. Stuart, who acted on GL right up until her death in February of 2002, never fails to imbue her scenes with the accumulated experience of 50 years in daytime. She makes Meta good and strong without ever being boring or sickenly sweet. She plays her character in such a way that holds the viewer's interest without stealing focus from the younger actors to whom she was always playing second fiddle. She was a consumate professional and a brillant actor in general, but also the quintessential soap opera actor-- and when done the way she did it, that term is no insult at all. Stuart hits the mark here (as she did every single time she was on camera) playing Meta's outpouring of support for Harley until the waffling cop's buck-passing betrayals pile too high.

I could write several entries every day for the rest of my life praising Mary Stuart and still not finish telling you how wonderful I think she is, so I will stop there. Here is Loyalty (which, by the way is also notable for the debut of Michael "Mr. Crystal Chappel" Sabatino as Vince Russo.)

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One thing Loyalty lacks is a sample of the explosive chemistry shared between Pratt and Stuart. Never fear though. I've got you covered with this short, previously posted set of Michelle going into labor from early 2001. There are two fantastic blowouts between Meta and Claire as well as some wonderfully tender scenes with Claire/Michelle and Meta/Danny.

Robbie's birth

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King of the Mountain

1988 was a year of recovery for GUIDING LIGHT. Former Miss Alabama, Pam Long, the woman primarlily responsible for making the show into the larger-than-life cartoon that it became in the mid-80's apparently realized the error of her ways upon her return to the headwriter position toward the end of the decade. 1988 saw the beginnings of a reclamation of the core of humanity and realism that had been GL's hallmark for most of its life.

King of the Mountain is a terrific example of this shift. Dealing with Phillip's obligatory family grab for Spaulding Enterprises and hollow victory over Alan, this clipset is a welcome look at the show as it grounds itself back in reality. Phillip fans should get a real thrill out of these clips, heavy as they are with the work of Grant Aleksander as he and his character really come into their own as grown-up forces to be reckoned with. This set is also interesting for its portrayal of the genuine feelings that existed between Reva and Alan.

Finally, this episode is among Chris Bernau's last as Alan Spaulding. Bernau continued to appear on GL until AIDS left him unable to do so. Bernau would pass on in 1989, leaving a legacy of work as Alan that has yet to be equalled.

So, here is King of the Mountain.

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And here's a dose of previously posted Spaulding goodness. It's a rollicking set from 2002 featuring Joan Collins as Alexandra. The subject of Phillip's Ex-Wives' Club is, of course a bid for control of Spaulding Enterprises. Alexandra collects all of the women Phillip has been married to in order to take advantage of their voting power as a new CEO of Spaulding is determined. Fun for so many reasons, not the least of which is blazing face-off between Beth and Olivia, this set is a great trip to the recent past.

Phillip's Ex-Wives' Club

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