The Usual Suspects

Well, here we are again in one of my favorite periods of GL history: the late 70's/very early 80's. Today's blog entry presents the continuation of two previously posted sets, one short new set, and a request for ayone reading this.

First, the new stuff: The Usual Suspects comes at us from 1981 and concerns the stalking of Eve Stapleton McFarren and features a character I had only heard about before seeing these clips earlier this month, but who is now one of my all-time favorite soap creations ever. That character is Amanda's uncle Chet Stafford, played by Bill Herndon, and WOW, is he a firecracker! This quick-tempered, irrational koo-koo bird spends the majority of this clipset biting the head off of pretty much everyone he comes into contact with in the surliest, most foul-tempered manner possible (everyone except his darling Amanda, of course!). It goes on so long and to such extremes that it crosses the line into a sort of absurdity that has to be seen to be believed. Needless to say, the entertainment value is quite high here. LOL! It's the absurdist streak in me that makes me love characters like Lucille Wexler, Caroline Carruthers, and R.J. Winslow, but Chet Stafford is their king, to be sure!
The Usual Suspects is filled with plenty of great moments, including a jaw-dropping shouting match between Vanessa and Eve that takes place through a door and is the best use yet that I've seen of Maeve Kinkead's very early (and very large) characterization of Vanessa.
Here's where the request of you readers comes in-- If anyone out there has video material from this storyline, I absolutely have to have it. I can't pay for it, but I could potentially arrange some sort of trade for you or you could donate to GLMP out of the goodness of your heart. :)
Meanwhile, enjoy The Usual Suspects. This clipset is just fantastic!--
clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5

For background on the complicated history of Amanda, Ben, and Eve see the previously posted (but never blogged) Wanted Man clipset from 1979 , which deals with the same triangle.
Wanted Man--
clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5 , clip 6
clip 7 , clip 8 , clip 9 , clip 10 , clip 11
The Mountains clipset follows several months after Wanted Man, still in 1979.

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Back in October of last year, before the inception of this blog, I posted a set called Certain Rights from 1979, dealing with the fallout from Roger's rape of Holly and Holly's pursuit of a marital rape conviction. Most of the set came from actual episodes, but the section of the actual rape episode was taken from a copy of Roger Thorpe: The Scandal Years and so was heavily edited and (obviously) not the complete episode. Now in possesion of the full show, I'm able to share not so much more of the attack, but rather more of the immediate reaction of Holly, including her harrowing drive away from the house.
It should also be noted that Certain Rights contains what are probably Jerry verDorn's first episodes as Ross. The full set is listed below with the newly added clips marked with an asterisk*.

Certain Rights--
clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 2a* , clip 2b* , clip 2c* , clip 2d*
clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5 , clip 6 , clip 7 , clip 8
clip 9 , clip 10 , clip 11 , clip 12 , clip 13 , clip 14
clip 15 , clip 16 , clip 17 , clip 18 , clip 19

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In August of last year, I put up a clipset from 1980 called Enough Is Enough which showcased Roger's famous pursuit of Rita Bauer through the Hall of Mirrors at the Cedars Charity Bazaar after she recognized him as he was trying to lure Christina (now known as Blake) away in order to kidnap her. At the end of the set, Roger took Rita prisoner instead of Christina, but now I have the following episode with Rita's captivity. Interestingly, Lenore Kasdorf was apparently unable to film this episode and Rita is played by someone called Sarah Daley (sp?). This new material also picks up on the date that Katie mentioned to Hillary previously in the clipset. Denise Pence is her usual lively, charming self here as she plays Katie's reactions to the veritable army of women vying for Mark's attention.

Enough Is Enough--
clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5
clip 6 , clip 7 , clip 8 , clip 9 , clip 10
clip 11 , clip 12 , clip 13 , clip 14 , clip 15
clip 16 , clip 17* , clip 18* , clip 19* , clip 20*

Well, that's all for now. Happy viewing and I'll see you here next week.
---ivnkplng

Dearly Beloved

1986 falls right in the middle of what I have many times identified as my least favorite period in GL history. I know very well that this runs directly contrary to popular opinion. As far as most people are concerned, these are GL's "golden years." I don't feel that way for a variety of reasons, most of which I've made fairly public, but this project exists to serve all GL viewers, including lovers of the mid-80's and so this week finds us in that twangy, colorful era of GL.

Dearly Beloved focuses on the aborted wedding of Kyle Sampson and Reva Shayne, called to a screeching halt by Maeve Stoddard. The other central event is Mindy discovering that her husband, Kurt, has been killed. The two events intertwine, linked by the fact the they both involve the same family. Very little, in fact, occurred on GL that didn't involve the Lewis/Shayne family during this period.

Leslie Denniston gives a really terrific performance as Maeve. The naturalistic, "classic soap" feel of what she does acts as a refreshing contrast to a lot of what goes on around her and the scenes that she shares with Larkin Malloy as Kyle (who also gives a standout performance) are among my favorite parts of this set.

This event also features the return of Robert Newman to GL and the role of Josh after an absence of about a year, thus solidifying it as a doubly important event in the long and storied chronicles of Reva, who, in this set alone, is left at the altar, hit by a car, and treated to a lovely outdoor musical montage.

I can't finish this blog entry without mentioning that it was next to impossible to concentrate on Jay Hammer's performance as Fletcher after having recently seen for the first time his stint as Tom and Helen's son, Alan, on THE JEFFERSONS. The memory of Hammer "jive talking" and rolling his neck as he argued with the white father he just couldn't relate to is burned indelibly into my brain. Those of you who've had the pleasure of seeing it will know what I mean and those of you haven't... be very glad!

Dearly Beloved--
clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5 , clip 6
clip 7 , clip 8 , clip 9 , clip 10 , clip 11 , clip 12
clip 13 , clip 14 , clip 15 , clip 16 , clip 17 , clip 18
clip 19 , clip 20 , clip 21 , clip 22 , clip 23
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This previously posted mini-set from late 1985 shows Kyle telling Maeve about his intention to marry Reva. The events Kyle describes in his speech to Maeve in clip 1 are an example of one reason why I'm not overly fond of this period.
The Woman You Love--
clip 1 , clip 2

Kaleidoscope

1997 was an interesting time in the history of GL. In previous entries for this blog, I've described various points as " transition periods" for the show and it now occurs to me that, the ever-changing soap animal being what it is, virtually any era of the show can be described as a "transition period." Maybe it's just easier to apply the term to periods for which the transition was difficult or conspicuous.

Barbara Esensten and James Harmon Brown held the headwriting reins at GL from 1997 to 2000. This was between writing THE CITY into its cancelation and writing PORT CHARLES into its cancelation-- not the most inspiring track record in the world, but not automatically cause for damnation.

Kaleidoscope, taken from December of 1997, falls within this period and is marked by an off-putting lack of gray areas in the characters (the proof in the Esensten/Brown pudding!). You'll see "bad guys" Annie, Dinah, and Beth costumed in tight black clothing. You'll see "good guys" Harley, Reva, Blake, and Cassie perpetrating all manner of affronts against the "bad guys" just because they can and because the writing tells us that we're supposed to root for the appointed "white hats," regardless what heinous acts they commit (What Harley does to Nola toward the end of this set had my blood boiling!).

Kaleidoscope is so named because of its changing focus. It presents a nearly panoramic view of the Springfield of 1997. The featured storylines are Jenna's pregnancy by Jeffrey Morgan and it's effect on Nola's pursuit of amnesiac Buzz; Harley's out of control jealousy and insecurity over newly returned Beth's connection to Phillip; Dinah's frantic attempts to hold onto waffling, fickle Hart; and Annie's pursuit of a new life to replace the one that Reva destroyed.

I especially like the look that this clipset provides at Annie. Cynthia Watros provides delight upon delight as we remember Annie separately from her more famous and angst-filled moments and see more of the day-to-day Annie that Watros made into a constant source of comedic pleasure. The way Watros leaps into a scene (or even a small moment) and devours it whole with a greedy and very Annie-like voracity is quite stunning and very simply Annie!

Kaleidoscope segues nicely into two clipsets which I put up prior to the inception of this blog and I include them here to provide viewers with a continuation of the stories.

Kaleidoscope--

clip 1a (previously posted) , clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5 , clip 6

clip 7 , clip 8 , clip 9 , clip 10 , clip 11 , clip 12 , clip 13 , clip 14

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Severance--

(this comes right out of Kaleidoscope and takes Phillip, Beth, Harley, and Annie from Christmas to New Year's)

clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5 , clip 6 , clip 7 , clip 8

Alan & Annie's wedding day--

(from January of 1998: Reva, Cassie, and Harley decide it might be fun to destroy another wedding. Remember these are the "good guys"!)

clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5

That's all for now. Be here next week for trip back to 1986 and wedding of Reva and Kyle!

---ivnkplng

You Needed Me

In February of this year, I received a message at YouTube from "NewMamaBear." It seems that "NewMamaBear" had appeared on GL while in high school as a singer at the wedding of Kelly and Morgan in 1981 and she wondered if perhaps I had clips of the episode that I could post. I didn't at the time, but now at long last, "NewMamaBear" can revisit her time in the light after decades of trying to track it down.

It's interesting that I was contacted by someone who was involved with the music of this storyline because music is a huge part of the events covered in the You Needed Me clipset. These fifteen clips are generously peppered with people bursting into song. Looked at with 21st century eyes, these musical expressions could be considered "corny" or dated, but what they are is a perfect example of how genuine, how sincere, how astonishingly earnest this period in daytime was. We modern soap viewers are quite used to a genre that's become very sophisticated and jaded and ironic. The knowing wink to the viewers is pretty standard now, but these clips, taken from just before Gloria Monty at GENERAL HOSPITAL decided that what "soap opera" had been it should no longer be, represent the sunset of a long bygone era of simplicity and forthrightness in soaps.

Having said that, this is still GUIDING LIGHT, so "simple" is not a synonym for "stupid" here-- and not just any GUIDING LIGHT, but Douglas Marland's GUIDING LIGHT: intelligent, passionate, grounded, and exquisitely crafted. This is such a lovely time in the show's history and one that I can't visit often enough.

You Needed Me is the title not just of this clipset, but also of Kelly and Morgan's oft-heard theme song by Anne Murray. Without question, one of the most popular couples in the history of the show, Morgan and Kelly's love story struck a chord with viewers and swept them away into a passionate and tortured, yet still very sweet romance that culminated (after more than a year) in this beautiful, down-to-earth wedding, with the Bauer family (back when they were a whole family, before the Lewises edged most of them off the canvas) and Alan Spaulding among the attendees... and "NewMamaBear."

You Needed Me

clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5

clip 6 , clip 7 , clip 8 , clip 9 , clip 10

clip 11 , clip 12 , clip 13 , clip 14 , clip 15

And for those who'd like a little background, here's a previously posted clipset from 1980 dealing with the beginnings of the Morgan/Kelly relationship, as well as the hijinks of their zany friends. Look for Kevin Bacon as Tim, lots of Nola, and lots of John Wesley Shipp (Kelly) in a speedo (What a mighty, mighty good man!)

Summer School

clip 1 , clip 2 , clip 3 , clip 4 , clip 5

clip 6 , clip 7 , clip 8 , clip 9 , clip 10

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Lastly, I present an mvid that I created recently, spotlighting the first four months of 2007 on GL. The song is "Ballad of Behaviour" by Baxter.

Ballad of Behaviour

Enjoy these clips. See you right here next week!

---ivnkplng

GLMP: Follow the Light backward in time and forward into the future...