THE TIGER MOMS OF DAYTIME

While folks continue to debate the merits and deficits of being a "Tiger Mom," (if you don't know what I'm talking about, click this link to read the most commented upon Wall Street Journal article of all time, and find out why the phrase has now entered our lexicon), I, naturally, turned my thoughts to who might be the Tiger Moms of soaps.

Here are my candidates, with clips: I'd love to hear your thoughts! (We might not get as many comments as WSJ, but it could be a fun discussion, nonetheless):

As The World Turns' Lucinda Walsh:



Bold & Beautiful's Stephanie:



All My Children's Opal and Jenny:



Guiding Light's Doris and Ashlee:



Days of Our Lives' Kate and Lucas:



Let me know your nominees in the Comments section below!

ANOTHER WORLD TODAY EPISODE #91-1

"Lorna still has a very good chance of a full recovery," Alice insisted. "That's not a dream, Lucas, that's a medical fact. Jamie knows it. It's why he's fighting so hard this very minute to make sure Lorna wakes up to everything she ever wanted."

"Her whole life, all she wanted was a family. Her adoptive parents died when she was just a kid, and Fanny and I... we really dropped the ball on that one."

"Though no fault of your own, I hear."

"Yeah. That's what we tell ourselves. But, you know, I've had a lot of time to think these past few years. A lot. Too much, frankly. And you know what I realized? No matter how badly I'd like to believe I was completely blameless... I wasn't. Why the hell did I accept it when Fanny's stepfather and that harridan aunt of hers told me she wanted nothing more to do with me? What kind of a man just takes something like that at face value and walks away, abandoning the woman he loves, abandoning his baby girl when she's just a few hours old?"

"Not a man," Alice reminded. "A boy."

"A punk," he corrected. "A coward. Aw, hell, who knows, maybe a part of me was happy for the excuse to ditch that kind of responsibility?"

***

Lucas struggles to make his peace with the past... and the present, Sharlene employs shock therapy to get through to John, Spencer offers Jamie an alternative for solving his problems, Kirkland agrees to help Jasmine dig up the truth, while Grant is slapped with an agonizing decision by Carl.

All at: http://www.anotherworldtoday.com/2011/2011_91p1.html

GUIDING LIGHT SYNOPSIS FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 24 TO 28, 2011

Via http://twitter.com/MindyLewisBauer

After a technology-imposed hiatus, Mindy returned to her Twitter chronicles of life in Springfield.

Personally, Mindy is living in fear about losing custody of her adopted son, Hudson, to his biological father. Especially after Mindy and Rick were forced to take the boy for a court-mandated visit. The whole thing proved so stressful, it prompted Mindy to make a confession (just to her Twitter readers, not to Rick. Why be honest with your husband when you can confide in complete strangers, after all?)

Later, Mindy was forced to listen to Dinah make a confession of her own. And it was a doozy!

Find out what Dinah told Mindy - and tweet Mindy your advice about what she should do next at: http://twitter.com/MindyLewisBauer!

***

Alina Adams is the co-author of Jonathan's Story, now available as an e-book! Click on the link below to check out a free sample!

ANOTHER WORLD TODAY EPISODE #90-2

"I love you, Mary Frances. And, yes, the physical aspect is a big part of it, I'm not going to lie."

"That's good. Because I wouldn't believe you."

"But, I also understand what you said, about needing to feel that we've reconnected in every way, on every level. I will do anything and everything I have to so we can get back to what and who we once were. We used to be fun, Frankie? Remember? We were the fun couple. The one that made people smile just saying our names in the same breath. Cass and Frankie, Frankie and Cass."

"Crankie?" she joked feebly, trying her best not to fall under his spell. Failing miserably. Just like she knew she would from the start.

"We can be that couple again."

"Do you honestly believe that's still possible?"

"I wouldn't be here, fighting, if I didn't." He took both her hands in his. "Think about it. Think about all that we've already surmounted and survived. You came back from the dead for me. Twice. How can that possibly compare to a few... differences of opinion?"

"We could be the poster children," she suggested. "For what happens to the fun couple when life stops being... fun?"

***

Frankie and Cass struggle to recapture who they once were, Lucas drops yet another bombshell on Felicia, Marley warns Grant not to fall into old habits, Jen makes a confession to Steven, and Rachel finally realizes how she can help Jamie.

All at: http://www.anotherworldtoday.com/2011/2011_90p2.html

PAST PRESENT FUTURE
By Alina Adams

In 1994, my first national television job (I'd worked at local stations up to that point) was with E! Entertainment's Pure Soap, a daily, half-hour show about, what else? soap operas!

Below is a clip with guest-star Sarah Michelle Geller (then All My Children's Kendall). As you can see, we screwed up the trivia question portion of the episode by airing the answer first (kind of takes the suspense out, I realize). In our defense, while all guests were asked to arrive thirty minutes before the (live) taping, Sarah got there five minutes after the broadcast started (honestly, we weren't even sure whether to promote her appearance until she walked in the door). But she had an amusing anecdote about a very slow limo driver (not to mention tales of Kelly Ripa and Eva LaRue)!



Since Pure Soap went off the air, host Shelley Taylor Morgan (ex-Lorena; General Hospital and ex-Anjelica, Days of Our Lives) has moved to Washington State where, in addition to writing a column on collectibles and local restaurant reviews, she is starring in a radio drama, Adrian Cross, For Hire that can be heard via the Internet at: http://ksqmfm.com/.

Shelley plays Christine Hale, Adrian's 25 year old love interest!

She writes to Soap Opera 451:

Volunteers at the station had other obligations, so I offered to take on the publicity for this event and worked with the local press, vendors, and you name it to create public awareness. In addition, my big mouth opened and before I could breathe in, I had offered to write/produce/direct/edit a video about the production.

What was I thinking?! I have never done anything of the kind. Ignorance is bliss. It took more than 40 hours of editing to whittle nearly four hours of raw footage down to a 7 minute video. Hampered by lack of training, no-frills editing programs, very limited video coverage... and delusions of grandeur. (I'm telling you all this so you will be kind in your critique of the results!!).

So please.....

LISTEN FOR IT!

(And watch!)

DIVERSITY ON DAYTIME PART #6
By Nicole Walker

Part #5

Part #4

Part #3

Part #2

Part #1

Even though I’m a 30something proud Black Female American, to be frank, I’ve never been all that consumed with the issue of race in my movies or television. I’m a sucker for good story and dynamic characters. If the characters happen to be hot, cute, and sexy, as well, that’s just dandy too.

So while growing up on my mother’s regular soaps in the 80s - All My Children and the late, great As The World Turns - I wasn’t merely all about the people of color. Sure Jesse and Angie’s love story was sweet and they had their share of angst, but my viewership didn’t just hinge on them - or later the adventures of siblings Derek and Livia Frye -being onscreen. Not when AMC had scheming Adam juggling naive Dixie and his true love, Brooke. Or Natalie stuck in a well. Or Cliff and Nina in their sordid romance. Or Erica with Natalie and Jeremy. Then Travis and Barbara and Jackson.

I was an equal opportunity watcher as long as you gave me good story and good character.

But as I expanded my regular soap watching from just the core two (and got a little older), I began to notice something about a large number of the minority characters on soaps.

They were, well... boring.

Rather than being as flawed and crazy and desperate and scheming and sneaky and sexy as their non-minority counterparts, there seemed to be a definite shift towards more ‘careful’ writing of minority characters in an effort not to offend anyone. Sure they were smart, educated, gainfully employed, married, had kids, and were great BFFs to their hot mess of a front-burning non-minority buddies.

But they had no spark.

No drive.

They never lusted, cheated, coveted, schemed, swapped babies or got into cat fights and brawls like everybody else. They became the de facto good people who stood around watching everyone else have the fun. And when these minority characters did get their own storyline, it was usually ‘A very special look at Black/African-Americans’ that amounted to about 3 to 6 months of front-burner story for the contract minority actors to educate the masses before going back to the de facto good guy role they'd inhabited before.

And that, to me, is not good story. It’s not good soap story. Soap characters are flawed. Even the ‘White Hat’ hero and ‘Perils of Pauline’ heroine have failings that make them more endearing and/or exasperating even while you root for them.

Stripping down a character of their real meat because they’re a minority or because they’re portrayed by a minority is the kind of overreaching PC that annoys me. Minorities do crazy stuff, too!

We’re a smorgasbord of personalities and psychologies and pathologies and classes. We want to see minorities as villains and vixens as well as heroes and heroines ,and not just paragons of Black/Latino/ Fill-in-your ethnicity rights. How about The Heroine - not The Black Heroine - gets her man and sends the skank packing? The Hero wins out over the villain? The Prodigal Son throw off the shackles of his controlling tyrannical father.

Which is why, for me, the soap opera that did minorities right was NBC’s Passions.

Yep. I said it. Passions.

I know, I know. It had a witch on it. And a talking doll. And that incestuous hermaphrodite storyline in the last two years was one of the most baffling things I’ve ever witnessed on a soap opera, but dang it, when it came to minorities on soaps, I really admired and respected the fluidity with which couples were mixed and matched.

The writing was less about the Russell clan living the ‘Black’ storyline or the Lopez-Fitzgerald’s living the ‘Latino/Irish’ plot, but rather the people of all classes in the ironically named town of Harmony scheming, blackmailing, terrorizing, living, dying and loving equally.

Perhaps because of the show’s soooooo out there storylines, the writers and producers just really couldn’t be bothered to be afraid of being viewed as writing their minority characters in an unflattering light.

Seriously, now, which would you have a bigger problem with? Whitney, the black ingénue, being torn between two men, having sex (gasp!) with both of them - one of whom was white - or the fact that her other lover and father of her baby was her (later disproved) bi-racial half-brother? (At least I think that’s how it stood in the end, because that show gave you whiplash with the twists and turns!)

Or maybe it was because TPTB at Passions were brave enough to move beyond the standard soap conventions, twisting the tropes for a fresher, bolder take overall, that their bravery extended to not handling their minority characters (and actors) with kid gloves. They let them sink or swim on their own, along with their equally messed-up non-minority counterparts.

Or maybe TPTB at Passions were just throwing darts at a board of names and plot points and whichever they hit, that’s the way the story went. Honestly, I really don’t know.

What I do know was that, in the end, I found an enjoyable soap that included an admirable mix of ethnicity and classes.

I wasn’t preached to, I was entertained.

The few times race was mentioned and dealt with on the show (the love story of Julian Crane and Eve Russell being the main one) it was organic to who the characters were, their backgrounds, and the times they grew up in. It didn’t have the whiff of TPTB scrambling to do a minority story to appease anybody.

Passions had its remote control flinging flaws like any other soap, but where it stood out above all the others, IMO, was its embracing all colors of the rainbow. Anyone and everyone could be either a sinner or a saints. And that, as well as giving us the glorious Tabitha and Timmy, is a legacy that all involved - especially the writers and actors - should be proud of.

***

Nicole Walker is the Associate Producer for Another World Today. She holds an MFA in Screenwriting from Columbia University.

ANOTHER WORLD TODAY EPISODE #90-1

"Amanda has told me the most interesting thing," Rachel began, stepping into Lila's room and closing the door behind them to make certain they couldn't be overhead.

"Is that a fact?" Lila injected so much lack of concern into her query that her obvious concern was nearly palpable.

"I understand you made the phone call that prompted the police to arrest Alice Frame."

Lila peered up guiltily at Rachel, saying nothing.

"Why, Lila?" her former mother-in-law wondered.

"Because. Kevin treated me like garbage and she's his Grandma, and — "

"No," Rachel interrupted. "Why did you take the blame for something I know you didn't do?"

"Oh," Lila said. And then she confirmed, "So it was you?"

***

Rachel and Lila hash out the truth, Lucas makes a confession to Felicia, Grant wrestles with a soul-crushing decision, Donna questions Marley's motives regarding Sarah, while Frankie and Cass struggle to build a future despite what's happened in the past.

All at: http://www.anotherworldtoday.com/2011/2011_90p1.html

If you also follow Mindy Lewis Bauer's Twitter, please be advised that it has a new home: http://twitter.com/MindyLewisBauer

CSI: MONTICELLO

Didi goes snooping - forensic-style - in this week's installment of Edge of Night Today!

MINDY'S TWITTER UPDATES

After a week of back and forth e-mails with The Captain of Twitter (seriously, that's what they call their Customer Service Department), we have reached an impasse.

They refuse to un-suspend my account because they allege I was aggressively following and using two screen-names for one purpose.

I tell them I was doing neither of those things. (And I ask them to please send examples of these alleged rule infractions.)

They don't care. (And did not comply.)

So, here is the situation: I have created a new account: http://twitter.com/MindyLewisBauer

But, there is a catch. I began Mindy's Twitter in February of 2009 (check out Mindy's Meme). It took me nearly two years to acquire almost 3000 followers and, I'll be honest with you, I don't know if I have the strength to start all over again from scratch.

With GL off the air, I need to know that there is still an audience out there for this project, before I commit the necessary time and energy to getting it up and running.

If you would like to see Mindy's Twitter Tales of Life in Springfield continue, please sign up to follow the new account and spread the word, urging others to do the same.

I'll keep you posted.

Thank you and, as always, you have no idea how much your support means to me!

MEMORIES OF MATT
By Alina Adams

White Collar is back, and Matt Bomer (Neal) is finally the star those of us who first saw him on Guiding Light always knew he was destined to be.

In fact, we knew he was a star before he officially arrived in Springfield even. When GL was auditioning actors for the role of Ben Reade, A&E came to film a documentary on the process. They wanted to shoot all five young men up for the part behind the scenes as they got ready to screen-test. Four of them agreed to participate. Matt didn't (he thought it might make him too nervous and affect his performance).

"Oh, God," GL's then-publicist groaned after watching them. "Matt Bomer was the best. He's going to get this. And he's the one we don't have on camera!"

Once he won the role, Matt told me, "I did so much research for this part! I bought the Guiding Light Scrapbook. I am caught up from 1957 to the present! Once I found out Holly was my step-mother, I did a lot of research, and then I was like, "Wait, does this mean I'm related to Roger Thorpe?" But then I found out I was Fletcher Reade's son. So I found out about him, and how my mom died in a helicopter crash. I had a meeting with (Executive Producer) Paul Rauch today, and I was like, "So, let's talk about my mother, Maeve, and my father, Fletch…" And he was all, "Whoa, how do you know all this stuff?"



Matt also confessed his secret for ad-libing small-talk during party scenes. "When I had a scene with Ed, I asked "How was Africa?" When I had a scene with Alex, I asked, "How was Europe?" I'm trying to stick to the major continents."

To read Matt's first-ever GL interview, click here.

And, on a personal note, Matt Bomer was one of the nicest, sweetest, most gracious actors I've ever worked with. A few months after he left the show, I ran into him on the street, walking his dog. Not only did he recognize me - out of context, no less! - but he stopped to say hello and chat! This is not typical celebrity behavior.

Now, every time I see him on White Collar, all I can think is that Matt deserves every success he's got coming to him, and more. Nice things should happen for nice people more often.



***

Alina Adams was the Creative Content Producer for ATWT & GL. She is the co-author of the GL tie-in, Jonathan's Story.

ANOTHER WORLD TODAY EPISODE #89-2

"From the day I was born," Donna began. "I have spent every moment of the past fifty years — "

Sharlene raised a disbelieving eyebrow.

Caught, Donna dutifully amended, "Past sixty... or so... years of my life, thinking only of myself, of what was best for me, of how I could come out ahead no matter what the cost."

"You think?"

"I'm trying to change. To put others first. To use what I've learned to help people I care about keep from making the same mistakes I have."

"And you've decided to kick off your Grand Rehabilitation Campaign with me? My God, Donna, you have some nerve. I lost my son to a vicious, unforgiving, non-discriminating disease. You gave your own daughter away, and got her killed trying to cover it up."

"I've paid for what I've done."

"You haven't even come close."

"Fine," Donna said calmly. "You are free to judge me in any manner you like; to call me any names you like. As I said at the start, I'm not here for myself. I'm here for John."

Donna makes a plea to Sharlene and a concession to Jeanne, Amanda brings Rachel up short, GQ attempts to bond with Hudson, Charlie goes snooping, and Lucas is forced to make a decision on the stand.

All at: http://www.anotherworldtoday.com/2011/2011_89p2.html

***

Just a quick note to say thank you for the great discussions generated by our GQ/Dean post on the SO451 Message Board and AWT Facebook page.

It's so exciting and fulfilling to hear your passionate - and contradictory - opinions.

Keep it up!

FROM LUTZ TO LATHER
By Alina Adams

With news breaking of Rebecca Herbst's ouster from General Hospital (seriously? Why? I don't get it. Sure, Liz has three - adorable - kids by three different men, none of whom she was married to at the time. But, by soap standards, that just makes her a typical heroine!), it reminded me of an interview I did with her back in 1998. Not about soaps, but that other interest of mine - and hers - figure skating.

From International Figure Skating Magazine:

"General Hospital" actress Rebecca Herbst's first public performance wasn't in front of a camera, but on the ice.

Herbst, who plays Elizabeth Webber on the daytime soap, began skating at age three, and started taking lessons a year later. She competed at the 1989 Southwest Pacific Championships as a Juvenile, and at the 1990 Southwest Pacifics as an Intermediate. Other girls in her group included the 1992 U.S. Junior Champion Caroline Song, and Taylor Neff (star of Kraft's "Cheese & Macaroni" commercials), as well as eleven year old Karen and nine year old Michelle Kwan.

Herbst trained side-by-side with both Kwans at the Pickwick Arena in Los Angeles, and, in the summer, would go to Blue Jay, CA, for training with the Kwans' coach, Frank Carroll, and then-Head Coach Robin Cousins. Said Herbst, "I remember being at the skating camp and trying my triples. Falling, of course. (I) never landed them." Watching this year's Olympics, Herbst added, was "amazing. I just couldn't believe I'm watching Michelle Kwan, the girl I used to skate every morning with."

Unlike her more ambitious competitors, Herbst only practiced skating two hours a day, since, at age six, she added auditioning for television commercials to her schedule.

By age fifteen, however, the combination of skating, acting, and high-school proved too much. Concluding that what she loved about skating was the performing, not the competing, Herbst decided to give up skating for acting, eventually landing roles on the TV series' "Brotherly Love," and "Space Cases." Herbst conceded that acting is a very competitive endeavor also, but, said, "I find it extremely different because in acting, when you go for an audition, you're only challenged by yourself. You do the best you can do. You're not being put up against anybody else. With skating, you're competing your skills against other people. You each had to do X amount of jumps, and you each had to do them perfectly."

In 1997, nineteen year old Herbst became a regular on "General Hospital," validating her belief that the smartest thing she ever did was "choosing acting over skating." But, she still finds time to, once in a while, lace up her Harlick skates and take the ice.

Herbst says, "My very best friend in the world used to (skate) with me. It was so much fun for the two of us to do it together. I always had a good time. But, when I look back on it now, it was just (about) friendship more than anything."

That same year, I was talking to 1980 Olympic champion Cousins, and mentioned Rebecca's name.

"Becky Herbst!" he remembered. "Whatever happened to her?"

I told him about GH, and offered that I thought she might get a Daytime Emmy nomination soon, uttering a phrase that only makes sense for soap aficionados. "She had a great year! She was raped!"

He looked at me funny.

***

Alina Adams is the author of the Figure Skating Mystery series of books, including the latest, Skate Crime: Multimedia, featuring championship skating videos included right in the e-book as part of the story. Check it out, below!

DIVERSITY ON DAYTIME Part #5
By Alina Adams

Part #4

Part #3

Part #2

Part #1

Last week's episode of Another World Today (Part #1 and Part #2) featured Dean Frame and GQ Todd, both single fathers in the midst of trying to get their biological children back from their respective adoptive parents, comparing notes on their experiences.

While GQ has been forced to go to court and prove his fitness to raise his son, Dean has, more or less, been encouraged to reclaim his daughter. Granted, there are key differences in their situations - GQ's child was adopted by strangers (on a whole other soap!) while Dean's is being raised by relatives. Also, GQ's ex-girlfriend voluntarily gave their baby up for adoption, while Dean's wife died and, grief-stricken, he willingly abandoned his child.

But, to GQ, an African-American, there seems to be an even more basic reason for the differences in attitude.

The scene between GQ and Dean in AWT: Part #1 is the reason both cases are happening concurrently.

In the initial outline written prior to AWT's launch, the custody battle for Hudson was scheduled to take place prior to Gregory's death, with Dean's unfolding later.

However, as both stories kicked off, we were, to put it bluntly, stunned by the differences in Facebook and Message Board comments, and especially in the bi-weekly poll numbers, when it came to whether or not GQ should get Hudson v. Dean and Lori Ann.

The fans were clear: They vehmently wanted Dean to return and claim his daughter from Frankie and Cass (even before he was back on the canvas), and they thought Hudson was better off with GL's Rick and Mindy Bauer, some even arguing that Allie had made the decision to give her son up - GQ should have no say in the matter.

When it comes to this or that voting, it's difficult to suss out the nuances and motivations behind people's opinions. Which is why we've decided to open up a thread, here and in the forums listed above, to hear your views in detail. Why do you think there was such a difference in fan opinion when it came to Dean and GQ's positions?

PS: For those who wrote to ask whether the baby photos representing Hudson is of one of my kids, the answer is - yup, you got me. Here is a recent snapshot of all three of mine - can you guess which one is "Hudson Lewis Bauer?"

***

Alina Adams is the author of the SCRIBE Award winning As The World Turns tie-in, The Man From Oakdale, now available in paperback!

ANOTHER SHOW BROUGHT BACK FROM THE DEAD - AND BETTER THAN EVER!

According to EW.com:

Prepare to pick your jaws up off the floor! BET’s revival of former CW series The Game premiered to a whopping 7.7 million viewers last night. That’s right, 7.7 million viewers — a figure that is sure to be making other cable and network execs salivate right now. The number is stunning because when the sitcom — which is produced by Kelsey Grammer and stars Tia Mowry Hardrict as the wife of a football star — last aired on The CW during the 2008-09 season, it only mustered a measly 1.8 million viewers, which ultimately led to the show’s cancellation by the fledgling network....

Over at Huffington Post, creator and executive producer Mara Brock Akil, and husband Salim Akil, who also directs and writes for the show, (said they) owe it all to the fans.

"It's a big moment for us, it's a big moment for BET and for the empowerment of the fans. They're the ones who allowed us to stay on as long as we did on the CW." Brock Akil tells of how the fans "galvanized" when The Game was coming to an end on the CW and looked to BET and asked, "What are you going to do?"

Last week, Soap Opera 451 speculated on whether ATWT and GL fans could achieve the same trick of bringing their beloved shows back from the dead, through a unified display of purchasing power.

Read all about it, here.

ANOTHER WORLD TODAY EPISODE #89-1

"You weren't there, Luke!" Felicia broke. "When Jenna died, when she was suffering, when we were locked up in that damned convent and all I could do was hold her hand and promise her everything was going to be okay; which turned out to be a lie in the end — you weren't there! I had to witness that, survive it alone. You don't know what I went through, so no, you don't know my pain. You haven't lived it."

"I'm living it now. I'm watching our other daughter suffer — "

"Which can be fixed, if we let Morgan — "

"Which you hope can be fixed," Lucas corrected. "Lorna could just as easily slip away from us, too."

"She won't."

"And you're certain of this because?"

"Because Morgan — "

"Morgan lies. Morgan has been lying to you for years, starting with keeping his marriage to Lorna a secret, right up through his claim that it was anything more than in name only. Morgan is a liar. So you need to give me some better reasons than to trust that everything is going to turn out fine if we just do what he says."

"Forget about trusting Morgan. How about trusting me? Your wife? Trust me and love me — love Lorna — enough to believe — "

"I do love you," Lucas affirmed in a broken voice. "And I love Lorna. Enough to look past myself and think about what's best for her in the long run!"

"That's what I'm doing, too," Felicia cried in exasperation. "Why can't you see that? Morgan does. Even Carl — "

"Carl?" Lucas stilled, his body rigid, working to hold in an utter and complete explosion of rage. "No, Fanny. You are not going to bring that vile piece of inhuman filth who sexually, emotionally, and psychologically exploited our daughter for a good portion of her adolescence, into this conversation."

***

Felicia's testimony compels Lucas to take drastic measures, Alice questions Amanda's version of events, Morgan defends his actions, Sarah's presence raises Donna's suspicions, Cass forces Frankie and Dean to face facts, and GQ gets a visit from Hudson... and his parents, Rick and Mindy Bauer.

All at: http://www.anotherworldtoday.com/2011/2011_89p1.html

No poll this week! Just open threads about what you want to happen next on both Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Another-World/307355595460?ref=search&sid=13800416.3728872026..1 and the SoapOpera451 Message Boards: http://www.soapopera451.com/talk/mboard.php

EDGE OF NIGHT TODAY

Didi wonders, "What happens when the mind of a crazed degenerate degenerates?" on the latest installment of Mariann Aalda's Eye on Monticello!

Plus a science lesson, EON-style!

ANOTHER WORLD TODAY EPISODE #88-2

"Ah," understanding dawned for Spencer, and he told Carl, "So that's it. You've had your first taste of chickens coming home to roost. And you didn't like it."

"Don't be daft. I have suffered plenty of consequences for my actions in the past. You don't consider a jail term adequate castigation?"

"Not even close," Spencer said with such absolute certainty, he compelled Carl to give the matter at least one more moment of thought. "The only penalties you've ever had to endure as a result of your misdeeds have been laid squarely on your own shoulders. You've never had to pay with the blood of someone you loved."

"I beg to differ! When I lost Ryan — "

"When we lost Ryan," Spencer corrected pointedly. "It was a tragic accident, which had nothing to do with us directly, save the idiocy on both our parts of having loved a woman like Justine. Of course, without her, there would have never been a Ryan, so the situation hardly qualifies."

"Then I'm afraid I have failed to surmise your point."

"For the past fifteen years, give or take a slip up along the way, you've made quite the spectacle of your reformation. You claim great remorse, complete with crocodile tears and soulful breast-beating — do spare us anymore melodramatic breast-beating! — for your sins. But, you've never had to, as those of us without a classical education might phrase it: Put your money where your mouth is. You've been issued a free pass without having to pay the piper. And now you're terrified you actually might have to. And soon. That's what this is all about. You're finally willing to take responsibility for your actions. Because you finally have something to lose."

***

Spencer forces Carl to reconsider his motives, Felicia lashes out on the stand, Lila offers Amanda a warning, Jen finally sees GQ's point of view and makes a confession of her own, Marley reaches out to a surprising person for help, and Grant is forced into yet another lie.

Now at: http://www.anotherworldtoday.com/2011/2011_88p2.html

SUSPENDED TWITTER ACCOUNTS

As many of you have already realized and written to me about, the SoapOpera451 and MelindaSueLewis Twitter accounts have been suspended.

We received no notification about it and have no idea why. Trying to get to the bottom of it now. (How hard could that be, right?)

Will keep you posted!

Thank you for your concern.

A SOAPY SNOW DAY!

Snowed in? (Or, worse, are your soaps being interrupted by news reports about how it's cold outside?) Here are some classic, soap-opera snow days of the past to help get you through!

General Hospital:



Day of Our Lives:



Guiding Light:



As The World Turns:



Another World:



Stay warm!

A SPECIAL OFFER JUST FOR SOAP OPERA 451 READERS!
By Alla Korot (Jenna; AW & Allie; AMC)

Hey Another World Fans!

I can’t believe 20 Years have passed. It’s hard to imagine that 2 decades ago our sweet Matt/Jenna/Dean triangle tore up Bay City.

When I run into you die-hard AW Fans who still recognize me after all these years it really brings tears to my eyes! It means so much that after all this time something that I was so blessed to be a part of is still sitting fresh in your hearts :)

I love each and every one of you, thank you SO much for remembering me after all this time and sharing your fond memories of AW with me!!

This past year, I was very fortunate to book a commercial with one of my personal faves, Ms. Britney Spears.

Britney has a new fragrance called 'Radiance' and I play the Fortune Teller she comes to see (Its running now on TV).

It was a dream come true to spend the day working with Britney Spears.

Also this past December, I shot an episode of the new show Law & Order: LA. I had the great opportunity to work with Terrence Howard and Skeet Ulrich. My role is a Russian spy/mom in a very juicy storyline... You guys will definitely enjoy it! I can’t wait for all of you to see the episode its called 'Plummer Park'. Look out for it in Feb 2011 on NBC.

As some of you already know, I launched an Organic Skin Care line just 4 years ago called L'uvalla Certified Organic. My other great passion in life is health and total wellness, mind/body/spirit.

After doing some heavy duty research on ingredients in most skin care formulas, I was astounded! This research was the impetus to starting a 100% Natural/Organic Aromatherapy Luxury skin care collection that would be a safe alternative to the fine department store brands I was using for so many years. Imagine achieving beautiful skin and absorbing healing essential oils without compromising your health in any way.... That's the purity and effectiveness of L'uvalla.

To Celebrate the 'New Year, New You'..... I would like to offer my AW Fans a very special discount on these AMAZING organic luxury products.



Go to www.luvalla.com and use the (discount code AWFANS25 at checkout) to save 25% off on all purchases for a limited time. (Code expires 1-25-2011).

I guarantee you will fall in LOVE with L'uvalla as many of our customers already have!!

We have a non-paid Celebrity Testimonial page on our site, including Alicia Coppola (Lorna; AW), Krista Allen (Billie; DOLL), Lesli Kay (Molly; ATWT), Lily Melgar (Lily; GH) and more! Click on the link and check it out to see if your favorites are there!!

Big LOVE and Huge Blessings to all of you in the New Year!!

Alla Korot

***

For more from Alla, check out our previous Where Are They Now interview, here.

ONE WAY TO BRING A SHOW BACK FROM CANCELLATION: IT WORKED FOR THE OTHER GUYS... WHY NOT A SOAP?
By Alina Adams

Seth MacFarlane's animated sitcom, Family Guy, was canceled in 2002, only to return to the air in 2005 after DVD sales of the series went through the roof.

The same thing happened to Futurama; canceled in 2003 and revived (on a different network) in 2008, due to strong DVD sales.

In other words, no matter how many passionate, articulate letters fans write in support of their favorite shows, the only thing that matters to TPTB is money. Are people willing to spend money on our product? If they are, let's give them more. If they aren't...

Unfortunately, there are no DVDs of canceled soaps available with which to make this same point.

On the other hand, on January 1, 2011, Pocket Books released a new paperback edition of the As The World Turns tie-in novel, The Man From Oakdale (see details, below).



If enough ATWT fans (and GL fans, and AW fans - any soap fans, really, who want to demonstrate their buying power) buy copies of the book, it could well serve to get the attention of the networks in the same way that positive DVD sales of Family Guy and Futurama did.

Please take a look, and help spread the word.

(Full disclosure: As the author of The Man From Oakdale, I stand to potentially make some money from the book's sales. I wanted to be honest and up-front about that, like I am about pretty much everything with you all. However, I enjoyed writing the book so much - Henry! Tom & Margo! Craig & Sierra! Frannie & Sabrina! Lucy! Lucinda! Lily! Paul! -and I really do sincerely think ATWT fans currently still mourning their lost show will find it a fun read. In addition, the fact is, other shows HAVE been brought back from the dead when fans proved willing to put their money where their passions are. Why shouldn't it happen for the soaps, too?)

ANOTHER WORLD TODAY EPISODE #88-1

"I'd ask what you think you're doing, but, truth is, I don't want to know. I just need you to cut it out," Marley advised Donna as her mother stood in the Love foyer, surrounded by suitcases. Fleetingly, Marley marveled that only someone in her family could attempt suicide, get sent to a mental institution, and return with a brand new wardrobe.

"I'm moving back in," Donna explained helpfully. "And I don't think I'm doing so, I know I am."

"I don't recall inviting you."

"You didn't," Donna agreed. "Victoria did."

"Excuse me?" Marley hissed, having expected pretty much any response short of that one. "Claiming invitations from my dead sister is hardly the ideal means for convincing me of your born-again sanity."

"I know that Victoria is dead," Donna reassured calmly. "What do you take me for?"

"Don't ask questions you don't want to hear the answer to, Donna, I'm begging you."

"Nevertheless, Christmas Eve, I felt her presence. Don't tell me that hasn't happened to you once or twice. Why, we would have never found Michele and Bridget if — "

"Okay, fine. I get it. You're not insane — "

"Thank you for noticing, my darling. As I was saying, I felt Victoria's presence on Christmas Eve, urging me that it was time to reunite our fractured family."

"Just insanely manipulative," Marley finished her initial thought.

***

Donna kicks her plan to protect Marley into gear, Dean and GQ exchange notes about their respective situations, Lucas tries to knock some sense into Morgan - literally, and Kevin forces Felicia to make a very difficult choice - publicly.

All at: http://www.anotherworldtoday.com/2011/2011_88p1.html

GUIDING LIGHT SYNOPSIS JANUARY 2-7, 2011

How did Rick and Mindy's first day in court go? Find out, here.

And what happened when Blake confronted Mindy about her threats to Kevin? Read all about it (chronologically) at: http://www.soapopera451.com/msl/

Want to enjoy the story in real time, five days a week? Subscribe to Mindy's Twitter!

THE BOYS FROM MONTICELLO...

It's a very spooky, very creepy, very Edge of Night twist on today's installment of Eye on Monticello (http://eontoday.blogspot.com/) by Mariann Aalda (DiDi).

Make sure to check it out!

OOOPS, FORGOT ANOTHER "V" REFERENCE YESTERDAY...

Jennifer Cooke, who played the (very) quickly maturing "Starchild" Elizabeth (half-human/half-lizard - would you have guessed she'd turn out looking like that?) on the 1980s V series, also appeared as Guiding Light's second Morgan.

In the clip below, newlyweds Morgan and Kelly (a shirtless John Wesley Shipp - who was also The Flash, another soap/sci-fi connection) are tested by a ne'er do well, good ol' boy determined to steal Morgan for himself - a leather-jacket wearing Josh Lewis (Robert Newman).

In retrospect, Josh was obviously pining away for Reva (whom he had yet to ever mention) the entire time, right?

ANOTHER WORLD TODAY EPISODE #87-2

"Cass, when I said... what I said... before, I was upset."

"Ready to take it back then? Now that I'm no longer in prison and looking at conducting our marriage exclusively through bullet-proof windows and germ-ridden phones, are you willing to take back what you said about my failing you?"

She avoided the question by telling him honestly, "We share the blame for not rooting Cecile out of our lives years ago, for not taking her seriously until it was too late."

"Don't do that, Frankie. Don't try to make me feel better by sharing the blame. It'll only make your resentment grow."

"I don't resent you." Frankie searched desperately for the apt words. "Yes, you let me down when you allowed yet another woman to disrupt our marriage. It was bad enough when Kathleen... And yes, I was disappointed that you were willing to let others take the fall for your actions or even live a life on the run, but, you couldn't discover it in you to fight for us. It was like..."

"What? What was it like? Tell me. We need to get this out once and for all."

***

Cass and Frankie hash through issues they should have confronted a long time ago, Morgan takes the stand - and gets a shock, Alice tells Rachel what she really thinks of her, and Donna learns something she suspected... but didn't really want to know. And you get to decide what she does with her information!

All at: http://anotherworldtoday.com/2011/2011_87p2.html

V: THE SOAP OPERA
By Alina Adams

As previously confessed, when I was 10 years old, my favorite TV shows were General Hospital... and Lost in Space. When I was 13, they were General Hospital... and V. The Original Miniseries, The Final Battle, and the Series (which aired Friday nights, opposite Dallas. How do you think it fared.)

And it is the nostalgic 13 year old in me that continues to watch the current incarnation of V. Despite it, you know, kind of sucking.

Last night, Jane Badler, Diana of the original, made her debut as this version's baddie, Anna's, mother. (I actually knew about it back at Comic-Con, when the Executive Producer spilled the beans about her coming on, much to the rest of the cast's surprise.) Apparently, the human skin that Visitors wear also require the periodic touch-ups of a plastic surgeon.

Badler, who lives primarily in Australia, hasn't been seen much on American television over the past twenty years since her role in the 1990 Mission: Impossible came to an end. But, she does have a pretty extensive soap past, having played Dorian's sister, Melinda (Kelly's mother) on One Life to Live from 1977 to 1981, and Natalie on The Doctors in from 1981 to 1982.

She also played Meredith, the evil nanny with an agenda on Falcon Crest. The character was originally supposed to be the lover of Miss Jones, whom Richard (David Selby) had spirited away and locked up in Borneo. Meredith infiltrated Richard's household in order to seek revenge. But, CBS got cold feet and, at the last minute, Meredith became Miss Jones' sister.

That's Jane Badler with Jane Wyman as Angela, and Selby, below:



Another original V cast-member, Michael Durrell (real-life husband of Charlotte Savitz, a one-time producer at GL, Capitol, SB, and Another World) played Peter on Guiding Light from 1969 to 1971, and Alex on Santa Barbara from 1987 to 1988.

Here Alex is burning the diary of his very, very crazy adopted daughter, Elena. (Actually, Alex's devotion to Elena despite her obvious obsession with biological father, CC Capwell, and her Eden-directed homicidal tendencies, was the character's most endearing trait.)



The 21st Century version of V is lighter on the ex-soapers, though Elizabeth Mitchell did play Dinahlee Mayberry on Loving.

Blink and you'll miss her at the 6:12 mark, below:



Roark Crichlow, who plays Paul, had a much bigger role on Days of Our Lives as Mike:

RAISING KANE
By Alina Adams

When my husband and I first got together, people kept referring to us as a mixed marriage.

They were right, but not for the reasons they thought.

Back then, I was a General Hospital fan and Scott was an All My Children fan. (Gary Warner, author of the AMC, OLTL and GH Family Scrapbooks, teased us that our kids would be One Life to Live fans out of rebellion.)

And just like, yesterday, I wrote about my stubborn belief that GH's Holly was the love of Robert's life, Scott also holds a pretty firm AMC opinion - only his is more obscure, to say the least.

Scott swears that the love of Erica Kane's life is... Mike Roy.

Mike Roy? Seriously?

Who, other than Scott, even remembers Mike Roy?

Ask a recent AMC watcher who Erica's soulmate is, and they'll insist it's Jackson. Ask an old-timer, and they'll likely say Nick.

Mike (played most often by Nicholas Surovy; but also briefly by Hugo Napier - Ned's dad, Larry, on GH, and the true Stenbeck heir, Gunnar, on ATWT) was hired in 1983 to write Erica's autobiography, Raising Kane.

The two had frequent disagreements regarding Erica's version of past events versus "the truth" (when, really, what they should have been debating was the definition of "authorized biography." Erica would win that one.) But, the fights, naturally, was just foreplay.

The two fell in love, despite Erica's inconvenient marriage to Adam. But, were unable to wed. Due, once again, to Adam.

Mike died while helping Brooke (as if Erica needed more reasons to dislike Ms. English), and Erica was devastated. But, according to Scott, Mike was the first man she'd loved unconditionally, and she didn't play nearly as many games with him as she had with her previous lovers. Mike made Erica grow up, and he died a hero.

When it comes to his return, thirteen years later, having faked his death and now scheming to win Erica from Jackson, Scott, like me and GH's Ethan, simply covers his eyes and ears and insists it never happened. Because Mike's return completely obliterated his bravery, and all the progress Erica had made by loving him.

I love my husband, and I happen to think he is brilliant... about most things. This, I'm not so sure about.

But, I will yield to majority opinion. Watch the clip below and let me know what you think: Could Mike Roy have possibly been Erica's true love?

SCORPIO SPLIT
by Alina Adams

There are two kinds of people: Those who believe that the love of General Hospital's Robert Scorpio's (Tristan Rogers) life is Holly Sutton (Emma Samms), and those who believe it's Anna Devane (Finola Hughes).

I make no secret of the fact that I fall into the Holly camp (though I love the character of Anna - just not with Robert). Whenever I meet someone who insists it's Anna, I have only one question: "Did you actually see the Robert/Holly story?"

"No," is always the answer.

"Then you don't get a vote," I chirp. (And run for my life. My personal theory is that the Robert/Anna fans are actually Robin fans who started watching the show after Holly "died" and especially during Robin/Stone. And no, seeing Holly and Robert after both returned from the dead in this millennium doesn't count. That was... bad. Very, very bad. And do not even mention the name Ethan to me. That didn't happen, didn't happen, didn't happen, and no one will ever convince me otherwise.)

Okay... Now that I've gotten that off my chest, time to clear the palate with something fun.

Before They Met Robert:

Emma Samms in the mini-series Goliath Awaits... (The blond guy early in the clip later played Holly's evil cousin on GH, who tried to keep Holly from Luke in British Columbia)



And Finola Hughes dancing with John Travolta in Staying Alive...

ANOTHER WORLD TODAY EPISODE #87-1

"I brought you the clothes you need for court," Rachel handed Jamie a garment bag, taking in the dark circles under her son's eyes, not to mention the gaunt expression in them, guessing that the suit and shirt she'd taken out of his closet would be a size too big by now. Rachel estimated he'd lost close to ten pounds since Lorna first got hurt.

"Thanks, Mom," he accepted it out of her hand, dropping the bag on a nearby chair and mustering up a thin-lipped smile.

Despite promising herself that she wouldn't interfere or offer unsolicited advice, that she'd just be grateful Jamie had reached out and allowed her to do him this one small favor, Rachel couldn't stop herself from urging, "You need to eat something, honey. Just tell me what you'd like, and I'll go out and get it for you before you need to leave. You making yourself sick won't do Lorna or the baby any good."

"I already got this lecture from Alice," he dismissed.

"Alice Frame,' Rachel snapped, much harsher than she'd intended, "Is not your mother."

"She could have been," Jamie mused, not taking his eyes off Lorna and thus missing the look on Rachel's face in response to his statement. "Maybe she should have been."

***

Heading into court, Rachel supports Jamie while Carl does the same for Felicia, Donna obeys a court order in her own indomitable way, Lila lets the feud with Amanda get her into hot water, Marley begins questioning her actions as Grant urges her to stay the course, and Kevin places a stumbling block in GQ's reunion with Hudson.

All at: http://www.anotherworldtoday.com/2011/2011_87p1.html