Classic Soaps Santa Barbara

Willie Oleson

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Every once in a while Dame Judith Anderson's Minx will show up for an episode
We've had some DJA discussions on the Dynasty forum but I didn't know she actually was in a soap (and with such a fabulous name, too).
I assume she plays the haughty matriarch type?

Incidentally, is Santa Barbara an oddity amongst daytime soaps?
Its intro theme is the most similar to the prime time soaps (many of the others still have that "radio soap" feel) and apart from the missing title cards it also looks like the intro to a prime time soap. And then there's the different duration.
Would you say thay SB's production values are better than the other daytime soaps? Or not?

Oh and should we do a daytime soap intros top ten? (not in this thread of course)
I randomly clicked on an episode of The Secret Storm, and there was Donna Mills!
 

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Secret Storm was probably Donna Mills's first TV gig. From what I've read about the show, it sounds really difficult to follow. As for DJA, I think soaps were in a phase of hiring 'name' actors to give their show buzz and she was there mainly to get people to talk, not carry a lot of story. She eventually got recast with Janis Paige, in one of those rare de-SORASing situations where a character is suddenly a decade or two younger.

The producers of Santa Barbara certainly wanted it to be more lush and expensive-looking. The Dobsons (the couple who ran the show in its first few years) were pretty famous names in the soap biz and got some deep-pocketed production companies to back them. They were also responsible for that droll sense of humor at the center of the show. I'd say the original outlay (the sets, wardrobe, hair, etc.) was lavish by daytime standards, but over time they did not continue to spend quite as much because the original outlay had not translated into the ratings they had hoped. After a few years it did not look any "richer" than the others, though their larger studio facilities allowed them to erect larger sets than most other shows who were still taped in small studios from the days of live TV. I'd have to look it up, but I think Sunset Beach taped in Santa Barbara's former studio.

The show was a critical success but never a major ratings draw, since General Hospital was a timeslot competitor in most of the US and sucking up all the oxygen in the room. NBC probably would have cancelled it much sooner if it had not been for all the critical praise the show received (along with Emmy awards). The higher production values was their effort to set themselves apart, but at its center it was produced in much the same way as other soaps of the period. After the Dobsons were fired/locked out the show went through a lot of hiring/firing of producers and writers, but what sticks out the most in my mind is the turnover in actors/characters. They kept hiring actors who were popular in other roles on other soaps, hoping they would bring those fans over to SB. It was hard to keep up.
 
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Jason73

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I assume she plays the haughty matriarch type?

She does. Minx Lockridge is the Lockridge family matriarch.


Unfortunately I read somewhere that Dame Judith was having a hard time remembering all her lines and so they had to deemphasize her role and use her sparingly.

Its intro theme is the most similar to the prime time soaps (many of the others still have that "radio soap" feel) and apart from the missing title cards it also looks like the intro to a prime time soap.

I feel like they were trying hard in the beginning to set themselves apart from the other daytime soaps as more modern and glitzy and more similar to shows like Dynasty and Dallas.

Oh and should we do a daytime soap intros top ten? (not in this thread of course)

Yes! I would love the chance to vote for this gem of an intro that I rediscovered last night.


They kept hiring actors who were popular in other roles on other soaps, hoping they would bring those fans over to SB. It was hard to keep up.

I watched to the very end and the constant revolving door of popular soap names got tiresome. Some of the recasts were more successful than others. By the end of the series each of the Capwell children except for Eden had been recast, some of them several times. I LOVED Carrington Garland's version of Kelly, didn't mind Terry Lester or Gordon Thompson's versions of Mason and HATED Eileen Davidson's version of Kelly. Michael Brainard's Ted wasn't too bad.
 

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Credit for the use of the character "themes" (songs) and the judicious use of modern (for the time) music to set the moods of the scenes can be given to [/chokes] Jill Farren Phelps. Being a music supervisor (or some such title) was her method of inserting herself into the soap business. And I guess she did an okay job. :re:

It's funny because I've been reading threads on another forum about various canceled soaps and the Santa Barbara thread is the only thread I've seen so far where anyone (often grudgingly--understandingly) has anything nice to say about JFP. She did seem to do well there--maybe partly because it wasn't an established soap she could ruin by killing off a popular mother character.

It wasn't Kozak's fault, of course, but the storyline (involving a supposedly haunted house, an evil real estate agent and a decades-old secret about the murder of Kozak's character's mother decades earlier) tested the patience of even the staunchest GL fan.

I've not heard of that storyline. It doesn't sound like something I'd picture on GL.

And what can we say that hasn't already been said about how she leaves SB?

Definitely one of the most memorable soap exits.
 
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Willie Oleson

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It's so funny to see that someone's running inside the house when there's no real outside, which means he's been running two meters (or less).
Yes! I would love the chance to vote for this gem of an intro that I rediscovered last night.
What a cool montage, reminds me of the CHEERS intro.
 

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Every time Margaret Michael's Santana appears I think it's Pam Ewing come to visit the Capwells. She looks so much like Victoria Principal and I think she even has a similar voice. I prefer the first Santana but Margaret's version is pretty good, battling it out with Gina and colluding with Augusta. At least Margaret's Santana continues the traits of the character being glamorous and fashionable. The next Santana is coming soon, I think, and I remember her as not being as glamorous and kind of dowdy.

Don't tell anyone over in the Dallas forum I said this, because what do I know about Dallas, but I think Dallas should have tried her as a full time Pam replacement when Victoria left and not just used her for a few episodes.
 

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I've not heard of that storyline. It doesn't sound like something I'd picture on GL.
Explaining it in full would still be unsatisfying, since it seemed to be written as they went along rather than a planned-out umbrella plot. Carrie Nye vamping it up as an evil, small-town real estate agent would sound hilarious on paper, but no one was supposed to laugh.

+1 on the miscasting of Eileen Davidson as Kelly Capwell. And I'll raise you the horror of Kim Zimmer eating the show, having left tooth marks on every set piece on GL in her wake.
 

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And I'll raise you the horror of Kim Zimmer eating the show, having left tooth marks on every set piece on GL in her wake.

While I was there with SB to the very end, it was only barely and that was mostly because I didn't enjoy Zimmer and the Walker family taking over the show. The show was so boring and nearly unrecognizable in it's final era. Zimmer was so annoying. I like Sydney Penny but didn't love her on SB or Jack Wagner's Warren.

While I'm talking about the end can I just say how incredibly infuriating it was that that ego maniacal Paul Rauch made himself that last thing we saw in the final episode of the show. What a jackass.
 

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The next Santana is coming soon, I think

Sooner than I realized--the very next episode. Margaret Michaels is gone and Gina Gallego has arrived. She's the Santana I'm the most familiar with and she's definitely not dowdy right now, so I don't know what I was thinking. She's much more prone to histrionics and far less cool headed than the previous Santana's but she eventually makes the role her own when she gets stuck as the Cruz and Eden spoiler along with Kirk. It's nice to have an actual Latina actress playing the role.

Gina's plot to pull CC's plug is starting to take shape. Eden is obsessed with the promise she made to her father before his stroke about not letting him be kept alive by machines. There have been some really thoughtful discussions between Cruz and Eden regarding euthanasia--Cruz being opposed and Eden thinking she needs to honor her father's wishes. It's a realistic way to put some strain on their relationship. Meanwhile, Kirk is there all the time admiring Eden and insinuating himself in the middle of Cruz and Eden's troubles.

Brick and Amy have FINALLY gotten good. They are currently in a very typical soap storyline--Brick is paralyzed after getting into a car crash with Augusta and is pushing Amy away because he doesn't think he's good enough for her now. In spite of the cliche, both Richard Eden and Amy Sherman are such good, compelling actors and they've sucked me in.
 

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Gina's plans to pull the plug on CC and frame Eden are in full swing and it's been ridiculously fun to watch it unfold. Gina has been going around the mansion with a little notepad jotting down her plans. She has managed to get her hands on Eden's dress that she is wearing in her recurring dreams of pulling CC's plug and she's purchased an Eden wig. She's also managed to get a doctor to prescribe some pills that cause erratic behavior. Gina gave the pills a test run at a family cocktail party she arranged in the interest of "family harmony." She invites Eden, Sophia, Ted, Kelly and Mason and spikes Eden's champagne. Eden goes off the deep end, alternating between screaming at people and weeping uncontrollably. She screams at Sophia that she is a liar and a slut and then threatens Mason with a sword. She ends up stabbing the turkey dinner that had been prepared for the party with the sword and then passing out. Gina gleefully takes polaroids the entire time.

Gina has also forged a note to Eden from CC saying that he wants her to end his life if he is ever incapacitated, to further push Eden over the edge. Lately Gina has taken to filling comatose CC (and the audience) in on her plot. It's all going to take place on the night of the big party Eden is throwing to celebrate Cruz's promotion on the police force--a promotion Eden asked Kirk to wrangle and that Cruz knows nothing about and is sure to be unhappy with.

Kirk is always lurking nearby, insinuating himself in Eden's life, waiting for the best opportunity to swoop in and steal her away from Cruz. That opportunity is coming very soon, thanks to Gina's plot.

I'm nearing the end of Linda Gibboney's time on the show. I'm going to miss her so much even though I look forward to Robin Mattson's time on the show.

Meanwhile in stories that don't involve Gina, Cruz has been dealing with a gang of teens who are terrorizing Santana's brother. It culminates in a hostage situation with Cruz, Mary and Mason. Cruz is familiar with the ring leader of the gang and talks to him about how he is giving Mexican people a bad name. He tells him he is making it difficult for all the decent "brown" people in Santa Barbara and that he could turn his life around and have what he has. The gang member, Angel, scoffs and asks if he means a life married to a rich white lady. It's one of several really frank discussions on race that I can't imagine soaps today having the guts to script.

Cruz just purchased a beach house, another iconic set that I have distinct memories of from my original time watching the show.

Kelly and Nick and his hot brother, Dylan and also Brick and Amy, have been doing some stuff too.
 
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Gina's "Eden wig" mostly looks nothing like Marcy Walker's long blonde hair, but that's ok. It's still fun to watch Gina try on her new wig as she taunts comatose CC.
 

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Well, Gina's plan has finally been enacted. It was exciting to finally get to the episodes where it all played out. This was the point where I started watching Santa Barbara regularly, back in 1985. This was the story that sucked me in and hooked me.

There are so many perfect atmospheric touches accompanying the climax of the story. It's Halloween, so there are Halloween decorations all over the Capwell mansion and of course it's stormy, rainy night, the night of Eden's big party.

Gina establishes an alibi staying at the Capwell Hotel--which also happens to be where Eden's party is being hosted. She shows up uninvited to Eden's party and offers her some champagne spiked with the pills she tested out a few episodes back. She also throws shrimp cocktail on Eden's dress--forcing Eden to have to change clothes. Gina manages to substitute Eden's change of dress for the dress she's been wearing in her nightmares about shutting off CC's life support. The pills start taking effect and Eden starts falling apart. Gina, meanwhile is waiting at home, wearing her Eden wig and the same dress Eden is. So much of Gina's plot doesn't really make sense. It's the kind of soap plan that relies on the schemer predicting exactly how the other characters are going to behave in response to the schemers plans. What would have happened if Eden had just gone home with Cruz or if she had passed out like she did at the cocktail party? But let's not ask silly question or deal in silly logic, assume Gina is a genius and just enjoy all the excitement. Kirk brings Eden back to the mansion after Cruz and Eden have a big fight. Eden, still under the influence of the pills, goes to her father's room and nearly pulls the plug while Gina hides in a closet watching. Eden passes out and Gina finishes the job by taking Eden's hand and pulling the plug with it. Gina has to hide again, as the alarms from the machines bring Kirk to the room. He takes a still passed out Eden and escapes out the window.

Now, I did wonder what the point of Gina disguising herself as Eden was. Her plan seemed to be to goad and drug Eden into pulling the plug herself. So why was looking like Eden necessary? Well, those are more silly questions, as Kirk showing up and swooping Eden away gives Gina the perfect opportunity to use her disguise. She waits on the window ledge, with her back to the room until Mary comes in and sees her and then she slips out the window leaving Mary thinking she saw Eden and also leaving a little piece of her dress caught on a nail on the window ledge.

As convoluted as Gina's plan ends up being--it's extremely fun to watch it all go down, mostly thanks to Gibboney's performance. It also sets up lots of interesting plot going forward. It breaks up Cruz and Eden, propels Eden into a marriage with Kirk, leads to Cruz's involvement with Santana, eventually puts Gina in the hot seat when Kirk figures out what she did, puts Cruz in the tricky position of being a cop and thinking the woman he loves committed attempted murder, and even puts a strain on Mason and Mary's relationship because she feels guilty that she was having romantic time with Mason in the study when this all went down on her watch. Plus it all culminates in one of my favorite soap location shoots of all time at Aqualand.

Meanwhile, with the exception of Mary and Mason, the rest of the show isn't that compelling. Kelly and Nick and Dylan are dealing with Joe Mascolo and a stolen treasure map that I mostly fast forward through. Brick and Amy are planning their wedding and Brick still hasn't learned he's Channing and Sophia and Julia and Augusta don't have enough to do.


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Gina: "Goodbye CC. See you in hell."

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Cruz and Eden are officially finished--she broke things off with him after she lied to his face about pulling her father's plug. These scenes were heartbreaking. A Martinez managed to play Cruz's anger, hurt and heartbreak in such a palpable way that my heart ached for him. He played the scenes like his emotions were overwhelming him so much he could barely breath and barely get his words out. He's amazing. Currently, he's come to conclusion that Eden couldn't possibly have pulled the plug in spite of the evidence to the contrary. Too bad Eden is getting more and more dependent on Kirk.

Mason and Mary decide to go public with their relationship, but first Mason has to tell Gina. Unfortunately Gina construes Mason's attempt at confessing he loves Mary as an admission of love and a marriage proposal for Gina and is elated. A flustered Mason decides not to clarify things with her (because she continues to hold his father's will, that she possesses, over his head) and instead convinces her to go to Paris on her own for a bit. Meanwhile, Mary's old friend Mark moves to Santa Barbara, so that means Mason and Mary's days are numbered. I remember that Mary ends up married to him and he rapes her. (So many rapes on this show) I can't remember why Mason and Mary break up, though.

Kelly and her boyfriend's brother, Dylan are searching for a treasure in a ghost town. They end up getting caught by Stefano (who is called Carlo in Santa Barbara) and you can tell that Kelly and Dylan are starting to have feelings for each other. I like Kelly and Dylan together. Robin Wright and Page Mosley have much more chemistry together than Kelly and her boring boyfriend, Nick do. I wonder why they decided to eventually turn him into a creep that Kelly has to push out the window to his death. Maybe he was a casualty of Robin Wright leaving to film The Princess Bride.
 

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I made it to Robin Mattson's first episode as Gina. As much as I loved Linda Gibboney's take on the role, it's exciting to get to Mattson's version. Even though Gina is currently down on her luck, Mattson brings a strength and resilience to the character that wasn't present with Gibboney.

Gina orchestrates it so that Mary walks in on her and Mason in a compromising position and Mary finally learns that Gina and Mason once had an affair. Mary is disgusted and goes so far as to call it incest. She dumps Mason. An enraged Mason tears apart Gina's room and finds his father's will that she's been holding over his head and also the bottle of pills Gina used to cause Eden's breakdown. Mason burns the will removing the hold Gina had over him. He assumes the pills are there because Gina is addicted again. As revenge for her ruining his relationship with Mary, Mason blackmails Gina into signing over custody of Brandon to him and he promptly hands Brandon over to Santana.

Kelly's relationship with boring Nick has finally gotten interesting--because she slept with his hot brother Dylan. Again, I really like Dylan and it's unfortunate the turn his character is going to take.

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Lionel and Sophia are trapped in a forest fire -- another of example of SB tapping into the California setting. Santa Barbara really is a perfect setting for a soap. It's a big enough city to have cosmopolitan touches, it's glitzy, it's located near the beach and also near mountains and forests to provide additional settings for the drama and it's Spanish influences set it apart from other metropolitan areas. (Side note: SB is one of my favorite get away destinations when I need a break from the desert.) (Second side note: there's something I really like about soaps that are named after the location they take place in. For some reason I get excited every time they say "Santa Barbara." It's the same way I felt every time someone said "Knots Landing" on Knots.) Anyways, while Lionel and Sophia were trapped in the forest fire they grew closer and ended up kissing. Augusta doesn't know what happened but she's wracked with insecurities over what she thinks might have happened. It's given Louise Sorel some wonderful material to play. The scenes between Lionel and Augusta as they grapple with her insecurities regarding Sophia have been soap at it's best. It's nice to see Lionel and Augusta and Sophia get some meaty material finally.

Kirk and Eden are married now. Honestly, the way Kirk has wormed his way into Eden's life and sort of forced her (but in a way that she doesn't really notice that he's forced her) to marry him is uncomfortable to watch. She's clearly in love with Cruz and wants to be with him and there's Kirk pressuring her into marrying him and then trying to get her to consummate their marriage. It's creepy, but it's riveting.
 
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Willie Oleson

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For some reason I get excited every time they say "Santa Barbara." It's the same way I felt every time someone said "Knots Landing" on Knots.
I know what you mean. They mention the place they live in (something they should know) but also the title of their respective soaps (something they shouldn't know).
Maybe it wasn't so noticeable in Dallas because Dallas actually exists and everybody knows it. Santa Barbara is more obscure (certainly for non-Americans) and it kind of sounds like the name of a FAKE soap town.

The French had these weird alternative songs for the American soaps
But it also sounds very nostalgic, I think.
 

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I know what you mean. They mention the place they live in (something they should know) but also the title of their respective soaps (something they shouldn't know).

Yes! It's like they're sort of breaking the fourth wall even though they really aren't.


The French had these weird alternative songs for the American soaps

I love it! The English version of that song featured very prominently in the early episodes of SB. It was Kelly and Joe's love theme.

I had to search out the actually titles to see what it was like and it approve.

 
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