These are The Pollocks

[Snarky Oracle!]

But the Pollocks were executive producers of "The Colbys", like they were in "Dynasty" from seasons 6 to 9 (they were executive consultants in season 5).

They were usually listed as "executive story consultant" or "creative consultant" or "senior creative consultant" from Season 2 thru Season 8, but they were the de facto showrunners of DYNASTY. Which is what they wanted. (They weren't involved in Season 9 at all).

The Pollocks co-created THE COLBYS, but William Bast & Paul Huson were told they could do anything they wanted -- which is undoubtedly the reason the spin-off was better than the two concurrent years of DYNASTY where the Pollocks continued their creative stranglehold.

Not that they were the sole culprits. This brief interview snippet with casting director extraordinaire, Pam Polifroni, describes what it was like working on LOVE BOAT and HOTEL with Doug Cramer (who once sneered that "nobody remembers" Pamela Sue Martin and Al Corley, while extoling the acting virtues of Jack Coleman):

 

[GillesDenver]

They were usually listed as "executive story consultant" or "creative consultant" or "senior creative consultant" from Season 2 thru Season 8, but they were the de facto showrunners of DYNASTY. Which is what they wanted. (They weren't involved in Season 9 at all).

To be more accurate, they were story editors from season 2 to 4, executive story consultant in season 5 and supervising producers from season 6 to 8 + "The Colbys".
Their involvment in "Dynasty" from 1985 to 1988 was the same than for "The Colbys" from 1985 to 1987 : assisting the writers on a daily basis (while the Shapiros were only helping on a weekly basis).
Bast & Huson were running "The Colbys" like Camille Marchetta" run "Dynasty in season 5, Diana Gould in season 6 and Laurence Heath in season 7. All were producers and writers of the seasonal bible. Jeff Ryder' s case was different. Although he wrote the bible of season 8, he was not producing the show (probably because he only had experience in daily soaps).

Not that they were the sole culprits. This brief interview snippet with casting director extraordinaire, Pam Polifroni, describes what it was like working on LOVE BOAT and HOTEL with Doug Cramer (who once sneered that "nobody remembers" Pamela Sue Martin and Al Corley, while extoling the acting virtues of Jack Coleman):

I'm not astonished. Look at this document.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

To be more accurate, they were story editors from season 2 to 4, executive story consultant in season 5 and supervising producers from season 6 to 8 + "The Colbys".
Their involvment in "Dynasty" from 1985 to 1988 was the same than for "The Colbys" from 1985 to 1987 : assisting the writers on a daily basis (while the Shapiros were only helping on a weekly basis).
Bast & Huson were running "The Colbys" like Camille Marchetta" run "Dynasty in season 5, Diana Gould in season 6 and Laurence Heath in season 7. All were producers and writers of the seasonal bible. Jeff Ryder' s case was different. Although he wrote the bible of season 8, he was not producing the show (probably because he only had experience in daily soaps).

Despite their changing job titles, the Pollocks were the essential show-runners from S2 thru 8, regardless of the other writer-producers who came and went. Marchetta came in in Season 5, Gould for S6, and Heath for S7 -- but the Pollocks had the control, which is why the same suffocating tone-deaf tone ran through all those seasons. (Marchetta has discussed how challenging the Pollocks' aversion for narrative logic was to work under).

I have no doubt that everybody got together around the writers' table on THE COLBYS, but Huson & Bast were given relative autonomy (which they've asserted) and that had to be true, because the spin-off, though flawed, never had the maddening flaws or unchanging creative rigidity that DYNASTY had year after year.

 

[Lotus Point Tundra Torque]

Doug Cramer bragged that DYNASTY had 40+ minutes of music per episode while DALLAS only had 20 minutes,

Hey there! Do you have any more information or sources for this? I'm working on a research project specifically about how orchestral scores were used in these shows, and this could be great information!

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Hey there! Do you have any more information or sources for this? I'm working on a research project specifically about how orchestral scores were used in these shows, and this could be great information!

Well, he talks about it somewhere in this mess of an interview:

 

[tommie]

I always read this thread title in the tone of SOAPs announcer - "These are the Tates..."

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

"These are the domineering Alpha-wives, Esther Shapiro and Eileen "Mike" Pollock, with their recessive husbands, Dick & Bob..."

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

A visual metaphor for what was happening (in front and behind the camera) to the show...

Only two years apart (and the same cinematographer) ... did the Pollocks sign off on this, or even demand it?

Did Joan not complain? Surely she didn't age that much between Season 5 and Season 8...!

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Why didn't they shoot their "'60s flashbacks" the way they filmed Joan on the right (above) because you can't tell how old she is there!

 

[Laurie Marr]

How interesting that Dallas veteran Marchetta had at least some influence over Season 5. I’m watching it now and I am currently on episode 9. So far I am finding it to have pace, more dialogue than I expected I have discovered to be actually rather good - and the Dominique plot at these early stages had a focus and hence some drama. Thomson is great and I was surprised by how likeable Oxenberg is. Coleman is dire, of course, but all in all I am enjoying the season very much.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

How interesting that Dallas veteran Marchetta had at least some influence over Season 5. I’m watching it now and I am currently on episode 9. So far I am finding it to have pace, more dialogue than I expected I have discovered to be actually rather good - and the Dominique plot at these early stages had a focus and hence some drama. Thomson is great and I was surprised by how likeable Oxenberg is. Coleman is dire, of course, but all in all I am enjoying the season very much.

Admittedly, though, the first four episodes of Season 5 -- when the Pollocks were there -- dragged and didn't work too well. It didn't pick up until the Pollocks returned. Perhaps Bob & Mike thought they had something to prove (their work in Season 2 and late-Season 6 proved they could do the job, but only under duress.)

 

[AndyB2008]

Joan apparently did think that -- and Paulsen admitted to it. But that didn't make much sense because Beacham didn't want to be there and was only contracted thru a prospective Season 10 (which she hoped there wouldn't be so she wouldn't have to do it).

Collins' contract was up and, obviously, she had a much larger salary than Beacham. But Stephanie didn't plan on sticking around any longer than she possibly had to, so why transfer all of Alexis' wealth, power and stature to Sable?

Maybe Beacham was worried about typecasting unlike Joan?

Certainly one of her next roles was in The Wolves of Willoughby Chase as a Sable-type character.

 

[tommie]

Maybe Beacham was worried about typecasting unlike Joan?

I think it's more the fact that she had essentially been laid off a year before, had started exploring other opportunities and then all of a sudden she's called back in to a show that was largely seen as being on its last legs. I could see why she was peeved, even if the money was nice and she liked the character.

 

[Daniel Avery]

If I remember correctly, one of her immediate post-Dynasty roles was the title role in a sitcom, Sister Kate, where she spent most of her time onscreen in a nun's habit. If that isn't trying to cast against type I don't know what is.

 

[Tony]

They were usually listed as "executive story consultant" or "creative consultant" or "senior creative consultant" from Season 2 thru Season 8, but they were the de facto showrunners of DYNASTY. Which is what they wanted. (They weren't involved in Season 9 at all).

The Pollocks co-created THE COLBYS, but William Bast & Paul Huson were told they could do anything they wanted -- which is undoubtedly the reason the spin-off was better than the two concurrent years of DYNASTY where the Pollocks continued their creative stranglehold.

Not that they were the sole culprits. This brief interview snippet with casting director extraordinaire, Pam Polifroni, describes what it was like working on LOVE BOAT and HOTEL with Doug Cramer (who once sneered that "nobody remembers" Pamela Sue Martin and Al Corley, while extoling the acting virtues of Jack Coleman):

Speaking of Dynasty casting, there are some one scene only casting of Handsome male actors in Dynasty with characters who are introduced that go nowhere.

I'm thinking of characters like 'Owen Bancroft' who Steven runs into in New York at the end of Season 4 who was an old college mate. A quick google shows he was played by Phil Coccioletti who makes a guest appearance in Hotel. I wonder also if Owen was supposed to fill the role that Luke did later in Season 5.

I know Doug Cramer was gay, and I'm wondering if these one off casting was his idea - he after all was the one who cast Maxwell Caulfield as Miles.

 

[Soaplover]

I view the Pollack's as someone you would hire to turnaround a show and give it a shot of excitement. However, once Dynasty was turned around by the end of season 2.. they needed to have exited stage right because someone can be good at turning around a show.. but not keeping it going in the right direction.