Oh Boy, Serious DSFMS

[Patti Feinberg]

I'd mentioned about a month ago, that I'd skipped over the whole disc(s) with Jason McGuire, Maggie/Josette...just wanted to get closer to Barn then 1795.

I really thought Harry Johnson was on during these; I thought he was a co-hort of either Willie or Jason.

So, now, after Dr. Lang's around, Mrs. Johnson asks Liz if her son can come to visit.

!!!

Then, Vicki screaming at him (thinking he's Noah Gifford)!


I can't believe I had such a faulty memory. Did he play someone else during the Josette/Maggie and J. Mc?

BTW, Vicki's looking lovely in a light orchid colored dress in this ep.

Patti

[Gothick]

Hi Patti, no, what you are seeing is the introduction of Harry.  I really like his scene with Mrs J when he shows up.  Once the storyline revolving around 1968, "that year of insanity," really got going, there was very little time or opportunity for scenes that were character focused such as this.  Occasionally they would do them--there were a couple of good Maggie and Joe scenes during the Nicholas Blair period which is a few months away from where you are now.

Happy viewing,

G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I know for sure that Dennis Patrick and Craig Slocum were never on the show at the same time. Karlen and Slocum were on at the same time for parts of '68, but I don't think Willie and Harry ever crossed paths. In fact, I don't believe they ever appeared in the same episode. And while Willie continued right though the tail end of The Werewolf/Quentin's Ghost period, by then Slocum had disappeared from the show and Harry had briefly been played by Edward Marshall.

We've mentioned this before, but we can thank DC's wife Norma for Slocum's appearance on DS because apparently she saw him in a play and told DC that he should put Slocum on the show - and soon thereafter Nathan Forbes had his Noah Gifford lackey. It's never been said, though, if Gifford had been a planned character or if the character was created for Slocum...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

In fact, I don't believe they ever appeared in the same episode.

Even though it's hardly a definitive source, I checked the DS Program Guide and it doesn't appear as if they ever did. And actually, that's too bad because, given each character's criminal background, it might have been fascinating to see them size up each other. But no... Willie was too busy working on and dealing with the aftermaths of the experiments - and Harry was too busy spying in the West Wing and eventually becoming under Nicholas' thumb - and then they were both pretty much reduced to being day players during The Werewolf/Quentin's Ghost period.

[michael c]

in 1795 we saw Vicki express 'shock' when she first encountered each new character that resembled someone she knew in "the present". in 1968 we saw the reverse. when the 1795 actors first appeared in their new guise she had the same reaction. the introductory scenes were written for momentary "shock value".

and indeed Harry was first introduced as an early-Willie-Loomis type figure. a sleazebag. a con artist. a  drifter.

but the character was dead on arrival. as the "monster of the week" format began to take root in early 68 ordinary lowlifes were passe and Harry was instantly obsolete. he drifted around the periphery for a few months before fading into oblivion without explanation never to be mentioned again.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

but the character was dead on arrival. as the "monster of the week" format began to take root in early 68 ordinary lowlifes were passe and Harry was instantly obsolete. he drifted around the periphery for a few months before fading into oblivion without explanation never to be mentioned again.

I've often wondered if the reason so much time passed between the introduction of Harry to the time they actually started using him in the Adam storyline was because Craig Slocum got some other type of job in the interim or, after introducing him, they had no idea what to do with him? Though I suppose it's also possible that whatever they might have originally intended to do with him got scrapped, like the whole Vicki/Burke/Seaview storyline in late-'67 did once they decided to do 1795...

[michael c]

like i said i think a big part of Harry's introduction was just so Vicki would register "shock" when she first saw him. being that she wasted his 1795 counterpart. beyond that i don't know if there was ever some larger story outline...

and like with Tony Peterson, who similarly ran afoul with the new tempo in 68, the character quickly outlived their usefulness. aside from the immediate Collins family an ever changing cast of monsters became the name of the game.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Well, The DS Companion doesn't have a chapter entitled "That year of insanity: 1968" for nothing! 

[michael c]

my least favorite period by far.

[Gerard]

It was an attempt to keep on an actor who played a character and reintroduce him as another character.  The writers and producers didn't know what to do with him.  He left.  Nothing more.

Gerard

[Uncle Roger]

Harry Johnson never caught on as a character, so despite an endorsement from Mrs. Curtis, there was little incentive to keep him on and develop a storyline for him. His only real tie to anyone was his mother and after 1897, we see very little of Mrs. Johnson anyway. Aside from his professed #1 fan who used to post here, I don't think that Slocum was missed that much.
Post DS, his TV appearances were minimal. Just The Adams Chronicles and Ryan's Hope, both shows that had DS ties.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I have The Adams Chronicles on DVD and don't even remember Craig Slocum being in it. I guess he made that much of an impression on me.    Though I do recall him being on Ryan's Hope, and wasn't he part of a group of friends of Jack Finelli? I wonder if Lela Swift, who directed many eps of RH, got Slocum that job?

[Uncle Roger]

I didn't watch Ryan's Hope on a regular basis, so I'm not sure what character that Slocum played, though your description sounds correct, MB. I don't think that he worked with Ilene Kristen or I'd ask her about him. Lela Swift probably did help him land the job. I wouldn't be surprised if Robert Costello or Sam Hall helped him get the job on The Adams Chronicles.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I was die hard RH fan and I watched it from day one right up until the last ep without missing it too often. I became a big fan of Kate Mulgrew based on her work on that show and continue to be a big fan of hers. As for Ilene Kristen, she was by far the best Delia. And I was thrilled when Nancy Barrett joined the show and was disappointed when that didn't work out. And who knew at the time that she was a Carolyn Stoddard in the making when Barbara Blackburn was on the show?

I could go on and on - but it would get way off topic more than some of the above already has...