I hope in the future he does the soliloquy from Richard III just before the final battle when he recounts a dream about all of his victims shouting after him- I remember he did it years ago for public TV and he was fantastic!

Lately I've been thinking of what has led DS to be the phenomenon it is today, and it seems that several key decisions have helped to keep DS alive.  They range from Dan Curtis agreeing to his wife Norma's advice to turn his odd dream about 'a girl on a train' into a TV show (1965) to a group of DS fans led by Kathy Resch and Marcy Robin creating the first DS convention (1977). 

 Personally, I feel that the decision with the deepest impact is Curtis' decision to keep the master recordings of each episode.  Well, we wouldn't be here in such large numbers today if those master tapes were erased back then.  Due to the expensive cost of videotape back then, the rule regarding most soaps in the 1960s and 70s was to reuse the tapes after a few weks or months, which is the sad reason why there aren't many original B/W or color tapes of soap episodes from those decades.  There are exceptrions (Days of our Lives and The Young and the Restless were produced by Columbia Pictures/Soiny Televison, and Ryan's Hope was owned by Labine-Mayer Prods. from 1975-81), but most soaps didn't start saving tapes until the late 70s.

Without those original DS tapes, there would only be kinescopes of most episodes in the vaults until ABC stopped making them in late 1970.  (BTW, that's the situation with ABC's own collection of pre-1978 General Hospital episodes).  Fandom would be limited at best, and there would only be a few websites saluting the show (as in the cae of Love of Life, Somerset and other soaps of the period). 

On the other hand, what would've happened if someone else had been hired to play Barnabas, if Art Wallace hadn't been hired to create a story for the new show, if Grayson Hall had taken that shower instead of answering her phone that fateful day in mid-'67, or if Dan hadn't been urged on by his daughters to go full-tilt with the supernatural elements of the show!

So, come on and tell us what was the most important decision in DS history.  Choose from the above, or tell us your own  opinion.

Regarding Jerry Lacy's Comedy Tonight appearance- that wasn't Diana Canova but Judy Graubart, best known for The Electric Company, where she worked with Denise Nickerson post-DS.  Jerry himself confirmed it at the banquet last Sunday- his table was next to mine (actually we were back to back, and I had the delightful Kathryn Leigh  Scott as a table compaion, but that's another story.....).

Just as long as there's a Julia Hoffman figure as well! (And Angelique as well)

Oh, Joeytrom, I wish you had introduced yourself to me!  I'm always willing to talk to fellow DS fans!  I finally got to meet PennyDreadful, CyrusL and BuzzH, among others. 

Oops- the place is called Entertainment Outlet, and yes, I got the Gidget set for $2.99 today- if you go there to buy it this weekend, the set would be marked $4.99, but the discount is taken off at the register.

I'd recommend the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and for the best home video/electronics values in NYC do stop by one of my favorite haunts, J&R Music World, located downtown on Park Row, across the street from City Hall Park! And yes, they have DS DVDs there for sale!  You can also get good deals on DVD at Entertainment Warehouse- one is at 6th Avenue & 14th Street (take the numbered 1-6 trains, also the M6 bus), the other is at West 40th Street near 5th Avenue- across the street from Bryant Park.  BTW, this week they're selling the DVD set of the first three Gidget films for only $2.99, so you know I've gotta get there today!   BuzzH, enjoy yourself, and don't forget to introduce yourself to me in BKlyn- ciao!