Hi Joey, well, I remember Diana saying she was going to tell a story on Sunday about the night she spent at Lyndhurst (for some reason, she wound up sleeping there--not sure why, or how).  Unfortunately I had to miss her appearance on Sunday.

I think she does remember some things from working on DS--just nothing to do with the plot.  Most of the actors don't remember any of the plots.  Even Lara Parker, who writes DS novels (and is almost finished a new one) couldn't remember answers to plot related questions lobbed at her by some of the fans.

I well remember a good friend of mine asking Lara what she thought of her time playing Cassandra. She gave him a blank look and said, emphatically, that she had no memory of playing anyone by that name!

I only tell this because Lara has actually watched some of the shows and done work on the storylines for her novels.  You can imagine how much less the other actors, who don't write DS fiction, would remember about the actual stories.

Another memory is of David Selby and John Karlen appearing on stage together a few years back in NYC.  Someone at the Festival had made a showcase video that was a string of clips of the two actors as Desmond and Quentin from the 1840 story.  Both of them were very impressed by this, and they both made remarks indicating that it was the first time they had seen these shows since 1970!  Selby kept talking about how good the show looked and how well all of it played.  I think it made him realize that there is a reason why some of us still enjoy watching these old tapes.

G.

A few points...

I think KLS underestimates how good she was in her early DS storylines.  I thought she was wonderful, especially in the Joe courtship storyline, and she really held her own when Maggie has to visit Collinwood for the first time to deal with the flack from "Pop's" dealings with the Collinses.  So many wonderful scenes here... I also thought she was excellent in the early Kitty scenes.

That said, I thought Vestoff was so good as Samantha, and I thought it was better to have a new actress to play the role because that way the writers did not have any subtextual stuff from all the previous work KLS had done on the series.  If KLS had stayed, and if she had played Samantha, I am sure she would have done fine, memorable work in the role.  However, by the time the actual scripts were written, KLS was gone.

There's a wonderful photo essay showing a typical day in Vestoff's working life in 1970 in Stuart Little's book, Off Broadway:  the Prophetic Theatre.

G.

Happy birthday!

I always get such a kick out of your knowledgable, fascinating posts.  Hope you have a day as special as you are!

Steve

I'm printing the story to read now.  It sounds interesting.  I never watched Beretta and never know Lara had a guest spot on the series.

I personally enjoyed Angelique's Descent, particularly the earlier chapters.  As with Wicked, I think there are weaknesses in the denouement prescribed by the source material for this character--I find both Angelique and Elphaba shrill simulacra of the characters established earlier in their respective stories in those final chapters.  I guess I am a more fastidious reader than is called for by the times in which we live, though (and being old and cranky, I suffer fools with less and less grace).

People point out glaring inconsistencies in how Angelique tells the events of 1795 in the novel; but, given what the series writers did to the original narrative in the later years of the show, I find myself more forgiving about her, um, 'interpretations" of the facts as we see them in her own book.

btw, the picture of Pan on the front page of this site is from the Cosmic Tribe Tarot deck--it's one of my favorite tarot decks, and you can see the other images at http://www.stevee.com  There is *a lot* of frontal nudity (male and female) on the cards--I guess I should warn people who have issues with the human body about that?

cheers, Gothick

Well hey--Happy Birthday!

I raise a toast to your most cordial returns from the bar at Thorne's.

astrally,

Steve

Wow!  I'm ba-ack from a 10 day vay-kay (yes, tis true--the DNC drove me out of town--though I had actually planned the trip months ago).  Thank you all very much for your hearty, generous wishes!  On my birthday, I was at an idyllic farm in Ontario.  We had wonderful weather and I cooked a lasagna dinner, with chocolate cake for dessert, for a lovely group of people I adore.  It's a Philippine custom to cook dinner for your friends on your b-day--I'm not Filipino but I have fun with this custom on certain years... I ended the evening with a romantic, HOT (in EVERY sense of the word) wood sauna with my hunky boyfriend... mmmrrrrrowrrrr... (happy contended purring from Gothick).

While we were playing, I did hear an odd, echoing SHRIEK of indignation coming from far, far away... and I wondered just what it was--a wet kitty in a state of barely contained fury???  And now, looking at Connie's GENIUS artwork, I know who was haranguing me--Miss Judith Fellows, Chaperone Extraordinaire!

I'll make sure there's nothing sharp and pointed in reach on my next visit to tea with Our Judith!

Heather, you should write the Judith/Pepe story!  I LOVE IT!!!

And I want to see it SOON... you know what I mean, Missy... DON'T MAKE ME TAKE STEPS...

cackling yet again with delight,  Steve

Hey Jennifer!

Me in the shower with Don--I drop the bar of soap, yell "oopsie!" in a high squeal, and turn around and bend down very s-l-o-w-l-y to pick it up.

Evil cackles,

Steve the Incorrigible