Like Sand Through an Hourglass: Behind the Scenes of DOOL

[teacake]

2 minutes ago, Petunia13 said:

MBE's husband IS a plastic surgeon. Who does very well for himself. They fell in love and married young. I think he actually likes her as she is and my observation is she also has good genes , so he's advised her against any work. If she's had any it's very subtle, since she looks as she always has. Just a teeny bit older. 

Yeah, she's said that he advised her not to have anything done. ( I do think she might have had a little botox or something over the last year or two, but no cutting.)  I remember Missy Reeves saying Frances Reid gave her the same advice, BTW, and she looks great too.

I understand why some choose to have more done, but there are real tradeoffs as an actor with expressiveness and just continuing to look like a human being. And some of the soap stars who have opted in haven't ended up more relevant than the ones who haven't.

[BlackMamba]

FS teases script for Dec 7th

[Apprentice79]

56 minutes ago, WendyCR72 said:

Which is a huge problem for this show. Because when things really suck, changing course takes forever to do which means lower viewership.

Other soaps tape about a month out. Days should give everyone a nice long break, then resume taping to be on a similar schedule.

Exactly. let's not forget that Dena is at the helm now...I shudder to think what that scary mind is cooking up for us for entertainment...I know that she has a co-headwriter, but, she is in control..Make no mistake about that...

[Rick Kitchen]

Jen Lilley on AfterBuzz's Dishin' Days.

 

[Rick Kitchen]

OMG, I didn't notice then when it was on, but the AfterBuzz hosts showed a clip of the marriage license Kate had to prove she was married to Deimos, and it said that the marriage was performed by "Father Elivs Pretzely" and one of the witnesses was "Mama Cilla".

[swtrgrl]

On 6/10/2016 at 4:21 PM, Petunia13 said:

MBE's husband IS a plastic surgeon. Who does very well for himself. They fell in love and married young. I think he actually likes her as she is and my observation is she also has good genes , so he's advised her against any work. If she's had any it's very subtle, since she looks as she always has. Just a teeny bit older. 

Nevermind. I misread that

Edited June 13, 2016 by swtrgrl
I'm dumb

[BlackMamba]

[Rick Kitchen]

AfterBuzz interview with Alison Sweeney

[Rick Kitchen]

VI on AfterBuzz today.  I don't know why there is such a long delay at the beginning of the video.

[DisneyBoy]

During Theresa...I mean Jen's AfterBuzz episode, she says she can't remember if she and Anne have a lot of fun stuff coming up.

A good response if she has to keep the secret of Anne's departure under wraps, or a sad indicator of how little Anne there actually is to look forward to...

[Polaris]

Tonight I visited one of those other boards and someone on there was saying what chemistry the baby playing Thomas had with Kate Mansi.  Am I missing something? I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone because that baby never seemed happy in 90% of his scenes with her.  

[boes]

35 minutes ago, Polaris said:

Tonight I visited one of those other boards and someone on there was saying what chemistry the baby playing Thomas had with Kate Mansi.  Am I missing something? I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone because that baby never seemed happy in 90% of his scenes with her.  

I guess that person views the lack of constant projectile vomiting as positive chemistry?

[BlackMamba]

Looks like a 

Spoiler

wedding ring for Kayla

[Rick Kitchen]

AfterBuzz interview with Deidre Hall.

They mentioned that today was her 40th anniversary on the show.

[LeftPhalange]

The Kate Mansi Interview – Days of our Lives Farewell

Quote

I was so afraid to look at my scenes the last few weeks.  I was looking at them at the very last minute the night before we would tape, and then I would put it away, and look at it that morning. 

Quote

 If I put my opinion on it, I think the fans felt with Billy and me as actors with our characters that it was never perfect and tied up in a bow.  It never lacked complexity.  There were always layers.  When Chad and Abby were at their highest highs, and so in love, there was also the depth we brought to those scenes of the tension, fear, and anxiety-provoking love we have for each other.  The stakes were so high knowing we were each other’s one great love.  I think both of us understood the real significance, and the power behind what the love story really was.  It just worked!

Quote

Did you have a hand in crafting the story of how the writers inevitably decided to tell Abigail’s exit story with her literally losing mind?

I can’t take full credit, but I had the idea originally when Josh Griffth (former co-head writer) and Dena Higley (present co-head writer) came on board to write the show.   I had mentioned my idea to them, and that if I were to tell a story about Abigail this is the way I would want to go

Quote

Abigail had gone through so much … almost being set on fire, the kidnapping of her newborn child, watching people she knew and love die, and being involved with her fiancée’ who turned out to be a serial killer, and I could go on!

Yes, and even before then! Like sleeping with Chad, and then he lies about his brain tumor, lying to Austin about having sex with him, or not having sex him.  This is a really disillusioned woman.

Quote

The episode where you turn the tables on Ben, and light him on fire, and are bouncing on the bed … that was an Emmy-worthy performance!

Quote

 I remember moments of taping it, and I remember reading the script for the first time going, “Holy s**t!   This is a new level of work ethic I am going to have to demand of myself.” 

Quote

Abby has realized Ben is never going to leave her.  The reason she checked herself in to begin with was that she was so afraid Ben was going to come get her, and that has caused her to completely loose her grip on reality.  But once she sees Ben in her final moments with him, she realizes the very triumphant power she has saying, “I’m going to embrace this.  I am going to go back to my family, and my son, and my husband, and know that we all have demons, but it’s how we choose to deal with them that makes, or breaks us.”  Abigail now has the confidence to know that she can live a life where she is a proud mother setting a good example for her son, and that she is capable of being a loving wife in her relationship, and all of these things even if Ben never leaves her.  

Quote

To Marci Miller, who is playing Abigail now, and whoever else should inhabit the role in the future, the character is the most interesting, complex, messy, wonderful parts of all of us

Quote

There was a part of me that felt about the story we were telling was that the reason that Abigail claws her way out of completely loosing her mind, and regains her sanity, and escapes the mental hospital, it’s all for her son.  She does all of that with Chad’s help 100%, but then when she says to her son, “Daddy got me home,” I thought it was a massive oversight of what it really was, which is that’s love!  It’s the two of them as parents saying to their child, “We fought for each other, for you.  We will do anything we can for you, and we’re here together … both of us, not just daddy, not just mommy, but both of us.”  

[boes]

12 minutes ago, LeftPhalange said:

The Kate Mansi Interview – Days of our Lives Farewell

Ahhh, so Kate Mansi is as delusional as her character.  

[DisneyBoy]

Whaaa.....?!?

Kate, you cray-cray.

 

In all seriousness, though, I am genuinely concerned for this woman. She has consistently given interviews where she says things that have nothing to do with the stories she's acting in. I'm still baffled by her description of EJ being a great love for Abby...but I can forgive it because maybe the writers were originally going in that direction and we didn't know of it.

But this? Saying Abby is almost triumphant returning to her son while she has a hallucination following her around that causes her to start fires...? Saying that she and Billy added layers of complexity to everything...? That their love made them anxious..?!

Her perspective on her work is truly bizarre. She seems as narcissistic and in her own bubble as she made her character seem. It is worrying and a bit sad.

But some actors are wonky, right? Whatever. Bye! And try to mature a bit and listen to yourself...

[BlackMamba]

KM is one self centered and self absorbed actress and person.    ???

"I take no credit but the writers came up with it"

Wow.   I blame her fans,  bloggers and overall media for telling her shes the greatest soap actress since Erika Slezak.  Least  the Emmy committee knew better not to nominate her for an Emmy.   A real shot to her ego!     

[Apprentice79]

You guys are on point with your comments about Kate Mansi, there is nothing more to add....I will just say that her fans on that other site, would hate us on here..lol It is those same fans that hate Theresa and Jenn Lilley....They are a weird bunch.....

[kitmerlot1213]

KM's interview was very difficult to read because she is so delusional regarding the scope of her character and to her own acting abilities.  She's the lead in two independent films where she's a crazy killer in both and she thinks she's playing against type?  Does she think it's against type because Abs only attempted to murder Ben?  What a twit!

I like that she mentions "getting to audition"--I guess she and her fans thought roles would just be offered to her because she's so talented.  How about no?  :):)

[buffynut]

13 minutes ago, Apprentice79 said:

You guys are on point with your comments about Kate Mansi, there is nothing more to add....I will just say that her fans on that other site, would hate us on here..lol It is those same fans that hate Theresa and Jenn Lilley....They are a weird bunch.....

I'm really glad when TWOP ceased to exist I stumbled across this site rather than the other one. I never saw Abigail's affair with EJ or Theresa try to kill John, so my opinions of them aren't based on those events. And yet, I disliked KM's Abigail. And liked JL's Theresa even when she was picking fights with Melanie and Nicole.

I'm really curious to see how the new actress plays Abigail, because KM never came across as warm or kind.

[LeftPhalange]

KM seems like she's desperate to defend Failure and I don't understand why. Even now, she's off the show and she's still saying things that aren't true in an attempt to make Failure seem more complex than she really is. 

[Polaris]

34 minutes ago, Apprentice79 said:

You guys are on point with your comments about Kate Mansi, there is nothing more to add....I will just say that her fans on that other site, would hate us on here..lol It is those same fans that hate Theresa and Jenn Lilley....They are a weird bunch.....

Weird is an understatement.  I need a translator to even understand what they're saying.  They can't punctuate or spell for the life of them.  You've also got to love how the mods delete anything that is even the slightest bit critical of an actor. Thank goodness for the freedom to express ourselves here.  I left the other board after a mod wouldn't tell me why my post was deleted.

Anyway, Kate makes no sense.  I really think she was mostly playing herself.  Abby had as much complexity as a peanut butter sandwich.

Edited June 25, 2016 by Polaris

[Apprentice79]

25 minutes ago, LeftPhalange said:

KM seems like she's desperate to defend Failure and I don't understand why. Even now, she's off the show and she's still saying things that aren't true in an attempt to make Failure seem more complex than she really is. 

I agree..Abigail being the daughter of Jack and granddaughter of Duke Johnson should have been a complex heroine or anti-heroine..The fact that Abigail never paid for her mistakes and always had people around her to prop her soured me on the character..Look at Sami, she always paid for her mistakes or Kim Brady who always had good intentions, but,made mistakes anyway, but, always paid for them...Abigail was a violent, selfish, nasty, self-righteous woman...Yet, she was touted by the show as a heroine..She was never that for me..

Everybody got in Sami's face for going after poor little Abigail for sleeping with her husband...Abigail made a mistake, but, she had to be woman enough to deal with the consequences of having an affair with a married man..Marlena suffered for betraying Roman with John..Why was  Abigail, a special snowflake..They even had Kayla defending Abigail indefensible actions..Sami for all her flaws was still a Brady and the Bradys always defended each other, no matter what...I still get pissed when I think about it and I am not even a Sami fan...

Edited June 25, 2016 by Apprentice79

[Apprentice79]

5 minutes ago, Polaris said:

Weird is an understatement.  I need a translator to even understand what they're saying.  They can't punctuate or spell for the life of them.  You've also got to love how the mods delete anything that is even the slightest bit critical of an actor. Thank goodness for the freedom to express ourselves here.  I left the other board after a mod wouldn't tell me why my post was deleted.

Anyway, Kate makes no sense.  I really think she was mostly playing herself.  Abby had as much complexity as a peanut butter sandwich.

I nearly spit out my coffee reading this little gem that I highlighted above..Perfect description of Abigail...

[teacake]

1 hour ago, Apprentice79 said:

You guys are on point with your comments about Kate Mansi, there is nothing more to add....I will just say that her fans on that other site, would hate us on here..lol It is those same fans that hate Theresa and Jenn Lilley....They are a weird bunch.....

I tend to like Abby more than Theresa, but I find the extreme hate for each to be a little odd.

That said I didn't love that exit interview from KM... all of that praise for the fantasy scene between her and BF on her last day, but there was nothing special or interesting about it.  And really I would say that about her whole exit story.  The Chabby story in the fall *worked,* but whatever happened in January with ChadBot derailed the story, and they never used RSW effectively in his returns to keep building the story forward.  The only thing about it that I really liked this week was the use of the fire motif... but the drama on Abby's last day about stealing another mental patient's Bible?  It could have been so much stronger.  And for some reason they refuse to really put up the Chabby relationship as part of the stakes, which (like not resolving Bo/Hope before Reckell left) I think is probably going to turn out to be a long term mistake for the show.

[Apprentice79]

12 minutes ago, lska said:

I tend to like Abby more than Theresa, but I find the extreme hate for each to be a little odd.

That said I didn't love that exit interview from KM... all of that praise for the fantasy scene between her and BF on her last day, but there was nothing special or interesting about it.  And really I would say that about her whole exit story.  The Chabby story in the fall *worked,* but whatever happened in January with ChadBot derailed the story, and they never used RSW effectively in his returns to keep building the story forward.  The only thing about it that I really liked this week was the use of the fire motif... but the drama on Abby's last day about stealing another mental patient's Bible?  It could have been so much stronger.  And for some reason they refuse to really put up the Chabby relationship as part of the stakes, which (like not resolving Bo/Hope before Reckell left) I think is probably going to turn out to be a long term mistake for the show.

I think that the reason that the Chabby storyline got derailed was because Josh wrote the story in the fall and then when Dena took over, she did the Chadbot storyline that did a disservice to their story as a whole..They should have had Abigail slowly lose her mind while simultaneously pushing Chad away....Or they could have had Ben run away with their baby leading to angst between Chabby..This is what the show did with Andrew in the Kim/Shane storyline..Emma had kidnapped Andrew after tricking Kim into giving up her rights to him...Not before switching the paternity test making Victor be his dad, adding Victor into an already tense situation between Kim and Shane...The writers back then knew how to write angst for the couples...

[Lisa418722]

I read the interview with KM and I think most everything has already been said by earlier comments.  There is a board I'm on where fanatics is a better description than KM "fans."

I've always wanted to like Abby. Look at her family history, both grandfathers are rapists as well as her father.  Mental illness on her mother's side. A brother who was an addict. Her grandmother was an abused wife who gave up her sons to help save their lives.  She's a Horton (very important family in Salem) as well as a Johnson (lower class family when they were introduced) and throwing in the entitled Devereaux name, which was politically connected (back in the 1980's). But unfortunately to me, KM never had the acting ability to be able to convey anything other than "this storyline is all about ME."  

I'm just hoping next year during the Emmy nominations people have forgotten all about her and we won't have to listen again to "KM deserved to be nominated. She's the best actress to ever have been on this show." "Erika Slezak, Susan Lucci, Kim Zimmer, none of them are as talented as KM."  I have huge hopes for Marci.  I want everyone to be saying a year from now, "Kate WHO???"  

Edited June 25, 2016 by Lisa418722

[Rick Kitchen]

I hope the delusional Kate Mansi fans don't destroy Marci just because she isn't KM.

[Petunia13]

Even though I don't like the character of Abigail and feel she should have been killed off or put on permanent hiatus, I am giving Marci a fair chance since she seems to have more of a range due to her stage experience and fans of KM are going to bash her. She does look older but she has a delicate prettiness that makes her look more like a Horton than KM. 

Speaking of How in the world is a woman who has been casually violent for years that has now escalated into attempted homicide, with pyromaniac tendencies and visual and auditory delusions, and a history of cheating and lying ... triumphant as she says and able to be good mom and wife in that state? That's it's ok but she can live with it? Without treatment or medication? 

Abby almost hurt her own son with her freak outs. 

And then that Abigail is all of the intersting and messy and wonderful parts of us. 

No. 

[BlackMamba]

[Rick Kitchen]

Huh.  Is Real Andrews back?

[DisneyBoy]

Who?

[Kitty Redstone]

I'd love for Real Andrews to be a permanent addition.

14 hours ago, Polaris said:

Anyway, Kate makes no sense.  I really think she was mostly playing herself.  Abby had as much complexity as a peanut butter sandwich.

LOL!  And she was as deep as a puddle.  I will not miss KM or her delusions one little bit.  While I wish DOOL would have killed Abigail dead, I'm also willing to give the replacement actor a chance.  Maybe she will be able to make the character all the things KM thought she brought to Abigail but utterly failed to do.

[annabel]

I remember seeing Real awhile back and being all "well HELLO Taggert", but cannot remember the context. Why was he there and would there be a reason for him to show up again?

[Petunia13]

He's joeys gf dad 

[boes]

6 hours ago, Kitty Redstone said:

LOL!  And she was as deep as a puddle.  I will not miss KM or her delusions one little bit.  While I wish DOOL would have killed Abigail dead, I'm also willing to give the replacement actor a chance.  Maybe she will be able to make the character all the things KM thought she brought to Abigail but utterly failed to do.

Precious Snowflake - to steal a term from a similar character on Y&R - might want to dial it back to the 'smile nicely and say only things like "I want to thank the fans" and "it was an honor to be associated" - stuff and walk slowly backwards away from the interviewer.  KM comes across as self-centered with grandiose delusions to an embarrassing extent in that interview.  Find me an Allison Sweeney interview from EVER with that tone and I'll eat Abby's hat.

So this snit of a person was contributing story ideas?  If this was true which I highly doubt, then, considering the banality of the story she's taking credit for, she should be hiding that fact, not trumpeting it.

Anyway, she's gone, jumping through a window at the worst mental care facility west of St. Anne's to wander the landscape like Smurfette looking for her people.

I'm looking forward to the new actress.  Hopefully she can humanize this character.  

[Petunia13]

I'm still amazed KM thinks right now after all that has happened the character represents all of us and we all have pieces of Abby in our personality.

I don't find Abby relatable at all. Her character did extremely outlandish and selfish things. This isn't really a show where you find quiet true to life characters that resonate with your own experiences and behavior anyhow. But I could be completely wrong, I never got my KM decoder ring I sent away for. 

[Lisa418722]

3 hours ago, boes said:

So this snit of a person was contributing story ideas?  If this was true which I highly doubt, then, considering the banality of the story she's taking credit for, she should be hiding that fact, not trumpeting it.

I remember reading something that MBE was able to change one line of script (I think it was a line) and she was thrilled to be able to do that (I guess because apparently the writers and directors don't believe the actors know their characters).   Then this one here is able to write her wedding vows and contribute to storylines. No wonder the show has gone so far downhill.  

[Rick Kitchen]

12 hours ago, DisneyBoy said:

Who?

He was a regular on GH, and he was on one episode of Days as Jade's father.

[LeftPhalange]

Ratings: New Low For DAYS

[ByaNose]

So in the Kate Mansi interview she basically said she created Abby but didn't. She basically created the storyline for Abby, Ben & Chad but didn't. She wrote the final lines for Abby but didn't. Yup! She is on the delusional or has a case of revisionist history. Also, I didn't get the mask. It was on and it was off with no burns. It seemed like the normal write off for a character being replaced but then she climbed out the window without the mask. It.made.no.sense.at.all.

[boes]

7 hours ago, LeftPhalange said:

Ratings: New Low For DAYS

The show isn't dying, it's being murdered.

[Apprentice79]

9 hours ago, boes said:

The show isn't dying, it's being murdered.

By Ken Corday.. Taping the show six months in advance is killing the show..The show has no way to deal with audience feedback and act accordingly...

[SanDiegoInExile]

The taping schedule is not killing the show.  The poor execution of weak storylines is hurting the show.  The Josh Griffith format of storytelling has been a major bust and changes have already been put in place. If the quality we saw in November 2015 was still being seen, no one would give a hoot about the taping schedule.

Meanwhile 2M sets of eyeballs tune in, using a Nielsen metric designed in the last millenium.  And the mystery DVR +7 ratings are likely strong enough. NBC has tanked in all dayparts, including May Sweeps.  NBC is already looking forward to the Olympics. And DOOl will be under new direction once those end. (And I bet daytime viewership of the Olympics will not blow anyone away either, unless teams start getting Zyka and keeling over).  

[LeftPhalange]

5 hours ago, SanDiegoInExile said:

The taping schedule is not killing the show.  The poor execution of weak storylines is hurting the show.  The Josh Griffith format of storytelling has been a major bust and changes have already been put in place. If the quality we saw in November 2015 was still being seen, no one would give a hoot about the taping schedule.

The taping schedule is absolutely hurting the show. Even if the writers find a clue and decide to end or alter one of their garbage stories the changes won't show up on screen for six months, which feels like an eternity. And the majority of the audience isn't on message boards so they probably have no clue about how far in advanced the show is filmed, which means they're more likely to give up watching when they're unhappy because they have no hope of things getting better. 

[TigerLynx]

On 6/27/2016 at 11:57 AM, boes said:

The show isn't dying, it's being murdered.

I'm still laughing days later at this statement.  It's so true.

I blame Ken Corday.  The show keeps changing out writers, and it still ends up back in the same place with horrible boring SLs.

[Rick Kitchen]

Ken Corday will be receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame next year.

[Kitty Redstone]

Was the quality that great in November 2015?  I don't remember.  What I do remember is that Will Horton was stupidly and short-sightedly killed off and then forgotten, that there were hours and hours of the horrible Kate Mansi, and that an interesting, believable couple was destroyed to accommodate Peter Reckell coming back for five minutes. 

Seeing what's happened to Hope since then, I'd be pretty aggravated if I was Kristian Alfonso.  PR got other love interests when KA wasn't around, but she was basically ignored for what, two years, after he left.  Then she finally gets a good story with a man other than Bo and it was all taken away.  Hope was turned into a cold-blooded murderer, barely interacts with her children or grandchild (or anyone else for that matter) and is generally a mess.  She was paired with Rafe, which was almost as big of a mistake as making Aiden a Dimera stooge, and now is back with Aiden trying to hopelessly salvage a relationship with the father of her daughter's rapist.  Her character has been brought very low.

[Apprentice79]

22 minutes ago, Kitty Redstone said:

Was the quality that great in November 2015?  I don't remember.  What I do remember is that Will Horton was stupidly and short-sightedly killed off and then forgotten, that there were hours and hours of the horrible Kate Mansi, and that an interesting, believable couple was destroyed to accommodate Peter Reckell coming back for five minutes. 

Seeing what's happened to Hope since then, I'd be pretty aggravated if I was Kristian Alfonso.  PR got other love interests when KA wasn't around, but she was basically ignored for what, two years, after he left.  Then she finally gets a good story with a man other than Bo and it was all taken away.  Hope was turned into a cold-blooded murderer, barely interacts with her children or grandchild (or anyone else for that matter) and is generally a mess.  She was paired with Rafe, which was almost as big of a mistake as making Aiden a Dimera stooge, and now is back with Aiden trying to hopelessly salvage a relationship with the father of her daughter's rapist.  Her character has been brought very low.

I love your post and it is perfect when it comes to Hope and her characterization...I don't know what Josh Griffith was smoking when he turned Hope into a murderer...Hope should be struggling with what she did...Not because of Stefano, he and the rest of the Dimeras are POS, but, with compromising her principles..She has been acting like a school girl with her first crush, taking selfies with Rafe....Unbelievable...