Was There Ever A Soap Opera Death That Shocked Or Upset You??? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Brian Damage · 05-30-2011, 01:54 PM

For soap fans, was there ever a character's death that was upsetting to you or even shocking? It could be either daytime or nighttime soaps.

Retro4Life · 05-30-2011, 02:39 PM

Most of the deaths that occurred from the 80's on in the night time soaps were kind of telegraphed by TV Guide or other media. And a LOT of them were negated when the character later showed up alive somehow, lol.

I think that Sid Fairgate's on Knots Landing death was shocking; I liked the character and somehow the show managed to keep it a secret (though it was 1981, so the media wasn't as good at spoiling things back then). Likewise the death of Joshua Rush in 1984 on the same show shocked me, though in that case the character had become a real rat and deserved to die.

In the 70's the death of Dan Stewart on ATWT was shocking and heart rending. He had a fatal disease and there was no last minute cure; he just passed away.

I'm sure there are others but those are the ones that come immediately to mind.

catlover79 · 05-30-2011, 06:15 PM

Mine is that of Joe Perkins, an original character, on Santa Barbara. The first actor to play the role, Dane Witherspoon, was so upset about the fact that his character was going to be killed off that he wound up being fired by the show's creators, Bridget and Jerome Dobson, in October 1984. They had to scramble to recast the character to play out the rest of the story and hired Mark Arnold, who was already known to soap audiences from The Edge of Night.

Under Arnold's watch, Joe Perkins lasted another 4 or so months before getting killed. I can't envy the actor the circumstances he walked into. Mark Arnold was an 11th hour recast and so had to memorize much more dialogue than usual coming in. He was taking over a role that Witherspoon had originated just three months earlier, and he was going to be doing love scenes with Witherspoon's off-screen girlfriend, Robin Wright (Kelly Capwell). Joe and Kelly were the star-crossed lovers at the outset, before Marcy Walker and A Martinez as Eden and Cruz became the show's supercouple.

If Witherspoon had stayed on, I wonder if his subsequent marriage to Wright would have lasted longer than 2 years (they met in 1984 while auditioning for SB, wed in 1986 and divorced in 1988). I wonder if Eden and Cruz would've been as huge because the Wright/Witherspoon chemistry was off the charts (not to take anything away from the Walker/Martinez dynamic, which was also incredible).

In any case, I think the Dobsons made a major gaffe in firing Witherspoon - one of the few major mistakes they made in their soap career. He had kind of an Everyman, hard-working quality to him. People could root for him. These days, Dane Witherspoon isn't even in show biz anymore, and hasn't been for years. Last I heard, he was an independent businessman based in Denver. Robin Wright, of course, hit big with The Princess Bride and has never looked back.

Here are Wright/Witherspoon in character (and don't let the subtitles throw you - these clips are spoken in English):

McGillicuddy · 05-30-2011, 07:02 PM

Kimberly - Melrose Place

Sydney - Melrose Place

Baby Grace and Little Zak on Days of our Lives

old grouch · 05-31-2011, 10:03 AM

Maureen-'Guiding Light'

Bobby-'Dallas' (although it was only a dream)

catlover79 · 05-31-2011, 01:12 PM

Ironically, after Maureen Bauer was killed off, Ellen Parker won the 1993 Best Supporting Actress Emmy!!

MickeyMac · 05-31-2011, 06:14 PM

I totally remembered when Maureen did. I had no idea that GL had fired her (big mistake). I remember that day my grandma told me to be sure to watch GL that day. It was quite a shock to say the least.

Mr. Television · 05-31-2011, 07:20 PM

Killing Maureen on GL was a big mistake. Killing off Nadine a few years later was stupid too.

cablejockey · 06-04-2011, 09:35 AM

I remember being shocked that Jenny Gardner was killed on All MY Children back in the 80s! I don't think anyone saw it coming--no message boards back then to get the spoilers from. I think all we had was the soap magazines and they weren't going to say too much

Retro4Life · 06-04-2011, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stuck In The '70's

Killing Maureen on GL was a big mistake. Killing off Nadine a few years later was stupid too.

Nadine died, huh? Damn, I AM behind!

Mr. Television · 06-04-2011, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Retro4Life

Nadine died, huh? Damn, I AM behind!

Yea she was murdered by that psycho Brent Lawrence. He's the one that dressed up as a woman to stalk Lucy Cooper. I enjoyed his performance, But killing off one of GL's best characters was a mistake.

Retro4Life · 06-04-2011, 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stuck In The '70's

Yea she was murdered by that psycho Brent Lawrence. He's the one that dressed up as a woman to stalk Lucy Cooper. I enjoyed his performance, But killing off one of GL's best characters was a mistake.

Thanks. I vaguely remember that character. Always liked Lucy, too. I know she was intended to be a "Harley substitute" but I always found her spunky and vulnerable, and cute, to be honest, lol. Hated it when they paired her up with that rat, Alan Michael.

McGillicuddy · 06-04-2011, 03:28 PM

Do characters who die, (because they're axed from the show), but sometime later some how come back to life (when the actor returns to the show) count? Because that's often the case.

(i.e. Bobby from Dallas)

Brian Damage · 06-04-2011, 03:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by markway895

Do characters who die, (because they're axed from the show), but sometime later some how come back to life (when the actor returns to the show) count? Because that's often the case.

(i.e. Bobby from Dallas)

Sure!

Brian Damage · 06-04-2011, 03:42 PM

I was shocked when they killed off Roman Brady back in the mid 80's. He was stabbed by Stefano and then fell off a cliff and yet.....still returned from the dead somehow.

05-30-2011, 01:54 PM	#1
Brian Damage I'm Rich Bitch Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 03, 2002 Location: What Ain't No Country I Ever Heard Of...They Speak English in What? Posts: 63,108	Was There Ever A Soap Opera Death That Shocked Or Upset You??? For soap fans, was there ever a character's death that was upsetting to you or even shocking? It could be either daytime or nighttime soaps.
	__________________ The Key to the Kingdom of Heaven: John 3:3 *Money Doesn't Buy Happiness...But I'd Rather Cry in My Private Jet*

05-30-2011, 02:39 PM	#2
Retro4Life Accept No Substitutes Forum Veteran Join Date: Feb 04, 2009 Location: IL Posts: 6,706	Most of the deaths that occurred from the 80's on in the night time soaps were kind of telegraphed by TV Guide or other media. And a LOT of them were negated when the character later showed up alive somehow, lol. I think that Sid Fairgate's on Knots Landing death was shocking; I liked the character and somehow the show managed to keep it a secret (though it was 1981, so the media wasn't as good at spoiling things back then). Likewise the death of Joshua Rush in 1984 on the same show shocked me, though in that case the character had become a real rat and deserved to die. In the 70's the death of Dan Stewart on ATWT was shocking and heart rending. He had a fatal disease and there was no last minute cure; he just passed away. I'm sure there are others but those are the ones that come immediately to mind.
	__________________ Alex Reiger :[Trying to convince Louie not to antagonize Bobby] "It's not hard to make people feel bad about their lives. What's hard is making people feel good about their lives."

05-30-2011, 06:15 PM	#3
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,376	Mine is that of Joe Perkins, an original character, on Santa Barbara. The first actor to play the role, Dane Witherspoon, was so upset about the fact that his character was going to be killed off that he wound up being fired by the show's creators, Bridget and Jerome Dobson, in October 1984. They had to scramble to recast the character to play out the rest of the story and hired Mark Arnold, who was already known to soap audiences from The Edge of Night. Under Arnold's watch, Joe Perkins lasted another 4 or so months before getting killed. I can't envy the actor the circumstances he walked into. Mark Arnold was an 11th hour recast and so had to memorize much more dialogue than usual coming in. He was taking over a role that Witherspoon had originated just three months earlier, and he was going to be doing love scenes with Witherspoon's off-screen girlfriend, Robin Wright (Kelly Capwell). Joe and Kelly were the star-crossed lovers at the outset, before Marcy Walker and A Martinez as Eden and Cruz became the show's supercouple. If Witherspoon had stayed on, I wonder if his subsequent marriage to Wright would have lasted longer than 2 years (they met in 1984 while auditioning for SB, wed in 1986 and divorced in 1988). I wonder if Eden and Cruz would've been as huge because the Wright/Witherspoon chemistry was off the charts (not to take anything away from the Walker/Martinez dynamic, which was also incredible). In any case, I think the Dobsons made a major gaffe in firing Witherspoon - one of the few major mistakes they made in their soap career. He had kind of an Everyman, hard-working quality to him. People could root for him. These days, Dane Witherspoon isn't even in show biz anymore, and hasn't been for years. Last I heard, he was an independent businessman based in Denver. Robin Wright, of course, hit big with The Princess Bride and has never looked back. Here are Wright/Witherspoon in character (and don't let the subtitles throw you - these clips are spoken in English):
	__________________ "Jesus loves you and He approves this message." "I'm alive. I'm feeling good. I'm trying to live every moment as much as I can." - Valerie Harper, March 2013

05-31-2011, 07:20 PM	#8
Mr. Television 22 Years at Sitcoms Online Forum Icon Join Date: Jun 06, 2003 Location: Somewhere you're Not Posts: 62,125	Killing Maureen on GL was a big mistake. Killing off Nadine a few years later was stupid too.
	__________________ Sonny

05-30-2011, 07:02 PM	#4
McGillicuddy Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Sep 28, 2002 Posts: 5,179	Kimberly - Melrose Place Sydney - Melrose Place Baby Grace and Little Zak on Days of our Lives

05-31-2011, 10:03 AM	#5
old grouch Member Senior Member Join Date: May 13, 2010 Location: montana Posts: 1,877	Maureen-'Guiding Light' Bobby-'Dallas' (although it was only a dream)

05-31-2011, 01:12 PM	#6
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,376	Ironically, after Maureen Bauer was killed off, Ellen Parker won the 1993 Best Supporting Actress Emmy!!

05-31-2011, 06:14 PM	#7
MickeyMac Member Forum Star Join Date: Jun 18, 2008 Location: Kalamazoo, Michigan Posts: 19,004	I totally remembered when Maureen did. I had no idea that GL had fired her (big mistake). I remember that day my grandma told me to be sure to watch GL that day. It was quite a shock to say the least.

06-04-2011, 09:35 AM	#9
cablejockey Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Dec 29, 2001 Location: ontario canada Posts: 478	I remember being shocked that Jenny Gardner was killed on All MY Children back in the 80s! I don't think anyone saw it coming--no message boards back then to get the spoilers from. I think all we had was the soap magazines and they weren't going to say too much

06-04-2011, 03:28 PM	#13
McGillicuddy Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Sep 28, 2002 Posts: 5,179	Do characters who die, (because they're axed from the show), but sometime later some how come back to life (when the actor returns to the show) count? Because that's often the case. (i.e. Bobby from Dallas)

06-04-2011, 03:42 PM	#15
Brian Damage I'm Rich Bitch Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 03, 2002 Location: What Ain't No Country I Ever Heard Of...They Speak English in What? Posts: 63,108	I was shocked when they killed off Roman Brady back in the mid 80's. He was stabbed by Stefano and then fell off a cliff and yet.....still returned from the dead somehow.