GL’s Long Good-Bye
In the 5/19 issue of Digest, we tracked down GL alumni who shared their favorite memories from the show and their reactions to the cancelation news. The responses were overwhelming. Here are portions of the interviews that didn’t make it into the magazine.
Harley Jane Kozak (ex-Annabelle)
Welcome Wagon: “My very early days on the show, I was so excited to be there. I loved my storyline and I appeared as this mysterious woman and Tony Reardon kept seeing her places in like a trench coat and there was a very noir quality to it. Every time he saw me, they’d play ‘It Had to Be You’ and it’d always be a different version every time Annabelle showed up. For the first couple of weeks of my work, there was such a mystery quality to it. It was so romantic and a cool way to be introduced [to the show].”
Favorite Character: “I have such a deep nostalgia for all my friends from the show. My favorite character — all my good friends who are still on the show like Jordan Clarke [Billy] and Kim Zimmer [Reva] and Robert Newman [Josh] notwithstanding — was the character of Harley. I just loved her! I was a complete fan. If I saw Beth Ehlers [ex-Harley] on the street, I’m sure I’d run up to her and say, ‘Oh my God, I love you!’ like I’d never been on TV in my life [laughs]!”
GL Ties: “My best friend, and I’m godmother to her oldest son, is Carolyn Clark who played Lesley Ann. We spend a lot of time together and all of our kids are friends with each other.”
Most Memorable Storyline: “My favorite moment ever on GL was when Lesley Ann died from the disease of the Dreaming Death. When she died, instead of the usual closing segment, her character was in a hospital gown and she danced into the light. I get choked up just thinking about it.”
Dream Finale: “There’s got to be something about going toward the light. It’s a little cheesy, but I think if done well, there won’t be a dry eye in the house! SIX FEET UNDER had that sort of supernatural thing that leads you to believe that these characters aren’t gone, they’re just in another parallel universe, over the rainbow.”
Krista Tesreau (ex-Mindy)
Favorite Memories: “Mindy’s wedding to Kurt. I’ll never forget how they went all out for that wedding. It was like a princess in a fairy tale that had come true. I remember that day showing up on set and seeing these white horses and doves and the carriage and thinking, ‘They’re doing all this for me?!’ I was vicariously living through Mindy myself. That dress, I’m told, ended up in the Smithsonian Institute for a while, touted as one of the most expensive daytime dresses of all time. In the eighties they spent so much money! It was this imported French lace and the train was to die for and so many parts of it were hand made. That whole storyline was great. And of course the Central Park scenes [with the Four Musketeers]. We had so much fun and I was freezing cold so they gave me these white long johns to go under my skirt and a long coat. I started running and in the middle of the scene and the coat opened and you could see them sticking out of my skirt! It’s just those little moments that I’ll never forget.”
Jay Hammer (ex-Fletcher)
Those Were The Days: “I loved being on GUIDING LIGHT and I loved being Fletcher. He was like a member of my family, like a brother to me. I got up every morning looking forward to visiting Fletcher. For 15 years, I had a wonderful time and had a great experience and met wonderful people. I was one of those actors who was never bored, got tired or cranky or whined about what I was doing. I really care about that mode of storytelling. Soaps perform a public service. They addressed what breast cancer was before any other form of show business and ovarian cancer and and a lot of other things.”
Memory Lane: “One of my favorites is, of course, when GL became number one. I believe it was the summer of ’83. It was the first show in I think nine years to supplant GENERAL HOSPITAL and we were only number one for two weeks but nobody else had done that! That was a big high. Everybody who was on the show at that time — writers, crew and techs and makeup and wardrobe and set designers — it was a big thrill for everybody. Another was more of the opportunities some of us had, like I did working with Beverlee [McKinsey, ex-Alex] when Alex and Fletcher crash landed on the desert island for a couple of weeks together. Beverlee and I had known each other for a few years, but it really cemented a deep and lasting affection and friendship between the two of us that lasted until her death.”
Final Farewell: “The ideal sendoff, in the best of all possible GL worlds, would be to have as many actors from the past appear at a Bauer barbecue and give each one five seconds on camera and end with everybody staring up into the sky at fireworks and then have the fireworks blend into the lighthouse flashing. I don’t know if they have time or effort to dig into the archives and tapes for Charita and Papa Bauer but if they would just flash the past greats from the show [on-screen], they could use up the entire hour that way and probably get stupendous ratings. I remember when TEXAS was going off the air and the ratings were still going up because the show was so tight and written so well. When you deliver the product, people will come.”
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