Marland Monday: Where He Goes They Follow, They Follow, They Follow
Hark! It is Monday! So that means it’s…
Marland Monday!
Yes cats and kittens, Mondays is when I pay tribute to Douglas Marland, considered one of the GOATS in the soap opera writing world. Today we’re going to look at some of the actors who put their actions, feelings, and faces to Marland’s words.
If you’re writing/directing in the performing arts, particularly in films/television, certain actors become associated with a writer-director. Meryl Streep did three movies with Mike Nichols. Jennifer Lawrence has done three movies with David O. Russell. Tom Hanks did two movies with Penny Marshall. Saoirse Ronan has done two movies with Greta Gerwig so far. When you think of Jack Lemmon, you probably think of the movies he did with writer-director Billy Wilder. Marland had his own actors who helped give breath to his words, and some followed him wherever he landed. Here are some of them:
Jennifer Ashe: One of Ashe’s first acting roles was when Marand wrote for Loving its first two years. On Loving, she played Lily, a pianist who harbored a horrible secret: she was a victim of incest by her father. Lily was shy, unsure of the world. The storyline was bungled by ABC. After Marland left for As the World Turns, he created for Ashe Meg Snyder. Meg was spirited, stubborn, and one thing was for sure: she wasn’t going to spend her life on the Snyder farm working and working as her mother did. Ashe did a wonderful job showing Meg maturing (after a terrible first marriage) and deciding to become a nurse.
Lisa Brown: I’ve written so much about Brown here, how her portrayal of Nola Reardon Chamberlain was so amazing and fun. When Brown left Guiding Light in 1985, Marland was getting ready to leave Loving, then landed at As the World Turns. She had to follow him and become Iva Snyder, Meg’s older sister. Now she was the sensible older sister coming home after running away at age thirteen. She was the one who tried to set wayward Meg straight. But Iva had a secret as well, one that changed many characters’ lives. When Marland died in 1993, Brown left several months later.
Geraldine Court: Court was on The Doctors when Marland started writing for the show in 1977 and left that year. In 1980, he was writing for Guiding Light, needing an actress to play Jennifer Richards, another character who had secrets and mother to teenager Morgan. Court was perfect for the role of Jennifer who tried to be firm but loving to Morgan. But why does she have such an interest in Amanda McFadden? That interest was the basis of Marland’s first big mystery storyline on the show. After Court left GL, she wrote several scripts for Marland’s Loving.
Ellen Dolan: We’ve examined here how Maureen Reardon Bauer was beloved by Guiding Light’s audience, and Dolan’s Maureen was wonderfully feisty, kind, and generous. In 1989, As The World Turns needed a new Margo. Enter Dolan. Dolan’s Margo was good at her job and tried to support her husband Tom Hughes. Dolan ended up playing Margo to the show’s end in 2010
Jane Elliot: Elliot was one of the Quatermaine family members (General Hospital) who looked down on anyone who wasn’t rich, Tracy. This included her brother’s new wife, Alan. Elliot played Tracy for two years, then left in 1980. She ended up on Guiding Light as Carrie Todd, the new love interest for District Attorney Ross Marler. Carrie was into jogging and gardening, and taught Ross how to be more open about life. It was Elliot’s leaving the show that made Marland quit (more about this later on this year) but she landed for a while on A New Day in Eden, a show Marland wrote. Elliot is back on General Hospital right now paying tribute to Luke Spencer.
Alice Haining: Haining started off on Loving as Cecilia, the tough girl who wanted Steve (John R. Johnston) She then followed Marland to As The World Turns, where she played Angel Lange, a southern belle whose father is just a bit too doting. Marland finally could do what he wanted to do with the Lily Slater story, and Haining’s Angel first a manipulative victim, then a heroine who finally perservered.
Rita Lloyd: Holy moly, Lloyd’s Lucille Wexler (Guiding Light) scared the heck out of me when I was a kid. She always seemed so creepy to me by saying one thing then doing another. Her battle with Jennifer meant the end of Lucille, but she did pop up on Loving as Millicent Whitehead when Marland was head writer. She then played cold Edwina Walsh on As the World Turns, who looked down on her daughter Connor but thought son Evan couldn’t do any wrong.
It hit me that I haven’t even done the actors yet! Next time. Until then!
tune in next week…