The WIRE: Week In REview, #3

After a month-plus hiatus due to my hectic schedule procrastination, the WIRE (my weekly recap of pop culture news) has returned! Here are some of the items that caught my eye:

Note to Rip Torn: This ain't Bonnie & Clyde &%$@*$#!

On January 29th, actor Rip Torn (The Larry Sanders Show, 30 Rock, etc.) was arrested after breaking into a closed Litchfield Bancorp branch office in Salisbury, CT (the city where he maintains a residence). Torn was charged with carrying a firearm without a permit, carrying a firearm while intoxicated, first-degree burglary, first-degree criminal trespassing and third-degree criminal mischief.

Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Anni-Frid Get Their Own Theme Park

ABBAWORLD, a new museum/theme park, opened in London last Wednesday. The exhibition tells the band's story in 25 rooms spread over 30,000 square feet. Visitors can see recreations of the studio where the Swedish quartet recorded, the seaside cabin near Stockholm where Benny and Björn composed their hits, glass cases containing the band's stage costumes and much more. There are plans to send the exhibition on tour after its London run — currently scheduled through March — and create new versions of it in Australia and New York by the end of the year.

Actor James Mitchell Dies At the Age of 89

James Mitchell, best known for his long-running portrayal of scheming tycoon Palmer Cortlandt (born Pete Cooney) on the ABC soap All My Children, died on January 22nd from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease complicated by pneumonia. Mitchell originated the role of Palmer in 1979 and received seven Daytime Emmy nominations (all in the Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series category) for his work on the show. Although he ceased being a major character on AMC in 2002, Mitchell did show up sporadically as Palmer in the ensuing years. His final appearance on AMC was on January 5th, 2010 for the series' 40th anniversary. Mitchell is survived by his longtime partner, the Oscar award-winning costume designer Albert Wolsky.

What some may not know is that in addition to his acting, Mitchell was an accomplished dancer and worked extensively with the legendary Agnes de Mille. Below is a clip from the 1955 movie musical Oklahoma! in which Mitchell appeared as "dream Curly". He shows up at the 2:52 mark.

The Hippest Trip In America Is Coming To DVD!

According to the website TV Shows On DVD, Time-Life will be releasing the iconic music series Soul Train to DVD within the next month. Although there aren't many details available (number of discs, price, content, etc.), Time-Life normally does a good job so as host Don Cornelius would say, the DVD set should be a "stone cold gas honey!"

To get you in the groove, here is the Soul Train line dance to Earth, Wind and Fire's 1974 hit Mighty, Mighty:

Farewell To A Couple of One Life To Live Stars

Clint Ritchie

Phil Carey

When checking my site stats late last night, I found an abnormal amount of hits were related to OLTL character Asa Buchanan. After doing a Google search, what I was afraid of turned out to be true: Phil Carey (the actor who played Asa from 1979-2007) had died on February 6th at the age of 83 after a bout with lung cancer. Although Carey had a long and successful acting career dating back to the early 50s, it is the role of the much married patriarch of the Buchanan family for which he is perhaps best known. A bigger than life cowboy millionaire who never saw a bush that was worth beating around... Asa spoke his mind no matter what, providing some of OLTL's funniest and most memorable moments. Although he could be an ornery S.O.B., you always knew that Asa loved his family. If you were fool enough to mess with a Buchanan, Asa would make you sorrier than Brenda Lee! Along with loving his family, he also loved the ladies... walking down the aisle 14 times with 10 different women (don't ask)!

While reading one of the stories on Carey, I learned that Clint Ritchie (who played Asa's oldest son Clint Buchanan for over 20 years starting in 1979) died at the age of 70 on January 31st from complications following surgery to implant a pacemaker. As another of my favorite characters on OLTL, Clint could be the tough Texan as well as the tenderhearted husband and father. One of Clint's best scenes was in the 1980s when he broke down in tears because he felt he had lost his wife Viki for good (as a victim of multiple personalities, one of her alters "Niki Smith" had taken over with no sign of letting Viki reemerge). I was one of the many fans who was upset when they broke up longtime couple Clint and Viki and paired her up with Sloan Carpenter in the early 90s. Ritchie left the OLTL on a regular basis in late 1998, but did return periodically in 1999, 2003, and 2004.

Below are a couple of montage tributes to both Phil Carey and Clint Ritchie.

Old Favorites Returning To One Life To Live

It'll seem like the 1990s all over again as former cast members of "One Life To Live" return to Llanview this summer! On Wednesday June 11th, Andrea Evans (above) is returning to the soap in the role of bad girl Tina Lord. Evans originated the role of Tina in 1978 and played her until 1981. She returned to OLTL in 1985 and stayed with the show until 1990. Since Evans' last departure, the role of Tina has been played by Karen Witter (1990-1994)and Krista Tesreau (1994-1996, 1997).

When last seen, Tina had divorced David Vickers (Tuc Watkins) and left town to start over in Baltimore. Since then, she hasn't kept in close contact with her family. In fact, her daughter Sarah (Justis Bolding) and siblings Viki (Erika Slezak) and Todd (Trevor St. John) don't even know where she is.

According to ABC.com, Tina is coming back with a big secret, a surprising revelation on where she's been, as well as a connection to one of Llanview's most powerful residents. Her return will kick off a major story that also ties in with the upcoming reappearance of ex-husband Cain Rogan. Played by Christopher Cousins (below), Cain was a con-man extraordinaire; using a variety of disguises and phony names during his three-year stint (1991-1994) on the soap. Cousins is set to return sometime in July.

Also returning in July is mobster Carlo Hesser (played by Thom Christopher, below). When last on the show three years ago, the incarcerated Hesser had spearheaded a prison riot that also involved Cristian Vega (David Fumero) and John McBain (Michael Easton). Christopher, who won a Daytime Emmy in 1992 for his portrayal of Carlo Hesser, has played the role off and on since 1990.

The presumed dead Dr. Marty Saybrooke (Susan Haskell, below) is also coming back to Llanview. When last seen in 2007, it was believed that Marty (then played by Christina Chambers) had perished in a van explosion. However, since dead soap characters have a habit of not staying that way, it will soon be revealed that Marty is alive. Over the past couple of weeks, a character whose face hasn't been revealed is shown to be under the care of Lee Ramsey (the crooked commissioner of Llanview). At first, I thought this character was Tina. However, once I read a poster's theory on ABC.com's message board and learned that Susan Haskell was returning to the show, I am inclined to agree that the mysterious patient is none other than Marty Saybrooke. Haskell, who portrayed Marty from 1993 to 1997 and won a Daytime Emmy for the role in 1994, is scheduled to return to OLTL sometime in early June.

Mary J. Blige To Appear On One Life To Live

Multiple Grammy winner Mary J. Blige will appear on ABC's "One Life To Live" on Friday February 15th and Monday the 18th. As a musical guest at the Sweet 16 birthday party of Starr Manning, Blige will perform "Just Fine" and "Hurt Again" (both of which are included on her latest album "Growing Pains"). A longtime fan of the show, Blige last appeared on OLTL in 2006.

Mario Van Peebles Joins the Cast of All My Children

In a casting move that has me very intrigued, actor/writer/director Mario Van Peebles (New Jack City, Posse, Ali, etc.) is joining the ABC soap All My Children. Peebles has been cast as Samuel Woods, a U.S. District Attorney who runs for the Senate. As part of his bid to get elected, Woods appears on the Oprah-styled show "New Beginnings" hosted by Erica Kane (played by soap icon Susan Lucci). According to reports, sparks will fly between Woods and Kane which could lead to a possible romance.

Despite some of the comments I've read on ABC.com's message board, I feel that involving the vivacious Erica Kane in an interracial relationship would be an interesting proposition. At the very least, the rumored pairing of Erica and Samuel will shake things up in Pine Valley. Peebles makes his All My Children debut on Tuesday January 29th.

Darnell Williams and Debbi Morgan Returning To All My Children

Starting on Friday January 18th, the story of one of All My Children's most popular duos (as well as soap's first African American supercouple) continues. That's the day that Dr. Angie Hubbard (played by Debbi Morgan) returns to Pine Valley to assist on a case at the local hospital. Darnell Williams' return as Jesse Hubbard takes place on January 25th.

When I first started watching AMC back in the mid 80s, Jesse and Angie were two of my favorite characters on the show. Not only did Jesse's streetwise demeanor mesh well with Angie's sweet disposition, but it was refreshing to see a romantic relationship between two black characters portrayed in a positive manner.

Amazingly, an article on the official All My Children website suggests that Angie will be reunited with a living Jesse. What makes this potential reunion amazing is that in 1988, Jesse was shot and killed in the line of duty while serving on the Pine Valley police force. Not only did Jesse die, but the death took place onscreen. If his character is brought back from the dead, it will be very interesting to see how the scribes for AMC accomplish this task.

To get you primed for the return of Jesse and Angie, Soapnet has scheduled 3 classic All My Children episodes spotlighting the duo on Sunday January 13th starting at 2 pm EST. This mini-marathon is followed by the 30 minute special "Back In Pine Valley", which takes a look at their return. The special also features fan fave Rebecca Budig, who will be returning to "All My Children" in the role of Greenlee Smythe on January 16th.

For a timeline of Jesse and Angie's history, click here.

Asa Buchanan Makes A Brief Return To One Life To Live

Billionaire patriarch Asa Buchanan (played by Philip Carey) makes a brief return to "One Life To Live" starting on November 9th. As many of you know, Carey chose to leave the ABC soap back in April instead of going off contract and appearing on a recurring basis. In a move that angered many fans, the producers decided to kill off the character of Asa Buchanan (he died offscreen in mid-August).

For his return, Asa will appear on videotape to read his last will and testament to the rest of the Buchanans. In addition to the November 9th episode, Carey will also appear on November 12th and 13th.

All My Children Recasts the Role of Babe Chandler

An odd thing happened on "All My Children" last week. Alexa Havins (top photo) was replaced by Amanda Baker (bottom photo) in the role of Babe Chandler. What was odd is that the switcheroo took place in the middle of the scene! When I read about the impending recast in a September issue of TV Guide, I was intrigued to find out how AMC would pull off the switch. Below is the scene in which the switch takes place.

As expected, many AMC fans are not happy about the recast. Since her debut on the show in 2003, Alexa Havins had become a fan favorite in the role of Babe. However, I think it's too early to tell whether or not the recasting of Babe will work. While we're on the subject, what do you think were some of the best or worst recasts (soap or non-soap)?

Happy Birthday To All My Children's Tad Martin

On Friday's episode of "All My Children", many of the residents of Pine Valley gathered to celebrate the birthday of reformed bad boy Tad Martin (born on Sept. 1st, 1963). Of all the characters on the show, he is one of my favorites. Even though Tad has always served as "eye candy" for some of the fans, he wasn't one of those pretty boys that male viewers wanted to punch in the face. Another thing that I've always enjoyed about Tad is that he has a great sense of humor, delivering some of the funniest one-liners on the show.

When I began watching AMC in 1985, the character was still in his Tad "The Cad" phase. Among his many conquests were: Dottie Thornton, Hillary Wilson, Liza Colby, and her mother Marian (a mom and daughter combo... you go Tad!).

After his marriage to Hillary ended, Tad left Pine Valley for a couple of years. When he came back, he had cleaned up his act a little bit. It was during this time that one of the best storylines in the history of AMC began... the love affair of Tad and Dixie. One sign that Tad had renounced his cad status was when he claimed to be the father of Dixie's unborn baby in order to protect her (rat bastard Adam Chandler had actually impregnated Dixie... even though he was married to Brooke at the time). One of my favorite Tad and Dixie moments was when he proposed to her (the first of many) while wearing a bright yellow chicken suit! Over the years, the twosome would divorce and remarry several times... ah life in the world of soaps!

As is typical of a soap character, Tad has been through a lot (teenage runaway, amnesia, jail time, kidnapping, fatherhood, etc.) and held many occupations (TV producer, CEO, and private investigator just to name a few) over the years. Throughout most of it, he always manages to lighten the mood with a funny line or two.

Below is a montage of Tad and Dixie clips set to "You're the One That I Want" by John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John:

Correction: One Life To Live Says Goodbye To Asa Buchanan

While channel surfing during a commercial break of the Tigers/Yankees game, I turned to SoapNet to catch some of the encore presentation of Thursday's "One Life To Live". I was surprised to see the characters of Llanview bidding farewell to Asa Buchanan! Although the sources I used stated that former characters would appear in the 10,000th episode (which airs Friday August 17th), they didn't mention that they would actually return on Thursday.

If you have SoapNet and missed Thursday's episode, they will repeat it at 2 am and 8 am EST on Friday morning. You can also catch it on Sunday morning as part of the One Life To Live marathon when all of the previous week's episodes will air. For scheduling information, please visit SoapNet.

One Life To Live Says Goodbye To Asa Buchanan

On the 10,000the episode of "One Life To Live", the citizens of Llanview pay their final respects to bourbon swilling billionaire Asa Buchanan. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the ABC daytime drama decided to kill off the long-running character when actor Philip Carey refused to go off contract and appear on a recurring basis. Carey's last appearance on the show was on April 26th.

Asa's funeral allows for the temporary return of several fan favorites from One Life To Live's past. James DePaiva (Max Holden), Dan Gauthier (Kevin Buchanan), John Loprieno (Cord Roberts), Tonja Walker (Alex Olanov), and Nathan Fillion (Joey Buchanan) have all signed on to reprise their roles for the occasion. The 10,000th episode of One Life To Live airs on Friday August 17th.

Asa Buchanan, We'll Miss You

A couple of weeks ago in TV Guide I read that Asa Buchanan, the long-running "One Life To Live" character, is scheduled to die offscreen next month. Philip Carey, the actor who played Asa for nearly 30 years, turned down an offer to be reduced from "contract" to "recurring" status on the show. As a result, his OLTL days are over. They say that "business is business", but this seems to me like another case of a veteran soap performer being tossed to the scrap heap. My 1st thought about this development is that it's something a matador might step in... come to think of it, that was my 2nd thought as well. Philip Carey, Asa Buchanan, and the fans of OLTL deserve better.

Before I continue, let me say that yes... I am a longtime soap watcher. Beginning the day after high school graduation, I started checking out the ABC afternoon lineup. Although I occasionally watched "General Hospital", "Ryan's Hope", and "Loving", my two main shows were "All My Children" and "One Life To Live". For the next 10 years or so, I watched them faithfully. In a classic case of role reversal, I even got my college girlfriend into them as well.

During the height of the O.J. trial, the soaps were often pre-empted. This, coupled with that complicated thing known as "life", caused my viewing to fall off big time. Since my cable company added SoapNet (where AMC and OLTL air in primetime and on weekend marathons) a few years ago, I've been able to periodically check in to see what's happening with the citizens of Pine Valley and Llanview.

Out of all the characters on OLTL, Asa Buchanan is definitely one of my favorites. A bigger than life cowboy millionaire who never saw a bush that was worth beating around... he spoke his mind no matter what, providing some of OLTL's funniest and most memorable moments. Although he could be an ornery S.O.B., you always knew that Asa loved his family. If you were fool enough to mess with a Buchanan, Asa would make you sorrier than Brenda Lee! Along with loving his family, he also loved the ladies... walking down the aisle 14 times with 10 different women (don't ask)!

As I mentioned earlier, Asa Buchanan is scheduled to die offscreen next month. His death apparently will coincide with the soap's 10,000th episode. According to reports, several OLTL characters from the past will return for the funeral. Some of the performers reported to be on board for the special episode are James DePaiva (Max Holden), Dan Gauthier (Kevin Buchanan), and Tonja Walker (Alex Olanov).

I just can't help thinking that Asa's style wouldn't be to go quietly offscreen. I can picture him sitting in his mansion with a pistol in one hand and a glass of bourbon in the other as he growls at the Grim Reaper, "Hellfire death... you just try to take me!" Llanview and "One Life To Live" will never be the same.

Check out these Asa clips:

Asa confronts Todd Manning

Asa and Todd team up against Blair

Asa, Todd, and Blair outside the courtroom