By Michael PoirierContributing Writer, We Love Soaps Insider
Tom Lisanti is my kind of author. Like a great detective, he interviews key cast and crew members and combines their firsthand recollections with extensive research to create a remarkably complete picture of the inner workings of a television series. His latest book, Another World: The Drama Behind Daytime TV’s Only 90-Minute Soap Opera, is another triumph.
In 1964, Irna Phillips described her new creation, Another World, as a place where “we must have private ‘worlds’—made up of our own dreams and pleasures and emotions—into which to retreat.”
After a slow start, viewers embraced the residents of Bay City and their private worlds. The show became a ratings powerhouse, frequently claiming the number-one spot while competing with Phillips’ other soap opera, As the World Turns. But that success would not last forever.
Intrigued by Another World’s gradual fall from grace, Lisanti focuses on the years 1977–1982 to examine how a once-dominant soap opera could be brought to the brink of cancellation.
What set the decline in motion? Lisanti provides an engrossing account of the ambitious plans of two key figures: Executive Producer Paul Rauch and Headwriter Harding “Pete” Lemay. Their efforts to expand the Another World franchise went far beyond the hour-long soap they were producing every day.
First came Lovers and Friends, a spin-off intended to replace Somerset. When Lovers and Friends failed to find an audience, it was retooled and returned to the schedule as For Richer, For Poorer—another short-lived experiment. Financial ambitions and hopes for even greater success helped drive both projects.
Very little has been written about these brief entries in daytime history, and Lisanti gives each one a fascinating examination. For longtime fans, the chapters may bring back memories; for researchers and television historians, they provide valuable documentation of shows that are now almost impossible to see. Only a short clip of For Richer, For Poorer is available online, while a handful of Lovers and Friends episodes can be found at the Paley Center in New York. If we can’t watch these shows today, Lisanti’s book is the next best thing.
When Rauch and Lemay turned their attention back to Another World, another ambitious idea soon emerged. Rauch proposed expanding the soap from one hour to an unprecedented 90 minutes a day, putting additional pressure on an already stretched-thin Lemay. Lisanti takes us through the arguments for and against the expansion as the idea became reality.
The 90-minute experiment lasted only about 16 months, but it became one of the factors in Another World’s eventual decline. Lisanti also examines other forces at work, including the creative resurgence and ratings growth of ABC’s daytime soaps, which increasingly challenged Another World.
In many ways, the drama behind the scenes is just as fascinating as what appeared on screen—and sometimes even more so. Executives with limited self-control, backstage affairs, drugs, alcohol, petty jealousies, failed ideas and desperate attempts to reverse the show’s fortunes all become part of the story. Meanwhile, talented actors, writers, directors and production personnel struggled to keep the show moving forward as the problems mounted. Hiring and firing became increasingly common as those in charge searched for a way out of the mess that had been created.
Each page makes you want to turn to the next to find out what happens—just like a soap opera. It is genuinely gripping drama as the show’s core is gradually dismantled. Photos drawn from contributors’ personal collections are also well chosen, adding another dimension to the recollections.
Although several important figures from this era, including Doug Watson and Beverlee McKinsey, have passed away, Lisanti brings the behind-the-scenes atmosphere vividly to life through interviews with an impressive array of cast and crew members. Among those sharing their memories are Richard Backus, John Wendell, Vicky Dawson, Dorothy Lyman, Janice Lynde, Maeve Kincaid, Jay Morran, Laura Malone, Eric Conger, Richard Bekins, Julie Phillips, Chris Marcantel, Barnet Kellman, John Libretto, Tracy Brooks Swope, Jeffrey Sweet and Judith Donato, along with many others whose names appeared in the closing credits during this period.
And don’t be disappointed that Vicky Wyndham did not contribute an interview. Through the recollections of so many others, it often feels as though her presence is woven throughout the book.
Lisanti also incorporates older interviews with the two now-deceased figures who were central to many of the decisions that shaped the show’s downward spiral: the mercurial Executive Producer Paul Rauch and Headwriter Harding “Pete” Lemay. Daytime journalists John K. Read and Connie Passalacqua provide additional perspective, helping round out the story.
The book concludes on a somewhat hopeful note. Creative changes in 1983 helped produce a respectable ratings increase, although Another World never returned to the heights of its glory days.
I highly recommend this engaging oral history to anyone interested in Another World, soap opera history or television production. And if you don’t already own Lisanti’s books on Ryan’s Hope and Texas, seek those out as well. Taken together, these three books are valuable additions to the libraries of daytime fans and anyone interested in the history of American television.
Lisanti has done what the best television historians do: he doesn’t simply tell us what happened on screen. He takes us behind the curtain and lets the people who were there tell us how—and why—it happened.
Native New Englander Mike Poirier has written for numerous maritime journals and national newspapers. His research and memorabilia collection can be seen in many liner books and TV specials, including Erik Larson’s best seller, “Dead Wake”. He also co-authored, “Into the Danger Zone” with Tad Fitch.
