Guiding Light: Alex Blasts Roger At The Country Club
Giving the Devil his due. In honor of Beverlee McKinsey’s memory I searched through countless You Tube clips to find one that best summarized her tremendous strength as an actress. This clip is famous for Guiding Light fans, as it is where Springfield's grand dame Alexandra Spaulding makes a mockery of her cheating, thieving husband Roger Thorpe played with equal brilliance by the late Michael Zaslow. Alex also makes amends to her loved ones for believing in Roger over them.
The clip is almost painful to watch as it evokes memories of Guiding Light and the daytime soap opera at its best. One thing that amazes me is that most of the actors in this storyline, Alex, Roger, Fletcher (Jay Hammer), Holly (Maureen Garrett), Vanessa (Maeve Kinkead), Ross (Jerry ver Dorn), Henry (William Roerick, Ed (Peter Simon) and Maureen (Ellen Parker) were over 40.
The few younger actors involved, a fresh-faced Rick Hearst as Alex’s nephew Alan Michael, the vivacious Kimberley Simms as Mindy Sue Lewis, the girl Alex loved like a daughter before she found out she was sleeping with her nefarious husband and a pre-ER Sherry Stringfield as Roger’s equally venomous daughter Blake Thorpe, benefitted from sharing scenes with such legends of soap and stage. Wouldn't it be great it soap execs today took a page from soaps gone by, instead of trying to rip off Laguna Beach?
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Comments
14 January 2008
2 years 4 weeks
WOW. It's amazing. I watch old clips on YouTube often from soaps that I've watched since I was a little girl. And many times, I'll think the scenes are familiar and they are a good reminder of what I watched "all those years ago."
But this scene- I found myself being able to QUOTE some of the things that were about to come out of her mouth. I just remembered that scene so vividly.... the way she spoke the dialogue and even the looks on the faces of the people she was addressing.
A couple of weeks ago, I read of an update on Beverlee McKinsey in Soap Opera Digest. She was an incredible talent. I'm glad she shared it with Daytime.
28 December 2007
18 weeks 3 days
I am glad that you and everyone else here are enjoying the clips.
22 January 2008
7 hours 25 sec
I am glad that you and everyone else here are enjoying the clips.
***
Tanyia! I just went back and saw the name! Thank YOU so much for archiving such classic soap TREASURES!
28 December 2007
18 weeks 3 days
Jamey it has been my pleasure putting up these wonderful clips so everyone can see them.
12 February 2008
1 day 16 hours
Now, THIS is Guiding Light. I don't know what the hell is on CBS everyday @ 2pm, but it sure in the hell ain't this.
***///Living In The World Of Soaps Since 1985\\\***
24 March 2008
28 weeks 1 day
Wow...another great clip. I'm saddened about losing this wonderful actress. Back when I was a kid and hadn't started watching soaps, I can remember hanging out with my aunts and hearing them gushing about Beverlee McKinsey and "Iris". I don't remember much of her as Iris, but I did watch GL when she was on as Alexandra. Hands down, one of the best actresses to ever grace daytime...and humble, too, right? Didn't she usually refuse to enter her name into the Emmy race?
21 January 2008
3 years 21 weeks
Jay, I love you and I know I'm not alone. That goes for Tanyia too! That just made my day...I remember that storyline well.
Was there ever a soap presence comparable to Michael Zaslow? I'm answering my own question, the answer is no, lol. He brought so march darkness and danger without ever resorting to over-the-top villain crap. He could scare/seduce with the eyes, as that scene showed.
It took me a long time to embrace a new Alex, but I finally did. And to think GL still has some of those same actors on standby, where they get to do virtually nothing. Vanessa and Holly especially. Holly even without Roger is still a compelling character and actress.
Character over plot, writers! That's it, that's what soaps do -- either the over-the-top, campy, melodramatic brilliance (a la Days and B&B) or drama that builds on character (as they are currently pulling off on One Life and half the time on ATWT). I swear, I could kill those GL writers! You don't need to pull someone's heart from their chest and put it inside of another to have drama and Heart.
5 November 2007
5 days 6 hours
I agree TheBest. Beverlee McKinsey was the best that could be of not only Guiding Light but of soaps period. We'll never see another like her again. *sniff, sniff*