On May 28th, CBS and The Young and the Restless presented a tribute for the truly generous and gifted actress, Jeanne Cooper, and many of her dearest co-workers and friends offered stories of their fondest memories of Jeanne. Jess Walton, who plays Jill, welcomed the viewers in and provided her own loving thoughts on the movie and television icon. "She was an amazing, amazing woman. She was a powerful actress...inventive and brave. She was a very loving mother, loving grandmother. She was part warrior, part rabble-rouser, large part diva, and part truck driver all wrapped up in one great dame."
The tribute also consisted of many scenes from the past, throughout the years, with Katherine at various stages and ages in her life. In a prior interview, Jeanne reflected that Katherine's first line was "Would you mind taking my fur, please?" It was from that line that history was in the making. Jeanne's children, Corbin, Caren, and Collin were also on hand to inform the public that Jeanne had loved her fans almost as much as she loved her family. It's no wonder why her many fans loved her so.
Some of the more notable remarks came from Kristoff St. John (Neil), who said that when he thought of Jeanne, the words, "charisma, energy, vitality," all came to mind, and he added that she had an aura and presence with a sparkly and magical look in her eye. Billy Miller (Billy) pointed out that she was quick to give you a compliment, but she was also quick to tell you, if you were doing something wrong. And Eric Braeden (Victor) noted that Jeanne always laughed, and that she always knew her lines - in one take, two tops.
Jeanne Cooper had lived her life to the fullest, and she, herself, said that in order to bring the most you have, you needed to make sure that you had it to give. Jeanne was never afraid to try something unique or truly inventive, such as having her facial plastic surgery performed live on television. She was a pioneer, in the sense of the word, and was always willing to take chances, if quality entertainment could be the results. Her co-workers loved her, her family loved her, her friends loved her, and her fans loved her. She will truly be missed.
Katherine's death will be addressed on-screen in July, and the reading of her will should bring in new, complex stories. Who knows - maybe even Tucker will return, since he is Katherine's biological son. I have noticed that Stephen Nichols has not yet returned to Days of Our Lives as Steve "Patch" Johnson, or to General Hospital as Stefan Cassadine. I would love to have Tucker return. He could really mix things up again, especially with the business end of Chancellor Enterprises.
In my last column, I ended with Kevin and Chloe, so this time, I will start with them. Actually, it was Kevin, who had the funniest lines of the week. Kevin was talking to Chelsea in Crimson Lights, when he saw Madam Miranda, the fortune teller from the fair, swoop in. "No, no, no, no, no,, no! Her...Eliza Doolittle keeps coming in here and annoying all my customers. Well...both of them." That was funny, Kevin! I guess he can still joke, as he watches his profits go down the toilet. Kevin also remarked to Chelsea that Madam Miranda should have been able to read minds to see that he would kick her psychic rear out of there. I guess Madame Miranda must have been having an off-day.
In the meantime, Chloe decided it would be a good idea to sell Crimson Lights behind Kevin's back. Yet, another reasonable decision made by Chloe. Does she ever do anything upfront and open? Outraged, Kevin relented when Chloe remarked that Crimson Lights had ceased to be relevant, because "cute, little Indie Coffee houses were all the rage, until the big chains came in and ate our lunch." Ridiculous or not, Chloe does have a way with words. Kevin indicated that he wanted to return to a life of crime, because apparently, he didn't learn anything from his last escapade. Probably, the slap on the wrist wasn't enough to deter him from future criminalventures. Chloe later discovered that Delia stole her friend's doll. What a shock. That's all I can say.
Back to Chelsea - she seriously needs to listen to Madame Miranda's warning about including the father in the baby's life. Why Chelsea continues to listen to Chloe just baffles me. Chloe's newest suggestion is for Chelsea to trick Dylan into marrying her. Isn't it funny how everything Chloe suggest involves the word, trick?! How could Chloe and Chelsea even believe, for one second, that these tricks would ever work down-the-road? The truth eventually comes out, for the most part, and more damage is done as a result of the tricks and lies.
Madame Miranda then advised and warned Chelsea, "Ignoring reality won't make it go away. Ignoring a man with goodness in his heart is foolish." Chelsea is trying to blind herself, but Adam is making that difficult for her to do. She knows that Adam is already suspicious that he may actually be the father of her baby. Adam seems split on what he wants to do, because he is not sure who the father of the baby is. He still loves Chelsea, and he wants to be the father of their child. However, he is afraid that Dylan really is the father, as Chelsea claims, so he tries to throw himself into work, to block out the hurt.
For those reasons, my selection for Two Scoops Trooper this week is Adam Newman, because he truly seems to want to do what's right, but he doesn't know what that is. Adam told Victor that the best person to run Newman Enterprises was a person with no attachments, no burdens of love or children. However, his dad was quick to point out that he could not help but notice that Adam is obsessed with Chelsea's baby. That is because Adam really wants that child to be his, but he is afraid that the truth will bring him more pain, so he denies it. Adam is a survivor, and he has found the best way for him to survive, during this painful time. I just hope that he does not give up on his love for Chelsea and on his ideal family, which could exist outside of his own mind.
On the other hand, Victor Newman is my pick for Two Scoops Pooper this week, because he actually advised Adam to give up on both Sharon and Chelsea (and the baby,) and to find a new woman. This would be very sound advice, except we, the fans, know that the baby is really Adam's. We don't want Adam to give up investigating on the parentage of Chelsea's baby. We want him to learn the truth. Chelsea is ridiculous anyway for believing that Adam would take the baby away from her. He has never, ever indicated that. If Chelsea doesn't stop listening to Chloe, though, Adam may have to gain custody, since Chloe's advice always seems to lead to disaster.
Victor revealed to Nikki the reason he had coerced Victoria into leaving Newman Enterprises. Victor believed that when Victoria spent more time with "Billy Boy," it would make her realize how useless Billy was, and she would leave him in the dust. Therefore, Victoria would then be willing to make amends and to compromise with Adam, and Victor would welcome her back with open arms. This is the real reason that Victor is the Two Scoops Pooper this week, and he is so far into meddling in his daughter's life (again,) that I am not even sure that Nikki can be the Pooper-Scooper in this mess. Nikki has tried in the past to clean up Victor's messes with his children, and she has not always been successful. But hopefully, she can come to Victoria's rescue again.
Yes, so while Adam ran to Newman Enterprises to escape the sorrow from his broken heart over Chelsea, Victoria made a mad dash from N.E. to begin her expanded family with Billy. Except, of course, that Adam knew that Billy had been gambling again. But Adam did say that he would keep Billy's secret, as long as Billy could keep Victoria away from N.E. And Victoria knew the truth about the parentage of Chelsea's baby, so she promised Chelsea that she would keep that truth from Adam. Hmmm...what a tangled web we weave, folks! These storylines have been connected and interconnected in some rather unique ways. Then we have Dylan, another piece to this madcap puzzle.
Dylan continued to get more invested in his new unborn child and was truly excited about the upcoming birth. He accompanied Chelsea to her sonogram and beamed with pride and joy over his child. However, Anita still wanted Chelsea back with Adam, so she told Adam about Dylan's presence at the sonogram. We all know that Anita's biggest love is money. It really wouldn't matter who the father was - Anita would want the "daddy" with the money, and that would be Adam. Anita is greedy to the max. By the way, we haven't seen Jeffrey, since he visited Southfork Ranch as Gary Ewing on Dallas. I wonder if Ted Shackelford will return to Y&R as Jeffrey.
Devon is a very desirable prospect these days. He received an offer from Neil to head up Jabot's fashion line, plus he had another lucrative offer in England from Tucker. Neil presented Devon with the offer, after Lily decided to step down from the fashion line, so that Tyler could return and finish his project. The idea was supposed to put distance between them, but immediately after he signed back on, Lily and Tyler started getting cozy, while they planned future ventures. Ah ha, then Cane called Lily to reveal that he had to leave town on business for a few days. Right. But Neil explained to Devon that Cane was actually still in town planning a surprise birthday party for Lily. Why do I have a sneaky suspicion that it will be Cane who will be surprised?
And, by golly, I was right! After getting tipsy at the restaurant from all of those farewell toasts, Lily and Tyler stumbled into the house, as Cane, Neil, Leslie, Devon, and Roxanne jumped up and yelled, "Surprise!" Lily was indeed surprised, but so was Cane - and everyone else. Shortly before they arrived, Devon had told Neil that he had seen Lily and Tyler together, and that he didn't trust Tyler. And he shouldn't! Tyler has been very obvious in his intentions towards Lily, and I don't see how everyone else is blind to what he is after. Lily seems more interested in him, than what she will admit to, but she needs to stop it now. Or she will be in the same boat as Michael and Lauren. (Oh, does anyone think that B&B's Oliver would make a good addition to Y&R? I mean, B&B barely uses him, which, to me, seems like such a waste.)
Speaking of Michael and Lauren, Michael told Paul that he would wait until Fen left for college to file for divorce, however, Fen let him off the hook. Again, another terrific job by Christian LeBlanc, when Lauren tried to kiss Michael, and he fended her off. "Imagine if I were the one who had cheated on you. Yeah, would you stand being able to kiss me, if you knew I had kissed another woman? Hold me, when you knew my arms were around some other person, touching, caressing her naked body? Yeah, hard to hear, isn't it? Well, it's still harder to live it." Mix terrific writing with remarkable acting and you get outstanding results.
Lauren begged Michael to wait a month, before filing for divorce, just before he walked out the door. Kevin dubbed them "the poster couple for the happy marriage," and it is sad to see this super-couple fail in such a long-lasting relationship. By the way, Fen really needs to stay far, far away from Carmine, who is no friend of Fen's. I have a feeling that Carmine is going to spill the beans about his affair with Lauren to Fen, and that can't be good.
Jack gets the Two Scoops Super-Duper award, because he is finally trying to get on the right path to happiness, while he tries to keep the peace between his love and his sister. Jack and Phyllis did get back together, although she did not move back in with Jack, and Traci did apologize to Phyllis for meddling. The apology came right after Phyllis threatened Carmine to stay away from Lauren. Phyllis has been busy! I am still stunned that Michelle Stafford is leaving Y&R. Some fans love her and other fans hate her, but Phyllis is not a boring character, and she has driven so many stories. I cannot see Y&R recasting her; Michelle Stafford made that character too much her own. I would hope that they will write her out in a way to keep it open for her to return. The fans would want that, I am sure.
Phyllis then joined Nick and Sharon, as they told Summer the truth of Cassie's death. Sharon explained that one senseless act had changed her entire life, and that is true. Nick and Sharon were happy in their marriage, until Cassie died. Nick then turned to Phyllis, who had been happy enough with Jack. After talking to Summer, Nick and Phyllis realized that if it hadn't been for Cassie's death, Summer probably wouldn't exist. (I say probably, because we know that Summer's paternity has not yet been established.) It was sad that Sharon had to overhear that Nick would not change anything about Cassie's death, if that meant that there would be no Summer. I would think that Nick might rethink that though, if he learns that Jack is actually Summer's father. That would mean that Summer would still have been born, even if Cassie had not died. It's complicated, I know.
Cassie's death has been haunting both Nick and Sharon, and from the sound of things, more may be in store in the future. The word is out that Camryn Grimes, who had played Cassie, has filmed more scenes for Y&R and is expected to stick around for more than one day. The fans are speculating what this could possibly mean. Is Cassie still alive after all? Or is her ghost still lurking around, trying to spiritually guide her parents? A possible storyline could be that the actress will play a look-alike, dead-ringer for the beloved daughter of Nick and Sharon. After all, the writers of Y&R wouldn't want too many ghosts floating around, would they? That could get confusing. I guess time will tell, and I am looking forward to the return of the young actress.
That's it for me this week. I look forward to see where mosr of these storylines are headed. That should prove to be very interesting. Don't forget about the Daytime Emmys Awards, which will be telecast in June. In the meantime, check out what the Soap Central Daytime Emmys Prediction Panel has to say, once the results have been posted. This is my third year to be on the panel, and I fared pretty well my first two times around. I am crossing my fingers for this year, since all of the nominations deserve to win. Please keep in mind that I based all my predictions entirely on the submissions. (In other words, I will really be rooting for Billy Miller and the other Y&R nominees come awards day.)
