Passions: Difference between revisions
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* [[Eva Tamargo]] (Pilar) is ten years older than [[Galen Gering]], who plays her son Luis. She is also only eight years older than [[Christopher Douglas]], who played her eldest son, Antonio. |
* [[Eva Tamargo]] (Pilar) is ten years older than [[Galen Gering]], who plays her son Luis. She is also only eight years older than [[Christopher Douglas]], who played her eldest son, Antonio. |
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* [[Leigh Taylor-Young]] (Katherine) is only three years older than [[Ben Masters]], who plays her son Julian. She is also actually nine years older than [[Sharon Wyatt]], who played her older sister, Rachel. |
* [[Leigh Taylor-Young]] (Katherine) is only three years older than [[Ben Masters]], who plays her son Julian. She is also actually nine years older than [[Sharon Wyatt]], who played her older sister, Rachel. |
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* [[Louis Villar Heinz]] (Gary) played the jock love interest of Theresa for 5 months until Theresa began romancing Ethan. He met [[Eva Tamargo]] in Miami and after leaving ''[[All My Children]]'' he landed the role as (Gary). |
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* The "dents" on [[Ben Masters]]'s (Julian) head are the result of surgery following a motorcycle accident. |
* The "dents" on [[Ben Masters]]'s (Julian) head are the result of surgery following a motorcycle accident. |
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* [[Silvana Arias]] holds a degree in fashion design. |
* [[Silvana Arias]] holds a degree in fashion design. |
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Revision as of 16:31, 10 October 2006
| Passions | |
|---|---|
| File:Passionslogo.jpg | |
| Created by | James E. Reilly |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Lisa de Cazotte |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | July 5, 1999 |
Passions is an American television soap opera created by veteran soap opera writer James E. Reilly. It debuted on NBC on July 5, 1999, replacing the long running Another World.
In the beginning, it centered largely around horror-oriented themes; it now uses drama and comedy instead. Passions follows the various romantic and supernatural adventures of the residents of Harmony, a fictional New England hamlet.
Ratings and renewal
Although Passions has been a weak performer in household ratings since its premiere, the show did manage to gain ground in the early years. After its first few months on the air, Passions surpassed fellow NBC serial Sunset Beach to take over the #10 spot and stayed there until Sunset Beach's cancellation. In the winter of 2001, Passions once again was on an upswing and surpassed ABC's gothic soap opera Port Charles until ABC cancelled it in late 2003. Passions currently sits in last place among all soaps. Although is has, on occasion beat Guiding Light in total viewers, it hasn't been able to completely topple it. Although Passions has low household ratings, the show does a great job at attracting younger viewers in the coveted 18-49 demographic, something Another World, the soap it replaced, was never able to accomplish.
In the all important 18-49 demographics, Passions stands at a 1.3 for the 2006-2007 season (ahead of CBS's As The World Turns and Guiding Light) The latest Nielsen ratings for the week of Sept 24, 2006 put the program at a 1.4/5, meaning around 1.8 million households in the United States tune in each day. For the 2005-2006 season, Passions was the #1 rated soap among female teens age 12-17; as well as the #1 rated soap in women age 12-24, 18-24 (tied with Days of our Lives) and, surprisingly, it's the #2 soap in women 18-34 beating every other soap in daytime except its lead-in Days of our Lives. Passions is also number #1 in Boys 12-17 and Men 18-34.
In early 2006, rumors surfaced that the serial was on its way to cancellation. On May 29, 2006, NBC announced it would renew the program for an additional season, now slated to air through July 2007. The renewal also brought along significant budget cuts; the soap faces a dramatic $4-5 million slashing of its annual budget. Most of the budget cuts affected crew members and those not on the air, but John Reilly, Sharon Wyatt, and Amelia Marshall were all released from their contracts.
Storylines
Template:Spoiler-about Major storylines throughout the soap's run have included Eve's (played by Tracey Ross) affair with former Crane heir Julian (Ben Masters); Whitney's (Brook Kerr) romantic relationship with Chad (Donn Swaby), (Charles Divins); Theresa's (Lindsay Hartley) schemes to win Ethan (Travis Schuldt, Eric Martsolf) back from his wife, Gwen (Liza Huber, Natalie Zea, then Huber again); Kay's (Taylor Anne Mountz, Deanna Wright, Heidi Mueller) desire to be with her cousin's (Molly Stanton) boyfriend Miguel (Jesse Metcalfe, Adrian Bellani) and her current inability to choose between Miguel and now-fiancé Fox Crane, (Justin Hartley, Mark Cameron Wystrach); Ivy's (Kim Johnston Ulrich) win back first love Sam (James Hyde) from his wife, Grace (Dana Sparks); Noah (Dylan Fergus) and Fancy's (Emily Harper) tumultuous on-again, off-again relationship; Sheridan (McKenzie Westmore) and Luis's (Galen Gering) continued separation from each other; Alistair's (David Bailey, John Reilly) never-ending quest to destroy the lives of the citizens of Harmony, and recently for the ultimate power, including dressing as a monk and luring sixteen people to Rome; and Tabitha's (Juliet Mills) destruction of the citizens of Harmony.
History
Passions debuted with major fanfare (Reilly had been credited for a large surge in the ratings for Days of Our Lives) but also some controversy (lead heroine Sheridan's best friend was the late Princess Diana, and in flashbacks, Sheridan spoke to Diana on the phone right before she was killed). Originally, the viewers of Another World (which Passions replaced) largely held a vendetta against the new show as the stories told were markedly different from the ones they were used to. For much of the first three to four years of the series, supernatural elements such as witches, warlocks, and closet doors leading to Hell were major plot points. One central character was Charity (Molly Stanton), a saccharine young woman who would regularly become possessed by the "forces of evil" and turn into "Evil Charity", "Zombie Charity", etc. NBC even made a deal with the owners of Bewitched to allow "Dr. Bombay" to appear in scenes with witch Tabitha Lenox (not to be confused with Bewitched's Tabitha Stevens). "Dr. Bombay" appeared on three occasions, but Bewitched nixed any future visits; however, when Tabitha had a child in 2003, she named the baby Endora. Tabitha also stated on an episode that her mother was named Samantha and that her father was a mortal named Darren. Recently, a new storyline brought back some of these elements with the introduction of the character Siren, a mermaid that Endora brought to life and made human to keep Kay from leaving Fox for Miguel.
Over time, Passions moved away from supernatural elements and began to concentrate on the usual array of love triangles and returns from the dead. One of their most popular storylines was the interracial romance between filthy rich letch Julian Crane (Ben Masters) and icy doctor Eve Russell (Tracey Ross). Their '70s love affair produced a child, but Julian's father Alistair demanded they break up so Julian could marry a more "suitable" (white) woman. Eve married former tennis star TC (Rodney Van Johnson) and had two daughters, Whitney (Brook Kerr) and Simone (Lena Cardwell, Chrystee Pharris-Larkins, then Cathy Jenéen Doe). Years later, the revelations of Julian and Eve's love as well as the news that Eve had caused the car accident which ended TC's tennis career led TC to dump Eve and take up with her half-sister, Liz. Julian, who had never stopped loving Eve, reunited with her after giving up his boozing and adulterous ways. During the summer of 2005, TC and Eve's youngest daughter Simone came out as a lesbian. Passions made daytime history by being the only soap opera to show two women (Simone and Rae) in bed making love. Most recently, Chad was revealed to be the child of Alistair and Liz, allowing him and Whitney to get married and raise their son Miles. The next major storyline starts on October 10th entitled "Passions: Tabloid Truth" This is another interactive storyline not unlike "Passions: Red" and "Passions: Vendetta" During the 12 week umbrella story we will see the some of the shows biggest secrets revealed via tabloid reporter J.T. Cornell.
Trademarks
Over its run, Passions has become widely known for its numerous parodies of pop culture. One fan favorite was the 2003 spoof of the 2002 film Chicago, in which character Edna Wallace fantasized that she, her demented daughter, Beth, Charlie, and her orangutan caretaker, Precious, had been incarcerated for the kidnapping of Sheridan Lopez-Fitzgerald and her unborn son, Marty. In this fantasy, the three women sang "I Ain't Sorry", a parody of "Cell Block Tango". The song was performed in the style of musical theatre, and was simultaneously mocked and adored by fans. In another spoof, Edna and Norma Bates, had a flashback parodying Brokeback Mountain. Another spoof popular with the fans was the 2006 Bollywood spoof, in which Gwen dreamt of a life in India with her husband, Ethan, far away from his ex-fiancée, Theresa. The original song accompanying this spoof, "Love is Ecstasy", was a hit with fans, and NBC even put both a video clip and a downloadable mp3 version of the song on their website.
Roman Catholicism and its principles figure greatly into the show's themes. Several characters, including Grace Bennett and Pilar Lopez-Fitzgerald, were/are portrayed as being devout Catholics, often praying the rosary, while Father Lonigan, the blind priest, has the ability to sense evil, causing lots of trouble for Tabitha over the years. Many theological debates on the importance of Catholic marriage vows have arisen over the years as well, as various characters attempt to divorce or remarry.
Another trademark of the soap is its preoccupation with the concepts of fate and soulmates. Since the show's first episode in 1999, the writers have pushed several couples onto the fans, claiming that they are "fated", and, with few short-lived exceptions, have failed to mix up any of the relationships. Some of the early "fated" couples were considered to be those of Luis and Sheridan, Ethan and Theresa, Miguel and Charity, and Chad and Whitney. In recent years, couples such as Noah and Fancy, Julian and Eve, Martin and Katherine, and Fox and Kay have also been introduced as being "fated". Common indications of a couple's status as "fated" include (but are not necessarily limited to) Tabitha's desire to split said couple up, an unshakeable love that survives numerous break-ups and relationships with third parties, and/or an ability of one character, or perhaps both characters, to "sense" when his/her "soulmate" is in danger.
Likely due to Passions's school-aged target audience, the show often cooks up large, wild storylines for the summer, which often, but not always, take place in a city outside of Harmony. In 1999, a carnival came to town as characters were introduced; 2000 saw Luis and Sheridan traveling to New Mexico in search of his then-missing father, Martin Fitzgerald, and 2001 witnessed the failed double-wedding of popular couples Luis and Sheridan and Ethan and Theresa, and their subsequent journey to Bermuda, where Sheridan apparently perished in a boat explosion and Theresa wound up married to Ethan's ex-stepfather, Julian Crane. In 2002, Julian and Timmy set out on a journey in the magical land of Oz as Theresa was "executed" for Julian's "murder"; 2003 saw six characters (Chad, Whitney, Fox, Theresa, Ethan, and Gwen, collectively known as the "LA Six") travel to Los Angeles for the summer (and into October), while, in 2004, Luis and Sheridan traveled to Puerto Arena, Mexico, to retrieve his younger sister, Paloma (and ended up finding his missing father, Martin, and her "dead" mother, Katherine). The plot of the summer in 2005 was a deadly tsumani, which destroyed much of Harmony and resulted in the death of James's mother, Maureen, while 2006 saw the extravagant Passions Vendetta plot, in which Alistair lured seventeen people (Whitney, Simone, Paloma, Chad, Ethan, Theresa, Gwen, Lena, Spike, Jessica, Maya, Noah, Esme, Fancy, Luis, Beth, and Marty) to Rome, where he planned to take over the world with a chalice stolen from the Pope's private chambers; the plot saw the death of Lena, Maya, Alistair, Beth, and Marty.
One unfortunate trademark for Passions has been eerie deaths. In 2002, Josh Ryan Evans, who played Tabitha's extremely popular doll sidekick Timmy, died while on medical leave, just as scenes were airing where Timmy died in the hospital and went to Heaven. Passions had planned to revive the character in a few months once Evans returned from his own surgery, but instead had to write Timmy out. After five years of evil Crane patriarch Alistair being heard but never having his face seen (voiced by Alan Oppenheimer), Passions finally cast the role with longtime soap vet David Bailey. Bailey was a hit with the cast as well as the fans, but on Thanksgiving Day 2004, he drowned in his pool, just as scenes were airing where various characters tried to kill Alistair, who actually suffered clinical death before being magically revived by Tabitha. Again, the viewers and the producers were stunned, but the show had no choice but to recast the pivotal role (with John Reilly).
Theme song and opening sequence
The theme song for Passions is titled "Breathe," performed by Jane French and written by French and John Henry. A long version of this theme was also released but was never used on the show.
The opening title sequence used since the show's premiere in 1999, features shots of the city of Harmony and its landmarks. The sequence opens and closes with the show's logo in a cursive typeface and in a Arial Black typeface in generic caps posted in front of the cursive form of the title. From time to time, the opening theme is shortened to the last two verses to fit in extra scene time.
The sequence is similar to One Life to Live's 1995-2004 "Tour of Llanview" opening, in that the sequence features shots of landmarks and city scenes. However, the main difference is that there are no headshots of the show's cast.
Passions's is one of the few American soap operas that, with the exception of occasional abbreviated versions of the intro, has not changed its opening theme since the series debut.
Hidden Passions: Secrets from the Diaries of Tabitha Lenox
In January 2001, HarperEntertainment released Hidden Passions, an inside look into the history of Passions involving all the major characters, written from the viewpoint of Tabitha Lenox. A storyline involving the character of Tabitha and Timmy and the promotion of this book was aired on the soap. During this time when the show enjoyed its peak popularity, the book even reached #4 on the New York Times Bestseller list. The novel was billed as being canonical, but the televised canon has diverged significantly from the novel since that time. For example, Rachel Barrett presumably did die in a boating accident decades earlier, and the death scene of her sister, Katherine, who was recently revealed to be alive, is included in the novel. In addition, the book portrayed Eve Johnson Russell as the daughter of a wealthy society couple in Boston, but the show has more recently revealed an upbringing in the rural South.
Reruns on Sci Fi
According to variety.com, cable channel Sci Fi (which is owned by NBC) has begun airing Passions from the beginning since February 13. This was changed from an originally stated start date of February 6.[1]
The reruns on SciFi have been slightly edited, with the background music and popular songs substituted in many cases.
Classic episodes of the program were being aired on Sci-Fi, however as of May 25, 2006, the reruns have been placed on hiatus, due to low ratings.
According to Scifi.com Passions is still not on their schedule for September 2006 or October 2006
Cast
Current cast members
Recurring cast members
| Actor | Character | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Jorge Alberti | Roberto | 2004; 2005; 2006-Present |
| Lauren Bieber | Miles Harris | 2005-Present |
| Nicole Cox | Endora Lenox | 2003-Present |
| Andrea Evans | Rebecca Hotchkiss | 2000-Present |
| Bruce French | Father Lonigan | 1999-Present |
| Josarra Jinaro | Rae | 2005; 2006-Present |
| Jackson and Ryan Keane | James Boothe | 2005-Present |
| Christopher Maleki | Herbert "Spike" Lester | 2005-Present |
| Kacey Malmsten | Jane Winthrop | 2006-Present |
| Colton Shires | Ethan Crane | 2004-Present |
| Richard Steinmetz | Martin Fitzgerald | 2004-Present |
| Michael Toland | Lester | 2006-Present |
| Layla and Logan Wheeler | Maria Lopez-Fitzgerald | 2006-Present |
| Emmanuel Xuereb | Stuart Allen | 2006-Present |
Coming and going cast members
| Actor | Character | Status |
|---|---|---|
| McKenzie Westmore | Sheridan Boothe | Returns Monday, October 23rd |
| Kam Heskin | Sheridan Boothe | Exits Friday, October 20th |
Deceased cast members
| Actor | Character | Year of Death |
|---|---|---|
| David Bailey | Alistair Crane | 2004 |
| Owen Bush | Orville Perkins | 2001 |
| Josh Ryan Evans | Timmy Lenox | 2002 |
Trivia
- Eva Tamargo (Pilar) is ten years older than Galen Gering, who plays her son Luis. She is also only eight years older than Christopher Douglas, who played her eldest son, Antonio.
- Leigh Taylor-Young (Katherine) is only three years older than Ben Masters, who plays her son Julian. She is also actually nine years older than Sharon Wyatt, who played her older sister, Rachel.
- Louis Villar Heinz (Gary) played the jock love interest of Theresa for 5 months until Theresa began romancing Ethan. He met Eva Tamargo in Miami and after leaving All My Children he landed the role as (Gary).
- The "dents" on Ben Masters's (Julian) head are the result of surgery following a motorcycle accident.
- Silvana Arias holds a degree in fashion design.
- Brook Kerr and Juliet Mills share the same birthday, November 21.
- Joyce Summers and Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer are fans of Passions. However, the Spike from Buffy has no explicit connection to Spike from Passions.
- Deanna Wright (ex-Kay) had met Galen Gering (Luis), James Hyde (Sam), and Eva Tamargo(Pilar) before landing her role on Passions.
- In a 2004 episode, a product placement of sorts occurred when TC (Rodney Van Johnson) watched an NBC promo for Days of our Lives on his TV set. TC went on to praise the writers of Days of our Lives for coming up with such good storylines (Days, at that time, was under the helm of James E. Reilly, head writer for Passions). That same year, TC made a reference to "that crazy soap after Days of our Lives", which is, in most areas, Passions. Going back, Simone was seen actually watching Passions on an early episode.
- Eric Martsolf is six years older than McKenzie Westmore, despite the fact that Sheridan is supposed to be about two years older than Ethan.
- McKenzie Westmore, who plays Sheridan Crane, is less than one year older than Emily Harper, who plays her niece, Fancy.
- Justin Hartley (ex-Fox) is three months older than McKenzie Westmore, who played his older aunt, Sheridan.
- In the August 10, 2006 episode, Theresa comments that her office isn't like a NBC soap opera and that she wouldn't hire somebody just because he looked like Jesse Metcalfe, who portrayed her brother Miguel from 1999 until 2004.
- Heidi Mueller was on the first season of the Reality Show Who Wants To Marry My Dad? as one of the four kids who selected from several Women to be a wife for their father in 2003. She got the role of Kay that same summer the series aired.
- In the September 4, 2006, episode, Fox was sucked into a black hole, and then told Tabitha that it was the kind of black hole that one gets sucked into on the SciFi Channel, which was the channel Passions repeats aired on early in 2006. Tabitha then told him stick with NBC, which is the network Passions currently airs on.
- The Passions theme song "Breathe", which can be heard in the show's opening, is performed by Jane French.
- The episode in which Timmy died aired the day Timmy's portrayer, Josh Ryan Evans, died.
See also
External links
- Passions on NBC
- Passions Discussion Group
- Passions Tabloid Truth
- Passions Red
- Passions Vendetta
- Soapdom.com's Passions Site
- soapoperafan.com
- The TV MegaSite's Passions Site
- All 4 Passions - A Fansite
- Passions - Soap Opera Digest Weekly
- Passions related site database
- Passions Page related fan site Message Board