Guiding Light
Guiding Light
TV-14 | 30 June 1952 (USA)
SEASON & EPISODES
  • 1
  • Reviews
    ChanBot

    i must have seen a different film!!

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    Siflutter

    It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

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    Ezmae Chang

    This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

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    Staci Frederick

    Blistering performances.

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    calvinnme

    Realize I was only a regular viewer from the 1970's onward. Someone needs to fix this cast list thing though, because like losing Hoss was to Bonanza, it was only a matter of time after Michael Zaslow was unceremoniously booted from the show after he began to show symptoms of ALS, that this show would fade into the sunset. Zaslow played Roger Thorpe, the guy you loved to hate, from the early seventies (he's what got me watching) until 1980, and then again 1989-1997.The writers, trying to capitalize on a headline in late 1978, wrote themselves into a corner by having Roger commit a particularly heinous act against a beloved member of the cast, Holly, in March 1979. He couldn't just hang around town after that. Then, in a move so typical of soaps, after having you watch him fall off a very high cliff in April 1980, with several severe bumps with said cliff along the way and into the sea, the writers resurrect him in 1989 saying somehow he survived and has been palling around with the CIA all of these years! He'd have a better chance of growing a third arm! Zaslow's Thorpe was a bit more complex character when he returned in 1989, but he was still up to no good. After he left, the show really only had Reva and Josh as the center of the action, and there are only so many times you can watch this couple divorce and remarry before you begin sympathizing with all of Josh and Reva's rebound spouses as they get promised the moon, gradually become ignored as the Reva/Josh romance rekindles, and then get blamed for being bitter after they are dumped. The last straw for me - cousin love in the form of Reva's son and her half-sister's daughter. Eeeeewww! I actually have cousins and this was just too much.All in all, among soaps I'd still give it a seven. If you ever find the specialty VHS tape about Roger Thorpe that Guiding Light put out in 1994 -"Roger Thorpe: The Scandal Years" - give it a look. I think that you'll see the charisma and complexity of the character that got so many of us hooked forty odd years ago.

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    norrthpier

    For as bad as the show was at the end, the Guiding Light was a wonderful show for many MANY years with a beautifully rich history. There has never been, nor will there ever be, a character like Reva Shayne Lewis. The Reva Shayne-Josh Lewis love story fueled some of the best moments in daytime time history. Despite the "melodrama" soaps have often been guilty of, the Guiding Light did a wonderful job reflecting the realities (both positive and negative) of every day life as well. Who could forget Beth, Lillian, and Bradley - Bradley's abuse of Beth? Phillip's parentage? The Spaulding sibling rivalry that poisoned generations? The acting talent was wonderful. The writing and directing staff needed to be canceled, not the show. The show should still be on the air.

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    BrockLong

    This show currently is really, really, really (underline and bold the word "really" to stress my point) BAD!! I watched part of an episode this week and was absolutely shocked by many things: the awful new realistic filming which makes the sets look cheap and the actors less attractive than under set lighting; the poorly written dialog between the actors; the domination of unfamiliar characters (who are all of these Australian sounding actors? where is Harley? Alexandra?); and the current physical appearance of Kim Zimmer (exactly how much weight has the woman gained and who truly believes that a woman of her age could be pregnant?). Also, what's the fascination with gravel driveways and yards for scenes between the characters? The current state of soap operas is not great. Overall ratings are really down. The writing at some of them really could be improved (I'm specifically thinking about As the World Turns and the Bold & the Beautiful). This show, though, is beyond redemption. A horse with a broken leg is often shot to avoid the animal a long-suffering death. Why can't they do something similar with this show and just CANCEL it??? It really is sad that the longest running soap opera now appears to be something produced, written, and filmed by summer interns at a local access television station. My only hope is that the producers and writers or whoever is responsible for the current state of this show NEVER get another position on a daytime show. The hack job that they have done to this show is unforgivable.

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    Syl

    I love Guiding Light. In fact last Friday, our CBS affiliate in New York interrupted for "breaking news" within minutes of the show's finale. It's bad enough on a Friday a few minutes before the credits ran. I have watched Guiding Light for 14 years now and I am hooked. This year, CBS will decide it's fate. With only 2 million Nielson viewers, the show could be canceled and replaced with useless television talk shows which are cheaper to make. If Guiding Light and As The World Turns are canceled, daytime television would be in enormous trouble. I remember a time when New York City was the capital of the soaps but now only 4 soaps remain. I was furious with Mayor Giuliani for not preventing the cancellation of Another World in 1999. He did nothing but yet his wife appeared on the show and others as well. If Guiding Light gets canceled, Irna Phillips and Charita Bauer would be turning over in their graves over the loss. I hope CBS makes the right decision! I hope you watch the show for its continuous excellence in acting, writing, and directing. This show deserves to be recognized as a part of American history. Believe me, the Roger and Holly relationship far outweighed any couple on daytime or prime-time television. I love Doug Hutchison's portrayal of the mysterious Sebastian Hulce. I love my veteran performers like Marj Dusay, Ron Raines, Jerry ver Dorn, Maureen Garrett, Beth Ehlers, Frank Dicopoulos. Believe me, there is nothing on prime-time or in the cinema that is like Guiding Light! If you can watch Desperate Housewives, give daytime a try. You just might like it.

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