A bit overrated, but still an amazing film

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

Thirty years ago this month, "The Edge of Night" prepared to wrap up its 28 year run on daytime T.V. Countless murders and political scandals had dominated the screen on two different networks, featuring hundreds of actors from the stage as well as some very popular soap actors who had brief roles on this show before moving elsewhere. Unlike other soaps, "Edge" only had a handful of "core" characters at one time, focusing on a rotating cast of gangsters, gun molls, political big-wigs and daddy's girls who all ended up at some point either committing a murder, being on trial for one, or becoming a victim themselves. I only watched the last two years of the network run and caught up on some previous episodes later when it was re-run on the U.S.A. cable network. Old episodes dating back to the first episode have popped up, so the chance to see the early days of attorney Mike Karr (daytime's answer to Perry Mason) are now available as are sporadic episodes of the 1960's and 70's. One early episode available for viewing features Don Hastings who played Bob Hughes on "As the World Turns" for 50 years.Former stage star/dancer James Mitchell is just one of many well known actors to have had a role on the show, episodes available to view him playing a crooked cop. Split personality Serena/Josie was played by the Emmy Winning Louise Shaffer, giving an intense performance that was equally as deserving. The D.A. in her trial was played by none other than that feisty "Designing Woman", Dixie Carter, equally as terminating here as she was as Julia Sugarbaker. Her boss was none other than "Ryan's Hope's" Johnny Ryan, Bernard Barrow. Another future T.V. star, Holland Taylor, gave a scary performance as the evil Denise Cavanaugh, the bitchy wife of the show's final romantic hero, Dr. Miles Cavanaugh (Joel Crothers).Of the thousands of stories I would have loved to have seen unfold, the most interesting appears to be the early 70's saga of the Whitney family, especially as seen through the eyes of its sardonic matriarch, Geraldine. The wonderful Lois Kibbee would definitely have won an Emmy for her performance for this storyline where she reveals the secrets of her psychotic son who committed murder while disguised as a drugged out hippie and fell to his death while trying to kill Mike Karr's daughter, Laurie. This storyline was obviously based on scandals of the Kennedy family, with Geraldine definitely a fictional version of matriarch Rose who may not have been in public power but certainly ruled the roost behind the scenes. Geraldine mellowed thanks to the humanity of Kibbee, and her character became beloved, not only by the Monticello townspeople but by even the youngest of fans who felt a kindred spirit with her. Somebody in Hollywood must have liked the comic undertones of her character, casting her in an important role in the comedy classic "Caddyshack" as Ted Knight's uppity wife.Of course, the show's longest running heroine was the gorgeous redhead Ann Flood, playing Mike Karr's second wife, Nancy, a hard-working reporter. A second major heroine, Nicole Travis (the equally beautiful Maeve McGuire), was also very prominent, and at times, Nancy and Nicole seemed like sisters, even though Nicole was originally brought in as a vixen. Recasts of Nicole after McGuire left the show seemed to youthen the character and made her seem like somebody different altogether. But when McGuire was there, cast opposite the handsome Donald May (Adam Drake), the show had two major couples for the audience to root for as they all went after the various criminals. The mid 1970's saw a major mob story, and this attracted a male audience who enjoyed the murder and mayhem of the daily drama which replaced the organ music and sappy romance on the other soaps.Those "Another World" pals Constance Ford and Irene Dailey had separate stints as knife wielding murderesses, and Nancy Pinkerton, the original Dorian on "OLTL", had a rather lengthy stint as well. Major soap names as Gillian Spencer, Elizabeth Hubbard, Barbara Berjer, Conrad Fowkes, Millette Alexander, Nat Polen, Dorothy Lyman and Richard Schoberg were on for stints lasting usually six months to a year. Lyman's stint was a pre-cursor to her Emmy Winning role as Opal on "AMC", playing a hillbilly character with murder on her mind who got tossed out of a moving vehicle (with a stunt man wearing a wig), while Schoberg (also of "AMC") played her more worldly brother.By the time I started watching, Mike and Nancy were still prominent, but the focus was on Sky Whitney and Raven Alexander. Larkin Malloy and Sharon Gabet became soap superstars as the dynamic couple. Malloy's Schuyler was revealed to be an impostor, but he was so popular that they brought him back as the real deal. While Malloy went on to popular hero roles on "Guiding Light" and "All My Children", Gabet wasn't so lucky, her characters on "Another World" and "One Life to Live" below expectations when compared to the memory of the much married vixen Raven. Veteran soap viewers name Gabet as one of the most missed actresses on daytime, but roles like Raven come along usually only once in a lifetime.During its later years, "Edge" suffered in low ratings yet tried very hard to maintain its dignity even though the story lines often resembled the science fiction nonsense of "General Hospital". Even so, a long spy storyline and the mass hypnosis of Monticello through cable T.V. were entertainingly presented, the later storyline almost eerily representative of what is happening today through the obsession with social media and hand held devices. "Edge" is a show that certainly has not been forgotten, and its legacy is one of timeless entertainment, especially those episodes written with great care by the great Henry Slesar who obviously was influenced by the classic film noirs of the 1940's and 50's.

"The Edge of Night" was the consequential daytime drama that totally different from the norm. This was a daytime serial that ran its course for an impressive 28 years from 1956 until 1984,producing a total of 7,420 episodes and it ran on two major television networks,CBS and later on ABC. It's staying power on CBS ran for 19 years ending in 1975 and later ended its run on ABC for nine seasons when it went off the air for good in the summer of 1984. Produced for Proctor & Gamble Productions. "The Edge of Night" was totally different from the regular basically melodrama of daytime soap operas,and it had a premise that kept its audiences tuned in to see what happens next. This was a show that was a mixture of daytime drama, mystery, police detection, courtroom drama,dealings with the supernatural, murders,and beyond. And what kept the show going was that the wonderfully written scripts about mysteries and suspense that in fact were written by some of the best writers of its day. And it shows in the number of Emmys the show received for the remainder of its run. It kept you on the edge of your seat.A grand murder mystery serial. A brilliant whodunit leading to the causes of the scenes and the stark reality of the culprit who committed the unthinkable. And the innerworkings of both the police and the courtroom which fought on the side of the law. The show was so great it really boosted a strong alumni that went through its door including Dixie Carter,Larry Hagman,Richard Dreyfuss,Jon Voight,and even John Travolta played a delivery man in one episode. Not to mention Julianne Moore,Richard Thomas and even Hector Elizondo were part of the cast. It was just that brilliant. "The Edge of Night"-The CBS Years from 1956-1975. The Black and White episodes: 1956-1967. The Color Episodes: 1967-1984."The Edge of Night"-The ABC Years from 1975-1984. *When ABC cancelled this brilliant show in May of 1984,the network replaced it with the greatest travesty of the worst kind..The Gary Collins Show.

The Edge of Night to me now is a distant memory. I do remember it being canceled which I thought was a terrible shame. There is only 1 half hour soap on television today. So I am going to write about the importance of daytime drama to the New York City entertainment community. It was the backbone and a place for actors and actresses to work their days at a show and work evenings on stage doing theater. Sadly, the New York City entertainment community is not growing as it once did before. Most people can't afford to live in the area to begin with and opt to work in Los Angeles or Toronto. I wish New York City Film and television would pay attention to these soaps cancellation as a warning that they shouldn't be happening. The Edge of Night was a brief memory. I remember coming home and it would be on at 4:00 P.M. and now it's Oprah. I do not mind talk shows but I do the growing choices of daytime dramas. I still think these shows have produced some of the finest actors and actresses today. At 28 years, the network yanked it off the screen and replaced it with Loving which would be canceled in less than 10 years later. Maybe they should have kept Edge of Night on along with the others. Every time a soap gets canceled, I just feel like losing a member of my family. I don't remember much about Edge of Night but the last episode. Now NYC only produces 4 soaps, the youngest soap of theirs being All My Children at 35. At least L.A. has 5 and it's youngest is 7 years old. I don't care where American soaps are made but that they are made.

Sadly, they do not make Soaps like this one anymore. I was literally sick when it was cancelled. Edge of Night had it all, wonderfully written mysteries and suspense stories. Great characters and wonderful actors. This soap will be sorely missed for a long time. Edge of Night was special. It just had a rare combination of the right writers, actors, directors, even the right sets. The soap may be gone, but its memories will last a lifetime.