"The Guiding Light" (1952) TV series 1952-2009

Creator:

Irna Phillips

Seasons:

1 | unknown

Release Date:

30 June 1952 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Life happens here.

Plot:

Guiding Light takes place in the fictional Midwestern town of Springfield. In its early years the stories centered on the middle class Bauer family...

Plot Keywords:

Male Female Relationship | Soap Opera | Beautiful Woman | Fictional City | Husband Wife Relationship

Awards:

97 wins & 374 nominations

Cast

 (Series Cast Summary - 23 of 1026)

Kim Zimmer	...	Reva Shayne / ... (583 episodes, 1983-2009)
Robert Newman	...	Joshua Lewis / ... (544 episodes, 1981-2009)
Lia Yang	...	Susan (507 episodes, 1993-2007)
Ron Raines	...	Alan Spaulding / ... (443 episodes, 1994-2009)
Beth Chamberlin	...	Lorelei Hills / ... (439 episodes, 1989-2009)
Bradley Cole	...	Jeffrey O'Neill / ... (394 episodes, 1999-2009)
Justin Deas	...	Buzz Cooper / ... (392 episodes, 1992-2009)
Marcy Rylan	...	Lizzie Spaulding / ... (392 episodes, 2006-2009)
Frank Dicopoulos	...	Frank Cooper / ... (389 episodes, 1987-2009)
Crystal Chappell	...	Olivia Spencer / ... (377 episodes, 1999-2009)
Beth Ehlers	...	Harley Davidson Cooper Spaulding Mallet Spaulding Aitoro / ... (374 episodes, 1987-2008)
Mandy Bruno	...	Marina Cooper / ... (369 episodes, 2004-2009)
Gina Tognoni	...	Dinah Marler / ... (368 episodes, 2004-2009)
Robert Bogue	...	A.C. Mallet / ... (338 episodes, 2005-2009)
Nicole Forester	...	Cassie Winslow / ... (298 episodes, 2005-2008)
Bonnie Dennison	...	Daisy Lemay / ... (285 episodes, 2007-2009)
Michael O'Leary	...	Rick Bauer / ... (273 episodes, 1983-2009)
Daniel Cosgrove	...	Bill Lewis / ... (266 episodes, 2002-2009)
Jordan Clarke	...	Billy Lewis / ... (257 episodes, 1983-2009)
Murray Bartlett	...	Cyrus Foley (257 episodes, 2007-2009)
Grant Aleksander	...	Phillip Granville Spaulding / ... (248 episodes, 1983-2009)
Jessica Leccia	...	Natalia Rivera / ... (247 episodes, 2007-2009)
Lawrence Saint-Victor	...	Remy Boudreau / ... (235 episodes, 2006-2009)

Also Known As:

Guiding Light (USA) (new title)

Runtime:

15 min (1952-1968) | 30 min (1968-1977) | 60 min (1977-2009)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (1967-2009) | Black and White (1952-1967)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (1952-1987) | Stereo (1987-)

Certification:

USA:TV-14

Filming Locations:

CBS Broadcast Center, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Procter & Gamble Productions (PGP)

Trivia:

In 2004, Joan Collins made a well-publicized stint as Alexandra Spaulding, the third actress to play the role, but was soon replaced by Marj Dusay, the second actress to play Alex after the first, Beverlee McKinsey, played her for seven years. Collins wanted to schedule her filming around her book promotion tour, but producers wanted Collins full-time. Collins playing Alexandra had a bit of soap opera irony: Alexis Carrington, the nasty character that made her famous on DYNASTY, was modeled after Iris Carrington, the nasty daytime character that made Beverlee McKinsey famous.

Quotes:

[confronting Harley about her goodbye letter to him]
Gus: Oh, so this is nice. This is like a "Dear John" letter. You're going to kiss me off with a letter?
Harley: I couldn't figure out any other way to do this.
Gus: You make the decision without me, you don't even consult me, and this is what you want to do?
Harley: Well, you said you weren't going to be in court today. So...
Gus: Yeah, I'm not going to court. I'm not going to stand there and watch you throw your life away.
Harley: That's fine, but I'm still going through with this. Ten years. Ten. I mean, even with time off with good behavior, that's a really long time. So my life will be in the state pen and yours will be here. That's the reality.
Gus: I don't really have a reality without you in my life, okay? So if they send you to Vailsburg, I'll just buy the house next door to prison.
Harley: No.
Gus: If they send you out of state, I'll just... I'll hit the road. I'll be the first one in, the last one out every single visiting day. You can count on it.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 15th Annual Soap Opera Digest Awards (1999) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Die Springfield Story

Hooked for 10 years

I haven't seen every soap, but from what I have seen, this one can claim the best acting talent around. It's too bad Cynthia Watros (Annie) and Wendy Moniz (Dinah) had to go, They're both gifted actresses. Grant Aleksander (Philip) probably can claim best actor presently. Fortunately, the great cast makes up for some of the plot lines, e.g. Michael the angel, the bizarre cloning of Reva, and now Hart is in this metaphorical fight for life. It'll take a week to decide his fate. Pity the punching bag.