Soap Servants

With YR's Jeanne Cooper's passing, I was recalling how other soaps dealt with an actor's passing.

I was a fan of ATWT for a good span in the 80s. Lucinda Walsh had an assistant or her lawyer in her office, an elderly fellow named Ambrose (was his last name Bingham?). He was a wonderful soundboard for her. He kind of resembled Parley Baer, who played the second mayor, Mayor Stoner, on The Andy Griffith Show.

Funnier still, suddenly Lucinda (and we!) learned Ambrose was romancing Lucinda's elderly secretary, Jane.

Then in one episode, we see Lucinda sitting with Ambrose, talking about how loyal he was, but it wasn't the same actor. This fellow looked more like Mel Ferrer. I wondered what was up.

Later I learned the actor who played the part and made it stand out had passed away.

From here, I began venturing thru the servants of the soaps. Lucinda's butler was a young man who never uttered a single word, let alone never had a storyline, called Matthew. Absolutely nothing came of poor Matthew.

I ventured from there to other soaps. I guess one of the best with servants (for want of a better word, this is how we shall call them) was AMC.

Myra Murdock was the undisputable queen of the servants, housekeeper to Palmer Courtlandt. He would later get a chauffer named Sloane, who likewise romanced Myra. Didn't care for that much.

General Hospital had Stella, who worked mainly for Lila Quartermaine.

I know Beverley McKinsley had a rather homely maid on Another World and possibly Texas. This was lampooned on SCTV once, with a wispy blonde actress and probably Andrea Martin as the maid who wanted to be the rich woman's son she missed so badly. "Couldn't, . . . couldn't I be your son, Mrs. So-n-so?"

Back to AMC, there was a rather large muscle-bound fellow who was Adam Chandler's caretaker. I can't recall his name.

Stranger still, like Matthew on ATWT, I never saw this guy get a storyline.

During one of Billy Clyde Tuttle's returns (possibly his last), with Christine Baranski as his girlfriend Jewel, Billy Clyde took Adam hostage.

The proceeding events were too hilarious, but I've always remembered Billy Clyde's description of the caretaker (who always wore a striped short-sleeved shirt) as 'this big ol' side of beef suddenly comin' at me'

The guy was in shape, but for some reason, I can't recall him as being overly muscular, just rather toned.

AMC also had Benny Sago or Sagonovitch, who was Phoebe's chauffer.

Edge of Night had the giant bald-headed Gunther, who was killed, then returned as his own twin, didn't he?

And YR of course has Esther Valentine, played by Kate Linder.