Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #418 - Y&R - 11,000 Episodes

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #418 - Y&R - 11,000 Episodes

Hi Mom,

So, The Young and the Restless or better known as Y&R is celebrating 11,000 episodes as of September First (this coming Thursday).

Every time I watch Y&R, I think of you, Mom. And I am pleased to tell you that I am caught up. Often I have a huge back log of Y&R to watch. Though I have not watched Friday's (1608.26) episode yet, I am otherwise current with the show.

I often get mocked (criticized) for my Y&R fandom by people close to me, but I no longer care. I am open and leaving myself vulnerable to discuss this nearly daily pursuit of episodic fiction that is near and dear to my heart.

Starting in 1973, we watched so many episodes of Y&R together. Even when I was away at college, The Young and the Restless  is something I watched as often as I could and that we would discuss together when you took me out to lunch.

It was our lunch time thing. For years, I would break for lunch just before 12:30, and we would eat together and watch our soaps (eventually we added The Bold and the Beautiful for a 90 minute lunch time).

When you had your bout with meningitis and were in a coma, I started playing Y&R for you in your Intensive Care room. I hoped that the familiar sounds would be soothing to you, comforting, like they are to me. We continued this practice even after you woke up. For a long time during that hospital stay, you could not talk. But we communicated as best we could, and we talked about Y&R.

Back in 2012, when Y&R celebrated 10,000 episodes (see link at end of this blog entry), we watched much of the celebration together. Checking back in my calendar, I know I spent the day with you on September 8th and again on October 2nd, which was right around the time of the 10,000th episode. We would have Y&R marathons together. I miss those.

At the rate of just about 260 episodes a year (five each week times 52 weeks is 260, but 365 - 104 is 261; 104 is the number of weekend days in a year), it's easy to see how Y&R is gearing up to celebrate its next anniversary with 1000 more episodes to reach the new landmark of 11,000. Since the 10,000th episode both you, Mom, and the grand dame of the Y&R cast, Jeanne Cooper, have passed away.

Before each episode for the past week, Y&R has been showing these interview chats with the cast as they reminisce about past stories and episodes and thank the viewership warmly for its dedication and loyalty. I was tempted to save these episodes on my DVR, but then I found that they are easily available online and so I embedded them here. I also posted the fun promo here as well.

You would have loved all this, Mom. I feel I share it all with you spiritually, but I wish I was sharing it with you physically, in person.

There are big plans for the 11,000th episode. Star Trek vet Nichelle Nichols will play Neil's mother, from whom he has been estranged for his entire run on the show. And Lee Phillip Bell, who co-created the show with her late husband Bill Bell will appear in a scene with her real-life daughter Lauralee Bell, who plays Christine Blair Williams, formerly known as "Cricket."

This is all explained here at SOAP SHE KNOWS - 11000 MILESTONE.

Y&R CELEBRATES 11,000 EPISODES - PEOPLE MAGAZINE - CAST PHOTO BELOW

1st Row (left to Right): Hunter King, Miles Gaston Villanueva, Melissa Ordway, Sean Carrigan, Mishael Morgan, Bryton James, Amelia Heinle, Jason Thompson, Eileen Davidson, Gina Tognoni, Peter Bergman, Eric Braeden, Melody Thomas Scott, Steve Burton, Sharon Case, Joshua Morrow, Justin Hartley, Melissa Claire Egan, Jess Walton, Tristan Rogers, Christel Khalil and Daniel Goddard
2nd Row (left to Right): Robert Adamson, Sofia Pernas, Michael E. Knight, Beth Maitland, Tracey Bregman, Christian Le Blanc, Doug Davidson, Lauralee Bell, Kristoff St. John, Camryn Grimes, Greg Rikaart, Mara McCaffray, Catherine Bach and Kate Linder

Not pictured: Chrishell Stause (current girlfriend of Justin Hartley) as Bethany Bryant.

Here's a great article by Candace Young, of whom I beginning to become a fan. She writes for SOAPS SHE KNOWS.

http://soaps.sheknows.com/the-young-and-the-restless/soapbox/381/deconstructing-yr-writers-seem-unable-to-move-on-from-staid-couples-stale-secrets-and-recycled-scenarios


Generally, I stay away from fan sites, mainly because of spoilers as I am often far behind on both Y&R but especially B&B. I think my record is 120-some unwatched B&B episodes on my DVR. I did not watch them. I would read recaps and watch every 12th episode or so.

So, two days after your death, Mom, I posted the first T-shirt blog post that I have posted in two years:

T-SHIRT #366.

I have been saving up content and ideas to do this HUGE Y&R post for the T-short blog, but maybe that's the wrong way to do it. Maybe I need to spread out the content over multiple parts. #366, pt.1; #366, pt.2; and so on. I will cross post this content to T-shirts as #366,pt.2.

I have made other Y&R posts on this blog as part of Hey Mom, but not many.

Hey, Mom! Talking to my Mom #4 - Last Y&R watched together aired Tuesday 1506.30.


Hey, Mom! Talking to my Mother #12 - I miss you

and then, because you would hate it and I would love to taunt you:

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #281 - Y&R - Victor goes to prison.

I have probably mentioned Y&R at other times that I did not save to the Y&R category. I am sure I have mentioned it as part of my Talking Again series. It's a constant theme in my life as I "watch" Y&R while working, just like we did together for all those years. Y&R is part of the soundtrack of my life. Its cadences and rhythms are a soothing music for me. And I do love it, as I love you, Mom.

But in all of this content and photos and things, there's something escaping me. There's an ineffable significance to this TV program and its place in my life, in our lives, Mom.

Maybe in the next Y&R post I make, I will figure out what it is and find a way to articulate it.

ENJOY these videos.

In case the following videos are ever broken, here's the page from SOAP SHE KNOWS that shares the interview videos.

From 2012, the celebration for 10,000 episodes. I tried to embed the link to the video on that page, but it failed. So if interested, go to the page and watch the video there.

note on 2410.21 - I am cheating and editing this post as all the videos I embedded here in 2016 have since been removed. So instead, I am adding a new playlist I made in the hopes that will remain somewhat stable.

Y&R Playlist








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Reflect and connect.

Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.

I miss you so very much, Mom.

Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.

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- Days ago = 420 days ago

- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1608.28 - 10:10

NOTE on time: When I post late, I had been posting at 7:10 a.m. because Google is on Pacific Time, and so this is really 10:10 EDT. However, it still shows up on the blog in Pacific time. So, I am going to start posting at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time, intending this to be 10:10 Eastern time. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. But I am not going back and changing all the 7:10 a.m. times. But I will run this note for a while. Mom, you know that I am posting at 10:10 a.m. often because this is the time of your death.