To this day, I'm amazed that OLTL recasted the role of Blair with a Caucasian actress (Depaiva) and got no backlash for it. Their excuse was rubbish (they claimed that they couldn't find any Asian actresses to replace Korf). I wish they would bring back Mia and expose Current Blair for the impostor that she is. Seeing Real Blair in action and the current incarnation...it's like two different characters. Depaiva would've been better off as Kelly's long-lost older sister. They can easily rectify this by revealing just that and Real Blair can come home!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: syrus80,

History shouldn't be rewritten unless it's absolutely necessary. Like AMC's unabortion -- I think almost any ridiculous or contrived story twist would be worth undoing that boondoggle.

But undoing Kassie DePaiva as Blair would be a disaster, and unnecessary. Better to leave well enough alone.

First off, OLTL got A LOT of slack for it's recast of Blair with a caucasian actress, but De Pavia has more than proven her worth as an actress and was one of the major reasons why the character of Blair has remained on the OLTL canvas for as long as she has and has become a staple character. De Pavia has improved immensely from her greener days and is one of the best things about OLTL. Recasting or undoing her as Blair is an uneeded step and would serve no purpose to the centeral storyline. As i understand it Mia Korf has gone onto a long career in film and primetime TV so i see no reason why this would ever need to happen.

I still resent that Blair was recast with a southern blonde. Most soap fans carry these types of grudges. Another example: I refuse to watch any scene with Justin Deas.

OLTL certainly had no problem rewriting history with that 1968 crap and the Tarty storyline. It wouldn't be much of a stretch for Blair to come home. Blair left Llanview an Asian woman and came back as a southern blonde. Absolutely ridiculous! Considering no one in town batted an eyelash, it wouldn't be so farfectched for Korf to return. It's not like Current Blair is being utilized these days. She is just Todd's punching bag.

quote:

Originally posted by syrus80:

OLTL certainly had no problem rewriting history with that 1968 crap and the Tarty storyline ...

And look how well those turned out. Consider also the Santis and the widely reviled Victor Lord resurrection. Rewriting history is dangerous and seldom worth it. Kassie DePaiva has become such a vital part of OLTL -- even if she isn't being used to her full potential these days -- that I see no need to obliterate almost two decades of character to rectify one recast, even if it was a controversial one.

You could always bring back Mia Korf as a new character. She can be someone from Blair's past, which would be a nice nod to the fans without turning its into a fiasco. And it would rectify a major problem: especially since Max left, Blair has no significant connections in Llanview except the Cramers and Todd, which is why she's always in a push-and-pull with him. The show should try to mix her in with the Buchanans somehow.

Mia chose to vacate the role of
Blair Daimler of her own volition.

I don't recall anyone demanding then
producer Susan Bedsow Horgan's head on
a silver platter when she recast the
role of of BI-RACIAL Rachael Gannon with
full on, 100 percint african-american
actress Sandra P. Grant in 1996.

quote:

Originally posted by BERLIN 2002:
Mia chose to vacate the role of
Blair Daimler of her own volition.

I don't recall anyone demanding then
producer Susan Bedsow Horgan's head on
a silver platter when she recast the
role of of BI-RACIAL Rachael Gannon with
full on, 100 percint african-american
actress Sandra P. Grant in 1996.

I always found the recasting of Blair odd. Geez! What the hell was One Life to Live smoking? (By the way, this is nothing against Kassie DePaiva, my 2006 pick for best actress, but for the profile on the character. One of those soap-opera oddities.)

quote:

Originally posted by DS0816:

quote:

Originally posted by BERLIN 2002:
Mia chose to vacate the role of
Blair Daimler of her own volition.

I don't recall anyone demanding then
producer Susan Bedsow Horgan's head on
a silver platter when she recast the
role of of BI-RACIAL Rachael Gannon with
full on, 100 percint african-american
actress Sandra P. Grant in 1996.

I always found the recasting of Blair odd. Geez! What the hell was One Life to Live smoking? (By the way, this is nothing against Kassie DePaiva, my 2006 pick for best actress, but for the profile on the character. One of those soap-opera oddities.)

DSO816
This is the one and only time I can applaud
a soap for taking the easy way out and
going with convention. It took a while
but casting non-eurasian DePaiva in the
role happens to be the the third best
recast in OLTL's history. The first being of
course Slezak from Gillian Spencer ( who'm
I think of as pure acting royalty ) the one
and only Strasser from Nancy Pinkerton and
now DePaiva from Korf. PePaiva's recast is by
far the most jarring, but the like the
other two emmy winning recasts, she has not
only reinvented the role but has defined it.

For my money talent trumps cosmetics. It was
great to see another stunning asian actress
other than Roya Megnot in daytime. Mia's dark
beauty made her an ideal willfull, revenge
seeking, loved starved heroine and she
delivered the goods nicely, While Depaiva's
take on "willfullnesss" became headstrong
bitch, her spin on revenge manifested into
a full on Sonny Corleone vindetta and her
version of love starved became loved obsessed.
In short, when Korf's Blair whined or fretted
over Max Holden you thought it was because
he left her for second to go down the road
to buy a loaf of bread. When DePaiva's Blair
fretted over Max it's because she made you
think he was never, ever comming back.
I didn't like DePaiva in the role at first.
One because she was a different race and
two because she was so mechanical and
predictable in the role. As soon as they
threw her into the ring of fire with
Roger Howarth, she quickly distinguished
herself as one of the best recast and
actresses in the history of OLTL.

quote:

Originally posted by BERLIN 2002:

quote:

Originally posted by DS0816:

quote:

Originally posted by BERLIN 2002:
Mia chose to vacate the role of
Blair Daimler of her own volition.

I don't recall anyone demanding then
producer Susan Bedsow Horgan's head on
a silver platter when she recast the
role of of BI-RACIAL Rachael Gannon with
full on, 100 percint african-american
actress Sandra P. Grant in 1996.

I always found the recasting of Blair odd. Geez! What the hell was One Life to Live smoking? (By the way, this is nothing against Kassie DePaiva, my 2006 pick for best actress, but for the profile on the character. One of those soap-opera oddities.)

DSO816
This is the one and only time I can applaud
a soap for taking the easy way out and
going with convention. It took a while
but casting non-eurasian DePaiva in the
role happens to be the the third best
recast in OLTL's history. The first being of
course Slezak from Gillian Spencer ( who'm
I think of as pure acting royalty ) the one
and only Strasser from Nancy Pinkerton and
now DePaiva from Korf. PePaiva's recast is by
far the most jarring, but the like the
other two emmy winning recasts, she has not
only reinvented the role but has defined it.

For my money talent trumps cosmetics. It was
great to see another stunning asian actress
other than Roya Megnot in daytime. Mia's dark
beauty made her an ideal willfull, revenge
seeking, loved starved heroine and she
delivered the goods nicely, While Depaiva's
take on "willfullness" became headstrong
bitch, her spin on revenge manifested into
a full on Sonny Corleone vindetta and her
version of love starved became loved obsessed.
In short, when Korf's Blair whined or fretted
over Max Holden you thought it was because
he left her for second to go down the road
to buy a loaf of bread. When DePaiva's Blair
fretted over Max it's because she made you
think he was never, ever comming back.
I didn't like DePaiva in the role at first.
One because she was a different race and
two because she was so mechanical and
predictable in the role. As soon as they
threw her into the ring of fire with
Roger Howarth, she quickly distinguished
herself as one of the best recast and
actresses in the history of OLTL.

Several points I wanna address....

I started watching soaps in the mid-1980s and loved Gillian Spencer as Palmer's wife, Daisy, on All My Children. She copped a much-earned 1985 best-actress Emmy nomination along with [AMC] co-star Susan Lucci, Days of Our Lives' Deidre Hall, One Life to Live's Robin Strasser and, with her first-ever nod (which turned into a first-ever win also for CBS!), Guiding Light's Kim Zimmer. Spencer and James Mitchell were dynamite together. And the Cortlandts—with Peter Bergman as son-in-law Cliff and the underrated Taylor Miller as spoiled daughter Nina—were a splendid unit.

In case you're not aware: Loving's Roya Megnot died in May (http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0576348/). I recalled her well, when she replaced Patty Lotz. But I was more a fan on that show of the work of Lauren-Marie Taylor [Stacey].

Mia Kopf—I barely remember. I think there was some hint, at her first, in pairing her with John Loprieno's Cord Roberts. (You can correct me, if necessary.)

I never got to see Nancy Pinkerton; Strasser is simply one of the best. You get the feeling in her fiery performances, there's real blood circulating in her character's body. Funny how it seems one Emmy (in 1982) is not sufficient for Strasser. But I admire her for not wanting to bother with them anymore.

Now getting to Kassie DePaiva: She has been one of the best casting switches in all my 25 years of soap-opera viewing. (Yes, I watched her as GL's Chelsea Reardon, from 1986-1991. She and Johnny Bauer were a nice couple. Not as good as Johnny and Roxie played by Kristi "Whatever happened with her?" Ferrell.) As the first Blair, Kopf suggested a little mystique; but with DePaiva there is no mystery to her Blair. She's direct. The character is part-trashy, part-wound up, spoiled rich bitch. She's her own worst enemy. And throughout the years, the family this character built has been true to her character: a dangerous psycho for a husband, and a dysfunctional daughter who is every bit their's. She's earned that. And it makes perfect sense. DePaiva's work has been uncompromising and honest.

quote:

Originally posted by BERLIN 2002:
Mia chose to vacate the role of
Blair Daimler of her own volition.

I don't recall anyone demanding then
producer Susan Bedsow Horgan's head on
a silver platter when she recast the
role of of BI-RACIAL Rachael Gannon with
full on, 100 percint african-american
actress Sandra P. Grant in 1996.

You can't compare the recasting of Blair to the one with Rachel. Ellen Bethea isn't even biracial. And she certainly didn't look it.

Depaiva is good but I would hardly say it's one of the best recasts. Once Blair went from Asian to blonde, Miss Daimler wasn't the same person. It's like replacing Robin Strasser with Jonelle Allen.

Like her or not, the idea of now somehow making Kassie DePaiva not Blair and having Mia Korf as Blair again would be a jump the shark moment. Audiences are always willing to accept that recasts look different, so it sometimes bugs me when suddenly a recast has to be acknowledged as looking different. Case in point: Philip Kiriakis. When Jay Kenneth Johnson returned to the role a few years ago, a role he had already spend several years playing, mind you, the show went through this whole story that he had been injured in the war and had to have surgery done on his face, and so he looked different. But it was just ridiculous because he had already been in the role looking just the same.

I think the ship has sailed on Blair being part Asian, and right or wrong, there's really nothing to be done about it now.