I recently asked fans to contribute articles, lists or other forms of explanation as to why they feel their favorite One Life to Live characters are important to the screen and should be represented on the canvas of the show. (See video.) Here is a response from committed Dorian fan, Cheryl, who moderates a fan board dedicated to Robin Strasser:
Why is Dorian Lord Important to OLTL?
It feels silly even typing that, especially since Executive Producer Frank Valentini has been with the show since 1985 and Head Writer Ron Carlivati since 1996. The runners of the show know Dorian Lord as played by Robin Strasser is important and so do the fans. In fact one of the first things ABC Daytime President Brian Frons did when he took over in 2002 is rehire Strasser. Valentini stated at the time that fans never stopped asking for her return during her three-year absence. Strasser, who stepped into the role in 1979, left in 1987. She returned in 1993 before departing in 2000 and then reprising her signature role in 2003.
From Soap Opera Digest, May 20, 2003
"If proof was ever needed that Llanview is a duller place without Dorian, it came in when Digest released its 'Get Real' poll results in the 8/28/01issue. Though absent from One Life to Live for a year-and-a-half by that point, Robin Strasser's Dorian was the overwhelming choice by fans to be voted back on the 'island.'"
Here are some REASONS Dorian is important to viewers and to OLTL:
1. She is played by the incomparable, Emmy award winning actress Robin Strasser.
We Love Soaps website did a "50 Greatest Soap Actresses of All-Time" countdown. Strasser was number five. Strasser has a reputation as a perfectionist and hard-worker. She raises the bar in her scenes with others, which in turn gives the audience the very best that soaps have to offer whenever she is on our screens.
2. Dorian Lord is synonymous with Llanview.
She has been a character in fictional East Coast suburbia since 1973. There is no one who has been on the show longer other than Victoria Lord. With that longevity comes a history that connects the character to most others on the canvas, especially the Buchanans and the Lords. Naturally, this extends to one of the most prominent families in Llanview, the Cramers of which Dorian is the matriarch. Viewers care about the show and the stories because they know the characters. They've known Dorian longer than just about anyone else. Besides, Dorian is mayor and Llanview is her town.
3. Dorian is one of the strongest women in Daytime.
Strasser protects that strength in the character with her strong acting choices and for most of her years on the show, the writers have respected this tenacity as a part of the character even in a genre where women are often victimized. The stories that involve Dorian point to a history of survival, be it coming out the other side of a childhood filled with craziness and violence or facing the ordeal of life behind bars and death. A vital point to be made is that Dorian is a villainess. She is not afraid to do bad things, which makes her extremely dangerous. Fans know that Dorian will not lie down and take it from anyone but she also shows humanity. As played by Strasser, Dorian can be a cunning, stone cold bitch as she was when she took over Buchanan Enterprises in 2007 or she can be a crumbling tower of strength as she was when she dissolved into tears on the shoulder of her best friend RJ Gannon when learning that her husband Mel Hayes had been killed in a plane crash. Fans know that Dorian will not be kept down for long and that if anyone hurts her or a loved one, she will strike like a venomous snake. She's a fighter and a protector. She will kill for her family. In essence, Dorian is bold. She is a badass diva. She deigns to go where mere mortals fear to tread. Fans admire her bravery and toughness.
4. Dorian's wardrobe is enviable.
Strasser works closely with Emmy award winning OLTL Costume Designer Susan Gammie to dress Dorian. Viewers have come to see Dorian wearing not only what is fashionable but also what reveals the innermost Dorian in her scenes. I have come to expect Dorian to be dressed to kill when she is at her most vulnerable. Fashion for Dorian is a protective armor. It's a part of what makes her fascinating. We wish that we had her clothes and the ability to wear them with such panache. And well, her hats. The hats. They deserve their own Emmy and zip code.
5. Dorian is entertaining.
From what I have seen of Strasser's predecessors in the role, Dorian lacked the humor that she is known for today. Strasser brought that to the character. Whether it's the roll of her r's when speaking a foreign language or her quick maneuvering to deceive others blinded in her trap, viewers know that they are in for a treat whenever she is on screen. She is never boring and is at her best when she is with other colorful, zany characters. Who can forget Dorian dressed as Marilyn Monroe to trick then-husband David Vickers, who was blindfolded and bound to bedposts? Or, her sensual kiss with psychic Madame Delphina who was channeling her deceased husband Mel Hayes? Or in further years back, her wrestling with a woman name Tiny, who was twice her size, during a food fight in prison? Dorian is audacious and ostentatious and viewers can live vicariously through her daring actions.
6. Strasser has chemistry with nearly all of her co-stars, old or new.
She has been acting for more than 40 years. She knows what she's doing. She has played romances with men 20 years her junior (Nathan Fillion as teenage Joe) and same age lovers (the hot A Martinez as Ray). With whomever, she sizzles. Have you watched the cuff link scene between Strasser and Martinez? How did they do that?
7. Strasser has a loyal fan base and that is good for OLTL in these remaining years, making her presence an asset to the show and a guarantee of steady viewership.
8. Lastly, the actress is a team playing diva and part of the glue that binds -- Viki and Dorian.
Fans know that they are watching OLTL when they tune into Llanview and see these characters. They offer a sense of security -- reassurance during these unpredictable times -- sort of like old Hollywood movies during the war or in times of economic depression. The long-term collaboration of Viki and Dorian and the actresses who have played the parts (Erika Slezak and Strasser) is essentially the foundation upon which OLTL was built.
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