All My Children Update Monday 12/30/02
By Lori
Pictures by Juanita
What do women want? That's the question that's brought eight women together as they come up with a name and plan for Pine Valley's new cosmetic's business. Greenlee, Kendall, Liza, Simone, Mia, Laurie, Joanie and Maggie gather at the factory being leased to Kendall by Palmer. They plan to pull an all-nighter because they have to file incorporation papers in the morning.
Their goal is to determine what women want. Greenlee tells her co-horts that they are eight women on fire. It is their job to tell their customers what they desire. We're selling us, she says. We know what women want, she says. What is it, Kendall asks Greenlee, that women want? Greenlee says if she has to tell them, then why are they there. Their concentration is disrupted by Petey, who storms in and asks the group if this is where they have come to find their inner goddess? Kendall says her deal with Palmer for the building requires her to baby-sit Petey. He won't bother them, she insists. Greenlee says he already has. A pizza delivery man named Mickey walks in with a stack of pizzas. "What took you so long?" Petey asks. Mickey, looking at the eight women, says he thinks he just died and went to heaven.
The brainstorming begins as the pizzas are consumed. Mickey sticks around, curious about what the women are up to. Maggie tells them they are there to find out what women want. Mickey says if they figure that out, let him in on the secret.
Liza says the first order of business is to come up with a name. They talk about the positives and negatives of being single. Kendall says you don't have to answer to anyone, you can hog the bed and have the bathroom to yourself. Simone says the downside is having to go to movies by yourself. Greenlee instructs the women to stick to the agenda. Petey asks Mickey how much a pizza delivery man can make. Mickey says it depends on the tips. Mickey got $20 in tips tonight. Petey challenges him to double the money at a game of "Go Fish".
Greenlee says they have to find out what's in women's hearts. What are their dreams. Looking at Maggie, she says she knows what she dreams at night. Maggie says Greenlee hardly knows her, but Greenlee tells the group what she thinks Maggie's dream would be. Maggie is shown in surgical scrubs, preparing for her first surgery as a doctor. She is being assisted by David, who tells her she has the power of life and death in her hands. Greenlee calls her Maggie Stone, MD. Maggie says that's so far off it's pathetic. While she wants to be a doctor, her true dream is to be something else. She relates her dream. Bianca is being threatened by three thugs. Anna and Maggie find her. Maggie pulls off her coat and suddenly she becomes a blond superwoman dressed in a skimpy leotard. She beats up the thugs and saves Bianca. She tells the others it's something she wants to do between surgeries.
Joanie and Laurie are asked about their dreams. Joanie says she knows what Laurie dreams about. Laurie is shown with a shirtless JR on a bed. They kiss. The dream ends and the group is laughing. Laurie says she just doesn't dream about sex. Her dream is kind of silly, but she pictures JR climbing a ladder to her bedroom window and proposing marriage. He takes her away from her father. Mia suggests "Escape" as a name for the company. Greenlee says that's not good enough. It depicts someone running away, and that's not what this company is about. Laurie is angry at Joanie for talking about her and JR in front of JR's step mom. Joanie apologizes, saying she wasn't thinking. Laurie says she knows what Joanie's dream is. Joanie is shown in a nun's outfit, looking heavenward. After the laughs, Joanie says that shows how clueless Laurie is. There are no nuns in her church, she says. Joanie describes her dream. She is shown as a Britney Spears look-alike, singing a rock song on a stage with Jamie looking on. Laurie is surprised. Since when has she wanted to be a rock star? Laurie says she know something was inside Joanie, waiting to explode. Kendall suggests the name "Explosion" for the company, but Greenlee says that would not be appropriate considering the times in which we live.
Liza turns to Mia, saying she knows her dream. Mia is shown in black and white as a 1960s homemaker. She is cooking a new recipe when Jake approaches her in a Mr. Rogers-style sweater smoking a pipe. Jake tells her they are playing bridge with the Cleavers tonight. "I don't know what I would do without the little woman," Jake tells her. Mia asks Liza if that's how she sees her, as the little woman. She says she has a dream that has nothing to do with Jake. She imagines seeing her son, William, as a teenager. William says he knows why she gave him up. She wanted to give him a better life. He thanks her and hugs her. Liza approaches Mia and hugs her.
Simone says since they are talking about dreams, how about naming the company "Dreams." Greenlee tells Simone she knows what her dream is. Greenlee describes Simone winning the Pulitzer Prize for journalism. Simone says her dreams having nothing to do with fame or fortune. The lights go dim and Simone walks into another room. Suddenly she is in a hospital room looking at her comatose brother. Tearfully, she talks to him. He wakes up and calls her by name. Simone says her prayers are answered. Back in reality, Mia approaches Simone and hugs her.
Petey walks back in the room and says "you babes are so off base." He claims to know what women want. They want to be like Arnold Loomis, his favorite crime-fighting comic book character. Petey's dream begins. He is sitting at a big desk when Maggie, Kendall and Simone, wearing swimsuits, come to his beck and call. Suddenly Petey is dancing and doing flips. After relating his dream, he says the name of their company should be "Surfer Chick." The women dismiss his suggestion, and he and Mickey go off for another game of Go Fish.
Mia says women aren't limited by one dream. They want lots of things. Kendall states again that the company needs a product. She and Greenlee start bickering again. Simone tells them to stop for 10 seconds and be honest with themselves. Then they would realize they want the same thing. Kendall is shown as an executive at Enchantment. She orders Erica's portrait be burned in the furnace. While on the phone, Greenlee sneaks in and puts up her portrait. Both women are dressed alike in the same red suit. Kendall tells the group she is not an Erica wannabe, although she doesn't blame them for thinking that. She relates her true dream. She is sitting in a rocking chair with her baby. She hears someone coming and tells the baby it is daddy. She opens the door as Ryan comes home. She says that's all she dreams about. If that makes her a fool, then she's a fool. Greenlee says it makes her human.
Simone says she thought the days of women waiting for a man were over. She says they don't have to wait. Women are ready for anything. Greenlee says women can make what they want happen. Liza approaches Petey and Mickey, hands them some cash and asks them to return with a bottle of the best champagne they can buy. They are almost ready to christen their idea, she says. They return with the champagne and Liza asks Mickey to pour it in glasses. Liza says they have learned that one size doesn't fit all. Each woman is unique. They drink to "Fusion" the