"A couple of years ago," Jaime Lyn Bauer told 'The Times-Herald' in 1983, "they (the producers) came up with a TV movie similar to 'Coal Miner's Daughter'. I asked my agent to put me up for it. I was told, 'You're not right. They’re looking for a Sissy Spacek type.' I said, 'Wait a minute; I come from a very poor family and, without makeup, I look almost identical to Sissy Spacek. What are you telling me?'
"They said, 'You have too much grace.' I said I learned grace; I learned sophistication; I learned how to project that kind of character. If you want to see 'down home', come over to my house and watch me with my kids; look at me without my makeup. But I couldn't get any further. It's absurd … Someday I want to play a role where I don't dress in anything but Levis and an old shirt, with my hair stringing down my back and no makeup."
Jaime Lyn Bauer also made the point, "How can you work as an actor, portraying someone else, if you don't know what normal life is like? If you're a star and you only travel with other stars, your guards, your dogs and your entourage, you don't have any connection with normal people any more. I've always been involved with more 'regular' people than people in the industry."
Of the industry, Jaime Lyn Bauer expressed, "You have to learn to use your wisdom about whether to play (the political games) or not play – or you're out completely. Producers and other executives do tremendous psychological numbers on performers in this industry (the show business) ... In the beginning, it is really frightening. There is a lot of pressure (as) people try to mold you and change you. They give you affection and approval; then they kick you. They do this in a very systematic way to manipulate and control you. I rebelled at all this, and they didn't know how to deal with it. If you don't let them put you in a little box, they go into shock. As soon as you confuse them, they start giving you power because they don't know what else to do."
Of the industry, Jaime Lyn Bauer expressed, "You have to learn to use your wisdom about whether to play (the political games) or not play – or you're out completely. Producers and other executives do tremendous psychological numbers on performers in this industry (the show business) ... In the beginning, it is really frightening. There is a lot of pressure (as) people try to mold you and change you. They give you affection and approval; then they kick you. They do this in a very systematic way to manipulate and control you. I rebelled at all this, and they didn't know how to deal with it. If you don't let them put you in a little box, they go into shock. As soon as you confuse them, they start giving you power because they don't know what else to do."
On 'Bare Essence', the steamy TV serial about the perfume industry set in New York, Jaime Lyn Bauer played Barbara Fisher, "She does get to wear a lot of beautiful clothes." Producer Chuck McLain told the 'Los Angeles Times', "Women tell us they can't afford to dress in an $800 office outfit, but they loved seeing the clothes." Luis Estevez experienced an increase in his ready-to-wear sales after the series 'Bare Essence' went on air. He believed, "If you could do a high-fashion TV series and follow it up with a merchandising campaign, you'd make a mint."
In 1983, the successful CBS mini-series was switched over to NBC which hurriedly adapted 'Bare Essence' into a continuing weekly drama to take over the time slot of 'Gavilan'. 'Bare Essence' was heavily promoted and advertised in order to grab audience. The fashion budget for 'Bare Essence' was over $100,000 for the 11 one-hour episodes produced. The wedding dress Genie Francis wore in the premiere episode costed about $6,000. The lingerie, shoes and hosiery bills reportedly came to roughly $3,000 per episode, "Sometimes we were dressing as many as 50 extras, plus the 14 principals and 5 fashion models, for one scene."
Jennifer O'Neill played Lady Bobbi Rowan told Associated Press, "It happened so quickly. I came out in December (1982) for meetings with NBC and Warner Bros Television and we started shooting on January 4 (1983)." Filming could not start sooner as Genie Francis' contract with CBS did not expire until December 31, 1982. Brandon Tartikoff initially ordered 6 episodes. Speaking to 'The Sioux City Journal' Chuck McLain explained, "The (CBS) network already had 3 serials on ('Dallas'; 'Knots Landing' and 'Falcon Crest'). They didn't need another one." The CBS representative stated, "We felt it ('Bare Essence') was fine for a mini-series, but once the story of Tyger (Hayes) and her rise to fame was told, that was it."
It was understood NBC requested for the 11 episodes be wrapped by early May 1983. As a result, 'Bare Essence' had to be filmed entirely on location in Los Angeles as the network did not have time to build elaborate sets in the studio for the series. Ian McShane played the Onassis-like Greek millionaire Niko Theophilus told 'Nanaimo Daily Free Press', "It was all put together so fast. We were put on the air within a month (debut February 15, 1983). We're still trying to balance the plot lines, find out what works and who works well with whom. NBC wants instant results and shows like this need time to settle down and find a format. It's been good training. It's a fun part to play and if we're not picked up (for the 1983-84 season), it doesn't mean we were not good. This is big business. It’s been interesting."
Genie Francis told the 'St. Petersburg Times', "I didn't take the cancellation of 'Bare Essence' as a personal failure. Many of the other prime-time series of that period didn't make it either."
At the start of 'Bare Essence', Jennifer O'Neill observed, "Our show should work because times are rotten, people are depressed and are reaching for elegance, romance and fantasy. It's ('Bare Essence') pure fantasy and it's different from other series, because our main characters are women.
"I'd seen the mini-series, and I thought it had more of an international flavor than any existing series. I thought a lot more could be done with it, particularly my relationship with my daughter. I think people are interested in relationships. I love these kind of series. You can sit down after a day's work and be swept away by the romanticism. At the same time, there are plenty of conflicts within the family. I find them entertaining and something I wanted to do. I received a lot of offers … and this seemed the most interesting.
"The thing I like is that it’s not just getting in and out of limousines. I like that her life is changing and she's letting go of some relationships and renewing others. She felt she had relied too much on men and now she wants to establish her own identity. In the mini-series the character seemed to represent a type as opposed to being an individual. Linda (Evans) and I are not playing Lady Bobbi with an A-to-Z difference. The character I'm playing for all her worldly ways is vulnerable. I don't think that's a jarring change."
Jessica Walter as Ava Marshall told 'Copley News Service' her character was "a mean witch. It's a good part, really meaty. It's a chance to show a great range. She's bitchy, but she has humor. Hopefully everyone who watches will love to hate her, not just hate her." Speaking to 'The Philadelphia Inquirer', Jessica Walter added, "I think I'll be around forever because I've never had an image of myself as an actress only. I consider myself a journeyman actor, an actor in the trenches.
"My fondest wish is that it ('Bare Essence') should run for 10 years because of the number of characters, it takes several episodes to get all the kinks ironed out, but I think we have the potential to be right up there in the ratings with 'Dallas' and 'Dynasty'. There are still a few things I want for my character. This woman has to have an Achilles' heel to show why she's so driven. I think her son, Marcus, might be good for that just like J.R.'s son is his weak spot.
"Give me two or three good scenes an episode. That's all I need. I'm happy with quality screen time, not the quantity. Leave the audience wanting more. Frankly, I like working with a big cast where I'm not on camera all the time. I don't always have those tremendously long working days that hour-long dramas demand, and I even get an occasional day off."
Jennifer O'Neill remembered, "Having worked mostly in movies, it was a shock to find out how quickly they shoot in television.
When I worked for Visconti (Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo) in Italy (on 'The Innocent' 1976), he took 6 months to shoot the film. On this series we do an hour in 6 days. You learn your lines and get on with it.
"I suppose that ('Summer of '42', 1971) will always be the film by which I'm remembered. It was a good film. It dealt with emotions everyone could understand. Yet the odd thing was I was on the screen for just 11 minutes. The reason I'm so well remembered in it is that every time you saw me you heard the theme music. The image and the music went hand in hand. That's very important. It's extraordinary how many classic movies had a theme song you remember. Yet even today (1983) a lot of movie makers don't realize the importance of that.
"My whole attitude toward television has changed. When I started you were either a film actor or a TV actor and never the twain shall meet. Then I went to Europe for several years and when I came back I found there had been a metamorphosis. 'Rich Man, Poor Man' and 'Roots' had turned things around. You began to see a lot of film people on television. The business has changed to one of having to make things happen for yourself. Money is tight. But producing is only a means to an end. Eventually I'd like to direct. I was just offered a directing job but I took this instead. It was a Western and the script needed a lot of work and the budget wasn't what I wanted."
Of daytime and prime time television, Jaime Lyn Bauer remarked, "There's a different technique involved, since we're using film versus tape." On 'The Young and the Restless', "We were memorizing 120 pages of dialog a week. It isn't just the memorizing, it's the endurance you have to build up to go along with it. If we had a 7-minute scene, we played it straight on through to the end. All of it. Sometimes there were 4 or 5 retakes. You need stamina for that. So many people in the business haven't even seen a soap in 20 years (since the 1960s); they don't know just how much they've improved. They have no concept what's involved in the timing and technique of daytime drama."
After finishing taping her last scene on 'The Young and the Restless' in August 1982, Jaime Lyn Bauer told the press at the time, "Everything happened so fast. I was really figuring on a minimum of 6 months, if I was lucky, before I'd get another job, but I thought it would more likely take a year. I was supposed to do a test for a feature film that fell through temporarily. Then my agents called and said I had an interview for 'Bare Essence' the next Monday. They'd advised against some other series, but they were enthusiastic about this one, so I said OK. My new role, Barbara, is a different character, and she has different clothes, different lovers, different everything. You can't believe how excited I am about this."
