As promised, I've been snoopin' for the poop on Constance McCashin's MIA status from CBS' Knots Landing Reunion: Together Again special. Word is, McCashin — who played Laura Avery Sumner in eight out of Knots Landing's 14 seasons — has retired from showbiz to do volunteer work with mentally challenged people. (Among other activities, she sits on the advisory board of the National Down Syndrome Society.) Allegedly, McCashin doesn't want the folks she works with to become confused by seeing her on TV. She just might also still harbor resentment toward Knots, since it's well known that both she and Julie Harris were casualties of budget cuts.
Since she declined to participate in this Knots reunion or in 1997's Knots Landing: Back to the Cul-de-Sac movie, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that TVGuide.com'
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I haven't forgotten my promise to explain Constance McCashin's mysterious absence from last week's Knots Landing Reunion: Together Again special on CBS. Read this Friday's Soaps News for TVGuide.com's in-depth report on the elusive artist formerly known as Laura Avery Sumner.
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Knots Landing Reunion: Together AgainI'll say it right away: Knots Landing is my all-time favorite show. So you know I was totally looking forward to this two-hour reunion of the cast of the third-longest-running hourlong drama, which ran from '79 to '93. For the most part, I was not disappointed.
What I loved: - The quick recap of all 14 seasons using several of the actors narrating was hilarious and well written. - Speaking of hilarious — shut up that Joan Van Ark and Ted Shackelford did a Wonder Woman episode right before Knots began. Joan calling Ted's costume a big "silver co
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Hurrah! The long-anticipated Knots Landing Reunion: Together Again special airs tonight at 9 pm/ET on CBS. Be sure to catch my fellow Knots addict Dave Anderson's recap in Monday morning's Watercooler. Having screened an advance copy myself, I can tell you it's well worth the wait. Just one thing bugs me: The excellent Constance McCashin — who dwelled in the cul-de-sac for eight seasons as Laura Avery Sumner — is notably MIA. McCashin's face is even blurred out of one vintage Knots clip, when William Devane (aka Greg Sumner) tearfully viewed the late Laura's heartbreaking farewell video message on his TV. But why? Rest assured, Coleridge is on the case.
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