A is for Abbott: Spotlight on a classic Genoa City family

The Abbotts and the Newmans were the most prominent families in Genoa City. Their companies brought in the biggest revenue into the city, but these two families also have the prize for having the longest-standing rivalries between their companies. The rivalry started between John Abbott, a kind-hearted man, and the ruthless Victor Newman. The Newman family has already been highlighted, so let's have a peek at the Abbotts in this week's Two Scoops.

For the second time in this summer of theme weeks on The Young and the Restless, Y&R is focusing on an entire family. A couple of weeks ago, it was the Winters family. Things were fairly drama-free unless, you know, you count that whole lion incident. Now, it's time to shine the spotlight on the Abbotts.

John Abbott, the patriarch of the Abbot family... He was a gentle and loving man who was fiercely protective of his family. He was married to Dina for a number of years, but Dina had wanderlust and abandoned him and their three children. John was devastated by Dina's abandonment, but, being a strong, resourceful person, John bounced back and raised his three children with help from Mamie Johnson, his housekeeper. I just loved how John stepped in and took all the responsibility for his children. I grew up without a father, so John was my idea of a wonderful dad.

I wasn't fond of Dina during the time she was married to John. She always seemed to treat him like something you would scrape off the bottom of your shoe. She was a self-centered flirt and always needed to be the center of attention. I wasn't surprised when she abandoned her family, just disappointed. I felt John's pain when Dina left, so I wasn't thrilled when, years later, she decided to return and beg for forgiveness. The family wasn't in a forgiving state of mind. I did a happy dance when she left. She wasn't part of that family when the kids were little, and she certainly couldn't be part of the family now that they were adults. Dina's second return was greeted with a little more warmth, but her third and final return was the clincher. Her family forgave her, especially after they discovered she had Alzheimer's.

John was never a violent man, so I think everyone was shocked when he killed Terrible Tom Fisher. Poor John, when he finally regained his memory and confessed to killing Tom, he was incarcerated for seven years. He eventually died in prison from a stroke after he was overmedicated. There used to be a song called "Cry Me a River" -- well, that song was applicable for John's death scene. I'm sure many of us cried enough to create a river or two.

Whoever decided it was time to kill John off was way off base. Was it to make room for a new character? If so, there were other lesser characters at the time that could have bitten the dust. John was the heart and soul of the Abbott family, and I honestly believe that his children would have appreciated and benefitted from his knowledge and guidance -- even now. He has been sorely missed by many.

Oh, Jackie Boy, you were a bit of a slut dog, weren't you? He certainly didn't follow in daddy's footsteps when it came to women. Jack had no respect for women, but if he did, he had a funny way of showing it. He's been married seven times, three of which were to Nikki. One more marriage, and he will have caught up to Liz Taylor! Jack didn't just stop at marriages -- oh, hell no! He had 31 flings and affairs (thirty-one!), and he made a point of removing all the Jabot models' panties. It appeared that Jack jumped into every rabbit hole he could find.

I adored Jack with Luan, Keemo, and Mai. What a lovely family. Luan brought out the softer side of Jack, and that was lovely to witness. But let's back it up a bit. When Keemo came into Jack's life, he was a belligerent and angry kid believing he'd been abandoned first by his mother and then by his father. I really disliked Keemo at first because he was too arrogant, too full of anger, and not really willing to listen. Keemo grew on me after I saw his nicer side and after the situation had been explained to him. He and Jack seemed to have a natural and close rapport -- until Luan died. Keemo was angry with Jack for not disclosing to him and Mai that their mother had been terminally ill.

I loved how Jack fought Keemo and made him listen. Jack explained that it had been Luan's wish not to tell Keemo and Mai. I think Jack's pain resonated with everyone when Keemo informed him that he was returning to Vietnam. I would love to see Keemo return and get to know his half-brother, Kyle. I think they would get along extremely well. Jack has rarely mentioned Keemo, but he did mention that they keep in touch.

Aside from his marriages and gazillion affairs, Jack has had his share of health issues. I'm wondering why Jack is still alive. He was shot by Patty Williams and paralyzed, but with hard work, he was able to walk again. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer (no surprise there with all the rabbit holes he paid a visit to), and he was cured. Patty shot him again (he just never learns to stay away from Patty) a few years later, and once again, Jack was paralyzed, and once again, Jack beat the odds and walked again.

As if that wasn't enough, he got hooked on oxydycone after he had back surgery. In rode Phyllis on her trusty white steed to the rescue. At the Abbott cabin, Phyllis helped Jack go cold turkey and get sober. Sometime later, Jack suffered a cardiac arrest after a cave-in at the Underground, and he survived. Then, years later, Victor shot him. How is this man still alive?

Speaking of Phyllis, I love Jack and Phyllis as a couple. There was something about their relationship that was comfortable and reasonably drama-free. I felt they were at their very best when they were together. I was so ticked when Phyllis decided to cheat on Jack with Billy -- of all people! After what Victor did to Jack and Phyllis, Jack tried to be supportive, but Phyllis really wanted revenge -- and Jack wasn't about to feed that need for revenge. I really hope they can find their way back to each other. They make an amazing couple.

How many hearts broke for Jack when he met the mother of a baby who had been the recipient of Jack and Nikki's baby's heart? My own heart was in my throat during those scenes and the scenes when he told Nikki about it. I'm sure with all the tears for these scenes, we created a new river, because I don't think there was a dry eye in the house. I have been watching The Young and the Restless for many, many years, and I still can't get over the quality of the acting. They really make you believe that everything is actually happening. My husband, who wasn't a soap fan but watched Y&R with me because I taped it, said he couldn't believe the caliber of the acting. It's amazing!

Jack was a hard-nosed businessman, but what he did to Ashley was unconscionable. He used a clause in the bylaws -- a clause he'd created to prevent Phyllis from getting her hands on any part of Jabot -- against Ashley. The bylaw stated that only a blood Abbott could run Jabot. You don't do that to family, especially when they are such an integral part of your company.

Ashley Suzanne Abbott. She, too, has led a very colorful life. Ashly has a chemistry degree from the University of Colorado, and she created fragrances for Jabot. I am going to ask the same question about Ashley as I did for Jack. How is Ashley still alive and healthy? She beat rapidly spreading breast cancer, a congenital brain aneurysm, a brain tumor, and several instances of mental breakdowns. Hell, I want her antibodies or whatever fixes all her ailments!

I like Ashley, but I'm not fond of some of the things she has done. Stealing Victor's sperm? How did she get her hands on that? Security at these labs appears to be extremely lax, but hey, she got Abby out of that theft.

I didn't like what she did to Jack, but I understood why she did it. Ashley needed to retaliate for what Jack had done to her with the bylaw, so she bribed the director of the DNA lab to change Jack's paternity results. When Jack saw the paternity results, he was lost because he didn't know where he belonged. Jack deserved retaliation, but I think Ashley could have gone straight to taking all the Jabot products she'd created and leaving for Paris, which she later did. That proved to almost be fatal for Jabot. But in the end, I was happy to see that she and Jack made up and merged both their companies.

Traci is the sweetheart of the family, and she is very levelheaded. She is the peacemaker of the family, just like John was. I was heartbroken when she lost Colleen. Watching her decide whether to give Colleen's heart to Victor, who needed a donor at the time, was also heart-wrenching. Traci always sees the good in people, and after much thought, she agreed to have Colleen's heart donated to Victor.

Recently, Traci was offered a position with Chancellor Media, headed up by Billy and Lily. I really hope she accepts. I think this would be a great niche for her writing and a great grounding factor for Billy.

Hello, Billy Boy!! I have a love/hate relationship going with Billy. I loved how Billy and Victoria met and it sure looked like they were meant for each other, but it was too bad that Billy couldn't cherish what he had with Victoria. She has given him so many chances, and he finally ran out of those chances.

My emotions were all over the place the day that Delia died. Was Billy at fault for leaving a child alone in a car, or was Adam at fault for not paying better attention while driving? I believe they were both at fault, but I'm still wondering if Adam really was the one who hit Delia. Nikki was also driving on the same road that night, and I still wonder whether she was the one who hit Delia. Perhaps Victor knew it was Nikki, and, to protect her, he framed Adam. Maybe one of these days, the writers will finally give us an answer with conclusive proof.

I hated Billy with Phyllis. For me, there was no substance to their relationship. It was sex, sex, and then more sex, and it didn't matter where. I don't believe Phyllis was a good match for him, since she seemed to feed his addictions. She even took him to Vegas to enter a gambling match. She never reined him in. What he did to Summer to retaliate against Phyllis was pure evil. That was really low, even for Billy.

I really don't like what they have done with Billy. Billy has a gambling addiction; he is an extortionist, a cheater, a womanizer; he had a split personality; and then he had this uncontrollable need for an adrenaline rush. It seems that Traci is the only normal one in the Abbott family, next to John. No wonder Victoria said she was done with Billy. I do wonder who would be a good match for Billy.

I love him working with Lily. Lily certainly knows how to keep him in line. I really hope they can get Chancellor Media off the ground and make it successful. I think Traci should accept their offer to join them at Chancellor Media because not only will Traci and Lily keep Billy in check, but it would be a great platform for Traci's writing.

I love how the whole Abbott family came together and finally forgave Dina. It was heart-warming to see them embrace her, especially after discovering that Dina had Alzheimer's. In spite of not being a Dina fan, you would have to be completely heartless not to feel deep sorrow for the Abbott family as they watch Dina decline. It warmed the cockles of my heart when they brought Dina home to die. When she dies, I think they will not only grieve the mother they had but also the mother they perhaps needed that she never had the tools to be, but to see her vulnerable like this is as powerful as it is painful to watch.

Monday's Y&R should be another fabulous episode. Family and friends gather to witness Traci and Brad get married, and the two devious dames, Katherine Chancellor and Dina Abbott, will plot against Jill. This was an episode from January 1991and it should be a fun episode. I'm really enjoying remembering all that happened so many years ago!

And that's a wrap from me for this week. Until we meet again!Nel

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