The Young and the Restless has a new co-executive producer… who’s actually not new at all. Sally McDonald has been with the soap since 1989, when she was hired as a production supervisor. Seven years later, she also joined the show’s directing team, helping to steer Young & Restless to eight Emmy victories in that category.
McDonald will work alongside the daytime drama’s current co-executive producer Josh Griffith, Soap Opera Digest said in breaking the news. He will continue in that capacity as well as headwriter.
New Producer, New Vibe
Word of McDonald’s promotion comes at a key moment for The Young and the Restless. This fall, the show is undergoing a sea change, welcoming back a legacy character (with
Days of Our Lives’ Lucas Adams stepping in as Noah Newman) and introducing Emmy winners Tamara Braun (ex-Ava, Days of Our Lives) and Roger Howarth (ex-Austin, General Hospital) in roles that are shrouded in mystery. (You can read more about the changes hitting Young & Restless here.)That cast shakeup comes on the heels of Cane Ashby’s recasting, with the younger, significantly less Australian Billy Flynn (ex-Chad, Young & Restless) replacing Daniel Goddard (who’s now Henry on General Hospital). The erstwhile Aristotle Dumas has a master plan, he loves to say. But only time will tell whether it amounts to more than the show’s last scheming tycoon Tucker McCall’s did.
Tracy Refuses to Speak at Monica’s Celebration of Life Service, Which [Spoiler] Crashes!
It’s the day of Monica’s memorial. Jason stands in the church, looking at a large photo of Monica, when Liz walks in. They embrace. She arrived early in case he needed help. Jason explains that Michael is here with him. Liz is glad she has him to lean on, knowing Sonny and Carly won’t be here today, given their history. Liz adds that this past year, with Jason living at the mansion, made Monica so happy.
At the Quartermaine mansion, Ned looks at a photo of Monica and flashes back to one of their talks. Olivia appears and asks Ned how he’s holding up. Ned says a part of him feels like this isn’t happening. Olivia cries that whether she’s here or not, this will always be Monica’s house.
Dante, Chase, and Brook Lynn meet Ned and Olivia in the foyer. Chase heads off to meet Michael at the church to assist him, and the others plan to go together. Olivia asks Ned if he has the letter, and he pats his jacket pocket, saying he does.
Tracy appears at the top of the staircase and tells everyone to stop standing around, as it’s time to go say goodbye to Monica.
Martin arrives to see Drew at the hospital to see Drew and finds him wearing a suit. Martin asks what is going on, and Drew explains that he’s going to his mother’s memorial.
Friends and Family Gather to Say Goodbye to Monica
Laura arrives at the church and offers Jason her condolences, saying Monica wasn’t just a pillar of the community, but also her friend.
Lulu arrives and embraces Michael, who thanks her for coming. Lulu says she’ll always be thankful Monica gave her a place to stay, even when she threatened to throw Tracy and her dad out.
Portia and Stella arrive and give Jason their condolences. Michael approaches them and thanks them for coming.
Michael offers to take over hosting duties from Jason, knowing this small talk must be 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ing him. However, Jason wants to thank everyone who comes today to honor his mother.
At the hospital, Martin points out that the service is private, and Drew is recovering from gunshot wounds. Drew knows the family doesn’t want him there, but he has every right to be there. Drew says Monica was his mother and accepted him, and it still meant something. He admits Monica reached out to him lately, but he never returned her call, as he felt she was calling to side with the family against him over the restraining orders. He didn’t think it would be the last time he would have to speak to her, and he’ll regret not answering, but he won’t let his anger towards the family stop him from saying goodbye.
Back at the church, Kristina and Lucy arrive, and Jason thanks them for coming. Felicia says it was Monica who performed the heart transplant on Maxie. Lucy says Monica was a brilliant doctor, and her family meant more to her than anything.
Lulu asks her mom, who is speaking, what she’s going to talk about. Laura flashes back to talking to Monica, who was in the hospital at the time, yet had just launched the wellness group despite her condition. Laura was inspired to return to school to earn her degree because of the group and Monica. Laura tells her daughter she’s going to speak from the heart.
Gio arrives and tells Jason he’s not here as a family member, but for Monica. She didn’t know they were related, and still she welcomed him into her home. He wants to honor her. Just then, Dante and Brook Lynn Walk in, and Brook Lynn smiles at Gio.
The Service Begins
Brook Lynn tells Gio that Monica would have been touched that he came, and Dante says Monica always loved hearing him play. Dante invites him to sit with them, but Gio says he’ll be okay. Gio walks in and spots Lulu. He heads to Lulu, who hugs him, and Dante tells Brook Lynn that his being here is a good thing. Chase appears, and they all take their seats.
Tracy walks in, and Jason rushes to her side. Michael, Ned and Olivia join them, and Michael says it’s time to begin. Tracy walks into the chapel, looks at the photo of Monica and then at her friend Stella, before taking her seat.
At the hospital, Martin tells Drew that his being there might not have been what Monica wanted. Drew believes she would want him there, and she wouldn’t have called him if she had given up on him. She’s the only mother he’s known. Drew flashes back to showing up at the Qs’ Thanksgiving one year with pizza, assuming their dinner was a bust. Drew won’t be kept from Monica’s celebration, and Jason won’t pretend he’s her only son. Martin points out he hasn’t even left the room, and he sounds angry. He asks Drew if this is about Monica or just another way to screw with his family. Martin clearly isn’t putting up with Drew’s bull any longer!
At the church, Ned thanks everyone for coming to honor Monica, who had strong opinions about how this day would go. She did not want this to be a sad day, but a gathering to celebrate her. Ned says they were all lucky to know Monica. She was the anchor of their family and always welcomed people into her house.
Tracy flashes back to how Monica used to the fact that Alan gave her the house to always push her buttons. Olivia recalls one Christmas when Monica told her to think of the mansion as her house, and she was glad she was there.
Ned then reveals Monica left a final message for them, which he reads. He chokes back tears as he reads her words, thanking them for coming, instructing them to share their memories of her, and to be happy. She says she had a wonderful life that she loved, just as she loves all of them.
The Speeches Continue
Liz speaks about how Monica was an excellent doctor and teacher, and how her patients loved her just as the staff did. She took care of them as if they were her second family. Liz flashes back to when Monica confronted her about her grand𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥, whose paternity Liz was hiding at the time. Liz adds that Jake was lucky to have Monica as a grandmother.
Laura speaks next and talks about how she met Monica when she volunteered at the hospital as a 15-year-old. She also recalls working for Edward Quartermaine and seeing how much he loved and respected Monica. Tracy flashes back to a talk she and Monica had after Edward’s heart attack, and the moment Tracy realized Monica really loved her father.
An Unexpected Speaker
Laura goes on to speak about how much Monica loved her family, but also how the 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren she lost and her fight against breast cancer and alcoholism strengthened her. Felicia flashes back to delivering a drawing from Maxie to Monica when she was ill. Laura says she’ll miss Monica, but she lives on in her family and her legacy at General Hospital.
The family looks at Tracy to speak, but Tracy says she can’t do it. Lucy jumps up to speak and buys Tracy some time, shocking everyone. Lucy admits she wasn’t scheduled to speak, and she and Monica were many things to one another, including enemies. However, she wants to share her unique perspective on Monica. The looks on everyone’s faces can best be described as, “Oh fudge!”
A Son Says Goodbye
Lucy says she shared a passion with Monica… and again, everyone waits for the ball to drop. But Lucy says it’s The Nurses Ball, of course! Lucy speaks about how important the fight against HIV and AIDS was to Monica, and she performed at many of the balls. Lucy says she could never have done the ball without her, and she’ll miss having someone who cared about it as she did. She then adds that they also shared a husband, and she can see the expression on their faces.
Monica faced things head-on, and that’s what Lucy says she’s doing. For years, they hated each other. Lucy flashes back to Monica threatening to get her fired from running the daycare center unless she stopped seeing Alan. Lucy says Alan and Monica could fight, but they were still the loves of one another’s lives. In the pews, Dante and Lulu glance at each other. Lucy goes on to say she and Monica made their peace, and she’s happy to think that Monica is back with Alan.
Lucy steps down, and once again, everyone waits for Tracy to speak. When she refuses, the unthinkable happens, and Jason steps up to speak.
Jason says Lucy was right, Monica loved Alan so much that she chose to be his mother. No matter how much he tried to push her away, Monica let him be his own person and had faith and trust that he’d find his way back to her. Eventually, he did. He flashes back to visiting her long ago in the hospital after his accident, and he had begun pushing her away.
Jason cries that he wasted so much time, but Monica loved him like everyone in the family, unconditionally. It wasn’t until he had a son that he realized that on Monica’s face every day was the look of love, and that made her the best mom to Emily, AJ, and him. Speaking for her kids, he thanks everyone for being here.
Jason walks over and places his hand on Monica’s casket. He cries, “I don’t think I said it enough, but I love you, Mom.”
An Unwanted Guest
Jason sits back down, and Tracy pushes Michael to speak. She says he’s the last one to talk as they agreed upon, so get up there. She refuses to go on, so Michael heads to the podium.
Michael thanks everyone for being here. He recalls growing up hearing stories about the great Monica Quartermaine, but to him, she was just Grandma. He says Monica always made time for him, and then she did the same for his kids. He considers himself fortunate to have spent the time he did with his grandma over the past few years. He hopes they’ll all join the family back at… Monica’s house. Michael announces, “Unless there is anyone else who wants to say something…” Tracy shakes her head.
That’s when Drew bursts through the doors in a wheelchair, and he and Michael stare each other down.
On the next General Hospital, Erika Slezak debuts and is caught snooping in the family crypt by Tracy!
