Deidre Hall

I would like nothing better than to start the new year by talking about one of the five soaps I watch on a regular basis: As the World Turns, Guiding Light, General Hospital, All My Children and One Life to Live. As a regular consumer of Daytime Confidential, you would like to talk about Spixie, Skate, CarJack, Craig, Shayne & Dinah, Bizzie, Rylee, David Vickers or Todd, Tea, and Marty. We are primed for more analysis and debate about the state of soaps, the ratings race, backstage gossip and industry machinations that directly affect our soaps.

However, yesterday came a series of alarming reports that every serious soap fan should take particular notice. This news is not sexy, glamorous, or particularly juicy. It seems far removed from the battle over Little Johnny, Claudia's frantic (if increasingly laughably staged) search for the incriminating DVD's , or the impending return of one Phillip Granville Spaulding. In fact, this is the type of news that most soap fans will gloss over and turn up their noses without a second thought, but we would be wise to resist that temptation. Yesterday, the automobile industry reported its worst sales in decades. While not surprising given the current state of the economy, this is one of the most problematic developments for daytime dramas that we've seen in a long time. Continue Reading...

In the latest edition of New York magazine, Days of Our Lives character Steve Johnson (Stephen Nichols) is among those in the glossy's "Great Moments in Eye Patches." The list focuses on some of pop culture's iconic figures that sport the accessory and the impact of it. For Patch's return to Salem, the magazine states,

The eye patch is the least ridiculous thing about him. We say “is” because he returned from the grave and was reunited with Kayla in 2006.

Ouch! DAYS has finally gotten some press in mainstream media outside of the firing of the iconic duo of Drake Hogestyn (John) and Deidre Hall (Marlena), but Ken Corday and co still can't get any love. Guess it's true about the nasty little vixen known as Karma.

See what the magazine has to say about other characters sporting a patch: Continue Reading...

Lucas

Daniel

Brady

Philip

None of the above / Don't care

Online sources are saying Ken Corday, in his infinite wisdom, signed veteran actor John Callahan (ex-Edmund) to a contract at Days of Our Sinking Ship. This has not been confirmed by the network.

 Okay, riddle me this? If you can't afford to keep your show's own obscenly popular stars, why bring on half a dozen people from other soaps and pay them? I of course realize Callahan probaby costs a fraction of what Deidre Hall or Drake Hogestyn did, but any no-name doof could have played Nicole's doctor or John's shrink. Why hire names like Callahan and Sandra Ferguson?

This has nothing to do with the merits of Callahan, who I adored as Edmund on All My Children or Ferguson, who I enjoyed for years on Another World. This is about the ultimate idiot in charge pouring salt into the wounds of his disgruntled fans. I don't think Corday will understand anything at this point but a full on boycott. Thanks Alistair Crane for the tip!

Yes, I will still watch

No, Days will be over for me

I haven't decided yet

Stopped watching a long time ago

Don't care

I've said it before and I'll say it again: NBC Universal's president Jeff Zucker seems to be running that network into the ground. In fact, in my most recent blog posting Soap on a Rope, I tried to lay out what NBC's wholesale slash-&-burn destruction of its soap franchise has cost the network in several key areas. You can read that specific part of the analysis here.

NBC is mired in fourth place after a disastrous fall. The network recently announced a layoff of 500 employees. For Days of Our Lives, draconian budget cuts have forced out that show's two marquee stars, Deidre Hall and Drake Hogestyn and resulted in a ton of bad publicity for the show, network and genre at large.

Now comes word from The Hollywood Reporter a story quoting Zucker saying that NBC is looking at the possibility of cutting back it's entire broadcast schedule. The whole thing. This is what Zucker has to say: Continue Reading...

Here lies the final resting place of the Great American Soap Opera
A good and constant companion to millions,
The genre lost its way toward its Final Fade to Black.
Neglect and misconception caused the genre's downfall,
But their collective memory shall live in our hearts. Forever.

Daytime O. Drama
1952 (or 1937) - 2010 (or 2015) — Depending on Who's Counting

Yes, my friends, it is time to put on your best Sunday black, sit Shiva if you are among our Jewish friends, remove all your jewelry if you are Muslim, burn those collections of Soap Opera Digest in a Shraddha ceremony for our Hindu cousins, and the rest of us heathens and infidels can cuss out Brian Frons, Barbara Bloom, Ellen Wheeler and Ken Corday in polysyllabic orgasmic fury. A flame in the wind has flickered its last, the bright promise of our date with life is forever gone. Today is no longer ours. Stick a fork in daytime soaps. They are done. I just have one tiny question:

Are soaps really dead? Continue Reading...

I know my fellow Liason lovers are probably dressed in sack cloth today, watching You Tube clips of our spectacular, amazing, soaptastic supercouple who are being viciously torn asunder due to ABC Daytime focus group foolishness, but until Brian Frons sees something that gets him excited againt at One Rapemance to Live or All Ryan Lavery's Thongs (Maybe Fronsie-Pie plans to bring Drake Hogestyn and Deidre Hall over as Beth Ehler's parents and order them to arrive during a CGI-Tsunami?) and our couple is given a fair shot, I figured I would post this to give us hope. Continue Reading...

Forgive me for my righteous indignation but the mere thought of Melanie (Molly Burnett) donating anything, as Maggie (Suzanne Rogers) suggested getting tested for today, to Kate Roberts (Lauren Koslow), whether it be an organ, blood or a bad cold is like hearing someone scratch a chalkboard but visually.

Sure, pairing a newbie like Molly Burnett with an Emmy winning veteran like Suzanne Rogers and then having Melanie donate anything to Kate is a tried and true soap formula. In fact it's pretty darn dear close to what All My Children did with Babe but in a different type of storyline. Problem is, Molly Burnett doesn't have an ounce of the personal appeal, charisma or talent that Alexa Havins did, which allowed the viewer to hate the character but like and/or respect the actress.

The character of Melanie is quite literally becoming the character that ate Salem alive. Truth be told she should be called The Salem Slayer because that's what she's doing, slashing, hatcheting and stabbing her way through every storyline and scene with a bloody gusto unmatched by even the Saw movie franchise. Continue Reading...

The soap opera industry, a genre that needs all the mainstream press and support it can get, is finally getting some recognition, but not in a good way.

The Associated Press (AP), has picked up on All My Children and One Life to Live's, creator-turned-consultant Agnes Nixon's confirmation of her pay cut, as well as those of AMC actors, Susan Lucci, Michael E. Knight and Ray MacDonnell.

According to the AP, an ABC spokesperson states that the network will,

carefully and responsibly managing our costs, which include some production cuts, but in ways the audience will not see on screen.

The news outlet has also picked up on the shocking firings of Days of Our Lives, stars Drake Hogestyn and Deidre Hall of which NBC and Days have stated were cost cutting measures.