News Round-up: Goddard, Tamblyn, Upfronts,Craig, Giddish

Daniel Goddard Reveals How Y&R Pulled Off Its Shocking Twist
"I have to give all the credit to Maria Bell. She did a phenomenal job keeping this quiet. I was so honored to be part of it. When you have a great plot twist the last thing you want to know is let people know early because it dilutes it. I wasn’t really told anything. I try to work page to page because if you get too far in front you start to play something that may or may not happen. If you start to play what you think is going on and then it doesn’t happen, you’ve put yourself in a corner."

Tamblyn's THE UNUSUALS and Rambin's SARAH CONNOR canceled
Both shows struggled to find an audience and will not return this fall.

Upfronts 2009: Time To Restore the Network Faith
The Great American Sales Trip is over, and now the television advertising world congregates this week in New York. And this year's upfront is a jump ball like no other. Marketers-and procurement departments-are scrutinizing TV ad buys like never before, looking for the ultimate in flexibility and, of course, value for money.

Tug-of-War on Upfront Prices
Media buyers are still calling for price rollbacks going into television’s annual upfront advertising market this week, but network executives say demands for price cuts have softened since the stock market bounced higher. This week, the broadcast networks—plus cable networks Turner Broadcasting System and ESPN—will be unveiling schedules and wooing advertisers in New York at presentations mostly downsized from the glitzy bashes they staged only a couple of years ago. Last year, advertisers spent $9 billion in the upfront. Analysts forecast that spending at this year’s upfront, where commitments for about 75% of TV ads are sold, could be down as much as 20%.

No more soaps for South Africa's SABC?
TV producers are to hold an urgent meeting on Monday to decide what to do regarding the SABC's outstanding payments of millions of rands, which is threatening to derail the production of several TV programs. Some of the country's most popular programmes - including GENERATIONS and ISIDINGO - could disappear from TV screens within weeks, to be replaced by repeat broadcasts, if the SABC can't find the money to pay its outstanding bills for programmes which have already been delivered to the broadcaster.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW: EDGE OF NIGHT's Tony Craig
In the 1970s, Craig was at the pinnacle of his career playing Draper Scott on the ABC soap opera THE EDGE OF NIGHT Women fawned over him as he lived a lavish New York City lifestyle.

"That was probably the best time in my life," Craig said. "I was living the dream. "The producer of THE EDGE OF NIGHT pulled me aside and said I needed to work on my accent. I didn't think I had an accent, but Pittsburgh people never do. But we have a terrible accent. I worked with a speech therapist for six months to adopt a Midwestern non-accent-accent."

Craig moved home to Pittsburgh in January 2008, to be near his brother and sister-in-law, nieces and nephews, and his aunts. He signed with a local casting agent and though he's had many call-backs, he hasn't landed any roles. He said he considers himself retired, but he wanted to get out of the house.

When the Pittsburgh Pirates hired him last spring as a part-time employee at the ballpark, it "changed my life," Craig said.

Alfieri Risks All for Tom Hanks in Angels and Demons
Victor Alfieri has gone from THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL to a bankable star with his new vehicle, controversial film Angels and Demons, starring Tom Hanks.
“He is such a good person,” Alfieri tells Hollywood Today, of Hanks. “He does this for the love of movies. There was no pressure at all.”

A look at the Lexington ratings impact of the firing and hiring of a Kentucky basketball coach
During the afternoon conference announcing the firing of Bill Gillispie as Univ. of Kentucky basketball coach, WKYT, who normally airs GUIDING LIGHT at 3 p.m., and the show typically draws one ratings point and a 6 share, saw its ratings soar to 6 points and a 16 share. When WLEX broke into programming, it scored a 7/16, well above the 4/13 average for ELLEN.

Similar increases were seen for the press conference announcing John Calipari's hiring. THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS on CBS typically scored a 3/15. Calipari's hiring scored a 7/26.

David Cryer honored with honorary Doctor of Arts degree
Calling the moment a "wonderful serendipity," David Cryer (ex-Phllip, AS THE WORLD TURNS; ex-Hugh, WHERE THE HEART IS), the 1958 DePauw University graduate who performs in the record-setting Broadway musical "Phantom of the Opera," was honored at Sunday's 170th annual commencement with an honorary Doctor of Arts degree.

Elizabeth Hubbard to guest on Dutch soap GOEDE TIJDEN SLECHTE TIJDE
"I am very excited to be joining such a distinguished cast on such a popular show. I already feel welcomed by my new Dutch family and I look forward to all the upcoming challenges. This is an actors dream and I can't wait to get started."

Fox picks up Kelli Giddish series
Fox has added the Warner Bros. TV drama PAST LIFE to its tally of 2009-10 season pickups as it preps for Monday's upfront presentation in Gotham. Reincarnation-themed drama about a psychologist and an ex-NYPD homicide detective who team up to help people solve past-life traumas and present-day crimes comes from scribe David Hudgins. Cast includes Kelli Giddish (ex-Di, ALL MY CHILDREN), Nicholas Bishop, Richard Schiff and Ravi Patel.

Janney wins Drama Desk Award
Allison Janney (ex-Ginger, GUIDING LIGHT) won the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Musical award last night for "9 to 5," which features the music of Dolly Parton.