Friday, April 1, 2011

Is ABC Preparing to Cancel ALL MY CHILDREN & ONE LIFE TO LIVE?

There is more bad news on the daytime soap front as TV Guide Magazine has revealed there's a chance ABC will axe not one but two daytime soaps soon (ALL MY CHILDREN and ONE LIFE TO LIVE).

We would love to think this is a sad April Fools' Day joke, but unfortunately have been hearing the same thing for a while. The scary part is that ABC might finally have replacement shows they are happy with this time. The lack of a "suitable" replacement has saved their soaps in the past. It's likely we'll know the outcome of ABC's decision very soon.

TV Guide Magazine has learned that the network is not just planning to cancel AMC in the coming days but will very likely cancel ONE LIFE TO LIVE, as well. Word is, ABC Daytime chief Brian Frons has a talk show and reality show lined up for fall — both of them much cheaper to produce than soaps — and he needs to clear the schedule. More disturbing, insiders say Frons has been extremely cavalier about all this, showing no signs of sorrow or regret about a drastic decision that will leave GENERAL HOSPITAL as the network's only daytime soap. When contacted for comment, ABC Daytime PR chief Jori Petersen told us, "I have no announcement, and these are just rumors that you are hearing. I am sorry to hear that they're escalating but I cannot confirm anything."

It's too bad ABC doesn't look to the indie soap world to learn how to produce a quality continuing drama on a small budget (see two-time Indie Soap of the Year DIARY OF A SINGLE MOM by Robert Townsend as a prime example). It can be done. Nothing beats good scripted drama, especially yet another talk or reality show.

16 comments:

  1. They better not. We don't need anymore stupid court, talk, or game shows! We need daytime drama!

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  2. Save our Soaps!
    http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_175109299208465&ap=1

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  3. This is sad. I understand being upset with AMC's ratings decline. ABC did invest in the move the to California and new headwriters but this all seems rushed.

    I hope this is just a terrible rumor.

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  4. I cant even imagine life without OLTL! Watching since I was about 6 years old and as an actor I am on a MISSION to work with the most talented Cast on Daytime!!

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  5. I am very upset to hear and read about this latest news. Yuck to this latest news. I'm hoping this is another tacky, crappy rumor!

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  6. The fact that this is being reported at TV Guide Magazine - a very mainstream media source - on the heels of being reported by Nikki Finke at Deadline.com means that this is probably a done deal. It would be just like Brian Frons to be cavalier about the whole thing. I hate to say it but as soon as CBS found that The Talk was more profitable overall than ATWT, I think that the writing was on the wall for some of the ABC soaps. Really sucks for the actors and crew, many of whom have spent their entire careers at a soap.

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  7. Please, I would get rid of GH, Before OLTL. GH hasn't done anything original in Years. At least OLTL has all the vets in BIG story.

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  8. I watched Guiding Light, As The World Turns and All My Children. I was so saddened by the cancellation of both GL and ATWT and after ATWT was canceled, I didn't think I would watch anything else but I tuned in to OLTL because so there were so many former ATWT and GL actors on there and Kim Zimmer was just making her debut. I was pleasantly surprised and really like OLTL. They have good storylines and great actors and not just those from my former soaps. If ABC does cancel AMC and OLTL, I am done with soaps for good! What a shame but you can see the writing on the wall - there won't be any left within 10 years. And, sorry, I have enough "reality" in my life - soaps are an escape.

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  9. Well, since SOD posted today that Lorraine Broderick is back as HW of AMC, that speaks volumes. They apparently signed her to a long-term contract so obviously there's still faith in the show.

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  10. Instead of ditching these shows why don't they rethink their approach to daytime drama. The days that people can invest in hour long dramas are gone. Why not cut both shows back to thirty minutes and let them share a lunchtime slot. Soaps have lost their individual tones when each program had a certain theme and viewers knew what they were getting when they tuned in. Today, they all look the same. By cutting the shows back, the writers could weed out the unnecessary characters and utilize the time with more plot instead of repeated exposition to fill the hour. OLTL needs to trim the teen crowd on their soap. There is an over population and each one is playing out the same Romeo/Juliet Story.(This was AMCs device long before the days of the super couples changed that.)The only show I watch anymore is OLTL. Became tired of the Sonny Sopranos plots on G.H. YEARS ago, however OLTL is not without problems. They leave plots dangling for months, almost forgotten, to the point where the audience doesn't care by the time the denouement occurs. AMC has lost all the humor it was known for and is simply a drudge to watch in recent months. They have long been guilty of thrusting characters upon us, but along with that would come gems like Opal, Myrtle and Billy Clyde. It needs another Palmer or Adam (and someone with the chops to pull it off.) They have castrated the character of Caleb and Jack, the latter being my personal favorite still, and they declawed Erica. Well, now is the time to let her unleash them again. The plot leaks on the web and in the magazines need to stop. Soaps hinged on the cliffhanger and with all the comings and goings, news, etc, that is all but destroyed for the viewer. YandR gives so much away in previews, it isn't necessary to watch the show the following day. I will be sad to see this genre end. At one time it was my dream to write for daytime, but unless they make some changes the clock is ticking down.

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  11. I have been watching soaps since i was old enough to understand them. It would be really a tradgedy to cancel these soaps. These soaps are loved by so many and it would be devastating. Soaps are a part of my life and I am sure eerybody else's too. To cancel them it would be like taking a part of them away. Something would be missing and they would and I would feel the emptiness inside of me if it would happen. I really hope that don't happen. It is an escape out of our own life and reality. So this is my thoughts and opinion and hopefully it will be read and heard and understood. Thank You!

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  12. Well, I am just sick. I am a 63 year old that have watched these and DOOL and GH since they started. over 40 years. I watched them with my mother and they always bring back memories of her. This will literaly break my heart. Yes, I am one of the Dinosours.
    Taking these off the air will create a real empty spot in my life. I am very sad, and personally I do not need another cooking show or health shows. I want my soaps.

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  13. they are cancelling all my children and one life to live for more talk shows like we need more so ABC will soon be 24/7 talk all day.

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  14. Wow my dad pass about two years ago and my mom and I look forward to looking at the soap together. If they cancel these two shows what will my mom do this helps her more then you will ever know.she been watching for 40years and me about 30 ABC don't tear up our show their like a family to us

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  15. Wow my dad pass about two years ago and my mom and I look forward to looking at the soap together. If they cancel these two shows what will my mom do this helps her more then you will ever know.she been watching for 40years and me about 30 ABC don't tear up our show their like a family to us

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  16. Wow my dad pass about two years ago and my mom and I look forward to looking at the soap together. If they cancel these two shows what will my mom do this helps her more then you will ever know.she been watching for 40years and me about 30 ABC don't tear up our show their like a family to us

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