All My Children
All My Children's EP Ginger Smith On: New Head Writers, Five Year Story Time-Jump & Michael E. Knight!
Courtesy/TOLN
On last night’s broadcast of the TOLN Soaps Live with Michael Fairman, on the Blog Talk Radio network, the executive producer of All My Children, Ginger Smith was the very special guest for a lively chat and interview about all things Pine Valley in front of the camera and behind the scenes including: why the decision was made to fast forward the story five years into the future from the ABC finale of the series, if Michael E. Knight might truly make a return to the series as Tad Martin, and what Ginger could reveal about the new scripts from the new writing regime, and what is to come when AMC return to film brand new episodes next month after their summer hiatus.
Later in the show, Ginger also took calls from fans of the series asking questions ranging from a possible return of Susan Lucci, to if Brooke and Adam will get married now that Dimitri seems to be taking a liking to Brooke, what the plans are for the destructive character of Colby played by Brooke Newton, and much more! Here are a few quotes from Ginger on some major subjects of interest!
GINGER on the decision to time jump the reboot of AMC five years ahead: “I knew in my head, I would definitely time jump that kid because then you would have the opportunity then to progress the young kids. Not that I don’t love young children, but in order to tell contemporary story, which All My Children has always done generationally, I thought if I got them to the teenage years, what I would do then? It was going to be a challenge no matter what, but I knew it would be difficult to do a direct pick-up from the end of the ABC Network final episode of the series. I thought it’s just easier in to do the time jump and it opens it up and gives us an opportunity to tell different stories and go in different direction. However, I was also concerned that for the core audience, we were still knotted to those stories. There is nothing worse than taking a journey and then they cut off the story, and we don’t acknowledge it anymore, and than I feel cheated as a viewer. So it was really important not to exclude anybody, or make them feel cheated, but progress the story and the show forward in a contemporary way.”
GINGER on what fans can expect from the new writing regime and the new episodes that will go into production: “I love the new writing regime, but first a big ‘thank you’ to Marlene McPherson and Elizabeth Snyder for jumping on this train as it was full steam ahead. They jumped off and gave us a great starting point, and now I have Lisa Connor and Chip Hayes who are head writers. What we decided to do when we come back from hiatus is … and we will have a lot of scripts done is … we will be doing a little bit more of a cliffhanger, while keeping the mystery, keeping the humor, and keeping the romance alive, and also giving the audience some surprises with actors and characters that may be returning to the scene! That was really important to us. We have an opportunity with this shooting schedule that we have to bring some actors in and out and, and that will be our intention as we continue our production schedule, and as we start back up in August. By next week, it will start to get crazy as we gear up!”
GINGER on the possibility that Michael E. Knight will return as the beloved Tad Martin to the series anytime soon: “I will say this about Michael Knight. He is one of my truest best friends, and he has been my lifeline, even when I started this job. There would be days I would call him late at night and go, ‘Oh my God!’ I adore him. Sometimes the timing isn’t necessarily right when you start another project … you have a commitment, you have family commitments, job commitments. Am I saying he is coming back? I am saying he knows that the door is always open. You know what? I think there is a good possibility of that, and you know what I say? If we start talking about the character a lot on the screen, that is what the fans have to start paying attention too!”
To listen to the broadcast to hear what Ginger had to say about the above and more, check out the TOLN Soaps Live with Michael Fairman player below! Let us know what you think about Ginger’s comments about upcoming story and the writing change? Do you think it will improve the show? Who do you think Ginger may be bringing back to Pine Valley? Are you hoping that Michael E. Knight will be far behind? Do you think it was a good idea now that you have seen many episodes of the reboot of the series, to time jump the series five years forward? Comments below!
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Michael, it was a great interview and Ginger comes across like the right person for the job! She’s enthusiastic and knowledgeable and yet she listens to the fans, probably more than ABC did. I got the impression we’ll see more of Eden Riegel and Alicia Minshew soon, which would thrill me. I also loved what she had to say about Zach and Kendall because there is more story to be told there and anything that’s new and fresh that AMC’s writers can come up with for them is okay with me. It all sounds very promising. Thanks for an informative… Read more »
Loved it! MEK will be back I truly Believe he will be back! As far as Characters and Actors coming back! Boy that could be quite the list! I hope one of them is Ryan WITHOUT Greenlee, Jackson, Kendall, Krystal…..Great Interview and can’t wait to see what the new writers have in store!!!
Looking forward to what the new writers will bring to the table! It’s exciting and I’m loving the show. I still miss Greenlee, Ryan, Tad and others, but hopefully many of them will come for a visit.
who the hell cares about ginger smith. the show is horrible now. amc has to bring back cameron mathison susan lucci liza and greenlee. if they dont amc will be cancelled again. the new jr sucks. they should recast jr again. amc needs to bring back kendall full time. bring back the characters will love. then i will be watching amc again. if not the show will fail. also michael knight needs to come back. i know he is busy with other projects.
Then you didn’t even bother to listen to the interview, did you? Ginger has been in contact with everyone you mentioned-it’s just that the timing isn’t right right now for various reasons. I’ve said this from the beginning, people need to get ABC’s AMC out of their heads
I totally disagree with you, respectfully, Gino. Kendal (Alicia Minschew) is on another online soap as the star, Erica (Susan Lucci) has 2 TV projects, Ryan Matheson has a million projects. I think JR is fine, the old JR is on another soap. I think we are doing qutie well without the people you mention. I love the new AMC. Would I love to have “Tad” back- more than anything. But he is not willing to come back now. The show is exciting, vibrant, and the writers are respecting the audience. and history. There are a few history gaffs but… Read more »
lol true Troy, especially like it’s last five years! ugh! Zarf and Erica’s “un-aborted” baby? Sigh.
I, for one, care about Ginger Smith! I think this NEW All My Children (as well as OLTL) is great and doing a wonderful job. And as with any recast – they need time. Instead of complaining, you could be grateful these shows are back AT ALL.
I really hope Kendall is one of the characters that will be back as a regular. I would be happy to have Tad back as well. I like that she said they will be going in fresh new directions and hope that refers to a creative , romantic story for Zach and Kendall. I’m excited about the new writers and hopefully a change of course with some of the storylines–particularly Zach’s .
I agree, Tad should be back on there for sure. And Kendall for good also, need Zach and Kendall in each other’s orbits again!
I really do hope MEK will be back as Tad. Dixie is lost without him. Someone needs to save her from Billy Clyde:) Love the new format and hoping to see Erica and Jackson at least come for a visit .
since Erica (La Lucci) is busy, I wish they’d just bring Jackson back for now. Walt Willey says he has not been asked. What’s up with that? I was not happy to hear that, but maybe they can’t afford more stars right now. They should talk to him, though.
Very disappointed that Canada cannot watch AMC. We got hooked on a few episodes and now nothing. Not fair. Lots of viewers in Canada
From what I understand, both AMC and OLTL are available in Canada on ITunes
The show needs a little work, some might say A LOT of work – the writing is flat, the sets are limited – every scene is either Jane’s Coffee Shop or Chandler Mansion. No park scenes, no lake scenes, no street scenes, just Jane’s Coffee Shop. So, on a positive upbeat note, I hope the new writing team can add some zest to these rather Zipless scenes – and of course, it would be great if Michael E. Knight could reprise his role as Tad Martin. Susan Lucci as the iconic Erica Kane would be a welcomed addition. I don’t… Read more »
I thought is was a great interview. I am hoping that they do bring Alicia back. Would lov
to see her and Thorsten bring their magic back to the show. Would love to see them in
a story line with lots of adventure and romance.
Michael, it took a couple of sittings to get through the interview, but I truly appreciated Ginger’s positive attitude. AMC is in good hands
If I can only have a little part of Kendall, Ryan, Greenlee, Krystal, Jackson, and Tad- I would be in heaven. A little is better than none. What would be ground-breaking good production is if Leo came back for Greenlee. It would be a dream come true of epic proportions! One can only wish!!!
Cecile, not to worry. You have missed absolutely nothing. This show sucks. If you want good writers, get the ones who worked on TV. Altho the convoluted Erica kidnap/stolen identity story, currently on Soapnet, has to be the absolute dumbest story I have seen in my entire life. We are to believe that someone who is not Erica can just step in her shoes and become her. When will the writers give the viewers credit for a modicum of intelligence? Never, I guess. But back to the re-boot, this is absolute torture. Said I wouldn’t watch but caved out of… Read more »
I hope you have stopped watching.
Jas, AMC is definitely not trash or crap. It has definitely returned as if it never left. Ginger wouldn’t have it any other way and Agnes is behind this all so I find your comment to be way off. The look and feel is still there so I don’t know why anyone would bash this beloved series and the actors. It is plain disrespectful. Ginger knows what she is doing and I think anyone who wants their ABC AMC back needs to really let it go. Everyone is entitled to their opinion but there’s a line that gets crossed anytime… Read more »
I ended up going to bed instead of staying up for the interview. If I had called in, I would’ve asked about the possibility of Ross Chandler returning now that the Cortlandt/Chandler feud has been revived (what is Robert Newman doing these days?). As a viewer of AMC since the summer of 1980, I was quite impressed with Ginger Smith. I’ve been loving the reboot anyway, but hearing how much she loves the show and her favorite story line being Cliff & Nina just made me appreciate her even more!
My response to the highly intelligent Ricky Ortega is: 5 year gap. Let’s see, JR or AJ or whatever his name was was about 7 when the series got cancelled. Let’s see. How about a math lesson. 7 plus 5 equals ??? Genius you say. Well, clearly genius you are not. 7 plus 5 = 12. So AJ is 12. And clearly a brilliant student to already be in high school, huh? I’m being disrespectful? No, I’m just expressing my opinion which, when last I heard, living free in America (barely anymore) I am free to express. I have done… Read more »
Ginger has been doing amazing with the handling of All My Children. She’s really holding true to the origins of the show and making it a much more contemporary, but attractive series. Since the relaunch, I have not been able to miss a single beat of the series. The casting has [for the most part] been brilliant. And I hope that when the show returns to production next month we’ll see even more veteran faces and veteran characters. That would be awesome! But I have zero complaints about the series thus far! As per the new writing regime, Marlene and… Read more »
You don’t have to torture yourself by watching.lol
The new shows are GREAT!!!!
Since soaps always rapidly age kids,it’s suprising that AJ and Miranda aren’t in their mid twenties after the time jump.
The show was pretty aweful on abc the last few years until they were cancelled(then it got much better).
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