All My Children
BBC reports, "Do US daytime soap operas have a future?"
Courtesy/Getty/ABC
Our dwindling American daytime soap opera scene has everyone talking including Britain’s main outlet, the BBC.
In a report and perspective from Peter Bowes in the L.A. bureau, he spoke with among others, Mal Young the producer behind the British soap hits, EastEnders and Coronation Street and Robert Thompson a professor in pop culture at Syracuse University. Here are some excerpts!
Mal Young is currently in Los Angeles developing a soap opera for primetime US TV, and details that Americans are yearning for more dramas about real life. “One of the shows that I’m developing out here is to tap into that. A British-style soap opera, with real people, real issues, working class blue collar families and not the Dallas and Dynastys and the Desperate Housewives.” Young believes US viewers would buy into a Coronation Street or EastEnders set in small town America. “I think they’re ready to go on story-telling journeys in drama and see themselves. We haven’t seen the demise of the soaps. We’ve seen the demise of a certain type of them but as a machine, as a business, a cost model, they’re so effective as long as they’re done with a great heart and they’re relevant to the audience. I think they’re ready to go on story-telling journeys in drama and see themselves.”
Professor Thompson offered up his thoughts on the the fractured daytime landscape: “The future of the daytime-type soap opera is not in the daytime. That ship has sailed and I think they are going to be gone pretty soon. However, I think there is a possibility, especially in the new economics of television that the telenovela model, the five days a week, cheaper budget kind of thing could at some time be tried in this country and work.”
All My Children
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All My Children Stars and Eileen Davidson On New Episode of Virtual Game Show “Soap Opera Know-It-All”
Imagine being in the hot seat and having some of your soap opera favorites trying to stump you with trivia, while trying to best your competition. Well, that’s what four contestants faced as they battled it out in the ultimate soap trivia game, Soap Opera Know-It-All.
The Michael Fairman Channel just released its fifth episode of its season, where in round one of the game play, stars from the beloved All My Children served up the questions including: Cady McClain (Ex-Dixie), Jill Larson (Ex-Opal), Lindsay Korman-Hartley (Ex-Cara), Vincent Irizarry (Ex-David) and Jacob Young (Ex-Y&R). In addition, the former cast members from Pine Valley also try to stump viewers at home with some additional character-related questions.
Later in the episode, there is a very special appearance by Eileen Davidson (Y&R, Ex-Days, Santa Barbara and B&B). It is Eileen who reveals and asks the final question of the game to determine the eventual winner.
For this edition, host Michael Fairman welcomed longtime soap fans: Michael Cochran, Sean McKinley, and Robert Davis along with returning champion, David Bursky for this soap deep-dive competition.
Photo: MFTV, Inc.
Trivia questions from the following daytime and primetime soaps were put to the players during the game: All My Children, As the World Turns, Dark Shadows, General Hospital, Knots Landing, Sunset Beach, Days of our Lives, Dynasty, Edge of Night, One Life to Live, Port Charles and The Young and the Restless.
As the series moves through its now back-half of the season, the winning contestant must defeat the competition for the right to move on to the next episode to face three more challengers all in pursuit of the “Know-It-All” title with special soap-related prizes along the way.
Watch the episode below and make sure to subscribe to the Michael Fairman Channel for more interviews, music and more.
Now let us know, did you get most of the answers correct? Which question stumped you all the way? Comment below.
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Ok then, ABC listen up, just move “One Life To Live” to primetime and all will be forgiven.
My comment refers mostly about ITV’s Show “Coronation Street” Britian’s longest running soap program. In the UK, it airs in the evening, not daytime.
Haha Brian! I’m with you!
“‘A British-style soap opera, with real people, real issues, working class blue collar families and not the Dallas and Dynastys and the Desperate Housewives.’ Young believes US viewers would buy into a Coronation Street or EastEnders set in small town America. ”
That interesting, and right up Agnes Nixon’s alley! OLTL was developed with a similar concept in the beginning – the contrasts between social classes.
A soaps fan just pointed out the other day that elaborate sets of sprawling mansions aren’t necessary. (But really, I do love Llanfair, La Boulaie and the Buke mansion!)
I am in total agreement with Jen. Plus, this is America, NOT England!
they should just keep them there where they are. Getting rid of them are really stupid.
I don’t think Young gets it. A “soap opera” with real people is a reality show. That’s not what I want. She continues, “I think they’re ready to go on story-telling journeys in drama and see themselves.” No, I am not so narcissistic that I want to see myself. Enough with the reality show crap. I want to be entertained, and the perfect model for that is OLTL, not what Young is proposing. And Thompson teaches at the same university from which Frons graduated.
Notice the “telenove
la” stands to make the networks more money!”
yes, we have enough rality in lives these days,bad economy,high price gas,people losing jobs,war,how much people can take? they need some scape and soaps provide that for them. I am sick of talk shows and reality shows,we need our soap daily,so we can battle with realities in our lives.keep them ABC or you go to trash can.
Actually, I agree. I think people want drama, but they want it to be relevant to their lives, what is going on in society, and addressing social issues of the day. Characters need to be warm and emotional. Not overly melodramatic, but they have to drawn you in and make you feel for the characters. That would be interesting to do it at night 5 days a week. I think some people (like myself) would watch it in the evening – if it were decent. For example, I like the show Brothers and Sisters – it is done well. I… Read more »
Umm…RJ. Brothers and Sisters IS a soap!
you know its been on for 40 yrs somebody is watching i’m one of these somebodies..
OLTL is my day time family.
I guess i’ll be grieving after OLT goes dark in janurary hard to believe both it and AMC will be gone this makes me wonder which of the remaining soaps will be next to get canceled.. I read a few years back that fox was looking to get in on soap operas but haven’t heard anything since then wouldn’t that be great if fox picked up OLTL and AMC.
Isn’t Britain one of the countries that uses soaps as a lead in to primetime programming? I know my mom watches Y&R here at 4:00 pm (and sometimes 6pm on Soap Net) and the 6pm airing on Soapnet, comes on right before programming that I would watch such as reruns of Chicago Hope on AmericanLife, and stuff my mom likes on CBS. If instead of airing them during the day, what would happen if you aired them instead of the news at 5pm or 6pm? I mean, who cares to see the news at 5pm, 6pm and then again at… Read more »