General Hospital
KATIE Shifting To Live Format In Final Six Months Of Its Run! Talker Has To Tighten Budget!
Courtesy/ABC
Last week, we brought you the news that the axe had finally fallen on Katie Couric’s Disney/ABC syndication afternoon talk show, Katie! The show will end after only two seasons, but now in the final six months of production, January to through June, due to budget issues the talker will shift to a mostly live format!
A representative for the series told The Hollywood Reporter, “The content of Katie will mostly be produced live on four out of five days. In order to keep the production schedule to four days a week, the fifth show will be taped but is expected to be limited to the one-hour time allotted (less commercial time).” They added that the reason to switch to the mostly live format was in the works prior to the news of the officially cancellation.
THR revealed that originally: “Couric’s tapings ran longer than the allotted time because she wanted to keep going to get as much good content as possible. In some cases, shows were running twice the scheduled time. A source close to the show insists Couric’s decision to run longer was made jointly with Rachel Miskowiec, who was brought in last May as executive producer for the show’s second season. The result was that producers and editors often racked up overtime to cut the content to fit the one-hour format, triggering significant budget overruns. Katie was already one of the more expensive daily talk shows ever produced, in part because it had more field producers and news staff than most.”
So, Katie was clearly an over-budget talk show that was made room for in the ABC line-up for affiliates in the original timeslot of General Hospital! And everyone was complaining how over budget soap productions are! Well, it looks like it happens in talk shows too! What do you think of the switch of Katie to a mostly live format, and the troubles the show has had? Weigh-in!
You know, an awful lot of unexpected surprises can happen when you air live….like a guest suddenly making a speech to ABC to bring back the soaps…or a large portion of the studio audience breaking out into a We Want the Soaps chant….
Oh, I’d love to see that happen.
SO happy ABC FINALLY CANCELLED HER SHOW!!! I ONLY WATCHED HER SHOW IELLSB WHEN SHE DID THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY FOR GENERAL HOSPITAL & WHEN RICK SPRINGFIELD WAS ON!! I’M A HUGE ELLEN FAN!!!
They can always use reruns of OLTL in place of Katie until they figure out what their going to do. That will save on a lot of money and I bet it gets better ratings.
Honestly, I don’t know what to say about ABC Daytime and their budget problems. But one possible suggestion is that they may want to get out of producing original content, and just become a giant billboard like AOL. Hey, it could be groundbreaking! Just think about it… an all infomercial major network! LOL. ABCommercial! 😉
Good riddance !!!Now please bring back OLTL and AMC !!!!!
That will never happen mike, OLTL and AMC will never come back on abc. Time to move on, I’m over it now. i enjoy watching general hospital and days of our lives.
So true..
I can not understand how some think ABC will air the 2 soaps, again..
It will never ever happen, they are over/done/gone the same as the canceled soaps before them..
Unless! PP by way of a miracle gets them up and running, again, and that is not probable..
The 2 soaps are no longer in ABC’s hands and when or if ABC gets them back they will collect dust on a shelf, forever archived..
I have an idea on how they could save even more money-just stop producing the Katie show right now. Then they could broadcast repeats of the last 6 months of OLTL, bring OLTL back into production and give us new episodes after 6 months.
I guess that would be a longshot! A guy can dream, can’t he?
I am happy about anything that shows just how stupid ABC is. It is so sad that our wonderful soaps are being replaced with these awful talk shows. Bring back AMC! Bring back all the soaps!
Why bother? Get out now!
Funny, talk was cheap(cheaper than soaps) but in this case it wasnt and the show gets cancelled…but 4 those who dislike Katie…well, she still has her fans and we havent heard the last from her…i wish daytime would experiment with a new soap…it could air for 6 months and repeat 6 months to help keep costs down…also in place advertising would be another way to earn extra money to pay for these shows…maybe a character could be shown ordering and drinking a pepsi or another character is shown buying a Ford truck…it would also add a little realism too…just saying! But i doubt they’d try another soap…the last 4 is it i feel so we should support them while we can…even Y&R!
I MO the budgets were just an excuse. Wonder what they will do now. If it isn’t our cancelled soaps I will not watch. I am looking forward to Tainted Dreams ABC can’t touch that
Here an idea – lets bring back soaps in a LIVE format.
See what rating the Sound of Music got.. people love LIVE (ex. Kelly and Michael)
Everything in TV is cyclical… every ‘genre’ always comes back.. but changes slightly.
What better way to create a buzz … bring back LIVE soaps… you can bet ABC would have an audience increase..
Oh did I mention bring back OLTL…
These budget and over run issues make me laugh… I’m quite sure that OLTL was giving ABC more value for less money.
maybe they can barrow Frank Valentini to get them under budget. lol!
WHO CARES, I DON’T , SHE IS AS BORING AS WET DISH RAG THAT FELL ON THE FLOOR, HOPEFULLY WHO EVER GETS HER PLACE DOESN’T DO WELL EITHER, I WOULD SAY PUT THE SOAPS BACK, BUT ABC/ DISNEY DOESN’T CARE AND WON’T ADMIT DEFEAT, BUT AT LEAST IF THEY DID THEY WOULDN’T HAVE TO REPLACE THEIR DUMB TALK AND FOOD SHOWS WITH ANOTHER FAILURE.
Her contract was too expansive for what the ratings were getting which is what led to her downfall. No surprise here, this woman has always been money hungry since her NBC days.
Despite that, her failure will not bring back AMC and OLTL. Katie’s ratings weren’t stellar but they weren’t The Revolution’s numbers either. ABC will just produce another talk show but this time with an host that ask less money than Katie did. And if that talk show with the other host gets ratings similar to what Katie was getting, ABC will keep it. Sad but true. ABC absolutely wants nothing to do with daytime soaps except for GH.
Nothing against Katie or her show (don’t watch it, don’t know), but the fact that the network allowed the show to continually run over budget after what they learned about “inflated” soap star salaries and show production costs, really pisses me off. Soap stars supposedly make less than primetime stars; yet at one time, the soaps were the “cash cows” for the network. Still, the networks have treated their soaps/stars badly with very little support while they paid gross sums of money to their night time stars and promoted the heck out of them. Soaps started being cancelled and network execs said that one of the reasons was because the shows were too expensive to produce. Hmmm? One would think ABC would have kept an eye on such things with the KATIE show, which has never done well in the ratings. When, oh when, will they ever learn???
Katie and the majority of talk shows are repeats….. unlike daytime dramas.
Going live–a move of desperation. Good riddance!
A talk show going over budget!!!!!!! How can that be????????
now that Christmas is over – I dont feel as charitable to this woman anymore.
she – along with the past daytime boss – ruined the soap genre…. let her go to yahoo dot com… that way we dont ever have to see her again.
bring back the soaps…. you still own them ABC!
General Hospital
GENERAL HOSPITAL Preview: Serena Sets Her Sights on Michael; Jason’s Emotional Exit from the Mob
This week on all-new episodes of General Hospital, new and old motivations come into play with dangerous consequences. According to the just released GH video spoilers video for the week of August 3-7, a bailiff calls out, “All rise!”
Now it’s Isaiah (Sawandi Wilson) vs. Curtis (Donnell Turner), as the surgeon is suing the owner of the Savoy for assault that ruined is ability to operate. At the end of the day, which of these men has enough evidence against the other? Portia (Brook Kerr) is by Isaiah’s side, while Jordan (Tanisha Harper) is with Curtis.
Next, Lucy (Lynn Herring) has a plan to get the controlling shares of Deception away from Michael (Rory Gibson). She wants her daughter, Serena (Kelly Kruger) to seduce Michael. She tells her, “Pick out your most seductive suit.” Soon, we see Serena in her bathing suit at the Metro Court face to face with Michael.
Later, there is a small baggie containing three blue pills. Nina (Cynthia Watros) ask Willow (Katelyn MacMullen), “What did you do?” We also see Michael asking the same thing of Jacinda (Paige Herschell). Leading into this week, viewers know that Willow doesn’t want the former escort anywhere near her children, Amelia and Wiley. Is this how she stops her, or is Jacinda up to old tricks and wants to frame Willow? Remember when Jacindsa drugged Drew (Cameron Mathison)? Stay tuned.
Finally, in the pick-up from last Friday’s cliffhanger, an emotional Jason (Steve Burton) continues to tell Sonny (Maurice Benard) that he cannot work for him anymore. Sonny ask, “So that’s it? You’re Out?” We fade to black.
Take a look at the official GH spoilers for the week below.
MONDAY, AUGUST 3
Jason makes a sacrifice for Danny. Elizabeth becomes privy to a secret. Carly is touched. Valentin has a warning for Nina. Josslyn cautions Brennan.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 4
Brook Lynn and Chase celebrate a milestone. Trina gets an earful. Carly’s plan backfires. Curtis is skeptical. Michael is anxious about his family’s’ future.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5
Sonny wants answers. Ava is struck with inspiration. Curtis’ trial begins. Brook Lynn wrestles with a big decision. Lucy and Serena scheme.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 6
Sonny makes a stunning announcement. Serena makes her move. Willow faces a new threat. Isaiah takes the stand. Lucy questions Laura.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 7
Josslyn is taken aback. Ava courts a new ally. Jordan and Anna catch up. Isaiah vents to Lucas and Elizabeth. Michael questions Jacinda.
Check out the latest ABC promo for General Hospital entitled, “What Did You Do?” below.
Now weigh-in: Do you think GH is about to pair Serena with Michael? Is it curtains for Jacinda? Can anyone stop Willow once and for all, or make her pay for her crimes? What will Jason do without Sonny and the mob? Share your thoughts via the comment section below.
General Hospital Fan Club Weekend brought out many of your favorites to the four day event; with the main cast gathering on Saturday, August 1. Fans near and far attended the weekend held this year at the Burbank Marriott Hotel. Whether it be the main cast event or the smaller more intimate events featuring two or three cast members a great time was had by all.
Some of the cast participating in the main cast event included: Cyrus Hobbi (Yuri), Gary James Fuller (James), Bradford Anderson (Spinelli), Viron Weaver (Wiley), Paige Herschell (Jacinda), Chris McKenna (Brennan), Josh Kelly (Cody), Kayden Brenna Tokarsi (Scout), Cassandra James (Terry), Laura Wright (Carly), Dominic Zamprogna (Dante), Carolyn Hennesy (Diane), Rick Hearst (Ric), Adrian Anchondo (ex-Marco), and Chloe Lanier (ex-Nelle).
In addition to, Van Hansis (Lucas), Cameron Mathison (Drew), Ryan Paevey (ex-Cassius), Easton Rocket Sweda (Leo), Maurice Benard (Sonny), Kristen Vaganos (Molly), Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis), Kate Mansi (ex-Kristina), Rebecca Herbst (Elizabeth), Cynthia Watros (Nina), Kristina Wagner (Felicia) and more.
Take a look at some of the snaps from the main event arrivals below:
Photo: HutchinsPhoroi
GH’s Rick Hearst with on-screen daughter, Kristen Vaganos, plus Nancy Lee Grahn, and Kate Mansi.
Photo: HutchinsPhoto
GH’s Maurice Benard on-hand to meet the fans.
Photo: HutchinsPhoto.com
Jack Brennan in the house … Chris McKenna.
Photo: HutchinsPhoto
Adrian Anchondo, Van Hansis and Anchondo’s boyfriend, Days of Our Lives, Colton Little.
Photo: HutchinsPhoto
GH’s Josh Kelly and his gal, the former Nelle Benson of Port Charles, Chloe Lanier.
Photo: HutchinsPhoto
Who is James’ father? Not Cassius or Spinelli, actually. Actors Gary James Fuller, Ryan Paevey and Bradford Anderson!
Photo: HutchinsPhoto
One of General Hospital’s newest cast members, Kayden Brenna Tokarski attends her first GHFCW event.
Check out some more arrival images featuring: Laura Wright (Carly), Cassandra James (Terry), Carolyn Hennesy (Diane) and more in the gallery below.
Michael Fairman TV will be adding more images to this post in the day ahead.
So, were you glad to see so many of your GH favorites attending this year’s General Hospital Fan Club Weekend? Let us know via the comment section.
General Hospital
Vincent Pastore of ‘Sopranos’ Fame and ‘General Hospital’s’ Maximus Giambetti Dies at 80
Vincent Pastore, best known for his memorable role as Salvatore “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero on HBO’s The Sopranos has passed away.
The veteran actor was found dead on August 1st in his home in the Bronx, New York. Pastore was 80-years-old. The cause of death is yet to be determined.
As well as his role on The Sopranos, many soap fans will recall he played multiple smaller roles on the beloved One Life to Live from 1995 and 2004. However, in 2008, he landed the short-term role as Maximus Giambetti on General Hospital.
PASTORE WANTED TO BE ON GENERAL HOSPITAL
Maximus was the mobster father of Sonny Corinthos’ (Maurice Benard) bodyguards: Max (Derk Cheetwood) and Milo (Drew Cheetwood)
According to Soap Opera Digest, Pastore told Soaps In Depth back in 2009, after appearing in a SOAPnet promotional campaign as a celebrity fan of General Hospital: “‘I’d love to be on the show. So they called up GH’s casting director (Mark Teschner) and Bobby (Robert Guza Jr. ex-head writer, GH) and they wrote me in!”
Pastore was a huge General Hospital fan from way back, who at one point told producers that he would watch the ABC soap opera while working in bars and nightclubs in the 70s and 80s.
Throughout his decades long career, Pastore appeared in films including: Goodfellas, Carlito’s Way and Men of Respect, The Jerky Boys: The Movie and the 1996 HBO TV movie Gotti.
In TV, besides The Sopranos, Pastore’s credits included: Law & Order, The Practice, Son of the Beach, Queens Supreme, Hawaii Five-0, Wu-Tang: An American Saga, plus the miniseries The Last Don II. Most recently, Vincent was a series regular on Gravesend and guest starred on Yellowjackets.
Pastore is survived by his daughter, Renee, son-in-law and granddaughter.
Share your remembrances and condolences for Vincent Pastore on his memorable role on ‘The Sopranos’ and his time on ‘General Hospital’ via the comment section below.
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