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Guiding Light

Kim Zimmer chats about Ellen Wheeler, Oprah & Drinking in new Book!

And that headline is just for starters folks! In a new interview out today with TV Guide, Kim Zimmer gives us a further preview into her upcoming memoir which is going to be a non stop page turner!  I mean, Guiding Light, Peapack, Wheeler, Oprah, drinking, One Life to Live, Clones and god knows what else! But it sounds like a soap fans dream to hear the gospel from four-time Daytime Emmy winner, Kim Zimmer!

I’m Just Sayin’!: Three Deaths, Seven Husbands and a Clone! My Life as a Daytime Diva is set to hit the book shelves on August 2nd, but for now here is what Kim said to TV Guide about who she trashes in the book.  Well, one name came to mind to her.. ,Ellen Wheeler the final executive producer of Guiding Light!

Zimmer on stating in her book that Ellen Wheeler was crying all the time on set: “When they vetted the book, the only thing the lawyer called my publisher about was my reference to Ellen crying all the time on the set. Of everything I say, that’s what worried them! The lawyer wanted to make sure someone else could verify that fact. [Laughs] I said, “Oh, my God, at least 150 people can verify that Ellen Wheeler was a crier.” My publishers are very anxious for me to write another book, although I don’t know where I can go from here. A.C. read three chapters of this one and hated it! He wanted it to be more of a teaching book, something that helps actors learn about survival in this business, a book about self-preservation in a business that’s basically dying.”

Zimmer on if she felt the outlandish stories of time travel and the Reva clone story were a precursor to the demise of GL: “As much fun as it was, as an actor, to be a clone or to time travel, those storylines did not benefit the show at all. Back in the great years of GL we had no idea we were living in the golden age. It was so wonderful and comfortable and meaningful — the fans really cared about us and the stories that we told. Then soaps got ridiculous. They stopped being what they were created to be — human drama! That’s why people are leaving us and seeking out replacements. That’s why people get such a kick out of the Stupid Housewives of Wherever. Those shows are today’s soap operas!”

Kim makes a valid point here!  I mean television viewers are finding Real Housewives of (well, you can fill in which ever city you want) more intriguing then daytime soap opera storytelling  in 2011.  Enough said.

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I didn’t watch GL for many years, then once AW went off, I began my journey watching GL till the end. Not sure why Zimmer has to be so ugly towards Wheeler, she was great! I was never a fan of Zimmer anyway…now reading this about her novel, I wouldn’t spend my $ reading trash she has to say. If you going to knock down the show that paid you money to live and eat then its obvious she was not that grateful to have a job in daytime. She was not all that there over actors on this show that were better and all. Zimmer get over yourself, you are drama, go join the Housewives if that’s the kind of dumb stuff you like to be involved in.

Wheeler you read this..you were awesome on AW, a great actress and in all this book mess your the bigger person, she shed those tears your only human. I guess Zimmer does not cry!

GL should have brought back Nola and Quint and Ed & MIke Bauer a long time ago .. they kept bringing in new families and characters that viewers were not invested in. Nola is one of daytime’s most memorable characters and Lisa Brown is one of the best daytime actresses of all time. Her fantasies were incredible…. great TV…… instead of going for great TV and human drama, real people, they went for gimmicks to try to get viewers that were totally unreal — cloning Reva, etc. P&G or whoever was in charge of those shows … Mary Ellis Bunnum or Barbara Bloom .. allowed too much trash on the shows, disrespecting the history and uniqueness that made them human and gave viewers reasons to watch…real life stories, not SCI FI. SCI FI fans watch those type of shows. YOunger viewers would have come and stayed if intriguing characters like Nola, Quint, and their kids and the Bauers were there. Where was Hope all the years when Allen Michael got married, etc.? She would NEVER ignore her son. The game of “revolving writers” ruined the show. I tried to get in as a writing intern during my college years but P& G had discontinued its writing development program. That was a HUGE mistake…. writers hopping from soap to soap is not the answer. YOu need people who CARE and have PASSION about the characters, enough rea-life experiences to draw on, to write ongoign storylines that impact people’s lives. Holly’s rape years ago impacted people’s lives, as did Nola’s fantasties. YOu couldn’t wait to see what would happen next. Even The Marion Crane storyline was interseting — I wrote a similar one in the campus soap I wrote in college 10 years earlier… a man living as a woman in a girls’ dorm… to get revenge on the girl who rejected his marriage proposal. I don’t know… it’s frustrating because the powers that be will not take regular people seriously, they always take writeres from other shows who recycle storylines and dessimate characters, losing viewers, ratings, and advertisers.

Ellen Wheeler did the best she could hanging on a string….knowing cancellation was destined to happen. Viewers like us are WORTH talking to — these people who run the shows seem to only care about people’s opinions inside the industry — they need to solicit and really listen and/or hire people who CARE about the genre, characters, and have passion for the core families. It’s like living in a neighborhood…when people move in and out all the time (in front of and behind the camera), you dont’ feel like it’s home anymore. I would LOVE to talk with the powers that be about all of this, but no one will listen. I”ve emailed them … no replies…sent letters…no replies….. it’s just sad. I may live in VA, but I know what people need to do to get viewers……produced newscats for yeras…. worked in TV news, marketing, and sales…… i just wish SOMEONE would take me seriously!

I would be interested to know what the actual ratings are for the Real Housewife series of shows. It is easy to make generalizations about how viewers more interested in those reality shows than soaps…but I am not and I know quite a few people who don’t watch most of the reality shows on television.

Yes, network soaps do not have the ratings they once did…but the same can be said of prime time shows…cable news channels…you name it. But soaps still pull in great and consistent ratings…that just about any network or cable prime time show would love to get. It is just that the suits in charge of the US soaps don’t want to be in the soap business any more. Period.

It is also very easy to make Ellen Wheeler the scapegoat when it comes to Guiding Light. If only she did this and didn’t do that…then GL would still be on the air. Am I Ms. Wheeler’s biggest fan? Probably not…but please, it was obvious that P&G wanted out of the soap business and they were blowing smoke as far as trying to do anything to save GL or ATWT. Irna Phillips herself could not have saved P&G.

Just look at what Agnes Nixon has been going through with her two soaps on ABC. And while Prospect Park has stepped up to move both soaps online…we all know that AMC and OLTL won’t be AMC and OLTL online if the majority of the cast and writers don’t make the move along with the shows. Can you imagine AMC without Erica Kane or OLTL without Victoria Lord? I certainly can’t.

Years ago a friend of mine was at the Soap Opera Digest Awards, back when they had those Ms. Zimmer was there, my friend sit on her scarf because they were moving you around every commercial break so the place would look full she said Ms. Zimmer was nasty as all get out you would have thought someone would have sit on her head. You know why soaps are going down the tubes? Becasue it is an ensemble piece that makes it work not just one actor. It became the Reva show and that’s why I tuned out…

Hey, Ms. Zimmer is just telling it like it is. The soaps have lost their way and it is reflected in the ratings. Soaps are supposed to be about family, friends and drama. That has been replaced by corporate wars and the mob on the waterfront. On some soaps, you don’t even have core families anymore. If the genre is to last, they have to go back to what worked. Days and GH seem to be on the right track.

GL should have brought back Nola and Quint and Ed & MIke Bauer a long time ago .. they kept bringing in new families and characters that viewers were not invested in. Nola is one of daytime’s most memorable characters and Lisa Brown is one of the best daytime actresses of all time. Her fantasies were incredible…. great TV…… instead of going for great TV and human drama, real people, they went for gimmicks to try to get viewers that were totally unreal — cloning Reva, etc. P&G or whoever was in charge of those shows … Mary Ellis Bunnum or Barbara Bloom .. allowed too much trash on the shows, disrespecting the history and uniqueness that made them human and gave viewers reasons to watch…real life stories, not SCI FI. SCI FI fans watch those type of shows. YOunger viewers would have come and stayed if intriguing characters like Nola, Quint, and their kids and the Bauers were there. Where was Hope all the years when Allen Michael got married, etc.? She would NEVER ignore her son. The game of “revolving writers” ruined the show. I tried to get in as a writing intern during my college years but P& G had discontinued its writing development program. That was a HUGE mistake…. writers hopping from soap to soap is not the answer. YOu need people who CARE and have PASSION about the characters, enough rea-life experiences to draw on, to write ongoign storylines that impact people’s lives. Holly’s rape years ago impacted people’s lives, as did Nola’s fantasties. YOu couldn’t wait to see what would happen next. Even The Marion Crane storyline was interseting — I wrote a similar one in the campus soap I wrote in college 10 years earlier… a man living as a woman in a girls’ dorm… to get revenge on the girl who rejected his marriage proposal. I don’t know… it’s frustrating because the powers that be will not take regular people seriously, they always take writeres from other shows who recycle storylines and dessimate characters, losing viewers, ratings, and advertisers.

Well i am definately going to Read this book.. I read an article or interview many years ago where Ellen wheeler said that acting saved her from bieng schizophrenic in real life. I can harldy wait til the book is on shelves.

I’m a long time ABC soap fan (AMC, OLTL, GH) on and off for over 25 years. After hearing some interesting things happening over at GL in Dec 08, I decided to switch over to the Otalia storyline, and watched to the end of the show. I came in for Otalia but stayed for the entirety of the show.

Yeah, looking back on some of the show clips, it was rough when they changed production models. Some thrived in the new environment, while others did not. It took a little while but it did improve. And from the standpoint of someone who has watched some of the British soaps, EW’s new production model for GL was not actually new ground – maybe so for US soaps and their viewers. I quite enjoyed the series from Dec 08 til the end (including spending HOURS going back and watching clips on YT to get caught up on stories).

I’ve met KZ in person 3 times, but her seeming attitude to a job she apparently didn’t enjoy to the point of getting drunk most of the time in the last year to in her words ‘get through it’, really doesn’t inspire me to listen to what she’s written.

Kim Zimmer fans will also enjoy the Mr. Media VIDEO interview in which she talks about working with her friend Alec Baldwin on “The Doctors,” replacing Kathleen Turner on “The Doctors” and playing her double onscreen in “Body Heat,” her 26 years on “The Guiding Light,” and her struggles with alcohol in the show’s final years. Check it out: http://www.mrmedia.com/?p=2172

Guiding Light

GL Alum Nia Long Set to Play Michael Jackson’s Mother, Katherine Jackson, in Upcoming Biopic

Since her early days on Guiding Light, actress Nia Long (ex-Kat Speakes from 1991-1994), has made quite a name for herself with a list of credits that are very impressive. Now, Long can yet another when she has signed on to portray Katherine Jackson, the matriarch of the Jackson clan and mother to superstar Michael Jackson.

Michael, the title of the upcoming biopic from Lionsgate and Universal Pictures is said to be working towards an April 18, 2025 release date. Director Antoine Fuqua is set behind the camera.

In a statement on the casting of Long, Michael producer Graham King expressed: “Beyond Nia’s incredible talent, I was deeply moved by her connection to the material and her commitment to honoring Katherine and the love she had for her son. Nia has delivered iconic performances throughout her career. I’ve been a fan for a long time because her characters stay with you. I’m excited to now work alongside her as she pours all of that into Katherine Jackson: a woman who was the glue, the rock, and the heart of the Jackson family during its best and its most turbulent times.”

Photo: JPI

Long echoed the sentiments of King, sharing: “Katherine Jackson is an incredible pillar of strength and grace for the entire Jackson family. As a mother, she was selfless and endured forces beyond her control yet still managed to help build a legacy beyond measure. I am honored to bring her voice to the screen and share Michael Jackson’s story with audiences everywhere.”

Nia will be in great acting company for the film that includes Best Actor Oscar nominee Coleman Domingo who will play Katherine’s husband and Michael’s father, Joe Jackson.

Looking forward to seeing Nia taking on the role of Katherine Jackson in the Michael biopic? Remember her early days on Guiding Light? Comment below.

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All My Children

2023 Daytime Emmys Red Carpet Fashion: Women In Glam: Who’s Got the Look? (Photos)

The 50th annual Daytime Emmys Awards brought out the women of daytime in sequined gowns, classic black, looks with an edge, and more as the stars gathered together for daytime’s biggest night of the year.

Prior to the two-hour ceremony airing on CBS and streaming on Paramount+ on Friday, many previous Emmy winners, nominees, and fan favorites walked the red carpet showing off their fashion sense to the numerous paparazzi in attendance.

The following morning on Saturday, more nominees and presenters took to the red carpet for the 50th annual Daytime Creative Arts & Lifestyle Awards. Scroll below and take a look at some of the pics of the ladies as they made their way down the red carpet.

Photo: JPI

2022 Lead Actress Daytime Emmy winner, Mishael Morgan (Amanda, Y&R), who was a presenter on this year’s telecast in yellow.

Photo: JPI

General Hospital’s Rebecca Herbst (Elizabeth Webber) intro’d the GH 60 retrospective package during the telecast, but a blue-sequined dress was the order of the day on the red carpet.

Photo: JPI

Y&R Lead Actress nominee, Melissa Claire Egan (Chelsea) wows the carpet.

Photo: JPI

Y&R’s Melissa Ordway (Abby) sleek in black.

Photo: JPI

GH’s Katelyn McMullen (Willow) gives us old Hollywood with a modern twist in red.

Photo: JPI

GH’s Tabyana Ali (Trina) in dark red sequined gown.

Photo: JPI

The Talk co-host, Amanda Kloots, in silver and white.

Photo: JPI

Six-time Daytime Emmy-winning star, Heather Tom (Katie) of The Bold and the Beautiful, truly in old Hollywood glam.

Photo: JPI

Daytime Emmy winner from Guiding Light and current star of General Hospital Cynthia Watros (Nina), in teal dress.

Photo: JPI

Eventual Daytime Emmy winner for Outstanding Younger Performer, GH’s Eden McCoy (Josslyn) in creme colored slip dress.

Photo: JPI

Susan Lucci (ex-Erica Kane, All My Children) should also win a Lifetime Achievement Award for all the red carpets she dazzled over the years, and this year was no exception.

Photo: JPI

Grammy Award-winner, Jennifer Nettles. took to the morning Creative Arts & Lifestyle Emmys in yellow. During the Emmy telecast, she performed during the In Memoriam Segment.

Photo: JPI

General Hospital nominee for Supporting Actress, Brook Kerr (Portia).

Photo: JPI

The fabulous Melody Thomas Scott (Nikki Newman) who represented Y&R for their tribute during the ceremony, took to the carpet in this sequined print pantsuit.

Photo: JPI

A Daytime Emmy winner from General Hospital, now with Y&R, Hayley Erin (Claire), took to the red carpet in alternative modern fashion.

Photo: JPI

GH’s Jophielle Love (Violet) was ready for the carpet with patterned-bowed dress and matching black shoes.

Photo: JPI

Another nod to old Hollywood, B&B’s Jennifer Gareis (Donna) in white and silver with matching silver earrings.

Photo: JPI

Paige Mobley, a Daytime Emmy nominee at the Creative Arts & Lifestyle ceremony for co-hosting Instant Dream Home, took to the carpet.

Photo: JPI

Talk show host, Sherri Shepherd making a ‘statement’ at the Creative Arts & Lifestyle Emmy Awards with this modern number.

Photo: JPI

B&B’s Jacqueline MacInnes Wood (Steffy) took home the gold for Lead Actress in a Drama Series for the third time in her career. Here, Jacqui walks the red carpet prior to the start of the telecast glammed in black.

Photo: JPI

Also dressed in black, but in velvet, GH’s Tanisha Harper (Jordan).

Photo: JPI

Talk show host and EGOT winner, Jennifer Hudson, was the final performer to arrive at the 50th annual Daytime Emmy Awards and turned it out in sequins.

So, who do you think wore it best on the red carpet at the 50th annual Daytime Emmy Awards weekend? Let us know your pick via the comment section below.

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Guiding Light

Tom Pelphrey Set to Star Opposite Mark Ruffalo in HBO Crime Drama Series

Two-time Daytime Emmy winning star, Tom Pelphey (ex-Jonathan Randall, Guiding Light, ex-Mick Dante, As the World Turns), has landed another primo role in his primetime and motion picture acting career.

Pelphrey is set to star opposite Mark Ruffalo in the yet untitled Brad Inglesby Task Force Project currently in pre-production for HBO.

According to Deadline, Pelphrey will take on the role of Robbie, a sanitation worker and dreamer who has been knocked around by life, but has always gotten back up again.

Photo: JPI

The series loglines shares that it takes place in the working-class suburbs outside of Philadelphia and follows an FBI agent who heads a Task Force. His goal is to put an end to a string of drug-house robberies led by an unsuspecting family man.

Ruffalo is also one of the executive producers on the series. The Untitled Task Force project is based on an original idea by the creator of Mare of Easttown, Brad Ingelsby.

Photo: JPI

As for Tom Pelphrey, he is one in-demand actor. After receiving critical acclaimed in Ozark, he now finds himself in production on season 2 of Amazon Prime’s Outer Range. Next, he will play the lead in A Man In Full, a limited series from Netflix. The actor most recently starred in Max’s Love and Death.

Back in April, Tom became a father to a baby girl, Matilda Carmine Richie Pelphrey with his love, actress Kaley Cuoco.

So, what do you think about Tom’s upcoming role opposite Mark Ruffalo in the new untitled HBO crime drama? Did you always know, like we did when we saw him on Guiding Light, that Tom would become a major star in Hollywood? Comment below.

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