News
N.Y. Times Reporter on OLTL! Refuge, Revelation, & Life Lessons learned from Llanview!
Courtesy/ABC
It’s hard for many to fathom that it has now been over a month since One Life to Live aired its final episode after 43 years on ABC. And as fans are still grieving the loss, and tuning in to 1PM or 2PM in the afternoon (depending on your time zone) to see if the show is on, sadly it’s gone, (replaced by the lifestyle series, The Revolution) but in no way forgotten.
To mark the end of OLTL, Patrick Healy, a theater reporter for The New York Times, wrote about his longtime affection for the series and soap operas in general. The daytime serials offered “both an escape from real life and a mirror where I saw — for the first time — my own repressed feelings given voice by characters who were more fearless, shrewd and thin than I was,” Healy writes.
While explaining how he fell in love with Llanview he highlighted when Judith Light took the stand as Karen admitted she was a prostitute, Erika Slezak’s numerous performances as Viki, battling with her alters throughout the four decades of the series, and Susan Haskell’s complex portrayal of Marty Saybrooke. Healy was able to beautifully put how his life was changed and helped by One Life to Live, in so many ways.
Here are a few excerpts: “One Life to Live receded as a steady presence until the introduction of another strongly written female character, the reckless college student Marty Saybrooke, who was gang raped at a fraternity house. Like Ms. Light’s Karen, Susan Haskell’s Marty became one of daytime’s great characters, a victim who would go on to turn her life around. But as much as Marty later persevered, she was always haunted by the past. And I related to her difficulty with old demons; mine was a pathology about abandonment and being given up for adoption. Just as Karen and Viki and Marty tried to prove their self-worth, I tested myself by volunteering to be a war correspondent in Afghanistan and Iraq, where I would sometimes recall Viki as a source of strength, and later by becoming a political reporter.
As cliché as my favorite soap’s title was, the realization that I had only one life to live was the show’s greatest gift to me as an adult. At 26 I went through a painful breakup with my fiancée, Maureen, who recognized that I might be gay before I did (or could). I insisted that I wasn’t, or in any event that I loved her more than I could imagine loving anyone. (Yes, I speak in soapy dialogue sometimes.) Maureen forced me to face my true self, rather than retreat into fantasylands like Llanview. But the characters of Llanview, whom I still followed from time to time, were reminders that happiness lay in reckoning with the truth, with your true identity, rather than retreating into alternate personalities or dwelling on past traumas (and, let’s face it, luxury problems). In time I accepted who I am; I became, to use a favorite word of Viki’s, integrated.
I like to think that someday I’ll go to one of those fan conventions and finally meet Erika Slezak, who played Viki for 41 years. I think about what I will say to her. It’s not unlike what I envision saying to my biological mother if she ever agrees to meet me and discuss her decision 40 years ago. Soap-style dialogue runs through my mind when I imagine both encounters — big emotional statements worthy of a Daytime Emmy Award. But, really, I think I would start with both women by keeping it simple and just saying, “Thank you.”’
What do you think about Healy’s words? How have you been forever impacted by One Life to Live? Share your thoughts!
General Hospital
‘General Hospital’s’ Dominic Zamprogna Shares He Was ‘Happy to Hear’ of The Triangle Storyline Developing Between Dante/Elizabeth/Ric
General Hospital’s Dominic Zamprogna (Dante Falconeri) opened up about the burgeoning love triangle forming between his Port Charles alter-go, Elizabeth Webber (Rebecca Herbst) and Ric Lansing (Rick Hearst) after recently aired scenes, plus his hopes for the future of a Dante and Liz pairing, during his appearance on the Sunday, April 23 edition of the That’s Awesome podcast with Steve Burton (Jason Morgan) and Bradford Anderson (Spinelli).
On last week’s episodes of GH, Ric has made the decision that he wanted to propose to his ex-wife, only when he showed up at Elizabeth’s front door, he misread the scenario he walked in with Liz tending to Dante’s injured leg from the softball game. From there, the legal eagle’s jealous streak is reemerging which may cause him to act out and do something unforgivable, or will he take the high road? Stay tuned.
Speaking with Steve Burton and Bradford Anderson about where Elizabeth stands in the annals of the long-running soap, Zamprogna said, “She’s up there with Steve and Maurice (Maurice Benard) as one of the most legacy-filled people on the show.”
Courtesy/ABC
HOW DANTE AND ELIZABETH CAME ABOUT
Dominic jokes it’s a far cry for where Dante and Elizabeth previously, recalling, “We had some scenes together years ago and we were both laughing. Becky’s like, ‘Well, I guess we’re not going be paired up anytime soon.’ I remember we laughed immediately after they yelled ‘cut,”‘and said to each other, ‘Well, so much for that!'”
Fast-forward to early 2025 and as Zamprogna remembered it, “Elizabeth Korte (co-head writer, GH) came up to me at the General Hospital Christmas party, and I think it was a year and a half ago and she said, ‘We’re going to have you in scenes with Elizabeth,’ My internal monologue is going, ‘I’m not with Lulu (Alexa Havins) anymore and Sam’s (Kelly Monaco) gone, so maybe they want to see if this works.’ I didn’t want to get scenes with Becky and try to find the chemistry. I just wanted to play whatever honestly was written and came across for both of us and hope it was what people liked, and I don’t know if it is … or not.”
Knowing how beloved Elizabeth is to the GH faithfuls, Zamprogna added, “She got a big fan base with Ric … and a big fan base with with Jason … and you know, you’re going to piss somebody off. But, didn’t Ric drug Elizabeth and put Carly in a panic room?”
Photo: ABC
DANTE AND ELIZABETH PAIRING COULD STIR UP STORY FOR OTHERS IN PORT CHARLES
In closing, Dominic felt that the wide-reaching tentacles of a Dante and Elizabeth relationship is something he is 100% down for. “The triangle thing; I was happy to hear it was with Ric and her, because I felt it’s important to have her the top of it as opposed to Dante, Lulu and Elizabeth.”
Zamprogna added, “When you get into relationships on a soap, things seem to fizzle out a little bit, The buildup is what’s the fun part, and the getting to know each other, and the people who are affected by this coming together. When with this case it’s going to affect: Ric, Sonny, Lulu. There’s so much more story here. To me, it’s going to be a fun story to play.”
You can check out Dominic’s visit to That’s Awesome with Steve and Bradford below.
Now weigh-in: Are you rooting for Dante and Liz, or Dante and Ric at this juncture of the story, or neither guy for Elizabeth? Let us know your thoughts and picks via the comment section.
While Smitty tries to hold the fort down in his marriage to congressman Martin Richardson (Brandon Claybon) and their two teenaged children, Samantha (Najah Jackson) and Tyrell (Jaden Lucas Miller) on Beyond the Gates, Emmy-winner Mike Manning has also landed another feature film role.
According to Deadline, Manning has joined the cast of Deify with 6 other new cast members for the indie psychological horror film starring Neal McDonough and Skeet Ulrich, which was previously announced last week.
Joining Manning as the latest cast addition are: Dennis Haysbert, Ashley Greene, Casey Harnett, Kirk Avecdo, Anji White, anf Nicholas Chimera who’s directing the pic also has a part in the film.
WHAT’S THE STORY OF DEIFY?
Taking to his Instagram with the news of his casting, Manning shared, “A movie about a cult? What could possibly go wrong? Come for the enlightenment. Stay because they won’t let you leave. DEIFY is coming…”
The movie is currently shooting in Chicago and in story, “a cult leader is put on trial after causing his devoted followers to be burned alive. The film is inspired in part by events surrounding the 1993 Waco, Texas, standoff between members of the Branch Davidians church and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, one of the largest civilian firefights ever recorded on American soil.”
MIKE MANNING IS A DAYTIME EMMY NOMINEE
In addition, the multi-talented Manning is a producer on the feature. Previously, Mike was nominated last month in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for the upcoming 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards. He previously won an Emmy for his role on The Bay and for being a producer on the digital drama.
Mike’s previous credits include the role of Charlie Dale on Days of Our Lives and the Manny on This Is Us, plus various primetime and screen credits.
So intrigued to find what role Mike will play in the upcoming horror/cult film, Deify? Enjoying him as Smitty on Beyond the Gates? Share your thoughts via the comment section below.
General Hospital
GH and OLTL Alum Patrick J. Gibbons Reveals the Story Behind Writing Trina’s Song on ‘General Hospital’ (Exclusive)
At the conclusion of today’s August 21 episode of General Hospital, Trina Robinson (Tabyana Ali) sings a lullaby to baby Dez, that went into a montage to close out the episode as her father Curtis Ashford (Donnell Turner) reports to Pentonville and winds up in his jail cell.
However, in a fun fact, the song entitled, “A Lonely Heart To Give” was actually written by none other than former One Life to Live and General Hospital actor, Patrick J. Gibbons.
Daytime fans first met Gibbons as Sam Manning on One Life to Live. At the time, when he started on the soap, he was just 5-years-old. Gibbons played the part from 2010-2013 on ABC and Prospect Park’s editions of the show. Fast-forward to 2018, Gibbons shows up on General Hospital as Wyatt Hoover, the scout who seemed always be injured, but in the thick of the drama. Patrick had appeared on GH multiple times as Wyatt including: 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023.
Photo: ABC
FROM HIS GRANDMOTHER’S DEATH CAME THE INSPIRATION FOR HIS SONG
Now in 2026, General Hospital fans are getting to learn about another side of Gibbons’ talent as a songwriter and guitar player after “A Lonely Heart to Give” debuted today! Michael Fairman TV caught up with Patrick, who is now a senior at Penn State entering his final year as a finance major, to get the back-story of how his song wound up on GH!
Gibbons explained he wrote the song in honor of his grandmother who passed away a few years ago with whom he was, very, very close with. “Randomly, my grandmother had a downfall and passed away during the second semester of my sophomore year. I was in my dorm a lot and I was just playing with my guitar. And at the time, I was really into finger-style playing. I wrote the lyric and music to it (with a little help from my guitar teacher Lou), and my mom showed the rough demo to Frank Valentini (EP, General Hospital). He’s like an uncle to me. Frank loved it so much he said, “Finish that up. I want to hear the whole thing, and I want it on the show.”
MAKING MUSIC FOR GENERAL HOSPITAL
Gibbons and his parents took the next steps! “So now, all we needed was a female voice, because I thought that would fit the song well,” Patrick shared. “At the golf club we go to my parents were at a dinner. They liked the singer that was performing and spoke to her about the song, and she says she would like to bring it to her ‘boss’ who ended up being Eric Bazilian of the Hooters fame!” (Bazilian also wrote the smash hit song “One of Us” for Joan Osborne).
Next, “We went in the studio and recorded it and the song came together and it was beautiful. We loved it. They loved it at General Hospital and now they’re putting it the show and they are coming in with a piano, instead of a guitar. Paul Glass, the GH musical director, has been keeping us updated over the last six months of how it was coming along, and when it would air, and how GH put their own arrangement to it. I can’t wait to see and hear what they did with it.”
Photo: JPI
PATRICK’S ONE LIFE TO LIVE FAMILY
Everyone knows that the One Life to Live extended family share a very tight bond, and Patrick said he does stay in touch with a few of his former One Life to Live co-stars, especially those from the Manning family! “I stayed in touch with Kassie DePaiva (ex-Blair) and sent her little videos here and there. She was like my second mom for five years. We keep in contact with Kristen Alderson (ex-Starr) over X the most, and she can’t believe how big I’ve gotten. Like, none of them can! (laughs). I also loved working with Roger Howarth (ex-Todd) and Trevor St. John (ex-Todd and Victor Jr.), and to me since I was so young, they were just my friends, ‘Roger and Trevor,’ not Todd Manning or Victor Jr.”
It was a trip to California and a visit to Port Charles that ultimately led to Gibbons second soap role of Wyatt Hoover. Patrick explains, “In 2016, Frank Valentini invited us out to Los Angeles to visit the set of General Hospital. I think he heard me say, ‘This is so much fun. I miss being on the set.’ He goes, ‘You should come out. I’ll bring you on the show. We can make you a character.'”
A few years later, Patrick’s dream became a reality! “Then, by the summer of 2018, I was playing Wyatt, the scout, and shared scenes with Wes Ramsey (Peter August), and the best was when I shared a scene with Roger Howarth and Michael Easton (ex-John, OLTL and ex-Silas, Finn et al, GH), it was like chemistry from the old days.”
Photo: PGibbons
IT’S ALL IN THE NUMBERS
As to his future aspirations, it’s a career in the finance game that has piqued Gibbons’ real-life interest. But never say never to a return to acting. Patrick explained, “I’ve always enjoyed numbers. And on top of that, one of the biggest parts of finance is being personable and outgoing.”
He continued, “That’s one of the greatest skills I developed growing up. I really love the markets. I’m super interested. I’m never going to close the door to acting. I’m always open to that because I just love it so much. It’s such a great art.”
Take note! If there are any investment bankers or private equity folks among the GH faithful looking for a young analyst next year, Patrick’s DMs are open. You can find him on X at @PatrickJGibbons.”
So, what did you think of the song sung by Trina on today’s GH that was written by Patrick J. Gibbons? Did you enjoy Patrick’s performances as One Life’s Sam and GH’s Wyatt? Would you like to see him back on GH at some point? Let us know via the comment section.
‘General Hospital’s’ Dominic Zamprogna Shares He Was ‘Happy to Hear’ of The Triangle Storyline Developing Between Dante/Elizabeth/Ric
THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL Preview: Kelly Sullivan Debuts as Dylan’s Mom; Suspicion is Raised About Carter and Steffy
‘Beyond the Gates’ Star Mike Manning Lands Role in Indie Horror Feature ‘Deify’
GH and OLTL Alum Patrick J. Gibbons Reveals the Story Behind Writing Trina’s Song on ‘General Hospital’ (Exclusive)
‘Guiding Light’s’ Grant Aleksander Shares Heartfelt Remembrance of TV Daughter, Hayden Panettiere On What Would Have Been Her 37th Birthday
‘General Hospital’s’ Maurice Benard Talks: New ‘Sonny’ Storyline, His Contract, and Three Characters He Would Want to See Back in Port Charles
How John Oliver’s ‘Days of Our Lives’ Guest Star Turn as ‘Devlin St. John’ Came to an End
‘Veronica & Julian’ Feature Starring ‘Days of Our Lives’ Alums Nadia Bjorlin and Kyler Pettis Releases Key Art and More (Exclusive)
John Oliver Recaps His ‘Days of Our Lives’ and ‘General Hospital’ Soap Opera Experience on ‘Last Week Tonight’
‘General Hospital’ Alum Bryan Craig Cast in ‘The Weapon’
‘Guiding Light’s’ Grant Aleksander Shares Heartfelt Remembrance of TV Daughter, Hayden Panettiere On What Would Have Been Her 37th Birthday
‘General Hospital’ Alum Chad Duell Admits That He Didn’t Expect the Role of Michael Corinthos to be Recast, and Would Consider Working on Another Soap (Exclusive)
GENERAL HOSPITAL: Ric’s History of Jealousy Where Elizabeth is Concerned Has Come Back Around
THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL: Steffy and Carter Get Lame Excuses From Their Spouses, and Try to Shake Off Their Night Together
‘Veronica & Julian’ Feature Starring ‘Days of Our Lives’ Alums Nadia Bjorlin and Kyler Pettis Releases Key Art and More (Exclusive)
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lets face it we are still talking about oltl and the 43 years of life lessons it shared with us,It gave us information and also a sense of belonging to a family,and yes escapisim,and i bet we will be talking of it for a long time .abc really messed up taking it off the air.
I AGREE ALSO ALL MY CHILDREN I LOVED THESE TWO SOAPS
I am totally miserable without my soaps…I channel surf..or read. Been watching AMC since “77” and OLTL since “98”. ABC had no right to take them from us.They could have gave us a chance to prove to them that we were here…I will never forgive ABC for doing this.My Tv will forever be tuned anywhere but ABC and their affiliates.I will not be reprogrammed, I will forever remember the day that ABC took my only relaxing time for myself away…..ABC is my NIGHTMARES…..
MY afternoons have been ruined thanks to ABC’s greed! It was the only 2 hours I had each day to relax! Now there’s nothing good to watch during the day!
I think that it was one of the biggest mistakes that ABC/Disney ever made,I still refuse to watch anything that ABC offers,other than “GENERAL HOSPITAL ” and”CASTLE”which does have one of the former “OLTL”members in the crew.
Same hrer… Iagree with Elizabeth!!!!!!!!
Yes we will remember it a long time especially those of us who watched it for as long as we can remember as in since was a small child. ABC messed up badly and we learned lots from it unlike the Revulsion which is so ridiculous who will learn anything from it especially since I won’t ever watch such crap as it or the Spew bring back our soaps our family our escape.
Just watch all the opening titles they had over the years and that tears you up. The end of decades of story telling as they use to call it in the day, she is in watching her stories ! Your heart skips a beat and you say it was like majic in the day!
OLTL was a heartwarming soap opera… One of a kind!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I miss all the actors on OLTL terribly!!!!!!!!!!!! This was a very special show!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
“Thank you” to the NYT’s Patrick Healy for sharing what his longtime affection for “One Life to Live” has personally meant to him in his life. And, thank you too, Michael Fairman, for sharing Healy’s eloquent message, similarly resonant with meaning in the lives of so many millions of OLTL fans nationwide. We, as in our family and friends are continuing our boycotting of ALL THINGS ABC and Disney for their having canceled “One Life to Live” and “All My Children.” In response to these cancellation policy decisions, decisions made by Disney’s Robert Iger and ABC’s Anne Sweeney and Brian Frons, evidence is emerging suggesting that ABC is witnessing half of the Daytime audience fan base fleeing its network programming entirely, as some acutely perceptive observers (i.e. including among others, the acutely prescient Robin Strasser, et al.) many months ago had well predicted would be the tragic outcome. In an honorable business culture, these three individuals would have already committed a form of corporate “hari kari” for having offended and injured as many parties as they have through their rank incompetence, poor business decision making, and despicable treatment of their customers/loyal viewers of many decades duration. And, moreover, for their manifest classless crude abuse, deception, and disrespect they rained on the ever talented casts and crews of “One Life to Live” and “All My Children.” Iger, Frons, and Sweeney are disgraces to the honorable traditions that have historically prevailed in the American entertainment and broadcasting industries, and the latter Ms. Sweeney in having been complicit to the extreme in Mr. Frons’ notorious in the public record, chronic repeated ageist and sexist conduct, is a disgrace to the American womens movement that tragically paved the opportunity for her; powerfully witness her wrecking operations in a Bain Capital-like looting fashion of a great American storytelling genre birthed by writer Agnes Nixon that sustained primetime programming on this country’s networks for decades. Moreover, the three of them, Iger, Sweeney and Frons went on to replace such iconic American classics (and their millions of LOYAL daytime viewers) with junk programming a la The Spew and The Revulsion in further debasing the American contemporary television medium. Shame on the three of them and let damn be done! ABC/Disney: Release the rights now being held “hostage” to those shows and allow another network or cable provider to bring these shows back to their audiences. For once, do the right thing and cease your contemptuous conduct toward your customer base that is inimical to every sound contemporary business practice. Begin, then, to advertise ABC in a positive public light. Or perhaps better that Disney “do you” (Karma) as you did unto others, and denigrate and humiliate, and sell you off at a fire sale…now, there’s an idea….why, thank you Fortune Magazine….
Amen! The utter disregard to millions of people keeping ABC a household name for decades should be rewarded with the same disregard. I await anxiously the Disney Announcement that ABC has been cancelled! Thanks for the read Michael and Patrick and thanks Donald for speaking mountains of truth!
Wow, this is really powerful stuff. Have you considered sending this in to some media outlet as an op/ed piece? That would reach a wider audience who agrees with EVERY point you made. Brilliant.
once again you write what so many feel ,and what abc/disney did to the fans and everyone involved in the soap world .beautifully written.
I am going to add this to my previous post the sad thing is their are no more Douglas Marlands, Agnes Nixon Bill Bell Claire Labine on and on to pull us back on the ship so remember their was once a great place to go to every day kinda like Camelot!!!!
Still crying over the loss. Idiots at ABC.
Me to !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I agree with Nancy!!!!!!!!!!!!
I HAVE WATCHED MY LIFE TO LIVE SINCE I WAS A TEENAGER I REFUSE TO WATCH ANYTHING ON ABC I THINK IT WAS A BIG MISTAKEON THEIR PART I ENJOYED IT SO MUCH I REALLY LOOKED FORWARD TO IT EACH DAY WHEN U HAVE KIDS AND GRANDKIDS IT IS A ESCAPE FOR YOU U GET SOME TIME FOR YOURSELF EVERYONE IN MY HOUSEHOLD KNEW WHEN ONE LIFE TO LIVE CAME ON IT WAS MOMS TIME I REALLY HOPE ANOTHER NETWORK PICKS THEM UP THE SHOW THEY REPLACED IT WITH THE CHEW IT SUCKS I WOULDNT WASTE MY TIME WATCHING IT I AM REALLY BURNED OUT ON ALL THESE REALITY AND COOKING SHOWS PLEASE GET SOME IMAGINATION BACK
SORRY TYPO ONE LIFE TO LIVE
mary t, it was my life to live . lol & they took it way for cheaper shows that sucks. we want one life to live amc back leave g.h alone abc!
So do I.. But I don;t think it will happen………..
It’s only been a little over a month? It seems like forever! I miss OLTL so much!
OLTL literally saved my life on one occasion when I was contemplating ending it. When I was weighing the options, pills counted out and ready to go, a single thought popped into my head-“But what will happen on OLTL?” I replaced the sleeping pills in their bottle, and went to bed. This is the power of soap opera in full effect. OLTL helped me come out of the closet (at the same time as Billy Douglas) helped me deal with health issues and depression, and helped me have just one hour per day where I didn’t have to worry about my own problems because, let’s face it, the ones in Llanview were so much more interesting than my own mundane existence.
Wow, that’s impactful. Thanks for sharing and I am gald you are here today. It was such amazing show. So awful to say “was”. I am missing it everyday.
Wow Cole, I love your story and am glad you lived another day to be true to yourself and live as God made you to be. Great story!
Tears in my eyes it scares me. To think if OLTL had not saved your life what an incrediable life we would not have known.Thank you for sharing a hard paart of your life Cole.
Wow Cole, thanks for being so forth right. Your experiences during difficult times are the power of the soaps. Soaps help us to live and realize other existences outside of our owns…. even saving us because of them.
heres some news for you,unless you already know ,you said a few things about wendy williams insulting celebrities on the red carpet,go to ,daytime confidential ,she getting ripped apart ,she was sent a letter in how she treated houston when she was alive,how do I make a cat meow,lets get the finger nails sharpened,you were right about wendy ,I never knew that,interesting,just go there and read.janet hubert gives her hell,read the letter ,its long .but says everything you did.
I am miserable without my soaps. There is a huge void in my life! Please ABC sell the rights to AMC and OLTL so that we can return to our normal lives!
Even if ABC was to sell the rights (something that will never happen), so many actors have moved on that it wouldn’t be the same. What we would get are bastardized versions of All My Children and One Life to Live that look even worst than what Guiding Light looked like during its final year.
I would rather that Agnes Nixon create a total brand new soap opera with former AMC/OLTL actors that are willing to be part of this new venture.
I am so lost without OLTL. I feel like part of my extended family is missing. I have watched it since grade school with my Mom and now was watching it with my three daughters. OLTL was my escape on a daily basis. You could laugh, cry or scream at the tv if you wanted because of the storylines. That was my theraphy. We don’t need anymore reality shows, talk shows on tv. I keep hoping that ABC will see what a huge mistake they made aInd bring back the soaps. Or that another network will pick them up once they release the right back to Agnes Nixon! They need to do the right thing! They are losing viewers and their rating are dropping on a daily basis. I would say putting the soaps back on is a win/ win situation. We get our soaps back and they get there viewers back! So wake up ABC! DO THE RIGHT THING!
I think from 1 – 3 on Monday thru Friday has been a very sad time for many fans of AMC and OLTL. Most of us are still fighting to get these soaps back on some kind of network – just so we can see our fav stars and find out what is going on in Pine Valley and Llanview. I know something must be going on – and feel like we fans are just being left out of the stories. The very talented Agnes Nixon said she has stories to write – and I wouldn’t be surprised if she has written some already – would you? How about you Patrick Healy? I have started watching Young & Restless and Bold & Beautiful and they are good soaps – and have stolen some of the stars from AMC & OLTL. I guess they haven’t really “stolen” them since there are no shows – in fact the stars are very lucky that these soaps have given them a chance to play a character in their soaps. So life goes on – but I wonder – will AMC and OLTL? I know in my heart they will !!! I enjoyed your article very much, Mr. Healy. Thanks for your memories!!!
Please someone do the right thing for everyone and give us back our soaps and give the cast and everyone back their jobs who worked on the shows.
I can’t believe that 3 million of us are in mourning when our numbers would be an overwhelming, bankable gold rush if the shows were produced for cable/internet. I still believe there’s way to save both AMC and OLTL: Atlanta is a serious, viable production hub (and I don’t even live there anymore). Why don’t ABC and Prospect Park want to do the work? It’s shameful.
Xanna – I’ll credit Ravenbeauty for this beautiful analogy: PP is dragging their heels giving up the rights is akin to an old asshole boyfriend telling you, “if I can’t have you, then no one else will either!”
I miss OLTl very much. The soap was an escape from the harsh realities of life. I was a very abused chld in every way possible, growing up in an insane, violent, alcholic household I found escape in Llanview. I know it seems ridiculous to some people, but yes it is a form of escape as well as entertainment. For an hour you are not surrounded with your own difficulties and your mind is set free for that time. I always escaped into music as well but OLTL was there too, threading through the fabric of my life. It isn’t something I will forget. I was molested for years as a child by my father like Erika Sleazak’s character was and that character survived too. I know that many people look down on soaps and on their fans, but that is really being quite judgemental of something they don’t now much about or care to know about. But, the longtime fans know and they miss the characters and the actors. I wish them all well and hope somehow in some way OLTL can return. If not, I wish every actor, writer director, producer or crew member well in the future.
I agree. OLTL had a impact on my life. ABC/DISNEY replacing this show with such garbage is the reason that with the exception of General Hospital ABC/DISNEY is BANNED in my home. THANK YOU for the article Michael Fairman !
I watched One Life To Live from its beginning. I was educated from its introduction of certain social issues. I loved being able to escape for awhile. I , now, only watch General Hospital and Castle on ABC. I was a fan of All My Children, too. Release the rights to Agnes, ABC. Admit your mistake.
Excellent article. More people in publications like The New York Times needed to come out of the closet sooner to save OLTL. It was a jewel that never should have been replaced by the banal and insufferable Revolution.
Intellectual and aesthetic snobbery obscures the theatrical and humanistic value of soap operas. Mr Healy’s insights reaffirm what millions of fans have known for decades about soaps in general and One Live to Live in particular–the entertainment value and emotional connections are unsurpassed, creating lifelong viewers. The market for soaps exists; the genius to exploit it doesn’t.
My friend David. Excellent post, well said and written.
This is the David which we spoke about Susan Lucci/ Erica persona, right?
Yes, we are one and the same.
thank you for your story, if you ever meet her tell her a fan in r.i. loved her too
How nice it is to have so many wonderful gems on You Tube to revisit… that’s what I have been doing just to keep it alive. I am still hoping that someone makes OLTL happen elsewhere and hopefully soon! So disappointed that the Mannings are so short lived on GH!
I started to watch OLTL the day of its debut! However, there were times along the way, I stopped watching as I didn’t care for the writing. That, school, career, motherhood of triplets, my time was scarce. I started back about 7 years ago.
Last week, GH (here) was interrupted here due to the President visiting. So I went to soapnet that night to re-record. I kept looking for GH AFTER OLTL! For some reason, it slipped my mind that I would know longer see OLTL on soapnet.
Anyway, though I personally had no control over the ending of the show, I was so sadden that Vicki would be out of my life. I go back when Vicki was with Joe Riley!
For so many many years she entertained us brilliantly. She represented class, wisdom & inner beauty. When she read the letter on the Thursday before the last day about what the show has come to mean to us, I cried my eyes out..It wasn’t always the storylines that kept my interest as the talent that OLTL brought to its show.
Anyone remember Tommy Lee Jones on OLTL? The Siegels? Ohh back in the day, soaps were soapy!!
I can’t express how sad I am over the death of AMC and OLTL . The casts of these shows worked so well together. I met Kassie DePaiva twice and she is absolutely down to earth. I also met JP and Farah Fath and the two of them seem so at ease with each other and the chemistry is so real. I can tell that they truly love each other. I won’t give up the fight to get them back on the air. I won’t watch any new shows on ABC and have started watching Days and NBC shows. I am sad without my escape but am looking forward to the arrival of the Mannings and my John McCain on GH. Please keep GH on the air.
I dont think I will ever forgive abc for killing OLTL or AMC… The shows never should of been cancelled.. Someone should of had a small grain of common sense to save these soaps. Well when the revolution tanks can we at least get reruns of OLTL.
Patrick Healy, “Thank you”.
Wow, I can relate to a lot of the sentiments regarding bringing back OLTL. It’s so true and resounding. I’m 43 yrs old and 1st got hooked on soaps at 13 yrs old. Haven’t remotely stopped watching since then. Now, I’m a stay at home mom and would record my stories as a evening, winding down treat, after putting the kids to bed. ABC use to be more family oriented. Making shows that kids and adults could enjoy. Such good and well rounded programming. Now, the daytime canvas is a 1 noted, boring, talk show fest. Why?????? You have consider and care for tv programming w/fan (viewship) and then $$$. If you just focus on the almighty dollar & ignore the fans (what the ppl want), then you’re in big trouble!!!! Any form of entertainment requires a HUGE fan base and then the $$’s start rolling in. But you need FANS 1st!!!!! It’s a pretty simple and basic concept that’s been lost.
No grand, big apologies needed. Just bring OLTL BACK !!!!
B4 the cancellation of my fav soaps, I’ve never knew of Michael Fairman. Sad to say. I love the guy!!! His website is fun and rich w/interviews, stories and up to date info. It’s great!! I use to mostly rely on my soap mags–Soap Opera weekly.
Thanks Mr. Healy and Mr. Fairman for going to bat and appreciating our soaps!
There is a compromise, if ABC was willing to at least partially admit it made a mistake – this idea has been mentioned a couple of times various places. Back in the day, there was cross over between AMC and OLTL. Pine Valley and Llanview were close and characters regularly crossed over. Lincoln, Kitty, Donna, Herb Callison… They could bring back a show, with Agnes Nixon stewarding it, that maybe nudged Pine Valley and Llanview even closer. The actors that are not already doing something else could populate it and, after other actors are released from existing contracts, they could migrate back to Pine View or whatever it is called. We all know they go back and forth from shows. It could work, and combining the viewers of both shows (I was faithful with AMC and off and on over the years with OLTL) could improve the ratings and make it profitable. And ABC and Prospect Park could look like heroes.
good idea Zoe! Hi Everyone. We are still fighting for our soaps. Please sign our petition at http://www.BringBackOLTL.com if you have not already. Share with your friends. Participate in the other campaigns on our ‘likes” list. We will not stop campaigning until they bring back One Life to Live !
everyone should also continue to annoy abc with calls ,letters and emails ,everything thing you do counts.dont understand abcs reasoning in why they wont turn over agnes nixons rights to her shows ,unless the network is afraid that another network would treat all my children and one life to live with more respect then they did, and the soaps will hurt abcs new daytime lineup of garbage ,the revolution is an embarrassment ,when you have to pay people to walk in and watch there crap ,something is wrong .I miss the soaps and we have to keep fighting to save them and bring back ,all my children and one life to live ,also dont watch anything on abc/disney ,just general hospital.I call and e mail everyday ,they send me a long e mail back ,then I let them have it again.just keep bugging them.
Thank you for such a fine and truthful article. I will never forgive ABC for cancelling AMC and OLTL. I worked all my life and now I retire and my soaps are gone.
I miss OLTL so much ABC made a huge mistake and i will never support them again only General Hospital.I hope Anne Sweeney is proud of how well the revolution is doing but are we really surprised OLTL is one of a kind it cant be replaced.
Mickey Mouse has become the poster child for corporate greed. ABC wanted cheap shows, and they got cheap shows. What I don’t understand is that they believed people would watch the replacement trash. They believed they could retrain viewers, and in that they succeeded: they’ve been trained to watch anything but abc…daytime or prime time.
I am a Huge Fan of Both One Live To Life & All My Children. I want to say that myself along with the other fans of the shows Want Our Soaps Back! We Never wanted those replacement shows and We Refuse To Watch Them! Please someone help us to get our beloved soaps back! We Miss OLTL & AMC daily!
By the way, most of us fans are not tuning in at 1 pm or 2 pm, we’re waiting till it actually happens, and are boycotting abc, except for when gh is on.
ABC really screwed up. OLTL & AMC pulled in double viewers than the replacement shows. We the fans will view other stations until OUR SOAPS, OLTL & AMC return to tv. I am one of the fans that hate ABC now.
I am the 2nd of three generations in my family of OLTL fans. My mother and I watched it when it first started and over the years – then a few years ago my daughter and I started watching it together. We cried so hard at its end. I am still fighting ABC in my own way and by signing others petitions to bring it back. A truly pathetic attempt from ABC to save money – just take it out of the budgets of overadvertised night shows that end up failing after ONE season. FORTY THREE years deserves MUCH more respect.
I think your post was beautiful.
Mr. Healy expressed well just why OLTL (and other soaps) are so important to us and why we grieve deeply when they’re taken from us. I can easily relate to how soap characters “speak” for us sometimes with various life experiences and can even help us sort out our feelings; help determine or influence our pathways so we can face (hopefully resolve) issues we’re facing ourselves–be it individually, in our families, or in community.
I was new to OLTL, having tuned in for only a year or so following the cancellations of my lifetime favorites at CBS in 2009 and 2010. But I did become very fond of certain OLTL characters and yes, Vicki was one of them. She was indeed the matriarch and heroine of Llanview. Erica’s portrayal was always brilliant and we all looked forward to her lighting up the screen– no matter what she was given to do. She never failed to deliver with finesse, too!
Soaps have helped America learn about and deal with some very real-life issues. I recall how well daytime dramas over the years have spoken to subjects like domestic violence, alcoholism, dementia, cancer, diabetes, racial prejudices,and gay rights issues. As a society, we’ve been compelled to consider these matters more seriously perhaps than we ever would have before….thanks largely to soaps! Their demise is proving to be a great loss .
Yes, I know. Movies of course, have over the years “delivered” too, for their audiences…providing many equally good, encouraging, motivational messages, but they’re over with in a matter of an hour and a half at best. Soaps however, were there for us five days a week….faithfully for years and years and years. So many of us grew up with them always available and even when we couldn’t tune in every single day, we knew that we could STILL have them ready for us another day. Our favorite characters would be waiting for us nonetheless. We could draw from their strengths, relate to their weaknesses,etc.. We received great courage seeing them each day.
Now? … we don’t have them. Indeed, we as viewers have all in essence “lost family” with these cancellations.
Thank you Patrick Healy for your beautiful article & Michael for sharing it with us. Also, Dr. Boudreau’s thoughtful post as well as all the other wonderful soapers sharing their personal stories of how their life correlated with our “stories”. I know mine has since the ’70’s when I started watching AMC & OLTL…I really feel as though the soap fans who are not forgetting what has happened have really created an energy that will have to dealt with in the universe…that is my honest belief…to me the universe is a much stronger force than greedy television executives..& we the soap fans are creating our own continuing story..tune in next time….I really believe in the good energy of soapers over the tv “suits” will win somehow…
I am almost 63 years old, have watched AMC and OLTL since they first aired. AMC I go back to the days of Phil and Tara . I can’t recall the name of Vicki’s sister, on OLTL, I beleive it was Meridith and a young Dr. I really miss both of these soaps. I work during the day but recorded them for many years. ABC took away a part of my daily life stytle. It brought tears to my eyes during the last month of airing for both of these soaps, bringing back characters from the past…I truly am sad and can’t seem to move on. The only soap I continue to watch is GH..which I go back to the days of Dr. Hardy..the Luke and Laura story line….miss the good ole days..:(
wasnt vickis sister named meridith ,looks like you have been watching the same soaps and began watching them at the same time I have,I named my daughter tara,I also started watching g h with dr hardie ,jessie brewer ,those were the good old days ,the abc soaps have been on a very long time and Its sad that one after the other they are letting them go.I hope that general hospital is not next ,we have to support it .I was pretty pissed off when they canceled ryans hope so many years ago,I never thought that we would be left with one soap ,and possibly loosing that to,I hope not ,everything I am hearing ,it looks like g h will start to get interesting again.I hope its not to late.
Hey barbara t: What’s happening? I’m back, I just read your comments send to my email. I wondered when U were going to say sumthg to me about the ongoing fued. U know me, I disappear for one reason or the other. 1si it was technical problms with the site, then I got busy, this time it was I thought my internet was down at home, but I had just hit a switch on the moderm that knocked me off, but I didn’t know that. I had to wait until someone came out to see what the problem & it was none, just a click of a putton. I saw Robin die today. I can’t believe they killed her off. They ****** me up. She has been a player for so long. I didn’t like how they made us suffer through it. There is no way in a hospital with an alarm going off that no other staff found their way to Patrick’s rescue, no one but Sam in the entire hospital showed up. Even when the firemen came, no hospital staff came. I know they planned on killing her off, BUT could they have not made it so easy, and in Patricks case so difficult. I will miss Robin’s firm stance on issue’s, very practical, un-soap like character. Hope all is well. One day lets meet up for lunch at the abc studio, LOL. I’ll bring the the soap! Lol
I also grew up watching AMC and OLTL I cant believe its over, I not as grand as the writer on this story but it s a shame that many kids will grow up now not knowing what the soaps are like the great actors that came from soaps I want them back I have boycotted the two shows that replaced them.
so true,they will ask what is a soap??/grandma….how sad
What a great comment thread! I don’t have a thing to add!
agree….
The cancellation of my two favorite shows has been extremely difficult to handle. I feel worse than when my mother passed away. I want this to stop and be able to go on with my life. I have gone through 2 cases of cancer in 2011 and this is worse. I want my soaps back so much and if ABC ends up cancelling GH this is the end of a genre. If they would spend some money to improve what they put on the air, it would at least be some kind of improvement. They only put on the worst of the worst in television. I WANT MY SOAPS BACK IMMEDIATELY. ABC is losing more and more viewers everyday. As far as I am concerned they are at the bottom of the barrel. BYE BYE ABC FOREVER. PUT OUR SHOWS BACK ON THE AIR.
so agree sweetie.
I will never get over canceling of OLTL it is part of the family.Yes 4 generations of conversation makes it a family member.Grandmother to grandaughter Americana OLTL and AMC is part of our lifes,
Just had a thought, they took the wrong soap on purpose. They wanted the one with the lowest ratings so that they could justify the next show leaving. I was warned about the Disney/ABC merger years ago. Stupid me did not listen and now all of us have to pay the price.
HATE ABC/DISNEY
I said the same thing ,and I remember when It happened ,I said whats going to happen to my soaps? abc/disney killed them slowly,then they canceled them ,I hope general hospital isnt next ,but it looks like abc doesnt care about having programming with class, they went down hill with the food,talk,and reality garbage.they want more money in there pockets,so abc turns to trash t v, because of greed.
true …
that was beautiful….so so how I feel about the loss of OLTL…different problems,but like Marty,and viki….and Nat….I pushed through…and a big Thank you….to all…wonderful piece….love it,wish I could get a copy of the New York times…and keep as a memory.