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OLTL issues statement on end of Kish/GLAAD's response to ABC!

By Michael Fairman

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17 years ago

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The LGBT community is not taking kindly to the pull-out by ABC and One Life to Live of the Kish storyline featuring Brett Claywell and Scott Evans.  In a news item from Advocate.com, a One Life to Live spokesperson issued the following statement today, “The groundbreaking Kyle-Fish relationship on One Life to Live was embraced by fans both as a great story and a fair and honest reflection of the LGBT community. We’re glad their story resonated with the audience, and understand the fans’ disappointment now that it has concluded. The show has a history of bringing LGBT stories to the screen — earning two GLAAD awards in the process — as well as returning popular characters when they serve the ongoing story. These great characters remain in Llanview, and while there are no immediate plans to advance their story, the door is always open for their return.”
 
The statement comes after the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation announced Friday morning that it is lobbying ABC Daytime to review its decision to end the storyline. “Last summer One Live to Live brought a groundbreaking relationship into the homes of millions with Kyle and Fish’s story, one that build acceptance and understanding of gay people,” GLAAD president Jarrett Barrios said in a statement. He went on to say that ending the story is a step backward in the representation of gay Americans, even though plot changes and cancellations are common in daytime dramas.

 

“We remain disappointed that ABC Daytime has chosen to stop sharing this powerful story with viewers of One Life to Live. GLAAD will continue to advocate that in the near future producers and writers at ABC Daytime incorporate gay and transgendered characters in their programming.”

There have been rumors that One Life to Live was ending the gay story line because of low ratings and poor response to the characters.

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The same sex marriage aspect harming Kish should be addressed by the soap press when critiquing OLTL axing Kish. With a topic as splintering as same sex unions, it definitely hurt more that it helped Kish. Soaps are about escapism, not political debates. Even in someplace as stereotypically thought to be liberal like Manhattan, many people are not on board w/ same sex unions. And the ratings of a conservative news channel like Fox reflects that sentiment.

Accrdg to TVGCanada’s newest report, it was Frank Valentini who axed Kish. So no one go blame Brian Frons or say some homophobic group engineered their firing. It’ll be interesting how the soap press criticizes Valentini for this move, since OLTL seems to be the golden child of the soap press. Even in TVGC, the only critique for Valentini was a sarcastic “Thanks a lot” for Valentini axing Kish.

Goutman was raked through the coals consistently for mishandling Nuke and Ellen Wheeler was all but crucified numerous times for neglecting Otalia. But at least those 2 didn’t fire their same sex couple. Carlivati’s writing should be taken to task, but I think the closest criticism he’d get was TVG’s Michael Logan’s “gay overkill” comment. If this were Megan McTavish, imagine all the harsh reviews she’d get?

Also accrdg to TVGC, speculation is that one of the portrayers of Kish is a hard partying kinda guy. He’d hold up production, so he was axed. My bet goes to Evans, since he admitted to going to the gay bars frequently in the interview here, and anyone who’s been to a gay bar/club knows how out of control it can get, especially in Manhattan.

More from TVGC, speculation is that they are axing 8 actors bec of budgetary constraints but the most interesting speculation is that the Kish storyline hit too close to home for certain execs. Well Carlivati is out, so it can’t be him.

Onto that mess GLAAD, they gave the award to Nuke the year that Nuke was banished from kissing or showing any affection on ATWT! So GLAAD is a joke. And they’d be even more of a joke if they award it to Kish now that kish has been written off.

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All this blaming the actors thing is nonsense.

Scott Evans didn’t even have a contract so if they wanted to fire him for whatever reason, they could have done so without so much as a “See ya”.
They replace actors and actresses all the time (even long-time actors and actresses who have contracts).

If they were committed to these characters and their story, the producers would have simply recast or rewritten.

I’m not buying this “actor parties too hard ” crap for one second.

And if this is the reason he was fired, why fired both he AND Brett?

Why even make the statement about “not resonating with the mainstream”?

The “wedding” was like a month of the entire Fish coming out storyline and it was over by the period they claim was the problem area (November 09)

All of these latest excuses are just nonsense spin.

The primary viewership of soaps hasn’t being stay-at-home straight women for like 20 years. Teens, and gay men also make up a huge portion of the viewing audience (if they ever bothered to notice)

They cut KISH and fired Scott and Brett because they got scared and caved into the pressure of the right wing, conservative voices screaming in their ears. It’s a simple as that.

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Don’t kid yourself, Persa!

I am a “stay-at-home straight women”; I am also what a lot of people would consider a “right wing, conservative voice”.

That being said, hearing that KISH had been unceremoniously dumped was, for me, like a kick in the gut. I loved their story, and I was really looking forward to the (seemingly) upcoming custody battle story-line! I wanted to see KISH kick stupid GiGi’s Butt, in court, get their baby, and raise their little girl together!

I wanted to see this couple go through all of the trials, tribulations, pride, and joy of parenthood together! It would have been great to watch them cope with being a family, while also facing all of the inevitable prejudices that would have gone along with their relationship.

I, for one, am very, very sorry that we are losing these wonderful characters/actors – along with their ground-breaking story! I can only hope that the Network will, somehow, miraculously, reconsider their unfortunate decision and decide to give our KISH a last minute reprieve from their looming execution!

Oh, and for what it is worth, I have already sent off my letters and e-mails (first time ever doing this!) that fully detail my displeasure with this decision to all concerned parties!

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TVGC already reported that it was Frank Valentini who axed Claywell and untalented Evans, and they axed Crystal Hunt prior to them. They were not axed bec of so called pressure by a so called right wing grp. Why is everything homophobic for fans of Kish or Nuke? There’s no conspiracy theory against Crystal Hunt. She was let go bec people disliked Stacy, her acting is awful and she didn’t translate to ratings. The same applied to Kish. Since valentini axed them, complain to him instead of blaming these anonymous right wing groups.

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Explain “doesn’t resonate with mainstream viewers ?

If it’s not about the “gay” what is it that doesn’t “resonate”?

Is it both Scott and Brett who don’t “resonate”?

Is it Kyle and Fish together or separately that doesn’t “resonate”?

Did Kyle as a character “resonate” before the viewers realized he was gay? Did Fish?

Scot Evans has never been on contract so did they just keep him around for almost 3 years because he’s pretty? Do tell.

You’re ascribing things to me that aren’t about me. I’m an individual, not some sheep following along and I have a right to voice my opinion and what I see is a heterosexist point of view taking precedence over good storytelling..

ABC made this about the characters being gay, I didn’t start it.

I don’t know what you gripe is with NUKE fans an KISH fans in general and it’s not really relevant to what I’M saying. How do you even know I’m a fan of NUKE? Who’s talking about NUKE, I never even mentioned them.

What does Crystal Hunt have to do with anything? Lot’s of actors got fired and the reasons given didn’t target their race, gender, ethnicity or sexual orientation. I have no problem with firing an actor that isn’t working out as an actor, I have a problem with an American tv show, in 2010 firing actors because its viewership is upset about all the gay. OLTL has had some of the most preposterous story lines (for good or ill) I’ve ever seen outside of Passions. So to target the Big Gay Wedding as somehow totally out the box and over the line is just coo coo bananas.

I’m responding to the REASONS the producers of OLTL gave for why they fired BOTH Brett and Scott. That’s the issue. They are the one’s who made it about the characters being gay, not me.

If it’s all about Scott, why fire both of them AND why not just say they are firing them because the actors aren’t working out AS ACTORS?

What does their “mainstream” viewers have to do with anything? Whether it was Frank Valenti or The Pied Piper is immaterial to me.

If actors suck, then fire them because they suck.

Don’t claim that you are firing them for a whole host of other reasons that have to do with the sensibilities of your viewing audience then get shocked when members of your viewing audience who don’t happen to have that particular sensibility decide to speak out against your decision.

Scott Evans was on the show for an entire year before he even interacted with Brett Claywell, if his acting sucked so badly they could have fired him then. His character has always been a second-tier character so they could have easily replaced him. Why keep him around if he was so much trouble?

If you think the folks complaining to ABC about gays on OLTL aren’t right-wing, then you’re just not a very critical thinker or you have no idea about the way American culture functions.

I’m not slamming the right-wing viewers. They have a right to their opinion. But they don’t speak for me and my voice is just as valid.

I am simply pointing out that the people who complain are usually right wing and if you read their comments that’s pretty clear. Whether they are lovely people in their personal lives doesn’t matter because that has no effect on the daily lives of gay folks in the US.

Obviously there are right wing folks who like KISH. But, of course not, they aren’t the folks I’m talking about.

If people don’t want to see gay characters on your tv because they are gay, they are conservative homophobes. Period.

If we’re talking about firing actors for being bad actors, then I can think of at least two hands full of other actors on OLTL that I’ve observed who SHOULD be on the chopping block long before Scott Evans of Brett Claywell.

My grandma called what OLTL producers are doing “Spitting on someone’s next and trying to convince them it’s rain”

That dog won’t hunt. That’s all I’m saying.

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There’s no pt debating w/ you. As for who’s “complaining” about Kish, I’m a queer male viewer of soaps, I thought Claywell was a good actor and he was the only actor who carried Kish, but I thought Evans sucked at the role majority of the time. So to make a sweeping generalization that only homophobes with an agenda don’t like Kish is closeminded. People can or can’t like a same sex rel storyline based on other factors too, like performances (Claywell’s was good, Evans’s was awful) and writing (Carlivati clearly had many missteps). Majority of the Kish fans seem as closeminded as these so called homophobic grps that they blame for Kish’s axing. I find it strange that you would say it’s immaterial that Frank valentini or the pied piper is who axed Kish. Who axed Kish has everything to do with it. If it was Brian frons who axed Kish then everyone would be complaining at him. It’s very telling that the soap press in particular are not going after Frank valentini on this issue of him axing Kish, but they raked Goutman through the coals for the Nuke kissing banishment, and they all but crucified Wheeler, a Mormon, for not letting Otalia marry in the GL finale. Goutman and Wheeler did not get rid of their same sex couple, but Valentini did.

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Persa .. if you watch the video, around 13 minutes in, Brett says something like they do a lot of scenes in 1 take. Doesn’t sound like partying is a huge problem if it’s 1 take.

I only watched OLTL because of Kish and when they are gone, I will be gone as well.

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DO NOT stop this storyline. It has been one of the best depictions of just how gay people live in the non-accepting gay world. I lived in the closet for a long, long time — fifty years — going the marriage route for a number of years. It wasn’t until my husband’s death and subsequent psychiatric counseling for other issues that I finally came out. I have been out fourteen years. I never felt as much of whom I was and am until that day when I declared I can be my gay self. The story on One Life To Live has been one of the best, better than All My Children even. It has featured gay men which it seems programs have trouble showing how they really feel, interact, how they think and believe. Women have been portrayed many times. This was a real break through as far as I am concerned. Please do not let naysayers and others decide what you will put in the show. It is certainly more realistic than underground worlds and Mitch Lawrence. Would you please kill him and Allison once and for all!

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dont stop this storyline with brett claywell and scott evans and keep going to keep their storyline open and we need to bring scott evans and brett clatwell to bring them back to the show with oltl

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Susan Flannery and Ian Buchanan Visit the Set of ‘The Bold and the Beautiful’; Daytime Emmy Winners Reflect on Show Then and Now

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2 days ago

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October 21, 2026

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Susan Flannery and Ian Buchanan

The one and only Susan Flannery (ex-Stephanie Forrester) dropped in to see her former co-stars on The Bold and the Beautiful at their Sunset Las Palmas Studio in Hollywood, along with her good friend and another B&B co-star Ian Buchanan (ex-James Warwick) on Tuesday October 20.

It was the first time in a very long time that The four-time Daytime Emmy winning actress was reunited with Katherine Kelly Lang (Brooke), Jacqueline MacInnes Wood (Steffy), executive producer and head writer, Brad Bell, Jennifer Gareis and even her TV sister, Alley Mills (Pam, B&B now Heather, GH) showed up for the day too!

Flannery played the Forrester matriarch from 1987 until 2012. It was then that after playing the part of Stephanie for 25 years that Susan made the decision to retire from acting and in one of the most heartbreaking sendoffs, passes away from lung cancer in Brooke’s arms in November of 2012. During her B&B tenure, Flannery won 3 of her 4 Daytime Emmys, the other being for her first soap role as Laura Horton on Days of our Lives back in 1975.

Susan and Kelly

Photo: Bell-Phillip TV

As for Ian Buchanan, he played Dr. Warwick, psychiatrist, from 1993 to 1999.  He returned for other runs in 2014 and 2017.  Buchanan took home his Daytime Emmy in 1997 for his work as James. Soap fans also remember, Ian as mobster Duke Lavery on General Hospital, and Dr. Greg Madden on All My Children,

Both Susan and Ian shared their thoughts on coming back to The Bold and the Beautiful, for Susan 14 years later since he exited and for Ian close to 9 years since his last appearance below.

Susan said, “It’s definitely like coming home in a way, even though it’s not the same studio. It’s really lovely to see old faces and old faces with new faces. It takes you back mentally. You start remembering what it was like back then, even things like how much your feet would ache at the end of the day from wearing six-inch heels. It was just lovely to be back and see everybody.”

Susan Flannery and cast

Photo: Bell-Phillip TV

Ian expressed, “It’s a mind trip, you know. When I was sitting looking at the big Forrester set, it was like stepping back in time, almost. It takes you back mentally, and you start remembering what it was like when you were here before.”

“It’s lovely to see all these people again, even if you don’t know everybody,” explained soap vet Buchanan. “There’s something really special about coming back and seeing the show and the people who have been part of it for so long.”

So, happy to see Susan and Ian with some of their former castmates? Do you think Stephanie and Brooke is one of the greatest frenemy stories in daytime history? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.

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Beyond the Gates

Tabitha Brown and Kandi Burruss Guest Star on ‘Beyond the Gates’ for Dani’s ‘Welcome to Your Life’ TV Special; What Could Go Wrong?

Published

2 days ago

on

October 21, 2026

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Kandi Burress, Tabitha Brown, Karla Mosley

As previously announced, Beyond the Gates is bringing chef, author and actress Tabitha Brown and Grammy Award-winning songwriter, singer and actress Kandi Burruss to Fairmont Crest in a special episode of the CBS daytime drama airing Thursday, October 22.

In the episode, Dani’s (Karla Mosley) best friend Pamela Curtis (Cady McClain), arranges a “Welcome to Your Life” television special for her. As it turns out, Brown will play the show’s host, Tia Allen, while Burruss takes on the role of Dani’s first modeling agent, Kalista Kilroy, who turns the celebration of her life into a bad trip down memory lane.

Dani’s parents Anita and Vernon (Tamara Tunie, Clifton Davis), sister Nicole (Daphnee Duplaix), and daughters Chelsea (RhonniRose Mantilla) and Naomi (Arielle Prepetit) all join the show to celebrate and support her but also witness how things so south. Also appearing in the episode are Molly Figueroa as Tatum Stewart and fan-favorite Anita Williams (Tunie) impersonator Jackie Tyree!

Beyond the Gates

PhotoL JPI

THE 411 ON TIA AND KALISTA

Speaking with TV Insider, about their soapy experience in Fairmont Crest, Tabitha Brown previewed about her host with the most, “Tia is very professional, but she’s a girl’s girl. She is a protector of women and wants to tell their stories in a beautiful way, but she also wants to make sure they’re seen in a very good light.”

However, Burruss previews that Kalista arrives with a score to settle. “She’s spicy,” shared the recording artist. “I always love playing somebody that has come to start trouble. It’s always fun to play a villain of sorts, but Kalista feels like she’s been done wrong and she’s hurt by what she feels has been done to her. So Kalista is stirring up trouble, but she feels justified putting Dani on blast. Kalista is ready for some payback.”

Beyond the Gates is produced by CBS Studios, as part of the CBS Studios/NAACP Venture, in partnership with P&G Studios, a division of Procter & Gamble. Created by head writer Michele Val Jean, executive producers include Val Jean, Sheila Ducksworth, Julie Carruthers, Tracey Thomson, Leon W. Russell, Derrick Johnson, Anna Saalfeld and Lela Coffey.

Beyond the Gates is broadcast weekdays on CBS (2:00-3:00 PM, ET/1:00-2:00 PM, PT) and is available to stream on Paramount+**.

So, looking forward to this special episode of Beyond the Gates when Dani is put on a blast during a blast from her past and Welcome to Your Life TV special? Share your thoughts via the comment section.

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Days Of Our Lives

‘Days of our Lives’ Reveals Kyle Pryor Cast as Dominic Marino

Published

3 days ago

on

October 20, 2026

By

Kyle Pryor

For months now, Days of our Lives has teased the character of Dominic Marino. In recent weeks, viewers learned that Marino is on the down low working with Sami Brady’s (Alison Sweeney) apparent fiancé ‘Dante Vitali (Franco LoPresti), and that he is the never-before-heard-of child of Stefano DiMera (the late Joseph Mascolo) and Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall)!

Up until now, the Peacock streaming soap opera has never revealed his face, but that all seemed to change on the Tuesday, October 2o episode of DAYS. In story, Dante met Sami’s parents for the first time, Roman (Josh Taylor) and Marlena.

He shows them a photo of Dominic, which he happened to have on his own phone and even commented he kind of looked like he could be Marlena’s son. The photo, which has quickly made it around Soap Twitter/X, revealed that British-born actor Kyle Pryor is the man in the photo and eagle-eyed viewers actually located said photo on Pryor’s Instagram.

Dominix

Photo: Peacock

Deadline revealed Pryor started taping at the end of 2025 and will first be seen in the role, on air Monday, November 2.  In addition, Days will celebrate its 61st Anniversary with two special episodes featuring Dominic’s arrival, as well the returns of Tony and Anna DiMera, played respectively by Thaao Penghlis and Leann Hunley, on Friday, November 6 and Monday, November 9.

Those in the know, are are that Pryor previously held series regular roles on Australia’s Home and Away, and the UK’s Hollyoaks and guest starred on Emmerdale. In an ironic twist, Pryor appeared in the series Spartacus: Blood and Sand which is the same action series his apparent TV brother, Dan Feuerriegel (EJ DiMera), once appeared in before coming to DAYS.

So excited to see Kyle Pryor take on the role of Dominic Marino as Days of our Lives sets its anniversary story to kick-off with is arrival in Salem? Share your thoughts in the comment section. And in case you missed our latest conversation with Conner Floyd (Chad DiMera) he weighs-in on how Dominic’s appearance will shake things up in Salem. You can check that out below.

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