The only person I dislike more than Brian Frons is Farah Fath.

If these shows weren’t viable, they wouldn’t be back. However, I think the use of these two iconic shows are being used as a teaching tool to an older age group about the internet and it’s power. Viki had a line “to think I was going to hold this story for the print edition”…that’s a powerful teaching line. So, as much as I dislike that they were cancelled and gone for a long time, I like what they are now. More than just scripted entertainment, there’s a lesson and a message that’s being presented in such a caring subtle way, coming from “people” we trust, that I think it’s actually become a good thing that there was a shake-up. The show was stale and now it’s got entertainment with a message.

Fron’s should have just cut them both to 30 minutes and added The Chew. Past is past. Time for moving on. If the medium is the message, the medium is the internet, not the networks.

Grow up James. is it possible for you to participate in a grown up discussion without personal bias?

Frons had a boss though, and she is still there. Anne Sweeney. He pulled the plug, but she approved it. Then she fired him when it failed. I like Farah!

he has the blame but he didn’t make the decison to cancel them he didn’t have that kind of power cause he didn’t own the soaps. it was ABC and Sweeney’s decision.

I didn’t word that right he doesn’t have the SOLE blame

Abso-friggin-lutely!!! The Officious Troll.

Hard to see both shows cancelled. Brain Frons pulled the plug and prior to that did next to nothing to promote OLTL. It was a shame. ABC should have been more prudent and cancelled the lowest rated soap with the biggest budget first to try out ONE new talk show. IMO ordering two new talk shows at once was a gamble, and silly. Anybody remember the Revolution? How long did it last?

The good news is that the fans now have OLTL and AMC back. We have to do our part to support the show and make sure this new venture succeeds!

It no longer matters to me…im so over it. Both shows are back and doing fine so far. Im not into them how i used to be…im still giving oltl more time to grow on me again but i lost interest in amc. Wished they had stayed on abc as 30 minute soaps…know a few people who miss them but dont have internet!

Blame doesn’t help in this situation. We don’t know what all went on behind the scenes. But I will say this, I would never trust Brian Frons to do anything, not support it. I do think he’s largely responsible, but feel there had to be others at an equal level or higher up in the network. Don’t trust anything ABC has to say and won’t for a long time to come. The network never promoted their shows and now that GH’s 50th anniversary week is over, I don’t see very much advertising for it. If ABC wants my trust, they’ll start treating the show with some respect and play some promos in primetime.

So you see, I could blame Frons and a million other network people and it won’t make a bit of difference. OLTL and AMC are back in a different format and the fans have ultimately won. The egg is on Frons and ABC’s face.

Brian Frons was responsible for cancelling AMC & OLTL. But, Anne Sweeney does not have clean hands either.

There is one word to describe Frons.. Frons was an ”Idiot”…
He was attempting to impress and be a hero and actually he was an ”Idiot”..

(And there are variety of cuss words that would also describe Frons 😉

I also like Farah. I do not like Frons he is just like Phelps a soap killer.

Yes I blame Frons do not watch ABC at all

Frons should have been gone YEARS ago, If indeed the sole decision was Anne Sweeney’s, then why not invite her to comment on this and lets see what she has to say. now THAT would be interesting, don’t you think?

I believe ABC/D now knows it was one of their worst decision ever to cancel OLTL & AMC. If OLTL’s money was used to keep AMC above head then that was great. Mr. Frons went in with ABC/D in control & cancelled our soaps because that was what ABC/D wanted. We have been very angry with all the execs at ABC/D & some remain angry & I am one of them. I will say OLTL & AMC are doing great & I for am delighted. Michael thank you for the article. You have kept us abreast for so long now you are one of our champions for Soap Operas.

He’s a scumbag. Not only did he cancel the shows – he lied straight in the faces of the entire AMC cast and crew – he made Susan Lucci look and sound like an ass to thousands of fans. He burned a lot of bridges. No, he wasn’t alone – but he was the one who looked those people in the eyes and told them AMC was moving to the West Coast and would be fine. He was the one who assure La Lucci that the show was fine and not being cancelled amid rumors or the opposite and it was what? A few weeks tops before the death knoll rang out? He’s a scumbag and a liar. Caca may run downhill, but he proudly stood in it with waders and lied to thousands. Scumbag.

Frons may not have made the decision to cancel but he is absolutely to blame for them being cancelled. He drove the shows into the ground. Especially AMC. Hiring writers that didn’t care about history, pushing Agnes Nixon out, not promoting the shows, the list goes on. He didn’t care about the shows or the fans. And he as much said so.

Ya know what, screw Frons and Disney/ABC! We have our shows back and we should be quite pleased about that.

i would love to see gig rex and (omg i forgot their son’s name – awkward!!) but i remember him – would love to see them back – oh yes and roxie

I was shocked to discover recently ( in Wikipedia) that Fronz was once a co writer of One Life to Live with Frank Valenti. It is amazing he would desire the cancellation of a show he had creatively worked on. I hope ABC regrets the mistake they made. I hope Oprah regrets not finding a place for the shows, announcing their time had past. I hope Prospect Park leads the way with the revivals of these shows…they are not just daytime, but anytime and anywhere.

Anne Sweeney has soap suds on her hands! She was Brian’s boss. She wanted out of the soap business. For goodness sakes Frons worked in soaps since the 80s. Sweeney never did. She wanted them gone and when it came back to bite her in the butt she had Frons take the fall.

While Frons may not have cancelled the shows on his own, he certainly meddled enough with the creative aspects of the shows during his tenure, causing them to get to the cancellation point. OLTL lucked out with Cartini toward it’s end, but AMC was completely destroyed by his decisions for writers and characters. At one point the only characters that had anything to do were Kendall, Zach, Greenlee & Ryan. The rest of the actors showed up to talk about what were going on with those 4. While I liked those characters and actors, who wants to see that for an hour, 5 days a week? It’s nice to see some balance on the internet versions of the shows.

Unfortunately there’s more than enough blame to go around. Anne Sweeney upheld Frons decision and that tells me that the ok went up the chain! Glad Frons lost his job but I don’t think he was the only one who take their share of the blame!

I like the two shows now. I like the pace, production and I like watching on huluplus when I want to. I keep up because it my habit. I am sure there will be times when I will the weekend marathon viewing. I do not watch the four shows on tv anymore. I was at point where I missed more than caught them so it was not too hard to let go. All my shows I watched for decades were gone awhile already. I don’t know what I will do if they also go on internet. Have to decide at that point. I just like clicking when I want to watch something. Some show have tightened the reigns so to speak now that watching on huluplus is so popular. All we can do is adjust as things go along. I think ABC Disney wanted out of soap business and the orders were sent down. Anne Sweeney included. All included. ABC Disney rather showcase their primetime soaps. I think the viewing habits have made judge shows, talk shows and game shows more viable during the day. It is what it is. This is better for oltl. What is saying When one door closes another opens.

In my humble opinion, BF was the face of the cancellation decision. As much as I loathe him, I do not believe he acted in isolation. There were people above him. Anne Sweeney, President of ___ Television Group, and Robert Iger, CEO of the mouse company, are still employed. Their hands are covered with blood.

Thank goodness for the vision and commitment of PP. I am loving the online versions of OLTL and AMC.

Farah Fath should go back to DAYS…

she could be either T or Brians’ sister…..

wishful thinking…

Not that it matters much because AMC/OLTL are back, but Frons was NOT let go because of the Revolution, he was let go because the original PP deal didn’t go through, IMO. Had it gone through in 2012, he would have been regarded as a hero-because everyone would have gotten what they wanted. I’m not defending him, because there’s no logical reason that The Chew should still be on the air-but, there were MANY other ways this could have been handled. I blame the shortsightedness of ABC more than I blame Frons-although his hands aren’t clean.

One last thought-does anyone notice that Frons is persona non grata in the TV/entertainment industry these days?

I am really tired of the BF discussions. He made a regrettablly unpopular business decision that will be out there for awhile and yet… the shows are back… be it in a very different way and they will be what they will be.

Brian Frons is an arrogant prick, almost as arrogant as Jill Farren Phelps. BF did not care about soaps and in reality should have cancelled GH instead of OLTL. I only say this if he were looking at it from a budgeting aspect. OLTL had been way under budget and the ratings were climbing steadily. I despise Brian Frons.

The network canceled the two shows because they want to get out of scripted daytime shows. Brian was the front man, the decision was approved at multiple levels above him. I kind of agree one life was cancelled a little prematurity but all my children had been hemorrhaging viewers for a long time and creatively it was out of gas. If the reboots succeed they are at a different universe from network tv, they are not on TV at all. Abc is batting fifty per cent plus as the chew does well rating wise at a fraction of the cost. The business side is more interesting to me than the shows. I decided not to watch the reboots but enjoy reading about them.

BF was the hatchet man. There must have been a lot of people at the top of ABC that wanted to cancel the soaps. If I remember correctly, FF and her boyfriend, JPL were the first cast members to speak out about OLTL’s cancellation saying it was a great opportunity for everyone and how it will lead to new opportunities. Some of the other more intelligent cast members of OLTL stated how bad they felt for all of the job losses especially all of the people behind the scenes. I don’t know how many opportunities have surfaced for these two actors…I am enjoying the new OLTL very much, and I hope it is a success. I watch nothing on ABC daytime.

It was canceled due to the greed of ABC executives. It’s much less expensive to put on some dumb ass cooking show where you watch people eat for an hour than to pay good actors for fun entertainment.

Only idiots watch programs like the chew. Lasting 30, 40, 50 years with dedicated fans says it all.

I completely agree….it was greed, pure and simple. TV execs are all about the money and how much they can cram into their own pockets. Reality/talk shows are cheap to make, and (in my opinion) utter garbage being shoved down our throats on EVERY channel. All I know is that, since the cancellation of AMC and OLTL, I have not watched any show on ABC, daytime or primetime. I’ve had it with the reality and talk show garbage being dished out by the major networks, so ABC can go to Hades along with the rest of the greedy networks.

Robert Iger & Anne Sweeney remain at the helm of Disney/ABC. Frons headed ABC’s Daytime Division. Under the orders of the Big Mouse – Frons as the Big Cheese dismantled OLTL & AMC. The canceling of OLTL was the most vicious because its writers were producing the most well written program on daytime. The anihilation of AMC was well crafted under Frons orders. He put Chuck Pratt in as head hatchet…hmm writer & had him kill off beloved characters & leave the remaining stories to center around the endless whining of one particular character & her young children. The remaining vets & iconic characters were handed scripts of mindless drivel. Only until the final moments show, was the true heart of AMC resuscitated! Who profited from the AMC axe job – Chuckie Pratt. As the best hatchet man in the business he was installed as Executive Producer & Head Writer of the ABC Family’s The Lying Game. All the while production people behind & on screen were handed pink slips as the show was moved to LA with promises to the actors & others who made the move that their jobs were secure & things were going to be better than ever! Unbeknownst to those who made the move, the better than ever was the total destruction of a 40+ year old daytime institution! Then came the final sucker punch when the mouse announced that OLTL was also being canceled. As far as OLTL being produced under budget, all the info I have gathered is that Frank Valentini is a genius! That he consistently was able to deliver nothing but the best of the best & did so within guidelines or under budget. The mouse doesn’t like it’s daytime arm. Too much flab, so start squeezing out all that was good & turn it into a plastic surgery gone very very bad! Online may be the wave of the future but I don’t think it will ever replace traditional TV viewing. I believe online viewing only adds a timing convenience. However, the DVR is the medium that HAS changed TV viewing! The DVR is the best “anytime” viewing device available! Everything comes down to greed & who can profit most. There is no respect for loyal viewers or cast & crew of programs. Everyone gets that sponsors are needed because producing quality shows don’t come cheap but the greediness of the mouse is the worst out there. I support PP & TOLN but anxiously await PP coming to terms with a cable or other network to air OLTL & AMC on television in time slots opposite ABC’s daytime replacements. OLTL & AMC ratings will grind the replacements into the ground. Thanks to the deal PP made with FX Canada, the new episodes air there daily at Noon & 12:30 PM! May the ratings soar! FX United States, come on board. I for one will DVR daily & promise not to fast forward any commercials! But hey, writers & sponsors, take… Read more »

Well stated, Joann, Samantha and Diana. We’ve got these greedy SOBs’ numbers.