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Prospect Park's Jeff Kwatinetz Speaks With Forbes On Resurrecting The Soap Opera Online!

Courtesy/JeffKwatinetz.com

Courtesy/JeffKwatinetz.com

In a brand new interview feature out today with Forbes, Lesleyann Cukor, Prospect Park’s Jeff Kwatinetz, the man behind the revivals of All My Children and One Life to Live, discusses his theories and decisions on how the two soap operas will be distributed to the viewing audience, and what to expect from the marketing and the business model aspect of  the two soaps to ensure its success!

Kwatinetz also noted that there will be 210 new episodes each year of All My Children and One Life to Live produced and put on their digital platforms from Hulu, HuluPlus, and iTunes!  Here are some excerpts from the interview below!

Kwatinetz notes on how the new AMC and OLTL will be marketed to fans,  “We will do everything from digital/social media coverage, including Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, to promotional spots on iTunes and Hulu. We’ll also cover traditional marketing with radio and TV spots, as well as billboards and print advertising.  Social Media is a huge part of our marketing plan. It’s everywhere right now. Everyone is looking on Facebook and Twitter for updates about the show.”

Kwatinetz on how he will monetize the soap venture:  “Hulu is advertising supported distribution, and they run 30 second commercial spots just like traditional television.  iTunes is pay-per-download. We’ll also have sponsorships and integration opportunities.”

Kwatinetz on the availability of newly archived episodes:   “The content will always be available on Hulu Plus and iTunes. As soon as someone hears about the shows, they can subscribe and begin watching from Episode 1, no matter how far along we are in the story.”

So AMC and OLTL fans, what do you think of the plans for your favorite soaps?  Are you on board and excited about 210 new episodes a year, when last year there were zero? What do you think about the distribution and social media aspects of the plan to ensure visibility?  Weigh-in!

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Hope it works out…now also bring back Dark Shadows and The Edge Of Night! Ironically both of these were cancelled by abc…DS in 1971…EON in the early 1980s but EON did have a long run on cbs first. Both shows could be reintroduced with all new actors since both shows have been gone for a very long time!

We are so excited to get back OLTL… Now we can watch it anytime and anywhere.

You are right about The Edge of Night – loved their murder mysteries and
Dark Shadows was fun and mysterious and classic.

Lets support these revitalized shows and the genre!

Hope these guys backing this venture become wealthy beyond their dreams!

LOVE the idea of bringing back “Edge.” Glad I’m not the only one who was thinking about that. As to “Dark Shadows,” I suspect that that one may have run its course in its initial five-year run. Don’t know if the novelty of that format could sustain itself as easily as can traditional soap operas. I mean, try and imagine an elderly Barnabas commemorating 50 years of Collinwood at the Vampire’s Ball! LOL!

I would actually love a Vampires Ball! that would be great for Halloween! Dark Shadows revival could work but not 5 days a week and year long! Maybe original epidodes for 6 months then air 6 months of repeats like Mary Hartman did in the 70s. DSs original run burned itself out by too quick time travel storylines too soon after the other and too quick pace that made the show confusing at times, especially if you missed an epidode. Had Dan Curtis slowed it down a bit and gave some characters a little time for a normal life like he did in the shows first 2 years it coulve last a few more years. i actually have plans to make some fan made videos for utube which i hope to put on sometime in 2014 that shows what could have happened after the show had ended! Loved EONs mysteries and that one could have another successful run. They could get a new Mike and Nancy, and bring back all of Gerladines family with recasts too or with all new characters! These two soaps were so different and thats whats missing in daytime today and primetime…the different types of soaps we had in the 60s: The horror stories of Dark Shadows and Strange Paradise, the crimes,and mysteries of Edge of Night. the family dramas of the Mathews family on Another World ect, and the medical stories of General Hospital and Hope Memorial of The Doctors…i consider the 1960s as tvs best decade because of the huge selection of different programs morning, noon, and night offered on just three networks and it was all free!!! (but back then you had to watch when shows first aired or wait for reruns because there was no vcrs or on demand ect. However tv viewing seemed more fun knowing millions were watching at the same time…but i guess i could be just an old fuddy duddy(is that correct? lol) Thanks for the reply!

The Edge of Night , was so brilliantly written, I think by a man named Henry Slesar. and in fact I thought that when the ABC version was cancelled, that he moved on to One Life to Live.

He never introduced a character that did not have a purpose, and every piece of dialogue moved the story along. The murder mysteries were so well written.

I remember the Whitmey family and the son named Jonah who was thought to have died in a car accident, but in fact faked his death and then took Mike and Nancy’s daughter hostage, after romancing her. It was brilliant.

i think he died falling out of a tower. Loved that show

My favorite was the “Mansion of the Damned” storyline … I remember watching “Edge” right after GH, during the L&L heyday and marveling at the late Kim Hunter’s performance as aging starlet Nola Madison. And to my knowledge, “Edge” was the only soap in history to enjoy a larger MALE audience than female. Food for thought, eh, PP?

just checked wikopedia

Henry Slesar was in fact the head writer for Edge from 1956 to 1984!!
And then went on to One Life to Live , during the glory years of the Buchanons and Eterna, he may have even invented Mitch Lawrence.

He also wrote forthe Search for Tomorrow and Somerset too.And
Alfred Hitchcock Presents too. He has an anthology book of the Hitchcock short stories.

Wow, his typewriter must have been burning all those years.

I believe he died in 2002. RIP Henry Slesar!

I’m so on board and can’t flipping wait!!

Can’t wait for OLTL to start. Great idea and I believe this is where television is headed. Hulu runs acceptable commericials too, not like on Broadcast tv where they take up almost half the hour.

I heard there are going to be Limited commercials too. I hated all the commercials with Network TV

Us Canadians still need to know hpw we can view the shows… please, the date is getting nearer !

Brian.

If you are being blocked because of IP issues on your computer, there is such a thing as “spoofing software” than can fool the internet into thinking you are in the states. I don’t know the names of such software, but there are some computer gurus up there in Canada that will know.

didn’t know the eppy’s will always be available…………….i was under the impression the hulu only keeps shows for a week………………

Regular hulu does. But he says hulu plus will always have them.

thanks for clearing that up for me!

I can’t wait….. its been too long.i’m so excited. i miss my soap family…… 29th hurry i need my soaps !!!!

Thank you for linking to the article. Sounds like they have thought of everything. I am impressed that they plan 210 new episodes per year. The marketing plan sounds great. My question about archived episodes has been answered. It is so exciting to witness and participate in this transition in the entertainment industry.
We are making history here folks!!!!!!!!!!!

I am SO on board. I cannot wait, ONLY 19 more days!!

These guys really know their stuff! The marketing plan sounds perfect! I just know these two soaps are going to be a tremendous success! I can’t wait for the first episodes!

So it will be available long term on Hulu Plus and I tunes . Which means limited time for the free Ad supported Hulu. Interesting.

HuluPLUS is only $7.99 a month and in this case, you will have a permanent library available of the shows.

Most people spend this much PER DAY on a pack of cigarettes and alcohol.

I will watch them on the regular hulu (free). I have alway’s watched these soaps for free all these years and will continue to… I have enough bills to pay each month.

I’m glad they are coming back. I’ll be watching even though AMC and OLTL weren’t ever my soaps because I want to support this and I hope it succeeds. I think iTunes and Hulu are both good choices for distribution. I haven’t seen a lot of social media yet though not done by the individual actors. I hope they understand having social media means more than saying they have social media and securing the accounts. I hope it works so well that other soaps can come back too or new ones can become widely known.

I’m just so happy OLTL is coming back! I’ve missed it so much!

Me TOO!

1) Bought the Roku box and hooked up to TV (CHECK!)
2) Subscribed to HuluPLUS (CHECK!)

I am so glad I am going to be able to lay in bed and watch my soaps on my TV and NOT sit upright in my chair and watch them on my tiny TV screen.

If you guys haven’t bought a Roku box ($100) and hooked it up to your TV, you should. I have already become addicted to all that Roku/streaming has to offer and my soaps haven’t even started yet!!!

Oh, and by the way, you can get a Roku box for as cheap as $50! I bought 4!

My only problem is that i have a few friends who loved both soaps but cant afford internet to watch them. They can come over and watch on my laptop with me but we cant always meet at the same time…and i cant let them borrow my laptop because i need it for work as well.

I have been enjoying watching various shows on Hulu plus. My iPad and I are ready. I plan to watch both soaps. I was just watching AMC. I hope they are watchable. I am only watching Y&R right now. Still boycotting ABC. B&B and DOOL are boring to me. So, yes, I am ready!

I’m very excited but have some questions. What time will they be first shown? How long will a particular episode be free to view? what about people who don’t have time to watch until the weekend?

Lin, people that don’t have time to watch until the weekend are going to be spoiled by this.

You will simply go to your HuluPLUS account (only $7.99 per month) and que up all the “One Life to Live” episodes and they will play back-to-back for you with perhaps 3 minutes worth of commercials during each episode.

Unlike SOAPNet, you won’t have to start watching at a certain time. Any time you wish is cool: on a Saturday at 8:35 a.m., on a Sunday at 4:20 p.m., you’re in control on HuluPLUS. It’s sweeeeeet!!!

And you can pause the shows, rewind or watch each one over a million times. I mean, sweeeeeet city, U.S.A.!

I know, it’s pretty cool, I have a Roku box and I have already subscribed to HULU PLUS – I don’t mind paying the modest monthly fee, Lord knows I work enough hours to pay for it.
I get a little embarressed when people write on Facebook “what channel will it be on, and what time – I didn’t know it was coming back to TV” – it’s like, for cryin’ out loud where have you been –
I don’t think I’m any computer whiz but it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out how to stream something –

I read on this site 4/29 at 12:00pm for a half hour only. Free to view on regular Hulu.
They will show the episodes if you miss them you can watch them I guess anytime of the day but viewing is limited for one week . In less you want to pay on
Hulu plus for $7.99 a month with unlimited viewing.

Well I think that it is terrible that prospect park could not work out a deal with General Hospital so that the characters of John McBain, Todd and Starr Manning could keep their parts. As far as them coming back to GH with new characters sucks! And prospect park really does not care about what fans have to say.

Well I think that it is terrible that prospect park could not work out a deal with General Hospital so that the characters of John Mc Bain, Todd and Starr Manning could keep their parts. As far as them coming back to GH with new characters sucks! And prospect park really does not care about what fans have to say.

I could not agree with you more. Suspect Park is lucky that soap fans are such a loyal bunch. What they did to Kristen Alderson and Michael Easton is horrible. Playing hardball with the people from GH cut off their nose to spite their face. They could have used GH to keep the characters alive on network TV and could have been able to advertise AMC/OLTL during GH.
They lied when they said they were loaning the characters to GH. Does anyone remember the false promises to start up the shows online shortly after they left ABC? When they mysteriously kept quiet, signing a few actors without much info until pulling the plug? GH did us a favor by keeping OLTL alive NOT until PP brought the show back because PP wouldn’t even respond. Everyone was just waiting for their rights to expire hoping that someone would pick up the shows after that. There was no “loaning.”

PP didn’t care about us then and they don’t care now. After reading this “feel good” interview PP would like us to think they have committed to these shows for the next few years. DON’T count on it! PP is not using its own money for this venture. They will bail out if this is not a financial success. Let’s hope they give it a fair chance because it’s doubtful this will make money right from the start. This will likely take time to develop an audience which is a major reason why “partnering” with GH would have been such a good idea.

The reporter’s name is Lesleyann Coker. 🙂 she’s the co-author of Boob Tube, a novel about the soap opera world. Also a fmr writer for Soap Opera Weekly.

All My Children

51st Daytime Emmys: Mark Consuelos and Kelly Ripa Receive Talk Show Host Nominations

On Thursday, nominations were announced in the Outstanding Talk Show category for the upcoming 51st annual Daytime Emmy Awards. 

Mark Consuelos (ex-Mateo, All My Children) coming off his first-year as co-host of ‘Live” with real-life wife, Kelly Ripa scored his first Talk Show Host nomination along with Ripa who has been nominated previous times.

Joining Mark and Kelly in the race are: Joy Behar, Whoopi Goldberg, Alyssa Farah Griffin, Sara Haines, Sunny Hostin, Ana Navarro, The View
Kelly Clarkson, The Kelly Clarkson Show, Akbar Gbajabiamila, Amanda Kloots, Natalie Morales, Jerry O’Connell, Sheryl Underwood, The Talk and
Tamron Hall, Tamron Hall.

Photo: CBS

As previously reported, The Talk is coming to its end when its upcoming 15th and final season ends in December of 2024.

The 51st annual Daytime Emmys are slated to be broadcast and stream live on CBS and Paramount+ on Friday night, June 7th

Look for the full list of nominations to drop on Friday morning at 12 noon ET/9 am PT.

So, are you rooting for Kelly and Mark to win their first Talk Show host award together? Comment below.

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All My Children

Mark Consuelos Celebrates One-Year Anniversary as Co-Host of ‘Live’ Alongside Kelly Ripa

Today, April 17th marks a full-year since Mark Consuelos (ex-Mateo, All My Children) took over the co-hosting duties of ‘Live” alongside his wife, and longtime co-host, Kelly Ripa (ex-Hayley, All My Children).

Consuelos replaced Ryan Seacrest who are six seasons decided to be back on the west coast full-time. For Consuelos, now having the opportunity to work off of Ripa as co-hosts has been something of adjustment for him, but viewers have been eating it up.

Live with Kelly and Mark has remained the No. 1 entertainment talk show on television over the past year, growing 3% in average total viewers to 2.23M per episode.  It is also the most-watched daytime talk show in the last year in key demos of women 18-49 and women 25-54. All of this, since the real-life marrieds teamed-up.

Photo: ABC

Speaking with Deadline, Kelly Ripa shared why the two are gelling on-screen, “I do think that there is something very possibly relatable about our relationship. We have disagreements like a normal couple, and we’re not afraid to let them unfold on the air and in front of America, and I think people find a lot of themselves in that.”

Mark weighed in how he has progressed as a host, and what he could improve at, sharing, “I’d like to get better at my interviewing skills. I’d like to get better at reading a teleprompter…I think I’m getting better at throwing to commercial. The other day in the middle of the show as we go to commercial, my sign off was ‘See you guys around.’ I mean, the show wasn’t over. The most obvious thing to say would be, ‘We’ll be back right after this.’ But I just said, ‘See you around.’ So we went to commercial and one of the producers (goes) ‘What was that?’ I don’t know… So for the next few sign offs, as a joke, I’d say ‘See you around.’ We got a kick out of it.”

Photo: ABC

Meanwhile, Kelly has given huge props to Mark, “I find Mark utterly compelling, really interesting, super funny, and he’s bold in a way like nobody else. He says what’s on his mind. If he’s thinking it, he says it.  I’ve done this a long time and oftentimes people will adjust their natural personalities to pander to what they think the audience wants to hear, and Mark will tell people what he thinks, and he doesn’t care if it’s not a popular opinion. It gives him an edginess that I think is really missing in the landscape today. Everybody’s so afraid to say anything, and Mark is unafraid to say exactly what he’s thinking.”

In a statement, Debra O’Connell, President News Group and Networks, Disney Entertainment shared, We could not be more thrilled with how Mark has seamlessly joined the show family as permanent co-host. His undeniable charisma and his and Kelly’s natural chemistry are evident as they deliver the laughs and smiles to our viewers each morning. We are incredibly proud of how Live has continued to evolve and that the audience is responding so enthusiastically.”

So, do you think Mark Consuelos is the best co-host his wife Kelly Ripa has ever had on ‘Live’? How would you say he is doing as co-host after one full year on the job? Comment below.

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All My Children

Susan Lucci Joins the Cast of Jonah Hill’s Movie ‘Outcome’

Look who will be part of the ensemble cast in motion picture and film star Jonah Hill’s new film project! That’s right, none other than Susan Lucci (ex-Erica, All My Children).

According to Deadline, the daytime television icon joins other notables including Laverne Cox and David Spade who have been added to the cast of Outcome. The film stars Keanu Reeves, Matt Bomer (ex-Ben, Guiding Light) and Cameron Diaz.

In Outcome, which is written by, and will be directed by Hill, the dark comedy centers around Reef (played by Reeves), a damaged Hollywood star who must dive into the dark depths of his past to confront his demons and make amends after he is extorted with a mysterious video clip from his past.

Photo: JPI

Soap fans know that following her iconic run as All My Children’s Erica Kane, Susan went on to be featured in Lifetime’s Devious Maids in the role of Genevieve Delatour.  Since her Pine Valley days ended (when AMC was canceled in 2012), Susan has appeared in numerous shows and made numerous appearances.  n December of 2023, Lucci was awarded the Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Photo: JPI

Outcome will debut on Apple and is an Apple Studios production. The film marks the latest collaboration for Hill and Apple Original Films, who are also developing a Grateful Dead biopic with Martin Scorsese’s Sikelia Productions, to be directed by Scorsese, with Hill starring in it and as one of the producers of the project, as well.

So, intrigued to see what kind of role Susan plays in Jonah Hill’s new film ‘Outcome’? Comment below.

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