There won’t be any “And the Enmy goes to _” come this June, where NATAS had originally scheduled three nights of award presentations honoring the best in daytime programming at the 47th Annual Daytime Emmys.   The three-day event was slated for June 12-14th, at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena. California.  Deadline broke the story of the decision to postpone daytime’s biggest night, for now.

NATAS president and CEO Adam Sharp said of today’s decision: “These were extremely difficult decisions to make, but at the end of the day the health and safety of our event attendees and staff must remain our paramount concern,” NATAS president and CEO Adam Sharp said of today’s decision. “We are closely monitoring public heath authorities’ guidance, seeking feedback from our awards communities, and evaluating the flexibility of our venue and production partners as we plan for the future in this unprecedented context.”

 NATAS chairman Terry O’Reilly said on the change” “Given our concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, we have decided that we will not be staging the 47th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards in Pasadena this coming June.  As there are so many unknowns right now with the flow of information changing on a daily, almost hourly, basis, it would simply be irresponsible to move forward with our annual celebration of excellence in daytime television at this time.”

Daytime Emmy Awards executive director Brent Stanton, who is involved in the judging of the competition that was well-under way before the cancellation, shared “Judging continues, and we look forward to announcing our incredibly talented nominees later this spring. We are working on some interesting alternative ideas for how to best recognize the honorees later this year and will share more details in the weeks ahead.”

So, what do you think of the cancellation of the Daytime Emmys? Comment below.

GH is the first soap to suspend production due to safety precautions and concerns for the Coronavirus pandemic and is set to shut down from March 16 to April 10.

According to Deadline who announced the production suspension along with halt to Jimmy Kimmel Live, a network rep for GH stated: “We don’t anticipate an interruption in the broadcast of original episodes.”

We anticipate more official word from the other network soaps shortly as to their plans during the health crisis with production halts or schedules over the next month.

Let us know what you think of GH shutting down production at this time and if you hope all the other soaps follow suit for the safety of all their production talents and employees via the comment section below.

The entire soap world and daytime community is saddened today with the news of the passing of a true icon and TV pioneer, Lee Phillip Bell.

According to her children, William James Bell, Brad Bell (EP and head writer, B&B) and Lauralee Bell Martin (Christine, Y&R), Lee passed away on February 25th at the age of 91.

Photo: JPI

They shared: “Our mother was a loving and supportive wife, mother and grandmother.  Gracious and kind, she enriched the lives of all who knew her. We will miss her tremendously.”

Born in Chicago, Illinois on June 9, 1928, Bell was co-creator, along with her late husband William J. Bell, of two of daytime television’s most successful dramas: The Young and the Restless (Y&R), and The Bold and the Beautiful (B&B).

Bell’s career as a broadcast journalist began in Chicago, where she hosted and produced her own show, The Lee Phillip Show, for CBS TV for over 30 years. A pioneer in the evolution of the afternoon talk show format, Bell was a trailblazer in the exploration of timely social issues and concerns.  Additionally she produced and narrated numerous award-winning specials and documentaries covering social concerns such as foster children, the subject of rape, children and divorce, and babies born to women in prison, to name a few.. Bell interviewed heads of state such as Presidents Gerald Ford and Ronald Regan; film actors Judy Garland, Clint Eastwood and Jerry Lewis; musicians such as The Rolling Stones and The Beatles; television and stage stars such as Lucille Ball, Jack Benny and Oprah Winfrey; and many other politicians, authors, journalists, fashion designers and rock stars.

Photo: JPI

She was awarded 16 regional (Chicago) Emmy awards and numerous Golden Mike awards. Bell is also the recipient of the Alfred I. Dupont/Columbia University Award for the special The Rape of Paulette, the first program in Chicago to explore the issue.  In 1977, she was the first woman to receive the coveted Governors Award from the Chicago chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.  In 1980, she was named “Person of the Year” by the Broadcast Advertising Club of Chicago and the “Outstanding Woman in Communications” by the Chicago YMCA.  She also received the Salvation Army’s William Booth Award for her distinguished career in communications and social service. Bell won the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series as co-creator of The Young and the Restless in 1975 and was recipient of the Daytime Emmys’ Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007.

In addition to her children, Lee Phillip Bell is survived by her daughters-in-law Maria Arena Bell and Ambassador Colleen Bell, her son-in-law Scott Martin and eight grandchildren.

Since the news of Lee’s death, many stars from daytime have been sharing their remembrances and condolences of this great woman and what she meant to them.  We will share more on this story later today.

For now, share your condolences for the Bell family and your thoughts on the passing of this icon, Lee Phillip Bell in the comment section below.