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The Man behind Soaps Revival: Prospect Park's Jeff Kwantinetz on AMC & OLTL transistion and new territory!

Courtesy/NY Times

So want to know more about one of the men behind Prospect Park? The guy leading the next wave of the hopefully resurgence of the soap opera genre? Well look no further than the New York Times new profile piece on Prospect Park’s Jeff Kwantinetz!

If you read the entire piece, you will understand from whence he came, and what Prospect Park is trying to do with the upcoming the Online Network (TOLN.com) and the rebirth of One Life to Live and All My Children when they move to their new home next year.  In the article, there is also an update on where things stand in terms of talent acquisitions for the shows and more.  Here are just a few excerpts from the feature!

“Kwantinetz spoke quietly about his new life, mentioning that he is often in bed by 11 p.m., watching that day’s installment of  One Life to Live. He works 16-hour days and aggressively went after the rights to ABC’s canceled soaps, seeing them as the perfect anchors for his online ambitions because of their loyal fans.”

“Prospect Park wants to introduce the Online Network in mid-January, when One Life to Live is scheduled to end its run on ABC. (All My Children concluded last month.) Mr. Kwatinetz still needs to complete deals with various unions to move the shows online with current cast members. Whether the longtime star of  All My Children, Susan Lucci, will stay is unclear, and negotiations with her continue.

“Plans call for new episodes to be streamed on the Web site and then made available on living room on-demand systems and, a few weeks later, on a traditional cable channel. Mr. Kwatinetz intends to make additional money by selling advertising and syndicating the shows to other Web sites like Hulu or Google.”

So what do you think about the Prospect Park situation knowing who is leading the charge, after the enlightening feature?  We think, it’s good to have some one with a vision and persistent at the top championing the genre and its fan base.

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They have my full support ! Long live “One Life To Live” ! I will watch this show anyway they present it to us.

I am very excited that Prospect Park is intelligent enough to know that there are millions of viewer for OLTL !! Look what a big mistake ABC made with the CHEW!! low ratings!! should have kept AMC and OLTL,,, stupid! I AGREE LONG LIVE THE LONG STANDING OLTL!!! TY for keeping it going.. You already have the fans!!!

i am now more positive about prospect park then ever – thank you for this info michael!!

This is such great news for the fans! I am still trying to watch AMC at noon here in CA and am biting at the bit for our canceled soaps to be reborn on PP! I trust PP to fulfill the fans desire to continue the AMC & OLTL Legacy and thank them for the rescue from the jaws of certain death! We fans will surely make PP’s new online network, on-demand and cable channel formats a success. Kudos Prospect Park!

THEY NEED TREVOR ST JOHN

JEFF SOUNDS LIKE A INTERESTING GUY ,I WISH HIM THE BEST

Happy hes a OLTL LOVER!

Great news.

We do need TSJ and Robin S online

Also no fee because that would be a problem for me and other people who are poor

If he has love of business to keep it going thru thick and thin he has it made.I know a lot of people say they can’t want watch it on line for different reasons.If this company is smart and starts seeing a soap channel in the future he will have millions of faithful viewers.

How awesome! And Frons and Sweeney had no idea they would be picked up and survive after killing them on network tv. The men behind PP sound like they have their stuff together and are going to make successes out of this! Woo hoo!

GREAT NEWS!

I like what I am hearing about this! 🙂

Again, I am so excited and Prospect Park are very smart as they already have the fans for OLTL… 40plus years! and AMC… to bad ABC didn’t used their heads! The Chew? low ratings already! TY so much as I can’t be without my soap OLTL… and hope the characters stay with the show. Pls keep us posted. I love that you care about so many fans! The fans just needed someone who listened.. TYVM!!
!

It sounds great! As long as I can still watch the soaps on T.V. I’m happy!

But what do you mean by TV? On cable? Regular TV? I haven’t heard about that.

Yes! Read the above article. They say it will first be on the web, then on demand & traditional cable! I hope it happens!

I’ll watch AMC and OLTL on PP. I hope GH dies off on ABC and is NOT picked up on PP.

Please do not pick up GH!!!! I want to see GH go down in flames that are visible from space.

PP guys — I can’t wait to see what you do with AMC and OLTL!!!! Cheers!!!!

I have a question about watching the soaps online. I went to ABC to watch a video to see if it would work. It did, but not the quality of what I see on TV. Under “help” they show these system requirements:

•”Adobe Flash Player 10.0.0 or later
•Internet Explorer 7.0 or later, Firefox 2.0 or later, Safari 3 (Mac only) or later, Chrome 3.0 or later (Adobe Flash playback only)
•Microsoft Windows XP or later, Mac OS X 10.4 or later, Linux (Adobe Flash playback only)

For optimal playback experience, your computer should have at least 512 MB of RAM, a video card with at least 128 MB of RAM, and a high speed Internet connection (DSL or cable modem).”

I have 199.GB of RAM. Whats the difference between MB and GB? I don’t know if I have the other stuff. I have internet explorer but don’t know what type, Adobe but don’t know if I have flash player. Everytime I try to download it it disappears.
I have WINDOWS XP, – that’s all I now. HELP! ANY advice will be appreciated.

“Plans call for new episodes to be streamed on the Web site and then made available on living room on-demand systems and, a few weeks later, on a traditional cable channel. Mr. Kwatinetz intends to make additional money by selling advertising and syndicating the shows to other Web sites like Hulu or Google.”

Does the above mean it will wind up on TV / What is a video on demand system? Help!

Sure sounds like they hope to put it on T.V.! VOD is on your system’s cable box.

I’ll watch AMC and OLTL online or on TV – but must admit, I’d prefer TV. We fans knew “The Chew” was dead in the water from its inception. You don’t mess with soap fans. We are a loyal and dedicated bunch. As women are the largest group of soap opera watchers, the last thing we want is something that contributes to the repetitive chores of everyday living. Cooking is not what most of us covet on TV. What we want and need is an escape from the monotony – and that is what soaps provide. How foolish of ABC not to realize that !!. By ignoring the fans, they will find themselves reaping the whirlwind.

Our congratulations and thanks to PP. They shall find us to be very grateful via our support of the Web site and its considered alternate venues. Thank You, Mr. Kwantinetz!!!

To Emily,

I don’t watch General Hospital – stopped way back when Luke and Laura were the most popular couple. – so I’m sure I’ve missed a lot in the interim. Why are you so anti-GH? Just curious.

One other thing – After reading KittenPutten I realized that we might need some SIMPLE instructions on how we will be able to properly access the internet form of viewing. Hope you will be able to provide it. Thanks.

I can’t wait. Watched these two shows forever and will follow them anywhere. Thank you so much for thinking of the fans. 🙂

All My Children

Carol Burnett Talks About Being a Superfan of ‘All My Children’ on ‘Live with Kelly and Mark’

In a heartfelt reunion, of sorts, the one and only Carol Burnett appeared on Monday March 25th episode of Live with Kelly and Mark.

Burnett had first met Kelly Ripa (Hayley) and Mark Consuelos (ex-Mateo) back when they all appeared on All My Children together. Carol played Verla Grubbs first in 1983 and then again in the 90’s.

Host Kelly Ripa (ex-Hayley, AMC) noted to Burnett that “we go back a long time”. She also described Burnett’s character of Verla Grubbs, “extraordinary in every way.”

Carol’s love for All My Children is well-documented, hence legendary soap creator, Agnes Nixon, created the role of Verla for Burnett.

Photo: ABC

Speaking on how her passion for All My Children began, Carol told Kelly and Mark, “It started with my kids. They would watch at noon. I said, ‘What are you guys doing?’ I sat down and I started to watch and I got hooked!”

When Carol’s family decided to travel through Europe during one summer, the comedic legend recalled thinking, “How am I going to last if I don’t know what’s going on in Pine Valley?” She revealed she had a friend, “who sent me a telegram to the (different hotels) on Fridays to bring me up to date.”

Photo: ABC

In a hilarious moment from the segment, Carol recalled receiving a late night telegram while in Lake Cuomo when there was a knock at her hotel room door from the hotel manager who was shaking.

Carol related what it said, “Erica is still in a coma. Mark slipped again and ran away from rehab.” As Kelly and Mark broke into laughter, Burnett continued, “Chuck has learned that Donna is carrying his baby, who was once a hooker.”

Check out Carol explaining how she became an AMC Superfan below.

Now, let us know, did you enjoy Carol as Verla Grubbs? What show do you consider yourself a Superfan of? Tell us in the comment section.

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All My Children

Malachy McCourt, ‘Ryan’s Hope’ and ‘All My Children’ Actor, Dead at 92

If you watched Ryan’s Hope through its 14-year-run, you know that Kevin the bartender became a beloved “member’ of the Ryan clan on the defunct ABC daytime drama series. The character of Kevin MacGuiness became so loved by the fans because of the actor who portrayed him, Malachy McCourt.

Sadly, according to his wife Diana McCourt to The New York Times, Malachy passed away on Monday from a heart condition and battling cancer. The actor was 92-years-old.

Playing Kevin on Ryan’s Hope was not much of a stretch for McCourt, because in his lifetime, he was the owner of 1950s Irish pub Malachy’s on Third Avenue in Manhattan. Known as one of the city’s great story-tellers, patrons from longshoremen to the actor Richard Harris would stop in and talk all things Irish with . On Ryan’s Hope, Kevin was best friends to “Ryan’s Bar” owner, Johnny Ryan (Bernie Barrow) and he tried to keep Delia (Ilene Kristen) on the straight and narrow.

Photo: ABC

In his soap opera career, McCourt also was widely-known for his role of Father Clarence McCourt on All My Children especially come Christmastime. Was Clarence, actually St. Nick? That was always the proverbial question. McCourt also appeared on the New York soaps: One Life To Live, Search For Tomorrow and Another World. Other roles included: Devil’s Own, Brewster’s Millions, The Molly Maguires, and Starman, to name 

Later in 2006, Malachy ran for governor of the state of New York as a Green Party candidate. He tackled social issues of the time including being an advocate for gay and lesbian groups to march in the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

Photo: ABC

McCourt’s childhood was recounted within his brother Frank McCourt’s Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir Angela’s Ashes, which detailed their mother’s attempt to raise the four of their surviving seven children in poverty in Limerick, Ireland. Later, Malachy wrote his own memoirs: 1998’s Monk Swimming, and 2000’s Singing My Him Song.

Malachy is survived by his aforementioned wife, Diana, daughter Siobhan McCourt; sons Malachy Jr., Conor and Cormac; stepdaughter Nina Galin; nine grandchildren; and one great-grandson.

Share you remembrances and condolences for Malachy McCourt via the comment section, but first check out this scene from a 1983 episode of “Ryan’s Hope” featuring the late actor with Ilene Kristen.

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All My Children

‘Live with Kelly and Mark’s’ Annual ‘After the Oscars’ Show Brings Backstage Interviews, Fashion Review and Red Carpet Arrivals from Movie’s Biggest Night

Monday morning, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos took to the stage at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood for the talk show’s annual Oscar post show.

However, this time it would be Consuelos’ first time as the co-host of ‘Live’ for an Oscars episode. Mark took over the gig from Ryan Seacrest to team with his wife back in April of 2023 and since then the show has seen a ratings spike hitting several all-time highs.

The After the Oscars show opened with a tribute to the movies were the former All My Children stars took on iconic roles from: Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct to Barbie and Ken in Barbie, to the Cameron Diaz and Ben Stiller role’s in the romantic comedy Something About Mary and more.

Courtesy/DisneyABC

During After the Oscars, Kelly and Mark were shown in clips backstage as the first stop for the newly-anointed Academy Award winners including: Finneas and Billie Eilish and Da’Vine Joy Randolph. The Bachelor host, Jesse Palmer was the talk show’s guest correspondent who spoke to the nominees, and celebrities as they were entering the Dolby Theatre on Sunday night.

Singer Andy Grammar took to the stage and performed on Live’s  After the Oscars show as well, and Project Runaway’s Elaine Welteroth shared her thoughts on the night’s Oscar fashion.

You can watch the full ‘Live with Kelly and Mark After the Oscars’ show below, plus the full movie parody below that. Now let us know, what do you think of Kelly and Mark’s first post-Oscar show together on ‘Live’? Share your thoughts in the comment section.

 

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