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The Writers of ‘Guiding Light’ Come Together For A Virtual Conversation

Photo: P&G

Several of the writers who helped mold and shape the town of Springfield, and in particular the characters you loved to love, or loved to hate on Guiding Light, are banding together for a special livestream chat on Wednesday July 1st.

Look for former writers and head writers: Jim Brown, Dave Kreizman, Jill Lorie Hurst, Courtney Simon and Millee Taggart to share remembrances about stories they crafted through the years on the beloved CBS soap opera and more.

It all takes place on The Locher Room with former Guiding Light and As the World Turns publicist, Alan Locher as your host.

Click here to watch what will be an interesting hour of discussion and insight for any longtime fan of GL.

So, looking forward to checking out this “Writers Room” Guiding Light reunion? Comment below.

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Unfortunately, will be missing it, so I will have to catch it at a later time.

Now this should be interesting! Let’s hope they talk about network/P&G interference in the stories they were trying to tell … and what it was like to see other writers undo the good work they had done.

Wish you would return where you left off.

Bridget and Jerome Dobson were the best writers… Doug Marland came next.

I absolutely adored the Marland era, and I thought the Dobson era was quite well done also, but Nancy Curlee is the one who really stands out in my mind. And the fact that she accomplished what she did WHEN she did, well after the heavy network and P&G interference started (which was circa 1988), made it even more remarkable. I wasn’t as fond of Pam Long’s work as some were, but when I look at clips in retrospect I realize she was much better than I gave her credit for at the time; I think I just didn’t like GL as well as I did under the Dobsons and Marland (and I’d still say that). I enjoyed what the Labines did, later, and what Millee Taggart did. I admired what the folks toward the end were trying to do, though they were having to undo so much damage accumulating over so many years by that point and the budget cuts and such really did not help. Just about everybody else involved as a headwriter since I started watching in 1975 I will not comment on, because there’s not much nice to say. (There might be some I’m forgetting who did good work, but I can think of a handful who really did damage, and I’d have nothing good to say about them.)

Very well stated. I found your comment about Pam Long interesting. I was in high school when her version of Guiding Light was in full-steam. I thought…at the time, it was masterpiece theater. Years later…(watching YouTube)…not so much. Watching the old clips, I find the show to be so hokey, bordering on high camp. I discovered the Dobson / and Marland eras via YouTube and must say, I absolutely love the writing and storylines. I now see what all buzz around these two era’s was about.

I love any soap discussion related to writing. Should be an interesting show.

IMO Douglas Marland was the BEST HEAD WRITER in history and I still miss him to this day, he died way to young…next in line was Bill Bell and he is also greatly missed.

I think the body of Marland’s work on the soaps, taken together, probably should mark him as the very best that was. I accept some of the criticisms people have levied as valid, but I can’t think of a perfect headwriter ever, and I still think on balance, he was tops. I never saw anything Irna Phillips wrote (my soap watching started a few years after she left ATWT for the last time), so I can’t include her in my sample group. I think the Dobsons did “intense” better than anybody else, and nobody was better than Agnes Nixon at weaving social issues into solid storytelling. Bell deserves special recognition for his ability to sustain consistency of character and mood over a long, long period (which is partly why YR has suffered so much since his passing; who could possibly follow that?). Harding Lemay was the absolute best at making me forget I was watching a soap; those may as well have been REAL people I was watching. I think Henry Slesar of Edge of Night did plot better than anybody else (although Gordon Russell and Sam Hall of 1970s One Life to Live and Marland came close, and I still think Marland’s Douglas Cummings mystery on ATWT in the mid-80s was probably the best mystery even). Claire Labine did “human” better than anybody. There are quite a few others who also did good work, particularly before all the network and sponsor interference started, and whose shows I was happy to watch. There are some promising talents in the last couple of decades whose work I can’t judge because the interference makes it impossible to know what they can really do and what’s been foisted up on them. What astonishes me in retrospect, though, is how many truly bad headwriters there have been who continued to get hired over and over to destroy show after show. I take away from that that most people involved in the hiring had absolutely no idea what made a good soap writer. But since it was a writer’s medium, from the start (thanks largely to Irna), eventually it did not matter whether they could pick a good writer or not; the minute Gloria (“Anybody can write a soap opera”) Monty decided she could do the headwriter’s job better than a writer could, the soaps were probably sunk. People focus on the OJ trial and the changing demographics and more women in the work world and such as the cause of the decline, and I have no doubt that all has played a part, but I think the interference and the denigration of the headwriting function played a bigger role.

Michael (not Fairman)…I am so impressed with your knowledge of a lot of the headwriters and I agree with you…I started watching GL when the Dobson’s were writing and then Douglas Marland…How I miss the good ole days of our daytime dramas…

Thanks for bring back The Light! But let’s bring it back for real. Writers need to get together and promote a 30 min GL soap revival again on a major network. You have a great list of writers on tap. Notably missing are some of the best writing in the 1980s (Pamela K. Long) and the 1990s (Nancy Curlee with Daytime Emmy Win for Writing and husband Stephen Demorest). Pamela created characters like Reva Shayne, Alexandra Spaulding, and Harley Davidson Cooper! Thanks to Alan Locher for putting these virtual conversations to the fans. And Michael Fairman for promoting it!

I miss this show so much!!! I wish theyd bring it back streaming!!! My favorite era was the early 80’s. The 4 musketeers!!!! I think they lost their way when they killed off Maureen.

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George Cheeks, CBS President & CEO, on Timeline to Launch New Daytime Drama, ‘The Gates’: “We’re So Focused on Getting it Right”

March 2024 will be remembered in the TV and soap world when the news broke that CBS is prepping a brand new daytime drama. Many had thought a major network would never bring a new daytime soap into the world, given that the last time it was attempted was 25 years ago when the now defunct Passions bowed on NBC.

However, The Gates is definitely in development and moving forward with some major players associated with it including: Michele Val Jean as The Gates writer, showrunner and one of its executive producers, and Sheila Ducksworth from NAACP Venture

Now, for the first time since its announcement, George Cheeks, the president and CEO of CBS and chief content officer for news and sports at Paramount+, spoke on the project that will feature a Black family as its central focus who live in a wealthy gated community.

Photo: NAACP

Speaking with Vulture, and when asked if The Gates is really something that truly has a chance of getting on the air, Cheeks clarified, “It’s super real. And just to give you a little bit of the backstory,  when we hired Sheila Ducksworth to run the NAACP Venture, she and I had multiple meetings talking about what different genres she was going to lean into, and we talked a lot about daytime.”

Cheeks added, “One of the things that the data made very clear to both of us is that daytime soap operas over index with Black women, and yet when you look at soap operas, it’s usually sort of a white-led family with supporting characters that reflect more of our society. So we just thought, wouldn’t it be interesting to flip that and make the core anchor family a Black family, and then make the other characters reflect more the broader scope of society?”

Photo: JPI

The CEO gave props to Michele Val Jean,  and how Ducksworth came to the table with the former B&B and GH writer. “She found this great writer, Michele Val Jean, who’s been in the soap opera space for 30 years. She came up with a pitch, and we loved it,” shares Cheeks. “We brought Procter & Gamble into it as well, because if there were going to be (product) integrations, we could do it more holistically and organically. All of that is to say, we did a lot of work on the front end to put this together. So while yes, it’s development, it’s accelerated development.”

When prodded on the timeline of when The Gates could come to full fruition, Gates related, “The actual timeline and when we’re going to do it is still uncertain, because we want to get this right. I mean, there hasn’t been a new soap opera launch since I can’t even begin to tell you when. But we have great success with Bold and the Beautiful and Young and the Restless, and so we think we’re the right folks to be launching a new soap. I wish I could tell you more about exact timing, but we’re so focused on getting it right, and that will dictate when we’re ready to launch it.”

The CBS exec also shared that whether The Gates will wind up an hour soap or half-hour is not yet determined, but that it is being developed as an hour show.

So, after reading what George Cheeks, the CBS President & CEO had to say about ‘The Gates’, are you even more excited for what looks to the first new network soap in 25 years? Comment below.

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Breaking News

Robyn Bernard, ‘General Hospital’s’ Terry Brock, Dead at 64

Former General Hospital star, Robyn Bernard, who played aspiring singer Terry Brock has died. She was 64-years-old.

Bernard’s body was found Tuesday in San Jacinto, California. A Riverside County Coroner told TMZ they identified the actress’ body using her fingerprints after deputies responded to a death investigation call on Tuesday March 12th.

Sources told the outlet that Bernard’s body was found in the wee hours of the morning. The cause of death has yet to be determined.

Photo: ABC

Bernard joined General Hospital back in 1984 as Terry Brock, the daughter of the abusive D.L. Brock (played by David Groh). Robyn remained on the ABC soap opera for six years before making her exit in 1990. At one point, Terry’s stepmother would become Bobbie Spencer (the late Jackie Zeman) when the nurse married her father.

Terry was involved in the Laurelton Murders storyline and after first setting her sights on Frisco Jones, wound up with killer Kevin O’Connor. Later, Terry was blamed for several murders and in the end killed Kevin in self-defense. In addition, Terry had a relationship with Dusty Walker played by none other than Shaun Cassidy.  She eventually left Port Charles after landing her own recording contract.

Photo: ABC

The last time GH Fans may have seen Bernard was in 2014, when she appeared at the GH Fan Club Weekend Past Cast event. Robyn is pictured below with the late Susan Brown (ex-Gail) at the fan gathering. She has been out of the limelight for several years.

Photo: JPI

In addition to her role on GH, Bernard was featured throughout her TV career on primetime’s Simon & Simon, Tour of Duty and The Facts of Life.

Share your remembrances and condolences for GH alum Robyn Bernard and her loved ones via the comment section below.

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Breaking News

51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards Announce Broadcast Date on CBS

The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) revealed on Tuesday, that the 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards will be broadcast live on Friday night, June 7th (8 – 10 PM, ET/delayed PT) on the CBS Television Network, and available to stream live and on-demand on Paramount+*.

This year will mark the 18th time CBS has broadcast the Daytime Emmy Awards, which is more than any other network.

The 2024 Daytime Emmys will take place at the Westin Bonaventure in downtown Los Angeles. Back in December of 2023, the delayed 50th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards were also held at that venue. The June 7th date for the upcoming ceremony will be the first time in several years that the event is scheduled a few weeks earlier than normal; excluding last year’s revised date to the actors and writers strikes.

Photo: NATAS

Lifetime Achievement honoree, nominations, host, and additional information will be announced in the coming weeks.

In a statement, Adam Sharp, President and CEO of NATAS noted, “We eagerly anticipate our return in June as we once again partner with CBS to recognize the exceptional and talented individuals who make daytime television great. We’re thrilled to kick off our second half-century of the Daytime Emmys.”

The Daytime Emmy Awards have recognized outstanding achievement in television programming and crafts since 1974, honoring work in a variety of categories, including daytime dramas, talk shows, instructional programming, hosting, culinary, and legal/courtroom programs. In 2021, NATAS and the Television Academy jointly announced plans to realign the Daytime and Primetime Emmy Awards to be organized by content genre, as opposed to program airtime.

Photo: JPI

The 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards will once again be produced by NATAS and Associated Television International (ATI), which produced Daytime Emmy Award ceremonies on The CW in 2009 and on CBS in 2010, 2011, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023. Adam Sharp and Lisa Armstrong are executive producers from NATAS, while David McKenzie is executive producer from ATI.

So, glad to know that the 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards honoring performance and shows in the 2023 calendar year, will be held in early June this year, and once again broadcast on CBS? Comment below.

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Peter Reckell returns for a second visit with Michael Fairman following the wrap-up of his recent run as Bo Brady on Days of our Lives.Leave A Comment

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