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Y&R’s Eric Braeden Speaks Out: “There Was An Attempt By The Former EP and Head Writer To Diminish The Role Of Victor Newman”

Photo: JPI

The one and only Eric Braeden (Victor, Y&R) gave fans the opportunity to pose questions to him on his own Facebook Live event called, “Ask Me Anything.”

While fielding many an inquiry, one in particular struck a chord when Braeden had some choice words for former executive producer and head writer of the series, Mal Young.

When asked what happened to Victor’s office set, Braeden said, “Well, let me be honest with you.  There was an attempt by the former executive producer and head writer to diminish the role of Victor Newman.  I’ll say it very clearly and very succinctly, he attempted to diminish it, to bring the character down.  Never forgive him for that, but he’s gone. Bye bye.”

In other key moments, Eric noted that he thinks the new material from head writer, Josh Griffith should debut in about 3-4 weeks. Braeden  was also asked if he thinks his on-screen son, Adam Newman will ever return to the canvas, plus he spoke of his enduring friendship with another Y&R icon, Jeanne Cooper (Katherine Chancellor) and more.

You can watch the entire Facebook live with Braeden below.   Then let us know what you thought of Eric’s remarks via the comment section below.

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So, the “Fans” who hate Victor need to thank him! Sounds like he got rid of Mal Young and the bonus is he does NOT like the Rosales being front and center. He said the show used to be about the NEWMANS AND ABBOTTS and seems headed back that way! Thank God AND Eric!

Completely agree with U Timmm!

yes!

Didn’t the network realize that Victor is The Young and the Restless? He makes the show what it is. The only way I want Eric off the show is when it’s God who does it. New writers, please hurry!

Oh puleeze…..the show was fine before he arrived on scene. He has become a completely unbelievable character resembling the heroes from Marvel comics. It was wonderful not having him around for this recent extended time. He could leave tomorrow and there would be a huge contingent cheering as he walked out the door. The actor is a legend in his own mind and his persona off screen is much like the ridiculous character he plays.

If you ask anyone outside of a soap fan about soaps, they will will always know Luke and Laura, Bo and Hope and Victor and Nicki. You may not like Eric Braeden BUT he is the face of Y&R!

And Erica Kane from Pine Valley!!!!

You are so right my frisky little kitten!

Erica is in a “cat-egory” all her own, Timmmbo! She is an absolute soap icon, feline fine…and complete catnip for the men of Pine Valley! No wonder I don’t have anything “catty” to say about her! Now where is my saucer of milk?

I have not had time to watch the entire hour long interview but from little what I saw, it’s terrific! Eric is an incredibly brilliant and unique storyteller.
Yes, The Young and the Rosales will go back to being the The Young and The Restless. Mind you, I have nothing against the Rosales family. I kind of like them but they were crudely introduced and it seemed to come at the expense of vets like Victor, Neil and of course, Paul. Does anyone remember when The Brady Bunch’s dog Tiger suddenly disappeared and no one mentioned it thereafter? Or when Richie Cunningham’s older brother Chuck suddenly disappeared from Happy Days? Again, no one mentioned it. It’s worse with Paul as he’s been a mainstay on Y&R for 40 years. No one, not even his wife, asks,”Where’s Paul?” Where’s Waldo? Who the hell cares! Where’s Paul?

Here is the problem with the Rosales. They were shoved down our throats! Kyle should have met Lola outside of Jabot while she was working in her food truck. They should have ONLY focused on that relationship for awhile and in the next year, start bringing in one of her family members.

You’re exactly right, Timm. And speaking of Neil, I read the news today, oh boy. I don’t have the words. Unspeakably sad.

Yes, he lost his son and couldnt find a way to live with that pain. God bless him.

I liked what Mal did with Sharon ,I hated when they had her marry Victor, I wany Michael Muhney back,

I thought Mal Young started well but things have disappointed me as time went by. Yes, give Mr. Young props for saving Sharon. I love actor Sharon Case and this character who provides a moral center we need. Mr. Young did give us a great Abbott-centered story to allow Eileen Davidson’s/Ashley’s exit. I liked the flashbacks and lots of screen time for Jack and Tracy. I did not care for the Billy-Phyllis-Summer mess. And I wish we could see more of Dina Abbott and her battle with ALzheimer’s.

The entire “Jack is not an Abbott” storyline was one of the WORST storylines ever on “Y & R” – ridiculous, plot-driven and with no payoff!!

Mal Young’s tenure was nothing but an unmitigated disaster!!!

Wonderful interview…it was like sitting at the table with Eric who is very entertaining and interesting…I am so glad Eric cares for Y&R as much as long time fans and I pray that Josh and Tony get this once classic show back to the way it should be along with the beautiful classic background music, YES I said it again and will till the end of time…

I agree with you 100%, Kevin C!!!

THANK YOU Bart…

Kevin
I too miss the once beautiful and exciting background from before. I do believe in the last couple episodes though i ve been hearing some music from awhile back! What a difference!. Lets hope it continues and we get the original scores back. Not sure if the music directors changed?

THANK YOU Damien…I believe they added a couple of new composers and I also have noticed the additional music…I don’t think we will get any of the old scores back unless Y&R rehires Jack Allocco and David Kurtz which I hope they do…

He is an honest man. Some people do not know how to deal with a man or women who is perfectly blunt. Especially in Hollywood! I loved this interview.

Mal Young is a punk, you tell him Eric Braeden. I love Eric, he is straight to the point and a wonderful actor. Good riddance Mal Young.

Oh please. Victor One Note front and center again? No thanks. But he’s not the show for me. His granddaughter is missing and he calls his incompetent security staff! Hilarious.

I agres here, and another thing that bothers me is Katie sitting there playing and grandma takes her shoes off, pulls her warm, furry throw up and goes to sleep. What? What grandma just does that? Maybe falling asleep accidentlly, but Nicki just left the child unattended, and went to sleep.

Eric is one of the few y n r stars who actually stands up and takes ownership of the sad state of the show. Yes he has shared in contoversy with his costars however he also stands up and defends when a major star is heing sidelined for no reason except a new ep who wants to dismantle the show. Numerous times hes put himself in the doghouse to shed light on michael, paul, ashley and neils dissapearances or departures.
Kudos to him for having a set of balls and not being scared when some horrible hw or ep with no real vision tries to force their version of y n r on the fans!
Victor rules!
Its not his fault in the last decade his chatacter has been written as a tyrant. The Victor i grew up with was multi layered and powerful! He loved deeply but was ruthless all the same. His vendetta with Jack or his childrens suitors was contrasted with his special fondness for Ashley, Hope and Katherine!.. his love/ hate relationship with Nikki was intoxicating. The old ranch was a classic set as was his Newman office two examples of eps with no real connection to the show and destroyed them.
The fans who have been loyal for decadez finally deserve a headteam who will restore the show to its brilliant original state
Thank you Eric for being a poweful voice to shed light on the desparaging current state

So agree with you Damien…I have to say Eric Braeden is a part of Y&R along with all the actors/actresses which as a whole make Y&R along with the backstage personnel…I agree 100% with what Eric said about Bill Bell who is the reason that classic Y&R was such a wonderful show…Again I pray that Josh and Tony get this show back to where it should be, CBS/SONY take note and PLEASE listen to your long time fans…Also PLEASE have Tony Morina rehire Jack Allocco, David Kurtz along with John Nordstrom to compose the background music for Y&R…PLEASE

I am glad Mr. Braeden can have a forum to speak out and engage with fans. He clearly loves his show and works to keep it vital. I like that.

Victor has been the star for years. Without Victor there is no story line as he revolves around every characters even the Rosales family, I think Kyle should be with trouble maker Summer, Lola’s virginity is becoming very boring. I do have to say Mia has brought some spice to the Rosales family. Arturo is not my cup of tea, bring Scott back to stir up trouble for Abby and Arturo.
Poor Paul at least have him come back reoccurring. Paul is an original and the way they just let him go was very unkind to him and his fans

I think it’s so weird people think the Rosales clan is somehow infringing on the Newman and Abbott airtime or whatever when they all are in storylines supporting those established families. Rey is investigating the crime Sharon Newman, Victoria Newman Abbott and Nikki Newman are complicit in covering up. Arturo is with Abby Newman, whose mother is an Abbott. Lola is with Kyle Abbott. The Rosales family helps take the story of the Newmans and Abbotts forward. I love the way they have been integrated with them. Mr. Braeden is going to stick up for his job, of course, but I don’t think it’s ever healthy for a soap character to be constantly front and center. It makes a percentage of viewers burn out on the character, no matter how entertaining (It also emphasizes how ridiculous soap opera characters become over the long term.) Soaps were designed as ensemble vehicles and should stay that way. No one performer is above the show as a whole.

^^^^ “…Soaps were designed as ensemble vehicles and should stay that way. No one performer is above the show as a whole ”

Beautifully stated : Victor Newman is a boring stale old relic. the show is no longer dependent on his character

what would be the point ? he has no quality airtime with his wife, Nikki. or his children Nick and Victoria. they kowtow to his every whim. AND, like @GH it’s simply all propped for the first family of Genoa City. Victor doesn’t have .. any Abbott to combat

WITH the decline in Abbott clan AND Katherine Chancellor … AND stuck with the uneventful Newman family. it clearly was AND is time to move forward.

He’s 77 years old. there’s not enough go around left

come on.. who truly cares what he can still bring to the table

here’s hoping the new writing team can keep this show #1 for year 31… really?

Victor Newman?

I know many especially my friend Bobby who would stop watching if Victor was gone. He has had some of the most exciting and interesting storylines and his acting is outstanding, I do not think he is a relic he is an experienced and wonderful actor. He gets better and better. He is not seventy seven years old where did you hear that? I believe I read he is sixty four years old. If I am wrong I apologize but I am going to look it up right now.

I apologize yes he was born in 1941…so sorry I think I confused his age with another great Y and R actor.

Once the actor passes in real life, they better perform a miracle in a recast or bring back Muhney. He was perfect as the next great tyrant on Y&R for years to come!

He is 77. Look it up!

I hope and pray Josh Griffith can turn the “Y & R” ship around and set it back on smoother waters – Mal Young’s version of “Y & R” was nothing but a disaster: plot-driven, lame and drawn-out stories that have STILL yet to reach any type of conclusion; characters acting out of character and worst of all – the Rosales family!! These insipid, ill-conceived characters were foisted on long-time viewers all for the sake of PC diversity (PC sucks, BTW) and have been subsequently rejected – the ratings don’t lie!!

Keeping my fingers crossed that Josh and new EP Anthony Morina can bring “Y & R” back to the lever of “Must-see” viewing for this 35+ year viewer!!

I have no problem with the Rosales family. Without new characters, Y&R will end up like the incestuous B&B with endless stories that never engage or resolve. That said, I need to see the legacy characters grow and change. Newmans need this badly. It is time for Victor and Nikki to stop the games and be solidly married. There are more stories for them that way. There have been good starts with stories that could build suspense but they seem not planned for long term. Hence, we are disappointed with lack of payoff.

It frustrates me that Mal Young started off on Y&R so strongly and within the last year has seemed to completely lose focus of what Y&R should be about. The introduction of the Rosales family would have been less jarring if it was done over time and not forced onto viewers within a matter of months. Add on top of that the diminishing screen time for vets like Paul, Jill, Michael, Lauren & Neil, as well as the exits of Chelsea, Hilary, Ashley & Lily, Y&R feels like a completely different show than it was this time a year ago.

Y&R has made some smart decisions, like bringing back Nate, Kyle, Ana & Fen, because these are established characters with familial ties to Genoa City. The Rosales clan was all brand new, and now characters like Rey and Mia are front and center, chewing up screen-time that could be much more balanced with veteran characters.

B&B is going through a similar phase right now with Reese, Florence and Zoe in front-and-center story (not to mention the never ending Steffy/Liam/Hope drama) while ignoring veteran characters and cherished actors. No wonder Ingo Rademacher abandoned ship after only a year being on the show, and Katherine Kelly Land is taking an extended break to compete on an Australian reality show.

Both Y&R and B&B need to shape up in the coming months. Hopefully with the new leadership at Y&R, those changes will come into effect soon!

I enjoy the show MUCH more when Victor is NOT on. I have never liked the character….I dont get the characters appeal. He is just an old pervert. He has been married 17 times…mostly to women young enough to be his daughter or granddaughter. He is cruel and emotionally abusive. He plays with others sanity and mental health. He claims to love family but will disown any of them at any time for any reason. Victor is just an unpleasant character to watch. Always has been for me! I was like Go Mal!!!

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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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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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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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