During tonight’s Paley Center LA event in Beverly Hills, CA, celebrating 10,000 episodes of “The Young and the Restless,” former head writer and executive producer, Maria Arena Bell, joined cast members Peter Bergman (Jack Abbott), Eric Braeden (Victor Abbott), Jeanne Cooper (Katherine Chancellor), Doug Davidson (Paul Williams), Christian LeBlanc (Michael Baldwin), Joshua Morrow (Nicholas Newman), Melody Thomas Scott (Nikki Newman), Kristoff St. John (Neil Winters), and Michelle Stafford (Phyllis Newman) to talk about the shows legacy.
What’s significant about Bell’s appearance was that up until after her ouster made headlines on Thursday, July 26, the former EP/HW was said to no longer be attending, at least according to sources Soap Opera Network spoke with on Friday, July 27. The Paley Center also removed her name from their website for the event.
During tonight’s event, which was “live tweeted” by @PaleyCenter on Twitter, Bell was quoted as saying the following:
- “You have to be careful when introducing new characters. Fans want to see the people on this stage [referring to present company of actors tonight]. But it provides insight.”
- “The key is that these characters have stayed true to themselves. Both of Bill Bell’s shows have and dominated the ratings.”
- “Like every great soap story, I did get killed off. These people have been extraordinary and I thank them for this experience.”
“The Young and the Restless” celebrates its 10,000th episode on Thursday, September 27. The series held a cake cutting party at its CBS Television City studio yesterday in honor of its milestone.