Frank Valentini and Ron Carlivati, who took over the reigns as ABC’s new executive producer and head writer for “General Hospital,” are now on the world wide web courtesy of Twitter, the social networking media giant.
Author: Errol Lewis
“General Hospital” is the only soap opera left on the ABC Daytime schedule and is also the longest running dramatic series in the networks history. Unfortunately, the soap is facing the same cancellation danger that its former network counterparts (“All My Children” and “One Life to Live”) faced just over a year ago before ABC officially announced the two would go off the air in a press release. Before any decision on the future of “GH” is ultimately made, the drama series is showing an uptick in key demos and viewership.
On Tuesday, March 6, a presidential press conference took place and was carried live by NBC and other broadcasters. The press conference resulted in the preemption of “Days of our Lives,” which pushes all episodes of the drama series back by one day.
“General Hospital” DVR Alerts for the Week of March 12, 2012.
Ten years is a longtime for a website to remain in operation. It is thanks to all of you that we’ve been able to provide you with the most up-to-date, current and timely information relating to the genre of soap operas between our SON Community and our reporting team. Unfortunately, in the past month there hasn’t been much of any up-to-date, current or timely information relating to the genre of soap operas posted on Soap Opera Network by its reporting team.
After five months of negotiations with various guilds, hundreds of presentations to potential financial and technology partners, and a hope that we could pioneer a new network for the future, it is with great disappointment that we are suspending our aspirations to revive “One Life to Live” and “All My Children” via online distribution. It is now becoming clear that mounting issues make our ability to meet our deadlines to get OLTL on the air in a reasonable time period following its January 13, 2012 ABC finale impossible.
It was Tuesday, October 4 when Soap Opera Network first reported on the current status of union discussions between the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) and Prospect Park following word back in July that Prospect Park would be launching “All My Children” and “One Life to Live” on the web. Now more than a month later, and with news that “AMC” is being delayed for various reasons, an AFTRA rep tells Soap Opera Network that they are “still in discussions with [Prospect Park].” This at some point could place a damper on the company’s plan of launching “One Life” online in January if a deal isn’t reached in the next several weeks.
On Sunday, November 13, The New York Times reported that American Media, Inc., which earlier this year purchased the licensing rights of both Soap Opera Digest and Soap Opera Weekly from owner Source Interlink, in which the company now oversees all aspects including editorial, advertising, marketing and distribution, would be launching a new weekly magazine dubbed Reality Weekly.
There has been much discussed about “All My Children” 2.0 following a report by Soaps in Depth in which the magazine reported on its website that “All My Children,” as conceived by the minds behind the scenes at Prospect Park, has been placed on hold. This of course is after months of rumors and speculation stating that the company had planned to launch the show just days following its September 23 ABC finale and again in January 2012 following the network finale of sister soap “One Life to Live,” which in addition to “AMC” was licensed to Prospect Park for its Online Network (TOLN) in a deal brokered with the Disney/ABC Television Group back in July of this year. But is this really news to the fans or were we all just hoping something else was going on behind the scenes that would suddenly pace the show on the same trek as “OLTL?”
On tonight’s episode of CBS’ “CSI: Miami,” former “General Hospital” and “General Hospital: Night Shift” star Graham Shiels will appear as Michael Galliver, an out-of-work construction worker with no criminal history who, to feed his young family and pay his mortgage, turns to crime.
In an effort to save costs before uprooting the show to more permanent digs, sources have confirmed to Soap Opera Network that Prospect Park and its Online Network (TOLN) division have sealed a deal with the Disney/ABC Television Group to continue filming “One Life to Live” at its current ABC Television Center Studio in New York City located at 320 W 66th Street.
It was March of this year that word broke out that “Days of our Lives” was planning to have a major character come out of the closet. Almost immediately after the news broke out reports were flying that Will Horton, portrayed by Chandler Massey, would be the one to come out. Eight months since the news first leaked, the NBC Daytime soap has finally revealed that Will will in fact come to the realization that he is gay, but what does Massey think about portraying such a character and how has he managed to keep it such a secret for so long?
Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes are two of the longest running current cast members left on NBC’s “Days of our Lives,” but you wouldn’t know it because they are barely on! Thankfully the network hosts its annual “A Day of Days” fan event where fans far and wide can come and meet their favorite stars and catch the rarest of glimpses of those not seen enough on screen at Universal Studios CityWalk in Hollywood, California. Considered one of “DAYS’” premiere couples with their portrayal of Doug and Julie Williams on the drama series, Seaforth Hayes and her husband sat down with Soap Opera Network to discuss fans, what has kept the show going for all these years and where they see things headed in the future and even a whopper surrounding the Horton clan’s near demise from the canvas.
Beginning in September 2012, ABC affiliate WFTV in Orlando, Florida will begin airing a new daily syndicated talk show from comedian and radio host Steve Harvey reports the Orlando Sentinel. The affiliate plans to launch the program in the soon to be vacated 3:00 PM timeslot, which will be ceded to affiliates nationally by the ABC Television Network at that time. Does this mean to ultimate demise of “General Hospital,” which currently occupies the timeslot? Before you say yes, let’s take a moment to think rationally.
Prospect Park executives Jeff Kwatinetz and Rich Frank have confirmed to Soap Opera Network that the production company has signed “One Life to Live” cast members Tuc Watkins (David), Josh Kelly (Cutter), Florencia Lozano (Tea), and Shenell Edmonds (Destiny) for the online version of the ABC soap pending final Guild agreements.
“Revenge” is one of television’s biggest new hits and a critical darling. Unfortunately, we at Soap Opera Network have not been giving it the attention it so rightfully deserved, until now. As one of the only dramas ABC can cite as a success on its new primetime schedule, the network has put together a lengthy “catch up” montage for viewers who have yet to discover this little gem of a soap opera.
“One Life to Live” and “Dirty Soap” star John-Paul Lavoisier guest stars in tonight’s all new episode of CBS’ “The Mentalist.” THE CBI TEAM TRAVELS TO A RESORT TOWN TO INVESTIGATE THE MURDER OF A POLICE CHIEF, ON “THE MENTALIST,” THURSDAY, OCT. 27 Henry Thomas Guest Stars as Tommy, Lisbon’s Younger Brother “Where in the World is Carmine O’Brien” — When the CBI team travels to a resort town to find out who murdered a police chief, Lisbon crosses paths with her brother Tommy, now a bounty hunter, who’s tracking a bail jumper, on THE MENTALIST, Thursday, Oct. 27 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on…
On Friday, September 30, Prospect Park officially announced actors Melissa Archer (Natalie Buchanan Banks), Kelley Missal (Danielle Rayburn), Sean Ringgold (Shaun Evans),Andrew Trischitta (Jack Manning) and Jerry VerDorn (Clint Buchanan) will be joining already signed Ted King (Thomas Delgado), Michael Easton (John McBain), Kassie DePaiva (Blair Cramer) and Erika Slezak (Viki Banks) when “One Life to Live” is transitioned over from ABC to the web beginning in January 2012. Since the announcement, Soap Opera Network has reached out to a number of the signed stars and today Missal explains why she signed on.
As in previous weeks, ratings for soaps are unavailable at press time but the numbers are out for talk shows including “The Chew,” “The Talk” and “The View.”
Since we reported an update to ABC’s decision to hand over the “General Hospital” timeslot in September 2012 back to its affiliates in the Disney/ABC Television Groups plan to launch a new talk show hosted by Katie Couric, fans have been up in arms over the possible demise of a daytime institution (on top of the demises of “All My Children” and “One Life to Live”) after a number of them started calling their local ABC affiliates and reportedly were told that the network had informed them they would be pulling “GH” off the ABC Daytime schedule as early as June 2012. Now an ABC Daytime representative tells Soap Opera Network that those rumors are just “not true.”