The Best & Worst Head Writers & Executive Producers Of American Daytime Dramas

Guiding Light
BEST HW: Douglas Marland; Pamela Long; BEST EP: Allen Porter; WORST HW: David Kreizman; WORST EP: Ellen Wheeler
As The World Turns
BEST HW: Douglas Marland; BEST EP: Laurence Caso; WORST HW: Stephen Black & Henry Stern; WORST EP: John Valente
General Hospital
BEST HW: Claire Labine; BEST EP: Wendy Riche; Gloria Monty; WORST HW: Richard & Susan Holland; WORST EP: Tom Donovan
Days Of Our Lives
BEST HW: William J. Bell; BEST EP: Betty Corday; WORST HW: Tom Langan; WORST EP: Ken Corday
One Life To Live
BEST HW: Agnes Nixon; BEST EP: Linda Gottlieb; WORST HW: Dena Higley; WORST EP: Frank Valentini; Jill Farren Phelps
All My Children
BEST HW: Agnes Nixon; BEST EP: Agnes Nixon; Felicia Minei Behr; WORST HW: Jean Passanante; WORST EP: Julie Hanan Carruthers
Another World
BEST HW: Harding Lemay; BEST EP: Paul Rauch; WORST HW: Jean Passanante; WORST EP: Jill Farren Phelps
The Young And The Restless
BEST HW: William J. Bell; BEST EP: William J. Bell; WORST HW: John F. Smith; WORST EP: John F. Smith
The Bold And The Beautiful
BEST HW: William J. Bell; BEST EP: William J. Bell; WORST HW: Bradley Bell; WORST EP: Bradley Bell
Ryan's Hope
BEST HW: Claire Labine & Paul Avila Mayer; BEST EP: Claire Labine; WORST HW: Mary Munisteri & Patricia Falken Smith; WORST EP: Joseph Hardy
Santa Barbara
BEST HW: Bridget & Jerome Dobson; BEST EP: Bridget & Jerome Dobson; WORST HW: ??; WORST EP: Raul Rauch

The Young & The Restless Cast List (as 2/9/07)

Peter Bergman (Jack Abbott; 1989-present), Eric Braeden (Victor Newman; 1980-prersent), Bryton (Devon Hamilton; 2004-present), Thad Luckinbill (J.T. Hellstrom; 1999-present), Christel Khalil (Lily Winters Romalotti; 2002-2005, 2006-present), Christian LeBlanc (Michael Baldwin; 1991-1993, 1997-present), Adrianne Leon (Colleen Carlton; 2006-present), Kate Linder (Esther Valentine; 1982-present), Doug Davidson (Paul Williams; 1978-present), Joshua Morrow (Nicholas Newman; 1994-present), Sharon Case (Sharon Newman; 1994-present), Judith Chapman (Gloria Fisher; 2005-present), Jeanne Cooper (Katherine Chancellor; 1973-present), Patty Weaver (Gina Roma; 1982-present), Tammy Lauren (Det. Maggie Sullivan; 2006-present), Anthony Pena (Miguel Rodriguez; 1985-present), Lorna Raver (Rebecca Kaplan; 2006-present), Ted Shackleford (D.A. William Bardwell; 2006-present), Don Diamont (Brad Carlton; 1985-1996, 1998-present), Adrienne Frantz (Amber Moore; 2006-present), Daniel Goddard (Cane aka Phillip Chancellor III; 2007-present), Michael Graziadei (Daniel Romalotti; 2004-present), Julian Bailey (Vincent; 2006- present), Vincent Irrizarry (David Chow; 2007-present), Lauralee Bell (Christine Blair; 1983-2000; 2002-present), Tracey E. Bregman (Lauren Fenmore Baldwin; 1983-1995; 2001-present), Amelia Heinle (Victoria Newman; 2005-present), Emily O'Brien (Jana Hawkes; 2006-present), Eyal Podell (Professor Adrian Korbel; 2006-present), Greg Rikaart (Kevin Fisher; 2003-present), Victoria Rowell (Drucilla Winters; 1990-1998, 2000, 2002-present), Eric Steinberg (Ji Min Kim; 2006-present), Kristoff St. John (Neil Winters; 1991- present), Jess Walton (Jill Foster Abbott; 1987- present), Hunter Allan (Noah Newman; 2005-present), Jerry Douglas (John Abbott; 1982-present), Anita Finlay (Dr. Nora Thompson), Clyde Kusatsu (Dr. Dennis Okamura), Kim Strauss (Dr. Reese Walker; 1995-present), Beth Maitland (Traci Abbott Connelly; 1982-1987, 1990-present), Melody Thomas Scott (Nikki Newman; 1979-present), Michelle Stafford (Phyllis Summers Newman; 1994-1997, 2000-present)

Why Has Y&R Been #1? Y&R Wish List
The Young And The Restless debuted during the 1972-1973 season in 17th position with a 5.0 household rating. By the 1987-1988 season, it had tied the television phenomenon General Hospital for 1st place with an 8.1 household rating. The following season, it become the highest rated daytime serial in households & among viewers. Y&R has since remained in the #1 position in both categories. What has been the key to THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS being America's most watched daytime drama for nearly 20 years?

Possible Reasons
1. Time Slot (11am Mountain/Pacific, 11:30 Central, 12:30 Eastern)
2. Appeal to all demographic groups (12-17, 18-49, 50+, Men)
3. Appeal to Black people
4. Storylines/Writing
5. Acting
6. Production values
7. Critical acclaim/buzz (reviews, awards, mainstream media attention)
8. Maintained identity
9. Lack of copycats
10. The Price Is Right as lead-in support
11. Lack of competition
12. Long-term vision in place
13. Balance among cast
14. Lack of interference from outside forces
15. Luck

Answer: The main reasons are #2-8, #11-14

Will Y&R ever fall out of the top spot? Not unless they disregard reasons 2-8 & 11-14.

Y&R Wish List
Writing Team: Head Writer: Lynn Marie Latham; Co-Head Writer: ?????; Associate Head Writers: Miriam Trogdon, Josh Reims, Paula Cwikly, Natalie Minardi Slater, Janice Ferri Esser, Scott Hamner; Breakdown Writers: Kola Boof, Dana Baratta, Jeffrey Bell, Patty Lin, James Stanley, Sara A. Bibel, Lynsey Dufour, Chris Abbott, Diane Messina Stanley, Joan Binder Weiss; Script Writers: Josh Griffith, Eric Freiwald, Sibyl Gardner, Vanessa Taylor, David Schulner, Michael Berns, Cherie Bennett, Jeff Gottesfeld, Sandra Weintraub, Linda Schreiber, Joshua S. McCaffrey, Kola Boof, Sara A. Bibel; Script Supervisor: Marina Alburger; Story Coordinator: Michael Montgomery; Story/Script Editor: ?????; Story Consultant: Natalie Y. Moore, Algernon Austin, Alfonso H. Moreno, Valerie Woods or Shaun Cassidy; Creative Consultant: Nancy Bradley Wiard or Matt Reeves; Writer's Assistant: Corey Marsh

Producing Team: John Fisher, Josh O'Connell, Matthew J. Olson, Josh Griffith, Peter Frisch

Executive Producer: 1st Choice: Edward J. Scott; 2nd Choice: Lynn Marie Latham; 3rd Choice: David Shaughnessy

Directing Team: Grant A. Johnson, Mike Denney, Noel Maxam, Sally McDonald, Andrew Lee, Dean LaMont, Tony Morina

All My Children: The Loss Sense Of Grandeur & Nearing Cancellation
Think back to the golden eras of AMC. Times have changed and one thing stands out: What AMC is missing is a sense of grandness. An air of larger than lifeness. Think back to the first & second golden age of AMC (late 70s/early 80s & the early 90s). Thanks to A. Nixon, W. Washam & F. M. Behr, we witnessed the wealth of the Cortlands and Wallingfords (juxtaposed against the financial stuggles of the Nelsons and Santos). We had maids, we had butlers. For that matter we had maids and butlers falling in love (think the romance between Daisy's mom and Palmer's butler).

Now, the characters are more like everyday people, in a way. The sense of grandeur has been lost and everyone for the most part is on the same level field.

Not only did we have great actors, the sets themselves were a draw. When Ryan Lavery & Gillian Andrassey were in love, one would wait in anticipation for their next stolen moment on the Marrick grounds at the turret. When we had villains, we had them doing their villainous deeds "outside the box". Remember Ted Orsini going after Tad Martin on location in Canada? What about the private times Dr. Cliff Warner and Nina Cortlandt shared riding horses on her father's grounds?

Now we have Kendall Hart Slater living out of a townhome and her mom, Erica Montgomery, living in a shoebox. Could a trailer park be next up?

As much as we long for the talented, long-time actors to be brought back, I wish AMC would bring about a return of the fantastic sets of old - the Cortland Mansion and its expansive grounds, the Marick castle, and, yeah, let's see Phoebe's old haunting ground.

And can the Disney cam. Leave that for the Lizzy McGuire/High School Musical/That's So Raven teeny-booper crowd.

We are grown ups watching a format that was established more than 50 years ago and really it is odd that Brian Frons, Destroyer of ABC Daytime, and his cronies (McTavish & Carruthers) are tinkering with a formula that was working. We like our staid cameras, outlandish sets of old, as much as we like our Cortlandts, Dillons, and Martins, mixed with Chandlers and Santos.

Susan Lucci would die before she publicly criticized SFMC! She has clout, she's a mainstream actress playing a mainstream character. But I guess her millions (Jewelry/Cosmetics line & other biz dealings) are more important to her. Lucci's appearance on Live With Regis & Kelly late Dec. '06 was too much for me! She was all smiles like everything is going well!

Michael Logan of TV Guide wrote: "AMC is risking big viewer turnoff with this landmark story-not because Zarf is a transgender but because she's an annoying, self-obsessed bore." WHAT THE HELL!? How arrogantly liberal of Logan to say this! He seems to know what every viewer/prospective viewer knows & likes!

Is there a competititon on who can sink their shows to the lowest levels? Cuz I think SFMC (AMC/OLTL) & PGP (ATWT/GL) are in intense competition mode. Who's leading thus far? PGP, by the narrowest of margins.

The only way for AMC to be given back to the fans is to can SFMC (Sweeney, Frons, McTavish, Carruthers) & re-hire Agnes Nixon as HW.

Celebration Over Passions' Cancellation
PSN fans are the worst kind! The worst kind in TV! DOOL fans aren't far behind. PSN will go down as THE worst American daytime drama series & deservedly so! Daytime doesn't need a show like PSN or their limited viewership! Even though it's been on the air for about 8 yrs, PSN is a failed series.

Cringe-worthy acting, cliched, ridiculous, atrocious writing, amateurish directing is what PSN has always been about. It doesn't deserve a final ep with closure (with JER as head honcho, closure aint gonna happen ), it deserves to be yanked off the air immediately. I'm so happy that PSN was cancelled! It was about darn time that NBC wised up, and now we get a two-4-1 combo with the cancellation of DOOL on NBC. Jeff Zucker said that DOOL's last renewal was May 2006, that NBC will not give it a reprieve in May 2009. Great news all around this week! I'm thinking DOOL will air it's last ep Dec 08. NBC will not have the patience to wait until Sept. 09.

Now, more than ever, is the time for CBS & ABC Daytime to further damage NBC Daytime, to put them further into shame. It's time to jump onto the Y&R, GH & OLTL bandwagon, y'all. Those 3 shows have the most potential. They'd rather have crap like PSN & DOOL than quality made shows like Santa Barbara & Another World. I guess anything for the almighty dollar, huh? How foolish!

PSN IS FINALLY CANCELLED & WE, TRUE DAYTIME FANS, CAN ALL CELEBRATE, WE CAN ALL BE PROUD THAT THE JAMES E. REILLY'S CRAPFEST WILL BE OFF THE AIR BEFORE THE END OF SUMMER 2007! Ah, the sound of millions of teenage girls weeping. NBC, U FINALLY ARE MAKING GOOD DECISIONS WITH THE CANCELLATION OF THE SHITTY PSN & DOOL!

Davidson (ex-Ashley on Y&R) Leaves Hong Kong For Los Angeles
Eileen Davidson: "And Brad Bell knows Ashley better than a lot of people on Y&R know her." WHAT THE FUCK!?!?! She's towing the company line, going along with the hype, going along with what she's told to say, plain & simple. Whom exactly is she dissing? Alden? Latham? Jones? Smith? Scott? Hamner? Griffith? All of them?

Bradley Bell is a horrible, pathetic, disgusting, incest loving one-note writer! He doesn't know the character of Ashley Suzanne Abbott! How dare Davidson suggest that he does! Is she that pissed of her firing from Y&R that she would say things that she doesn't believe just to make Bell appear as a competent, creative writer!? Bell is way too busy plotting the next sexcapades b/w the Forrester clan! Incest, anyone? If many people thought that Ashley underwent character assassination on Y&R with the writing of Alden, Jones, Smith, Latham & Hamner, then u can bet your last penny that Bell will be turn A. S. Abbott into a one note slut/whore/shank/bitch/cunt/cum pig/heffer like Brooke Logan & Bridget Forrester were turned into. Y'all better get ready for the new Ashley Suzanne Abbott.

And what about her daughter, Abby Carlton!? Will she be in L.A. !? This doesn't make any sense! Ashley went to Hong Kong to help Jabot Cosmetics improve their standing in the Asian market. Then one month later she's living in L.A. !? My hatred for Bradley Bell has reached new heights! I HATE BRADLEY BELL!

Davidson is one of my fav actresses, but she must be desperate for money to agree to be on B&B on a long-term basis. 3 years!? Gotta have 2 million dollar homes & hundred thousand dollar cars, huh?

Davidson, beg TPTB at Y&R to re-hire u! Your career depends on it! You've got a child, and children are expensive. God Bless you, Davidson.

THE REAL DAYTIME DRAMA RATINGS: 1. Y&R 2. GH 3. DOOL 4. AMC 5. B&B

The Best Caroline Leigh Benson Corinthos
Of the 4 actresses who have portrayed Caroline Leigh Benson Corinthos aka Carly on GENERAL HOSPITAL, who is the best one? Who is the worst one? Carly 1: Sarah Brown (1996-2001); Carly 2: Tamara Braun (2001-2005); Carly 3 (Carl-Lee): Jennifer Bransford (2005); Carly 4: Laura Wright (2005-present).

Best: Sarah Brown (Carly); 2nd Best: Laura Wright; Worst: Jennifer Bransford (Carl Lee). Laura Wright has made the role her own, the same way Braun did. I'm glad that Wright changed her mind & accepted the role. Carly's 10th year in Port Charles was a fantastic one! Why on earth was J. Bransford cast as her in the first place?

January 2007 was a great month for Laura Wright. She consistently hit the material she was given out of the park. You can tell that Michele Val Jean & Mary Sue Price (GH's best scriptwriters who should be promoted to head & co-head writer, respectively) love writing for Carly. Wright is fully engaged in the role as Carly & has great chemistry with virtually everyone she shares a scene with. It's as if Wright was born to play Carly. Thank goodness she bailed on the sinking ship that is GL. And yes, I firmly believe that GL is unsalvagable; TPTB & so-called fans destroyed it. The GH team challenges her, forces her to use her true acting abilities & that in turn has revealed the great actress that she is. Who knew with all those years as Cassie (aka the woman in Zimmer's shadow) on GL that Wright was a great actress? I just wish that more actors/actresses were challenged the way Wright is. Wright is currently one of daytime's 10 best actors/actresses. Can't wait to see how things turn out in February & beyond.

Criticism 1: "Bransford was thrown under the bus." No, Bransford was horribly miscast as Carly, even though the writing was poor, plain & simple.

Criticism 2: "The real Carly left when she met Sonny. I don't have a clue who Laura Wright is playing." No, the real Carly returned & has evolved like most humans do as evidenced by Wright's amazing portrayal with a fine & delicate balance of hardness & vulnerability.

Criticism 3: "This horrendously miscast Laura Wright woman would still be in Zimmer's shadow as she chewed up the scenery on (GL)." Wright had outgrown her role as Cassie. The oppurtunity arose for her to reach new heights when Bransford was thankfully fired & she agreed to play Carly after turning the role down originally.

Criticism 4: "Wright is too clearly influenced by Zimmer's overpowering performances and is trying to emulate her on GH." Well, Wright has outshined the over-rated Zimmer since joining GH in Nov 05.

Days Of Our Lives Cancelled
Paul Davidson of USA TODAY announced on 2/4/07 that Jeff Zucker was promoted to the position of CEO of NBC Universal. Zucker is replacing Bob Wright, who headed the network for 21 years. This is proof enough for me that DOOL is indeed cancelled & that it will not air past 12/31/09. Zucker has commented numerous times about NBC putting an end to their daytime lineup which has been dragging them down for more than a decade. He hasn't hidden his true feelings about his network's piss poor performance in the daytime department. Do you really think that Zucker is going to hold onto a failed daytime sked when daytime as a whole continues to reach record low viewership? Look at what happened to PSN. I rest my case.

What the shitty Ken Corday gonna do now? I have no doubt that Hogan Sheffer will find gainful employment once the show is gone. Who's truly responsible for the demise of DOOL, both creatively & commercially? K. Corday? B. Wright? J. Zucker? The top brass at Sony Pictures Television? J. E. Reilly? T. Langan?

DOOL: 1965-2009 (If Zucker & others have their way: 1965-2008)

Create Your Own Daytime Drama: Title, Description, Cast, Writers, Producers, Directors & Timeslot

Serial Title: Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow

Show Description: A cross between The Young & The Restless, General Hospital & late 70s/early 80s & 90s One Life To Live. It's about the moments which defined yesterday, the trials & tribulations faces us today, and the outcomes which will lead into tomorrow. Blending social & political issues, love & romance, action & adventure, and spirituality & mystery themes, Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow is the next generation of great America television.

Cast: Greg Vaughn, Maurice Benard, Tyler Christopher, Ric Hearst, John Ingle, Peter Bergman, Greg Rikaart, Jacob Young, David Canary, Steve Burton, Ingo Rademacher, Stuart Damon, Trevor St. John, Paul Satterfield, Tuc Watkins, Timothy D. Stickney, Christian LeBlanc, Kristoff St. John, John McCook, Stephen Nichols, Jesse Lee Soffer, Rebecca Herbst, Laura Wright, Nancy Lee Grahn, Jane Elliot, Leslie Charleson, Victoria Rowell, Jeanne Cooper, Sharon Case, Melody Thomas Scott, Eileen Davidson, Erika Slezak, Robin Strasser, Maura West, Colleen Zenk Pinter, Ellen Dolan, Martha Bryne, Elizabeth Hubbard, Susan Flannery, Susan Lucci, Genie Francis, Julie Marie Berman

Writing Team: Head Writer: Michele Val Jean & ME; Co-Head Writer: Mary Sue Price; Associate Head Writers: Josh Reims, Lynn Marie Latham, Carolyn Culliton, Janice Ferri Esser, Kola Boof; Breakdown Writers: Kay Alden, Mark Alton Brown, Lorraine Broderick, Eric Freiwald, Hogan Sheffer, Suzan-Lori Parks, Robert Guza Jr.; Script Writers: Michele Val Jean, Mary Sue Price, David Schulner, Jeffrey Bell, Joan Binder Weiss, Sibyl Gardner, Vanessa Taylor, Karen Harris, Susan Wald, Joshua S. McCaffrey, Josh Griffith; Story Editor: Anna Cascio; Creative Consultant: Matt Reeves
*A majority of the breakdowns & scripts will be written by two people

Producing Team: Executive Producers: Wendy Riche & ME; Co-Executive Producer: Edward J. Scott; Other Producers: Mary O’Leary, David Shaughnessy, John Fisher

Directing Team: Noel Maxam, Danielle Faraldo, Owen Renfroe, William Ludel, Scott McKinsey, Andrew Lee, Dean LaMont

Timeslots (all ET): Monday – Saturday: 2am, 10am, 3pm & 7pm

The Pets Of Brian Frons In 2006: Frons’ Faves

GENERAL HOSPITAL
Kelly Monaco (#1 GH Pet), Ben Hogestyn, Lindze Letherman, Eddie Matos, Natalia Livingston, Matt Marraccini, Scott Clifton, Steve Burton , Greg Vaughan, Laura Wright, Rebecca Herbst, Maurice Benard, Alicia Leigh Willis, Robert Guza Jr., Jill Farren Phelps

ONE LIFE TO LIVE
Michael Easton (#1 OLTL Pet), Melissa Archer, Melissa Gallo, Trevor St. John, Paul Satterfield, Kassie DePaiva, Renee Elise Goldsberry, John-Paul Lavoisier, David Fumero, Forbes March, Kamar de los Reyes, Kristen Alderson, Bree Williamson, Dena Higley, Frank Valentini

ALL MY CHILDREN
Alexa Havins (#1 AMC Pet), Colin Egglesfield, Jeffrey Carlson, Aiden Turner, Alec Musser, Brent Weber, Taylor Gildersleeve, Ambyr Childers, Justin Bruening, Melissa Claire Egan, Jeff Branson, Alicia Minshew, Jacob Young, John James, Thorsten Kaye, Cameron Mathison, Bobbie Eakes, Sydney Penny, Connie Fletcher, Leven Rambin, Megan McTavish, Julie Hanan Carruthers

Writing Process: Head Writers conceive the long-term story of a series, and write the thrusts, outlining their tale approximately a week at a time, along with their Associate Head Writers and the show's producers. Sometimes, there may be a story document for one particular plot, summarizing all of the major beats, but this isn't required for all stories.

The head writer, associate head writers, and the breakdown writers then divide the week's thrust into five episodes by meeting three times a week. The breakdown writers outline an episode, breaking it down into acts and scenes, with a summary of the action. Sometimes a head writer or associate head writer may choose to write a breakdown. Then the script writers take the breakdown outlines and write dialogue for each scene.

Script/story editors like, Elizabeth Korte, proof-read each completed breakdown outline & script and check for continuity errors. From time to time, a script/story editor can also write breakdown outlines and scripts on their respective shows like Korte does on GH. A breakdown outline or script is not considered completed until the head writer gives final approval.

BEST DAYTIME DRAMA WRITERS: William J. Bell, Kay Alden, Lynn Marie Latham, Linda Schreiber, Cherie Bennett, Joshua S. McCaffrey, Sally Sussman Morina, Josh Griffith, Sandra Weintraub, Janice Ferri Esser, Eric Freiwald, Jeff Gottesfeld, Pat Falken Smith, Claire Labine, Michele Val Jean, Mary Sue Price, Karen Harris, Susan Wald, Patrick Mulcahey, Irna Phillips, Douglas Marland, Bridget Dobson, Jerome Dobson, Lorraine Broderick, Anna Cascio, Richard Culliton, Agnes Nixon, Wisner Washam, Carolyn Culliton, Hogan Sheffer

Y&R WRITERS: Lynn Marie Latham, Scott Hamner, Natalie Minardi Slater, Eric Freiwald, Paula Cwikly, Kola Boof, Cherie Bennett, Jeff Gottesfeld, James Stanley, Sandra Weintraub, Linda Schreiber, Joshua S. McCaffrey, Chris Abbott, Sara A. Bibel, Janice Ferri Esser, Josh Griffith, Lynsey Dufour

GH WRITERS: Robert Guza Jr., Brian Frons, John F. Smith, David Goldschmid, Karen Harris, Susan Wald, Elizabeth Korte, Michele Val Jean, Mary Sue Price, Tracey Thomson, Michael Conforti, Garin Wolf

OLTL WRITERS: Dena Higley, Brian Frons, Kay Alden, Chris Van Etten, Leslie Nipkow, Lisa Seidman, Aida Croal, Shelly Altman, Ron Carlivati, Janet Iacobuzio, Mark Christopher, Carolyn Culliton, Daniel Griffin, Michelle Poteet Lisanti, Frances Myers, Victor Gialanella

ATWT WRITERS: Jean Passanante, Christopher Whitesell, Leah Laiman, Gary Sunshine, Elizabeth Page, Courtney Simon, Judy Tate, Susan Dansby, Judith Donato, Lisa Connor, Anna Theresa Cascio, Richard Culliton, David A. Levinson, Mimi Leahey

B&B WRITERS: Bradley Bell, Charles Pratt Jr. (?), Michael Minnis, Elizabeth Snyder, Lee Phillip Bell, John Chambers, Patrick Mulcahey, Jerry Birn, Jim Houghton, Tracey Ann Kelly, Rex M. Best

AMC WRITERS: Megan McTavish, Brian Frons, Kay Alden, Courtney Bugler, Joanna Cohen, Rebecca Taylor, Chip Hayes, Stephen Demorest, Marla Kanelos, Michelle Patrick, Amanda L. Beall, Jeff Beldner, Karen Lewis, Addie Walsh

GL WRITERS: David Kreizman, Donna M. Swajeski, Tita Bell, Rebecca Hanover, David Rupel, Christopher Dunn, Lloyd Gold, Kimberly Hamilton, Jill Lorie Hurst, Penelope Koechl, Royal Miller, David Smilow, Brett Staneart

DOOL WRITERS: Hogan Sheffer, Meg Kelly, Bettina F. Bradbury, Jodie Scholz, James Harmon Brown, Susan Kirshenbaum, Bruce Neckles, Barbara Esensten, Beth Milstein, Frederick Johnson, Gordon Rayfield, Jeanne Marie Ford, Mike Cohen, Michael Slade, Sofia Landon Geier

**all dramas as of 1/31/07**

The Mantras Of Bradley Bell
1. Campyness rules 2. Gimmicks are to die for 3. Repetitiveness is the new "hook" 4. Blood is thicker than water (More incest! More nepotism! More incest!) 5. Non-American viewers are the best kind (Love them Italians!) 6. The beds in L.A. must always be kept warm

The Cancelled & Saved Daytime Dramas: Do They Have Real Potential Or Are They A Waste?

My Cancellation List: I would cancel Guiding Light, All My Children, Days Of Our Lives, The Bold & The Beautiful & As The World Turns right now without hesitation.

If PSN wasn't cancelled, I would have included that crapfest at the top of my cancellation list. PSN did irreversible harm to an already ailing daytime TV industry.

My Saved List: I would save THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS, ONE LIFE TO LIVE & GENERAL HOSPITAL.

The Secret Storm (54-74) was cancelled, daytime survived. Love Of Life (51-80) was cancelled, daytime survived. The Edge Of Night (56-84) was cancelled twice, daytime survived. Search For Tomorrow (51-86) was cancelled twice, daytime survived. The critically acclaimed & award-winning Ryan's Hope (76-89) was cancelled, daytime survived. Santa Barbara (84-93) was cancelled, daytime survived. Loving (83-95) was cancelled, daytime survived. Another World (64-99) was cancelled by NBC & guess what: Daytime survived. The cancellation of one or many shows in a short period of time does not mean the end of American daytime dramas.

I see the shows I chose on my saved list moving to late afternoon time/early evening time slots among their respective affiliates (4-8pm), especially Y&R.

The Destruction Of The Daytime Emmys
The Daytime Emmys (DE) destroyed themselves by repeatedly not recognizing talent & hard work & by basing their criteria on buzz, ratings & the ao-called fairness/spreadig of the wealth mentality. Those who deserved nominations and awards rarely get attention. 2 nods per show in the acting categories?

The pre-nomination process is a farce. J. Cooper is one of my fav actresses, but she didn't deserve a Lead Actress pre-nom in 2007! That slot belonged to the beautiful, hard working & talented V. Rowell. LM Latham, S. Hamner, K. Boof & Rowell herself worked very hard in ensuring a nod & win for Rowell. And guess what? They did, they had it all wrapped up, but b/c of ignorance, apathy & jealousy, Rowell was ignored in the Best Lead Actress race. To ensure deserved nods & wins, the pre-nom process needs a major overhaul. All Emmy voters should take part, not just the respective shows' cast & crew. That way, the haters view won't hold as much weight as it currently does. In the end, it doesn't matter that V. Rowell was robbed, again. Just like wild horses couldn't pull Drucilla Winters out of Genoa City, wild horses can''t ever take Rowell's raw talent & natural beauty away from her. Plus, the DE, like the majority of awards this decade, lost any ounce of credibility they had remaining years ago.

Soon, the DE will be shown on cable nets like SOAPnet. The national audience has drastically declined over the years. It's hard to believe that in the early 90s, the DE routinely peaked near or above 20 million viewers. After a few years on cable, the DE will be scaled back (many minor categories will be merged or scrapped all together) & merged with the Primetime Emmys (PE) to be The Emmy Awards by 2010.

NBC has paid dearly for its mistreatment of the much-missed Another World. When it came to the DE, only PGP cared about the show. NBC wanted a more "compatible" show for their precious DOOL, a show that would capture the 12-34 demo, and they got what they wanted & deserved: Passions. And how many DE nods & wins has PSN received? AW's 91-99 ensemble kills PSN's 99-07 ensemble 30 times over! I rest my case.

They should scrap the DE & merged it with the PE.....now. The Best Actress (Lead Or Supporting) Of 2006: Victoria Rowell

The Best & Worst Of The Daytime Dramas: January 2007
RU = Runner Up

BEST DRAMA: General Hospital; RU: The Young And The Restless
WORST DRAMA: The Bold & The Beautiful; RU: All My Children
BEST ENSEMBLE: General Hospital; RU: The Young And The Restless
WORST ENSEMBLE: The Bold & The Beautiful; RU: All My Children
BEST STORY DEVELOPMENT: General Hospital; RU: The Young And The Restless
WORST STORY DEVELOPMENT: The Bold & The Beautiful; RU: All My Children
BEST SCRIPTS: General Hospital; RU: The Young And The Restless
WORST SCRIPTS: All My Children; RU: The Bold & The Beautiful
BEST SCRIPTWRITER: Michele Val Jean; RU: Mary Sue Price
WORST SCRIPTWRITER: Courtney Bugler; RU: Rebecca Taylor
BEST DIRECTING: General Hospital; RU: The Young And The Restless
WORST DIRECTING: All My Children; RU: As The World Turns
BEST DIRECTOR: Owen Renfroe; RU: William Ludel
WORST DIRECTOR: Michael V. Pomarico; RU: John O’Connell
TOP 5 BEST ACTORS (in no particular order, appearing in a minimum of 9 eps): Doug Davidson, Christian LeBlanc, Peter Bergman, Trevor St. John, Paul Satterfield
TOP 5 BEST ACTRESSES (in no particular order; appearing in a minimum of 9 eps): Kassie DePaiva, Laura Wright, Victoria Rowell, Nancy Lee Grahn, Jess Walton

GB Job Advertisement
Position Title: Admin Assistant To Producer; Company Name: The Walt Disney Company - ABC; Contact Name: Recruiter; Contact Address: 500 S. Buena Vista Street Burbank, CA; Job Category: Secretarial; Wage: annual; Employment Type: Full Time; Relocation Assistance: No; Experience Required: At Least 3 Years; Travel: None; Education Required: Not Specified; Sponsorship: No; Job Location: New York, NY; Post Date: 1/11/2007 3:28 AM

Job Description:
ABC, Inc. is a broad-based international media company with broadcasting, cable and publishing properties, as well as programming services and licenses, in more than 100 countries.

ABC Daytime produces 1,000 hours of original television a year, with four network-owned daytime programs including the talk show The View, as well as daytime dramas General Hospital , All My Children and One Life To Live. ABC Daytime is number one in the key demographic of women 18-49.

Assistant To Producer, Code RFThis professional will report to the Executive Producer of All My Children

The Assistant will:- Provide support for the day to day operations of the Production Office. - Coordinate the daily activities of the Executive Producer and must be very detailed and organized- Will deal with talent and staff at all levels of production and must maintain a professional demeanor and discreet manner. - Prepare and distribute various production reports on a weekly basis, ie: talent/set usage, vacations, ratings, etc. - May participate in event planning and location production when necessary. - Administrative duties include knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, telephones, etc. - Frequent overtime is required.

Required Qualifications: Education: College degree; Work Experience: 1 year experience television production; Non-technical Skills: Excellent written, verbal and organizational skills and working knowledge of Windows, Outlook, Word and Excel.

Location: New York; Req ID: 56679

Y&R: Still The Best After All These Years?

The angel of plot contrivances plays no favorites. As we've seen in recent weeks, just about everybody was hit by some sort of damned convenient circumstance that led to unhappiness and drama. I'm not averse to plot contrivances, really I'm not, but piling them all on top of each other definitely qualifies as dramatic overkill.

However, I'm going to go off on a bit of a rant first: "Do You Plan On Keeping Your Property?" The question was posed to me by a faceless customer support rep calling me about my mortgage payment Friday night. Yes, she was just doing her job...but the tone of that question just set me the hell off and I took it out on her. But it wasn't until later that it occurred to me that that question could be applied to my favorite daytime drama.

Barbara Bloom and company: Do you plan on keeping your property? Or perhaps more accurately, keeping it at the top?

Y&R just celebrated eighteen years as the number one-rated daytime drama on television. Eighteen years. There's always been some debate on whether or not its timeslot and general lack of competition hasn't played a big part in that (though even allowing for that it's still a hell of a feat), but overall most people admit that it was a combination of superior storytelling and a hell of an ensemble cast that made it as dominant as it is/was. Sure, it and the folks who make/made it are not perfect (if nothing else the now-infamous recasting of Ashley Abbott in the 1990s with Shari Shattuck singlehandedly proves that). But there was always a gentle respect for most if not all things on the show...a certain respectful grace, even, which is sadly lacking from a lot of soaps these days.

No doubt that was William J. Bell's doing, and it was a thing he was left to do without overt interference from people above him...because it was working. But nothing lasts forever; Bell gradually relinquished full control over Y&R to (in no particular order) John F. Smith, Kay Alden, and a couple of others before he died in 2005. The thing about this comparatively brief period was that William J. Bell was still there. He was the shadow looming over everything--while those who replaced him at the big chair had their moments of oddness, William was still around to gently tap them on the shoulder and go "Hey, you know something?" And this was a good thing...even while things got strange and/or downright goofy, they didn't get too strange or too goofy (well, not often). They still had that certain grace. Y&R was still unique unto itself.

And then of course came the shift. It really started when Sally Sussman Morina was brought on as a consultant in the fall of 2005, but the obvious shift started when Lynn Marie Latham came aboard. And as much as I'd like to point a finger at her, I'm not going to: the style-to-substance ratio for Y&R had already been changing before she came aboard, and that combined with William J. Bell's absence seemed to have simply accelerated the process. CBS now had free rein to remake a classy, though moody and somewhat atmospheric, soap opera that had dominated the ratings...apparently in the image of the other soaps that were on the air. And so they are--though it's not completely changed yet, of course. There are still echoes of the classy, moody Y&R around...they're hidden behind the reliquary, and they're growing softer with each departure, but they're still there. The show's faster, tending towards more standalone--more predictable--stories...and while that has one short-term advantage in that it makes it easier for new viewers to jump in, it tends to wreak havoc for the long-time fans. Hell, it tends to wreak havoc for just about anybody who's been watching since before the middle of 2005. The worst thing is that it's substantially less subtle than anything else, which may be the real crime of it all; while just about every story in the soap pantheon has been done, it's the execution that makes or breaks how a particular version of a story goes. And if you're showing all your cards, deliberately or otherwise, during the execution...that's just not very much fun, is it?

And all this brings me to the thing that really prompted this rant: the one-two punch of the Daytime Emmy pre-nomination list.

Victoria Rowell's electing to leave the show ahead of the end of her existing contract. Victoria, one of the true class acts of Y&R, deciding to leave like this out of the blue was a shock to say the least--and it's sparked massive speculation about the reasoning behind it. For me, it just made me mad...God knows the lady has to do what she needs to do and doesn't need to answer to anybody about it. But coming as it does in the wake of the other extremely high-profile departures from the show in the last seven months--Jerry Douglas and Eileen Davidson--and combined with both the pre-nomination list and Victoria's own work ethic (this is the same lady who for a while juggled roles on Y&R and Diagnosis Murder), it just seems like an incredible and yet another unnecessary loss of great talent. Especially after this past year, where Drucilla Winters was definitely front and center for a large part of it. Okay, it's not her first departure from the show, and the implication is that she's leaving for greener pastures, but wow--if there's some sort of master plan at work, I damn sure can't see it from here.

In the end--the show's still good, even with all my complaining, but in an annoyingly parts-greater-than-the-whole way. And it's oddly...soulless...in rather large measure, and that frustrates the hell out of me. What's the point in having the best show on daytime TV if it's not recognizable as the best show on TV half of the time?