Soap Opera Uncensored: ISSUE 8
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Soap Central is giving me credit for breaking AMC being canceled back in 2009 but I don’t think that was me). Google it.
SWORD’S MIGHTIER THAN THE PEN:
D’oh: Writers Guild of America subs One Life!
It’s hard out there for a pimp… and one of TV’s best soap operas. Yep, One Life can’t catch a break these days! As 2011’s best daytime drama, the cancelled sudser was overlooked for what many consider the most prestigious honour (well, not for scabbers) in the writing community: a WGA award. And it wisely submitted a show surrounding Shane’s acclaimed, timely teen-bullying storyline. Three of this past year’s worst soaps, AMC, GH, and Y&R have been nominated for the 2012 WGA awards in the Daytime Drama category. The WGA Awards will be presented on Sunday, Feb. 9 at simultaneous ceremonies in Los Angeles and New York. Last year, As The World Turns took home the prize. For all the television nominees visit www.wga.org
SOAPILEAKS:
This week’s hottest news, interviews, and gossip!
All My Children — Agnes of God Speaks!
• As previously stated, soap creator Agnes Nixon was the star guest at Harvard Foundation's artist in residence program and received an award this past week and here are the highlights courtesy of fan Ingrid Lobo:
When asked about whether an alternate ending existed for AMC (inferred from the TV Line interview with Chrishell Stause), Nixon and Broderick commented that the ending was reworked five times. First they wrote the ending, then ABC gave then two hours for the finale so it was expanded. Then, when Prospect Park came into the picture, Nixon came up with the cliffhangers. Someone suggested a “Who shot JR?” cliffhanger, but she didn’t want it to be a copy of Dallas, so she thought a twist on the story would be good, and decided to create a “Who did JR shoot?” cliffhanger. She also developed the “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn” cliffhanger for Erica and Jackson, mentioning that she’s always felt Erica is the great-great-great-great-great granddaughter of Scarlett O’Hara. Incorporating these cliffhangers required Broderick and Nixon to go back and re-work five weeks of script to develop JR’s hatred for the five different characters shown before the gunshot and final cut. Broderick said that when Prospect Park came into the picture, ABC took away one of their hours for the finale, leaving a one-hour finale. The finale episode now had to include the cliffhangers along with trimmed down scenes that they had originally planned for the two-hour finale.
It did not sound like a full alternate ending was taped, as Chrishell Stause recently stated to TVLine.com. However, Stause and Kate Collins taped a scene very early on for use in the two-hour finale.
Broderick mentioned that the shows suffer when Agnes is not involved. Then Nixon commented that the man who didn’t want her around was gone now. The audience erupted in applause at this statement.
• Despite all the bad news concerning AMC’s future, its actors are landing work faster than a L.A. hooker on Santa Monica Blvd. My favourite “hooker,” Cameron Mathison has landed a guest-starring role on Desperate Housewives, along with being a reporter for Good Morning America and his other million jobs. Mathison told Soaps In Depth that he’ll be “embroiled in a relationship with former soap star Marcia Cross’s Bree. Can’t wait. I don’t care what anyone says: I love Desperate Housewives. Head writer and creator Marc Cherry is a seriously underrated talent. Also, Thorsten Kaye has found a paycheque by doing at least one episode of the upcoming NBC series, Smash. Congrats, boys!
• In more shocking alumna news, Deadline is reporting onscreen hooker Denise Vasi has been tapped for the lead role in VH1's sexy, fun dramedy Single Ladies. She’ll probably be a hit. Most lukewarm soap actors usually shoot to mainstream stardom. But who can really believe the usually reliable Deadline since they still haven’t retracted their assertion that Susan Lucci was holding up Prospect Park’s attempts to bring AMC to the web. Oh, wait: It was the unions. Oh, no: it was Herman Cain’s fault. Discuss.
• Here’s what Chrishell Stause had to say in a recent TVLine interview regarding Prospect-less Park: “To be honest with you, that Prospect Park thing was such a disaster. They came to people and gave one offer, and when it came time to renegotiate they never came back to the table. It wasn’t the actors that weren’t trying to make something work.
“I was always open to doing it as long as I could do it while doing other things. I certainly didn’t want [Prospect Park to have] exclusivity. I know how devoted the fans are, and if we could have made that work, it would have been great to do it. I’ve done a web series before, so I thought I could swing it and other projects on the side, but then I just never heard back.”
• AMC graces the cover of Soap Opera Digest this week in their fantastic year-in-review issue (last week’s Best and Worst issue rocked Josh Kelly’s ass, too). Nice coup! One Life graced Digest last week but now finds a home on the cover of Weekly.
The Bold and the Beautiful, CBS — No Logan Left Unturned!
• Is Brad Bell trying to get us to turn off B&B? As most of you know, Nick and Donna will be inching towards a feared romance. What has Jack Wagner ever done to you, Brad? It’s a sad fact Wagner’s real life is more operatic: he recently found out he had a long-lost daughter and broke up with his woman, Heather Locklear. Yikes. But did you catch Nick’s reference to “Frisco” this past week. That was a nice twist.
• Jowen fans, calm down. Despite reports that Brandon Beemer is on recurring status, Uncensored can assure you that actor is not. Despite the fact that he was on vacation in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico where most of his co-stars — Adam Gregory, Jackie MacInnes Wood, Kim Matula and Scott Clifton — flew to the exact spot to shoot more location shoots for their storyline, he’s still on the show. But I say, DAYS should bring him back as Shawn if B&B isn’t using him.
Days of our lives, NBC — Lucas is back! Massey: Show Stealer!
• Hurray! As expected, Bryan Dattilo is returning as Will’s transient father, according to Soap Opera Digest. Expect Lucas to hit Salem sometime in February, 2012 (hopefully with a bottle in tow).
Co-Executive Producer Greg Meng told Digest, "We are very excited Bryan Dattilo, who has been greatly missed on the show, is back in Salem. The reset of DAYS is about bringing core families back together, rekindling old romances, and sparking new ones."
• It’s official: future Emmy winner Chandler Massey is stealing the entire show with his heartbreaking portrayal of a gay man resisting his true self. It’s been riveting to watch Massey go toe-to-toe with vets Deidre Hall, Alison Sweeney, James Scott, and Galen Gering — and stealing each scene he’s in. Yep, daytime TV meet soap’s best bitch! His tour-de-force performance is exhausting to watch — in a good way — so kudos for the hardest and mot dedicated younger actor for bringing it every time without relying on histrionics. Is he the next Jonathan Jackson? He very well could be.
• Sympathies are in order for Molly Burnett, who recently lost her mother. XO
• In story 411, Kayla returns to Salem with Joe! But where’s Tucker, fancy sweetness?! And Daniel dumps Jennifer. Not dumps inside, included.
General Hospital, ABC — Is Tess Headed to Port Chuck? Sam preggers!
• GH is shooting down rumours that Bree Williamson, who is now beautifully raven-haired, is joining the embattled sudser. Also, Bradford Anderson is being told he’s not going anywhere. Both of the aforementioned rumours originated from scoop queen, Raven Beauty. And she’s always right. Time will tell.
• More black peeps! Newcomer Christopher Meyer has joined the cast as the son of the marine Shawn killed, TJ, according to Soaps in Depth.
• Drunk tweeting rocks! Oh, I kid. Nancy Lee Grahn pulled an Alec Baldwin by revealing her on-screen daughter Sam is pregnant, as many predicted after Franco “raped” the heroine on her honeymoon with Jason. Ahhh, the romance on GH is just too much to handle these days. Why is it that barren heroines always become pregnant when they are raped?
Grahn tweeted: "I hear that Sam is Preggers. I guess me and Danny Devito (exp
lains Sam's height) are gonna be Grandparents. Oh joy!" And "I hear the baby will look exactly like @1steveburton but have Franco's career."
She’s here all week, folks. Well, let’s hope! As most know, an actor revealing major plot points is a serious offence on some shows; a few serials even go as far inserting a penalty for the infractions in its actors’ contracts.
• Congratulations are in order for Brandon Barash and former AMC starlet Natalie Hall. The couple’s engaged — and that means hunky Barash is off the market! Barash tweeted the news, penning: “Hey Twitterverse...she said yes. Who's the luckiest man alive? One, please!” Not Silas Kain.
• No words: Entertainment Weekly released the results of a survey, which compares the viewing habits of Democrats and Republicans. The study, conducted by Experian-Simmons exclusively for the magazine, revealed that GH is the least favourite show of Republicans? WTF? What’s not to like? Mobsters. Rape. Misogyny. Homophobia. Blonde Bots. Sounds like the perfect Republican fare to me! The Tea Party? They adore Passions re-runs! Though, to be fair, the Republicans would probably manage GH the same way