It has been my privilege over the last 40 years to cover the daytime drama industry. For many of those years, soap creators and head writers used the medium not just to entertain but to deal with important social issues—in other words to encourage viewers to think. In the late ’80s, the AIDS epidemic hit the soap scene hard. Many members of the … [Read more...]
Archives for 2024
The Joys of Summer Redux
August 7, 2024 by 5 Comments
In 1989 when the real world was still paying attention to soaps, TV Guide asked me to do a cover story called “The Joys of Summer.” My mother, who had kept every issue of the magazine since its debut — just as George Costanza (played by Jason Alexander) did on Seinfeld — kept a copy of that particular issue on top of her TV for the rest of her … [Read more...]
Daytime Emmys: Some Afterthoughts
June 22, 2024 by Leave a Comment
The day after this year’s Daytime Emmys, I wrote on my Marlena Current and Classic Facebook Group site that I thought the show was refreshing. Replied my old colleague Brian, “I’m not with you on this, Marlena.” Added Esther, “The death roll left me cold.” And of course, there was an array of opinions about and objections to the winners. Well, … [Read more...]
The 2024 Daytime Emmys: Marlena’s Picks
May 29, 2024 by 2 Comments
Unfortunately, 2024 was a lackluster soap year overall, disrupted as it was by a pesky writer’s strike. Even so, there were some shining moments, thanks as always to the good work of the professionals we like to think of as “our people” — those who produce, write and act in the shows that are still hanging in there, no matter what is going on, or … [Read more...]
Happy 60th Anniversary, Another World
May 8, 2024 by 4 Comments
I’d like to dedicate this column to my hard-working friend Karen McKenny, who spent the past few months organizing a 60th birthday party for our beloved NBC soap Another World, so sadly missed since it went off the air in 1999. The anniversary tribute took place in Tarrytown, N.Y., and was attended by many of the soap’s stars. I’m so sorry I wasn’t … [Read more...]
The Bad Old Days of the O.J. Trial
April 16, 2024 by 3 Comments
The news of O.J. Simpson’s passing last week at age 76 brought back a flood of memories for long time soap fans. We remember vividly how his sensational murder trial pre-empted our soaps almost every day from November 1994 to October 1995. There were 10 soaps on the big three networks in those days. Would the OJ trial help knock them off the air? … [Read more...]
A Soap Miracle At Last!
March 24, 2024 by 2 Comments
After decades of watching and writing about daytime soap operas, even this most fervent advocate must confess to a bit of ennui lately. But all is not lost. Now comes the best soap opera news in more years than I care to remember! Just when it looked as if the television networks were losing interest in soaps, CBS, with the support of the NAACP, … [Read more...]
General Hospital: A Time for Celebration and a Time for Sorrow
February 3, 2024 by Leave a Comment
General Hospital’s 60th anniversary celebration earlier this month was a fun collage of bits and pieces of history that triggered nice memories from the long tenure of the soap we all love so much. But in the end, the 60-minute romp was a disappointment. Instead of a examining why this iconic soap has endured for so long, the show treated us to … [Read more...]
