Marlena says: When I first started writing the “Critical Condition” column in Soap Opera Weekly in 1989, I hoped reader reactions to my opinions would be strong, and I wasn’t disappointed. So early on I decided to make anybody who wrote to me my friend, either by personal reply or later by making you my Facebooks friends. I’ve made many, many … [Read more...]
Marlena Asks, What Was Your First Soap, Part Two
March 23, 2026 by 8 Comments
Marlena says: Two weeks ago, I asked all of you to send me recollections of your first soap. These memories typically go back a long way. In the first installment, I described my introduction to “The Doctors.” A colleague spoke fondly of “Another World” and the interlocking rings on its colorful logo. Another went way back, to the days when the … [Read more...]
What Was Your First Soap? A New Marlena Interactive Series
March 15, 2026 by 21 Comments
Way before there was an Internet, Marlena loved being interactive with her readers. Today I am going to tell you all about my very first soap, which led me to a lifetime of soap fandom (otherwise known as addiction). What was yours? I have also asked the same question of some of my soap journalist colleague friends who were kind enough to send … [Read more...]
What It’s All About, Erica, Redux
February 3, 2026 by 2 Comments
Marlena says: Susan Lucci’s new autobiography “La Lucci” (Ballantine Books) is everywhere this week as she does a media blitz, launched with a cover story in this week’s People magazine. I will review the book here as soon as I receive my copy. But I just can’t wait until then to revisit one of my favorite subjects. I’ve been a staunch fan of … [Read more...]
“GH”‘s Anthony Geary, 1947-2025: He Changed Our Soap World
December 21, 2025 by 10 Comments
I started watching “General Hospital” in 1978, at the beginning of my career as a soap journalist. That was the year that Anthony Geary made his debut on “GH” as Luke Spencer. I liked Luke immediately. He was charming, funny, and true. And Geary was a terrific actor who won over his already approving audience with his character’s warmth and … [Read more...]
On Soaps, You’ve Got to Have Friends
December 7, 2025 by 6 Comments
When I started writing for the newish publication USA Today in 1988, I was sent to cover the premiere of Bette Midler’s new movie “Beaches” at the Museum of Modern Art. Over-the-top Marlena getting to interview the divine Miss M? OMG, was I thrilled! A decade earlier, I had heard her in concert at the Continental Baths with her accompanist Barry … [Read more...]
The Joys of Soap Swag
December 1, 2025 by 4 Comments
Marlena and Moose are on the move again and I’m digging out a lot of things I forgot I had. What I’ll never forget or part with is an amazing collection of soap souvenirs I as a soap opera journalist received from the networks and Procter and Gamble during the eighties and early nineties. Those were the days when the profits from daytime soaps (and … [Read more...]
“Dynasty” Fondly Remembered
November 21, 2025 by 10 Comments
Marlena’s been a little blue lately. Whenever trouble strikes, I tend to turn to my two favorite pastimes, soaps and journalism. So how did the CW network know something was up with me? I adore their new Monday night nostalgia show “TV We Love” which featured in its first two weeks “I Love Lucy” and “Happy Days.” This week--how did they know—CW … [Read more...]
Remembering “Santa Barbara,” a Quirky Soap of the 80s
October 26, 2025 by 8 Comments
Marlena says: “Santa Barbara” debuted in 1984, a smartly written – some would say wacky --and engagingly cast product of its time, that flourishing era when soap operas were awash in money and brave ideas. Compared to established soap fare, it had a different sense of itself. Proudly sophisticated and droll, it chronicled the complex interactions … [Read more...]
A Q&A with Soap Opera Expert John K. Read
July 4, 2025 by 14 Comments
Marlena says: Welcome to Marlena’s Soap Opera Hall of Fame, our new occasional series of profiles and Q&A interviews with celebrated soap opera professionals. Our first honoree is veteran soap reporter/critic John K. Read, a.k.a. John Kelly Genovese. In the glory years of soap opera magazines, his weekly insider reports and thoughtful … [Read more...]
