GLATWT88

I agree. GL tends to feel more different from regime to regime. It also lacked as many long running characters that tended to anchor many the of the other shows. The overhaul in the early 80s really changed the direction of the show. That 1987 and 1988 episode feel like different shows. However, this is around the time GL stabilizes after losing ground around 1984 after a very successful late 70s and early 80s phase.

And with amazing numbers! Capitol seems to be doing fine. It's massive like YR, but it has pulled very decent numbers and while it was doing better at first, the current numbers are still quite good. Considering that GL and ATWT suffered quite a bit in the mid 80s, Capitol has been consistent. It will be out the door soon tho.

I haven't watched OC for a few seasons, but I keep reading tweets that it is good, but this reunion trailer looks so mid.

Guiding Light dropping below a 6 😬

It was a nice read and it was good to hear Victoria look back with some appreciation and care for the show. I know these interviews usually skim the surface, but gosh would I have so many questions to ask.

Thank you, @JAS0N47 Definitely much harder to guage as these were calculated over a two week period, but looking at these the biggest gainers were in the under 18 audience and women 18-34 and 18-49. I wonder if that working women number would have been higher if it was only for the one week during school holidays.

Are any of the episodes from 1967-1969 available online? Curious about early Peggy, but some of the other characters of that time.

I was figuring working women as well, but I wasn't sure so wanted to look at the numbers - but you're probably right about kids home from school.

@JAS0N47 If possible, would you be able to post the demos for GL for the weeks of 12/16-20/1985 and 12/30/1985 - 1/3/1986. The week between Christmas and NYE give all the soaps a real boost each year and I'm curious to see who is making up these numbers. GL in particular tends to perform really well, even this year when its numbers have been mediocre in the weeks leading up to.

ABC and CBS saw significant drops this season. NBC was the most stable. Not surprised Capitol saw a drop between ATWT and GL, which lost 1 point and .7 respectively. Even YR was down quite a bit. RH was completely killed off by its move, only to give Loving a slight boost which wouldn't mean much in the long run.

Nice bump for OLTL. Overall numbers have been dipping, but GH and YR remain as the frontrunners

Have you tried searching on Amazon.com for Dallas season 2? You can watch those episodes in the same way free w/ ads. I noticed long ago that Amazon had lumped season 1 and 2 together, but makes no reference or indication of this which can be very confusing - especially for those that aren't familiar with the series. Anyway, you can watch on your computer then switch over to the seasons that are available on your streaming device.

Agree. She did not fit the role, but I can definitely see her as Sue Ellen's mother.

I agree. The numbers Edge was pulling with such modest clearance, it could have definitely faired better with more affiliates. Of course, it is difficult to say how much better, but frustrating that more wasn't done about getting it on affiliates. However, as pointed out it comes down to money and there must have been reasons why...im sure some affiliates had more revenue with local programming at 4 than if they aired EON.

Really? I think it looks like Pam

Seems to have given Loving a boost, but ended up hurting RH even further. Yes, but AMC was in a very different place than those other soaps. I feel YR and AMC would have given each other stiff competition- in fact AMC might have prevented YR from recuperating and growing as quickly especially around that time.

Looks like only the ABC soaps went down (aside from GH), but they were coming off an unsustainable high IMO. DAYS has definitely had an incredible shift.

Yes. Do you feel like Marie Wilson's take on Meg was also very different from Jennifer's? I remember thinking McCouch was so hot at the time, but now in retrospect I may prefer Bloom's looks...lol. Probably off topic but anyway

She was wrong

Both of those periods, although short lived, are also the most hours of daytime TV dedicated to soap operas at 11.5 hours across the Big 3.

With all these streaming platforms, I'm hoping one of them takes a swing at developing a soap opera. It is clear that the model for releasing new content has changed. These platforms are no longer dropping an entire series on the same day, rather choosing to go with a gradual weekly release- which makes good business sense. If someone is really into watching a series, they would have to remain subscribed for three/four months to catch new episodes in real time as opposed to just signing up on the day of release and binging and cancelling. As competition grew, im sure more budget conscious viewers may have subscribed for limited periods to watch a particular series and then cancel instead of maintaining multiple simultaneous subscriptions which is obviously costly. A daily soap that can hold even a modest audience and is cheaper to produce than a 10/12 episode series would be well worth the investment.

Any details on the week of August 27, 1984 for YR. It seemed to be solid leading up to this week, hitting a peak, and then pretty significant drop over the next two weeks. Capitol also had a really good week that week. Also of note that week, Santa Barbara had very significant drop. Even Edge with its low clearance tied in HH. Seems like the Bo and Hope storyline was bringing in the numbers. Location shoot in New Orleans around that time too August 22, 1984: On the famous Oak Alley plantation in New Orleans, Bo and Hope had sex for the first time, with Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack’s “Tonight, I Celebrate My Love” playing in the background.

I wonder if the impact of such events would come after they happened rather than on the day they actually aired. While such moments are iconic and memorable, they may spark interest from word of mouth or publications...there was no real way to know they were going to happen. Unlike say weddings or big events, where there was much lead up and more precise timeline in mind.

Yes for sure, but I don't know if the entire lineup was ever as cohesive as say ABC's.

I am interested to see Luke and Laura's impact later on in 1984 when they return for a short stint. Laura's return in late 1983 brought a big spike. The second promo in this clip seems to be around this time either week leading up to