JoeCool

6 minutes ago, Soapsuds said:

And Ken Corday flushed his parents owned show down the tubes. What an idiot!

Then Cordray should go to Netflix or Hulu after the NBC/Sony deal is over. Peacock will destroy DAYS.

3 minutes ago, JAS0N47 said:

Yes, per Ken himself in his autobiography, he fully owns Days:

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190213005731/en/Corday-Productions-Sues-Sony-to-Terminate-Distribution-Agreement-for-Days-of-our-Lives

According to this Corday solely owns DAYS.

Corday Productions’ President and sole owner Ken Corday remarked, “It’s extremely sad that a partnership of 54 years that was first forged in the early 1960s by my parents and what was then Screen Gems Television, and is now Sony, has deteriorated to this level. Our action today comes after deep diligent reflection. It is absolutely necessary to bring the current untenable situation out into the light in order to ensure the future of Days of our Lives for its incredible employees and for the hundreds of millions of loyal and dedicated fans worldwide.”

3 minutes ago, DaytimeFan said:

Yes, Corday is an equal owner in the show. 

That is incorrect. Corday's litigation against Sony made it very clear that Corday is an owner of the show and that the only soap Sony is the sole owner of is Y&R: https://deadline.com/2019/02/days-of-our-lives-lawsuit-producers-sony-tv-distribution-fraud-1202554627/

I stand corrected. Then why is it moving to Peacock then?  Corday Productions own 1% of Y an R too.

5 minutes ago, dragonflies said:

Wow for some reason I thought he and or his parents, at one time he owned some portion of the show

They co-produce but they have no ownership rights at all. It is SONY owned, distributed and co-produced with Corday Productions.

The Bell family owns B & B. SONY is the major owner of Y and R. ABC owns GH.

19 minutes ago, dragonflies said:

Does Corday own any part of Days at all?

No. It is 100% owned by SONY.

I watched Days on and off over the years. But was a AMC and OLTL viewer for decades. Good bye DAYS. I hope it does well on Peacock premium but I am not going to pay more to watch it. Not when I already have Prime, Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu and Disney+.  What I see happening is DAYS will end its run in 2023 on Peacock premium. If Days was on basic Peacock I would be more confident on its longevity. This was a business decision. Nearly 7 to 8 months of Days episodes for the 2022 to 2023 season have been filmed. The remaining costs are already budgeted for.  As for old episodes, SONY owns Days and Peacock would have to pay for those episodes and I do not think it will happen purely from a business/financial perspective.

Would love to watch:

One Life to Live: 1968 to 1973

All My Children 1975 to 1981

Young and the Restless 1973 to 1980

On 7/25/2022 at 3:50 PM, kalbir said:

Y&R was killing it in the daytime ratings at the end of the 1980s while CBS was a mess in primetime in that same era.

 

Yes!! Y&R dethroned General Hospital. With Y&R leading the way starting in 1987, CBS Daytime took over the lead permanently over ABC Daytime.

Y&R still airs 12:30 to 1:30 EST on the East Coast Market. The competition was very keen with All My Children airing from 1:00 to 2:00 EST and the Days of Our Lives also at 1 to 2 EST.

The timeslot of 1 to 1:30 EST was the most competitive in all of daytime.

General Hospital in the 3pm to 4pm EST slot had little competition from NBC in Texas and Santa Barbara. Guiding Light was the only soap that could provide reasonable competition to GH. But GH had no real competition unlike Y&R, AMC and DAYS.

On 6/1/2022 at 6:03 PM, Max said:

You do make a good point, one which I had thought about. I also realize that ABC actually found success in the 1:30 to 2:00 timeslot from 12/30/68 to 12/26/75, when Let's Make a Deal occupied that slot. However, I do think that by 1974 or so, the prospect of a rival network airing a soap opposite of ATWT wasn't the dreadful thing it once was (as ATWT, while still # 1, had ceased to be as popular as it was at its zenith). And that was very likely an important reason why from 12/1/75 to 3/2/79, the entirety of DOOL competed with the entirety of ATWT from 1:30 to 2:30. (OLTL, of course, had yet to become a smash hit as of 1975 in the way that DOOL had by that point, so this is a somewhat flawed argument. But I do stand by the point that a soap competing against ATWT had become a considerably less daunting task than it once was.)

Nevertheless, given the risk of competing against ATWT, I would have thought it best for OLTL to occupy the post-AMC timeslot at some time other than 1:30 to 2:00. As of 7/7/75, AMC assumed the 12:30 to 1:00 timeslot, so I would have had OLTL air from 1:00 to 1:30. It's certainly possible that ABC seriously considered doing that but chose not to, either because it really wanted RH to air during that half hour and/or because the network was already making long-term plans to expand OLTL and GH. (It's probably a safe assumption that in 1975, ABC already was hoping and planning to have AMC expand to 60 minutes, given that AMC aired experimental, hour-long episodes the week prior to RH's debut. Though I am getting off-topic, I am curious as to why close to two years passed before AMC finally did expand to an hour on a permanent basis; I'm guessing it was because Agnes Nixon had mixed feelings, or worse, about the prospect of AMC expanding.)

1 hour ago, Max said:

I thought that it was a likely possibility that the long period of time in between AMC's experimental, hour-long episodes and that soap's permanent expansion to 60 minutes was due to Agnes Nixon's objections (and/or reservations). However, I never knew the lengths to which ABC went to convince her to agree to the hour-long expansion. That is a really fascinating bit of information.

Agnes Nixon was doing most of the writing for AMC. She only wrote for OLTL from 1968 to the early 1970s then left One Life.  The thought of her writing a 60 minutes show 5 days a week was not what she wanted. Agnes like Bill Bell loved and preferred the 30 minute serial format. ABC got her the writing help she needed and Agnes continue to head write AMC. Once Agnes got the new ABC studio and hired more writers and crew, AMC went to an hour. For ABC it was all for the profit and the money.

43 minutes ago, Tonksadora said:

NBC did AW first with a standalone hour long wedding first & then permanent. They followed with the same plan with DOOL. ABC & CBS were already working on Agnes & Bell Sr. who both resisted. Agnes even told Pete Lemay that he was crazy & said she never would. They gave her studio space & she crumbled. That was ABC with the carrot. CBS told Bell they were doing it with him or without him. He got the stick. Everybody else fell in line except Claire Labine & Paul Avila Mayer.

And, Freddy Silverman (Pete's name for him) who worked at all 3 networks at different times, in programming, was the person pitching expansion to an hour.

Freddy Silverman was a huge supporter and fan of Agnes Nixon. When Silverman arrived at ABC, AMC was the highest rated soap, but Silverman wanted to create a 3 to 4 hour block of soaps and he did that. Silverman wanted to cancel GH and told Gloria Monty either make it a hit or it is gone.

On 6/1/2022 at 1:28 AM, Paul Raven said:

One reason AMC became a hit was the 1pm timeslot. There was no network competition for it. When it debuted they tried a soap block 12-1.30 but only AMC survived.

To move either AMC or OLTL would put them in the firing line of other more established shows.

eg if OLTL was moved after AMC that would put it up against ATWT which was #1 in those days.

Yes AMC 1pm had no network competition. ABC had a weak lineup before AMC from 12 to 2. AMC gave ABC strong ratings and it was an anchor and not going to be moved. Agnes Nixon did not want AMC to compete against ATWT.

On 6/1/2022 at 6:03 PM, Max said:

You do make a good point, one which I had thought about. I also realize that ABC actually found success in the 1:30 to 2:00 timeslot from 12/30/68 to 12/26/75, when Let's Make a Deal occupied that slot. However, I do think that by 1974 or so, the prospect of a rival network airing a soap opposite of ATWT wasn't the dreadful thing it once was (as ATWT, while still # 1, had ceased to be as popular as it was at its zenith). And that was very likely an important reason why from 12/1/75 to 3/2/79, the entirety of DOOL competed with the entirety of ATWT from 1:30 to 2:30. (OLTL, of course, had yet to become a smash hit as of 1975 in the way that DOOL had by that point, so this is a somewhat flawed argument. But I do stand by the point that a soap competing against ATWT had become a considerably less daunting task than it once was.)

Nevertheless, given the risk of competing against ATWT, I would have thought it best for OLTL to occupy the post-AMC timeslot at some time other than 1:30 to 2:00. As of 7/7/75, AMC assumed the 12:30 to 1:00 timeslot, so I would have had OLTL air from 1:00 to 1:30. It's certainly possible that ABC seriously considered doing that but chose not to, either because it really wanted RH to air during that half hour and/or because the network was already making long-term plans to expand OLTL and GH. (It's probably a safe assumption that in 1975, ABC already was hoping and planning to have AMC expand to 60 minutes, given that AMC aired experimental, hour-long episodes the week prior to RH's debut. Though I am getting off-topic, I am curious as to why close to two years passed before AMC finally did expand to an hour on a permanent basis; I'm guessing it was because Agnes Nixon had mixed feelings, or worse, about the prospect of AMC expanding.)

Agnes Nixon did not want AMC to go to an hour. She had concerns about the quality of the show and the expansion to 1 hour on the ratings. AMC was the highest rated soap on ABC from 1973 onward and was making ABC a lot of money. ABC convinced Agnes by building a huge studio just for AMC and getting her writing help. Agnes relented eventually.

17 minutes ago, Max said:

If you look at the history of daytime soap ratings on Wikipedia, and assume that what is written there is correct, this is actually an easy question to answer. For the sake of discussion, I'll define a successful/long-running daytime soap as The Doctors or any program that lasted longer. This means that there have been fourteen successful soaps. Before I comment on each of these soaps, what is really apparent is that--in virtually all cases--it would take at most five years to determine if a soap was a commercial hit or disappointment (if not outright failure). The biggest exception to this "five-year rule" was OLTL, which didn't become a smash hit until the tail end of the 70s. (Obviously, being sandwiched between AMC and GH played a big role in helping OLTL. But the decision to make Llanview into Buchanan Country--and the popularity of those characters--was also an important factor.) GH also took longer than five years to become a huge hit.

Below is an analysis for each of the fourteen long-running soaps:

*All My Children: This show had terrible ratings during its first few years. But it moved into the middle of the pack during the 1972-73 Season and was ranked # 5 during 1974-75.

*Another World: In spite of all that I've read about NBC wanting to cancel the show during its infancy, it seemed to have respectable, middle-tier ratings during much of its first three years on the air. AW became a smash hit during the 1967-68 Season, when it shot up to # 2.

*As the World Turns: This soap had a very poorly rated first season on the air, but it was # 2 during the 1957-58 Season. It began its long run at # 1 (albeit tied with SFT) the following season.

*The Bold and the Beautiful: This soap had respectable ratings from the start (I believe always besting AW). It was # 6 for the 1989-90 Season and # 5 the following year (obviously showing that it was able to build an audience in a way that Capitol never did).

*Days of Our Lives: As was the case with AW, I've read much about how NBC seriously considered cancelling this show during its infancy. During its first three seasons, it was ranked # 10, which obviously wasn't all that good, though I'd hardly say that was a terrible showing for a new soap (given the sheer number of soaps on the air back then). The 1968-69 Season was the breakout year for this show, as it rose to # 5 (albeit in a tie with Love of Life and The Doctors).

*The Doctors: This show was lower rated than GH during its first few years, which had to be embarrassing given that ABC (at the time) was considered a subpar network relative to NBC and CBS. But The Doctors' fortunes turned around, as it became the # 5 soap during the 1967-68 Season.

*The Edge of Night: EON was a hit from the beginning, with a rank of # 4 for the 1956-57 Season.

*General Hospital: GH pretty much had mid-tier ratings during its infancy, which was impressive given that it was/is an ABC soap. For much of the 60s, however, it didn't seem to be showing growth potential. However, that changed in the early-70s, when it became # 6 during the 1970-71 Season and # 2 the following year.

*Guiding Light: I have no idea how long it took GL to become a hit on the radio, but it must have had a turbulent ratings history, given that (I believe) it was cancelled three times, only to come back on the air. GL appeared to do very well making the transition to television: It was ranked # 4 for the 1951-52 and 1952-53 Seasons and # 2 during 1953-54. (Note that Wikipedia only lists four soaps for the 1952-53 Season, but I have my doubts if that was an accurate number, given the eight soaps for the prior season and the ten soaps for the 1953-54 Season.)

*Love of Life: This was ranked # 2 during its first year on the air, so it was a hit from the beginning.

*One Life to Live: Like its sister soap AMC, it had horrendous ratings at first. (The early-70s were a very rough time for ABC soaps apart from GH, and AMC and OLTL were very lucky to avoid cancellation, as they could have met the same fates as The Best of Everything, A Word Apart, and Dark Shadows. I'm guessing that ABC kept AMC and OLTL over those other shows because of the network's faith in Agnes Nixon.) But for much of the 70s, OLTL had respectable, though not great ratings (which nevertheless likely meant that OLTL was still earning a decent profit for ABC). Per Wikipedia, OLTL's massive boost in popularity can be witnessed by the fact that it was ranked # 7 for the 1977-78 Season, # 6 for 1978-79, # 4 for 1979-80, and # 3 for 1980-81. 

*Search for Tomorrow: This was the # 1 soap for the 1951-52 Season and remained that way for several years.

*The Secret Storm: It did not take long for this soap to become a hit, as it rose to #5 for the 1954-55 Season and # 3 during the 1956-57 Season.

*The Young and the Restless: This soap, like AMC and OLTL, had a terrible first year. But it did not take long for it to experience an astonishing rise in popularity, going from 17th (and last) place during the 1972-73 Season, 13th place during 1973-74, 9th place during 1974-75, and 3rd place during 1975-76. The 1980-81 Season was the only year since then that Y&R fell out of the top five (with a 6th place ranking that season); I believe that the ratings dip that year was attributable to the difficulties of adjusting to its then-new 60-minute length. (Perhaps Y&R's ratings problems were the main reason why CBS decided to shuffle its daytime lineup in June 1981, moving Y&R from 1:00-2:00 to 12:30-1:30, ATWT from 2:00-3:00 to 1:30-2:30, and upsetting P&G by moving SFT from 12:30-1:00 to 2:30-3:00.)

Great analysis.

All My Children hit #1 for the first time during the summer of 1973.  ABC did indeed have faith in Agnes Nixon and gave AMC and OLTL time to grow, Because of AMC's strong ratings from 1973 to 1975, ABC bought both AMC and OLTL from Agnes Nixon and her husband and  their company Creative Horizons for around $5 to $10 million.

All My Children went to 1 hour on April 25, 1977.