kalbir

So ABC summer momentum carried through the fall. This must be when ABC took off with the college crowd, students watching between classes in lounges/dorms.

I don't blame Kimberley Simms for leaving GL after her initial contract as she was still relatively young and probably wanted to move on to other things. It's too bad a primetime career didn't happen or any of the soap roles she was rumored to be in contention for (Days Jennifer, Y&R Ashley, Another World Vicky) didn't materialize. In the episodes of The Locher Room I've seen her in she seems to have good memories of her time on GL and proud of the work she did on the show.

Wow, Y&R first week at 1 hr plus being head-to-head w/ All My Children had a drop of 1 full point. Did All My Children have a big dramatic story in February 1980 to send Susan Lucci off on pregnancy leave? Her son was born in March 1980 I believe.

As we'll see through 1980, the new lineup didn't work. On June 8, 1981, CBS rearranged the soaps again and the new lineup was 12:30 pm ET Y&R, 1:30 pm ET As the World Turns, 2:30 pm ET Search for Tomorrow, 3 pm ET Guiding Light.

@JoeCool The CBS lineup starting February 4, 1980 was 12:30 pm ET Search for Tomorrow, 1 pm ET Y&R, 2 pm ET As the World Turns, 3 pm ET Guiding Light. Search for Tomorrow was now head-to-head w/ Ryan's Hope. Y&R was now head-to-head w/ All My Children and Days. As the World Turns was now head-to-head w/ One Life to Live and The Doctors/first 30 minutes of Another World. Guiding Light was now head-to-head w/ General Hospital and final 60 minutes of Another World.

We are one week away from the end of Love of Life, and two weeks away from 1 hour Y&R and the new CBS soap lineup.

So it seems August 1978 was the turning point. ABC huge rise and P&G tanking.

Kimberley Simms is the only Mindy as far as I'm concerned. Granted, I didn't see Krista Tesreau original run when it aired or any of her returns but from what I've seen online, Krista Tesreau original recipe Mindy came across as spoiled brat/daddy's little princess. I'd say she was a mashup of Dallas Lucy Ewing and another CBS daytime spoiled brat/daddy's little princess from that same era Y&R Lauren. I watched Kimberley run both when it originally aired and online and she took Mindy to a whole other level. In the beginning of her run there were some remnants of spoiled brat/daddy's little princess but then Mindy grew up and matured. I saw part of Barbara Crampton run online and she didn't work in the role. I kept seeing her as her Y&R character Leanna. I don't count the interim Mindy between Kimberley and Barbara.

Rakia all around!

CBS was really shaken in 1980. Love of Life ended, Y&R expanded to 1 hour, the new soap schedule did not work.

August and September there might be a drop off on some shows since the kids start returning to school.

And that's why to this day Angela Lansbury has a fanbase of all walks of life. I know Angela's career ranged from Golden Age Hollywood to Broadway to television, but for me and many of my generation (1980s kids/1990s teens) her two signature roles will always be Jessica Fletcher and Mrs. Potts.

The Simpsons was on Thursdays from 1990/91 to 1993/94. It did the job that Fox wanted it to do (finish off The Cosby Show) but notice how the final Thursday season was the same season that Seinfeld blew up. I think Fox sensed that NBC Thursday was about to make a comeback so The Simpsons returned to Sunday in Fall 1994. Imagine The Simpsons head-to-head with Friends during the second half of the 1990s. The 1992/93 attempt to compete with TGIF? We know the 1997/98 Block Party was an epic failure.

Like I pointed out before, bad Lifetime movie.

I had forgotten that Felicia was also gone in 1992 but she would return in 1997. Kristen returned again in 1993 and 1994. B&B's cast in that era had several females in the early 30s age range (Brooke, Macy, Taylor, Karen, Sheila) so maybe Bill Bell thought there wasn't enough room on the canvas for the Forrester daughters.

Roseanne was the first show that threatened The Cosby Show's dominance but it was The Simpsons that finished off The Cosby Show.

1991/92 CBS owned Sunday (60 Minutes; Murder, She Wrote) and Monday (Murphy Brown, Designing Women, Major Dad), and ABC owned Tuesday (Roseanne, breakout hit Home Improvement, Full House, Coach). NBC Thursday and Saturday had weakened in 1991/92. Cheers was still going strong but The Cosby Show, A Different World, The Golden Girls, and Empty Nest all fell out of the Top 10. NBC also made the mistake of changing the time slots of The Golden Girls (9 pm to 8 pm) and Empty Nest (9:30 pm to 9 pm).

@Paul Raven June would have kids home on summer break.

1992 was also the exits of Margo, Jake, and Clarke. As we all know, Clarke returned four years later.

JR was never meant to be an anti-hero/romantic leading man, he was a clear-cut villain.

Audra was brought on to replace Imani.

The Dallas finale was the highest-rated episode since October 9, 1987: Gone with the Wind, rating 20.2. Prior to the finale, the last Dallas episode to finish ahead of a new episode of Murder, She Wrote was October 23, 1987: Tough Love, rating 18.2. Prior to the finale, the last Dallas episode to finish ahead of a new episode of The Cosby Show was February 22, 1985: Shattered Dreams, rating 25.8.

B&B international money comes through.

Any 1970s/1980s Y&R that shows up is a treat.

@Khan Exactly. Murder, She Wrote was bookended by two very different eras in broadcast network drama series. It began when primetime soaps and action shows were the big genres and ended when grittier dramas (ie. ER, NYPD Blue) became popular. I think Murder, She Wrote became popular because it gave its audience comfort and warmth at a time when the world around us was changing so much. Even watching today it still has that same feeling.