kalbir

GL won the time slot over General Hospital May 28-June 1, 1984; June 4-8, 1984; June 11-15, 1984. Y&R was #1 those three weeks. Re: Gail Kobe/JFP, both got the ratings up initially but eventually caused long-term damage. I say Kobe gets more of a pass than JFP because Kobe set in motion characters and storylines that carried GL through its final 25 years whereas JFP decisions lead to GL limping along in its final 15 years.

Victor broke out his black leather jacket. That means some s--- is about to go down.

Hahaha, dead 🤣 Angelica Nero, Jean Hackney, and the Falcon Crest henchwomen were all interchangeable.

I had no idea Falcon Crest was on the chopping block in 1987/88, but for whatever reason the long time drama CBS decided to end instead that season was Cagney & Lacey. Magnum, P.I. also ended in 1987/88, but I believe that the short final season was planned from the beginning. Falcon Crest was also spared the chopping block in 1988/89 as the long time drama CBS decided to end that season was Simon & Simon. Margaret Ladd had her episodes cut in 1987/88 and 1988/89 and halfway through 1989/90 she was written off. It's funny that her last episode was also the last episode broadcast in the 1980s. Jeff Wainwright storyline was awful (sort of a dust off of that slimy film producer from season 2) and had way too many inconsistencies and plot holes. I did not like the season 6 rewrite to add an assault (season 5 during the kidnapping/hostage there were no signs of an assault (clothing intact, no injuries), no mention of an assault to the police during the rescue, and in the hospital no medical exam or tests or medications) which lead to a who's the daddy storyline with a pro-life slant. Maybe because I'm viewing this through today's standards, but it comes across as irresponsible and I'm actually surprised CBS allowed this.

@alwaysAMC Since you are watching December 1998, was there any mention of MZ passing away before the rebroadcast of his Emmy winning episode? Re: Fiona Hutchison, I can believe she was fired for speaking out about how MZ was treated by CBS/P&G. In case you haven't seen it she appears on The Locher Room MZ tribute episode. Reposting the link to save digging in the thread: Michael Zaslow - Tribute - YouTube

Of the big three action thriller storylines (Wolfbridge, Empire Valley, Jean Hackney) Knots Landing had, Jean Hackney was the worst.

I can't believe 1986 was 40 years ago. When I look back on 1986 as a middle aged adult, it was the year s--- got real with the AIDS crisis, Space Shuttle Challenger, Chernobyl.

Murder, She Wrote was bookended by two very different eras in broadcast network primetime drama series, premiering in the Dallas/Dynasty era and ending in the ER/NYPD Blue era. 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 and watching the episodes today still give that same feeling. Even though its been over 40 years since Murder, She Wrote began it doesn't feel outdated at all. The breakout success of The Cosby Show saved both sitcoms as a genre and NBC primetime line up. It also lead to NBC Thursday dominating primetime for the better part of the next 20 years (I consider NBC Thursday dominance from the start of The Cosby Show until the end of Friends). It was the breakout success of The Golden Girls the following season that lead to NBC having the sitcom game on lock for the rest of the decade. Another great data set. This must be cumulative from September-December 1986. Dallas fell out of the Top 10 by the end of the season and that was the beginning of the CBS primetime mess era.

Y&R: Katherine/Jill, Victor/Jack, Lauren/Sheila B&B: Stephanie/Brooke, Stephanie/Sally, Stephanie/Sheila

That's why classic episodes will not see the light of day until Y&R ends. CBS/Sony knows that if the best of Bill Bell was online, nobody will watch the hot garbage that are current episodes.

1998 was the last year I would say Y&R was truly excellent.

Kay Alden became HW in July 1998. I'm not sure how much of Bill Bell's material she was working off of in the beginning.

Jill was claiming that Phillip II wanted her to have the Chancellor estate, thus her attempting to evict Katherine.

That's because Hayley is a ho in the street trying to be a lady in the street.

Great data @Soapsuds . It looks to be cumulative from September-December 1984. The Cosby Show would blow up after the Super Bowl and by the end of the season Murder, She Wrote would shock the world.

I agree that Falcon Crest was more plot driven compared to Knots Landing but I think network interference and backstage drama played a part in that. I was too young to have watched in real time and Soapnet reruns were 20+ years ago so my memory of those was spotty but watching the episodes in streaming I could totally dissect the soap elements and influences from other stories.

This is a great take on Gary/Val.

2024 was 90% garbage time. 2025 has turned out to be 90% hot garbage. Lets keep it real here, Y&R hasn't been the same since Bill Bell stepped down. Kay Alden and Jack Smith ended up causing long-term damage that was exacerbated by LML, MAB, JFP, Mal Young, Josh Griffith, et al. August 2026 will be 20 years since John Abbott was killed off. To me John Abbott death marked the end of an era.

@NothinButAttitude I'd totally watch that. It's a lot better than anything Josh Griffith has come up with.

Gregory Harrison is another actor that someone at CBS must have liked. He had five series (Logan's Run; Trapper John, M.D.; Falcon Crest, The Family Man, New York News) on CBS over a nearly 20 year period plus in that time he was in two CBS miniseries (Fresno, Nothing Lasts Forever).

Don't feel bad for Marcia Cross. Her Knots Landing run ended January 1992 and in September she got Melrose so it all worked out. I know you don't love Melrose but it was one of the definitive primetime dramas of the 1990s.

I don't know if it was in this thread but I once read that Sally was the bold and Stephanie was the beautiful. Sally arrival was a turning point for B&B. Sally was the shot in the arm that B&B needed to get past its early rep of being a dust off of 1970s and 1980s Y&R storylines. Sally breathed new life into the show and Bill Bell smartly built a business and a family around her. Sally could easily have been either a one dimensional villainess or strictly comic relief but it was the combination of Bill Bell's writing and Darlene Conley's acting that made Sally a complex and layered character.

@soapfan770 Thanks for the additional info re Hawaii Five-O/Barnaby Jones. Looking at Hawaii Five-O final season scheduling moves again, yeah it is leaning more towards sabotage. When Hawaii Five-O ended in April 1980, it was CBS's 3rd longest-running primetime drama, after Gunsmoke and Lassie. Since Hawaii Five-O ended, one CBS primetime drama has equaled Hawaii Five-O run (Murder, She Wrote) and seven CBS primetime dramas have exceeded Hawaii Five-O run (NCIS, CSI, Criminal Minds, Dallas, Knots Landing, NCIS Los Angeles, Blue Bloods). Hawaii Five-O also had the longest run of a CBS primetime drama that premiered in the 1960s.

@soapfan770 mention in the Knots Landing thread of the series premiere 46 years ago lead to this post. CBS may have possibly tank jobbed original Hawaii Five-O and Barnaby Jones. December 1979 CBS changed the Thursday line up. Hawaii Five-O moved from Thursday 9 pm to Tuesday 9 pm. Barnaby Jones moved up 1 hr from 10 pm to 9 pm. New drama Knots Landing is now the Thursday 10 pm occupant. March 1980 CBS moved Hawaii Five-O from Tuesday 9 pm to Saturday 9 pm. Tuesday Hawaii Five-O is head-to-head w/ Three's Company and Taxi. Saturday Hawaii Five-O is head-to-head w/ The Love Boat. The move up 1 hr has Barnaby Jones head-to-head w/ Barney Miller and Soap. Hawaii Five-O fell out of the Top 30 in 1978/79 and Barnaby Jones was 24th in 1978/79. The final ratings for 1979/80 were 2. Three's Company, 13. Taxi, 20. Barney Miller, 23. The Love Boat, 25. Soap, 29. Knots Landing. Barnaby Jones fell out of the Top 30 and was cancelled. Hawaii Five-O was below the Top 30 and was cancelled.

Josh Griffith needs to go. Y&R has less hot garbage.