kalbir

I think B&B is stuck with Bradley until it ends.

I would think the cast changes were a reflection of the EP/HW changes over the course of the 1980s: Potter/Marland, Potter/various writers, Kobe/Long, Willmore/various writers, Willmore/Long, Calhoun/Long.

I describe season 6 as a high octane action packed thrill ride. Keep us posted on your watching, looking forward to your thoughts.

Knots Landing being a community-based show didn't have the same limitations in storytelling and expanding the canvas as the family/business conflict-based shows did. Knots Landing also set itself apart from the rest of the primetime soaps with high emotional stakes character driven storytelling.

@P.J. @DRW50 Thank you for the additional cast departures. Wow, I hadn't realized it was that many. I think 1995 had the most contract cast departures.

Many thought 1991 was going to be a rough year with the departures of Kim Zimmer in July 1990 and Pamela Long in December 1990, and the cast purge in the early months of 1991 (Grant Aleksander, Beth Chamberlain, Kassie DePaiva, Robert Newman, Michael O'Leary). I thought 1991 was very good even though the ratings in the first half of the year didn't reflect the quality of the show.

1984-1986 main cast departures off the top of my head: Chris Bernau, Robert Newman, Grant Aleksander, Vincent Irizarry, Judi Evans. If any are missing, please add. 1988 writers strike was March 7 to August 7, so almost half of 1988 was strike material.

Maybe its me, but 1986/87 was not one of the more memorable seasons of the 1980s. NBC Thursday dominated and there was really no breakout hit that season.

RIP. Days has had so much loss over the years.

@soapfan770 Thank you for posting the TV Guide article. Not #1, but Knots Landing did outlast the rest of the 1980s primetime soaps.

Also 1986 had the EP change from Gail Kobe to Joe Willmore.

GL avoided cancel territory in the 1980s because Capitol showed no growth and B&B wasn't a hit right away. GL became CBS's lowest-rated daytime drama in 1989 but it doesn't enter cancel territory until the aftermath of OJ. From what I remember in the soap press, the first cancellation rumors started in 1995.

That TV Guide cover is from 1985. I don't know of any website that has TV Guide articles.

I don't think any full episodes in Italian have surfaced, promos have though.

Hahahaha, yeah.

Y&R 25% good, 75% garbage time

Were you all checking for J. Eddie Peck BITD? I didn't get his appeal back then and I still don't.

delete

I believe Roger's fall off the cliff in Santo Domingo was Douglas Marland first major storyline at GL.

@soapfan770 1980s Fridays went from Dukes of Hazzard/Dallas/Falcon Crest to new hotness Miami Vice then TGIF comedies. 1980s Saturdays went from Aaron Spelling hit factory to The Golden Girls.

We saw in the 1980s daytime ratings thread that CBS changed their daytime schedule plus changes to the daytime soaps themselves and ABC eventually lost their momentum. Exactly.

1982-1985 CBS had success with action shows Magnum, P.I. and Simon & Simon, but then post-Super Bowl 1985 The Cosby Show blew up and weakened Magnum, P.I. and 1985/86 Cheers took off and clobbered Simon & Simon. Fall 1985 until the end of the decade that CBS struggled with dramas. Of all the dramas launched in that period, the longest running was Jake and the Fatman (5 seasons). It's so funny how the fortunes of CBS primetime lineup and CBS daytime lineup went in opposite directions in the 1980s. CBS primetime lineup started the decade riding high with Who Shot JR but was an absolute mess by the end of the decade. CBS daytime lineup started the decade shaken by the huge rise and dominance of ABC but ended the decade #1 with all four soaps hitting their stride plus the game show block. That was mostly due to the Aaron Spelling hit factory, but Brandon Stoddard and Robert Iger put an end to that. As we all know NBC was a mess until The Cosby Show came along and that lead to NBC Thursday dominating primetime for the better part of the next 20 years.

Come to think of it, the only game show hosts of that generation (as in age 80+) that are still with us AFAIK are Wink Martindale and Bob Eubanks.

Lance was a suave sophisticated wealthy businessman. Lucas was a rugged elemental sailor. Lance was the older son but in real life John McCook is four years younger than Tom Ligon.

Wasn't it rumored that Victoria Principal missing episodes in 1986 was due to cosmetic surgery? She was 36 in 1986 so I don't think she would have a face lift that early. We all know her second husband was a plastic surgeon so she had access to the best surgery and skin care.