At this point my feeling is that any one hour soap that's cancelled should be replaced by 2 half hour soaps.

2 half hour soaps would be MORE EXPENSIVE than just one full hour soap.

Exec. Producers, directors, etc. aren't paid that much LESS just because the show is 1/2 hour.

Soundstages are very expensive, sets, costumes, lighting, music production.

It's too expensive to introduce two separate 1/2 hour soaps.

I can guarantee you that "Bold and the Beautiful" is more expensive to produce than "PASSIONS", "Guiding Light" or "One Life to Live".

PASSIONS has been on the air for count 'em----7 going on 8 years.

They've never once produced a decent total viewers rating.

The show has always been DEAD LAST in the ratings.

The show is also the laughing stock of the whole industry. The most critically de-claimed soap in history.

The central problem is most likely James Reilly. He's over sixty years old and he's got a "Dr. NO" fixation that won't quit.

NBC is tired of waiting on a "cult show" to take off in the ratings. It would be different if this show had the success of Dark Shadows or other cult hits. But it doesn't.

The more DAYS rises, the more NBC is ready to replace PASSIONS with something more compatible with DAYS.

Brad Bell has the #2 soap on the air and knows how to hire good talented soap oriented people. He could create a very good 1 hour soap for NBC and Executive Produce it with someone else HW. It would probably get better ratings than PASSIONS right away.

Passions has not always been dead last. It ranked above PC until it got cancelled. In its first few years, Passions was a hit. It had even hit a 2.9 during the holidays. They were even having ratings success in 2004 when they nearly passed GL. The last year has killed it and I think JER could still save it if he finally admits to change his style and pick up the pace. I am not opposed to hiring someone else to retool as there are some good actors and the show itself has potential. It is not meant to be taken seriously and never has been but perhaps that is the problem. Maybe it's time that they strive to be taken seriously. Brad Bell is the last person I would want to launch a new soap. He can barely handle the one he has and B&B only manages to stay where it is in ratings because it has Y&R as a lead in. I think it is more likely NBC retools Passions or makes even more cuts. It does do well in some of the demos still. Whatever the case I can't see them starting a new soap. They only gave Passions a chance because of JER because, at the time, they clearly were trying to get out of the soap business by cancelling two of their shows. They almost lost Days around that time too so I think if Passions had not come along they may have completely removed themselves from soaps.

Passions needs to end the stories it has and create some new ones. They need to go back to what made the show work from 1999-2001, which was a mix of traditional/supernatural. That was it's identity and every so often the show goes on a mini-run of sorts and is good but then goes to crap again. The potential is there to be utilized.

As for ATWT, it's safe and if GL managed to pass an ABC soap or two then they are safe for now. I am actually more focused on AMC and OLTL getting cancelled as they keep getting worse.

I agree, EK4L. It's a laughing stock. And it's a shame to the whole industry. No storyline on there takes itself seriously. It's so lazy. I mean no - absolutely NO - effort is put into writing that show.

2 half hour soaps would be MORE EXPENSIVE than just one full hour soap.

Exec. Producers, directors, etc. aren't paid that much LESS just because the show is 1/2 hour.

Soundstages are very expensive, sets, costumes, lighting, music production.

It's too expensive to introduce two separate 1/2 hour soaps.

I can guarantee you that "Bold and the Beautiful" is more expensive to produce than "PASSIONS", "Guiding Light" or "One Life to Live".

I've no doubt you're right, but I was speaking more from a viewers' point of view. A little trip back to the old drawing board might get the audience interested again.

Then again, there must be other possibilities they haven't yet exhausted for what's already on air.

I can guarantee you that "Bold and the Beautiful" is more expensive to produce than "PASSIONS", "Guiding Light" or "One Life to Live".

Well, low-budget gay pornography is more expensive to produce than GL. LOL. But I love both of them on their own merits.

PASSIONS has to go! I think the simple fact that NBC tried to clone it into New England's answer to BEACH or SB is where they really fucked up. Nothing is better than the original.

And Brad Bell creating and producing a show for the NBC Lineup fascinates me. Would this be a Bell-Phillip Production with NBC owning a stake in it, or would it be a part of a new production company Brad Bell starts on his own(i.e. Reilly's Outpost Farms).

I wonder if Brad Bell did create a soap, if it would be similar to B&B/Y&R. I'd at least hope they have a brilliant cast because thats one thing NBC could improve on. I do think PSNS could've been a huge hit if they had just tried with the casting. Some people like Dana Sparks and Molly Stanton were so laughably bad, that it was never going to work with their heading the show.

I will say, I've thought about it and I'm not as upset that they got Brad Bell. That is better than JER. With a fresh set of characters maybe he could give us something interesting. But still, I want Claire Labine either headwriting or creating a soap.

Game shows are big hits. I'm sure they are already grooming a replacement for Bob Barker and I suspect you will see some changes in the show along with it. TPIR isn't going anywhere.

As far as CBS soaps, unless something drastically changes, Guilding Light will be consistently ahead of both AMC and OLTL in households and total viewers within the next six months. I believe we will see signs of that by the end of this year. By the end of this year, we will see GL beat AMC and OLTL periodically.

I don't believe the whole "Brad Bell's new soap is going to NBC" thing. Why would Bell be in talks with NBC? On second thought, why would NBC add a new soap to their line-up when their daytime line-up is sucking already. Whether they're replacing PSNS or not, a new soap will do poor in the ratings anyway.

The thing about creating new soaps in today's day and age is that people are no longer sitting at home waiting for new things to come. In the 60s and 70s, new soaps worked because women were at home and they would become engaged in the new soap.

Today, people are so busy that when they do have a chance to be at home, they're more interested in watching their classic soap, not some new soap they don't care about.

I'm not believing ANYTHING until I see an officail press release from NBC.

I don't believe the whole "Brad Bell's new soap is going to NBC" thing. Why would Bell be in talks with NBC?

William Bell was doing magical things at DAYS long before he moved to CBS to create The Young and the Restless.

Whether they're replacing PSNS or not, a new soap will do poor in the ratings anyway.

The thing about creating new soaps in today's day and age is that people are no longer sitting at home waiting for new things to come. In the 60s and 70s, new soaps worked because women were at home and they would become engaged in the new soap.

Today, people are so busy that when they do have a chance to be at home, they're more interested in watching their classic soap, not some new soap they don't care about.

I'm not believing ANYTHING until I see an officail press release from NBC.

If this were true, I don't understand why everyone thinks DAYS will spike in the ratings with Hogan. Facts show that soaps do rise in the ratings. ATWT has had lots of success recently an with Laura's return on GH I expect major improvement in the ratings. Y&R and B&B which are so far ahead of the pack are even having big improvements.

There have always been a large number of failed soaps, mainly bad ones. When they create a good, well cast traditional soap and it fails, maybe I could agree. But shows like Passions, Port Charles and Sunset Beach were never going to appeal to a mass amount. Basing the ability of a new soap to succeed based on those experiemental soaps isn't a solid foundation, IMO.

I watched the news tonight and it said they would be finding a new host for The Price is Right. Just because Barker is retiring doesn't mean the show is ending.

No kidding! CBS will never cancel TPIR.

People surely understand that Barker does need to retire, but I don't see the entire show going down at all.

As for GL, I do think they will more than likely go off the air, but that's the only one.

William Bell was doing magical things at DAYS long before he moved to CBS to create The Young and the Restless.

I'm pretty sure that was in the 60s/70s that happened. It was a different era back then. And that was Bill Bell, not Brad Bell. Bell can't even take control of his own soap (B&, why in the hell would he create a new one for a new network? It just doesn't add up.

B&B may not be good now, but back in the day it was and NBC's most successful soap came from the Bell family. Maybe they want a classy production in the vein of B&B or Y&R. Crap or not, B&B has very good ratings.

I'm not talking about B&B, the actual soap, being any good. I'm saying that Bell can't even think of good enough storylines beside repetitive sh!t with B&B. Why would he propse a new soap to NBC?

And correction, DAYS did not come from the Bells. The Cordays are the creators of DAYS and Bill Bell was only brought in as a head writer when DAYS was almost cancelled in 66. Yes, Bell had a huge part in keeping DAYS on the air, but when he left, the show continued with much success, so you can't really say that the Bells made DAYS successful.

I don't believe the whole "Brad Bell's new soap is going to NBC" thing. Why would Bell be in talks with NBC? On second thought, why would NBC add a new soap to their line-up when their daytime line-up is sucking already. Whether they're replacing PSNS or not, a new soap will do poor in the ratings anyway.

Do you even realize WHY networks create new soaps? I don't know, but I'm gonna take a shot in the dark and guess that they hope the show becomes a huge success.

They're keeping DAYS for the next few years...why not try their hand at something new?!

Brad Bell has success whether people give him credit for it or not.(I know the fact that Y&R as a lead in is a major factor.)

Do I trust Brad Bell creating a new show and keeping it fresh, interesting and successful? HELL NO. But should he be given the opportunity to surprise me? Yep! I think of every other writer in daytime right now, I'd rather have him create a soap. Can you imagine Higley from OLTL creating her own soap? Wait a minute...that's what she's doing at OLTL already.

The thing about creating new soaps in today's day and age is that people are no longer sitting at home waiting for new things to come. In the 60s and 70s, new soaps worked because women were at home and they would become engaged in the new soap.

Today, people are so busy that when they do have a chance to be at home, they're more interested in watching their classic soap, not some new soap they don't care about.

A) Premiere the new soap during the summer or on a holiday like NBC did with PASSIONS. That gets people's attention.

There's podcasting and SOAPnet as options. NBC will want to profit from a new soap any way they can.

C) People want new options on NBC and on the air in general. They just don't want a retread of the AW thing with PASSIONS, replacing a classic getting back on its feet with something far worse.

I'm not believing ANYTHING until I see an officail press release from NBC.

Nor should you...

After reading the post from EricaKane4Life about Brad Bell possibly creating a new soap for NBC and Passions being revamped or cancelled I was floored. I don't know what to think or believe. I really do like Passions and would be sad to see it go, but on the other hand, the prospects of a new show and all the excitment around creating a new show has me kind of torn. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how this all plays out. BUT, if a new soap is coming that's a good thing for daytime in general.