ALL: Jeff Zucker, "PSNS Cancellation is the Beginning of the End" of Network Soap Operas

[Mason]

Oh my God, 90s DAYS on DVD would be perfect!

Cruise of Deception

Buried Alive

Maison Blanche

Possession

Aremid

The Woman in White

The Secret Room

Killing Pool

Princess Gina

There's sooo much they could put on DVD from those years!

[PhoenixRising05]

Oh, yes. The Killing Pool is another good one. Loved that story.

[Brandeis]

I knew SOMEONE here would mention the secret room. And Kristen complaining to Marlena about the food ! ( Pork rinds, potato chips whatever and NOT ONE PIECE OF FRUIT!) LOL!

[KLN]

LoL! I've posted clips of that ENTIRE storyline in the Video forum.

I love the clip of Susan bringing them food...

SUSAN: "You're gonna take them bisquite and you're gonna sop 'em in the gravy, and you're just gonna think you died and gone to heaven!"

KRISTEN: "Oh, I'll die, alright. I'll O.D. on cholesterol!"

[Brandeis]

I REMEMBER THAT!!!! LOL!

I still have it ... somewhere.. on VHS. Thanks for reminding me to transfer it.

But really you know, if worst comes worst, there will always be people like you and me, and millions of others, who kept the good stuff. Jeff Zucker can't take that away from us. We have it forever.

Now I'm crying just a little but what I said is true. WE own it now.

[Juliajms]

Seriously. I've never watched an episode of Passions (although if I'd known about Jusin Hartley, I would have ) and I only get to watch Days once in awhile on Soapnet. Still, I detest this man. He has no idea how attached people are to their soaps. As the Soapnet promo goes, people are watching a lifetime story when they watch their soaps. If he doesn't get that I just wish that he would shut the hell up and let the Passions fans grieve their soap in peace. I will never watch NBC's morning programming again.

[px780]

I don't really get where Zucker gets off acting like NBC is still The Leader. Even if we focus on the past couple seasons alone- they cut ER's episode order at first only to find it have a nice little resurgence. The Apprentice, once their attempt at a Thursday night savior, is half-dead on Sundays after a long break. Their one shining light last year is a game show with an aesthetic that imitates Millionaire (as if that itself doesn't show how tv fluctuates- how many would've bet on a revival of primetime game shows?). Their big hit this season is Heroes a show that wouldn't likely have been greenlit if ABC hadn't done lost and, quite frankly, is a whole lot more hype than the size of the viewing audience at this point merits.

So for him to make proclamations about the future of soaps is just...stupid. Especially when the same kind of storytelling clearly works in primetime, despite all the competition primetime shows have. Put in some dang effort and you might see a return.

90s Days on DVD would kick serious butt. They can either offer all the episodes or hook us up with a streamlined version. Either way? Bring it.

[David V]

I don't think NBC is "dying", but it's certainly been directionless and mismanaged for years. The Law & Order franchise has really been the only truly strong performer, particularly SVU.

As has been said by some elsewhere, it's not merely the fact NBC's track record in Daytime has been poor. It's also the fact that JER was extremely damaging not only to NBCD but in many ways the whole soap genre- because most other soaps sought to copy his gimmicks, and it was all downhill from there (particularly since 2000).

[Mitchapalooza]

Can Jeff "I killed NBC" Zucker just PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE shut the F*CK UP already!!

He is postively the WORST person EVER to be in control of NBC and if he cancels DAYS OF OUR LIVES, then I only hope for the absolute and total demise of not only Zuker himself by the entire NBC network!!

F*CK YOU JEFF ZUCKER, F*CK YOU!!!!

[bellcurve]

With Jeff Zucker in the running, MyNetworkTV will take over it in Primetime before too long...OK, that's unrealistic of me, I know.

COME ON CW!

[King]

I actually really liked Zucker before this.

[Bree]

If Jeff Zucker thinks NBC can sustain itself with eight hours of The Today Show, L&O spinoffs, Deal or No Deal (one of the most annoying game shows ever to be created), two tepid reality shows (Grease and The Apprentice) and one hit drama that is quickly being taken over the crazed fanboy/fangirl audience (Heroes), he's in for a huge letdown.

But it's not just the networks that are killing soaps, it's the industry itself. They keep recycling hack writers, are slow to fire ones that shouldn't be writing in the first place and featuring dated, cliched stories with predictable plot twists over and over and over again. Primetime soaps are not afraid to mix up couples, split them up, and kill them off in exciting, shocking ways. Daytime is too concerned with focus groups and pleasing fan!@#$%^&*]es. They're way too conservative. That's why Brooke and Ridge keep coming back to each other, why Carly and Sonny keep getting married and divorced, why DiMeras won't stay dead when we see them die and why Bianca won't get a love scene featuring satin sheets and romantic music. Yet, they think being risky and fresh is bringing back aborted fetuses to life (AMC) and doing a convoluted murder mystery that destroyed years of character and story history (GL). Soaps should not have writers that write for themselves or write for certain fanbases.

[Andre]

Hazah!