Rumored OLTL May Sweeps Story Involving Teens

[bellcurve]

So, in the B&B/HEADLINE NEWS thread, there is mention that OLTL has already taped its own school shooting. Does anyone have sources for these rumors?

Does anyone know for a fact that this storyline is still gonna go ahead as planned or if they will do major re-shooting or editing?!

[anita30]

Well then she is a bigger idiot than she already has. GMAB there is tack and common respect. I really hope this comes to bite her in the ass.

[a2sassy]

I heard about this a few days before what happened at Virginia Tech...I think it's gonna be cut now just like GH cut an almost terrorist-like s/l after 9/11.

[DrewH]

I don't think they should re-shoot anything. I say go ahead with the storyline. It's a freaking story on a television show based on the reality of peope's lives in a ficitional town of Llanview. Things like this happen in real life. The Llanview High School shooter could be a copy-cat of the Virginia Tech killer. Copy-cat killers emerge all the time after a school shooting. Individuals see the mass media and coverage that the previous killer received, and in their sick and twisted mind, they like that. They want that.

I say Dena Higley, and the other writer (forget their name), go ahead with your idea. See what happens.

[Ryan]

There were rumors that they did a school shooting, but no one really knows. If they did do it, it's gonna be HELL to edit that out of the episodes.

[leevo64]

I think that needs to be decided really carefully. If this is true, the storyline needs to be EXTREMELY non-soapy and EXTREMELY sensitive and character-based. I do think there's a place for that kind of storyline on daytime - we have rapes, AIDS, murders, serial killers. all with no consequence or social message - but at this point it would need to be highly tasteful and OSCAR worthy.

[cal3]

From the SOD summary at soapzone

Henry is also supposed to have "Columbine tendencies" . I believe that was teased in his podcast.

Dena's incapable of doing any story well much less this story now.

[DrewH]

I think the story should be done, but it needs to be done very well. It can't be just another plot device to get Starr and Cole in the same room together and bring them back together. That's ridiculous.

[cal3]

Sweeps starts in what 2 weeks? Henry has been on for what 2 episodes at this point. Has Markko even been on for an episode yet? Starr and Cole are the only ones with parents we would recognize and Todd's missing. So that leaves the teens, Blair, Marty, Tate and Marcie?

Whatever is planned is just another typical event of Dena's.

[AmandainNC28655]

Okay...even though this is television and a television storyline, they're a lot of crazies out there who would copy cat something like this. I work in a high school as a school counselor and we have had threats of something similar to Columbine happening tomorrow at my school. ONe of our other highschools in our town, was evacuated for a bomb threat this morning. In light of everything that has happened at VTech, and even though this is JUST a storyline on television...it can still have real tendencies. I for one hope that OLTL/ABC has some tact and to edit or shelf this storyline. After all of Va Tech and everything going on at my school yesterday and today(where dectectives have been investigating all day) I just don't want to deal with it on a soap....I have dealt with it enough.

[David_Vickers]

I think due to the V-Tech tragedy, OLTL should drop this storyline, even if they have to re-shoot and re-edit stuff.

[Josh]

DROP THIS STORY AND DROP IT NOW!! It would be in bad taste and leave a bitter taste in everyone's mouth! Can you imagine the flack the entire daytime genre would get if Dena and Frank done this!! DROP it NOW!!!!

I will never watch another day of OLTL if this storyline happens I swear to the God's in Heaven!

[Lskreet]

http://www.accesshollywood.com/television/ah4960.shtml

I found this article. It's true. Something goes down at high school

[poohbear19]

Agree, working in the local school district here... I have went to countless seminars and services about spotting things like this, and what to do if it happens. I have to say even though we talk about it and are prepared for it somewhat; I know students that still treat this as some kind of joke like it can never happen to them. And it makes me angry, because a student stabbed another student (killing her) in this school... and these students still think that what they do has do effect on them or other. So, if students see this... and it gets them talking about it and concerned (and gets parents talking to their child about it,) then it has at least did something and could prevent something from happening.

[ZaraB]

Since it hasn't aired, it's hard to know how far the story went. From what I have now heard, it was just a hostage situation. Dena is just building a teen set -- and even with the deaths and destruction that now is ABC soaps sweeps, I am doubting this was very graphic or very long. I doubt they consider any but the perpetrator expendable - like others, I now suspect this was really most likely a poorly chosen plot point so that Starr and Cole can get back together being PR'd for a dull sweeps period. I also already suspect a lot of spin.

But timing is everything. Getting Jonathan Groff, Kirsten A, Portia R to do post production PSA's won't cover it. And with Dena's subtlety, one will see it coming for the next few weeks, and we have now seen an all too real situation. With the sweeps extremes of tornados, explosions, fires and floods, we are also now primed to expect the worst.