2008: The Directors and Writers Thread

[Y&RWorldTurner]

I believe it was for Sonny's bi-polar storyline.

I think the award Korte is accepting was for Maurice's performance, the show lost for the storyline itself. Though GH did win a Prism Award in 2004 for Courtney's addiction to painkillers.

[Toups]

Thanks man.

[brimike]

I don't even remember Courtney being addicted to painkillers, the same way I never remember half the rapes on GH. I figure everyone's just been shot, raped or addicted to drugs or alcohol.

Thank you for making it all one big blur, Guza.

[Toups]

You're right, KK!

BELL: I’ve never had an editor.

LABINE: No, I haven’t either. And I never will.

So it looks like Michele wasn't a Script Editor under Labine.

[Y&RWorldTurner]

It still doesn't explain Michele's placing in the credits during the Labine era.

Was the discussion strictly about script editors? Though, I guess there isn't any other type of editor in the American soap writing process.

[Toups]

ON WRITING: How far ahead do your stories get planned?

BELL: I make them up as I go along.

LABINE: This is the sound of two hands clapping.

BELL: It’s not as though I don’t know what I’m going to do tomorrow. But with some characters I don’t know, and I find story as I go along.

LABINE: Bill doesn’t do it the way it’s usually done. In the traditional way—not in the traditional way at all—in the contemporary way, writers submit long

story documents to the network that are purportedly the story for a year on a show. From those long story documents, outline writers structure weekly

outlines, sometimes with a hell of a lot of help from the executive producer, the producers, and the network executives: an outline a day for each show.

These outlines are overseen by the senior writing team and by the head writer, and then distributed to script writers, who write the dialogue. Then

there is another person called an editor who edits the scripts for continuity and tone.

BELL: I’ve never had an editor.

LABINE: No, I haven’t either. And I never will.

[Y&RWorldTurner]

Thanks Toups!

I knew Bill never used a SE, but it surprised me with Labine. I could've sworn someone did editing for her on GH, OLTL, and GL, but I guess not. Now we need to figure out what the hell Val Jean's placing in the credits during the mid-90's means.

[R Sinclair]

What, exactly, were the credits during that time?

I ask, because I remember the credits from 2000 looking like:

Written by

Robert Guza, Jr.

Meg Bennett

Michele Val Jean

Mary Ryan

Elizabeth Korte

David Rupel

Garin Wolf

Dana Herko

&

Script Writer

[MarkH]

Toups, you can't post breathtakingly good stuff like that without a source!!! I wanna read the whole thing.

[MarkH]

You know, I think there are two issues.

First, vis-a-vis rain1...sometimes it becomes VERY tempting to guess the identity of such a person. Especially for someone like me...rain1 is an example of a handful of posters I have carefully studied...writing style, posting times, what shows s/he was posting about, etc...to try to make a match with the real person. And I think I might have made such a match. I am not alone...I'll suspect 50% of us have excellent guesses about who rain1 is.

My point is that rain1 may have felt the need to be self-protective...and I fully support that. As much as I loved her/him, I don't want her/him to do jeopardy to her/himself.

At the same time, you're right about the CRUSH of questions for rain1...or anyone who evinces insider knowledge. What this reflects, I feel, is the failure of the soap press.

When Toups prints a brief exchange between Bell and Labine about writing process, I (and others) suck it up! Why? Because there is so little out there.

SOW is now asking for opinions about how to "revamp"...and I mentioned this hunger that a segment of their audience has for behind-the-scenes PROCESS. I strongly urged them to consider making SOW more of a "trade publication, but for typical readers". Rain1 was the victim, if you'll forgive my pun, of the drought of reliable process information. I'm not talking about gossip...I'm talking about information on how these shows tick.

[Contessa Donatella]

I hope you told them what you mean by 'typical readers' because it's not a universal attribute of soap fans, or any entertainment fans really, to want to know about the biz behind the biz. They simply don't want to be that analytical about something that they want to enjoy & immerse themselves in the suspension of disbelief.

We are another group of fans, but I doubt we are the majority.

[UCLAN]

Well, I come to this site because I totally enjoy reading all that you guys post. I have gleaned so much information from you all. You all have a wealth of knowledge. I prefer to come here versus reading SOD and SOW. I visit this thread everyday just to see what you all are posting about. I don't post cause I know nothing about this topic, but it fascinates me. Thanks for the enlightenment.

[Kubla Khan]

Re: Michele Val Jean

Soap credits can be weird.

I remember the AMC credits used to look like this (circa 1999):

Written by

Nixon, Passanante, etc.

Victor Miller

Craig Carlson

Frederick Johnson

Gail Lawrence

Juliet Law Packer

Mimi Leahey

Bettina F. Bradbury, etc.

Now, it would appear that Juliet Law Packer was the script editor, but she wasn't. AMC used to distinguish between "associate head writers" and "breakdown writers," and Juliet didn't have the AHW distinction (less seniority), so she was listed by herself. The script editor, Mimi Leahey, was listed with all the other script writers without distinction.

It can also work that script writers with seniority or special distinction can be listed "by themselves" above the others.

[Toups]

AMC:

- James Harmon Brown last listed as Co-Head Writer on August 26

- Barbara Esensten last listed as Co-Head Writer on August 26

- Charles Pratt Jr. first listed as Head Writer on August 27

[dm.]

Wow, that's such a nice post. It sure brightens the day.