John F. Smith

SOD October 2006

FIRED Y&R VET: IT'S A MISTAKE

At Y&R, a veteran exec is dumped by a new leader with a different vision. Sounds like cutthroat corporate maneuvering over at Newman Enterprises, right? But that's what recently happened to longtime HW Jack Smith, who was fired last month when Lynn Marie Latham, already the show's top scribe, added Executive Producer to her title.

"2006 [has been] filled with a lot of irony and pain," says Smith. "In January, Lynn was put in charge [as head writer] and almost the same day that happened, my son, Dylan, who never smoked or drank and lived a very healthy lifestyle, took ill with a very aggressive cancer. So I felt nothing but gratitude when Lynn took over because that freed me up to spend precious time with my son in his last months on earth. That's something I wouldn't have been able to do if I had been still running that show."

Before the illness, Smith had begun writing a musical. "As I spent more time with my son, I drew artistically from that painful experience and poured my energies into my musical," he says. "At the same time, I was editing scripts for Y&R and liaisoning between the writing staff and production, just bringing some calm to some very stormy waters over there. More and more, I was becoming disenfranchised, but I don't say that as a victim because I don't feel victimized. After Dylan's death in June, I continued to work on the musical and Lynn continued to strengthen her hold over the show, and it became apparent that she wanted to remove me. In September, they gave me notice. I understand where she is coming from, but I think it's a mistake. Whether it was needed or not needed, it was very disruptive to the cast, the staff, the crew, everybody."

Smith, who started writing for Y&R in 1978, is hardly down for the count. "I've been offered a very good position at Bold & Beautiful," he says. "I'm committed to finishing the musical, and a Broadway producer already wants to produce it. So I'm taking a little break and deciding what I want to do with my life professionally. I don't feel any bitterness toward Lynn or the show. I wish them all well."