Santa Barbara Discussion Thread

[FrenchBug82]

Here is the link for those who want to offer feedback: https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxYtVN9QPYDRxCeiHzasiy6Y8sB5vk4N5c

[amybrickwallace]

Same here.

[Lex S]

Keri, Santa Barbara was bought to be shown during PRIMETIME on Russian TV literally a month after the Soviet Union ceased to exist (Dec 1991) in the middle of a Russian economic crisis. It was on at like 8 pm as about the only American TV show at the time. Most Russians had no idea it was actually always in the ratings' basement for much of its US run just a few years prior and not even that widely known among average Americans, and it was officially cancelled in the US a year later while it was heating up Russian TV screens. Many Americans visiting Eastern Europe were dumbfounded as to why they get asked so many questions about an obscure US daytime soap and most of them had "maybe" seen photos of Marcy Walker and A Martinez on the covers of magazines at checkout stands in the second half of the 80s

 

I believe concurrently the rights to SB were sold to many other countries in the late 80s and much of the 90s. I want to say that only BnB was sold to more countries?

I got to thinking and was wondering why exactly it happened to be SB that was sold to Russian TV. Perhaps, knowing that the show was in its last legs, the producers or maybe Sony or New World or whoever at the time pitched the idea of gaining additional revenue by selling it to markets like Russia. I don't know how much money they got out of it, but apparently not enough to keep the show afloat. I do believe that starting closer to the mid-90s SB started having lots of competition from actual established primetime US shows, and Russian TV was quickly flooded with other shows like Beverly Hills 90210 etc.

Edited October 30, 2021 by Lex S
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[Keri]

Thanks, that's really interesting context. I didn't really know when it aired or what was going on at the time. It maybe helps to explain why it got so popular.

Edited October 30, 2021 by Keri

[Lex S]

Yeah, no problem. Russia was in a dire crisis at the time with its economy literally changing almost overnight. The period of January through June of 1992 is known as economic shock therapy and was used in a few other countries at the time, very successfully in Poland. Basically, what happened was severe economic measures were put in place to jumpstart the economy and prices and inflation skyrocketed while budget restraints were put in place. If you saw news reports about empty shelves in Russian grocery stores, it was true. Basically, it was like another supply chain crisis where a lot of plants and factories were unable to ship products to actual consumers because of the breakdown of so many economic mechanisms. The closest to that would be like before a snowstorm or at the start of the corona when grocery stores in the US were emptying of toilet paper et cetera. 

When the quick economic reforms were introduced, 1992-1993 saw a huge influx of foreign investment and foreign goods. Basically everyone and their momma wanted to come to Russia and sell their wares there. 

In the middle of it all, enter SB -- and in primetime no less! Some SB onscreen talent began having their phone lines jammed inviting them to drop everything they're doing and quickly come to Russia to see all their adoring fans. So if you ever saw those clips of SB stars in Russia being greeted with flowers and such and being shown all those cities and museums and what not and basically treated like Royalty or the Beatles, it's all true. They could literally fill concert arenas in any Russian city at the time. 

What a cash cow! Unfortunately, it was too late. 1992 writing was awful and the show was all but cancelled. I just keep thinking what could have been if all that money was put to good use and good writing..

Edited October 30, 2021 by Lex S
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[Lex S]

About YouTube and how to view the show in general. YouTube has a thing called YouTube TV that it desperately wants me to sign up for.

I currently subscribe to YouTube premium only because I hate commercials and I watch a lot of YouTube. Granted, Santa Barbara didn't have commercials anyway because the shows were unlisted. Also, I believe the channel has to have something like 5000 subscribers in order to show commercials. But, anyway, I wish YouTube TV or YouTube originals or whatever was worth its price. I just wish there was a soap streaming service kind of like Netflix or whatever. I'm sure it would get a lot of subscribers and generate some revenue. Think of all those decades of shows of all those soaps just sitting there in an archive room somewhere collecting dust. If it wasn't for the dedicated soap aficionados on YouTube, we would not be able to see any of those clips or full shows from all those years ago. I remember watching Soapnet back in the day. Granted, they only had ABC soaps and a few other networks shows, but I got to see a bit of Ryan's Hope and what not.  That's how I got into GH and other shows because I could watch reruns later in the day. 

[FrenchBug82]

Again if you want to offer your input: 

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Edited November 1, 2021 by FrenchBug82

[Marissa Gallant]

Lex, your posts the past few days have been so interesting. I did try typing Santa Barbara with my number and it did work. I also just discovered several Another World episodes that are very interesting. It'll keep me going through my boring days. 

I'm watching Mason and his pornstache accuse everyone of killing Gina, even though she can't die...

I want to add how funny Keith is when Mason is confronting them all. "Of course I hated Gina. I hate everyone. I hate CC, I hate Cruz, I even hate you Haley. I'd have to be Rambo to kill every in this town that I hate." ROTFL

[Liberty City]

I'd recommend not posting their episodes openly. I know they said not to put it into public playlists, and this must just push it further.....

[adrnyc]

When the playlists I used to watch Santa Barbara were deleted, I just typed in "Santa Barbara Episode 66" which was where I was at the time and another channel came up with all the videos in English. Maybe they don't have as many as Kelly Eden Capwell had? But for now, I'm still able to get my daily fix.

[FrenchBug82]

Funnily enough I didn't even realize I was posting the episodes themselves but was focused on the link for people to offer their input.

I hadn't even thought of it that way; but now that you say it you are right. Removing the link.

Edited November 1, 2021 by FrenchBug82

[Lex S]

You must have been closing in on episode 600 when the playlists were taken down? You were pretty much on the Orient Express and I was on a slow boat to China (can I still say that today? Oh well, I just did). Were you watching from episode 1? (I mean, this go around, not in the 80s). If yes, I also started watching from episode 1 sometime right before corona struck, so, roughly, a year-and-a-half later I got to episode 400. 

 

Imagine if the powers-that-be launched a streaming service. Many of us would pay 10 or 15 bucks a month just to have access to all those thousands of episodes of all these shows that we can watch in any order, selected episode arcs or from the very beginning. Soapnet tried tried really hard to please soap fand, but they weren't a streaming service and you could only watch as fast as the channel was showing episodes. I probably watched about a year's worth of Ryan's Hope, but it wasn't that great and I can see why it was canceled. I believe Soapnet also showed Knot's Landing which I found pretty decent. I remember they only had ABC soaps for a while, but then it was a big deal when they landed a deal with YnR to show it late at night. They also had that interview talk show early in the morning with Lisa Rinna and Ty what's his name

Edited November 2, 2021 by Lex S
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[Marissa Gallant]

I definitely tear through episodes. I wanted to get as far as I could before I was unable to watch at all. Typing the episode number in has worked the past few days though. Pretty happy about that.  

[Lex S]

Good to hear! I'm a YouTube premium member so I actually downloaded a bunch of playlists, but I think YouTube checks every 30 days for internet connection if I still have those episodes, so they may be deleted from my YouTube cache once the connection is established and it's confirmed that the playlists are gone, I made a copy of my YouTube cache just in case. And, like I mentioned, there's that Russian site. There are also other YouTubers who have uploaded something like 800 or 900 episodes. One of them is heavily focusing on episodes between 1000 and 2000 so I have high hopes I'll be watching for a while.

I have to say the early years of SB have a lot going for it. Even if certain writing spots are patchy and iffy, storylines move pretty quickly. Even if there was no Cruz and Eden, Kelly, Sophia and CC, Gina and Keith, Lionel and Augusta, there is always Mason and his thousands of memorable lines that could be straight from Shakespeare. I am still in the Mason and Mary period but looking forward to Mason/Julia. Grahn is such a great actress. 

Anyone know why Harley Jane Kozak stopped writing her her detective series? She wrote about 4 books with the first couple gaining significant praise. 

[Marissa Gallant]

I'm not sure if anyone is looking for a job, but CC sure could use a new head of security. Everyone in Santa Barbara seems to just breeze in and out of that mansion.