Like actors( and this may be a dumb question) but do HW's have 13 week cycles like actors? How long is Hogan's contract?

Like actors( and this may be a dumb question) but do HW's have 13 week cycles like actors? How long is Hogan's contract?

I asked this over in Y&R Potpourri.

1. Would his contract be for 2-, 3- or 5-years?

2. Would writers like this typically get 12-month cycles?

3. Might Sony have waived the 12-month cycles in exchange for Hogan not suing over the Days debacle?

I guess in my head I have conjectured that he has a 2- or 3-year contract with no cycles...so I have assumed he'll be in the co-HW seat until Summer 2010 or Summer 2011. I'd love to know...

I quit watching Hogans Days, looks like if Hogan will stay this long at YR I might as well through in the towel for Y&R too

I quit watching Hogans Days, looks like if Hogan will stay this long at YR I might as well through in the towel for Y&R too

But they produce a decent episode once or twice a month, who cares if the long-term plotting on a serial is a disaster!

<sarcasm>

Even if we can't get rid of the entire Head Writing team at Y&R and a few staff writers there, Maria should at least let Sheffer and Hamner go and hire ONE competent Co-HW. I'd prefer an all new writing team (they can keep Slater and Esser), but maybe letting Sheffer and Hamner go and replacing them with someone more stable is the easier solution.

I quit watching Hogans Days, looks like if Hogan will stay this long at YR I might as well through in the towel for Y&R too

yup. he has driven me away from Days and now Y&R.

Sheffer's definitely become one of those "recycled hacks" that reeks similar havoc on all the shows he's joined. He's no different than a Megan McTavish, B&E, or Dena Hgley. He had what, one decent year and half at ATWT? The latter part of his tenure there was a disaster and one that carried onto DAYS and now Y&R. He is a perfect example of why the Writing Daytime Emmy is such a joke (but the Dayime Emmy's as a whole are). His vision is very anti-soap, and on a show that was once so old-fashioned like Y&R, it really sticks out, and not in a particularly good or interesting way. Even Latham's Y&R had more heart, diversity, and ensemble storytelling than the dreck Y&R is currently.

I don't buy this crap about daytime dying, network interference dictating every single detail, being the reasons why Y&R is the way it is. Maria Arena Bell is a weak leader with little writing experience, and Sheffer, Hamner, and Rauch's uneven and downright disastrous track records speak for themselves.

I may not enjoy every single story on DAYS, but there is a definitely a clear vision steering that show. You just have to watch and notice that and compare it to Y&R, where there seems to be no main vision and everything seems to be made up as they go along. The long-term planning and plotting on Y&R is particularly a disaster, while on DAYS I at least get the sense that things have been crafted for a period of time and there appears to be a direction they know where they want to go in. There's definitely too many cooks in the Y&R kitchen.

My point is, if DAYS can deliver all this on a crappy budget and in daytime's current climate, and NBC Daytime definitely has the worst track record of all the daytime departments across the main networks, why can't Y&R and other soaps? The only reason is those heading/writing Y&R are incompetent and not skilled enough to handle the show and its identity.

Edited November 14, 200916 yr by Y&RWorldTurner

Who writes DOOL?

Tomlin?

Dena is credited as HW, but I hear GT and Whitesell are the ones really writing it so IDK

Dena is credited as HW, but I hear GT and Whitesell are the ones really writing it so IDK

That's what I want to know.

Sheffer's definitely become one of those "recycled hacks" that reeks similar havoc on all the shows he's joined. He's no different than a Megan McTavish, B&E, or Dena Hgley. He had what, one decent year and half at ATWT? The latter part of his tenure there was a disaster and one that carried onto DAYS and now Y&R. He is a perfect example of why the Writing Daytime Emmy is such a joke (but the Dayime Emmy's as a whole are). His vision is very anti-soap, and on a show that was once so old-fashioned like Y&R, it really sticks out, and not in a particularly good or interesting way. Even Latham's Y&R had more heart, diversity, and ensemble storytelling than the dreck Y&R is currently.

I don't buy this crap about daytime dying, network interference dictating every single detail, being the reasons why Y&R is the way it is. Maria Arena Bell is a weak leader with little writing experience, and Sheffer, Hamner, and Rauch's uneven and downright disastrous track records speak for themselves.

I may not enjoy every single story on DAYS, but there is a definitely a clear vision steering that show. You just have to watch and notice that and compare it to Y&R, where there seems to be no main vision and everything seems to be made up as they go along. The long-term planning and plotting on Y&R is particularly a disaster, while on DAYS I at least get the sense that things have been crafted for a period of time and there appears to be a direction they know where they want to go in. There's definitely too many cooks in the Y&R kitchen.

My point is, if DAYS can deliver all this on a crappy budget and in daytime's current climate, and NBC Daytime definitely has the worst track record of all the daytime departments across the main networks, why can't Y&R and other soaps? The only reason is those heading/writing Y&R are incompetent and not skilled enough to handle the show and its identity.

You nailed it, "Y&RWorldTurner". Daytime isn't dying, just the pool of creative, smart head writers who know how to spin and plot stories, while remaining true to the characters and their histories. That's the real tragedy.

You nailed it, "Y&RWorldTurner". Daytime isn't dying, just the pool of creative, smart head writers who know how to spin and plot stories, while remaining true to the characters and their histories. That's the real tragedy.

Agreed.

Sadly, I think many in the industry are buying too much into the "daytime is dying" mantra and use it as an excuse to turn in mediocre or crappy work and to defend really bad stories on soaps that are creatively hitting rock bottom at the moment and that they know aren't that great. I think those people are more concerned with collecting a paycheck, but given the economy, who can blame them I guess? It's really sad that such a defeatist attitude seems to be plaguing the industry, especially with people who supposedly love their jobs. I think it lowers the expectations of the writers and even the audience as to what a "good" story is and how one is crafted.

I don't think anyone expects another creative golden era, but some consistency, decent long-term plotting/planning, and general respect for the intelligence of the audience would be nice.

Edited November 15, 200916 yr by Y&RWorldTurner

Is S. Lennon gone as a scriptwriter at OLTL? She hasn't written an epi in over a month..

Well, she may not be writing for soaps anymore, but looks like Nancy Curlee Demorest is keeping her storytelling roots alive by writing narratives and reciting them in front of live audiences at The Monti in Durham/Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

I also never knew she was a consultant for ABC Daytime in the mid-90's, but consulting is such a thankless job.

http://themonti.org/index.html

Nancy Curlee DemorestNancy Curlee Demorest is a three time Emmy winner for her work as Head Writer for CBS's Guiding Light. She also worked as a consultant for ABC Daytime Television in the mid-nineties, and is the author of two screenplays, The Reluctant Bride and Goodtime Girls. Nancy lives in Hillsborough with her husband, writer Stephen Demorest, and their family -- three daughters, who continue to provide plenty of daytime drama.

Glad to see she's back into writing of some sort, maybe she'll eventually reconsider coming back to daytime. Doubtful, but I can wish...

Edited November 16, 200916 yr by Y&RWorldTurner

Well, she may not be writing for soaps anymore, but looks like Nancy Curlee Demorest is keeping her storytelling roots alive by writing narratives and reciting them in front of live audiences at The Monti in Durham/Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Interesting! Also in a performance vein, Richard Culliton performed in a play earlier this year! Who knew? Is that old news? It's mentioned here: http://otg.mysuburbanlife.com/2009/04/28/chit-chat-r-aaron-thomann-steel-beam-director-sold-mamet%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%98glengarry-glen-ross%E2%80%99

More GL invasion.

ATWT:

- Rob Decina first listed as Director on November 17

Is S. Lennon gone as a scriptwriter at OLTL? She hasn't written an epi in over a month..

Hmm....don't know. I'll see if I can find out.