Search For Tomorrow Discussion Thread

[DRW50]

May would have been very good as Lloyd.

I'm still not sure why they didn't do a better job casting that part, aside from Joe Lambie. Who thought hiring Robert Reed made any sense?

[SoapDope78]

Meg Bennett as a contestant on Three On A Match (1971). I remember Meg saying on a 80's Pyramid appearance that she was a contestant on this show and said it furnished her first apartment in New York as a struggling actress. She started in SFT in 1973.

Please register in order to view this content

 

I wonder how Janice Lynde would have been as Patti ? 

Robert Reed seemed pissy in everything he did outside of the Brady projects. Ironically, he thought the BB was beneath his talents a serious actor.  

Please register in order to view this content

[DRW50]

Nice to see such an early clip of Meg Bennett.

I could see Janice fitting into the more neurotic type Patti had been. And she was also closer to the right age range.

[TEdgeofNight]

Going back abit, the Search actors HATED the Nicholson, Braxton, Avila Mayer era. I was in NYC during that time and spent alot of time outside the studio and got to know some of the actors. They were miserable. Marcia McCabe, in particular absolutely hated the Sunny suicide story. She was very very vocal about it. 

[Paul Raven]

Why was there such a turnover of writers/producers in that era?

You would think they would be looking for stability but each new team that came in changed direction , seemingly for no good reason instead of tweaking what was there.

A lot of the new characters had little chance to get established before they were gone. Surely some of them had potential to be used by subsequent regimes?

And what about bringing back writers familiar with the show ?

Would Ann Marcus, the Corringtons, Henry Slesar or Peggy O'Shea been approached or interested?

[VelekaCarruthers]

I've been looking at the ratings during and after each head writer switch.  The ratings during Marcus' tenure (Oct 74 to April 75) were very good but at first not quite as high a Upton's (who was there six months prior. Marcus left when Mary Hartman was picked up as she was a creator and head writer). I've watched Marcus' interviews on Youtube; she discusses most of the soaps she worked on. She liked the money; she's not all warm and fuzzy about writing for them. She loved nighttime genres that gave her writing more flexibility than soapy dramas. But she was good at writing soaps.  By April 75, SFT was no.2 in the ratings behind ATWT. O'Shea was next (lasted 18 months) and in May 75, SFT hit No. 1. When O'Shea left the show as still in the top five. O'Shea moved to OLTL in 77? but not as head writer so not sure why she left SFT. The Corringtons were the safest bet to keep long term. They needed to change direction by 1980 as the ratings were  dropping but still very solid 6s/low 20s share). They should have expanded the show to an hour and given the Corringtons some direction and more budget.

One has to wonder about two people who were with the show for a long time:

Mary Ellis Bunim was promoted to EP when she was about 28, amazingly and a woman! She was talented but she went through at 11 head writer changes from when she started in 1974.  Here's her list of writers:

Theodore Apstein (January 1974 – May 1974) 5 mo
Gabrielle Upton (May 1974 – November 1974) 6 mo
Ann Marcus (October 1974 - April 1975) 6 mo
Peggy O’Shea (April 1975 – November 1976) 18 mo
Irving Elman (with James Lipton) (November 1976 – Summer 1977) 9 mo
Robert J. Shaw with Charles/Patti Dizenzo (August 1977 - Spring 78) 6-9 mo?
Henry Slesar (Spring 78 to August 78) 3-4 mo?
Corringtons (August 1978 to May 1980) 1 yr/9mo
Linda Grover/John Porterfield (May 1980 to mid July 1980) 3 mo.
Gabrielle Upton (July 1980 to at least through March or April)
Harding Lemay April to June 81 writers' strike
Don Chastain (Summer 1981 writers' strike - replaced by Ellis/Hunt Dec 81 or Jan 82)

Then Fred Bartholemew comes in when Bunim goes to ATWT (Oct 81?) and he brings in Ellis Hunt for the NBC switchover, they lasted 11 months.

Mary Stuart is the other mystery to me: how was she to work with? Did she instigate many of the writer firings? Was she not involved at all. No other P&G show went through this kind of frenetic change. (The Doctors might be a close second but wasn't on as long and not P&G).

Edited yesterday at 06:28 PM by VelekaCarruthers

[kalbir]

I feel CBS/P&G got really shaken by 1978-1982 ABC huge rise and domination, thus the changes to the shows.

Considering Capitol showed no growth, I wonder if CBS ever regretting cancelling Search for Tomorrow. From the 1980s Ratings thread, Capitol pretty much inherited Search for Tomorrow audience but Capitol ratings were impacted when One Life to Live rebounded in 1985 with Andrea Evans return. Remember Capitol was head-to-head with the second half of One Life to Live.

Even if CBS kept Search for Tomorrow, I think it would've ended as soon as Bill Bell had a second show ready.

Funny thing is Search for Tomorrow NBC run was only three months shorter that Capitol run.

[Khan]

I agree.  Of course, I haven't seen any of her work on DAYS or LIAMST, but I have seen her stuff on other shows (SFT, GH, LOL, FC and KL) and I think she was very, very good.  

[VelekaCarruthers]

At the start of 1982 under Ellis/Hunt (on CBS) SFT was solidly in the middle of the 13 soaps pulling in between a 7.5 and 6.5 with high 20s share. The final week on CBS the show garnered a 6.3/23. The first week on NBC and mostly thereafter, the ratings were in the middle 3s with a 12 share! I I think under Tomlin 1 and under Glynn the show might have hit over a 4 and 14 but one week only or so.  Capitol didn't get those numbers until middle of summer and in the first few months hit the 4s and low 5. By year end it was in the low 6s/23 share but struggled for the remainder of its run.  

NBC's Search was never going to get 6 / 23 shares but when they were solidly in the high 3s and 12/13 share they invariably fired the writers and producer. Dumb. 

[Paul Raven]

At the time SFT was changing writers regularly (yet maintaining good ratings) all the other CBS shows were steady.

Beginning in 75 All My Children was moved to 12.30-the first time there was soap competition.And then later Ryan's Hope was moved opposite Search. Did that impact the ratings?

ATWT-Soderbergs, TGL-the Dobsons,Y&R-Bill Bell, EON-Slesar. Only LOL was swapping out writers ,and it's ratings were low.

[Soaplovers]

I think the move to NBC dealt a huge blow to SFT that caused the show to slowly bleed out throughout their almost five year run on that network.

SFT was a CBS show and it really showed when it first started airing on NBC so I understood P &G having to make adjustments to the soap in order to make it fit onto the NBC schedule vs the CBS schedule.

The 1983 Tomlin/Lee era was probably the strongest while it was on NBC.  They managed to still focus on Stu/Stephanie/Jo while developing a strong youth focus with Wendy/Warren/Suzi/Kristen/ Brian with the comic element with Rhonda Sue and her partner.  This helped the show from staying the Liza/Travis show.. which it was in 1981/1982.

[DRW50]

I am bewildered and fascinated by the choice to have John Loprieno and Adam Storke play out all their dramatic sequences here in clown makeup. They really took that circus motif seriously.

Please register in order to view this content

 

[kalbir]

Search for Tomorrow CBS run and Ryan's Hope were time slot rivals December 27, 1976-June 5, 1981.

From the 1970s Ratings and 1980s Ratings threads, these were the weeks from December 27, 1976-June 5, 1981 that Search for Tomorrow finished ahead of Ryan's Hope:

December 27-31, 1976

January 3-7, 10-14, 17-21, 24-28, 31-February 4, 7-11, 14-18, 21-25, 28-March 4, 7-11, 14-18, 21-25, 28-April 1, 4-8, 11-15, 1977

April 18-22, 1977 ratings not found

April 25-29, 1977

May 2-6, 9-13, 16-20, 23-27, 30-June 3, 6-10, 13-17, 1977

June 20-24, 1977 ratings not found

June 27-July 1, 4-8, 11-15, 18-22, 1977

August 1-5, 8-12, 15-19, 1977

August 22-26, 1977 ratings not found

August 29-September 2, 5-9, 12-16, 19-23, 26-30, 1977

October 3-7, 10-14, 17-21, 24-28, 31-November 4, 7-11, 1977

November 21-25, 28-December 2, 5-9, 12-16, 1977

December 19-23, 1977 ratings not found

December 26-30, 1977

January 2-6, 1978

January 16-20, 1978

February 6-10, 13-17, 20-24, 1978

March 13-17, 1978

March 20-24, 1978 ratings not found

March 27-31, 1978

April 3-7, 10-14, 17-21, 1978

April 24-28, 1978 ratings not found

May 22-26, 1978

June 26-30, 1978 ratings not found

July 17-21, 1978

August 7-11, 1978

August 28-September 1, 1978 ratings not found

September 25-29, 1978

October 2-6, 1978

October 16-20, 1978

October 30-November 3, 1978

December 18-22, 1978

December 25-29, 1978 ratings not found

January 1-5, 8-12, 15-19, 22-26, 29-February 2, 1979

February 12-16, 19-23, 26-March 2, 5-9, 12-16, 19-23, 26-30, 1979

April 2-6, 9-13, 16-20, 23-27, 30-May 4, 7-11, 14-18, 21-25, 28-June 1, 4-8, 11-15, 18-22, 25-29, 1979

July 2-6, 9-13, 16-20, 23-27, 30-August 3, 6-10, 13-17, 20-24, 27-31, 1979

September 3-7, 10-14, 17-21, 24-28, 1979

October 1-5, 8-12, 15-19, 1979

October 29-November 2, 5-9, 12-16, 19-23, 26-30, 1979

December 3-7, 10-14, 17-21, 24-28, 1979

December 31, 1979-January 4, 1980

January 7-11, 14-18, 21-25, 28-February 1, 4-8, 1980

February 18-22, 25-29, 1980

March 3-7, 1980

March 24-28, 1980

May 5-9, 1980

May 26-30, 1980

June 2-6, 9-13, 16-20, 1980

August 11-15, 1980

September 22-26, 1980

October 6-10, 1980

November 17-21, 1980

December 15-19, 1980

March 9-13, 1981

March 30-April 3, 6-10, 13-17, 1981

[Paul Raven]

Thanks @kalbir Looks like once the Corringtons left, Search struggled.

National City Star-News, Volume 104, Number 18, 2 March 1986

Domini Blythe finds soap acting quite challenging

By Nancy M. Reichardt

English-born actress Domini Blythe Is a veteran of the finest classical theater companies In England, Canada and the United States, but her American television debut came only five short months ago when she accepted the role of Estelle Kendall on the NBC soap "Search for Tomorrow."

Miss Blythe Joined the Royal Shakespeare Company In England when she was 18 years old. She did several films. Including "Tutankamun,” which was filmed In Egypt, then moved to Canada, where she eventually became a member of Canada’s Stratford Festival Company. Miss Blythe decided to seek work In the United States after she embarked upon an American teaching tour with the Royal Shakespeare Company. "After working between England and Canada for several years and expanding a lot of energy trying to keep a career going in both countries, it suddenly seemed to make much more sense to work li North America,” says Miss Blythe.

"I landed a one-day role on 'Search for Tomorrow,”' she remembers “The feedback on that role was very good, and the producers said that they’d find a role for me, and the did with the role of Estelle. Asked why she agree to do a sopa opera role after her extensive credits I classical theater, she replied, "It seemed to me that this was the very best thing one could do upon coming here. Doing a soap provides a relatively stable Income with terrific exposure. "There's a challenge I playing a part that has no beginning and no end. It's so unlike anything else I’v ever done. I love the idea that a soap is a collaborative effort between you as an actor and the writer: which Is completely unlike performing the works of Shakespeare or any other  playwright who's dead."

Miss Blythe describe Estelle as a “survivor'' an adds that she’s please that Estelle Is "a strong woman who can deal easily In a man’s world while she also has a very vulnerable side. "I like the fact that Estelle Is neither all good nor all bad like all hums beings,” Miss Blythe say "I find the Intricacies of the character interesting. Rather than dealing with murders, I'd prefer to deal with a corporate struggle. That’s something that can relate to more easily.

[kalbir]

You're welcome @Paul Raven. There was also the CBS schedule change of February 4, 1980, when an expanded Y&R moved from noon ET to 1 pm ET, and the local programming half hour moved from 1 pm ET to noon ET.