Lorraine Broderick not headwriter of AMC

[R Sinclair]

My problem, and I say it time and time again, is that I am sick of people doing their best to turn every last thing with this show into a negative. If you want to bitch about what's wrong with the current state of the show, fine! Go ahead! It's your opinion about something that is actually happening right in front of our eyes. But considering the fact that everyone's playing Madam Rita and predicting that each bit of news/information/gossip (that hasn't even played out yet) about this show is going to kill it, why go ahead and even post that anonymous, unsubstantiated gossip from a random person on another message board? Just to encourage more AMC MIGHT AS WELL BE CANCELED talk from its true and loyal "fans?"

As for the DC scoop about the relocation, yes, it seemed ridiculous! But the difference is, DC is a little more established than SOC is with Dan Troll's middle school newspaper attempt at soap journalism: "sources say/some are beginning to wonder" a.k.a. Dan's trying to start a rumor/Dan's opinion.

[Sylph]

Self-answering question.

One could ask: why not? As if another hilarious gossip is going to make much difference. If people refrained from doing so, there will always be others who wouldn't and even if everyone stopped, the negative talk wouldn't go away.

And besides, just like Chris said, it wouldn't require much suspension of disbelief, this news about Latham: she is right up Frons' alley.

[Chris B]

When you fire your HW with no one in place to replace them, there is going to be time between announcements so we have lots of time to speculate. This is big news so I'm sure we'll speculate every angle and possilibity simply because that's what we do on a message board. I know some people scream that they want AMC canceled, but even that is valid discussion. AMC, just like GL, ATWT and GH have treated their viewers so poorly over the years that it's not surprising people don't care anymore. When these soaps get canceled I blame the writers and producers, not the networks. I think Carruthers is more to blame than Frons because OLTL is good and honestly GH is very watchable as well and can be great. I truly believe modern AMC is a total failure and she's the #1 reason why. Forget Pratt for a second and look at how bad the show looks. Look at some of the actors cast. What is she doing exactly?

Right now I've been so excited at the prospect of AMC being saved. This move could mean better, bigger sets. Better directors. Better lighting. Maybe better writing. Then you hear this LML rumor and I remember these two idiots Frons and Carruthers are in charge. You can only be so optimistic. How long has it been since AMC had a HW whose tenure was successful?

[Khan]

Or maybe not. I apologize if this speculation is baseless, but I absolutely believe that this move (to L.A.) is being done in order to keep Julie Hanan Carruthers from getting fired. If a show is tanking in the ratings, is perennially over-budget and behind schedule, you don't "fix" the problem(s) by folding up tents and moving cross-country, leaving behind dozens of now-unemployed technicians and crew members in the process. You replace the producer with one who can get the show back on time, and on budget.

Frankly, if not for the fact that OLTL's own ratings are a mess right now, there isn't a doubt in my mind that Frons wouldn't poach Frank Valentini to succeed JHC as AMC's new EP.

[R Sinclair]

I understand all that. However, I refuse to believe having a defeatist attitude -- and stirring the pot with garbage just to make sure there is one -- is the best way to effect positive change!

If Guiding Light's cancellation has taught me anything, it's that I do NOT want to be in that same, sad, desperate situation those fans were in, where the show gets canceled and THEN there's a rallying cry of SAVE OUR SHOW and petitions and picketing outside the network on, um, Memorial Day weekend ( ). Taking over Lifetime's message board to the point where they had to practically be told "WE AIN'T BUYIN' YOUR DAMN SHOW, NOW GET OFF OUR BACKS!" -- only to try and decode a secret message within that message for a last glimmer of hope. By that point, it's too late! The time is NOW!

Lorraine Broderick is clearly in the mix. Write! Write to let ABC know that you want her to play a bigger role in the show's writing. If you're not a fan of her but enjoy the idea of bringing in someone with history, let them know that you think they're on the right track. There is a window of opportunity here. If you don't want LB at all and think Trey Parker and Matt Stone are the show's best chance at renewing its brilliance, by all means, do it! But show that you care, NOW! Show that you're paying attention, NOW! Expose how savvy you are and you're not just ironing. You're not just upset because the writers "whitewashed" this character or your favorite cancer couple is unhappy this week. Show that you're concerned about the quality of the entire show, its characters and its storytelling and that you are PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION!

Sittin' up here, talkin' bout some... "somebody pulled this out of their ass, but LML might be in talks with Frons. If she's HW, OH WELL! Might as well cancel AMC!" Child, please.

[Khan]

I'm not saying they might as well cancel AMC if LML (or anyone of her, um, caliber) were installed as HW, but it'd certainly make the journey back to the top that much more difficult.

[EricMontreal22]

It's ok Khan, some of us don't have our pre 1985 watching memories to fall back on

*I'd* be bitching. Labine hasn't shown a lick of talent in 15+ years.

I sorta agree with R Sin here--suddenly people who don't even watch the show anymore are calling for a funeral? From one rumour (that Nelson even denied--though if he denied it that prob means it's true... sigh)

[EricMontreal22]

Isn't he handsome.

The thing is--I think all of us ARE cautious--do any AMC fans on here at this point need more reason to worry? It's not like we're a group of Pollyannas.

[Khan]

Touche.

[R Sinclair]

&

Exactly my point. It's like, thanks for the reality check semi/lapsed/non-viewers, but we're fully aware of the situation.

All because we express delight in the fact that ABC is taking a step in the right direction, doesn't mean we need to be hit over the head with "I read this rumor and this RUMOR MIGHT BE TRUE AND IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT DON'T READ IT BECAUSE AMC'S GONNA DIE A HORRIBLE DEATH

IN SIX WEEKS!!!"

Glad to!

Oh. I thought you said "Touch."

[Chris B]

Now yeah a rumor was posted, but nobody is saying AMC is going to die or anything like that. I do think yall are exaggerating. Nobody even talks about the show enough for it to be an issue. I think most thinking soap fans have enough sense to reslize with the move to LA, AMC is safer than even GH right now. ABC is going to give the show a chance to make it work after all the money they're spending.

And I do get a little pollyanna vibe. Like we're kicking a puppy if we say anything negative. And hell, I wasn't even hating on AMC, just discussing the possibility that LML is joining the show just like we all discussed Broderick possibly being the HW. I also don't think anyone is suggesting the show needs to be canceled if LML joins. She was never able to maintain her ratings gains because the story focus changes so much, but she could get those ratings up at times. And who knows? She might do well. She does have successful runs on Knots Landing, Homefront and The District, all great shows. Maybe AMC is the soap for her. Who knows?

I just don't get the big deal over discussing her. That's really what this boils down to. Nobody is saying anything about cancellation or even talking about how bad the show currently is.

[Khan]

You can't count "The District," b/c she was there for, like, ten minutes; and although "Homefront" was critically acclaimed, it was plagued with low ratings. That's why ABC canceled it after only 2 seasons. (I won't go into her other shows - "Second Chances," "Hotel Malibu," "Wild Card," etc. - since those didn't last very long either.)

Ask KNOTS LANDING fans, though, about the Lechowicks' time there (not to mention, the actual cast and crew) and you'll find opinions about those two are mixed, at best. Some thought it was the best of KNOTS; others felt the show strayed too far from its' "middle-class roots" and b/c entirely OTT. However, speaking as someone who actually watched HOMEFRONT (which I consider to be analogous to AMC, more so than KNOTS), I think Bernard Lechowick comes much closer to being someone who could write AMC better than LML could. Seriously. His writing for that show, as well as for the pre-Frank South "Hyperion Bay" (remember that one?) was about as good as anything to come from Edward Zwick & Marshall Herskovitz, who created "thirtysomething"; or from Winnie Holzman, who created "My So-Called Life" (and who is, IMO, the true ideal candidate for AMC).

[Chris B]

Knots Landing is my favorite show so I definitely know the love/hate relationship fans have with her, but overall the Lechowick's were successful. They brought the show out of the 80s excess and kept it fresh in the 90s and the ratings were still good. Falcon Crest, Dallas and Dynasty never were able to do this. Also on SOAPnet the later years were much more successful. I remember one time they ran the show from beginning to end then started over in season 7 due to high demand.

Well they're a packaged deal along with their son, gardener, dog walker, cousins and friends. Is Hyperion Bay the show with Carmen Electra? I always assumed it was a bad show.

If LML and co. get the gig it'll be interesting to see if they keep anybody. Nobody expected LML to be allowed to fire all these people who'd been around 30+ years in some cases, but they did. I don't think AMC has anybody whose been there that long and they're already getting a new crew. It's so important having people around who know the history of the show and that's what will hurt her if she does join and fire everybody.

[Sylph]

Yes, Labine is overrated. Her last interview show it. Nicely.

Khan?! Why would anyone relocate a whole show a whole continent across to another coast in order to keep some small, little EP?!

[Khan]

That has more to do, I think, w/ KNOTS being less "glamorous" than the others. Even as the production values became more excessive, as you say, and the stories became more about corporate intrigue, David Jacobs, the show's creator and show-runner, still kept the emphasis on three-dimensional characters. If you watched DALLAS and DYNASTY, you did so for the clothes and the outrageous behavior; and if you watched FALCON CREST, it was b/c you got a big kick out of seeing past-their-prime movie stars (which that show employed a lot of); but if you watched KNOTS, it was generally b/c, you enjoyed good, old-fashioned, character-driven storytelling. Period.

Of course, it was purely coincidental that this occurred when Nicollette Sheridan was on ABC's newest obsession, "Desperate Housewives". ;-)

It was when she joined the show. Before the WB took it away from Joseph Dougherty, though, HB was like a 20-something version of "thirtysomething." Frank South, his successor, was brought in to "MELROSE PLACE-ize" it. He did, but obviously, he wasn't successful.

What history?! There's no history on AMC beyond 2003-04 anymore. Getting rid of the few remaining vets (aside from La Lucci, of course) took care of that. So, in a way, it's like a blank slate, which is perfect for someone like LML.