They let Hogan out of the trough? I haven't seen any interviews with him in ages.

About what you can expect. They certainly do love Canada, don't they? I do too. So why don't they dump Y&R and replace it with reruns of You Can't Do That on Television.

Arrogant? WHAT?!

Nobody there is thinking that.

They let Hogan out of the trough? I haven't seen any interviews with him in ages.

About what you can expect. They certainly do love Canada, don't they? I do too. So why don't they dump Y&R and replace it with reruns of You Can't Do That on Television.

That's ALL?! Nothing about Whitesell's stupid ideas, the janitor, We're not Passions!, No, we're not stunt casting! D'oh!

This interview is kinda funny when it read it using my dimwit air head voice for Maria. Too bad I can't post it.

That's ALL?! Nothing about Whitesell's stupid ideas, the janitor, We're not Passions!, No, we're not stunt casting! D'oh!

This interview was torn to shreds at a number of sites while SON was down, so everyone already said what I would have said.

I did hate the part where Hogan got his butt kissed over his supposed ATWT brilliance and he went on about how he had "broken the rules" and he didn't even know what the rules were. Please. That's not a good thing. The handful of stories that didn't suck during his time at ATWT were classic soap stories. Everything he did that "broke the rules", like seeing rape as hilarious, helped kill ATWT.

That's ALL?! Nothing about Whitesell's stupid ideas, the janitor, We're not Passions!, No, we're not stunt casting! D'oh!

I would have ripped this a new one, but the board was down yesterday and I went to "the board that shall not be named" to post my thoughts. I'll repost what I posted there since the whole thing is laughably exhausting to me at this point.

I have to wonder whether Nelson was going for irony in this interview.

These people are so full of themselves and have absolutely no idea what daytime television is about. The talking down to the audience, the justification of these bad doppelganger stories with a throwaway line about "being a nurse in the same hospital where you had your plastic surgery," down to the laughable comment about how the production values excel. It's absolutely astonishing.

The Reilly comparisons are rich coming from Hogan and Maria. They're trying way too hard. And yeah, Maria was a "friend" of Reilly. That probably entailed shaking his hand at a cocktail party and giggling to Billy about his weight.

What people just do not understand about Reilly 1.0 at DAYS is that the show was great because of some of the outrageous stories, but also because Reilly drove us up the wall wanting MORE. His payoffs were fantastic as well. Oh, and let's not forget Reilly 1.0 also had CHECKS AND BALANCES, under Ken Corday, Tom Langan, and NBC who probably told him "hell no" to any of this extremely weird story ideas.

As much as Maria hates Barbara Bloom and Margot Wain, she desperately needs someone from the network or from SONY to tell her that the level of misogyny, the lack of cohesive storytelling, and the downright inanity of this show is doing longterm damage for the Y&R brand. She needs to understand that being #1 and #2 means nothing to CBS at this point. They don't own these shows and year after year they continue to lose money on them.

And Barbara Bloom is more concerned about getting promoted than she is about the soaps. And can you blame her? Maria has had her fingers in her ears the entire time, not even bothering taking any sort of advice from her chief of daytime television, who has consistently worked more years in daytime television than her, not only as a soap executive, but as Head-Writer of a soap opera! After being trashed and disrespected likely behind closed doors and in an interview, Maria can't seriously expect to believe Barbara Bloom doesn't want Y&R to fail. Bloom is gunning for Nancy Tellem or Dawn Ostroff's job. And she'll do everything, even allowing the hacks in charge of the Bell lot to self-destruct to the point where she uses their timeslots to make her vision of network TV's GSN complete.

Maria's ego is SO beyond her that she can't even see this coming down the turnpike. Or maybe she does and she just doesn't care.

And I want to laugh at Maria and Hogan when they say "there are no egos." Are you f*cking kidding me? Maria can't do a single interview unfiltered with tough questions. She's like the Sarah Palin of daytime television. Someone without an ego would be able to address their critics and all of their concerns. Someone with a f*cking writing degree from Northwestern should seriously know better. She has an ego. It's clear in the way she speaks in interviews, especially her earlier interviews where she talks about "my show and my vision." I don't mind people who are egotistical, but for f*ck's sake, have the talent to back it up. Don't spend your studio time shopping at Nordstrom, flipping through Neiman Marcus catalogues, and giving these masturbatory, self-congratulatory interviews.

VO: This interview has been brought to you by the Canadian Tourism Commission. Inspire the world to explore Canada.

Edited May 9, 201015 yr by Khan

Thank you, CarlD2 and bellcurve!

As a Canadian, I feel the only thing Arena Bell and Sheffer got right in this interview was their assessment of us. Other than that, it's all BS.

I'm also going to copy & paste my post from "that other board that we're allowed to cuss on."

TVGuide.ca: Congratulations on all your casting coups! From David Hasselhoff and Marcy Rylan, to Eden Riegel, you guys have been very busy on the casting front. Would you like to tease us about your recent addition, Emmy winner Jeff Branson and film diva Sean Young?

Maria Arena Bell: We’re thrilled to have Jeff Branson on our show. We’re fortunate to have him in a short-term arc. He’ll air primarily over the summer in what I think will be a breakout role for him. I’d like to keep his story under wraps for now. But I can say Jeff will be very pivotal in the coming months.

What, no mention of Darius McCrary's casting as Malcolm? That wasn't a casting coup? If you're gonna lick their !@#$%^&*] Nelson, you may as well go all out.

TVG: I’m most excited about Andrea Evans’s “comeback” as The Bold and the Beautiful’s Tawny next week. It appears that you guys are stunt-casting with a mixture of ex-P&G/All My Children and prime-time/film stars. Is that a fair assessment?

MAB: No. Honestly, we’re just going after the right actors for the right roles. Yes, the majority of them have experience in daytime because we know they can deliver in this hectic medium. But we’re also trying to bring on performers who have done different things, which allows us to introduce a new energy to Genoa City. The calibre of hiring Sean Young in a pivotal yet guest-star capacity is a lot of fun. It’s also compelling for the audience.

Oh totally. Yvonne Zima was the PERFECT choice to play Daisy- totally reminds me of Kimberlin Brown. Not only does she look like her, but she clearly has the same chops. [/sarcasm]

Marcy Rylan is the perfect choice to play a character who is supposed to be under 10 years old. Since she was born years after her nephew Noah, who is 16, an actress in her mid-20s is perfect.

Darius McCrary has done TONS of different things. He started off as Eddie Winslow and then......

And they're right- I find it totally compelling to watch the man-chick from Ace Ventura in a guest role. I hear she's dressing up in a catwoman costume for the part- it's part of Emily's sick plan to gaslight Patty.

TVG: Will we one day see your brother, actor Craig Sheffer, toiling in Genoa City one of these days, Hogan?

Hogan Sheffer: [Laughs] That’s a great question! I don’t know. Craig is an elusive critter.

Who cares? Oh yeah......this just goes to show that Nelson does his homework. Well done Branco!

Edited May 9, 201015 yr by juniorz1

TVG: Hogan, what’s it like working on the No. 1 soap opera alongside Maria Arena Bell?

HS: [Joking] She’s a walking soap opera [laughs]! It’s a strange transition for me because I’ve been, as you know, the head writer on both As The World Turns and briefly, thank God briefly, on Days of our Lives. At first, I wasn’t sure how it would work out. I didn’t know anything about Maria because I just keep to myself. I don’t pay attention to anyone other than myself! And I say this without any sense of irony: this is the best job I’ve ever had, it’s the best show I’ve ever worked on, and I’m having a ball. You could probably tell if you were fortunate to be in on one of our writer conference calls. It’s a constant state of hilarity. We work very hard. We also love each other a lot. I’ve never seen a team of writers work like this ever before in my life. Maria is extraordinarily generous and very loyal. The best part? I don’t have to deal with the network or the producers. They don’t scream at me and I don’t have to scream at them! That’s just fine with me!

Totally a strange transition to go from headwriting two soap operas to headwriting......a soap opera. How strange that must have been for him. He doesn't pay attention to anyone other than himself? What the [!@#$%^&*] is that supposed to mean or prove? Don't get it. And where is the irony in saying this is the best job he's ever had? As a writer himself, he should have a better understanding of the term irony. What really sucks is that I thoroughly enjoyed most of his stint on ATWT so for him to say that Y&R is the best show he's ever worked on......well, unless he's referring to the Bill Bell years, he clearly is a terrible judge of his own work. I'd be laughing my ass off on those conference calls too- but for entirely different reasons! Hey- I got an idea- Sheila, who had plastic surgery to look like Phyllis, should have a sister, who has plastic surgery to look just like Lauren, who knows Patty, who had plastic surgery to look just like Emily, and the sister should try to kill Phyllis, the woman who her sister had plastic surgery to look like. I'd be busting a gut! Sadly, the network SHOULD be screaming at him. Those suits probably actually have better ideas than the dreck he, a professional writer, is putting out.

TVG: You guys should tape those conference calls and air them online! Are you relieved that the majority of your contract showdowns are over and you can just focus on story?

HS: One of the most important aspects of this job for me is that everyone’s heads are on the chopping block — [whether it’s cast or crew]. It doesn’t matter how popular or important you are. The stars of our show have had to endure budget cuts because Sony is chopping money left and right. To her own detriment, Maria has remained loyal to her staff.

Yeah, the most important aspect of the job is anyone is fair game to be fired. To her own detriment, Maria has hired a bunch of morons to help turn the champagne of soap operas into malt liquor.

TVG: How do you guys work together in terms of laying out long-term story? You have three co-head writers — do you split the show into three halves or work in tandem?

HS: When you have three co-head writers like we do, the key is you cannot have an ego — especially in this environment. And that’s the best part of working on Y&R. Maria just wants the best idea out there. She doesn’t care if it comes from me, her, or the janitor who is sweeping nearby who suggests something brilliant. When you work in that kind of liberal environment, you’re free to disagree and free to come up with your own ideas — which is very important creatively. I’m given a very large berth to contribute my ideas. Also, Maria has given me the chance to commandeer certain stories if she has a sense it’s a story I know and can tell very well. She’ll take a back seat and let me run with it. And that’s because there are no egos on this writing team. You know, I’ve worked on several shows where head writers are so protective of their ideas that the rest of the team is walking on eggshells. And I don’t like to work that way. [it’s counterproductive]. Yes, we fight and argue once in a while, but at the end of the day, the best idea wins. That’s why the show is so good.

The key is NOT having an ego? Oh Hogie- read the [!@#$%^&*] interview- your egos are massive! And I LOVE that he admits that the janitor has been writing the show- no wonder! "Well, Maria, ma'am, if you gots on doppelerganger, why not two doppelergangers?" "Hey Hogan- we got a story that completely disregards history, is completely misogynistic, and turns all of the characters involved into total morons- How about you commandeer that one? I think it's right up your alley." "10-4, Hottie McTottie." And lookie- he's STILL trying to convince us (or himself) that they don't have egos.

I didn’t know anything about Maria because I just keep to myself. I don’t pay attention to anyone other than myself!

You could probably tell if you were fortunate to be in on one of our writer conference calls

That’s why the show is so good

Doesn't sound egotistical to me in the least! Sadly, that last quote was literally 2 sentences after his "We don't have egos" bullshit!

TVG: What do you think of As The World Turns’s recent cancellation?

HS: Oh, it truly breaks my heart. But it’s not surprising. Actually, it was 10 years ago this month that I began working on World Turns on an eight-week trial basis. After those eight weeks, I was handed the head-writing reins. Obviously that time was very exciting, nostalgic for me. I look back at World Turns with a great deal of affection. As for its cancellation … that’s the reality of the world we live in today. To be on the No. 1 show on daytime, and really the only show that is doing extraordinarily well makes me feel incredibly blessed.

Umm, Days of our Lives is the ONLY soap that's in the black right now, so I wouldn't say that Y&R is the only show doing extraordinarily well. And apparently losing half a million viewers on a year to year basis is considered doing extraordinarily well to Sheff. Puh-leeze.

TVG: Your alma mater, Days of our Lives, is also doing well in the ratings. Are you happy for their creative resurgence?

HS: I’m thrilled for them. Their head writer is Chris Whitesell, who is just brilliant. He was one of my co-head writers on World Turns. He’s like a machine gun. He’ll give you a thousand ideas in a minute. Most of them are stupid, but a few of them are brilliant. I can tell the show has a lot of Chris in it. I’m very happy for Chris.

LMAO. Most of Chris Whitesell's idea's are stupid? Yet his entirely fresh take on the doppelganger story is to have TWO doppelgangers? That's supposed to be fresh & original? That's like saying- "Hey, instead of bringing on an evil twin, how about we bring on an evil triplet, a nice triplet, and one that falls in between? After all, it will provide Emmy Oscar tapes.

TVG: The Y&R fans who post online are extremely livid with the show. Would you like to address their discontent with your writing team, especially your controversial decision to include not one but two doppelganger storylines?

MAB: Let me tell you what’s funny about that. Someone in the soap press [soap Opera Digest’s Carolyn Hinsey] recently wrote, “Did you guys realize that you have two doppelgangers airing at once?” Yeah, we did [laughs]! It was intentional. The two stories are intertwined. The Sarah and Patty storylines will be a rapid-fire denouement. It gave us an opportunity to tell a fun, clever and interesting culmination of Patty’s story and the pseudo reemergence of Sheila. It gave Tracey Bregman an opportunity to stretch herself as an actress and show a different side, a darker side, in this dual role. It’s a very short arc. But what it gives the audience is a tour-de-force performance from Tracey. You’ll see a very fun explosion this week. Tracey shouldn’t just win an Emmy Award for this portrayal, she should win an Oscar! You’ll see!

BWahahahahahahhahhahahha. Oh, so they DID know they had two doppelgangers on at the same time? I guess Carolyn wasn't the first one who caught it. And sorry, "Patty, it's me, SARAH! How about I kill Phyllis and you kill Michael?" is NOT intertwining two stories at all. It's called having two characters that know each other. Do these two understand what a [!@#$%^&*] umbrella story is? It's when 2 separate stories actually come together and turn out to be connected. There was no connection here- just a couple of nutjobs that happened to know each other and decided to work together. GOD, the [!@#$%^&*] stupidity of that statement makes me boil! The PSEUDO REEMERGENCE OF SHEILA? Um, no. You brought on a sister that you made up that the audience doesn't know, two kids that Sheila supposedly had that never existed. Why on EARTH would Sheila have become so fixated on Scotty if she had [!@#$%^&*] TWINS at home? Retards. But you know what? I agree about Bregman- she was great! (not sarcastic- I really thought she gave a strong performance in the dual roles, unlike Haiduk)

As for viewer dissatisfaction, I want to say I do visit the message boards. I do listen to our fans and critics. Sometimes when you’re watching a storyline unfold, you don’t know where it’s going and you get understandably frustrated. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It means people are watching and talking about our show. I’d be more concerned if fans weren’t talking about our show! A perfect example of that is the Adam Newman storyline. Everyone complained about Adam getting away with all his evildoings, yet [we surged almost 300,000 viewers in the ratings the week he was murdered — which proved at the end of the day that the audience really loved the story]. We always ensure there is a great payoff in all of our stories. Just trust us.

HS: Also, these stories are connected.

MAB: That’s the point.

Clearly, they don't read the message boards. Our frustration has always been that we DO know where these stories are going from jump and we're made to watch [!@#$%^&*] unfold when we've already figured out the beginning, middle, and end. And it IS a bad thing you DUMBASSES! The ONLY thing we've been talking about is what utter [!@#$%^&*] you've turned what was once one of the most well-plotted, character driven soaps into. We didn't complain about Adam getting away with [!@#$%^&*]- we complained about all of our beloved characters being turned into total MORONS to facilitate him getting away with [!@#$%^&*]. Not to mention violating two of our most beloved heroines in such a vile, disgusting way just for the sake of a crap payoff. As for the ratings "jump"- all that says is nobody wanted to watch your [!@#$%^&*] storyline until you finally killed off the !@#$%^&*]. I bet the ratings would skyrocket if everyone involved in this Patty/Emily [!@#$%^&*] got together and brutally murdered those two as well. Instead, they kill off Sarah Smythe, who was at least slightly entertaining, and found a new "clever" way to keep the neverending Patty [!@#$%^&*] going.

Edited May 9, 201015 yr by juniorz1

Sorry for the multiple posts but it won't let me have a certain number of quotes & I want this post to read properly. To continue:

TVG: TV Guide Magazine’s Michael Logan and I recently compared certain aspects of Y&R to Passions. Do you agree that Genoa City is a wacky place to visit these days?

MAB: I was a good friend of James E. Reilly. While I don’t think our show is like Passions at all, I respected James’s work immensely. And let’s not forget [Y&R creator/producer/head writer] Bill Bell did this, too. He built incredible, larger-than-life storytelling from time to time. Everything from David Kimble to Victor Newman in the 1980s. [it’s in our DNA.] When it comes down to it, the Sarah/Patty storyline will come down to a very interesting psychological storyline involving Lauren. Her greatest nemesis will always be Sheila. Yes, Sheila is back in a different form, but how Lauren will conquer Sheila this time around will be fascinating and entertaining to watch. And I think people want to see this. There will be a lot more traditional, romantic, corporate boardroom, fun, and character-driven storylines in the summer. It will all be worth it.

The fact that anyone could even make such a comparison (as Y&R to Passions) should speak VOLUMES to you Maria. Bill Bell would roll over in his grave if he knew that his daughter-in-law/protege's vision has resulted in his creation being compared to Passions. I'd take it a step further and compare Y&R to Cop Rock or Pacific Palisades or.....God, I can't even think of a show as bad. And please STOP blaming this [!@#$%^&*] on Bill Bell. Bill Bell NEVER had one of his characters cause a heroine to have a miscarriage and proceed to throw the fetus into a fire. Bill Bell never had two doppelgangers. Bill Bell never had a period where his most talked-about character was a stuffed cat. Bill Bell never had a character rob banks dressed as a chipmunk. Sheila is not back in a different form- we've got her lame sister who doesn't even compare. And I see not one bit of psychosis in Lauren's 3 week storyline. And give me a [!@#$%^&*] break- we're not falling for the "don't worry, we're gonna have character-driven, boardroom storylines- just give us another month. BULLSHIT. IT AIN'T HAPPENING AND WE ALL KNOW IT. Why the [!@#$%^&*] did I have to sit through Patty/Emily, Sarah/Lauren, and Adam to get to character-driven storylines? Seriously, I'd say they're talking out of their asses but their asses could probably come up with better logic than THAT!

TVG: I wouldn’t mind if Mr. Kitty had a doppelganger out there.

MAB: [laughs] I should have never let Zapato eat that kitty! I feel bad about that.

But you don't feel guilty about brutally killing off the damn dog? :eyeroll:

TVG: All Patty has to do is sew his tail back on! Well, at least we have Patty's new friend, Cat. One of the criticisms with your writing is that you rely too much on mining Bill Bell’s past storylines and fixing ex-head writer Lynn Marie Latham’s errors in judgment. Do you agree?

MAB: I think we have created new, fresh storylines like the Adam Newman storyline. But since I’ve been here, it’s been my motto to always respect the history of the show and be true to its identity. I think it’s intriguing that there are parallels in our current and past storylines. I think that enriches the story experience for the fans on many levels. As much as there is a very vocal minority of fans on the web, I do know that the majority of our fans are enjoying our show. We have an incredible cast of characters who share a rich history. We’re just putting a contemporary spin on everything.

How do I even respond to this? First of all, I actually LIKED when she was fixing LML's errors & even Jack Smith's (the Kay/Jill related [!@#$%^&*]). But then she goes and repeats one of LML's BIGGEST errors- PHEILA! And she does it with the same characters, in the same storyline, in the same setting. What the [!@#$%^&*] currently on air parallels ANYTHING from the Bill Bell years? Be specific Maria. Stupid spoiled whore. And dude, NO, the MAJORITY OF YOUR FANS ARE NOT ENJOYING THE SHOW. There is NOTHING positive on the web which speaks VOLUMES. Even the most ardent supporters like MarkH & Alstonboy or whoever it is think the show is dogshit now. Dude, most Y&R fans have been watching for 10, 20, 30 years- no WAY are the people that have watched this classic, character driven soap are enjoying this drivel.

TVG: Although you took a big hit recently in the ratings, Y&R has hovered around a 3.8 for the past few months, which is nothing to squawk at.

MAB: April is historically the lowest-rated month for us. I think we are really bucking the trend. This summer, you can expect a lot of traditional Y&R stories. I think the fans will really love the show. It’s been a fun ride. I hope the majority of the fans feel the same way.

Buck off Maria. You wouldn't know a traditional Y&R story if you cut & paste it off the archives.

Again, a continuation of my post because of the quoting issue (can't we FIX that?):

TVG: The direction and production values have been excellent lately.

HS: Production has really stepped up.

MAB: The stuff that aired this week is really feature-film quality. It was a very complex sequence of events we had to shoot. The crew and cast were up until 4:30 a.m. completing the action-packed sequences. You’ll be going, “Wow” when you see it. And everyone on our show, from the cast and crew, are very excited about our direction.

Yeah, the whole week really "popped" It was like a feature film- totally. Plan 9 from Outer Space comes to mind.

TVG: Hogan’s World Turns appointment proved the industry is smart to invest in new writing talent. Why do you think daytime in general isn’t mining fresh writers? Prime time and film does …

MAB: There are certainly young people on my staff that will be running shows down the road because they’re incredibly talented. I grew up in an environment that made us believe we would move up the ranks with titles of associate and co-head writers. I think that’s still attainable. And I certainly do agree with you that we need new blood on our shows. I encourage show runners on other soaps to look towards the younger generation and give them a chance to learn this business. I think there is a lot of great new talent out there to mine and utilize.

:blah:

Having said that, I do believe that there is fresh new talent currently employed on most, if not all the soaps. It’s a mixture of seasoned and new talent. But soaps are a particular kind of workload. You have to know and understand the genre. When you bring in a new talent who isn’t passionate or knowledgeable about soaps, it never works. You can never pander or talk down to the audience. Everyone on my team loves this form and genre. We’re doing the best work possible.

HS: Absolutely.

ALL YOU GUYS HAVE DONE THIS ENTIRE INTERVIEW IS PANDER & TALK DOWN TO THE AUDIENCE!!!! ALL OF YOUR STORYLINES INSULT OUR INTELLIGENCE. You're doing the best work possible.............for writing at a Kindergarten level.

TVG: Hogan, why do you think your fresh take on soaps helped revive World Turns creatively and financially? Was it because you came in with new ideas, or is it simply because you understand this genre?

HS: I didn’t know the form at all. Because I didn’t know the rules, I ended up breaking them! More than that, I had an executive producer who encouraged breaking the rules. Let’s take the dual doppelganger storylines as an example. That’s an iconic soap staple. What I do is ask myself constantly, “How can we tell this kind of storyline differently?” Sometimes you have to take a chance. Yeah, so 20 people hate it online, but our ratings reflect otherwise. You can’t stay stale. I feel everyone in the medium is playing it safe from a production and writing standpoint. The networks are playing it safe. The show that isn’t playing it safe is us! Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. We don’t care because we put our heart and soul into it. We play the emotional aspect of our stories [authentically], yet we’re not playing it safe. And that’s what I did on World Turns. We took chances. I used to say to [World Turns’ executive producer] Christopher Goutman, “Instead of 22 scenes in a show, why don’t we do 60 scenes?” So we did it, and guess what? We won an Emmy award. Like Maria said, if there is a bit of Jim Reilly on Y&R, then great! There’s room for Jim Reilly in daytime. And there’s room for other stuff as well. If you get stuck in the traditional model of soaps, you’re going to get cancelled.

Still don't know the form. You broke the rules on ATWT & it worked. I got news for ya- MORE THAN 20 [!@#$%^&*] PEOPLE HATE IT ONLINE. 100s, 1000s, we ALL universally hate this [!@#$%^&*]. I've never seen the Y&R fans more united & it's all because we ALL SEE THAT WHAT IS ON OUR SCREENS IS UTTER [!@#$%^&*]. DAYS isn't playing it safe. Neither are OLTL or DAYS. You guys aren't playing it safe- you're not playing with the full deck either. I really liked what he did at ATWT, but the #1 rule of the genre is what works on AMC doesn't work on ATWT & that stuff doesn't work on B&B and their stuff doesn't work on DAYS, etc... A Bit of Jim Reilly on Y&R? GREAT? [!@#$%^&*] NO. Jim Reilly stuff fits on Passions, and to a lesser degree, DAYS. But there isn't room for Sheffer on daytime anymore, much less Jim Reilly. Don't they realize that each show that decided to copy Reilly garnered an EPIC FAIL for doing so? Oh I forgot.....Paul Rauch was the one who tried to emulate him most and look who's the EP of Y&R.

Ok I have to hold off for a minute before posting this one because of, you guessed it, the quoting issue.

TVG: Why do you think Y&R is consistently in the Top 15 shows in prime time and daytime in Canada? Why does Genoa City seemingly resonate more in my country than yours? I know it airs at 4:30 p.m. and we’re a day ahead here, but what are your theories as to why Y&R is a mainstream phenomenon in Canada?

MAB: I think Canada is an incredibly smart country [laughs]! We don’t write the show from a geographical point of view because once you do that you dilute your vision, creativity and direction. You can never pander to an audience. In the end, I have no idea why Canada loves our show so much, but I’m so happy you guys do! It’s fantastic. You guys are brilliant.

HS: Canadians have an enormously dry sense of humour and a fantastic sense of irony. When Y&R gets crazy, you guys get it. When it’s loopy, you guys get it, when it’s heartbreaking, you guys get it. Canadians are a very sophisticated audience.

MAB: You have to find the right balance in soap.

Oh for pete's sake, there's that irony word again. Um, we all get it, Canadian or not- We [!@#$%^&*] get Y&R. YOU guys are the ones that don't get it. Does Hogan know what dry humor is? Because there's nothing dry about Y&R's humor at all. Jack Abbott used to have the dryest sense of humor on the show and now they've got him uttering such slapsticky [!@#$%^&*] as "The Bradcicle!", referring to the father of his niece, ex-husband of his two sisters, and the man who died tragically trapped under ice after saving Jack's own step-son. Any sophisticated person would know that two doppelgangers knowing one another and one of them getting the idea to get the plastic surgery because the other one got it (for NO reason at the time- Patty couldn't have known and didn't know that Emily would eventually fall for Jack) is ridiculous. Any sophisticated person would know that causing a woman's miscarriage and then burning the dead fetus is vile. I could go on & on, but what's the point? Point being any savvy & sophisticated viewer would want to vomit when they went from a well-plotted, brilliantly paced, and extraordinarily detailed written show to a crapfest compared to PASSIONS that something stinks in Genoa City. Namely, a fat misogynistic hog and a silver-spoon fed debutante who think they can serve up [!@#$%^&*] & come up smelling like roses.

As for balance...... :eyeroll:

HS: Even in the great tradition of Canadian literature, from authors like Robertson William Davies, Bernard Muddiman, and Margaret Atwood, these novelists wrote about an overwhelming, extraordinary cast of characters in ordinary small towns. Canadians gravitate towards that even in their high end of literature. So it makes sense to me that you guys would love the soap opera medium.

Oh. My. God. There are no words.

TVG: Finally, are you kooks looking forward to the 37th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards in Las Vegas this year? Thankfully, CBS is airing them …

MAB: Absolutely. I hope we get a great attendance of stars from all the shows this year despite it being held in Las Vegas. I’m so thrilled CBS decided to air them this year. I pray the Daytime Emmys garner a high rating so we can prove that there is still a soap audience out there that is alive and well. Y&R’s popularity around the world is still topping prime-time shows. We want to remind the world of that. We want to change the discussion from, “Oh, soaps are dying,” to “Wow, this is still a healthy, vibrant and dynamic art form.”

Wow- look how healthy soaps are- rather than doing evil twins, they're doing doppelgangers now. And not one, but TWO! Actually, 3 if you remember that Jeffrey Bardwell is still on the show (when DID he last air anyway?)

TVG: Hopefully, your writing team will be nominated this year. You were robbed last year.

MAB: Me, too! Just as we did last year, we submitted a very classic and emotional show that typifies what our show is about. I always find myself asking when I judge this category, “What is your show really about?” because of [the reliance of submitting] stand-alone episodes. If we’re not nominated, I feel I handed in a reel which I consider an emblematic representation of what Y&R is all about.

They picked the right episode, that's for sure. They just better pray that nobody voting happened to catch Adam dressed in a purple dress causing Ashley to fall down the stairs, miscarry, and then sweeping the fetus into a fire, then the convenient hysterical pregnancy that followed, right down to hysterical labor.

TVG: Hogan is infamous for his hilarious Emmy speeches. Will you both accept the statue if Y&R wins best drama writing team?

MAB: Of course — if we can convince him to travel to Las Vegas!

HS: On a personal level, I hate Las Vegas [laughs]!

He'll like it just fine once he realizes you can get free meals for simply gambling. You know, taking a chance? That's what Y&R does best after all, takes chances.

TVG: Be forewarned, like Genoa City, what happens in Las Vegas, will be reported in the Suds Report.

God help us. What are you gonna report on- who had the biggest bulge? How Michael Muhney was robbed of a nomination? Honestly, I'm too tired to even continue with this tirade.

MEMO- Hogan Sheffer. MAB. Scott Hamner. Paul Rauch. Nelson Branco.

You're all [!@#$%^&*] hacks with your heads in the damn clouds and you wouldn't know good soap from Passions. Hell, Saved By The Bell had more interesting storylines than this [!@#$%^&*].

And I LOVED Dustin Diamond as the Zach Slater doppelganger.

Sad, I can't come up with a solid closing for all this- probably because this interview was as incoherent as the storytelling on Y&R.

Thank God for this thread...it's allowing me to see who the Canadian-haters are.

If you're speaking about me & my post then

I'm from Niagara Falls, NY. I have Canadian relatives. I have nothing against Canadians.

Whatever. You're a troll. You're annoying. I don't hate all Canadians, but I do hate you.

Thank God for this thread...it's allowing me to see who the Canadian-haters are.

I don't see anyone anti-Canadian in this thread. I do, however, see people who have a problem with Hogan Sheffer comparing the literary greats of Canada to the awful writing on Y&R.

Also, they seem to insinuate that Canadians gravitate towards the rushed, outlandish, doppelganger-driven, and one-note psycho overload mess that Y&R churns out these days.

Also, their failure to acknowledge Y&R has been a success in Canada for years, way before they got there, when the show was a much different show creatively. Not to mention, Y&R benefits from an opportune timeslot on Global in most Canadian markets...