Exactly. In our lifetime, I doubt we'll ever see a new channel start up from scratch.

Unless, of course, it's the Trump Network. Or, as its CEO and founding President is liable to call it, "the Greatest Network in the History of Primetime Television." (Cue the Apprentice reruns.)

That "passing mention" of the upcoming James Franco sequence was so desperate I could barely swallow the beer in my mouth. I do agree that soaps have become readily available online (thanks to fans first and foremost, the fans have been kinder and more generous to their own community than TPTB). I think my frustration lies more in the general decline in the medium, in the quality of the material, and the "what could have been" of SN. As I said in an earlier post, I finally got SN when it began to drop a lot of its original shows, and that included the ones like "Soap Center" (I think it was called that) and I believe there was another one too, I dunno, maybe it was just the one (I think Tanika Ray was host). I would have really enjoyed those interview/behind the scenes shows and I think more programming like thatis what SN should have done more of (those Soapographys were always so SHORT and they really should have done an Inside the Actors Studio-type show, hosted by La Dano natch ). More and more '80s primetime soaps pop up on the net every day, so I'm not so bothered by that. But SN had the opportunity to air all of those short-lived soaps, a couple of which would have been over in a year's time at two episodes a day. They couldn't even stick with AW. I guess we just have to hold out hope for the Hulus of the world.

Soap Center was one show, Tanika Ray was on West Coast soaps and some blonde woman was on East Coast soaps. Then they just started recycling old clips which were introduced by Tanika and finally they dumped the show altogether.

I finally got Soapnet around 2001 or so when they still had a lot of their stuff, and it's been a sad and long decline ever since.

I'm just glad that their efforts to show how superior they were to soaps with stuff like Southern Smells of Desperation or Bank of Bumhole got them about as much as actually staying with soaps would have gotten them.

Maybe Frons can get James Franco to show up on Being Erica. Have some PERFORMANCE ART where he walks on the set and tells them the show is canceled, or whatever.

I think my frustration lies more in the general decline in the medium, in the quality of the material, and the "what could have been" of SN.

They had the access to the material, even if it was owned by someone else. Agnes and Jim and Barbara would have allowed SOAPnet to acquire The City and maybe air it on the weekdays or on weekends in late-night. They had the perfect tie-ins with Tracy Q and former City actors like Lisa Low and Cassie Layne.

Or even a show like Sunset Beach where they gave Annie a perfect throwaway line(promoting Beach airing twice a day on NBC) that could have been used in their commercials.

Even if they didn't want to commit to 80's shows like Another World and Santa Barbara, there was some stuff SOAPnet could have acquired from the 90's where there was no penalty for re-scoring scenes with pop music that would have appealed to their target market(SOAPnet's excuse for not acquiring Santa Barbara).

Edited May 27, 201015 yr by bellcurve

Maybe Frons can get James Franco to show up on Being Erica. Have some PERFORMANCE ART where he walks on the set and tells them the show is canceled, or whatever.

W. I. N.

I love how Frons spins things in that SOD interview. So now that they arent doing any more pogramming for Soapnet, they will put more into the soaps?

Maybe GH, but OLTL ain't gettin' sh!t.

Sure they are! It's called a pink slip!

I am surprised that Frons never got Santa Barbara on Soapnet, I figured since he played God on that, he'd want everyone to see it

I am surprised that Frons never got Santa Barbara on Soapnet, I figured since he played God on that, he'd want everyone to see it

Santa Barbara was too expensive, yet he had no problem shelling out $20-30 million for One Tree Hill and the OC.

Carl, I think that's when I started to catch it, when Tanika was hosting the repackaged clips.

Exactly bellcurve. And you know, they pissed me off when they cancelled DFN: Dysfunctional Family Night. As they acquired more daytime soaps (sure, a good thing) they pushed the classic primetime out, only to cancel more daytime reairings to squeeze in all of those '90s/'00s shows. But DFN was a *perfect* slot for the Flamingo Roads, the Emerald Points, the CPWs, et cetera. Just a couple of hours, ONE night a week. I do commend them though for airing Paper Dolls, Pasadena, The Monroes, those were pleasant surprises and unfortunately I ended up missing most of that stuff.

Santa Barbara was too expensive, yet he had no problem shelling out $20-30 million for One Tree Hill and the OC.

Apparently girls would rather watch Chad Micheal Murray squint his eyes and Mischa Barton look like a statue instead of watching Santa Barbara.

How sad. SoapNet was once such a great channel: where else could you get a Daily dose of Dynasty? But I can't even remember the last time I tuned into Soapnet. I watched the OLTL musical episodes at Hulu. I understand the logic behind their bullshit reasoning, but it is a false logic. The history of network TV shows that when people break a habit they don't come back. That's why MASH got 80 million viewers and today finales get 15. There is something cold about watching TV online though, I can't explain it. It doesn't feel the same. The TV for a lot of people gives a sense of keeping you company; I know people who leave the TV on so they don't feel quite so alone. With online, that sense of someone being there with you--talking to you--does not exist. Many people go to sleep with the TV on, or have it on in the background while cooking or whatever, and this is not the same thing as having to go online and do work: go the site, load up the program, and click play.

SoapNet was once such a great channel: where else could you get a Daily dose of Dynasty?

You haven't met my family, have you?

How sad. SoapNet was once such a great channel: where else could you get a Daily dose of Dynasty? But I can't even remember the last time I tuned into Soapnet. I watched the OLTL musical episodes at Hulu. I understand the logic behind their bullshit reasoning, but it is a false logic. The history of network TV shows that when people break a habit they don't come back. That's why MASH got 80 million viewers and today finales get 15. There is something cold about watching TV online though, I can't explain it. It doesn't feel the same. The TV for a lot of people gives a sense of keeping you company; I know people who leave the TV on so they don't feel quite so alone. With online, that sense of someone being there with you--talking to you--does not exist. Many people go to sleep with the TV on, or have it on in the background while cooking or whatever, and this is not the same thing as having to go online and do work: go the site, load up the program, and click play.

So true. I'm like that, I got it from my mother and it used to drive my other half crazy because I always wanted to fall asleep with the TV on. I like the "mutter" and I hate falling asleep in dead silence. A fan was the compromise. But I totally know what you mean, there *is* something cold about watching online, on dvd even. It lacks the spontaneity of what episode's next, will it be a favorite or a least favorite, et cetera. One "trick" if you're watching on YouTube is to make a really LONG playlist of your shows and play it on shuffle. I've seen most episodes of my favorite sitcoms multiple times so I don't mind if I land on part 3 of "The Rent Party" then part 2 of "Sex and the Evans Family" on Good Times, especially if I have it on just for cheery background noise while I'm busy doing other things. I suppose that makes me not only a TV over silence person, but a TV over radio person too.

This is basically ABC admitting that soaps aren't viable anymore. That is sad.

No, not really. Its ABC admitting that a soap opera network is less profitable than a kids network.

Spare me, I have no doubt it was arrived at with nary a thought. Soapnet hasn't been Soapnet in about 2-3 years. Just like MTV isn't MUSIC TV.....

Soapnet to MTV isnt really a fair comparison. MTV doesnt even show videos anymore, soapnet shows soaps. in fact it shows 5 soaps a night and reruns primetime soaps. Its very much soapnet. its just not classic daytime soap opera network. and it never really was.

Remember when the Disney Channel used to air old movies and more adult content during late night hours years ago? :lol:

VAULT Disney. lol, yes i do.

+1 Frons called? Or maybe Jamey called the office and got an intern or low-level receptionist?

+1. Exactly.

And SOAPnet has fallen victim to the same thing other cable channels have in recent years. They have strayed too far from their original vision. Look at the History channel for example. They are showing programs like Pawn Stars, Pickers, and Ice Road Truckers most of the time. Or TV Land, which shows stuff like High School Reunion, Extreme Home Makeover, etc..., even though it was founded as a classic tv channel. The same with Nick at Nite. Even The Weather Channel is becoming unrecognizable...showing movies, Storm Stories, and everything else other than just standing in front of a green screen and telling the weather.

SOAPnet is just the latest in a long line of networks that are trying to re-brand, and failing miserably at it IMO.

But it wasnt failing. Thats the most shocking part of all of this. Ut was doing well. In the past two years it has grown an audience. It has gotten major press from varity and hollywood report and other outlets about its gains.

As for making it into a kids network, there must be that audience out there. Nick use to have Noggin, a 12 hour block of kiddie shows then The-N, a 12 hour block of teen shows. Last year it broke them off into two 24 hour networks.

The-N is now Teen Nick, right? Degrassi and such, and all those awful overacted shows that my nieces watch around 4:00. Zack, Cody, Carly, Kylie, Miley blahblahblah...