Will ABC Daytime Cut 20 Scripted Episodes Per Year, Per Soap?

[All My Shadows]

I wouldn't want them to take 20 days off in one big block. I'd like it to be sorta like those random "teacher's workshop days" in school, where out of the blue, you just don't have school on a random Tuesday or Friday. The soaps can take a one or two day break every month.

ETA: But yes, my dream is for them all to go back to 30 minutes. So easy to watch, so easy to marathon a week's worth of shows. Just plain easy. They can do the 90 minute soap block, put a game show in there, and even rerun two of their primetime sitcoms like the networks used to do decades ago.

[dragonflies]

If GH went to 1/2 hour they'd cut everyone but Sonny, Carly, Jason, Sam & Spinelli, that's all we'd get

I have to agree

[Y&RWorldTurner]

But how is that different from the show right now? LOL!

And yeah, they'd have to rely on a lot of actors going on recurring. Most actors are just happy to work these days, so I don't know how many would object to not being on contract.

[Soapsuds]

I think all of daytime should have gone the primetime route..

For example

Monday- Y&R at 11 am..rest of day ..game shows ..talk shows

Tuesday: B&B full hour 11am.....same as above

Wednesday: ATWT 11 am...same as above

Thursday & Friday whatever the hell they wanted..lol

[dragonflies]

It wouldn't be much different, it would be worse cause 3/4 of the half hour would be them.

"Classic" to ABC Daytime is Rylee circa 2004. Wouldn't they have to pay royalties to people who aren't on the show if they air older episodes?

[DRW50]

Exactly. Even 2004 is going too far back. My guess is they would show the episode where Greenlee went off the cliff -- and they will just blur out Eden's face and put a picture of Christina Lind over it.

[dragonflies]

They aren't going to air really old episodes, they don't want to remind viewers how great the show was, and how bad it's gotten

[Sindacco]

Why would it? Thursday is a normal working-day while Friday is the last one and people prepare for the weekend.

[Cheap21]

so the show will air 4 days a week about twice a month

[dragonflies]

Thursdays haven't been doing well either. I can see them doing a Port Charles type of thing, tape for part of the year, then go on a break, if it comes down to it.

[Sylph]

[jcar03]

If "classic" didn't mean last year to ABC instead of episodes from further back.

[SFK]

Yeah, I don't have a real problem with them cutting some episodes, but they've lost me as well on their idea of "classic" eps (which I simply will not watch). I'm already turned off by "classic" Christmas episodes that are barely two years old. Give me Christmas 1984, and you have me in the palm of your hand.

There are certainly newer fans who are not nostalgia buffs and will enjoy specially packaged episodes about their favorite couples, but in this YouTube age, merely rerunning easily available episodes is just not going to cut it. They HAVE to mix in pre-2000 "classic" episodes to make this worth while, to appeal to their entire audience. I don't have numbers, but wasn't Daytime to Remember a real hit? I don't want my personal tastes and the tastes of others I talk to in the online soap community to blind me from the facts, but I do recall that those episodes were very well-received and a lot of us weren't ready for them to stop and PC to begin.

[SFK]

Of course what would be wonderful is if TPTB took this opportunity to really put their feet into these soaps and crank out some top notch material with less days to spread it all out. A noticeable improvement in the quality of storytelling should be our "bonus" here. If it's same old same old crap, yeah, I have to agree that it's like killing a spider plucking one leg at a time. When will they learn that quality storytelling is the most cost-effective measure?

[bellcurve]

Will they have to renegotiate everyone's contracts again?