I'm surprised to read that actors had headwriters phone numbers and could call to talk(complain) about story.

Always read that the writers and actors were kept at a distance to avoid this type of situation.

Or was it only the likes of Lucci that demanded and received  access?

12 minutes ago, Paul Raven said:

I'm surprised to read that actors had headwriters phone numbers and could call to talk(complain) about story.

Always read that the writers and actors were kept at a distance to avoid this type of situation.

Or was it only the likes of Lucci that demanded and received  access?

I could see it just being Susan, given her importance to AMC.

In an interview with Michael Fairman at the time of the cancellation, I found the anonymous producer's comments on McTavish and the cancellation of OLTL and AMC quite amusing considering the recent discussions. I wonder who the producer would be: https://michaelfairmantv.com/exclusive-former-soap-producer-of-canceled-soap-speaks-out-on-state-of-genre-fans-industry-reactions-and-life-post-daytime/2011/04/26/

3 hours ago, Franko said:

I'm perversely curious if anyone, interviewer, audience member at the stage door, or hell, Joy Behar herself, will dare bring this up to Susan.

No one ever will, nor should they IMO. It's obscure minutiae and only obsessive soap fans like us will ever know it exists.

8 hours ago, Vee said:

Riding the rails wherever America needs her and struggling with the beast within, like Bill Bixby on The Incredible Hulk.

LOL! 😂 I’m just curious as to how she feels now, especially with the advent of BTG and so many folks she worked with now working on that show.  
 

Meanwhile I still can’t get over things like her trash talk of Geary and Lucci,  just casually calling Aiden Turner a “numnutz” or as I also noticed, listing of a full page of spicy blind items that could have been easily ghost written by either Daniel Coleridge or Nelson Branco 🤣

2 hours ago, Vee said:

No one ever will, nor should they IMO. It's obscure minutiae and only obsessive soap fans like us will ever know it exists.

Yeah, that's true. It's not like some firm's going to suddenly think, "You know, let's publish that."

7 hours ago, chrisml said:

In an interview with Michael Fairman at the time of the cancellation, I found the anonymous producer's comments on McTavish and the cancellation of OLTL and AMC quite amusing considering the recent discussions. I wonder who the producer would be: https://michaelfairmantv.com/exclusive-former-soap-producer-of-canceled-soap-speaks-out-on-state-of-genre-fans-industry-reactions-and-life-post-daytime/2011/04/26/

LOL - after all these years, I'm starting to think the real soap opera might have been the behind the scenes:

PRODUCER: One of the things that still frustrated me in this genre is the inability to evolve in terms of staff, and people and writers. For example: I think some of GH’s darkest hours were the Megan McTavish years, and I think some of GL’s were the Megan McTavish years, and I think some of AMC darkest hours were the Megan McTavish years. Then I read somewhere that Brian Frons was courting Megan McTavish to come back, and I thought, really?

54 minutes ago, soapfan770 said:

Meanwhile I still can’t get over things like her trash talk of Geary and Lucci,  just casually calling Aiden Turner a “numnutz” or as I also noticed, listing of a full page of spicy blind items that could have been easily ghost written by either Daniel Coleridge or Nelson Branco 🤣

Now there's someone I miss. Taken from us far too young. 

4 minutes ago, alwaysAMC said:

PRODUCER: One of the things that still frustrated me in this genre is the inability to evolve in terms of staff, and people and writers. For example: I think some of GH’s darkest hours were the Megan McTavish years, and I think some of GL’s were the Megan McTavish years, and I think some of AMC darkest hours were the Megan McTavish years. Then I read somewhere that Brian Frons was courting Megan McTavish to come back, and I thought, really?

But that tracks so well if you know anything at all about the Daytime Destroyer's well deserved reputation. When Micheal Kape first interviewed him in 1983, Kape says he already had a hatred of soaps & a burning desire to rid us of them. I think that was right before he & Joanna & Don created Soap Opera Now, the weekly out of Atlanta. 

11 hours ago, Vee said:

Riding the rails wherever America needs her and struggling with the beast within, like Bill Bixby on The Incredible Hulk.

2 hours ago, Contessa Donatella said:

 

But that tracks so well if you know anything at all about the Daytime Destroyer's well deserved reputation. When Micheal Kape first interviewed him in 1983, Kape says he already had a hatred of soaps & a burning desire to rid us of them. I think that was right before he & Joanna & Don created Soap Opera Now, the weekly out of Atlanta. 

Oh wait, who is the producer here?  For some reason I was thinking it was JHC.

24 minutes ago, alwaysAMC said:

Oh wait, who is the producer here?  For some reason I was thinking it was JHC.

At that moment I was speaking of McTavish's fondness for Brian Frons. If Julie Hanan Carruthers liked him, I did not know that. Basically, all AMC, OLTL, SFT, PC, The City, SFT again, fans, all of them, should HATE Brian Frons, SoapKiller, known forever as the Daytime Destroyer. He canceled SFT twice, once on CBS & then again on NBC. He had a mandate to cancel OLTL but he was in a mood so he canceled AMC, too. The reason GH escaped that same fate on the horrible day in April is because they had no show to put on in its place. That is how close he came to decimating the entire ABC daytime lineup. 

 

Edited March 19Mar 19 by Contessa Donatella

5 minutes ago, Contessa Donatella said:

At that moment I was speaking of McTavish's fondness for Brian Frons. If Julie Hanan Carruthers liked him, I did not know that. Basically, all AMC, OLTL, SFT, PC, The City, SFT again, fans, all of them, should HATE Brian Frons, SoapKiller, known forever as the Daytime Destroyer. He canceled SFT twice, once on CBS & then again on NBC. He had a mandate to cancel OLTL but he was in a mood so he canceled AMC, too. 

 

Ahh yes, very familiar with the awful Brian Frons.

21 hours ago, soapfan770 said:

OMG wow! Late to the party but I saw @DRW50 reference this. 
 

I was able to do a quick speed read earlier but what a total mess. I’m going to go back and read deeper. When was this written??

Judging by the introduction, which she may have written last, it sounds like it was written after the AMC, OLTL cancellation announcement, but before they went off the air...  So 2011?

On 3/17/2025 at 8:06 PM, alwaysAMC said:

I totally forgot that Carlos came in because of that reality star contest.  Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought the winner of that contest was the guy that played the recast Del Henry, who just sadly passed away like last year or earlier this year.  Maybe they had multiple contests?

I'm just starting that McTavish book you all linked and WOW.  I'm just starting, but I can't believe she called Colin Egglesfield unattractive and untalented.  Was he the best actor?  No, but he was really great on the eyes.  Is she blind?? Haha.

 

You know I think Del v.2 was also from that contest--or was it the other soap reality contest?  But you're right...

To me Colin was always one of the hottest soap guys physically, I mean I know it's subjective but--and I thought he was a decent actor actually, who stepped up to the plate for some of the dramatic stuff (I lost track of the actor after he initially was on the failed Melrose reboot)  Of course he was also miles better than the originally cast Josh (who I remember came on the scene and immediately hooked up with Dani in a kinda creepy mode given she was still a teen?  They kinda just forgot that.

On 3/17/2025 at 8:37 PM, Vee said:

She was talking about Scott Kinworthy (Josh #1).

Ha nevermind (I should read all these posts before replying.)  I remember him being handsome enough in a very bland way, but certainly not a good soap actor.

23 hours ago, alwaysAMC said:

Making my way through the McTavish book and curious... was this ever published?  I know it's a draft and you can see her notes on certain pages, but did this ever get finalized and published?  Apologies if I missed the backstory on this one, but I'm really intrigued now by it.  I'm also curious if any of these folks commented on it publicly, as she basically says F it to her career by throwing all these daytime execs, writers and actors under the bus.

Oddly it's in the archives where Agnes Nixon's papers are at Northwestern (Nixon's alma mater).  Your guess how it ended up there (as well as some of her outlines though that makes more sense) is as good as mine--I can only assume McTavish sent it there herself, since she's still alive, but it's all beyond weird.

Keep in mind in the intro she also says she's retired from the industry--so she probably doesn't care who she throws under the bus.

16 hours ago, Alan said:

Something I have been thinking about since reading the McTavish proposal is the fact that it was found in Nixon's papers at Northwestern. That means at some point Nixon  procured it, read it, and filed it away.

I am curious to know who gave it to her? I doubt McTavish sent it to her personally.  (And this unpublished draft was definitely not vetted by lawyers, no matter what it says!) Maybe one of her contacts in the publication industry reached out and said "hey, there's this nutty book outline making the rounds with your name all over it..."

I believe some things in her archive definitely were put there after Nixon passed away and weren't necessarily found in her papers but rather someone felt they should go there.  BUT you're right, that usually how it works is someone would have found it in her papers and I can only imagine if she did read it.  Wow.

As for where McTavish is now isn't she still breeding big dogs or whatever?  (I love dogs, but just can't imagine McTavish being a nice breeder lol)

31 minutes ago, EricMontreal22 said:

Judging by the introduction, which she may have written last, it sounds like it was written after the AMC, OLTL cancellation announcement, but before they went off the air...  So 2011?

You know I think Del v.2 was also from that contest--or was it the other soap reality contest?  But you're right...

To me Colin was always one of the hottest soap guys physically, I mean I know it's subjective but--and I thought he was a decent actor actually, who stepped up to the plate for some of the dramatic stuff (I lost track of the actor after he initially was on the failed Melrose reboot)  Of course he was also miles better than the originally cast Josh (who I remember came on the scene and immediately hooked up with Dani in a kinda creepy mode given she was still a teen?  They kinda just forgot that.

Ha nevermind (I should read all these posts before replying.)  I remember him being handsome enough in a very bland way, but certainly not a good soap actor.

Oddly it's in the archives where Agnes Nixon's papers are at Northwestern (Nixon's alma mater).  Your guess how it ended up there (as well as some of her outlines though that makes more sense) is as good as mine--I can only assume McTavish sent it there herself, since she's still alive, but it's all beyond weird.

Keep in mind in the intro she also says she's retired from the industry--so she probably doesn't care who she throws under the bus.

I follow Colin on Instagram and he recently just went through cancer again and is recovering.  He's doing well and is really involved in self-help style classes/lectures/positivity stuff.  Still a handsome guy.

That is SO weird they're in Nixon's papers... wild in fact.  Has anyone ever acknowledged them in interviews or in writing - any of the EPs, actors, writers, etc that she dogs?