Ratings from the 70's

[Khan]

Nothing embodies that sentiment better, IMO, than the Marlena/Samantha story.  Not only is the premise of one twin stashing the other twin inside a sanitarium and then assuming their identity absurd*, but as several have pointed out, Deidre and Andrea Hall also neither look nor sound exactly alike.

Furthermore, what was Samantha's goal in taking over Marlena's life?  Because, all that I could gather from watching clips on YT was that Samantha was hooked on drugs, that Marlena found out that she had used Marlena's name to obtain more drugs and that Samantha warned Marlena to back off.

I realize that PFS has her detractors and that she probably was a pistol to work with BTS, but I think her writing possessed more intelligence than people give her credit for.  Even in the '80's, when she was spinning action-adventure stories for GH and, occasionally, for DAYS, PFS's stuff still was a cut above anything that Anne Howard Bailey or others wrote in that particular style.  Her tenure at RH might have been the most problematic for her and for viewers, but on the other hand, I think there were problems with that show that existed before she joined.

 

(*Although, I am certain someone out there will prove to me by way of real-life incidents that it is more common than I would think, lol).

[kalbir]

CBS approached Bill Bell in 1977 about creating a second show for the daytime lineup but as well all know Bill Bell wouldn't have a second show ready until 10 years later. The only soap schedule change CBS made in 1977 was expanding Guiding Light to 1 hr. If Bill Bell had a second show ready in 1977, would Guiding Light expansion have been delayed or would Love of Life have ended?

Edited December 31, 2023 by kalbir

[Khan]

Woah!  What happened on DAYS the week of 5/30-6/3 for them to jump all the way back to #2?

I would say the latter.  Bridget and Jerome Dobson seemed to have revitalized GL by that point, so I could imagine CBS/P&G being very eager to expand the show to sixty minutes.  LOL, on the other hand, might not have been at the very bottom of the ratings, but they do seem to be stuck in the bottom half.

[kalbir]

Do GL fans consider Potter/Dobsons 1976-1980 to be another golden era on the level of Potter/Marland 1980-1982 and Calhoun/Long/Curlee 1989-1991?

[Soapsuds]

ATWT dominated.

[AbcNbc247]

Had to check 

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That was the week Valerie found out that Trish was pregnant and that David was the father.

[Khan]

Absolutely!  As a matter of fact, @kalbir, depending upon whom you ask, many GL fans consider the Dobsons' era to be superior to the other two!

Huh.  Interesting, lol.

ATWT back then was like Y&R today: it didn't really matter to longtime fans whether there was anything exciting going on at that moment.  They still tuned in, because the characters had become familiar and comforting to them.

[AbcNbc247]

Yep.

She left the following week. The Duvall's did too.

[kalbir]

Two storylines from the Dobson era that impacted GL until the end were Roger/Holly and intro of the Spauldings. Its too bad so little of the Dobson era has surfaced. I haven't seen any 1976 episodes and AFAIK only two 1977 episodes and a partial 1978 episode have surfaced. 1979 and 1980 have a few episodes out there.

[Khan]

I agree, @kalbir.  I have read so much about how the Dobsons "modernized" GL.  Compared to the 1960's stuff that still is out there, the Dobsons' work - that is, what I have seen of it - feels so fresh and contemporary.  I wish there was more of it available.

[JAS0N47]

FROM THE VAULT: WEEKLY DAYTIME NIELSEN RATINGS: WEEKS OF 6/6/77-6/10/77 & 6/13/77-6/17/77:

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FAST WEEKLY WEEK OF 6/20/77-6/24/77 NOT AVAILABLE

(Note: Per newspaper listings, there were no scheduled preemptions and all daytime shows were scheduled to air every day this week).

Edited June 30, 2024 by JAS0N47

[JAS0N47]

FROM THE VAULT: WEEKLY DAYTIME NIELSEN RATINGS: WEEKS OF 6/27/77-7/1/77 & 7/4/77-7/8/77:

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[Paul Raven]

Wow! in just over 3 months Y&R moves from 6th to 1 st. Any theories ?

ATWT dethroned from #1 after how long?

[JAS0N47]

FROM THE VAULT: WEEKLY DAYTIME NIELSEN RATINGS: WEEKS OF 7/11/77-7/15/77 & 7/18/77-7/22/77:

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[Khan]

I could never have worked in any network's daytime division, especially during the '70's.  Each soap's ratings seemed to fluctuate wildly from week to work.  One week, you're nipping at ATWT's heels; the next, you're in the middle of the pack.  ATWT staying at no. 1 appears to have been the only constant - and even that was not guaranteed!

It's just enough to drive even Grant Tinker (RIP) to the edge.

Edited January 2, 2024 by Khan