She's gone further than many - she did create or co-create Gotham and a lot of ATWT people were involved. It didn't really go anywhere but hopefully with time she might be able to come up with something better.

Was Gotham something to brag about? I found it lower quality than home movies. The sound, the blink and you'll miss it duration of the episodes, the whole production was amateurish and inferior to what comes out of NYU film school. As a matter of fact, maybe she should contact some students to help her.

From the moment PP insinuated they wanted to produce AMC and OLTL 2.0 in much the same way that the network versions had been produced -- with several episodes per week, similar cast sizes and comparable production values -- the enterprise as a whole was doomed not to succeed. If I've said it once, I've said it a hundred times: if you want to launch a successful series on the web, then you have to "think small" the way people like Irna Phillips and Roy Winsor did. Actors, even good ones, want to work often for the "exposure" alone (in other words, they didn't get into the business in order to make lavish salaries), but you can't be all Doug Marland and hire, like, 42 of them at one time to appear in three-minute episodes. (Yes, Martha, I'm talking to you.) You can't produce a network-quality soap opera for the Internet, where revenues and financial backing remain hard things to pin down. Hell, even the networks are struggling to produce network-quality soaps!

Lord, how I wish PP had just tried to develop a brand-new soap....

Edited November 24, 201114 yr by Khan

I think a realistic goal is to have past soaps available online for a fee. That may be doable. Maybe.

I would have no problem with that. I was prepared to pay for OLTL and AMC, If I can pay for HBO every month and never turn it on I can pay the same amount of money for 10 episodes a week of a soap. I was curious about Hulu Gold, but never understood what pay Hulu gave you free Hulu didn't, and then as soon as pay Hulu was born the networks announced they were restricting online access anyway. But if someone put every surviving episode of AMC online, I would subscribe.

I must say Susan Lucci was a smart woman not to drive herself into this.

Sophia Petrillo: "I smell a pony ride."

I would have no problem with that. I was prepared to pay for OLTL and AMC, If I can pay for HBO every month and never turn it on I can pay the same amount of money for 10 episodes a week of a soap. I was curious about Hulu Gold, but never understood what pay Hulu gave you free Hulu didn't, and then as soon as pay Hulu was born the networks announced they were restricting online access anyway. But if someone put every surviving episode of AMC online, I would subscribe.

I think that's something that could happen with all the soaps, ATWT, GL, Search for Tomorrow, Santa Barbara. I have hope it might happen someday. I don't know enough to understand the obstacles, but I have to believe they will overcome someday. Seems like easy money for the people who own the rights.

Edited November 24, 201114 yr by Juliajms

Was Gotham something to brag about? I found it lower quality than home movies. The sound, the blink and you'll miss it duration of the episodes, the whole production was amateurish and inferior to what comes out of NYU film school. As a matter of fact, maybe she should contact some students to help her.

I thought it was OK for a first effort. Not very good, but I liked seeing some of the actors again. I just meant that at least she did manage to get something made.

Martha Byrne is setting up a twitter chat about online soaps if anyone has questions

Yeah, I have a question: "Will Martha just shut the [!@#$%^&*] up and go back to making her Thanksgiving dinner?"

From the moment PP insinuated they wanted to produce AMC and OLTL 2.0 in much the same way that the network versions had been produced -- with several episodes per week, similar cast sizes and comparable production values -- the enterprise as a whole was doomed not to succeed. If I've said it once, I've said it a hundred times: if you want to launch a successful series on the web, then you have to "think small" the way people like Irna Phillips and Roy Winsor did. Actors, even good ones, want to work often for the "exposure" alone (in other words, they didn't get into the business in order to make lavish salaries), but you can't be all Doug Marland and hire, like, 42 of them at one time to appear in three-minute episodes. (Yes, Martha, I'm talking to you.) You can't produce a network-quality soap opera for the Internet, where revenues and financial backing remain hard things to pin down. Hell, even the networks are struggling to produce network-quality soaps!

Lord, how I wish PP had just tried to develop a brand-new soap....

well the ABC Deal with PP called for the shows to be 60 mins 5 days a week 52 weeks a year

I'll tell you what Hulu Plus gives you for $8 a month - almost the entire Criterion Collection.

That was more than enough for me to sign up.

"AFTRA was deeply disappointed to read that the executives at Prospect Park have decided to suspend their efforts to produce the long-running and popular daytime serials, 'One Life to Live' and 'All My Children,' via online distribution. Despite initial progress in our negotiations with Prospect Park toward resolving a fair agreement to cover the performers appearing on these programs, we were perplexed and disappointed that for the past month Prospect Park has not responded to our repeated inquiries to resume those discussions. We now conclude from the press reports that Prospect Park faced other challenges unrelated to our negotiations, which prevented continuation of those discussions. We remain hopeful that an opportunity to revive these two popular series will emerge in the future, and remain ready to resume discussions should that opportunity arise."

So many insurance-scheme-gone-wrong stories on "Unsolved Mysteries" started out this way.

Yeah, I have a question: "Will Martha just shut the [!@#$%^&*] up and go back to making her Thanksgiving dinner?"

My thoughts exactly. Stuff that turkey Martha!

Oh well. I waited, and now I'm seeing. Oh well.

For the record, I don't think this was some huge conspiracy. I think it's pretty simple. PP thought they could do something, but they couldn't. ABC probably figured all along that PP wouldn't be successful, because they knew what it would take to make this work, but I don't think they actively wanted it to fail.

I just wish someone would start releasing DVD sets.

Frankly, I'm done with nostalgia. All it does is make me mad again. God knows I loved these shows, but I think I'm at a point where I'm ready never to see them again even in reruns.

Frankly, I'm done with nostalgia. All it does is make me mad again. God knows I loved these shows, but I think I'm at a point where I'm ready never to see them again even in reruns.

It depends on the show, for me. I tend to just enjoy what's in the moment and try not to think about what happens later. Sometimes that's easy, sometimes it's not. It depends on the story or characters. Some Ryan's Hope stuff I can watch again and again. Others I barely cared about the first time.

I'm most interested in all the stuff I've never really gotten to see before, or only seen bits of.

I am not mad at all. I actually am grateful for PP for at least trying though unsuccessful.

I'm not buying the conspiracy theories either. I'm a huge X-Files fan and still don't buy the magic bullet killed JFK theory... YET I see no earthly reason to believe a media giant like Disney cooked up a HOAX with PP to silence a tiny group of soap fans. We're like gnats to be stomped on without another look by giant Disney.

I feel PP was on the right track. The future of daytime soaps should be online. But I watch MSNBC and heard over and over the economy continues so sluggish b/c investors/banks are hoarding cash versus investing in new ventures or expanding business. PP never stood a chance in this climate.

I am grateful to the actors, crew, and PP who tried to keep our soaps alive. I place the blame squarely on Disney's shoulders as they killed ABC Daytime.