NBC Daytime

[Jdee43]

I guess a traditional problematic time slot for NBC was 1:30pm, the time CBS was showing As the World Turns. In 1968, Let's Make a Deal was making headway, but NBC foolishly lost that show to ABC. From 1969-1974, nothing they put on at 1:30pm stuck: Hidden Faces/ You're Putting Me On/ Life with Linkletter/ Words and Music/ Memory Game/ Three on a Match/ Jeopardy!/ How to Survive a Marriage. They finally just expanded DAYS to an hour in 1975, from 1:30-2:30pm, and that seemed to finally take care of things.

Another problematic slot for NBC was whatever was following Another World, from 3:30pm-4:30pm. Having a half hour between Another World and its spin-off Somerset probably wasn't a good idea. When AW expanded to 60 minutes in 1975, it was finally followed by Somerset. By that time though, Somerset didn't feel much like a spin-off of AW. 

Edited January 6 by Jdee43

[Contessa Donatella]

50 years ago today, January 6, 1975, "Another World" was the first American soap opera to expand to 60 minutes.

[Paul Raven]

When AW expanded it practically doubled what HTSAM had been doing @3.30. And I believe it was cheaper than running two 1/2hour shows.

I'm sure champagne corks were popping and everyone was pondering the next expansion.

[Contessa Donatella]

IIRC the cost to the show to do the hour show was more than twice the cost but the revenue to the network was also more than what it would have been from 2 half hour shows, so of course, they wanted to go with the hour show because MORE revenue & they made concessions to the show in terms of space and help with salaries for more actors that would be needed to try to help out on the production end. Now that applied to NBC & to ABC. At CBS when instead they said we're doing it with you or without you, I don't know if they helped the show with costs or not. 

But ultimately it didn't save Lin Bolen's baby but it's not clear that anything would have. 

I was trying to remember what the soap's name was in NETWORK but I'm blank. 

Got it! THE SUN ALSO SETS

 

Edited January 6 by Contessa Donatella
IDEA

[allmc2008]

There wasn't a soap in NETWORK.  The Sun Also Sets was in soap dish. 

 

How the hell did your mind confuse those two movies?

[Contessa Donatella]

So, for the moment I am unable to come up with the title of the soap Diana was so obsessed with in the movie. One source suggests "The Meditation Hour" but I am dubious. 

 

[allmc2008]

That was a talk show

[Paul Raven]

[Khan]

Granted, TEXAS had problems from day one, but for some reason, calling it a "badly written serial" really stings, lol.

[Contessa Donatella]

So, the soap on NETWORK wasn't a real thing. It was just part of a fairly typical Diana rant, "NBC has daytime locked up with all their lousy game shows. I want to knock them down. I'm thinking about doing a homosexual soap opera, 'The Dykes', the tragic story of a woman in love with her husband's mistress."

[Contessa Donatella]

An analysis of JFP's effect on the demo W18-49 at Another World in 1995-96.
Sources:
https://www.jason47.com/days/nielsens1995.html

https://www.jason47.com/days/nielsens1996.html

4-22-96 AW 2.7
              GL 2.5
              ATWT 2.3
4-29-96 AW 2.6
              GL 2.4
              ATWT 2.1
5-6-96 AW 2.9
              GL 2.5
            ATWT 2.3 
5-13-96 AW 2.7
             ATWT 2.5
             GL 2.4
5-20-96 ATWT 2.4
               AW 2.3/14
               GL 2.2/14
6-3-96   GL 2.5
              AW 2.4/16
             ATWT 2.4/16
6-17-96 ATWT 2.4/16
             AW 2.4/15
            GL 2.2
6-24-96 AW 2.4/16
            ATWT 2.4/16
            GL 2.2
7-1-96 AW 2.5/17
          ATWT 2.5/17
          GL 2.2
7-15-96 ATWT 2.6
             GL 2.3
            AW 2.1
7-22-96 AW 2.5/16
           ATWT 2.5/16
               GL 2.2
7-29-96  AW 2.8
               ATWT 2.3
             GL 2.0
8-5-96 AW 2.5
          ATWT 2.4
          GL 2.0
8-12-96 ATWT 2.6/17
                 AW 2.6/16
                GL 2.2 
8-19-96 AW 2.8
               ATWT 2.4
               GL 2.2
8-26-96 AW 2.6
               ATWT 2.2
                GL 2.1
9-9-96 AW 2.9
         ATWT 2.1
           GL 1.9
9-16-96 AW 2.8
         ATWT 2.3
          GL 2.0
9-23-96 AW 2.8
           GL 2.2
            ATWT 2.1
9-30-96 AW 2.7
            ATWT 2.2
           GL 1.8
This accounts for all the instances where AW rated better in the W18-49 demo when compared to ATWT & GL in 1996. There is only 1 week in 1995 where this occurs & as you will see, it is rather different.
9-25-95   AW 2.4/17
               ATWT 2.4/16
                   GL 2.4/16  
In the rest of the time covering May 1995 to Sept. 1996 AW was as low as 1.6 and as high as 2.7.
           

[TEdgeofNight]

So many errors.

[Paul Raven]

Another nail in the coffin for NBC daytime. Shuffling deck chairs on the Titanic.

House Party was flop. I guess the idea of counterprogramming had some appeal but soaps had never worked in the morning, as witnessed  with Texas earlier in the decade. Maybe Days leading off might have worked bit I guess they were loathe to move their top rating soap.

Broadcasting Dec 11 1989.

WNBC -TV New York shuffles network daytime schedule

With NBC's OK, owned station moves to consolidate soaps and game shows, strengthen lead -in to 'Donahue,' accommodate 'House Party'

NBC has endorsed an unprecedented reshuffling of its daytime schedule by its owned- and -operated station, WNBC TV New York. The move is designed to boost the station's daytime performance, where WNBC TV and WCBS TV are in a close battle for second. But WABC TV is the dominant leader, with almost double the household rating in daytime of both of its affiliate competitors.

The reshuffling will bring the four network soaps on the station into a new block that starts in mid-morning, while three game shows will move from the morning to a new afternoon block.

In part, the new daytime schedule, which takes effect Jan. 22, is being made to ac- commodate the new NBC Group W program, House Party. But just as important, the station hopes the new schedule will beef up the lead in ratings of Donahue, seen as a solid performer at 4 p.m. that often does three times the rating of its current lead in, Santa Barbara.

WNBC TV is canceling its 9 a.m. -10 a.m. magazine block, consisting of King World's Inside Edition and USA Today, effective with the start of the new schedule. USA Today had been canceled anyway by its distributor, GTG.

Bill Moll, vice president and general manager, WNBC TV, said the station would move Inside Edition into the graveyard hours, but, as a result, King World had the right to seek a better clearance for the show on a competing station in the market. Last week, a King World spokeswoman said talks had begun with other stations in the market. As to WNBC TV's decision to, in effect, cancel the show, she said, "It's just not indicative of intellectual programing.

The station will program 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. with Golden Girls and 227, which the network currently schedules from 11 a.m. to noon. House Party will follow at 10 a.m.

At 11 a.m., WNBC TV will launch a mid morning soap block, starting with Santa Barbara. The show moves up from 3 p.m., where it has been a close third to CBS's Guiding Light, but far behind WABC TV's General Hospital, which provides a lead in to The Oprah Winfrey Show that helps it keep far ahead of both Donahue and WCBS TV's Geraldo from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Moll said that Santa Barbara, in its new time period, may fare better, being the only soap in the time period, against The Price is Right on WCBS TV and The Home Show on WABC TV. Following Santa Barbara, in order, from noon to 2:30 p.m., will be Generations, Days of our Lives and Another World.

The newly created game show block will follow, with the syndicated Third Degree and NBC's Scrabble and Concentration. It is widely rumored that Warner Bros. will not bring back Third Degree next season. Last week, Moll confirmed WNBC -TV's acquisition of ITC's Tic, Tac, Dough, and said the station was looking at other game show product, which could be placed in the new afternoon block.

Donahue will continue at 4 p.m., leading into the station's evening news block. Nightly News will continue to air at 7 p.m. Family Feud airs at 7:30 p.m., and is delivering competitive demographic numbers, said Judy Girard, the station's director of programing and broadcast operations.

Traditionally, network owned and operated stations have carried their network feeds with little deviation. A notable exception is KCNC -TV Denver, which became an O &O when General Electric acquired NBC. That station has for some time juggled the network's daytime lineup, and is number one in the market in daytime. Nationally, NBC is ranked third in daytime.

According to Moll, NBC TV President Pier Mapes "enthusiastically endorsed" the reshuffling on NBC. All the NBC owned stations are making adjustments to their daytime schedules to make room for House Party in January. It is understood that some of the owned stations, including KNBC TV Los Angeles, are also considering changes that would move soaps to morning. At deadline, a KNBC TV official said no decision had been reached on how to proceed. 

[Contessa Donatella]

All I have to read here is mid morning soap block!!! OH NO!! When will they ever learn???!!!

[j swift]

Spoiler Alert: KNBC kept Santa Barbara on at 2pm, until it was cancelled