The Suds Report - Sept11/09

SUDSIEST QUOTES OF THE WEEK:
“It's on. You feel a little more pressure. Could we win this award again? I guess now we know it's possible. But we have some good shows to submit for next year but I’m writing now for the beginning of November and in November and December we’re pouring it on to really have some excellent submissions and stories lined up. I think we’ll be able to do our best work again.”
—Emmy winner Bradley Bell to CBS.com if his best drama series win will affect B&B’s quality
Translation: I guess I can’t rely on saying, “We’re not in it to win awards” again!

“There’s been a lot of head-rubbing going on!”
—AMC’s Jacob Young on his new bald look in Digest
Translation: I won’t say which head!

“I decided to come and cheer for Y&R.”
—Brenda Dickson answers Soaps In Depth when asked why she attended the Emmys
Translation: Aren’t they nominated for best show and writing? OK, I need a freakin’ job!

“Because acting is not my only income [I also paint], I wouldn’t take a role if it offended me. But, I would never quit if I were asked to ‘kiss a girl.’ I find it shocking when ‘straight’ people are offended at homosexual roles.”
—Y&R’s Thom Bierdz to Ourprattville.com if he would walk off the set if he objected to kissing someone he didn’t want to
Translation: If I can kiss Lauralee Bell, I can kiss anyone! 

“Julie Carruthers and Wendy Riche had seen me and both called Barbara Bloom and said, ‘If you’ve got anything going on that’s a good fit, Stuart looks better than I’ve seen him looking in years.’ Lo and behold, it couldn’t have been two weeks and Barbara called me and said, ‘I just got off the phone with Chris Goutman and I asked him, ‘How would you like Damon to play a mobster?’ and Chris said, ‘I’d be thrilled.’”
—Emmy winner Stuart Damon to Soap Opera Digest recounting how he was cast on World Turns
Translation: More proof that Julie and Barbara are in cahoots — and ABC is influencing the writing on World Turns. Question: Why is Barbara Bloom taking advice from her competition? I guess she needs all the help she can get.

“The best part of the party was standing next to Brad Bell while he was being [shot] with his Emmy. I couldn’t be happier if I had won myself.”
—Don Diamont on B&B’s best drama win in the pages of Digest
Translation: That’ll teach Y&R for firing me.

EMMY CENTRAL
Exclusive — GL tribute NOT cut for time! Which star fell during the Emmys? Will ABC air the awards show next year?
—Two left feet: During the 36th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards “fashion” show, DAYS’s Shelley Hennig (Stephanie) fell right after her routine off-camera. Ouch.
 
—Meanwhile, ATI Chief James Romanovich told Suds that the probability of airing an Emmycast next year is hopeful: “It depends on whether or not it makes financial sense for us to do it next year. I’m sure ABC will not do it (unless something changes that I don’t know) and CBS is way out of the picture. The Day Emmys may have to air on the CW or in syndication,” he says.

—The GL tribute controversy doesn’t show any signs of dying down. Suds offered Michael Fairman, of On-Air, On Soaps, some major real estate in order to give fans more insight as to why his award-worthy Springfield tribute was cut down significantly. Here are his thoughts — and your burning questions answered:

I can’t believe as of today there are just six more episodes left of Guiding Light. I know from reading fans’ posts, emails and reactions to the Guiding Light tribute that many feel the same way as I do, that what went down at the Daytime Emmys for GL was unsatisfying for many reasons. One last time I want to address the issues surrounding the package controversy. Let me say, that I have produced many tributes for the Emmys and other shows including The MacDonald Carey Daytime Emmy tribute after his passing, and 25 years of AIDS retrospective in film and television. So, to be handed the ball to produce this GL tribute package was an honour and something I took with the highest regard to honour and reflect the show. Unfortunately, others did not feel the same.

In retrospect, one of the inherent problems was that the producers had gone to the press in advance of the event touting the Guiding Light tribute as one of the most highly anticipated events of the broadcast. So of course, fans were encouraged that a tribute befitting of the show’s legacy was going to be delivered.

ATI’s Jim Romanovich has been a great soap ally and professional friend, and has championed the soap genre in amazing ways; including getting the Emmys on TV after it lost its home. He was not involved in the creative process of the clip package, nor did he have the final say on what tribute clip package made it to air. But Jim graciously allowed me to go ahead and post the four-minute version online and I cannot thank him enough. Truth over fiction: I produced a four-minute tribute package as my original concept and vision that I believed told the history of GL in a contemporary way using visuals, memorable performances and characters without the stereotypical narratives seen in standard tributes.  To clarify: This four-minute tribute was not cut for time. This tribute package was “killed” by certain producers of the show who felt it did not pull at the emotional heartstrings of the audience, and who did not understand its contents, and disliked the direction of its concept. And that is their prerogative. I had also produced shorter three and two-minute versions of it. (You have to, for live shows in case other segments preceding it run long.)

Some answers to some FAQs about the content in the tribute: Why were many legacy and long-standing characters not represented?
I also did a version highlighting all the Springfield mainstay families, the Bauers, Spauldings, Coopers, Lewises, etc. Because the powers-that-be cut part of the new tribute for time, that is where many of the actors who had been on for years fell to the cutting room floor, unceremoniously. I received wonderful historical footage from GL. Some was good broadcast quality to use, but unfortunately some was not, which dictated, at times, scene selection.

Why did you not use the actors talking to the camera about their feelings on GL’s ending, or incorporate the final episode behind-the-scenes tapings in the package?
I pitched that, too. I wanted to have a crew go to New York to be at the final Guiding Light taping, and utilize some of the emotional moments from that in the revised package. However, we were told they could not accommodate another crew on set that day, but they would try and send us some behind-the scenes clips later. Then, as we were near our final editing stages, GL’s Ellen Wheeler preferred that we not air the behind-the-scenes clips because it showed finality, and the show still had three more weeks to air after the Emmys.

Why was there so much footage of the current cast used?
I knew that the entire current cast was going to be flying to L.A. and in attendance, and taking the stage. I knew there might be some hurt feelings if they were not represented, and I would not blame them. So, I asked the show for a second round of footage including more of the current material from the last few years, some of which, I got to tell you are some of the best, riveting moments in this show’s history, and the last Bauer Barbecue in particular was moving. I mean, Pelphrey, Forester, Deas, Otalia … hankie moments!

In the end, as much as I fought for Guiding Light’s package to be given more airtime, it was not meant to be, and the backlash I knew would happen, did. I attempted in a minute 30 to cram in as much as I could to represent the show once everything was reconfigured. I feel the disappointment of many who wanted to come together for one final moment and pay homage to the longest running soap at the Emmys. But as I have said, previously, the show has meant so much to so many people’s lives and for generations that can anything short of a 10-minute tribute package really be a proper send-off?

CRUISING SOAPS
GL’s Jeff Branson (Shayne) and Kim Zimmer (Reva) join Cameron Mathison’s bon voyage!
TV Guide Canada will be offering a fan the chance to interview their favourite soap star in a printed feature in TVGuide.ca — and a free cruise! Can you out-bitch Nelson Branco? I dare you!

END GAME

The longest running soap opera in American history is wrapping up storylines as they prepare to pack up the sets, costumes and props after 72 memorable years on CBS. GL may air its final episode in mid September, but the show won’t go dark completely. Adoring fans in Atlanta on Nov. 7 will have the incredible opportunity to get to know 10 of the best-loved actors from GL in a day and evening extravaganza as they say “so long” to Springfield.
WHO: Kim Zimmer (Reva Shayne), Robert Newman (Josh Lewis), Daniel Cosgrove (Bill Lewis), Frank Dicopoulos (Frank Cooper), Gina Tognoni (Dinah Marler), Jeff Branson (Shayne Lewis), Grant Aleksander (Phillip Spaulding), Jessica Leccia (Natalia Aitoro), Bradley Cole (Jeffrey O’Neill), Jordan Clarke (Billy Lewis) and GL director Adam Reist.
HOW TO REGISTER: Go to www.celebrityeventsgroup.com and click “So Long Springfield.” Follow prompts for secure purchase by major credit card. You may also call 1-866-364-0330. Tickets will not be issued — bring picture ID and computer confirmation to receive wristband for admittance on the day of the event.

NEWSSTAND CORNER
Before there was Mimi Torchin … there was Meredith Brown Berlin
Ah, the memories: The first Soap Opera Digest issue I ever bought was a Jonathan Exley-shot solo cover featuring Deidre Hall (snapped behind a pink background with Hall adorning a white off-shoulder boa-esque gown, to boot). The magazine editor at the time was Meredith Brown, now Berlin, whom I wrote a fan letter to back in the day — and she wrote me back! After leaving the suds world, Berlin edited Seventeen magazine, but since then I have lost track of the editor. Well, according to Soapoperadigest.com, Berlin is back in the soap world. Here’s what the website had to say:

Attention future magazine writers! Meredith Berlin, former editor of Soap Opera Digest, reports, “I will be teaching a course for adults called The Celebrity Interview: Profiling the Famous for Fun and Profit. Students will learn what to ask the celebrity and how to turn the interview into an article that will intrigue both your editor and reader.” The course is for novices, who can learn how to get celebrity assignments even if they’ve never been published before. And soap fans can get the scoop on Meredith’s most surprising soap interviews!

The course is offered at New York City’s Marymount College, The Writing Center, 221 East 71st St., New York, N.Y., 10021. The class runs on eight consecutive Wednesdays from Sept. 30 through Nov. 18, 5 to 6:30 p.m. Cost is $270. For further information or to register, call the Writing Center at 212-774-4810 or 212-774-0780.

—Pick up this week’s issue of Soap Digest — the pocket-sized magazine has the best Emmy print coverage!

All My Children, A/ABC — AMC is thrown out on Dec. 11!
• Chuck Pratt must be jealous: TV Guide Canada’s Amber Dowling interviewed daytime’s favourite unabortion, Colin Egglesfield, about his leading role on the updated Melrose Place (which tanked in the ratings during its première, by the way) and the differences between working in soaps and nighttime.

• Insiders tell Suds Report that AMC tapes their last show at the NYC studio on Dec. 11 (three months from today). Chuck Pratt’s soap disaster will begin filming in L.A. almost one month later in order to give everyone time to get settled in to their new digs out west. Expect ABC to release a statement soon listing which actors will be staying and leaving Pine Place.

As The World Turns, Global/CBS — Zenk Pinter: Cancer Free!
• “I’m upset, of course, because I think he’s such an asset to the show,” Terri Colombino tells Fancast’s Sara Bibel regarding Austin Peck’s shocking exit later this fall. Hey, at least one actor isn’t throwing Peck under the bus.

• Did they lose a bet? As Suds exclusively reported last week, Mark Collier (Mike) is back. Joining the stud muffin are Paul Leyden (Simon) and Peter Parros (Ben). Hey, World Turns, since you’re spending money you don’t have, why not bring back the talented Lauren B. Martin as Camille? Come to think of it — why hasn’t a soap hired Martin? She’s even of mixed race, so she’d be perfect for Y&R!

• Does someone need a restraining order? At the Daytime Emmys, Soaps In Depth’s Michael Maloney implied to several reporters that Austin Peck has a violent temper. “Remember that scene when Austin punched Lucas on DAYS …?” he asked me. • Hey, cancer — don’t mess with a soap diva: World Turns’s most popular star (according to SOD’s fan poll), Colleen Zenk Pinter (Babs Branco), tells Suds Report that she recently got an all-clear from her doctors! “I’m cancer-free,” she boasts proudly! Over the course of the past  couple of years, the Emmy-nominated beauty has been battling oral cancer, though you’d never know it. Congrats, Colleen! • Grief sex alert: This week, a few weeks after the love of her life, Holden, “died,” Lily beds Damian. Yikes. Has anyone who writes this show ever been in love? If you are what you write, well, enough said!

• A baby daddy in real and reel life: soapoperadigest.com is reporting that Aaron D. Spears (Justin) and his wife, Estella, are the proud parents of a healthy baby boy, who was born on Sept. 9 and has yet to be named. The couple already have four daughters. In story 411, Eric adopts Marcus, which prompts Justin to arrive in L.A. to claim his human DNA. When Stephanie hears the news, the surly matriarch suffers a mild stroke! Yeah, I would too — adopting an adult is just weird.

• Canada’s foremost fashion critic, The National Post’s Nathalie Atkinson, wonders why one of soaps’ most beautiful and sexiest women, Katherine Kelly Lang, would allow one of the worst fashion designers, Birgit Mueller, to design her unflattering Emmy dress! Atkinson tells Suds, “Is this a figure-skating costume? I’ve said it before — for the one soap set fully in the fashion world, B&B has consistently disappointed with the worst costumes. Most of the time, the B&B wardrobe reminds me of the sales rack at Rampage and Hot Topic. The French-Canadian slang for what fashion-blind older women look like is ‘guidoune’  — not exactly tramp, not exactly cougar, but something subtle in between.” I couldn’t agree more. Hey, Brad Bell: there’s a reason why your costume designer hasn’t been nominated for an Emmy in a bitch’s age. Why not save money and get a young, hip designer to create a new look for your show. Or offer the winner of Project Runway a contract — or the second-place winner? Oh, because that’d be smart.

• Someone who doesn’t need any fashion advice is Alley Mills. The sassy actress wore a stunning white pantsuit worn by Norma Shearer to the Emmy Awards. Wished I had seen the outfit when I came out with my best-dressed list. • Back on the market: Ashley Jones tells Digest that her six-year marriage to Noah Nelson is over. “We worked very hard, went to counselling, and exhausted every option. But ultimately, we decided to go our separate ways. We’re still very close but we haven’t spoken recently due to the fact that he has a girlfriend now and they had a baby girl last week,” she says. • Thank God for small miracles: Hunter Tylo assures Digest that there is no truth to the rumour that she will be posing for Playboy! Whew. “I want everyone to know that,” she tells the mag. Now if we could only do something about that altered-looking face of hers. Remember when Tylo was the most beautiful woman on TV?

General Hospital, CTV/A — True love doesn’t exist on GH!
• In story 411, after Lucky’s proposal, Nikolas and Liz kiss (insert “ewww” here) as Spencer’s half-bro gets romantic with a certain lookalike imposter; Michael’s memory returns; two new characters arrive in town, Reva Zimmer and Olivia Chappell; Maxie confides in Robin (“Would you marry a guy with a small penis?”); Sam and Jason’s reunion is exposed; and Luke reveals he’s Edward’s father!
 
• How is the Carnival storyline measuring up? So far, from what I’ve seen, I’m impressed! Good work, GH. I have a feeling I already know what Guza and JFP’s Emmy reel will be next year.

Guiding Light, CBS/Global — Nail. Coffin. It’s over, kids!
• Who does she think she is, Nelson Branco? My editor — and soap fan — Denette Wilford, weighs in on GL’s death (or murder?) and the future of soaps. I couldn’t have written in better myself. But my version — and Mimi Torchin’s — would have been eight pages longer! [Ed. Note: True dat!]

• Who does Morley Safer think he is, Denette Wilford? Before this summer’s best reality show, Big Brother airs, tune in to 60 Minutes at 7 p.m. ET to watch a feature on the oldest show in broadcast history’s swan song. No one in the press has had the balls to ask show killer, actress-turned-producer, Ellen Wheeler, the tough questions, but I’m praying the respected news team of 60 Minutes will. It’s our last hope.

• If you haven’t already, don’t miss my last love/bitch fest with Emmy winner Kim Zimmer here. It’s a doozy.

One Life To Live, ABC —  Edmonds is safe
• More Patricia Mauceri (ex-Carlotta) fallout, courtesy of Afterelton.com’s Michael Jensen.

• Speaking of Carlotta, the oh-so-sexy Saundra Santiago rocks ‘yo! Thanks, Pat. Hopefully, One Life will sign Santiago to a contract.

• Phew! According to a rep, despite online rumours, One Life is not recasting Shenell Edmonds (Destiny).

• Like mother, like son: Michael Fairman interviews Scott and Lisa Evans.

• Linda Dano’s publicist, Vivien Stern, wants Suds Report readers to know that the Emmy winner is still out and about! The talk-show host, designer and author is back with all-new items and free decorator advice to celebrate the second anniversary of the Linda Dano Home Collection for QVC. “My promise to you has always been to bring the most beautiful, functional and affordable pieces anywhere. Let me help you create the home you’ve always dreamed of ...” says Dano. Tune in to see Linda live on Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 1 a.m. ET / 10 p.m. PT and 10 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. PT.

Venice, venicetheseries.com — No nepotism here!
• Who wears the pants in this marriage? Emmy winner and gay icon, Crystal Chappell has cast her real-life hubby, Michael Sabatino, as “Alan, a businessman who Gina will be dealing with. He has an unusual ... um, fetish,” she tweeted.

The Young and the Restless, CBS/Global — Was Chris Engen not available? • Would Chris Engen pose for this campaign? Michael “Sexter” Muhney is the latest soap actor to lend his face and support to California’s gay marriage battle. I guess Patricia Mauceri was too busy … If this soap gig doesn’t work out for Muhney, perhaps the star could pursue stand-up comedy! Just the other day, Muhney caused panic when he tweeted jokingly: “Can’t believe this is my last day on the set of Y&R. Gonna miss everyone sooo much. They are all such a good group of folks, cast & crew!” “[Later] Mwahahaha!! *evil laugh* It’s my last day THIS WEEK! Adam ain’t goin’ nowhere! I’ll be back next week, and the next, and the next ... Wow. Seems like 99% of u enjoyed a silly little 10 second prank. But I apologize to the 1% that got mad. Life can be silly, you know? Smile.” Yep, the funny bitch is here all week, folks. Lucky us!

• And baby makes two: Thanks to a surrogate mother, Emmy winner Michelle Stafford told People.com that she’s expecting a mini-version of herself. The sexy 43-year-old explained that she relied on a surrogate after struggling through fertility treatments and surgeries. “After a three-year journey through hell, I’m elated, ecstatic and feel ultimately lucky to be able to announce I’m expecting my own [daughter] via surrogate in December,” Stafford says in a statement. The single actress hopes the new arrival doesn’t affect her dating life: “This entire process has been very, very difficult to do on my own,” Stafford says, “and has made me realize the importance and reason for a partner. Dating men and telling them I’m expecting in December is a little different,” she adds. “I know I just need to find someone who wants the same things as I do.”

Hmmm … I wonder if her BFF, Christian LeBlanc, was the sperm donour! Or Nick Newman! There is no word if Y&R will write the pregnancy into the show. Oh, right — she's not really preggers! But that probably won't stop Y&R!

• Is Colleen a goner? Sure looks that way. If you’ve tuned out of Y&R, next week is a fantastic time to give Genoa City another try. However, memo to Y&R’s directing team: stop mixing outdoor locations shoots and studio-shot exterior scenes in the same episode! You’re not World Turns!

SOAP OPERA MYSTERY HOUR — This week’s blind item
—Which west-coast on-screen couple were embroiled in a steamy, not-so-secret affair that cost the actress her marriage, and caused the actor’s girlfriend to enter rehab?

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Nelson Branco is a Toronto freelance entertainment journalist, who regularly contributes to Hello! Canada, The National Post, The Los Angeles Times' theenvelope.com, TV Guide USA, tvguide.com, Inside Entertainment, OUT, and fab magazine, along with spearheading the soap coverage for TVGuide.ca's popular daytime TV hub. After graduating from Ryerson University in 1997, he moved from Toronto to New York in 1998 to take on the roles as senior news editor at Soap Opera Update. Branco first freelanced for Soap Opera Weekly as an intern in 1994, and after leaving Soap Update to help create and launch Bauer Publishing's In Touch Weekly in 2003, Branco continued to freelance occasionally for its sister publication, Soaps In Depth. Most recently, he helped create and launch Canada's first celebrity magazine, Weekly Scoop in 2005 as its news and entertainment director. Branco is also a contributor to a new TV show titled Planet Soap to air in Canada and America.