Could the cancellations of ABC ‘s “All My Children” and “One Life to Live” have been prevented?

Jim Hill

14 years ago

There were a number of articles late last week about how the
actors who worked on "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" were blindsided by
ABC's decision to cancel these long-running soaps. But when you really think
about it, there were some pretty obvious signs over the past three years that
The Walt Disney Company was losing its enthusiasm for daytime drama.

Perhaps the most obvious sign was Walt Disney Parks &
Resorts' decision to pull the plug on Super Soap Weekend. Though these annual events
– which were usually held in November at Disney's Hollywood Studios – drew tens
of thousands of ABC soap fans to Central Florida, Disney discontinued SSW in
September of 2008. Opting instead to launch an event that was known as the Soap
Nation Tour, which (it was hoped) would be a more cost-effective way for ABC
Daytime to give soap fans face time with their favorite performers.

This — coupled with Disney Corporate's announcement in May
of 2010 that it would soon be scrapping SOAPNet (so that this cable channel could
then become the home of the Company's new preschool network, Disney Junior, in
January of 2012) – were seen as pretty strong indications that the soap bubble
was about to burst at the Mouse House.

But for every sign that seemed to indicate that ABC soaps
were not long for this world (EX: Daytime's announcement last summer that it would begin
airing reruns of selected episodes of "All My Children," "One Life to Live" and
"General Hospital." Which would then allow the network to reduce by 20 the
number of new episodes of each soap that ABC Daytime would produce annually),
there were other things that longtime soap fans would then point to as possibly
encouraging signs. Like ABC Daytime's decision to start shooting "AMC," "OLTL"
& "GH" in high-definition.

Six-time Emmy-winner Erika Slezak from ABC's "One Life to Live" was recently
surprised
by the cast and crew with a celebration to mark her 40th
anniversary playing Victoria Lord.
Ms. Slezak first appeared on "One
Life to Live" on March 17, 1971. Photo by Heidi
Gutman. Copyright American Broadcast Companies, Inc. All rights reserved

But wishful thinking aside, there was just no hiding the
fact that – with each passing year — the audience for ABC's soaps was shrinking
and growing older. Which made these daytime dramas a far less attractive buy
for advertisers.

Which is why – after a controversial move on Brian Frons'
part (i.e. the president of Daytime for the Disney / ABC Television Group announced
in August of 2009 that production of "AMC" would be moved from NYC to
LA as part of a cost-cutting move) failed to yield the expected savings and/or
ratings boost … Very quietly in mid-2010, Frons ordered the development of 15
different shows that could then be used as possible replacements for ABC's
rapidly fading daytime line-up.

According to Nellie Andreeva of Deadline.com, 4 of these shows
were deemed good enough to go to pilot: "The Chew," "The Revolution," and a
talk show and a dating show. And while Brian had originally only anticipated
pulling the plug on one ABC Daytime drama, a combination of factors …

In March, "AMC" delivered record low Nielsen ratings. This
ABC soap came in dead last with the key demographic of women 18-49 years of
age. Just 463,000 viewers in that demo were now watching "AMC." Which is down
34% in comparison to this daytime drama's viewership last year.

The two daytime programs that CBS introduced in the Fall of
2010 – "The Talk" and a brand-new version of that 1960s game show favorite, "Let's
Make a Deal" as replacements for that network's own long-running soaps, "The
Guiding Light" & "As the World Turns" – were making significant gains with
afternoon TV viewers.

The last original episode of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" will air
on May 25^th. And when the very last rerun of this syndicated talk
show airs on September 9, 2011, nearly 3 million TV viewers will then have to
change their daily viewing habits

Oprah Winfrey used her February 11, 2001 broadcast to pay tribute to the stars of ABC
Daytime. Copyright Harpo Productions, Inc. All rights reserved

… led Frons to believe that he had to move sooner — rather
than later — to address ABC Daytime's problems.

As you might have expected, the actors and technicians who
actually work on "All My Children" and "One Life to Life" were upset with the
way that ABC handled this whole situation. The folks who were at NYC-based "OLTL"
were annoyed that – rather than telling them in person – Brian broke the bad
news via a video simulcast from the set of "AMC." Still others were angry about
the timing of these two cancellations. Given that – since the 2011-2012 pilot
season is basically over at this point – it'll be the better part of a year
before any new acting opportunities emerge / new shows begin staffing up.

Mind you, from the
theme park side of things, it would appear that cancelling "All My Children"
and "One Life to Live" might actually be a good thing. Since it's expected that
"The Chew" (i.e. the replacement for "All My Children", a talk show that
celebrates anything & everything relating to the world of food) will have a
very strong presence at Epcot's International Food and Wine Festival &
Disney's California Food and Wine Festival. Likewise, it's anticipated that "The
Revolution" (i.e. the replacement for "One Life to Live." A new lifestyle show
that – each week -will track one woman's five-month weight loss journey) will
tie in with the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, the Disneyland
Half-Marathon Weekend as well as the
Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend.

Of course, there are those who suggest that the timing of
all this may wind up biting ABC Daytime big-time. Let's not forget that – just about
the same time that "All My Children" will be going off the air – Regis Philbin
will be exiting Disney / ABC Television Group's long-running syndicated morning
talk show, "Live with Regis and Kelly." And if Regis' replacement fails to
click with audiences … Well, ABC Daytime may suddenly find that it has a lot
more to deal with than "The Chew" 's shakedown cruise. Which will then make it
difficult to give "The Revolution" all of the attention that this lifestyle
show will need while it's in prelaunch mode.

This much is clear, though: You can expect that the Disney / ABC
Television Group will do everything within its power to see that "The Chew" and
"The Revolution" are launched
successfully. Which is why you can anticipate that "Good Morning
America," "The View," "World News with Diane Sawyer," "20 / 20" and "Nightline"
will all be featuring segments that directly tie back to these two new daytime programs
in the Fall of 2011 as well as the Winter of 2011/12.

More to the point, ABC Daytime execs have reportedly already
resigned themselves to the idea that – when "The Chew" debuts in September of
2011 and "The Revolution" premieres in January of 2012 – that this two new chat
shows will (at least initially) get ratings that are about the same if not
lower than "OLTL" and "AMC" got. But you have to remember that the Disney / ABC
Television Group is thinking long term when it comes to these afternoon time
slots. They're willing to take the time (more importantly, spend the money necessary)
to build an audience for "The Chew" and "The Revolution" that's far more
desirable to ABC's potential advertisers (read that as: younger and more
affluent that your average soap viewer).

And as for ABC's remaining soap opera, "General Hospital" …
Well, earlier this week, Brian Frons reassured daytime fans that GH …

… should remain on ABC for a "long, long time."

But let's remember that – back in August of 2009 – that, as
Brian was announcing "AMC" 's move to LA, that the president of ABC Daytime
said …

" … 'All My Children'
is one of the most recognizable brands in television, and we are committed to
continue telling and enhancing the stories of the residents of Pine Valley."

And as we know now, that commitment to "… telling stories"
set in Pine Valley barely lasted two years. So one wonders what Frons' promise
of a "long, long time" will eventually translate into for the people of Port
Charles.

Let me stress here that I don't think that Brian Frons is a
bad guy. By that I mean: If you look at the number of daytime dramas that CBS
and NBC have cancelled over the past 12 years, it's clear that this business is
changing and that ABC Daytime held out for as long as it could.

ABC's "Desperate Housewives" (L to R) Marcia Cross, Teri
Hatcher, Vanessa Williams,
Eva Longoria and Felicity Huffman. Photo by Matthew Rolston. Copyright
American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. All rights reserved

But now … It's obviously time for people on "AMC" and "OLTL"
to start brushing up their resumes. Some performers will clearly land on their
feet quicker than others (There's a rumor making the rounds that Marc Cherry has
already reached to Susan Lucci, asking "All My Children" 's resident diva if
she'd like to become the newest resident of Wisteria Lane during Season 8 of ABC's
long-running comedy-drama, "Desperate Housewives"), it's sad to see daytime
drama being replaced by reality TV. Especially when you consider that – back in
the 1950s, 1960s & 1970s – one of the main reasons that soap operas were so
popular with housewives was because these shows then gave their viewers a break
from their sometimes desperate realities.

So how do you feel about ABC Daytime's decision to pull the plug
on two of its long-running soaps, "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" ?
Could anything have been done to save these daytime dramas? Or were their exits
kind of inevitable at this point?

Your thoughts?