Veteran Soap Journo Lydia Hirsch on "Clues" About Guiding Light's Future

THank you Rocki and Jamey so much for posting this. Even though I have not been as loyal to GL as I usually am since it's cancellation was announced, I truly hope it gets picked up and then I will go back on full time. (I am hiding from EJ Bonilla). I am glad to read something because the news has been really really dry and I began to loose hope. The no news is good news thing slowly wore off and I got concerned. Good to read something about the light in these dark daytime times.

Thanks for posting this...

It's good news to hear that GL is continuing to lease from Peapack...

Until we hear official word from Brian Cahill let's do all that we can to save this show! My hubby and I will continue to support the show and its advertisers no matter where GL calls its next home.

Thanks for reporting on this, Jamey. If GL finds a new home, it will be due to the Otalia story line. Period. The buzz that has been generated is not just hype. It's a testament to the dedication and sheer brilliance of Ellen Wheeler, Jill Lorie Hurst, Crystal Chappell and Jessica Leccia.

I don't care where GL ends up as long as it continues in some fashion. I'm happy with Lifetime. Oxygen or it being online. I even think that a Procter & Gamble network showing new episodes of GL along with old episodes of GL and other P&G shows like As the World Turns and Another World would be great. With this option, World Turns would have a new home when it gets the boot from CBS next year.

My hopes are still high for the show to go on, as it were. P&G and TeleNext know the value of this commodity and they aren't about to give up without exploring every last option.

I completely agree with Niauoil regarding the fact that, if GL continues, it is due to the buzz and the new viewers brought in by the Otalia storyline. The groundbreaking nature of the storyline has gained national mainstream attention and has lots of new viewers worldwide have discovered the show via You Tube. Both Lifetime and Oxygen are heavily female-oriented and would be perfect fits for a show featuring this storyline.

I also agree that Telenext is not about to lose its 2 main assets (GL and ATWT) without having done absolutely everything possible to secure a new home. Right now, those assets have value; after September, GL will cease to have value unless it finds a new home and we know that ATWT is slated for cancellation next year.

Thanks so much for posting this its been kinda doom and gloomy lately.

Thats true Columbus I believe ATWT's fate is also riding on GL finding a new home. I feel like CBS is going to let it go no matter what next year, if they could of cancelled it this year along with GL they would of. I feel like P&G are packaging GL and ATWT as a package deal. Go Otalia and GL!

Thanks for the update. Its nice to read some positive news about GL.

http://savetheguidinglight.com/
Thanks, I was beginning to think it was even real, they just tell that to people when a show is abruptly canceled. They need to make changes so that it doesn’t get canceled in the next year like so many shows have that people have tried to save like Jericho. GL needs to bring back original characters and new ones to keep it fresh. Here is some great information on saving GL and ATWT. If they don’t make changes then it’s pointless to continue. Please tell them your concern. GL was always ground breaking TV, like rape, diseases, abuse and so on without exploiting it; that's what made GL popular.

Thanks for posting.

I want to reply to niauoil and columbus. Not one storyline or couple makes a show.

Is Otalia good for GL ? Yes, because it is a good storyline and it is popular, however there is more to Guiding Light than just Otalia. Just like GL wasn't cancelled because of Otalia like some haters claim, it wont be the sole savior either.

To be totally and brutally honest, Otalia hasn't done zilch for GL in the ratings. We can discuss how flawed the Nielsen ratings are til the cows come home but it is the only thing we have to go by.

Funny thing is, I'm actually an Otalia fan but I'm getting a bit tired of always hearing about Otalia saving the day.

Rant over, I'll probably get slaughtered by this but I don't care.

What Otalia brings to GL is buzz and edge. It has brought the show mention in mainstream media and, if the news about Lifetime and Oxygen being interested is true - Otalia's appeal to new and younger viewers is probably the main reason. I don't think that Otalia is "saving the day" because it is going to take more than a storyline to save a soap - likely a rethinking of and slicing of production costs will be necessary.

Troymcclure, no slaughter - everyone is free to disagree with me.

Let's hope GL finds a new home. Why wouldn't a cable channel want a show with a built in audience. Multi generational. Also, P&G would be a good advertising partner. I want to see Otalia continue, as CC been a favorite actress since DOOL. Also, want the Spauldings & Lewis. Don't think it will hurt much is Gina left, as Dinah has been recast before. Just my two cents.

Thanks DaytimeFan0001 and Jamey for posting this article! Its just nice to hear some GL news that isn't gloomy.

What mainstream media Columbus? A mention in EW must see tv sent in by a viewer?

The buzz is great but I really don't see how that is translated into to big business.

All I'm saying is, not one couple or storyline or actor makes a show. PERIOD

I would be posting the exact same thing if someone had written that thanks to KZ the show would get picked up

I agree one couple cant kill or save a show but it does help that Otalia has a lot of fans who have mobilized I actually found out that the Bizzie and Otalia fans have kinda merged I think fan campaining is helping also we have to let them know (P&G, TeleNext and the cable networks) that we will follow GL.

I agree with Columbus. Otalia has brought buzz and viewers to GL. I am one of those new viewers. I love their SL but I like the whole show too especially the Spauldings (love Friday's episode) so if it wasn't for otalia I wouldn't be watching GL now. just my opinion

hope GL finds a new home.

I'm not sure Jessica Leccia can be considered a major star. Prior to Leccia's pairing with Chapell, she wasn't that popular.

Some of the things Hirsch mentions, like the renewed contract with the N.J. town, have been known for a while. I'm not sure that changes much.

Unless there is an announcement by the end of June, I can't imagine GL will move to another channel. There would have to be a ton of publicity to inform viewers where to find the show.

Passions had months to let viewers know that the show would move to DirectTV. I'm afraid GL would lose many viewers who can't afford cable or satellite. I'm not sure how many

Also, as has been mentioned previously, the actors' contracts would have to be renegotiated. Cable contracts for actors are less generous. Would the top stars who can get work elsewhere stay or leave? I heard that GL gave Grant Aleksander a good contract to return. Would they be able to come close?

Would the show drop from 5-days to 3-days?

http://savetheguidinglight.com/
Thanks, I was beginning to think it was even real, they just tell that to people when a show is abruptly canceled. They need to make changes so that it doesn’t get canceled in the next year like so many shows have that people have tried to save like Jericho. GL needs to bring back original characters and new ones to keep it fresh. Here is some great information on saving GL and ATWT. If they don’t make changes then it’s pointless to continue. Please tell them your concern. GL was always ground breaking TV, like rape, diseases, abuse and so on without exploiting it; that's what made GL popular.

I wonder if we dig deeper into Lydia's article if P&G are thinking of creating a spin off of GL one that would follow Otalia and a few other storylines possibly at one time Dinah and Shane or Spauldings?

Let's hope GL shines on! I could handle the show narrowing down to telling stories of Otalia, Spauldings, and Lewises.

Finally a little light...lets hope it shines brighter.

Not to belabor the point but there was a write-up on two separate days in the NY Post (clearly mainstream media even though I hate it) about Otalia. I'll bet that, if I did a search, I could find others. The only other publicity that you hear about GL has to do with the cancellation or the production model - not any of the actors or storylines. I agree that one storyline does not make a soap (with the exception of Luke and Laura). However, a soap can gain some attention because of a particular storyline (such as Carly Manning getting buried alive in the coffin). In this case, the one "unusual" storyline generating buzz is Otalia. A cable network is always looking for ways to generate buzz; perhaps Otalia (in conjunction with other storylines) will be the answer. They can certainly publicize the hell out of it, perhaps in a way that network tv could not.

We haven't heard an offical word on the status of the show, so no news is good news. If a cabler wants to slash the budget in order to save the show, I say do what Port Charles did. Cut the show down to 30 minutes and shoot from April to October (2 episodes a day). That way, the production can be slashed in half, and the cast & crew won't have to deal with any more harsh Winters in Peapack...

Nelson Branco in his latest Suds Report (June 5) said that the show is as dead as Otalia's sex life and there are no offers according to set side sources.

I think GL's gone

ok...Nelson is Nelson, I will wait until I hear an official statement from Brian Cahill about the status of the show.

Im guessing with gl just about 3 months left on cbs ,procter and gamble will announce if the show has been picked up.The most logical channels to take this show on would be lifetime.I hope this soap finds a home soon.

CBS hasn't even picked up or announced what they'll replace GL with. So you have the perfect example here that some network's schedule isn't complete for next season. Guiding Light's own freakin' replacement hasn't been announced yet, why should GL not finding another network be a bad sign. It could be a good sign. Not that CBS will change their mind, but it makes sense for them to wait till CBS makes their announcement, because the cancellation coverage has toned down, and that will put GL back in the headlines. It won't be about CBS's new daytime show, but what Guiding Light's replacement will be, and that's the most strategic time to announce GL's big move if it happens.
If talks are still ongoing it could mean they're working towards 'perfection'. They want the perfect recipe, and they're not going into it ignoring the possibility of underwhelming results or being okay with putting a weak or mediocre product on the air. Some things will work, and some things won't, they have to figure them out. It could also mean P&G has to work hard to "sell their product" though. I also read something about Canadian broadcasting that is causing some issues.

I'm sure that all of the soaps have looked at this Port Charles' production model. I think Passions tried something similar. Part of the problem with this model, I think is that stories are locked in and there is no way for the soaps to react to fan reaction in a timely fashion.

It's sad to think about all of the GL people in addition to the cast who will lose their jobs. Where are they going to go? Make-up artists. Camera-staff.

I'm not sure how much more money they can squeeze out of the production.

My sense is that soaps had better figure out quickly how they are going to re-position themselves in the industry now. I don't know whether that means slicing production costs, going to a less-than-5 day/week schedule, more internet usage, or something completely different but it is clear that soaps as they exist today are a dying form and that networks can get the same or better ratings from a much cheaper alternative. Perhaps P&G/Telenext will figure out a model that will also work for other soaps? Otherwise, I think that one by one the soaps will be killed off.

Why would an actor or an actress let it be known that they are in serious contract talks with another network? What would be gained by this? Serious talks, almost done deal and so on, that all screams that the deal has not yet been signed. What's the point in making this public information right now, especially when it seems that GL is still currently working on finding a new home and just might be in serious talks themselves. Wouldn't it benefit all the parties is that said actor or actress said nothing, allowed the show to finalize their deal and then all parties could issue statements about their future.

A telegraphed move like this only gets me thinking, perhaps the leak about the said actor/actress leaving is more for the benefit of the party who might be interested on in talks to take the show on to get moving, get the deal done or the will lose some actors or actresses.

Just my thought on the process. I also don't think that it's just going to be on actress or actor that the show loses, there is going to be more than one main character that doesn't move one.

For Canadain viewers the show would do really well if P&G could contract it out to W network (Women's Television Network)it already has a good solid female base and men too watch the home improvemnt shows on this network. W network is offered on basic cable across the country and is a stable network with good money maagement I called and suggested to P&G Telenext get GL on the W network.P&G has a sizeable operations located in Toronto, Canada it might be a good place for fans in Canada to show their support.