The pink slips are a' coming over at The Young and The Restless. CBS Soaps In Depth is reporting Daytime Emmy winner Genie Francis has been given her walking papers. According to the magazine, Francis was let go for "budget reason", but I heard the daytime veteran's tenure on the show wasn't well-received by the brass at CBS and Sony.   READ MORE

Anyone worried that General Hospital was planning to do an "Is This Duke?" storyline can rest easy. The soap's boss Frank Valentini revealed to TV Guide Magazine's Michael Logan that Ian Buchanan is once again playing the real Duke Lavery! Said Valentini:

"We will eventually find out that the Duke Lavery we saw die all those many years ago was an imposter. This is the real Duke." READ MORE

All eyes are on ABC Daytime's General Hospital. As the Mouse House's last daytime soap in production, the serial that gave us Luke and Laura is once again the talk of popular culture.

Only this time the conversation isn't about its iconic young lovers and their search for any Left-Handed Boys. The topic of discussion is, can this once insanely-popular sudser live past its 50th birthday next April? The New York Daily News has a new article up on GH's transformation, with quotes from actors Anthony Geary (Luke) and Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis), as well as showrunner Frank Valentini. Here's what Valentini said about his efforts to save GH:

What he did, he said, was “not rebuilding, but maybe remodeling. The show was in terrific shape, but needed some tweaks. It’s much more my taste for the show to go just a little bit faster, but I [also] thought there were some key characters missing, certain archetypes that were important.”

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Former One Life to Live executive producer-turned-General Hospital showrunner Frank Valentini seems to think there's reason for fans of OLTL and All My Children not to give up on those cancelled sudsers making a comeback. In an interview with the Chicago Tribune that ran ahead of the 39th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards, Valentini stated he believed their was still "equity" in Agnes Nixon's soap brands! Said Valentini:

"Both shows will live on for years to come," says Valentini. "There's still incredible equity in both of those brands. Maybe you haven't seen the last of them. Keep your fingers crossed." READ MORE

James Scott and Lauren Koslow celebrated with the Days of our Lives makeup team at the 39th Annual Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards on June 17. DAYS took home the Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup for a Drama Series.  See more photos from the Creative Arts Daytime Emmy ceremony after the jump!

RELATED: PBS Dominates at Creative Arts Daytime Emmys | Soap Stars Celebrate at 2012 Daytime Emmy Nominee Reception READ MORE