Where Have All the Soap Operas Gone?

 (Erica Kane and Adam Chandler - 1984)

(Luke and Laura - 1981)

And then there were seven...

Back in college, we arranged our class schedules around our favorite soaps.  At the time, mine were all on ABC.  It didn't stop there.  When I worked in the corporate communications department of an insurance company, we had a television room that was packed at 1 o'clock with All My Children fans.  If you showed up a minute after one, you could forget about finding a seat.

(As the World Turns)

Today, the soaps are struggling to stay afloat.  Another bids adieu in the Fall.  I still can't believe As the World Turns will soon stop turning their cliffhanger stories, unless the fans find a miracle.   

(Morgan Freeman - Invictus)

This is hard to comprehend since 95 percent of our prime-time and movie stars began on soaps, and a few were just nominated for Academy Awards--George Clooney for Up in the Air and  Morgan Freeman for Invictus.

The talent is still there, it's the audience that has diminished. Our Generation Y are more interested in the reality shows on MTV, BET and E, than finding out whose zooming who on the soaps. 

(Jersey Shore)

Especially since they can get soap opera drama watching Judge Judy and Maury.  Let's see, you have your baby mama drama, your long-lost twins and of course, the garden variety cheaters.  

So what's a daytime drama to do?  Trim production costs any way they can.  Soap stars are agreeing to pay cuts to stay in production. A few are even bringing back popular characters from the 80s and 90s to give their soap a needed ratings boost.  

A few years ago, the popular couple Angie and Jesse Hubbard returned to Pine Valley and reunited with their son.  Of course, Angie married a Jesse clone during the 20 year interim and had a daughter when she thought he was dead.  

Now, Brooke English recently stopped by for an extended stay in Pine Valley to give Annie a run for Adam' Chandler's money.  I wouldn't be surprised if they made Annie her long-lost daughter. 

 (Blair and Kelly Cramer)

One Life to Live's Marty Saybrook returned a few years ago with her teenage son in tow, and Kelly, Dorian's niece has taken up residence again, not from where she left off several years ago.  She left with an infant, but didn't return with a pre-schooler.  Most likely the kid is away at boarding school.  Soap babies jump out of diapers and go straight to puberty in a few episodes.

And Lauren's dead nemesis Sheila of The Young and the Restless is alive for the 3rd or 4th time, but now her children are doing her evil work as she plays the puppet master.  

Last year, I wrote a bunch of soap scripts to train myself in daytime television writing.  First, I study the show by watching it at night on SOAPnet.  I pay close attention to the show's format and the weight of the scenes.  

I study the foreshadowing and the payoffs.  I research the character's background and study their personalities.  I write a sketch of each character.  I study the beats, the changes in the scenes.  Most importantly, I study the dialogue.  

I find out what motivates the character, what are their distinguishable traits, until I know the characters' dynamics with my eyes closed.  Researching old episodes helps with maintaining consistencies and in creating nicely layered story lines for new episodes. 

 (Luke and Laura)

You can't ignore a show's history.  For example, in General Hospital's current teen abuse story where Ethan, Luke Spencer's son, is falsely accused of beating Sonny's daughter, Kristina Davis--Luke's rape of Laura at the campus disco in the eighties can't help but re-surface.  

(General Hospital - Kristina Davis)

Like in life, a painful experience in our past can return during a challenge in the present, but how we handle this return defines who we are.

Now I'm at a point where I know every twist and turn of the studied soap.  So when I'm ready to write the dialogue, I simply wait for the characters to speak.  This original advice came from All My Children and General Hospital Scribe, Michelle Patrick.   And that's exactly what happens.

(All My Children)

When I finish studying the format, past and current story lines and dialogue, I'm ready to write an outline.  I watch the Cliffhanger Friday episode then write an outline based on that show for the Monday episode.  

First, I write the rough outline off the top of my head, without worrying about grammar or format.  When I'm satisfied, I write the final outline.  From that outline, I write the script.

I wish I had approached this field 15 years ago, but my head was in another writing field.  Though my timing is off, my passion for it isn't.  Sure, the market is extremely tight and the jobs are few, but it only takes one opportunity.  Fresh talent is always attractive to producers, you just have to show your best work.  

(Dramatic Dessert -This is a cake dress 
pink cake box.com)

So as I take my polished scripts to the next step, I feel like I'm on an archaeological dig where I'm digging into past ruins to find new gems for the future.  Daytime producers just might find a gem in an Average Joan with a good shovel.

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What I've Learned from Yesterday's Television Sheroes

 
What I've learned from Yesterday's Television Sheroes Can Help Me Write for the New Millennium Kids on the Television Block.  

 At least that's what I'm hoping for.  

My favorite television sheros of yesterday past ... Lucy Ricardo and Ethel Mertz, Mary Richards and Rhoda Morgenstern, That Girl's Ann Marie.  Hmm ... are you picking up a theme?  They were all making it on their own terms.  Average Joans who turned the ordinary into the extraordinary without re-applying their lipstick.  

They define the true diva.  If you haven't guessed it, I'm a vintage television nut, to put it lightly.  I've seen every episode of these women showing what they're made of, definitely sugar and spice but with determination and a lot fight.    

Just try to stop them from realizing their dreams.  Lucy Ricardo didn't let the fact that she couldn't act, dance or sing stop her from acting, dancing and singing.   No, No ... Nanette.  If she had to stalk William Holden to get a break, well so be it.  Ricky wasn't helping her fast enough.  Besides, they didn't have restraining orders back then, I don't think.

And Julia moved to the suburbs where there weren't many people who looked like her.  But she was determined to give her son more opportunities than the inner city schools provided. She wasn't letting a few raised eyes send her back in the moving van.

Mary Richards tossed her hat up in the air after stepping into the big boys turf with grace and panache.  If she had to play mama to those over-sized children to advance in the television industry, then call her Mama Producer.

(Louise and Florence)

Ann Marie didn't let her sheltered upbringing keep her from striking out on her own in New York City.  Even Boyfriend Donald couldn't sway her from her goals.  She inspired me to go to NYC on a Trailways bus with my portfolio, a phone number of an aunt and a publishing dream.  

 (Cougartown)

Here are some Dos & Don'ts for the new sitcom 
Jackies from yesterday's Joans. 

1. Don't let office politics get you down.  Mary never did ... well, not for long.  When Murray or Ted threw her lemons in the newsroom, she'd whip up a lemon chiffon cake and canapes (or asked Phyllis to make them) and invited everyone home for an impromptu cocktail party.  Leave the office politics at the door please.  

You won't need Martha Stewart's latest entertaining book for guidance, an Archie comic book would do the trick.

2. Never pre-taste the product before acting in your first television commercial, especially if it's a miracle vitamin drink like "Vitameatavegamin."  The nastiest it tastes, the better.  Lucy should know.  

Do jump into every situation with both left feet ... whether it's a show girl, vineyard girl or chocolate factory worker, etc. -- without ever losing your drive.  Lucy rocked!

3. And if you're on the accident prone side like "That Girl's" Ann Marie, you can take down a server carrying a tray of pasta without ever getting a drop of sauce on you. Don't worry about being a klutz.  Do use it to your advantage.

What fun it would've been writing for them.  It will be even more fun writing for today's television sheroes.  Hey, we plunk down $5.00 for a coffee with strong beans and foam, just to hang out with the cool kids on iPhones.  Oh I'm sure we can find a scenario to make fun of now.  Cougar Town is a good example.

Okey-dokey, let's recap.  What can new sitcom Jackies learn from yesterday's Joans?   Take your weakness, make it funny and make it shine.  That's what sitcom characters are made of.

Who is your favorite television shero?

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And the Oscar for Original Screenplay Goes to ...

An Average Joan who had a dream and a prayer.

 (Laptop on desk)

OSCAR NIGHT

FADE IN:

EXT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
Joan B. Average watches the 82nd Annual Academy Awards, while hubbie snores O.S. (off screen) in their nearby bedroom, overpowering the second television also tuned into the Oscars.   A presenter announces the Best Adapted Screenplay category.

JOAN
(muttering to herself)
I hope the "Precious" writer wins.  
I know that was a difficult story 
to write.  He had to go 
where the characters live ... 
and that place was not pretty.  
Let him win, please God let him win.  

She feels a solidarity toward this Average Joe and newcomer to this Hollywood scene.  They show a clip from "Precious" when her mom was being interviewed by the social worker, (played by Mariah Carey) and says that Precious was born on a hot July day.  Precious corrects her, she was born in November.

PRESENTER
And the Oscar for the Best Adapted
Screenplay goes to Geoffrey Fletcher  
for "Precious" based on the novel,
"Push" by Sapphire.

 (Jeffrey Fletcher wins 2010 Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay)

("Push" by Sapphire adapted into Precious Screenplay)

Joan leaps up from the couch, squealing.  
No, she's not a first cousin or a childhood friend.  
She's a writer who knows the struggle 
of bringing a story to life.  

She watches this humble writer walk toward the podium in a daze that quickly clears when he gazes upon the future, present and yesterday's stars of feature films, fighting back grateful tears.  He's an Average Joe who had a dream and his share of prayers.

You can see he's stunned as he clutches the coveted prize.  He reminds her of a young Sidney Poitier.  How many times did he dream of this moment while developing a compelling story arc, or making sure his foreshadowing paid off at just the right climatic moment?

Tears stream down her face as she listens to his acceptance speech.  She talks to the television screen as if it was the Oscar-winning screenwriter.

JOAN
I'm so glad you won.  This gives the rest of us hope.  Good job!

The next presenter sashays to the podium in her designer best.  Hubby wakes up.

DEREK
That's a sharp gown.  Hey Joanie ... you 
like that gown?

 (Sandra Bullock wins 2010 Oscar for Best Actress in "The Blind Side")

He shouts, never missing a beat.

JOAN
(wiping away tears)
Yes, honey... it's beautiful.  I'd wear it.
Will you buy it for me?

DEREK
Done.  I've got it on order along 
with a pair of Tiffany diamond earrings
and a Cartier necklace.  I can match them to 
your new Porsche I'm also buying you ... just because.

She grins, heading for her laptop on her rolled top desk adjacent to the television.  But her eyes can't focus away from the Academy Awards when Comedian Mo'Nique wins the Oscar as Best Supporting Actress for her role in "Precious."

(Comedian Mo'Nique wins 2010 Oscar for Best Supporting Actress)

(Comedian Mo'Nique gives tribute to Hattie McDaniel by wearing the same color blue gown and gardenia in her hair, when she became the first African American in 1939 to win an Oscar for her role in "Gone With the Wind.")

JOAN
Back to work, Joan.  
This blog can't write itself.


She clicks into her blog software, abandons her planned Monday post and writes one dedicated to the 82nd Annual Academy Awards, which seems only fitting.  

She can't help but wonder, will one of her screenplays someday interest a big name actor or actress?  

Will he or she fight for its green light?  

Will Ms. Oprah Winfrey carry a DVD of her movie in her purse for weeks before backing the production? 

Will my screenplays break out of the screenwriting software, venture into the world and find a home in the hearts of viewers?  

"Speak it as though it exists... ," my Pastor's words from this morning's church service echoe in my spirit.   "Behave as though you already have what you desire.   If you say, "I'm not going to get it, then you won't."

Well, that makes perfect sense.  If our Academy Award nominated actors, producers, writers, directors never believed in their dreams -- would they be seated there hoping for their names to be called?

(Kathryn Bigelow, the first woman director to win an Oscar for Best Director for the movie "Hurt Locker.") 

And the winner goes to ... the Average Joes and Joans who didn't give up.  Congratulations, you're all winners in my book.  

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Did Somebody Turn Off the Light?

Hellooo, it's dark in here, will somebody 
please turn on a light?
 Persian Architecture

 Twilight Books

That's what I feel like shouting when I see rows of young adult novels in my favorite bookstore.  Through squinting eyes, I see black and bloody covers, vampires and wolves leering back at me.

These days, they seem to be the rage in books, television, movies and the Internet.  The only rage I see is what they produce in me.   

J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter brought the world of wizards to the middle grade readers in 600 or more pages.  That's right scare them to sleep, I'm sure there's a package of GoodNites handy.    

On the flip side, it sparked children into reading, especially boys.  Who am I kidding, it sparked some adults to read.  But this fact alone doesn't soothe my discomfort, not even close. 

 

Brady Bunch

Yes, I'm going to say it.  I yearn for the television of yesterday.  Let's not get crazy ... I crave for yesterday's television entertainment with New Millennium conveniences.  

You know we can't live without our tech toys and Lattes.  But it would be nice not to watch television between my fingers for a change and not dash to the fridge for a ginger ale during a CSI episode. 

However, nobody made me key in that channel on the remote on Wednesday at 10 p.m.  Curiosity sometimes takes us Average Jones where we shouldn't go.  But that's another post.  

 

(Touched by an Angel)

What happened to Touched by an Angel, 7th Heaven and the angel books that are now hard press to find?   If there was ever a time this world needed angels, it would be now.  

Sure, I didn't grow up in an antiseptic bubble.  I watched Hitchcock reruns and saw a few Jason movies and some of Stephen King's craziness, but they were tucked away in their genre closet.  I opened the door only at select times.  They didn't bombard my daily life like a bad hair cut.  

 

Supermarket

 Can't say that anymore.  At the supermarket, I see that Twilight couple when I'm looking for my Lays potato chips and Snapple.  Harry Potter stares at me when I'm searching for a Three Musketeers bar in the candy aisle.  

It's no different shopping for kids' clothes and accessories.  There they are again, like somebody called them.   I don't want dark thoughts, so I'm not calling them.

 Child with balloon

But I'm an adult, I can handle it.  I no longer wet my bed.  Well, not yet.  But can our kids, tweens and teens handle the darkness?  They're bombarded with challenges we never had to deal with.  

Today, they have high blood pressure, sleeping and eating disorders.  They're making baby and suicide pacts, having internet sex and the frightening list continues.  

Domestic violence in teen relationships not only slithered into the halls of high schools, but sneaked into middle schools too.  Yes, we prefer to put our fingers in our ears and sing La-La-La when a news report give us proof that elementary school children are experimenting with sex.

Now you understand why I want the light turned on in the literary and broadcast worlds.  Doctors take a pledge that says, "... Do no harm."  Maybe writers, producers and book publishers should take a similar pledge, "...For their writing to do no harm."

 

Then, there are those who have shone the light on their creations and let characters boost their readers' self-esteem.

 

We can't go back to the Brady Bunch, Dennis the Menace and The Waltons' days.  But we can take back entertainment and break new innovative ground.  

The Brady Bunch, Dennis the Menace and The Waltons broke new ground for their season.   It's time for more groundbreaking work that will lift our spirits in this season.
(Flickr.com)

 

  

(Girl in pink)

"Teach a child to choose the right path and when he is older, he will remain upon it."  Proverbs 21:6

Here's a thought, maybe if we let the light into our writing, there would be more light entering our children's lives.   Children and teens have a lot more challenges than we ever had, which is evident in the Oscar nominated movie, Precious.  

When the mother described to the social worker how the father abused Precious as an infant with her present, I left the room.  It ended for me there.

(Jumping on trampoline)

I approach my writing as an escape for readers.  I want to entertain, inspire, provoke laughter, smiles and encourage imagination.   We can't act like the ills of the world don't exist.  But we can tackle them through volunteering and mentoring for starters.

Writing is where I let the light shine, so the young and young-at- heart can soar through unlimited possibilities.  Where they can dare to dream and see that dream into reality.  

That's a little hard to do when you're stumbling around in the dark getting bumped and bruised.  At least flick on the switch, so you can see what's coming at you.

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