News Brief

TV Guide Canada's Weekly "Nelson Ratings" 1 Nelson Branco reviews last week’s soaps, provides this week’s viewing cheat sheet, and names his top-rated actors and shows! CBS.com has today's ATWT's episode up already Once again, someone at CBS.com screwed up and put today's episode of AS THE WORLD TURNS online already. Normally the show is added at 6pm ET after the show has aired. In late June, CBS.com added a recap for Wednesday, June 27, instead of Wednesday, June 20, revealing the outcome of the trial between Chris and Alison. UPDATE 10:15am ET: Monday's episode has now been removed. L.A. Times Examines Online Soap Opera That Aims To Raise HIV Awareness Among MSM The Los Angeles Times on Friday examined an online soap opera that aims to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and promote safer-sex practices among men who have sex with men. According to the Times, the show is part of a "wave of new programs" that aims to "reinvigorate" HIV/AIDS outreach in the MSM community. The show, called IN THE MOMENT, is a "racy, unvarnished portrait" of MSM in Los Angeles, but "at its core" is about HIV/AIDS, the Times reports. The first episode was released in January and introduced the multicultural cast, including two characters named Mike and Steve who have unprotected sex. In the second episode, released in March, another character named Shawn "scores a date," while Steve discovers Mike cheated on him and moves out, the Times reports. According to the Times, advocates are "pushing" the show as a way to promote discussions about safer sex and relationships. Jordan's sister for HOLLYOAKS role? Jordan's sister Sophie Price has reportedly been lined up for a role in HOLLYOAKS. According to the Daily Star, the glamour model's younger sibling has been offered a part by the show's producers. "She's exactly the sort of person our viewers like and aspire to be," said an insider. Look Out: Old Laura Is Back on GH Jennifer Kate blogs on the return of Genie Francis as Laura: "Although I am happy she’s working again, I still have mixed feelings about Luke and Laura. I think I always will. For although GH has tried to make up for it, nothing can make up for the fact that one night, Luke Spencer emotionally and physically raped Laura Baldwin. You can’t tape over the fact she said no. It’s not something that can’t be erased." SCRIPTS & SCRUPLES: Episode #826 Hannah plots her next move, Perry is not a happy camper and Jackson has an enlightening lunch with Carter on Monday's episode.

Flashback: The World Has Turned More than 3,200 Times (1968)

Part 1 of a wonderful article in the New York Times in 1968. I'll post more as the week continues and ONE LIFE TO LIVE celebrates their 40th anniversary. The World Has Turned More than 3,200 Times... ... and 8 million people keep watching by Joan Barthel, New York Times September 8, 1968 THE STORY THUS FAR... Young Dr. Bob, who was blinded by flying glass in a lab explosion, faces eye surgery. The accident happened on the day his wife, Sandy, ran away from home. San ran away because she upset at having lost custody of her son Jimmy, who was born in prison while she was doing a stretch for having helped her ex-husband Roy rob a store. Sandy's flight was unnecessary, however, because Roy had decided to return Jimmy to her. This so upset Penny, Dr. Bob's sister, who had married Roy specifically to make a home for Jimmy, that she has gone off to New York. Dr. Bob's ex-wife Lisa has just had a child, Chuckie, out of wedlock. Chuckie's father is Dr. Michael, who was married to Claire, the alcoholic mother of Ellen, who has problems of her own. Ellen once had a child out of wedlock, who was adopted by Dr. David. When Dr. David's wife died, he and Ellen got married, but the child, Dr. Dan, has not been told that Ellen is his real mother. When Dr. David's housekeeper threatened to spill the beans, Ellen hit her with a statue. The housekeeper died, and Ellen went to jail for a while, where she met Sandy. Roy blames himself. "A soap opera is a kind of sandwich," James Thurber wrote 20 years ago in a memorable series of New Yorker articles. "...Between thick slices of advertising spread 12 minutes of dialogue, add predicament, villainy and female suffering in equal measure, throw in a dash of nobility, sprinkle with tears, season with organ music, cover with a rich announcer sauce, and serve five times a week." He was writing about radio soaps, but obviously, judging from the above synopsis of the recent beleagured status of just some of the folks on television's top-rated daytime program, "As The World Turns," the ingredients have remained the same. Only the size of the daily serving has increased. When soaps sloshed over from radio to TV, 15 minutes was deemed the audience's attention span (or threshold of pain). Then on April 2, 1956, "As The World Turns" became the first TV serial to run for 30 minutes (the race was close: the half-hour "Edge of Night" bowed on the same day, but in a later time slot). Since then, cued by its smashing success, all the new entries in TV's serial sweeps have come in at 30. On Sept. 9, the last two 15-minute holdouts, "Search for Tomorrow" and "The Guiding Light," will go half-hour. And not only that. "On that day, for the first time in the history of television, there will be three serials at 3 o'clock," says Fred Silverman, CBS vice president for daytime programs. He says it in an appropriately awed, what-hate-God-wrought tone, for the cynic may see the 3 o'clock stack-up only as an enormously sadistic Hobson's choice, to the networks it is vitally important in the continuing domination of the daytime. Once upon a time, CBS had the war won, partyly because of its cannily tailored-for-TV dramas like "As The World Turns," which has yet to be toppled from first place in the ratings, and partly because of audience loyalty it had built up in radio soaps. (As late as 1960, the network still carried seven radio serials, including the venerable "Ma Perkins." All seven were terminated in the momentous week of Nov. 23, 1960, when after years of unrelieved travail and consistent heartache, everything suddenly came up roses for everybody as storylines took a wildly benign, if somewhat vague, turn: "Ma...sees happiness ahead...") But NBC plotted and waited. The three TV serials it eventually brought forth - "The Doctors," "Another World," and "Days of Our Lives" - are the next-highest-rated serials in the latest list of the top 10 daytime shows, topping all sex of CBS's other soaps. ABC, accustomed but not resigned to trailing in the numbers race, has gamely come up with a brand-new entry, "One Life to Live," in the latest round of jousting for the jackpot. (And the daytime pot is brimming: in the first half of this year, the networks earned a total of $131,000,000 for the 10 A.M. to 6 P.M. period. The loot depends on the ratings; a one-minute commercial on "As The World Turns" costs about $16,000; on a low-rated show, only about half that.) That new show, "One Life to Live," is the brainchild of Philadelphia Main Line house-wife-writer, Agnes Nixon, who gets in a few licks of her own: "The newer, younger, more vital shows are coming along. I write a very young show, thought not hippie. CBS has just kind of coasted along. Their audience has been getting older; they were not reaching the people who buy Oreo cookies, peanut butter, Crisco, soap flakes, Band-Aids and baby powder. They have been getting the Geritol crowd." A pause. "'Edge of Night' demographics are very old," she adds cheerfully. So there she is, Mrs. America, sitting "target for the package goods," and numbers say she is mostly watching "As The World Turns." The program attracts eight million viewers a day which is about 50 per cent of the available audience, which is phenomenal. "We have that way-ahead feeling," Lyle Hill, the producer of the show, says happily. He is less happy, however about the idea of a magazine piece about his show, because Procter & Gamble has been offended in the past by snotty stories about soap opera, and Procter & Gabmle is his boss. Lyle Hill works for Young & Rubicam, the advertising agency that produces "As The World Turns" for P&G, which owns it. "Serials were created to accommodate advertising needs, so most of them are owned by the clients," says Roy Winsor, independent television producer whose two shows, "Love of Life" and "The Secret Storm," are owned by American Home Products. Of the 13 network serials currently televised, only five are not owned by sponsors. The arrangement is neat and extremely effective.

TV Guide: Soap's Sexiest Women

TV Guide Network debuted a new special, SOAP'S SEXIEST WOMEN, tonight. Kristoff St. John from Y&R hosted as they counted down the Top 25 sexiest women in soaps. SOAP'S SEXIEST MEN will air next Sunday night. Here's their list: #25 Rebecca Herbst (Liz, GH) #24 Maura West (Carly, ATWT) #23 Ashley Jones (Bridget, B&B) #22 Michelle Ray Smith (Ava, GL) #21 Shelley Hennig (Stephanie, DAYS) #20 Marnie Schulenburg (Alison, ATWT) #19 Eva Marcille (Tyra, Y&R) #18 Marie Wilson (Meg, ATWT) #17 Lesli Kay (Felicia, B&B) #16 Kirsten Storms (Maxie, GH) #15 Chrystal Khalil (Lily, Y&R) #14 Alicia Minshew (Kendall, AMC) #13 Bree Williamson (Jessica, OLTL) #12 Julie Pinson (Janet, ATWT) #11 Kristian Alfonso (Hope, DAYS) #10 Terri Colombino (Katie, ATWT) #9 Sharon Case (Sharon, Y&R) #8 Arianne Zuker (Nicole, DAYS) #7 Sarah Brown (Claudia, GH) #6 Gina Tognoni (Dinah, GL) #5 Rebecca Budig (Greenlee, AMC) #4 Katherine Kelly Lang (Brooke, B&B) #3 Nadia Bjorlin (Chloe, DAYS) #2 Michelle Stafford (Phyllis, Y&R) #1 Kelly Monaco (Sam, GH)

Lisa Rinna on ACCESS HOLLYWOOD

Carly caught in tough spot on GENERAL HOSPITAL Jax walks into a conversation between Sonny and Carly today on GENERAL HOSPITAL, which leads to an ultimatum for his bride. "If she tells one more lie," warns Laura Wright (Carly), "he's done." And Carly has told a boatload of them. "Sonny forces Carly to admit that she's the one who leaked the rumor," says Wright, referring to the compromising tabloid photo of Jax with Sonny's fiancée, Kate. Carly realizes, "Wow, I'm going to lose this guy," continues Wright. "So she vows, 'I'm not going to do anything wrong.'" GH: Medicalizing Spinelli "For a twenty-something, Spinelli is socially delayed, sexually naive, speaks of himself in the third person, uses formal pedantic language, and refers to other people by descriptive, perceptive monikers he supplies. He is also a good-natured, computer genius and a loyal, caring friend who can be honest to a fault. Even by soap standards, Spinelli is a little 'off the beaten path,' but should Spinelli’s quirks and eccentricities be diagnosed or turned into medical fodder? Can’t someone just be different or unique? So what if Spinelli processes information or expresses himself differently than the other citizens of Port Charles." A looking at "breaking news" interruptions Sometimes, "breaking news never quite breaks. That was the case Wednesday when local TV stations in Milwaukee interrupted regular programming for coverage of a missing plane that was never actually missing. That, of course, led to the usual round of calls and e-mails from disgruntled viewers. One of those disgruntled viewers called to complain Wednesday that GENERAL HOSPITAL was disrupted by Channel 12’s coverage. As a regular soap viewer, she admits she’ll keep on watching GH despite the interruption. See. That’s where they got you. Andrea Evans on THE VIEW today Andrea Evants, who plays ONE LIFE TO LIVE's recently returned vixen Tina, will be a guest on today's episode of THE VIEW on ABC. Fringe Festival play with a Y&R twist The annual Edinburgh Festival Fringe, which begins on Aug. 3 in Scotland, will include a wide assortment of productions, more than 2,000, some of which may eventually find their way to New York. Among the offerings is "7 Sins," written and performed by James Judd. The show is a comical look at his own life, one that seems reasonable enough in some aspects (he went to law school and practiced as a criminal defense attorney) and completely mad in others (his mother paid him to skip school, watch THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS and later act it out for her). Next SAG-AMPTP Deadline Is July 24th! SAG Presented Counter-Proposal Today; Will AMPTP Negotiate Or Just Walk Away? Nikki Finke updates the latest on the SAG/AFTRA saga in her Deadline Hollywood blog. Oz soap opera NEIGHBOURS to be aired on social networking site Australia’’s popular soap NEIGHBOURS will soon be posted on a social networking site. The producers of the series made the decision because a large number of unauthorized broadcasts are already occurring on the Internet. Ben Liebmann, production company FremantleMedias vice president of licensing, says that they want to utilize multiple platforms for its programs. He, however, did not divulge the name of the website on which the programme would be posted. The cross-over list MarkH provides a detailed list of all the daytime soap crossovers in history. The Drama's Always On The Unemployed Soap Opera Viewer (who is now employed) blogs: "While I was watching GL, The Unemployed Boyfriend wandered by and asked why I wasn't looking at Spinelli. Ah, that is because when I turned on GENERAL HOSPITAL, all I saw were the Zaccharahs zaccharahing at each other. By 'zaccharahing' I refer to any scene where Trevor, Claudia and Anthony are all present, snarling and threatening meaninglessly. It's enough to send anyone to Peapack for the hour!"

IMAGINARY BITCHES: Episode #8 Sexy Secret Santa

Catherine and Heather indulge their holiday fantasies, but Eden's real friends aren't part of their plans.

Where Are They Now: Bond Gideon

Heres a current picture of Bond Gideon who now lives in Houston with her daughter Tory Tompkins, a sophomore at University of Texas in Austin. Bond was Jill Foster # 2 on THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS. She was also a regualr on OPERATION PETTICOAT (Lt. Claire Reid) and BLANKSEYS BEAUTIES (Lovely Carslon). 1 Tory Tompkins and Mom Bond Gideon. Gideon recently appeared in WIT.

Are You Watching SWINGTOWN?

1 SWINGTOWN has become my summer guilty pleasure. This Thursday night CBS soap set in 1976 is the only scripted series I'm watching in prime time on broadcast TV until the fall. The series stars Grant Show (RYAN'S HOPE; MELROSE PLACE) and Lana Parrilla as Tom (a pilot) and Trina Decker, a couple of swingers who encounter new neighbors Bruce and Susan Miller, played by Jack Davenport and Molly Parker. The Millers have just moved into a nicer home across from the Deckers following Bruce's promotion at work. The two couples had sex together in the first episode and have formed a friendship ever since. Susan began a journey of self-discovery after that fateful night. Also in the mix is the Millers' former neighbors, uptight Janet and recently fired Roger Thompson played by Miriam Shor and Josh Hopkins. The most recent episode (#6) featured Ryan "Captain Awesome" McPartlin, known to soap fans as Hank on PASSIONS, who ended up in a three-way with Grant Show's character (see photos). I'm actually quite surprised by what CBS lets the show get away with considering its conservative reputation. It's not HBO or Showtime, but it pushes the boundaries further than I ever thought CBS would go. One of the best things about the series is the clothes and the old school gadgets from the 70s. 1

The Nuke Fancast: Episode #7

I was part of the panel this week on "The Nuke Fancast" which features recaps, news, reviews and lots of funny moments. 1 Next week's episode will also feature special geust Sara A. Bibel.

"One Red Flower" with Bell and Henderson

1 "One Red Flower" is a new musical production starring Maureen McGovern and Hunter Parrish, produced and created by Emmy Award-winning director Paris Barclay. It will be presented in a staged reading format on Tues., June 24 & Tues., July 1 as part of the Fashion Forms™ 'Plays-in-Progress' series at Rubicon Theatre in Ventura. Joining the cast of "One Red Flower," inspired by Vietnam veterans’ letters, are Josh Henderson (DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES), Drew Tyler Bell (THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL), Dwayne L. Barnes, Levi Kreis and David Burnham. The show will have two additional readings benefiting New Directions and Rubicon Theatre’s Innovation Fund on Fri. & Sat., July 11 & 12 at the Brentwood Theater, sponsored by HBO, Showtime, ASCAP, the Richard and Harriet Orkand Foundation and Paradigm. The photo is from a staged reading held last night at Brentwood Theater. DAYS OF OUR LIVES stars Darin Brooks and Arianne Zuker were in attendance. 1