Jobs will go down drain with cancellation of ABC soaps

ABC's decision to pull the plug on its long-running soap operas "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" in favor of cheaper talk and lifestyle shows will put several hundred people out of work.

Besides the roughly 40 actors employed full time by the two shows, hundreds of other performers, stunt men and women, directors, producers, writers and crew members will be let go. The cancellation of the two soaps is also a blow to production in Los Angeles and New York.

The news represents a "devastating loss," said the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.

The Writers Guild of America East also weighed in saying it was "deeply disappointed by ABC's announcement." 

ABC is replacing the soaps with "The Chew," a program about food, and "The Revolution," a lifestyle show that the network said will "help viewers transform all areas of their lives, from relationships to family, food, style, home design, finance and more."

"We are taking this bold step to expand our business because viewers are looking for different types of programming these days," said Brian Frons, who oversees daytime programming for ABC. "They are telling us there is room for informative, authentic and fun shows that are relatable, offer a wide variety of opinions and focus on ‘real life’ takeaways."

"All My Children," which debuted in 1970 and is produced at Andrita Studios in Los Angeles, will cease production in September, while "One Life to Live," which first aired in 1968 and is filmed at ABC studios in New York, will shut down in January.

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ABC cancels `All My Children' and One Life to Live'

Goodbye, soaps, hello, lifestyle: Tim Gunn, Mario Batali on tap for ABC daytime

-- Richard Verrier

Comments

[sgreco]

It will put several hundred people out of work from those cancelled shows. however, several hundred people will get hired to make the new shows.

[Darcy]

I am really to hear they are canceled. I work also but I watch them on Soapnet in the evenings. The new shows they are being replaced with are just like all the other boring shows that are now on television. I and my family will not be watching. Where did entertainment go?

[Classicshar]

Thank goodness. Now if we can get them to do the same with the Dumb evening sitcoms, etc. we might get this country back on track. Broadcasting 'bad behavior' enmasse cannot help anyone! HOORAY! HOORAY!

(In addition, some people might regain 2 hours of their lives per day! A double win!)

[Mr. X]

Maybe they can appeal to Obama for federal subsidizing. I'm sure he would agree we can't imagine a future America without All My Children. That would be too pessimistic a viewpoint.

[Debra Reed]

You all have no clue what the public wants. This is a crime and after all these years..... Your station sucks BIG TIME and my TV has no more use for your station. Cable

[Dawn]

I have been watching ABC soaps since I was 15 and am outraged you would even entertain ending these shows!!!! Did you take a poll to see how you will do with this idea ratings wise?? I for one will not watch another informative, authentic show, fun? in whose eyes? There are so many if these shows on TV now you are doing nothing benificial. well I will just have to change the network that I will watch, This is a HUGE HUGE HUGE mistake on your part!!!!!

[sherry]

Your kidding right? No more soaps?

[R Adams]

Seriously!!!! I will be so totaly lost. I am very unhappy with ABC and may just not watch anything on their channel. Maybe if enough people boycott them they will reconsider.

[Susan]

Do not shut down the Soap Operas, you just cant, it is crazy...these are the best soaps and I have been watching them since i was a child. Please dont shut them down

[Vicky Brown]

I am really disappointed with ABC. I have been watching All My Children and One Life To Life since the beginning and still enjoy these two soaps. There is more then enough food programs and life programs. I sincerely hope that the Soap Channel will pick up these two shows.

[Sheila]

This is sad.............sold out for food...........I hope that every abc and disney woker gains 600 pounds each.........boycott is on baby.....if i wanted to learn to cook I would watch the food net work channel.............Idiots anc and disney are ....wait and see what happens ratings will go down ...........

[Teresa]

They can't really think that talk shows will get better ratings in the middle of the day, can they ? This is a slap in the face to loyal viewers, some of who have been watching these shows since they started. I won't be watching any shows on ABC once these soaps are gone.. I will even give up the only soap they have left, General Hospital.I think all the soap fans out there should just boycott all ABC shows.If ABC doesn't care about its viewers, why should we care about ABC ?

[Chris Nordblum]

I totally cannot believe ABC is taking All My Children off the air. I have been watching it since its inception. ABC can be sure of one thing; I WILL be boycotting their network. Mostly watch NBC and CBS at night anyway as they have better programming but it's solidified now...bye, bye ABC!

[gary]

thank you abc for pulling this crap off tv.

[spark]

This is a sad, sad day in the history of soaps! I for one am very disappointed. ABC needs to take a good hard look at all these types of shows they have had on in the a.m. before these soaps and how miserably they have all failed. I will stop watching the ABC network.

[A. Scalley Wagg]

Nice work! They have the cast and production ppl move to LA fr NYC and then close it down in warp speed...

Deja vu Conan?

[Andrea]

I can't believe this! I have been watching these 2 shows since I was a kid! ABC why would you even consider this? Great all I need is another Lifestyle show to tell me how to live my life! BORING!

[Wanda]

I am very unhappy that ABC is cancelling All My Children. I have watched the soap ever since it started. I will be lost without Erica, Tad and entire cast each day. I think AMC is the best soap ever.

[Maureen]

I don't watch CBS in the afternoon after they canceled two soaps. I am sure ABC will lose viewers too. This new trend to dump soaps is sad. I am now down to watching two shows a week on TV because their programing is so bad.

[O-town]

Yeah, boycotting ABC shouldn't be too hard. I'll wait for Brothers and Sisters to be cancelled and then just buy the blu-ray discs. ABC won't recover and they'll instead replace the shows they replaced soaps with possibly 6 more hours repetitive news casts. Dumb.

[gcnr]

It is sad to know that the soaps I once watched with my mom, aunt, grandmother are not going to be around for my kids but really, after so many decades on the air, they kinda run out of storylines are start repeating things or going way off base with aliens and stuff.

SoapNet is also going away.

This just means parents will actually have to pay attention to their kids at night, the shame!

[lorraine]

Maybe Oprah can pick up the canceled shows and play them on her network?!

[Nancy Smith]

ARE YOU SERIOUS????? Wrong, Wrong, Wrong!! I have watched these Daytime Dramas all my life. Started out with my Grandmother and the shows were in black and white, and have continued through out my adulthood. Love the storylines all through the years. They've touched on very social issues, political issues, personal issues. It opens up eyes to what most want to close them to. Please don't cancel these shows for, of all things, a Lifestyle & cooking show. If I want cooking I can go to Rachael Ray or the FoodNetwork. If I want a Lifestyle show (whatever that is) I can go to HGTV or TLC.

[L. Deveau]

This is very sad! I've watched ABC soap's most of my life. I cannot believe they are taking them off the air and I will not continue to watch ABC during the day if they do so...

[Gwen Cole]

I am sad to see that ABC has fallen to the greed of today. Many people still love to watch these two soaps. Young people as you explain don't understand them or relate. Fine! Let them watch the many pitiful self - centered shows of others that is already showing. Who really cares about these people's lives? All they seem to be doing is give the people of today a way to say ,"Look at those, I can do that!" No, normal everyday people can't. The things that many of these people are doing are unrealistic and irresponsible. Now, you just thought that is what soaps are, so how can I say that? Soaps are not real people and we know it. There are many generations that TV serves. Unfortunately, the shows are getting to be redundant. Keep a variety. The young people or whoever it is who do not relate could give up 2 hours to others who do like these shows. Trust me, I turn off many shows that I don't care for everyday, but I don't begrudge others their shows. Too much of anything is often bad. Too many reality shows, police shows, sitcoms, media news,etc. Please rethink, you will be losing viewers that have long supported ABC.