More Progress for All My Children and One Life To Live

So much has been announced by Prospect Park in the past week or so, I barely know where to start! I can't help but think about how different this experience is than the first revival attempt - during that time, no one knew what was going on at all and Prospect Park was extremely tight-lipped about any information concerning AMC and OLTL. But this time around, Prospect Park seems to constantly be handing out new information concerning the revivals of these two beloved dramas to the web.

It was announced last week that 12 OLTL actors, including Erika Slezak (who played matriarch Victoria "Viki" Lord on OLTL for over 40 years) are rejoining the show on a contract basis. Additionally, three other actors are returning on a recurring basis. It was also announced that seven AMC actors are rejoining the show in contract roles. While I think that most fans (including myself) are very pleased with the actors set to rejoin OLTL, there is still room for more on AMC, and talks are still ongoing with additional actors from both soaps.

Six-time Emmy Award winner Erika Slezak (Viki, OLTL)

Also last week, more information was released about where these shows will be available to watch. Prospect Park has reached deals with both iTunes and Hulu, so both shows will be available on iTunes, Hulu, and Hulu Plus, in addition to being available at The OnLine Network. Each episode will be a half-hour long and free to watch with commercials. A new episode will be available for both shows four days a week, Monday through Thursday, with a recap/behind-the-scenes show airing Friday. The shows go into production next month and are slated to begin airing in April.

For me personally, all of this news excites me greatly. The actors that portray my favorite couple OLTL, Emmy Award winners Jerry verDorn and Erika Slezak (Clint and Viki), are both returning to the show. One of the cliffhangers in the ABC finale of OLTL was Clint proposing to Viki, so I'm excited to see how that will turn out! Also, knowing that there will be multiple ways to watch the shows is awesome. I have Hulu Plus, so I know that that will work out well for me.

It seems like each week, we're getting more and more information, but there are still so many questions I and many others have. I can't wait for more information to become available. I also want to express my gratitude to Prospect Park for their unwavering persistence when it comes to reviving these iconic dramas.

Empire: The Series

I recently started watching the web soap Empire: The Series. When I sat down to watch the first episode, I realized I had seen it before. I recalled that I had watched it back when it first started a few years ago, but didn't keep watching. This was for a couple reasons:

1. The show was not shot in HD and the camerawork seemed amateur.
2. No one in the cast was from the daytime soap industry.

I had been hearing good things about Empire, so I decided to give it another try. I had to really power-through season one, because the two reasons I mentioned were big issues throughout the whole first season. But it was worth it, because they are no longer problems in the later seasons.

By the second season, the show is shot in widescreen format and looks a lot more professional. Additionally, soap fans will start to see a couple familiar faces - Tina Sloan (Lillian, Guiding Light) and Orlagh Cassidy (Doris, Guiding Light). I think that it's important for web series to be as reminiscent of actual television as possible - the more professional look of the show and the addition of actual daytime actors in season two of Empire helps this cause.

Another important factor important in a web soap is drama - the level of drama that one would find in any current soap opera. So far, I've watched the first three seasons of Empire, and there have been no problems with the level of drama. In the first three seasons, there's been a kidnapping, a murder, a faked death, a teenage pregnancy, two brothers fighting over the same woman, and much more.

Empire: The Series is available to watch on iTunes (for free) and YouTube. I'm absolutely looking forward to watching season four and (hopefully) an eventual season five!

OLTL & AMC 2.0 - They're Almost Here!

Next month, former ABC Daytime dramas All My Children and One Life to Live will go back into production after being off the air for over a year. They will have a new home, though - the internet.

But let's back up a little bit.

To fully understand where we are today, you'll need to understand where we were nearly two years ago.

April 14, 2011. I had just finished watching OLTL and was now watching General Hospital. It was a little after 3pm. I was also on my computer. I frequently check the news at soapcentral.com, but when I went there on this day, I read some of the most awful entertainment-related news I had ever read. Two of my favorite daytime dramas, AMC and OLTL, had both been canceled. Rumors had been floating that perhaps one of them would be canceled, but both of them? On the same day? It was unreal.

Over the next few months, a large group of soap fans (including myself) banded together to save our soaps. I wrote e-mails to many people during that time, including the head of ABC and the head of NBC (we thought perhaps these shows could find a new home at NBC). I also hand wrote a letter to my favorite actor on OLTL, Jerry verDorn, and he sent a letter back encouraging me not to give up and to keep fighting for OLTL (I've included a picture of the letter he sent me below).

July 7, 2011. I was in West Virginia for my family reunion. I was in the hotel room when I read unbelievable news - ABC had sold the rights of AMC and OLTL to a company called Prospect Park. I had never heard of them at that time. Both shows would be brought back - on the internet. I was shocked and I was thrilled.

Over the next few months, 13 actors from OLTL signed contracts with Prospect Park. Only two actors from AMC signed contracts.

September 23, 2011: AMC finale airs on ABC and ends with multiple cliffhangers.

November 10, 2011. Prospect Parks decides to drop AMC from its plan and just focus on OLTL. I was upset, but my thought at the time was "if I can only have one of them, I want OLTL."

November 23, 2011. Plans to relaunch OLTL are abandoned due to problems with funding. This was an awful day. It felt like "Black Thursday" (April 14, 2011) all over again.

January 13, 2012. OLTL finale airs on ABC and ends with multiple cliffhangers.

December 17, 2012. My younger sister's ninth birthday. Little did I know, I'd be getting a present as well. Revival plans for both shows were back on. At first, I didn't want to get too excited. I didn't want to be disappointed for a third time.

But then things started happening. Fast. Which leads us to today.

As of today:

• Studio space in Stamford, CT has been secured
• Prospect Park has made deals with SAG-AFTRA and DGA
• Five AMC actors and two OLTL actors have signed contracts (with many more in talks)
• New executive producers for both AMC and OLTL have been named
• New head writers for OLTL have been named
• Creator of both shows, Agnes Nixon, will be a consultant

I almost can't believe this is happening, but I am very much looking forward to it. The development of these two enduring dramas into a new medium will be my main focus when blogging and tweeting. It's one thing for a show to start off as a web series, but to be on television for over 40 years and then transition to a web series? That's unheard of until now. I hope to be able to report lots of good news and progress in the coming weeks and months. I can't have another Black Thursday!

-Kari