How close did All My Children get to being yanked from the airwaves? Too close, if you believe a report made by one soap opera outlet. While the show is still on the air, ABC is reportedly still coming up with ways to cut the show's operating budget. It may involve moving AMC to a new studio.
There is a lot of news coming out about the future of All My Children. By now, you'd have to be living under a rock to not know that daytime television is under increased pressure to cut its operating expenses. This has meant slashing salaries, axing top stars, and eliminating unnecessary positions.
Now, it appears that ABC is taking extra steps to ensure the future of All My Children, which celebrated its 39th anniversary on January 5th.
According to TVGuide Canada, ABC came "thisclose to canceling AMC. Real close. Scary close." For a period of several months, All My Children was ABC's lowest-rated daytime drama series. Another sign that things were not good was SOAPnet's decision last year to drop the weekend "catch me up" marathons of All My Children.
Things turned around dramatically during the big special-effects-laden tornado episodes when AMC's ratings skyrocketed. The ratings spike -- All My Children is just one of three soaps that has not seen any ratings erosion over the previous year -- and the new life breathed into the show by head writer Charles Pratt, Jr. appears to have spared the show.
As previously reported, all of All My Children's contract players have been asked to take pay cuts in an effort to keep the show afloat. Yes, that even includes daytime's best-known diva, Susan Lucci (Erica Kane). The story has gotten mainstream attention by news outlets, many of which have tied the money crunch to the lack of advertising by the automotive companies.
Meanwhile, network sources say that All My Children might be forced to give up its posh Manhattan studio as a way to further cut the show's costs. It's unclear where the show might end, but rental rates in New York City are not exactly cheap. Moving AMC to a new studio reportedly would significantly drop the show's operating costs.
Moving to a new studio is not unheard of. In 2005, CBS moved Guiding Light from its studio on the East Side of Manhattan to a new location on the city's West Side that had been mothballed for some time.
RELATED STORY
Soap Central's Dan J Kroll weighs in with his thoughts on AMC's near-cancellation.
RELATED STORYAMC poised to name new executive producer.
Trending
Reply
