As the World Turns will air its final episode this week, but fans made find comfort in knowing that the show didn't go down without a fight. In a new interview, a spokesperson for Procer & Gamble reveals that efforts were made to find the 54-year-old soap a new home.
| PROGRAMMING NOTE: On Friday, September 17, Soap Central Live devoted the second half of the show to As the World Turns. Two Scoops columnists Jennifer Biller and Reggie Jackson joined host Dan J Kroll to discuss the final episode, share favorite memories, and take calls from other fans. Soap Central Live airs every Friday at 600pm Eastern/300pm Pacific.• To listen to the episode online for free: Click here |
Though it may not come as any consolation for fans of As the World Turns, but this week a Procter & Gamble spokesperson revealed that the company wasn't quite ready to bid farewell to its last-remaining soap opera.
In an interview with Cincinnati.com, P&G spokeswoman Jeannie Tharrington explained that the consumer goods company wanted As the World Turns to remain on the airwaves for "another year or two." According to Tharrington, after CBS announced that it wanted to drop As the World Turns, P&G made efforts to relocate the show to another network, syndication, and even online. Those efforts failed.
A similar claim was made in 2009 when the 72-year-old Guiding Light was cancelled by CBS.
"We promised our fans we would do everything we could to find a new home for the show. In the ensuing months, we have engaged in serious discussions with many networks, leaving no stone unturned in our effort to place the show elsewhere," Brian T. Cahill, senior vice-president of TeleNext Media, said in a statement. "Unfortunately, despite the urgent and dedicated efforts of many people, we have not been able to secure an outlet to carry the show moving forward. We are extremely disappointed with this outcome, but we are confident we have exhausted every possible option."
As a result, As the World Turns will air its final episode on September 17 -- just one day shy of the one-year anniversary of Guiding Light's end. When the week of September 20 begins, for the first time in 77 years, Procter & Gamble, the company that invented the soap opera model, will not have a soap opera on the airwaves. The company will, however, continue to produce other programming, including the People's Choice Awards and occasional movies of the week.
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