When The Bold and the Beautiful earned its first-ever Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series last year, the win was overshadowed by head writer/executive producer Bradley Bell's acceptance speech being cut off. Bell, however, was happy to have the award and later remarked that he was "not a big acceptance speech guy."
"The less of me at a microphone, the better," Bell quipped backstage.
This year, though, Bell had more than enough time at the microphone. The son of legendary soap creators and writers Lee Phillip Bell and the late Bill Bell picked up a second consecutive Emmy in the Outstanding Drama Series, a first trophy in the Outstanding Writing Team field, and a win during the Creative Arts Emmys for Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition.
"Wow! This is unexpected! I love Las Vegas! I just... I feel so lucky right now. I'm gonna hit the tables," Bell exclaimed as he raced to the microphone. "I'm lucky to have my family here. I have all four of my kids here. My beautiful wife, Colleen; my brother, Bill; sister, Lauralee; my mom; everyone in my family. And [my B&B] family, which is the most amazing family that I've been a part of for twenty-three years. We've had so many joyful times together, I just... I feel so lucky to be a part of daytime and the daytime community, so proud of tonight and everything we do and all we accomplish. Thank you, thank you. I'm absolutely thrilled!"
Backstage, Bell was unable to contain his enthusiasm.
"This was an incredible story that came to life, beautifully acted, [as was] every element of this 'die with dignity' story," Bell offered when asked to explain what made his show's Emmy reel come out on top. "We had Betty White in the first time that she has ever died on television, and we were very honored to have her do that for us. She was a joy to work with and it just worked."
As both executive producer and head writer, Bell also offered his formula for successful storytelling.
"We try to do a mixture [of stories]. We try to do some stories that are jaw-droppers that are far out, and then some real grounded family stories, and then some just downright smutty stories," Bell deadpanned to the amusement of the backstage press.
The Bold and the Beautiful becomes only the fourth soap to win back-to-back Drama Series trophies. Previous repeat winners include General Hospital, Santa Barbara, and The Young and the Restless.
