EMMY TAPES for DRAMA...

Here you are soap fans...the episodes selected by the 'idiots' in charge at your favorite daytime soaps...

Episode 10,505; airdate November 23, 2010

A strong hour during which Dr. David Hayward — not so dead after all — walks into the courtroom during his murder trial and shocks Pine Valley. There are no out-of-the-park performances, but the noir-ish flashbacks detailing how the dastardly doc (played by fan fave Vincent Irizarry) faked his demise and tried to frame his rival Ryan are well crafted. The stuff of grand memories? Not really. Best moment of the tape clocks in at 28 minutes when a moaning Kendall (Alicia Minshew) walks to the witness stand and rips David a new one! But this is good, solid work!

Chance of a scoring a nomination: 6.5/10

Episode 13,741; airdate April 5, 2010

Oakdale icons Bob and Kim (Don Hastings and Kathryn Hays) find out the minister who married them 25 years ago was a fraud! Re-watching this episode, I can see how the judges might fall for the hour's sad, sweet, poignant charms; all enforced by flashbacks, a solid script, and good musical score. Adding to that, it all ends with a dazzling cameo by ATWT grad Julianne Moore. This is the show's last time at the Emmys, so one wishes P&G had picked something more powerful, like one of those great, searing episodes near the finale involving the death of Dr. Reid Oliver. But mush won out.

Chance of scoring a nomination: 7.25/10

Episodes 5922 and 5923; airdates October 14—15, 2010

God bless Brad Bell for trying to move soaps forward and doing it so transcendently. These back-to-back episodes find stage 4 lung-cancer victim Stephanie Forrester (Susan Flannery) roaming L.A.'s Skid Row in search of a young woman who has possession of her heirloom scarf. The adventure proves a life-changer when rich, privileged Stephanie sees how people are living on the streets a mere 20 minutes from her mansion. She decides to devote her final days to helping them. Flannery does her best work ever here, and that's saying something given her four lead actress Emmy wins. It's all stunningly, artfully filmed on location, and sure to wrench your heart, lift your spirit and make you shed a few cathartic tears. Can the judges ask for more?

Chance of scoring a nomination: 9/10

Episode 11,492; airdate December 29, 2010

This show smartly submitted Caroline's accidental announcement (in church, no less) that Philip is Chloe's babydaddy, a fabulously sordid, classically soapy event that leaves you dying to know what happens next. This tasty trash is intercut with other enticing developments (EJ working a marriage deal with Nicole, Brady trying to outsmart villainous Viv). A solid hour of dramatic television; though nothing stands out!

Chance of a scoring a nomination: 7/10.

Episode 12,106; airdate July 23, 2010

Franco-phrenia didn't score all that well with viewers, but GH is counting on it to impress the Emmy panel. And it might just work. The episode submitted, which has James Franco's serial killer character doing an epic performance piece at L.A.'s Museum of Contemporary Art, seemed limp and cheesy and hurriedly staged when it aired last summer but, weirdly, it comes off much better when you re-watch it with lowered expectations. The judges may well be impressed by Franco's psycho-sexual hambone performance and the unique, flashy style of the hour, which also includes a shocking revenge shoot-out at the hospital. This is not the pretentious mess I thought it was.

Chance of scoring a nomination: 8/10.

Episode 10,687; airdate May 17, 2010

I will be brief and kind (given the cancellation news) and simply say that the OLTL execs made a grievous mistake by submitting that musical episode set at the Llanview High prom.

Chance of scoring a nomination: 2/10

Episode 9535; airdate November 29, 2010

What were they thinking — or smoking — over at Y&R when they decided to pick this episode as their best shot an Emmy gold? The set-up: Nutcase Sharon Newman (Sharon Case), torn between two brothers, flees to New Orleans to sort out her emotions. There's a lot of swell Big Easy scenery but next to no drama and, as a result, the performances are serviceable at best. Case is downright snoozy as her character wanders aimlessly about town. The directing is sloppy. The casting of the local day players is startlingly inept. And even scenes back home in GC with Victor (Eric Braeden) and Nikki (Melody Thomas Scott) battling over her affair with Deacon have little power out of context. The best part of the episode — the cliffhanger revealing Skye Lockhart is alive — will be meaningless to anyone who doesn't follow the show. Y&R traditionally picks well and grabs a slot in the best soap race. What went haywire?

Chance of a scoring a nomination: 5/10

Should the Academy nominate 4 soaps...the nominees will be:

All My Children

As the World Turns

The Bold & the Beautiful

General Hospital

Should they go the route of last year (3 nominiees)...

The Bold & the Beautiful

General Hospital

As the World Turns & Days of Our Lives will fight for the 3rd spot!

Current Guilty Pleasure...

DIRTY TALK

HBO Presents...The Monster Ball

REVISITING Will & Grace

A Look Back At the Best '6' Episodes of Season One

  

The Pilot

Written by: David Kohan & Max Mutchnick 

Directed by: James Burrows

When Grace accepts an unexpected marriage proposal from her boyfriend, Danny, Will risks their friendship by telling her she's making the biggest mistake of her life. Grace tells Will off and goes ahead with her plans, but later ditches Danny at the altar. Although at first Grace accuses Will of wanting her to be lonely just like he is, she later apologizes and takes comfort in his promise that she'll someday find her perfect match.

Favorite Line: "Jack, blind and deaf people know you're gay. Dead people know you're gay!" - Will

Will Works Out

Written by: Michael Patrick King & Tracy Poust & Jon Kinnally

Directed by: James Burrows

After Jack's effeminate behavior at the gym embarasses Will, Jack overhears Will referring to him as a fag! Upset, Jack acts stereotypically straight around Will until Will realizes that his discomfort with Jack's openly gay behavior may be due to his own fear of coming out completely. Meanwhile, Grace suggests to Karen that she talk to a girlfriend about her marital problems with Stan. Karen decides to talk to Grace and the two enjoy a drunken evening of shared confidences.

Favorite line: "I haven't worked out in two days. I'm fat. Je suis 'fatty' gay!" - Jack

Object of My Rejection

Written by: Adam Barr
Directed by: James Burrows

Will is upset over Grace's dinner plans with former fiancé Danny, but promises to do his best to butt out. Karen meets him at the office and they arrange to rescue maid Rosario from deportation by marrying her to Jack. In the morning, when Will runs into an undressed Danny, he realizes that he and Grace shared more than just a dinner. Will's anger leads he and Grace to both question whether they're too passionately involved in each other's lives.

Favorite Line: "I'm standing here making out with a girl. That's the international symbol for not moving on." - Will

The Unsinkable Mommy Adler 

Written by: Alex Herschlag

Directed by: James Burrows

Grace is afraid of what her visiting mother, the overly theatrical Bobbi, will have to say about her living with a gay man. When Bobbi, who unexpectedly applauds their relationship, suggest they marry despite their differences, Will laughs it off and says that even if he were straight, he wouldn't marry Grace. Meanwhile, Jack helps Karen deal with the possibility that she might be pregnant.  

Favorite Line: "Let's go shopping. We'll spend your dowry. Might as well put it to some use." - Bobbi

Grace Replaced
Written by: Katie Palmer
Directed by: James Burrows

Grace has become very busy at work and has no time to hang out with Will. So when Will hits it off with new neighbor Val, and starts doing all of the things he would usually do with Grace, jealousy rears its re-head! Meanwhile, when Jack is sentenced to community service for slapping a meter maid, he doesn't know which is worse: picking up trash or the uniform he has to wear when doing it. 

Favorite Line: "Gosh, I don't think I've ever been stressed out. I mean, why would I be? I got practically no responsibilities, my job's a breeze, and I got a killer rack!" - Karen 

William, Tell

Written by: William Lucas Walker
Directed by: James Burrows  
 
Grace and Jack swap 'Will secrets' after Grace hires Jack to fill in for a vacationing Karen. Grace learns that Will once slept with a client, and becomes convinced that he is keeping a deep, dark secret. When Grace confronts Will, she learns who is client really is! 

Favorite Line: "The nastiness comes so easily to your people." - Karen 

GAGA strikes...

 

JUDAS IS HERE!!!

 

'Let the Cultural Baptism Begin'

Catherine Zeta-Jones Checks-In...

Oscar-winning actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, who has stood by husband Michael Douglas' side during his bout with throat cancer, has been treated for bipolar disorder, her publicist said Wednesday.

"After dealing with the stress of the past year, Catherine made the decision to check into a mental health facility for a brief stay to treat her Bipolar II Disorder," her publicist said in a statement. "She's feeling great and looking forward to starting work this week on her two upcoming films."

Those who suffer from the medical illness, which had previously been named manic-depressive disorder, grapple with extreme shifts in mood, energy and functioning. They can alternate between states of mania and depression.

The actress spent five days at the Silver Hill Hospital near New Canaan, Conn., last week, the Daily Mail reported. She is said to have been dropped off by her husband, who owns a home nearby.

"There's no question it's been a stressful year," a friend told People. "Catherine has had to deal with Michael's illness and that's been hard. She went in for a few days because she's about to start working, and wanted to make sure she's in top form, which she is."

The "Chicago" actress was extremely supportive of her husband while he battled throat cancer and is said to have turned down roles during that time. Last year, Douglas was embroiled in a legal battle with his ex-wife, Diandra Douglas, over profits from his "Wall Street" sequel. Diandra Douglas co-starred with him in the original film.

Zeta-Jones and Douglas married in 2000. They have two children, Dylan Michael Douglas and Carys Zeta Douglas. Cameron Douglas, the actor's oldest son with his ex-wife, was sentenced in April 2010 to five years in prison after pleading guilty to charges of distributing crystal meth and possessing heroin.

Billboard Music Awards RETURN...

After its cancellation & subsequent hiatus, the telecast returns LIVE May 22nd from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

 

 Rihanna trumped her peers with 18 nominations, including top Hot 100 artist, top female artist, top R&B artist and top dance/electronic artist. "Love the Way You Lie," her Grammy-nominated collaboration with Eminem, scored six nods on its own.

Eminem continued his reign as awards season darling with 16 nominations, including top Billboard 200 artist, top artist, top male artist and top rap artist, while Lady Gaga trailed behind him with 12. Though she should scoop up a trophy for top dance/electronic album given "The Fame," "The Fame Monster" and her remix EP are in the running.

Katy Perry and Shakira both dominate the top pop and latin song races, respectively, as both singers have three singles a piece vying for statues in the categories.

Bruno Mars and Justin Bieber earned 11 nominations each and compete with Ke$ha, Nicki Minaj and Taio Cruz for the top new artist award.

The Billboard Music Awards looked at artist performance based on chart profile, social network and streaming activity during the eligibility period of Feb. 28, 2010, to March 1, 2011. The 46 categories are based on data from Nielsen SoundScan, radio airplay, social media consumption and tour grosses, which is reflected in categories such as streaming awards for video and audio, touring and digital media.

Rihanna, the Black Eyed Peas, Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban, Lady Antebellum and Taio Cruz have all been confirmed as performers.

Then, There Were Four...

ABC Cancels All My Children & One Life to Live

ABC has canceled two of its longest-running programs, daytime soap operas "All My Children" and "One Life to Live."

The network announced Thursday that the two soap operas would end, with "All My Children" going off the air in September and "One Life to Live" going off the air in January.

In their place, a Mario Batali-hosted food show called "The Chew" will premiere in September, and a health/lifestyle transformation show tentatively called "The Revolution" will premiere in January.

"General Hospital" will remain on the network.

"All My Children" has been the subject of cancellation rumors of late, with Deadline.com's Nellie Andreeva reporting last month that the show might be replaced by a talk show.

"While we are excited about our new shows and the shift in our business, I can't help but recognize how bittersweet the change is," Brian Frons, ABC's daytime department president , said in an announcement. "We are taking this bold step to expand our business because viewers are looking for different types of programming these days. 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." 

The first of those new shows to premiere, "The Chew," will be hosted by Batali, "What Not To Wear" host Clinton Kelly, "Top Chef" alumna Carla Hall, restaurateur Michael Symon and "Dorm Room Diet" author Daphne Oz.

Given this: do you believe that ABC had the intention on pulling the plug on 'AMC' all along; and that in fact, Lorraine Broderick was being courted back to end the series?! The grim plot thickens!

Daytime Emmy Submissions...Part One

Emmy Tapes Leaked!

Nominations for the 38th Annual Daytime Emmys will only be announced on May 11th. Lucky for you soap fans, this is the ONLY place to see clips from the actual episodes submitted to judges (oh yeah, I'm one of them)...keep checking back for updates!

Michelle Stafford submits the July12th episode from the 2010 season of the The Young & the Restless for Lead Actress contention at the 38th Annual Daytime Emmys...

James Scott submits the September 1st episode from the 2010 season of Days of Our Lives for Lead Actor contention at the 38th Annual Daytime Emmys...

Daytime Emmy's: RIP?

Soap operas have always been the cornerstone of the Daytime Emmys, but with only six daytime dramas left, how long can that last?

The Natl. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences should explore having fewer candidates in some of the soap categories. While five has been the standard number of nominated performers in each acting category, some feel that number should be lower because the genre has dropped three serials in recent years.

"They do need to change," says Peter Bergman, a three-time Daytime Emmy lead actor winner for his role on The Young and the Restless as Jack Abbott. "You can't have five (nominees) with only six shows. If you do, you may as well throw one from every show in."

Another option is to do away with the younger leading actor and actress categories, which were created in 1985, and have those candidates compete against older counterparts in either lead or supporting groups.

"I don't think there should be younger actor or actress categories," says Christian Jules LeBlanc, a three-time Daytime Emmy winner for his role on Restless as Michael Baldwin. "If you're that good, then you can be up there with (older actors), the way Haley Joel Osment (The Sixth Sense) and Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit) have been at the Oscars."
 
Days of our Lives exec producer Ken Corday argues for retaining separate categories and ensuring "there will be more awards to give out."

Past younger leading actress winners and nominees include Julianne Moore, Anne Heche, Melissa Leo and Robin Wright. Younger leading actor winners are arguably less notable. A few, in fact, have been recast by their soaps even after winning Emmy gold.

An award that could be reinstated and that would reflect a growing trend in soaps is the guest performer category, for notable primetime, film and stage actors who've been dropping into daytime with regularity, including James Franco ("General Hospital") and Betty White ("The Bold and the Beautiful").

"I think I screwed it up for (the academy)," chuckles John Wesley Shipp, an actor best known for his runs on "Guiding Light," "As the World Turns," and, more recently, "One Life to Live." Shipp competed in and won the guest star category (for a short-term role he performed on "Santa Barbara") at the 1987 Daytime Emmys over Oscar winners Celeste Holm and Eileen Heckart and Broadway actor Terrance Mann.

"The academy may have felt that this category would add star power to the Emmy telecast," Shipp theorizes. "If it wasn't going to achieve that, then it went away."

NATAS has already made one change to reflect industry changes. A special class short format program category now exists in which Web soap operas can compete.

However, some find the nominations problematic. Gregori Martin, creator/executive producer of "The Bay," won't be going up against Web series "Steamboat," which has been deemed a comedy and, therefore, ineligible.

"It has the same type of formula as 'The Bay,' " Martin says. "If you have soap actors on it, which 'Steamboat' does, then it shouldn't matter if you're a comedy or a drama. Good content is good content."

Hateful Christians Outside the Monster Ball

Mother Monster SPEAKS!

 

The GRAMMYs Downsize

The Performance Driven Awards Show Gets a Facelift

The Recording Academy on Wednesday announced a major overhaul of its musical categories that, among other changes, will consolidate a number of awards, eliminate separate awards for male and female vocal performances in the pop, rock, R&B and country genres, and reduce the overall number of categories from 109 to 78, beginning next year.

A number of other formerly distinct categories have been combined or folded into existing ones. A new rule will also allow the academy to suspend and eventually eliminate categories that receive fewer than 25 entries for three consecutive years, and to transfer subsequent submissions in that category into the "next most appropriate category." The changes do not affect the top four categories, album of the year, record of the year, song of the year and best new artist.

The changes, which will be in place for the 54th Grammy Awards next year, implicitly acknowledge a widespread complaint by industry observers and casual fans that the number of categories had become bloated and unwieldy. But at a Wednesday morning news presentation at its Santa Monica headquarters, academy officials repeatedly sought to characterize the changes as a "restructuring" rather than a reduction.

"All categories will remain, they'll just be found in different genres," said President and Chief Executive Neil Portnow. "The message isn't about cutting, it's about changing the way we present the awards. We welcome all artists who make music in the Grammy process, it's just going to look a little different".

Different and STUPID!!! Yeah, I said it!!! 

They're Back!!!

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND