Fans of One Life to Live have dealt with it long enough ... the erosion of this once-
phenomenal show. Almost a year ago, upon the arrival of Claire Labine to the headwriting
position of OLTL, I wrote a piece for the History Page chastising the former writers
and producers for ignoring the rich history of the show they were writing for. At the time,
I thought it was the dawning of a new day for our show. The Emmy-winning Labines were
renowned in the world of daytime drama for their ability to mix gut-wrenching stories and
complex character interactions that made thoughtful references to character history. Clearly,
I was wrong. The Labines failed to live up to their reputation. They certainly received
no help from then-executive producer Maxine Levinson, whose only concern, it seemed, was to
stand back and let the show run itself (into the ground).
As it stands today (February 1998), OLTL is in dire straits. There are no rumors of
the show being canceled and, on the whole, viewer reaction regarding the show is much higher
than it was prior to the Labines' arrival. But years of wear and tear on the history of this
show has led to its current precarious position. In hopes of making some minor impact on the
new executive producer and writer of OLTL and of voicing the concerns of many fans
over the past few years, I will attempt one more time to point out what is fundamentally
wrong with this show.
Bluntly put, the core of this show has rotted away.
It began, as nearly as I can put my finger on it, in early 1994 with the firing of Marilyn
Chris (Wanda) and Michael Storm (Larry, who is now a rarely-seen recurring character). Both
these actors had two decades of OLTL experience and history behind them. They were all
that remained of the once-core Wolek family that dominated the show from day one until the
late 1980s. They were familiar to fans, who loved the characters, though they were seen once
in a blue moon and never with a real storyline to play out.
By late 1995, headwriter Michael Malone moved the show ever further from its roots. After the
highly-successful storyline dealing with Victoria Lord's past and multiple-personality disorder
played out, the show veered sharply in an entirely new direction. Overnight, the focus of the
show shifted from the core characters (Dorian and the Buchanans) to an entirely new set of
faces (Marty, Andy, and the Angel Square gang). The problem was not the presence of these new
characters, in and of themselves, but the fact that they no longer mingled with the established
characters on the show. Veteran actors were relegated to the backburner as the new crew was
forced to carry the show themselves.
Fresh blood is always important to a soap opera. Without it, the shows become repetitive and
dull. But to focus the entire show on new faces, while letting the core of OLTL erode
was a big mistake on the part of Michael Malone. His writing was top-notch, his stories were
often engaging. But he did not understand the importance of this show's history. So, while
ratings may have been held somewhat steady under his capable pen, when the next headwriting
team was ushered in, in mid 1996, OLTL fumbled miserably.
Whenever a soap opera falters, it is always a good idea to fall back on established characters.
For long-time viewers, characters like Viki, Asa, Clint, Dorian and Bo - even Cord and Tina -
came loaded with years of good memories. It is precisely these 'good memories' that can carry
a show through a time of bad storylines, dialogue and bland new characters. Unfortunately, the
headwriting team of Leah Laiman and Peggy Sloan did not understand this and continued Malone's
tradition of dominating the show with the new crew. Even more unfortunate, they were about as
inept with a pen as writers come. Worse still, they were actually destructive. When they did
see fit to use the long-term characters (usually in far-fetched, ridiculous plots), the basic
core of each character was rewritten and ultimately assassianted. In 1996 alone we saw Viki
attempt to kill her own son. We saw Dorian become the queen of nosy aunts. We saw Clint become
a loathsome, horny creature. We also saw Tina leave the canvas and Cord counting down the days
until his own departure.
Without the show's history to fall back on in these dark days, many viewers (myself included)
tuned out. When this headwriting team was finally fired in early 1997 and the Labines were
hired many were cheered. The Labines' reputation for success preceded them by about ten light
years. We should have been suspicious when, in an early interview, Claire Labine couldn't recall
the name of Patricia Elliott (Renee), who had been starring on OLTL for nearly ten years.
But OLTL fans were so desperate for the rebirth of their show, we placed all faith in the
capable hands of our new headwriters. And for the first few months, they impressed us. The
intelligence of the show increased tenfold. Dialogue became multisyllabic after the "See Spot
Run" era of Laiman and Sloane. Humor, one of OLTL's trademarks, was returned in full
force. And, lo-and-behold, the established characters began to act like their old selves!
But this initial, surface success of the Labines masked an otherwise same-old, same-old approach
that was similar to that of Michael Malone's. With the exception of Dorian, the veteran
characters on OLTL were continually subordinated to a whole new gang of fresh faces.
Tonja Walker, who had racked up seven years with the show as Alex (making her, scary enough, one
of the longer-running actors on the show!) was encouraged to depart. Asa, always a crowd
favorite, was seen once or twice a month at most. The Labines used scenes with Viki and Clint to
give the impression that they were returning to the show's roots, but in actuality, their
storyline together moved not an inch under the Labines' tenure. In their early interviews, the
Labines promised not to flood the canvas with new characters. Yet, they did. Jacara, Dorothy,
Georgie, Mel. With the exception of Mel, these characters were as bland and unconnected to the
show's history as they come. (And the casting department didn't do such a hot job, either!)
When the Labines did attempt to make use of history, they fouled up miserably. In what seemed to
be an attempt to imitate the success of Michael Malone's storyline involving Viki's past, the
Labines tried to execute a similar exploration of Dorian's history. Problem: they, like Malone,
made up and re-wrote OLTL's history as they went along. Unlike Malone, their story was
not nearly as compelling.
The Labines have been fired. While there is little doubt that they succeeded in fixing or at
least halting, the character assassination of earlier regimes, they were by no means completely
successful. In early February, for example, we saw Viki blasting Clint and telling him that he
had no right to worry about Kevin because Kevin was not his son. This was a blatant and gross
misuse of history. While the fact may be undeniably true, the fact that it came from Viki's
mouth is shocking, as it is something Viki would never say. In addition, despite promises of
restoring Max to his exciting, fun-filled adventures, the Labines have succeeded only in turning
him into a boorish, boring blowhard.
What we are left with today is a show without its heart, without its foundation. We have a
small core of veteran actors awash in a sea of new faces, new characters and new, re-written
history. The question remains whether or not Jill Farren Phelps, OLTL's newest executive
producer can right the wrongs of the past few years. I believe she has succeeded, or at least is
on the right path, in one sense. She has chosen to axe the newest characters; those who are
bland and unconnected to the core of Llanview. Thus, we see Ian, Dorothy, Jacara and Georgie all
on their way out. But there remains much work to be done, and no amount of euphemisms and
platitudes from the executives at ABC as to how "the show will return to its hallmark of core
family drama" can erase the fact that, at present, OLTL is not the same successful show
it once was. There are still major problems to fix.
(1) The core of this show has eroded. Therefore, merely axeing the new characters on the
canvas will not improve the show a whole lot. The fact is, there is little of OLTL's
foundation left. The actors that came to personify OLTL's best years are mainly gone and
those that remain rarely interact. Therefore, I believe that Jill Farren Phelps should go the
route of Paul Rauch, who has dramatically improved Guiding Light by returning to the
show's history and bringing back former fan favorites. All over the internet, fans are excited
by the possible returns of Andrea Evans (Tina), John Loprieno (Cord), Michael Zaslow (David) and
Brynn Thayer (Jenny). OLTL has nothing to lose by sticking with the tried-and-true. It
has a lot to lose, however, by flooding the canvas with yet another round of new faces and new
characters.
(2) Bringing back former fan favorites will help the show, but it will not erase the fact that
the few veterans remaining with the show are mere shadows of their former selves. The banter
between Viki and Clint has gone stale, Dorian has lost her backbone, Asa and Renee remain
invisible, and Bo and Nora have had more false storylines than I care to recall. Therefore, these
characters need to get in character and must be involved in storylines. Viki simply
cannot be a supporting player on this show ... she is the core of OLTL and it must be
recognized.
(3) After that, its time to go to work on the foundation. The Buchanans have become so
splintered that they hardly seem like a family anymore. When was the last time Bo and Clint had a
meaningful interaction? Where in the world is Asa? The Buchanan clan used to be as close as they
come. These days, they seem no more than separate, unconnected units whose paths rarely if ever
cross. There should also be cross-canvas connections, however. The Labines succeeded in this to
some extent, but the job remains unfinished. When was the last time we saw Dorian and Max in a
scene? Dorian and Renee? Or RJ and Todd, for that matter? One of Michael Malone's greatest
talents was to construct "umbrella" storylines that interwove half the cast. With his departure,
storylines on OLTL have become fragmented and unconnected. Therefore, the characters of
RJ, Rachel, Jacara and Hank never cross paths with Dorian, Kelly, Blair and Cassie, because they
seem to be existing in two separate towns. OLTL's fragmentation is one of the most
disturbing problems today. Llanview is no longer a community: it is a collection of self-
contained characters who never emerge from their close circle of friends and family.
(4) Finally come the storylines. It is not necessary for every new storyline to be grounded in
past events. To suggest such a thing would contradict the whole premise of a "continuing drama".
Yet, some logical connections should and must be made. An occasional reference to a past
character or event would go a long way toward restoring the impression that this *is* a serial
and not an episodic prime-time drama. The storylines that are written should be coherent,
focussed, intriguing, engaging and character affirming, rather than assassinating. They should
mix the veteran characters with the newer characters to create a balance for fans. An
occasional 'important' storyline dealing with real-life (maybe social?) issues would also be
appreciated by those who remember OLTL's early, socially-conscious days and also by those
who appreciated Michael Malone's thoughtful stories on homophobia and gang rape.
OLTL is not dead yet, but with sinking ratings and sinking hopes, its future hardly looks
bright. Fans have learned by now never to say 'things can't get worse ...' because they
invariably do. Even acclaimed headwriters like the Labines were incapable of fixing this show.
They were unable to do so, I believe, because they made only surface improvements. They made no
attempt to fix the show's foundation. When some visionary executive producer and writer see fit
to make that happen, One Life will Live again.
