Two more of the country’s longest-running soaps have been axed for good, joining Guiding Light and As The World Turns in the soap opera graveyard .
One Life to Live and All My Children will see their final curtains within the next year – the latter in September, and the former in January. ABC’s president of daytime television commented on the programming change that will see soaps replaced with health and lifestyle shows:
“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,” he said. “We are taking this bold step to expand our business because viewers are looking for different types of programming these days.”
Frons continued:
“All My Children” and “One Life to Live” are iconic pieces of television that have made an indelible mark on our culture’s history,” Frons said. “Each of the shows has touched millions and millions of viewers and informed the social consciousness. It has been a privilege to work with the extraordinary teams who brought the residents of Pine Valley and Llanview to life each day and we thank the cast, crew, producers and most especially the fans for their commitment to the shows through their history.”
The daytime dramas will be replaced with a nutrition-focused show called The Chew, and another about “lifestyle transformations” called The Revolution. OLTL and AMC have been airing since 1968 and 1970 respectively, and only General Hospital remains in the daytime drama stable.