An engaging, in-depth look at the myriad pleasures of the soap opera fan.

Since the debut of These Are My Children in 1949, the daytime television soap opera has been foundational to the history of the medium as an economic, creative, technological, social, and cultural institution. In Her Stories, Elana Levine draws on archival research and her experience as a longtime soap fan to provide an in-depth history of the daytime television soap opera as a uniquely gendered cultural form and a central force in the economic and social influence of network television. Closely observing the production, promotion, reception, and narrative strategies of the soaps, Levine examines two intersecting developments: the role soap operas have played in shaping cultural understandings of gender and the rise and fall of broadcast network television as a culture industry. In so doing, she foregrounds how soap operas have revealed changing conceptions of gender and femininity as imagined by and reflected on the television screen.

The soap opera, one of U.S. television's longest-running and most influential formats, is on the brink. Declining ratings have been attributed to an increasing number of women working outside the home and to an intensifying competition for viewers' attention from cable and the Internet. Yet, soaps' influence has expanded, with serial narratives becoming commonplace on most prime time TV programs. The Survival of Soap Opera investigates the causes of their dwindling popularity, describes their impact on TV and new media culture, and gleans lessons from their complex history for twenty-first-century media industries. The book contains contributions from established soap scholars such as Robert C. Allen, Louise Spence, Nancy Baym, and Horace Newcomb, along with essays and interviews by emerging scholars, fans and Web site moderators, and soap opera producers, writers, and actors from ABC's General Hospital, CBS's The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful, and other shows. This diverse group of voices seeks to intervene in the discussion about the fate of soap operas at a critical juncture, and speaks to longtime soap viewers, television studies scholars, and media professionals alike.

A dispute of the simplistic illusion of soap fans as bored housewives or losers.

As a special feature for this book, The Museum of Television & Radio conducted interviews with leading writers, producers, actors, and directors of soap operas. Dozens of revealing quotes from these interviews appear throughout the book - personal and professional comments by men and women who make their living in the field.

This special, limited edition, hard cover book is an informative and fun photographic essay that explores the richly layered history of the long-running, award winning, and the world's most watched daily drama series, The Bold and the Beautiful. The book showcases in pictorial detail the year-by-year account of the loves, lives, trials and tribulations of the Forrester, Logan, Spectra and Marone families and, of course, the world-renowned fashion houses of Forrester and Spectra. Be taken on a fascinating journey of the last twenty five years in special sections that include: Photos and commentary from the Cast with special pages dedicated to the original and still remaining four contract players, Susan Flannery, Katherine Kelly Lang, John McCook and Ronn Moss; Current, vintage and rare behind-the-scenes photos as well as gallery photography of the cast, crew and staff.

The first daytime dramas began as early as 1930, with Painted Dreams. Programmers soon discovered that housewives often controlled the purse strings, and soaps become an advertiser's gold mine. They now generate more than $900 million in network revenues annually. Around 50 million people (reportedly including congressmen and rock stars as well as two-thirds of all American television-watching women) tune in each weekday afternoon for a dosage of love, loss and libido via "the soaps." This scholarly study examines the soap phenomenon from a sociological point of view. Included in the analysis is classic research by Rudolf Arnheim, Herta Hartzog and Helen Kaufman as well as contemporary studies and previously unpublished research. The evolution of popular plotlines and characters, as assessment of reality in today's plots, which people watch soaps and why, specific plotlines for the 13 soaps presently aired, 40+ family trees illustrating program changes, the future of soaps--all are covered.

Forget everything you've heard about the daytime soap opera going the way of the old Betamax tapes that were used to record them. The style and influence of the afternoon serial resonate in every existing dramatic entertainment and reality show, as the soaps continue to engross and entertain millions of viewers around the world every single day. In Afternoon Delight: Why Soaps Still Matter, author and veteran soap expert Carolyn Hinsey brings a unique passion and perspective to the genre, having covered daytime television for more than twenty years. In this enthralling new work, she shares all the dirt, dish, and drama that make soaps great from what happens on-set to what makes it on-air, from backstage drama to back room dealings, and all the sensational soapy scandal from the daytime bedroom to the network boardroom.Filled with fascinating anecdotes, celebrity contributions, insider analyses, and a true fan's perspective; Afternoon Delight: Why Soaps Still Matter vividly makes the case that daily dramas still serve up a delicious dish of programming with a purpose. Where are we now? The #1 soap "The Young and the Restless," currently has over 4 million viewers every day (take that, Jon Stewart!). "As The World Turns" went off the air in Sept. 2010 with a higher rating than "Mad Men." Clearly, there is enormous interest in the still-surviving daytime soaps and a desire for them to thrive for another 50 years. Soap operas have blazed a trail across television that continues to be relevant in our homes and in our lives to this day; to millions of loyal viewers there is no doubt that you can still find plenty of love in the afternoon!

A television genre best known for romantic storytelling, daytime soap operas have for decades spun tales of couples embroiled in passion, lust and adventure. Yet it was not until the early 1980s that star-crossed lovers became standard and the term "super couple" was coined by the media, marking a new era of experimentation and growth in daytime soaps. This book documents the phenomenon, tracing its history, legacy and impact on the soap opera industry and on popular culture at large.

Could your workplace become a TV soap opera? Do you dread going to work due to a coworkers behavior? Learn some of the characteristics of the workplace soap opera character and how you can deal with them.