Roseanne Cancelled by ABC

ABC has cancelled  the hit reboot Roseanne after the star Roseanne Barr made a comment on twitter this morning about Valerie Jarrett who was a former Obama aide saying that she looked like the offspring of the Muslim Brotherhood and Planet of the Apes. Roseanne deleted her tweet and followed up with an apology that said “I apologize to Valerie Jarrett and to all Americans. I am truly sorry for making a bad joke about her politics and her looks. I should have known better. Forgive me-my joke was in bad taste. I am now leaving Twitter.”

ABC’s Entertainment president Channing Dungey said the following statement “Roseanne’s Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show”.  It has also been reported that Wanda Sykes, who worked on the show’s first season as a consulting producer announced that she will not be returning for the show’s next season. Sara Gilbert, series co-star and executive producer also spoke out against Roseanne’s comments saying “Roseanne’s recent comments about Valerie Jarrett, and so much more, are abhorrent and do not reflect the beliefs of our cast and crew or anyone associated with our show. I am disappointed in her actions to say the least. This is incredibly sad and difficult for all of us, as we’ve created a show that we believe in, are proud of, and that audiences love — one that is separate and apart from the opinions and words of one cast member.”

 

I have been a fan of the original series for many years and like many other fans I was very excited when I heard Roseanne was coming back with new episodes and I really enjoyed the first season and I was looking forward to the second season. I was not happy with Roseanne’s statements she went too far and should not have said that.  What we need right now is more love and acceptance not hate and insults.  I feel bad for the rest of the cast and crew who have worked so hard to put this show together. I really hope that Roseanne learns from this mistake and thinks before she posts. I’m not sure what ABC will put in Roseanne’s place given that the show is done and was a huge hit for the network. Please remember to be kind to each other especially when using social media.   

Genie Francis dropped to recurring status on ABC’s General Hospital.

Over the weekend news broke on several soap and entertain publications that soap opera icon Genie Francis has been dropped to recurring status on General Hospital. Francis was told the news in late 2017 that she would be dropped to recurring status in 2018. Frank Valentini, the soap’s Executive Producer wanted Francis to appear in only 12 episodes. It is reported that Francis was devastated by the decision and refused to agree to appear so infrequently on the soap.

This decision has also come as a surprise to the writers at General Hospital who had planned a long-term storyline for Francis’ character Laura Collins with Laura running for mayor of Port Charles. That storyline has been altered when the decision was made. Genie Francis has played the role of Laura off and on since 1977 and many soap fans tuned into to Luke and Laura’s wedding in 1981 which is the most watched episode in soap history and gave the show 30 Million viewers during that episode. In addition to General Hospital Francis has also been on other popular soaps such as All My Children, Days of Our Lives, Loving, and The Young and the Restless. Arthur Toretzky, Genie Francis’ agent, confirmed to Entertainment weekly that Francis has been dropped and said “She did not want to leave the show as a series regular, it was not her choice to leave.” Francis also commented on the news of her GH firing saying “ I would like to thank all of my wonderful fans for their support. It has made me feel so much better.”

While I personally have not been a regular viewer of General Hospital for a few years now, I think Frank’s decision to do this is outrageous not only to Genie Francis who helped save this well-known soap from cancelation in the mid 70’s, but also to all of the fans who have watched and supported this soap and Genie through the years. As a soap fan this really upsets me because we only have 4 daytime soaps left on the airwaves. General Hospital, Days Of Our Lives, The Young and the Restless, and The Bold and the Beautiful. If this is Frank’s idea of helping the show grow he is going about it the wrong way and this decision in my opinion could cause GH to lose longtime viewers. While it is too early to tell if Francis’ firing has made an impact on the soap ratings wise one thing that is clear is that fans are not happy about this decision at all and in my opinion this isn’t the direction the soap should be headed especially because General Hospital will be celebrating its 55^th Anniversary in April of this year.

I really hope Frank reconsiders his decision and places Genie back to a series regular, but if he does not this is the perfect opportunity for Days or The Young and the Restless to reach out to Francis and reprise one of her roles. If you would like to contact General Hospital and let them know your thoughts you can do so by calling the General Hospital comment line 323-671-4583. General Hospital airs weekdays on ABC check your local listings for air times. What are your thoughts about the decision? Drop a comment below if you wish.

Thanks for reading

Sincerely,

Tom