# Soap Operas....Love 'Em or Hate 'Em??



## SeaBreeze (Feb 21, 2014)

I hate them, never could get into watching soap operas.  Was reminded of that at the gym the other day, the TV in the locker room had a soap opera on, and even a few minutes was hard to take. 

Before I started going to school, my mother used to love to watch her soaps.  That wasn't too far after my father bought us our very first black and white TV.  I can't blame her for taking interest in them, being home all day, and I don't know how many other things were on to watch back then.

I remember her watching "The Guiding Light", "The Secret Storm" and "As The World Turns"...those were the main three.  How about you, ever watch them in the past, or watch the new ones now??


----------



## Pappy (Feb 21, 2014)

Hate to admit it but the wife and I have watched DOOL since the beginning. We don't watch it every day, but you can miss several episodes without missing much.


----------



## Casper (Feb 21, 2014)

_*Almost 40 years ago when our 2 boys were toddlers the only soapie I ever watched was DOOL.....
wasn't fanatical about watching it every day though......but as Pappy said, 
you could miss many days/weeks and still follow what was happening.
I reckon if it was on now I'd still be able to catch up.....couldn't think of anything more boring
now though......:zz:

*_


----------



## Happyflowerlady (Feb 21, 2014)

I have never watched soap operas, and in fact, rarely watched anything on tv regularly. My parents didn't even have a television until I was 13, so I didn't watch any of the kids programs, I had long since outgrown those before we got the tv. 
My folks both worked all day, so they didn't turn on the tv until after dinner at night, and then they liked things like Ed Sullivan and Lawrence Welk; so I didn't watch those either.
My whole world revolved around my horse, and i was out riding every day after school, or in my bedroom reading a book on days when the weather wasn't suitable for riding my horse.
I did watch some of the westerns on tv, but nothing that I really cared about whether I missed it or not. Maybe Bonanza, that was one of my favorites. 
But I just never watched any daytime tv, soap operas, game shows, or whatever else there was. I still prefer a good book.


----------



## RedRibbons (Feb 21, 2014)

Back in the day I watched General Hospital, All my Children, Dark Shadows, Dallas, Dynasty.  I don't watch them anymore, but I sure loved Desperate Housewives!


----------



## i_am_Lois (Feb 22, 2014)

I've tried watching them. They stink. A story line drags on forever. There's nothing realistic about them.
But I did get hooked BIG TIME on a British soap opera called EastEnders. It's the opposite of the lousy American soaps.
EastEnders is fast paced, has great acting, has many story lines going on at one time and is realistic in my point of view.


----------



## Jillaroo (Feb 22, 2014)

_*Well i have a confession to make, i watch Bold & the Beautiful, completely sucked in by it even if the writers need sacking, the storylines of late are shocking, but i still watch it, the glamour has gone there used to be beautiful gowns on all the ladies and it was all about fashion , nowadays it's all about the young ones and their love life*_:hair:


----------



## Katybug (Feb 22, 2014)

When my children were very small and on the recommendation of a friend I watched ANOTHER WORLD for a couple years.  Once the kids were in school and I was either working or out and about, haven't seen one in many decades.  Daytime TV as a whole has zero appeal to me and if I'm having a sick day, I watch something like Dateline or 20/20 that I've taped on DVR. Love those reality news shows.


----------



## Ina (Feb 22, 2014)

Hi Katy, My mother was a daily watcher of soaps 50 years ago. She was so hung up on them that the rest of life might as well been the fiction. My mother would neglect our home and us, and when she wasn't watching soaps, she was on the phone to her girlfriends discussing the day's episode. So, I have never watched them, nor did I have the time to waste. :trolls:


----------



## Raven (Feb 22, 2014)

The only soap program I watch is Coronation Street.  I find the writing is not as good it used to
be years ago but I still watch.  I guess it has become a habit.
I have never watched East Enders but I think it is on one of our channels so maybe I'll give it a try.


----------



## That Guy (Feb 22, 2014)

The music is great.  The singing obnoxious. OH, just noticed it's SOAP Operas not opera.  Well, hate them even more and the music sucks, too.  No, Mary Hartman, Mary Harman was a wonderful parody and there was another called As the Stomach Turns.  HA.  I remember my mom listening to them on the radio when I was a little guy.


----------



## That Guy (Feb 22, 2014)

SNL The Californians.  Hilarious!


----------



## Falcon (Feb 22, 2014)

I've never watched them.  However I can see the value of them.

I think they are good for (mostly) women as it gives them a break and rest from daily housework.


----------



## SifuPhil (Feb 22, 2014)

The ex- was a nut on DOOL - never missed an episode.

I've only ever watched "_Soap_" - hilarious!


----------



## RCynic (Mar 10, 2014)

I don't think I've ever seen a soap opera...not sure. I do know that I am hooked on certain series, Justified, Elementary, Game of Thrones, Orphan Black...I don't think any of those qualify as soaps though.


----------



## Pappy (Mar 10, 2014)

Back in the days when they were on radio only, there was always an organ playing in background, setting the stage for the scene.


----------



## Gael (Mar 11, 2014)

SeaBreeze said:


> I hate them, never could get into watching soap operas.  Was reminded of that at the gym the other day, the TV in the locker room had a soap opera on, and even a few minutes was hard to take.
> 
> Before I started going to school, my mother used to love to watch her soaps.  That wasn't too far after my father bought us our very first black and white TV.  I can't blame her for taking interest in them, being home all day, and I don't know how many other things were on to watch back then.
> 
> I remember her watching "The Guiding Light", "The Secret Storm" and "As The World Turns"...those were the main three.  How about you, ever watch them in the past, or watch the new ones now??



In the US I found the soaps mediocre, inferior entertainment and avoided them, with the daytime ones being the worst. I come to the UK and get hooked on theirs. The difference is they are broader and more entertaining. Plus I find the accents and general look of them more interesting. But I'm seeing them through an American's eyes too.

The acting, writing and directing are in general also mediocre due to the intense shooting schedules but they do manage to tackle social issues and often deftly handle comedy especially Coronation Street.

A clip with two of my favorite soap actors on Eastenders:


----------



## Gael (Mar 11, 2014)

RCynic said:


> I don't think I've ever seen a soap opera...not sure. I do know that I am hooked on certain series, Justified, Elementary, Game of Thrones, Orphan Black...I don't think any of those qualify as soaps though.



No, they're not soaps.


----------



## That Guy (Mar 11, 2014)

I couldn't help but overhearing some women gossiping at work one day and had a great laugh when I discovered they were discussing the latest soap.  Hilarious.


----------



## Gael (Mar 11, 2014)

That Guy said:


> I couldn't help but overhearing some women gossiping at work one day and had a great laugh when I discovered they were discussing the latest soap.  Hilarious.



Avid soap watchers get so caught up in them they feel like the characters are real and they often live vicariously through them. Classic is the soap baddie who gets accosted on the street when they're recognized.

Some people forget the little detail that they're acting.


----------



## Dupe Murkland (Aug 6, 2016)

Part of the genius of _Dark Shadows_ was that it premiered on the first day of school-vacation, in June 1966.   I've had it queued-up on _hulu_ and _YouTube_, rewatching it in-sequence when I can.  What an amazing show.  The plot-stream drags occasionally, but there's enough drama happening in the periphery to keep the mysteries flowing logically.


----------



## Ken N Tx (Aug 7, 2016)

[h=2]Soap Operas....Love 'Em or Hate 'Em??[/h]
I love them!!! When my wife turns them on, I go for my nap!!


----------



## Pappy (Aug 7, 2016)

Don't bother me.


----------



## HazyDavey (Aug 7, 2016)

When I was in High School, Dark Shadows was popular. That was the only one I watched for a while.


----------



## Myquest55 (Aug 7, 2016)

I DID watch Dark Shadows but was not a fan of the regular "soaps."  My mother never watched them either.  In college, a lot of gals, and some guys, scheduled their classes around their "stories."  Once, while between jobs, I thought I would find out for myself why they were so popular so I forced myself to watch one for a whole week.  That was it - never went back.  I guess I didn't have any time for EXTRA drama in my life - had a hard time getting through my own - not that it was news worthy.    To this day, I rarely put on TV during the day.  

We DO follow a number of the evening episodic shows but no soaps.


----------



## Butterfly (Aug 7, 2016)

My mom religiously watched one called The Edge of Night. That was the only one she watched, but we knew not to bother her when she was watching, unless the house was on fire or we were bleeding profusely, or both.


----------



## Sassycakes (Aug 7, 2016)

I have to admit I watched soap opera's years ago. I liked Days of our Lives,and Another world. After my children were born I stopped watching them. I was busy enjoying my time with my kids. I haven't seen one in years,because after my kids grew up and had their children I was lucky enough to watch my grandchildren.


----------



## Bonzo (Aug 15, 2016)

Hate em and can't stand reality shows either
give me wildlife PROGRAMES any day


----------



## fureverywhere (Aug 15, 2016)

Regular soap operas are dreck. I've been forced to watch the Spanish version from time to time...novelas. At least the overacting is entertaining...


----------



## Carla (Aug 15, 2016)

Used to watch them, many moons ago. All My Children and General Hospital.  Nighttime spoofs such as Soap and Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman were funny at the time. Some of the women where I work used to talk about some of the soaps like they were family, ha-ha.


----------



## twinkles (Feb 10, 2018)

i have a couple of friends that watch them every day--you cant call them  because they have the answering machine on ---when they decide to call me i am either eating dinner or have gone to bed


----------



## Temperance (Feb 10, 2018)

Hate them!  None could hold my interest.  They moved way to slow for me.  But I will say I loved the soap opera type shows that aired in the evening.  Dallas, Falcon Crest and Knots Landing, these I couldn't get enough of.


----------



## Smiling Jane (Feb 10, 2018)

When I was a kid, all of the women in my family listened to their radio soaps while they cooked and cleaned. Some of them made the transition to TV soaps and some didn't but my mother and I watched soaps together for many years, especially when the writing was better. We each had our favorite shows and characters.

I sit down fairly regularly and get caught up on some of the Brit and Australian soaps. I still enjoy following favorite characters through years of stories. If you get Acorn, a number of the offerings there are soaps. No way to pretend they aren't. 

I don't consider it any more of a time-waster than the NFL.


----------



## ProsperosDaughter (Feb 10, 2018)

Back in the early 70's I used to make lunch everyday for my mother's 2nd husband's* mother Gladys. She was confined to a wheel chair and the home the three lived in was not conducive to her movement. (I lived alone.) Mom, her husband and I all worked; but my job was closer and I worked split shifts having a large portion of the middle of the day free. Being a shut in Gladys watched TV all day. She got me hooked on soaps. She told me all the backstories from when they started. She was NBC faithful so we watched Another World, Days of Our Lives, Somerset others I forget. Eventually I went on days and other arrangements were made for her care so my life as a soap-aholic ended.




**My belief is that just because your parent makes an ill-advised 2nd marriage does not make their new spouse a relative of yours.


----------



## C'est Moi (Feb 10, 2018)

Never watched 'em.


----------



## Gary O' (Feb 10, 2018)

Had an entry level job at a huge electronics firm
Bench work
Couldn’t talk
Could listen to radios with headphones 
The gal next to me listened to soaps
At break her and another gal would talk about these people
Like they were their friends
I offered my sympathies
They busted out laughing

I’m a little s-l-o-w 

I do recall one called The Secret Storm
back in the '50s
Gramma watched it while ironing
I remember this fetching lady
too young to know why
still...


----------



## Smiling Jane (Feb 10, 2018)

Butterfly said:


> My mom religiously watched one called The Edge of Night. That was the only one she watched, but we knew not to bother her when she was watching, unless the house was on fire or we were bleeding profusely, or both.



I know many soap fans who consider TEON to have been the finest soap ever aired. It's hard for me to argue with that, because my mother and I never missed it. TEON and As The World Turns were our long-time favorites, then she began watching Days of Our Lives;  I could never get into that one.

Part of the success of TEON was attributed to it having five writers over the course of the show. One of those writers, Henry Slesar, is considered by many to be the greatest soap opera writer ever. He was certainly a great mystery writer, and the show won a special Edgar (for Edgar Allen Poe) award.


----------

