NEWS: Michael Learned, David Canary, White, Hastings

Don Hastings on the end of ATWT and possible role on OLTL
“We still don’t have a finish date, maybe in July,” he said. Will he miss the show? “It hasn’t hit me yet because I’m still working.” He wants to keep working, too, and joked with Bob Woods about playing a serial killer on his soap, ONE LIFE TO LIVE. “I wouldn’t kill you, though,” joked Hastings. “I like you!”

Maybe This Whole Crusade to Have Betty White Host SNL Isn’t Such a Good Idea After All
New York Magazine's Mark Graham writes: "We love the Internet, we really do. After all, it is the very source of our livelihood! That said, we have learned over the years that if you give the Internet a pixel, it will take a mile."

LIFE UNEXPECTED: A Quiet Freshman Gem on The CW
Ed Martin writes: "Like most of the shows on The CW, LIFE UNEXPECTED is very much a primetime serial full of pretty people neck-deep in drama. But unlike virtually all of the others, this one has an uncommonly ambitious storyline as its foundation and characters with so many layers to them it could take years to peel them all away. The opportunities for rewarding emotional connections are endless."

Michael Learned joining GENERAL HOSPITAL for a short run
Learned is joining the cast of GH for a short-term story arc. The four-time Emmy winner begins taping in mid-March and will appear onscreen in early April. Learned will play Shirley Smith, a cancer patient, who will be involved with Robin (Kimberly McCullough), Patrick (Jason Thompson), Lisa (Brianna Brown) and the rest of the hospital staff.

ALL MY CHILDREN exec producer Julie Hanan Carruthers plots David Canary's exit
Canary will continue shooting AMC into April, then Carruthers will use the recent death of James Mitchell (Palmer) as impetus for Adam to leave town. “Everyone in Pine Valley will be greatly affected by the loss of Palmer, especially Adam,” previews the soap chief. “It will force him to face his own mortality, something that’s very rare for such a Type A personality.”

Lifetime's audience has been shrinking as it aims for younger viewers
ifetime's numerous makeovers have taken a toll: Its prime-time audience has plunged so much that the channel no longer even ranks among the top five favorite cable networks among women under 50, according to Nielsen.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Perhaps the network would have done well with a cable version of GUIDING LIGHT featuring Otalia.