Today in Soap Opera History (October 13)

1965: Peyton Place's Steven questioned Elliot.  1986: Search 
for Tomorrow's Suzi crashed her car. 1986: Pat proposal
was rejected on Ryan's Hope.  2005: Guiding Light's
Olivia confessed to Bill.

"History cannot give us a program for the future, but it can give us a fuller understanding of ourselves, and of our common humanity, so that we can better face the future."
― Robert Penn Warren

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1947: On radio soap opera Lora Lawton, Joe visited Lora (Jan Miner) at her London flat. She told him she was going to communicate with Peter through a series of pictures she drew for him.

1965: On Peyton Place, Gus Chernak (Bruce Gordon) accosted Martin (George Macready) outside the mill, while Steven (James Douglas) questioned Elliot (Tim O'Connor) about the night he rescued Rita from Joe. The episode was written by Rita Lakin and Sonya Roberts. Lakin was the head writer (and only writer) for the episodes of The Doctors currently airing on Retro TV.

Today in Soap Opera History (October 13)

1967: Woodward wanted to stop the experiment on DS' Barnabas.
1986: SFT's Suzi and Cagney crashed. 1986: RH's Pat proposed.
2005: GL's Olivia admitted what she had done to Billy.

"We should always be aware that what now lies in the past once lay in the future."
― F.W. Maitland

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1947: On LORA LAWTON, Joe visited Lora (Jan Miner) at her London flat. She told him she was going to communicate with Peter through a series of pictures she drew for him.

PREVIEW: PRIVATE PRACTICE Series Finale

Photo: ABC

ABC's primetime soap opera PRIVATE PRACTICE will end its run with a special farewell to the beloved doctors of Seaside Health and Wellness on Tuesday, January 22 at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

In the episode ("In Which We Say Goodbye"), Naomi returns to stand by Addison's side on her wedding day, Cooper struggles with the hardships of being a stay-at-home father, and Violet begins a new project close to her heart.

Watch a sneak peek below:

PREVIEW: PRIVATE PRACTICE ("Georgia on My Mind")

The final season of PRIVATE PRACTICE continues on Tuesday, December 18 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

In "Georgia on My Mind," Charlotte stresses the doctors out when she continues to run Saint Ambrose Hospital from her doctor-ordered bed rest.

Meanwhile, scared that Charlotte might never leave the hospital, Mason begins acting out in school.

Watch a sneak peek below:

NEWS ROUNDUP: Irna Phillips, Tracey E. Bregman, Ming-Na, Kamar de los Reyes, Wally Kurth

Irna Phillips: Brief life of soap opera’s single mother (1901-1973)
Lynn Liccardo writes in the January-February 2013 issue of Harvard Magazine: "Haunted by her lost pregnancy, in 1972 she created ATWT's beautiful and independent Kim Reynolds, who was meant to have a baby of her own. Of course, to conceive that baby, Kim seduced her sister’s husband. Sponsor Procter & Gamble, unwilling to reward adultery, chose to veto that happy ending; when Phillips—increasingly difficult to work with and unwilling to sensationalize her plots to compete with rival shows—was fired, Kim’s pregnancy ended in a miscarriage. It’s hard to say what caused Phillips more pain—losing the show that was so real to her, or reliving the loss of her baby as Kim lost hers. A few months later, she died of a heart attack, or perhaps of a broken heart."

Ming-Na to guest star in NASHVILLE
Ming-Na will appear in an upcoming episode of NASHVILLE as Calista Reeves, a successful Los Angeles music-label exec with designs on luring Connie Britton’s country superstar away from her Edgehill roost.

Y&R Star Tracey E. Bregman Drives a Fisker Karma (Video)
The attention Bregman (Lauren) gets driving her Karma makes her feel like a rock star.

Watch the video below:

PREVIEW: PRIVATE PRACTICE ("I'm Fine")

Photo: ABC

The final season of PRIVATE PRACTICE continues on Tuesday, December 11 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

In "I'm Fine," during a dark moment in his life, Sheldon finds happiness with a new woman.

Meanwhile, he becomes increasingly suspicious about his patient Nick's involvement in Sarah's disappearance.

Watch a sneak peek below:

NEWS ROUNDUP: DALLAS Resumes Production, Y&R #1 Scripted TV Bing Search, Daytime Drama Revitalized, Audra McDonald Returning To PRIVATE PRACTICE

TNT’s DALLAS Resumes Production Following Larry Hagman's Death
Hagman, who reprised his role as the villainous J.R. Ewing from the original series, died from cancer complications Friday while the show was on Thanksgiving break. Filming was originally slated to resume yesterday, but the series stayed dark out of respect for Hagman. DALLAS is currently shooting Episode 6 from its 15-episode second season. Hagman worked virtually until his death and is expected to appear in all of the first six episodes. As of now, there is no hiatus planned to allow the writers to craft a proper send-off for J.R., though production is reportedly ahead of schedule and can afford to do that without missing the January 28 premiere date.

GENERAL HOSPITAL Leads a Sudden Revitalization of Daytime Drama
"GENERAL HOSPITAL is more fun and exciting than it has been since its glory days in the ‘80s, and that’s thanks in large part to Valentini’s smart decision to put less emphasis on the low-rent mob drama that had choked the life out of the show and bring back many much-missed characters from decades past. In a dizzying twist, he also brought over to GENERAL HOSPITAL a handful of characters from “One Life to Live.” I’ll confess this didn’t strike me as a smart idea at the start, even though I had been a long-time ONE LIFE TO LIVE watcher. But the results have been unexpectedly entertaining."

Tuesday Night Ratings: PRIVATE PRACTICE Up, EMILY OWENS Steady, PARENTHOOD, HART OF DIXIE Down

The Tuesday overnight ratings are in for November 30. Below is a roundup of ratings reports:

From ABC:
During the 10 o’clock hour, ABC's PRIVATE PRACTICE increased over the prior week by 11% in Total Viewers and by 9% in Adults 18-49.

PREVIEW: Two Episodes Of PRIVATE PRACTICE This Week

Photo: ABC

The sixth and final season of PRIVATE PRACTICE continues on Tuesday, November 20 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

In the Addison-centric episode, "Apron Strings," her role as a parent is challenged when Henry's biological mother reappears and asks to be more involved in her young son's life. Meanwhile Addison reconnects with her mentor, who shares a very painful secret.

Watch a sneak peek below:

Tuesday Night Ratings: HART OF DIXIE, EMILY OWENS Up, PARENTHOOD, PRIVATE PRACTICE Down

The Tuesday overnight ratings are in for November 13. Below is a roundup of ratings reports:

From The CW:
Last night's HART OF DIXIE was the series most watched (1.68M) episode in nearly a year (since 12/5/11) and hit a season high in adults 18-49 (0.7/2). It matched its season highs in A18-34 (0.7/2) and W18-34 (1.1/3).

PREVIEW: PRIVATE PRACTICE ("The Next Episode")

Photo: ABC

The sixth and final season of PRIVATE PRACTICE continues on Tuesday, November 13 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. Matt Long guest stars.

In "The Next Episode," a reality show centered around Sam sheds some light on issues in his colleagues' personal lives.

Meanwhile, Sam's mother (Alfre Woodard) seeks his help after her boss (Richard Roundtree) falls ill; and the search continues for a girl who went missing from St. Ambrose

Watch a sneak peek below:

NASVHILLE, REVOLUTION, 90210 Amongs Primetime Soaps Showing Big Live+7 Day Ratings Increases

THE REVOLUTION saw a 63.3% increase Live+7 Days

TV By The Numbers has released Live + 7 Day ratings for the week of October 8-14, 2012.  PRIVATE PRACTICE, GRIMM, GOSSIP GIRL and 90210 topped the % adults 18-49 ratings increase from DVR viewing, with each show adding 75% to its Live+Same Day adults 18-49 ratings.  NASHVILLE increased by 50% reached a 4.2 rating. for its premiere. 

Check out a list of shows that saw big increases below:

ABC Primetime November Highlights: REVENGE, ONCE UPON A TIME, NASHVILLE, GREY'S ANATOMY, SCANDAL

ABC announced November sweeps highlights on Tuesday including all its primetime soap operas. Check out the previews below:

"LAST RESORT" - "Skeleton Crew" - In an attempt to end the standoff on Sainte Marina, Marcus and Sam enter into tense negotiations with the U.S. Government. Meanwhile, when a critical system fails, Grace must take command of the Colorado on a perilous repair operation, on "Last Resort," THURSDAY, OCTOBER 25 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET).

"GREY'S ANATOMY" - "I Saw Her Standing There" - Aware that Derek might never operate again, Meredith stops talking about the surgeries she's performing. Meanwhile, Richard calls on Dr. Catherine Avery to help him perform a complicated procedure, as things continue to heat up between Jackson and April; and Arizona's struggle to accept her fate forces Callie and Alex to face their guilt, on "Grey's Anatomy," THURSDAY, OCTOBER 25 (9:00-10:02 p.m., ET).

PREVIEW: PRIVATE PRACTICE ("You Don't Know What You've Got Till It's Gone")

Photo: ABC

The sixth and final season of PRIVATE PRACTICE continues on Tuesday, October 23 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. Matt Long guest stars.

In the episode, titled "You Don't Know What You've Got Till It's Gone," Sheldon fears the worst when a little girl goes missing from the ER; Addison and Jake have a disagreement about one of his patients; and a new doctor joins the team at Saint Ambrose.

Meanwhile, Stephanie questions Sam about his past with Addison

Watch a sneak peek below:

PRIVATE PRACTICE Ending After Season 6, Two More GREY'S Episodes Ordered

ABC's PRIVATE PRACTICE is officially ending after Season 6, showrunner Shonda Rhimes announced via Twitter on Friday.

The medical drama, which stars Kate Walsh, is currently airing on Tuesday nights. According to The Hollywood Reporter, it is currently averaging 6.1 million viewers and a 1.6 in the coveted adults 18-49 demo, having slipped noticeably from last season's average demo of 2.3. Walsh announced her intention to leave the show earlier this summer, placing the series' future in doubt, so the show's cancellation is not entirely shocking news.

L+7 Ratings: All 11 of ABC's Scripted Series Hit a 3.0 Rating or Better in Premiere Week; Big DVR Gains For NASHVILLE

The networks are tauting their L+7 Ratings successes today.

From ABC:
Based on Nielsen’s DVR playback data for the opening week of the 2012-13 season, ABC’s MODERN FAMILY was the biggest absolute gainer among Adults 18-49 (tied with NBC’s REVOLUTION), jumping by +2.3 rating points from its initially reported Live + Same Day rating to the final Live + 7 numbers (5.5 rating to 7.8 rating). GREY'S ANATOMY saw its young adult number increase by +1.5 rating points in the Live + 7 numbers (4.4 to 5.9), while 666 PARK AVENUE and LAST RESORT ranked among the four biggest actual gainers for freshman series, going up by +1.1 rating points (2.1 to 3.2) and +1.0 rating point (2.2 to 3.2), respectively, among Adults 18-49.

Today in Soap Opera History (October 13)

On this date in...

1970: On ANOTHER WORLD, Rachel (Robin Strasser) told Ada (Constance Ford) her clever little tricks helping the Matthews family would not stop her from getting what she wanted.

1986: On RYAN'S HOPE, Frank (John Sanderford) and Jill (Nancy Addison) bickered over each other's foibles.

Tuesday Night Ratings: PARENTHOOD Up, HART OF DIXIE Down, PRIVATE PRACTICE Steady

The overnights are in for Tuesday, October 9. Below is a roundup of Nielsen ratings reports:

From ABC:
During the 10 o’clock hour, ABC’s PRIVATE PRACTICE outdelivered NBC’s PARENTHOOD for the 3rd week running, leading the NBC drama by 1.1 million viewers.

ABC’s PRIVATE PRACTICE grew week to week in Total Viewers (+2%) and Adults 18-34 (+10%), while holding 100% of its Adult 18-49 audience.

PREVIEW: PRIVATE PRACTICE ("Good Grief")

Photo: ABC

The sixth season of PRIVATE PRACTICE continues on Tuesday, October 9 at 101 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

In the episode titled "Good Grief," after hearing a patient's chilling confession, Violet turns to Sheldon for advice.

Meanwhile, Addison tries to keep her grief a secret, Cooper and Charlotte adapt to their new reality and Sam confronts Sheldon about his denial.

Watch a sneak peek below:

PREVIEW: PRIVATE PRACTICE 100th Episode ("Mourning Sickness")

Caterina Scorson, Benjamin Bratt, Kate Walsh, Paul Adelstein -
Photo: ABC/Eric McCandless

The sixth season of PRIVATE PRACTICE continues on Tuesday, October 2 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

In the 100th episode, titled "Mourning Sickness," the doctors join together for a celebration at Addison's house and to reminisce about the past.

Meanwhile, Sheldon counsels a suicidal patient who comes forward with a shocking confession.

Watch a sneak peek below: