Soap Operas on the Ropes

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Even network execs admit soaps have not kept pace with changing times. Their two reigning queens, Susan Lucci of All My Children and Deidre Hall of NBC's Days of Our Lives, are well into their 40s, and no younger successors have emerged. The talk world, on the other hand, recently welcomed such newcomers as actress Ricki Lake, sociologist Bertice Berry, and motivational speaker Les Brown. Tentatively planning to join the fold are Suzanne Somers, Lucie Arnaz, and Alan Thicke.

Despite the current boom, though, talkers aren't always invincible. After just two weeks, Dallas' CBS affiliate abruptly banished King World's The Les Brown Show from 3 p.m. to 1 a.m. because of poor ratings. ''These talk shows won't all last,'' predicts Lynn Leahey, editor in chief of Soap Opera Digest, who obviously has a vested interest. ''Soap operas are great dramas that draw you in for years. How many times will people want to watch gay transvestite parents losing their children?''

Fair question. Like some of its characters, the soap genre, though presumed dead by many, could still turn out to be alive in the battle for daytime's $1 billion-plus ad revenues. Forty percent of American women, not counting those who tape, are watching at least one soap a week. On Oct. 29, attempting to recapture the glow of soapdom's golden era, ABC's General Hospital will bring back Luke and Laura (Anthony Geary and Genie Francis), whose November 1981 wedding drew the highest ratings (30 million viewers) ever for a daytime drama. ''We're looking to re-create history,'' admits executive producer Wendy Riche. ''But we're not looking to capture lightning in a bottle twice. We're % just looking to bring old friends back.''

Those once-friendly viewers ''will come back to us,'' predicts Pat Fili- Krushel, ABC's president of daytime programming. ''Our shows are in good shape and we're committed to them. Talk shows have made inroads, but I think we can coexist very nicely together.''

In fact, a symbiotic relationship—call it Talk Soap—might be the soaps' greatest chance for survival. Talk-show producers have discovered that booking soap stars brings major ratings. In turn, soap publicists find daytime talk shows a bonanza for their stars, few of whom have the name power to get on the early-morning or late-night shows.

Such cross-pollination is blurring the lines between soap and talk. This month, Brent Jasmer (The Bold and the Beautiful) appeared on Geraldo to talk about his search for his birth mother. Without his knowledge, the show's producers had found her and staged the meeting for the cameras. Furious, Jasmer—who had wanted a private reunion—threatened to sue.

It sounds like the perfect plotline for a soap. Or the topic of another talk show.