Tears, gasps and sighs filled the studio as cast, crew, maintenance, security, the whole As the World Turns family stood on the Metro set and listened to the sad news. The North American TV Programming Manager of P&G, Pat Gentile, had just explained how As the World Turns would not be renewed for the 2010-2011 programming year. Every word after turned into a jumble, leaving us with a somber and weary feeling as if our grandparents just passed away. We returned to our workday only to find that we were not the only people to hear the news as the phone began to ring off the hook with calls ranging from fans to actors asking if the news was true.  
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As the World Turns may be ending its 54-year run on CBS next September, but the sudser’s home studio hopes to continue delivering fresh episodes to its devoted fans…someday. ”We are completely committed to finding a new home for As The World Turns after the show ends its extraordinary run on CBS in September 2010,” says Brian T. Cahill, senior VP and managing director of TeleNext Media. “However, in order to keep productive conversations moving forward, we will not disclose details of our discussions. We know our loyal fans are eager for information, and we will make an announcement as soon as we have something to share.”
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“Lifetime Television is interested in picking up the show,” the insider says. “They had wanted to pick up and continue on with Guiding Light, but at the time CBS announced its cancellation, Lifetime had already completed its lineup for the upcoming season, so it was too late. But this time, CBS has given advance notice in the hope that Lifetime or any other network is interested in picking up the show.”

Taping for As the World Turns ends in June next year and the last show is set to air in September but the cast is cautiously optimistic that they will find a new home for their soap.

“We’re all really hoping the show gets picked up,” Grayson McCouch, who plays Dusty Donovan, told our setsider. “There's a good chance it will! We are doing everything we can to get it to another network. So we are hopeful.
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The Best in Soaps 2009
by Michael Logan December 15, 2009 02:34 PM EST

The shocking cancellation of As the World Turns can’t be allowed to overshadow how good the show is these days. The writing is increasingly sharp and the cast—led by Maura West (Carly) and Michael Park (Jack)—remains awesome. GL was brain dead long before the plug was pulled. Not so with ATWT. This is a show still brimming with life and limitless possibilities!
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TV Guide agrees ATWT should still have a future.  Please help us in the fight to find a new home!

It's been mentioned already that Lifetime TV could be a potential new home for As the World Turns.  We have however learned that they will ONLY accept postcards.  If you send a letter, they aren't going to read it.  So we've got a card for you to use.  Please print and mail them!  Find the mailing addresses HERE.

You can still email them as well as joining the online group on thier site.

Let's flood Lifetime and let them know we are serious!

Click on the image to display it full size.

We have updated our strategy.  Please read the latest post for the current plans.  Newest post.

An idea has cropped up that we love but need to know who is willing to participate.  The idea is to send bars of soap to P&G to tell them we want a new home to save our soap.  Some suggested CBS but that is really a lost cause.  Our best hope is pushing P&G to make sure they aren't just giving us lip service and they really are looking for a new home for As the World Turns.

We would set a target date for sometime in January so we all send the soap at the same time.  We highly recommend making it a P&G brand which would be Ivory, Camay, Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, and Zest.  We need to get an idea if people would really be willing to do this.  There are a lot of groups out there with efforts to save the show and we would all need to combine on this.  P&G would laugh at a few hundred bars of soap but with thousands, they would know we are serious.

For now we're trying to see if there are people who are serious about helping with the effort.  Are you in?  Please post a comment here if you want us to proceed.  You can also let us know on Twitter http://twitter.com/Save_ATWT  Please help us spread the word and see if we can organize enough people to make this work!  We'll proceed with organizing this if we see the interest.

I know most of us will treasure every moment there is left should we not be successful in our efforts to find a new home. The one thing that can help the most though is to get those ratings up to make the show more attractive or to let them know we are willing to watch online. We need numbers to back up how high the audience is.

Especially if you are a Nielsen family, be sure to watch on your TV. Unfortunately there probably aren't a lot of us that are Nielsen families so we don't get our viewing counted. However we can increase the online viewing.

If you live in the US and even if you have watched the show on TV, please be sure to stream it daily on your computer and do that from one of the authorized CBS sites. While we've all done it, please don't just watch edited clips on YouTube. Those numbers don't count. It's important to have our numbers count. As mad as we may be at CBS, we need to have our online viewing numbers count. We need to let potential advertisers know we are willing to watch and support the show online. So please watch daily at one of these sites: CBS.com  TV.com  MSN  Fancast

Also TeleNext has an official YouTube channel where you can watch some older episodes.  TeleNext on YouTube.  The official ATWT YouTube channel, Oakdale Now puts the weekly promos online.  Please watch them there.  OakdaleNow on YouTube.  Let's get those hits really high!

One of our best options for a new home may be on the internet, so please show them we are out here and we will watch online.  Please support OFFICIAL SITES!

Great article from CNN! 

'World Turns' fans turn to network, social media after soap canceled 

CNN) -- Longtime fans of the soap opera "As the World Turns" are mourning the loss of their daily date with the folks in the fictional town of Oakdale, Illinois, after CBS announced the cancellation of the long-running daytime drama this week.

To vent their frustrations, some diehard fans have called the network and its affiliates, and others have taken to social media to vent their frustrations.

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As fans of As the World Turns, we were all heartbroken with the news that CBS has decided to cancel ATWT as of September 2010.  However the official word from P&G and TeleNext is they are looking for a new home.  We've posted a few of the articles in the blog to refer to where they make that commitment.

This is a grass roots effort to hold them to their commitment of finding a new home of As the World Turns.  It's easy to be pessimistic because the same was said about Guiding Light and it didn't happen.  However time is on our side as ATWT got more notice.  We know nothing will happen though if there is not enough fan support.  That is important both so P&G and TeleNext know we'll follow wherever ATWT goes and also it's important to any other prospective home that they can be assured we will continue to support ATWT if they welcome us into their home.  Nothing ventured; nothing gained.

So please join in our effort and help with your support and help spread the word.  Please read the posts and watch the action list on the side bar for important links and tasks of what you can do to help.  And very importantly please feel free to share your ideas.  All are very welcome.  We're in this together!

We need everyone to help join in the effort to Save ATWT! 

We've got the basics but are always looking for new and creative ideas, so if you have some please post them in the comments.

We will be making more postcards but there are some people out there that are excellent at this so if you are good with graphics and can help, please send us a link to your work so we can add it to the site.  Contact Us with the link.

We would love to create some viral videos along the line of what Pratt Falls did but we need some creative writers.  We can even produce it for you, but need help with the writing.  We want it to stay positive about finding a new home.  This isn't the time to point fingers.  However we need it to also be humorous with snappy dialog.  If you think you can help, please Contact Us.

Mvid makers we could use your help in doing some promotional type mvids to support finding a new home for As the World Turns.  We will be setting up a YouTube channel and if you send us the link, we will add your videos to the playlist.  We can also feature different fideos here from time to time.

We're all in this together so please help share your other ideas in the comments.

It is essential that we let TPTB know we want them to find a new home for As the World Turns and that they have the fan support to do it.  If you call the comment line, they will tell you they are looking for a new home but they have to know they have the fan support.  So it is ESSENTIAL we snail mail, email and phone to show our support and push for a new home.

Here is a terrific postcard to send out.  You will find more HERE.  Click on the picture to enlarge it.

With the immortal words "Good morning, dear," actress Helen Wagner (Nancy Hughes) opened the CBS soap opera 'As the World Turns' on April 1, 1956. Alas, in light of the show's cancellation on Dec. 8, longtime soap fans are wondering if they'll be saying, "Good-bye, dear," to the beloved daytime genre entirely.

Martha Byrne, who played Lily for over 20 years on 'As the World Turns,' counters that working moms are still watching daytime. "I'm a working mom and I have been my whole life," the actress says. "I make sure I find time to watch 'Y&R'; my friends do, too. They watch SOAPnet. They like having the freedom to watch after their kids have gone to bed."

Given that shift in viewership, the future of soaps may ultimately lie in the Web. Byrne is one of a handful of actresses who've created Web soap operas. Her program 'Gotham' utilizes familiar faces from daytime, as does Chappell's 'Venice.' "I certainly think that we're going to see more shows pop up on the Web," says Chappell, who hastens to add, "I'm not convinced that daytime network TV won't survive. It'll have to tweak itself and do it for less money."

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Soap Operas Turning To Internet To Stay Alive Despite Dwindling Interest

NEW YORK (CBS) ―It's the end of an era, and for many soap opera fans, the end of a wonderful world. The long-running daytime drama chronicling the ups and downs of life in the fictional town of Oakdale is pulling up stakes, and experts say the move could mark a trend that sees television soaps adapt to the digital world.

Gone, yet Soap Opera Digest said don't count the genre out.

"People are already starting Web soaps, that's just in its infancy. We're gonna see where it goes," said Leahey. "It has to be turned into a business model. I do think there's huge potential there. I think if we can deliver the content where people are instead of expecting them to sit in front of their TVs, there's hope."

Read the article.

Procter & Gamble, which invented the "soap opera," will no longer produce daytime serials next year with CBS' announcement Tuesday that it will cancel "As The World Turns."

"This is definitely the end of an era," says Jeannie Tharrington, P&G spokeswoman. "We've been at this since 1933."
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"We didn't anticipate (the cancellation), but we were prepared if it happened," Tharrington says.

The company and producing partner TeleNext Media Inc. will attempt to keep the show in production, as well as revive "Guiding Light," she says. CBS gave P&G nine months' notice this time, compared to only five months for "Guiding Light."

"We have a little more time, so we're more hopeful. We're still exploring options for 'Guiding Light' too," she says.

NEW YORK, Dec. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- As The World Turns, the long-running daytime drama, will complete its final season on the CBS Television Network in September 2010. CBS has decided not to renew the show for the 2010/2011 broadcast season, thereby ending its 54-year run on the Network.

"Throughout our history, As The World Turns has remained dedicated to sharing compelling stories that have entertained fans for more than five decades," said Executive Producer Chris Goutman. "We are disappointed and saddened by the news that the show is not being renewed. It will certainly be a loss for all of us, and for the show's loyal audience."

"As The World Turns has been a cornerstone of our business and a tremendous asset to the company," said Brian T. Cahill, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, TeleNext Media, Inc. "We are proactively seeking a new outlet to carry the show, and are open to exploring innovative formats and relationships that will enable the future success of ATWT."

Read the press release.