Meet your favorite Soap stars Saturday
Lehigh Acres residents who want to meet their favorite Soap Opera stars will have the opporunity when some 20 daytime TV soap stars attend the 11th Annual SoapFest, held in Marco Island, Saturday, May 2 and Sunday, May 3, to raise funds benefitting local children’s charities, including Eden Florida’s Eimerman Center an educational outreach service for children with autism.
For fans of Guiding Light, the longest-scripted program in daytime history, SoapFest 2009 could be their final chance to meet their favorite stars. The CBS daytime drama, which began on radio in 1937, will end Sept. 18. The show has been on radio and television for 72 years, beginning on NBC radio and moving to CBS television in 1952.
Actors attending this year’s Soapfest from Guiding Light include Grant Aleksander (Philip Spaulding), Jeff Branson (Shayne Lewis), John Driscoll, (Henry Bradshaw Cooper), Michael O’Leary (Dr. Rick Bauer), and Caitlin VanZandt (Ashlee Wolfe).
Pine Valley’s All My Children stars, led by Walt Willey well known as heartthrob Jackson Montgomery will once again headline and act as Master of Ceremonies. Other cast members attending include Bobbie Eakes (Krystal Martin), Thorsten Kaye (Zach Slater), and Beth Ehlers (Taylor Thompson also played Harley Cooper on Guiding Light from 1987-2088)
Six actors from As The World Turns include Ewa da Cruz (Vienna Hyatt), Trent Dawson (Henry Coleman), Van Hansis (Luke Snyder), Billy Magnussen (Casey Hughes), Austin Peck (Brad Snyder) and Jake Silberman (Noah Mayer).
One Life to Live actor Susan Haskell (Marty Saybrooke), wife of All My Children actor Thorsten Kaye (Zach Slater), and Crystal Hunt (Stacy Marasco also played Lizzie Spaulding on Guiding Light from 2003-06) also plan to attend SoapFest 2009.
Actors will participate in the favorite Art 4 Autism, a SoapFest program which pairs daytime actors painting alongside children and young adults — many of whom have autism or other special needs — on a myriad of colorful canvases which are then auctioned off.
According to festival director Pat Berry, 90 percent of SoapFest ticket sales originate from fans all across the country and Canada. “Soap fans are a dedicated collection of people who support their TV families,” explains Berry.
About Guiding Light
The CBS cancellation came after many years of steeply declining ratings for the hour-long soap, which is owned by Procter & Gamble and was a link to the earliest days of daytime serial dramas on radio. The shows were eventually called soap operas because soap companies sponsored them.
Guiding Light started as a 15-minute radio show, and then it was a half-hour television show, so it has adapted over the years, reports SoapFest director Berry.
CBS and the producers of Guiding Light – which is shot on the East Coast, in the CBS Broadcast Center in Manhattan and on location in Peapack, N.J. – had taken several steps in recent years to keep the series alive, especially in switching the production to a digital format.
That move, last year, included the introduction of hand-held digital cameras and permanent, four-wall sets as opposed to the traditional, constantly reconstructed three-wall sets built by soaps to accommodate bulky pedestal cameras. Rather than expensive lighting and sound equipment, the show also began using hand-held lights and microphones.
The changes resulted in a look vastly different from the traditional soap, with more camera movement, more muted lighting and much more use of outside locations. The moves saved considerable money, according to CBS executives.
But not enough to save the series. This year the audience for Guiding Light had declined to an average of just 2.1 million viewers an episode. Its pattern over recent years had been steadily downward. Last year it averaged about 2.4 million viewers an episode. Five years ago the average was about 3 million viewers.
Guiding Light also had the smallest audience of any of the remaining network daytime soaps and a smaller audience than many of the game and talk shows that also fill network daytime hours. The most-watched soap, The Young and the Restless on CBS, is averaging about 5.26 million viewers an episode. The network’s game show “The Price Is Right” has an average of about 4.95 million viewers. ABC’s talk show “The View” averages about 4.25 million viewers.
ABC’s top soap, General Hospital, averages about 2.97 million viewers, and NBC’s only soap, Days of Our Lives, has about 2.76 million, though those shows have much younger audiences, making them more desirable to many advertisers.
When Guiding Light ends, another CBS soap, As the World Turns – also shot in New York – will become the longest-running daytime serial drama. It started in 1956.
About SoapFest
Since 1998, Marco Island has welcomed more than 60 actors to Southwest Florida including Kim Zimmer, Robert Newman, Jordan Clarke, Walt Willey, Jon and Kelley Hensley, Broadway’s Laura Bell Bundy and film actresses Brittany Snow and Hayden Panettiere.
Saturday, May 2 – A Night of Stars @ Bistro Soleil 6 p.m.
SoapFest 2009 kicks off Saturday, May 2 at 6 pm with “A Night of Stars” at Bistro Soleil, located in the historic Olde Marco Inn at 100 Palm Street, on Marco Island. Guests enjoy up close and personal time with residents of Springfield, Oakdale, Pine Valley, and Llanview. Celebrity guests will be available for autograph signing, photos, Q&A, auctions and lots of surprises. This intimate and upscale event sells out quickly with tickets costing $100 per person — includes bar and catered buffet by one of the area’s top chefs. Special limited VIP tickets are available at $150 and guarantee seating with one of your favorite actors. Additional special ticket packages are available at www.SoapFest.com .
Saturday, May 2 – Celebrity Bartender Bash @ Amost Famouse Mels 10 p.m.
The fun continues later that evening with the “Off the Hook” annual Celebrity Bartender Bash to be held at A’lmost Famouse Mel’s at 657 South Collier Boulevard. Back by popular demand, this Karaoke event showcases celebrities singing their hearts out and serving refreshments to raise funds. This year’s new feature is a festive “bottle grab” game. Tickets costs $40 each. Discounted tickets are available when combined with tickets to the “Night of Stars” event.
Sunday, May – Cruisin’ Boozin’ & Schmoozin’ 11:30 am
On Sunday, May 3, from 11:30 a.m. until 3 p.m., it’s an afternoon of Cruisin’ Boozin’ & Schmoozin’ With The Stars aboard the beautiful Marco Island Princess. This event always sells out and provides the perfect opportunity to mix with daytime’s best during a sightseeing tour of Marco Island in a tranquil and intimate environment. Plenty of opportunities for autographs, photos, games, raffle prizes and auction items. Cruise tickets cost $75 per person and space is limited. This event includes buffet lunch and entertainment. Board the Marco Island Princess at 951 Bald Eagle Drive.
Sunday, May 3 -Golfing with the Stars
If cruising isn’t your thing and you prefer golf, you can tee-off with one of your favorite actors for a “private” one-on-one game. Spaces are limited and only “serious golfers” wanted. Email SoapFest@vsm.net if you’re interested.
Auctions throughout the weekend will include exclusive one-of-a-kind items such as original artwork by actors, private studio tours on sets usually closed to the public, ticket packages to the Emmy Awards, and lunch with your favorite star. All bidding must be in person as items will be offered and auctioned off during each event.