1976-77 Soap Ratings

Written by Bridger Cunningham

ABC opted to ramp up its roster as CBS and NBC expanded three of its soaps to 60 minutes in 1975.  They needed help as their entries rest in the middle of the pack.  They negotiated expanding burgeoning Ryan's Hope to 60 minutes (as the series was the only entry at 1:00, and it would have bypassed CBS and NBC's 1:30 hour-long entries).  The producers, however, were not up to doubling the work.  In an effort to thwart 2nd place Another World from killing GH and OLTL, they expanded both 15 minutes and pushed programming back to 2:30.  The strategy worked, as viewers were less apt to change the channel to AW at 3:00 as OLTL ran over an additional 15 minutes.

While RH refused to expand, AMC was up for the task and expanded to 60 minutes in April 1977.  They rotated positions with RH and returned to their prior launch timeslot.  AMC cut off CBS's ATWT and NBC's DAYS.  ABC's aggressive tactic paid off, as their lineup picked up momentum and AMC pushed past DAYS.  And AW spinoff Somerset ended after nearly 7 years and revamped as Friends and Lovers.

ABC's scheduling needed an overhaul as their entries rested in the middle to bottom of the pack.  OLTL and GH taking an extra 15 minutes did not dent competition from AW and GL, but both pushed past NBC's ailing Doctors.  CBS continued to rule the roost, but 1977 damaged their franchises, as NBC experienced this endemic as well.


Enjoy this entry and want to see how the other seasons ranked?  Follow this link for dozens of other seasons profiled: http://www.tvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrg-ratings-library-daytime-soaps.html

Source -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._daytime_soap_opera_ratings

Author : LazyJournalist

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