Ledger Pop Journal - Celebrity News & Sports

SoapNet is just not just your television stop to watch repeats of "All My Children," "One Life to Live," "General Hospital," "Young and Restless" and "Days of Our Lives," or to see those shoulder-padded repeats of 1980s primetime soaps "Dallas" and "Beverly Hills, 90210." While you can still see same-day repeats and omnibus versions of the shows on weekends, SoapNet is going to offer lots of original programming, with its "I Wanna Be a Soap Star," "Soapography and "1 Day with ..."

SoapNet's Relative Madness Will Feature Britney Spears (Image: Wenn)

Brian Frons, president, Daytime, Disney-ABC Television Group, recently announced "Relative Madness," an original series of six new one-hour specials on SoapNet. Each show will have a family theme that will count down the top 25 most over-the-top TV and celebrity family moments. The shows will include a blending of real-life celebrities and pop icons, as well as fictional primetime and daytime characters. Just in time for Mother's Day, "Relative Madness" premieres with its first installment, "Mama Drama," Thursday, May 8 at 11:00 p.m. The series will conclude the week of Father's Day with "Father Knows Less."

"We live in a 'Soap Nation' and these series recognize this by combining the soapy themes found everywhere today -- in daytime, primetime, reality and celebrity-life," said Frons in a statement. "SoapNet continues to broaden its reach by investing in original programming; this franchise is another step in our ongoing effort to expand SoapNet's audience while aligning pop culture and celebrity antics with the 'soapy' drama it is."

Each show will count down the moments and blend commentary from a variety of talent and comedians. The commentators include comedian Joy Behar ("The View"), actor Cameron Mathison ("All My Children," "Dancing with the Stars"), actress Andrea Bowen ("Desperate Housewives"), actress Rebecca Budig ("All My Children"), actor John-Paul Lavoisier ("One Life to Live") and actress Sarah Brown ("General Hospital").

"Relative Madness" episodes include:

May 8: "Mama Drama" -- Featuring Dina Lohan, Britney Spears, "I Love New York's" New York, "All My Children's" Erica Kane and "Days of Our Lives'" Sami Brady.

May 15: "It's a Sibling Thing" -- Jessica and Ashlee Simpson; Paris and Nicky Hilton; "90210's" Brandon and Brenda Walsh; "General Hospital's" Lucky and Lulu Spencer, and Nikolas Cassadine; and "The Young and the Restless'" Kevin Fisher and Michael Baldwin.

May 22: "Brawl in the Family" -- Paul McCartney and Heather Mills; Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen; "Dynasty's" the Carringtons; "The Sopranos"; "General Hospital's" the Quartermaines; and "All My Children's" the Chandlers.

June 12: "Father Knows Less" -- Kevin Federline, Alec Baldwin, "The Sopranos'" Tony Soprano, "One Life to Live's" Todd Manning and "General Hospital's" Dr. Noah Drake.


SoapNet is also adding a original scripted drama to its menu. "MVP: The Secret Lives of Hockey Wives" will be an hour-long series "that uncovers all the shocking scandal of hockey players living the life of instant wealth, excess and tabloid celebrity, with their wives and girlfriends all joining in the ride," according to a press release. The series premieres on Thursday, June 19 at 11:00 P.M


Come August, DIRECTV will be passionless. Last year, the satellite company purchased the rights to "Passions" after NBC canceled it following an eight-year run. DIRECTV purchased the soap on a year-to-year basis. The contract lasted one year. The last day of taping for the show was March 28.

Some "Passions" fans are crying foul. Geri Martenson, a fan of this column, says, "I purchased DIRECTV so I could watch 'Passions.' I think the company knew it was only going to run the show for one year. They used 'Passions' fans to pump up their subscription list."

If that's the truth, it did not work as planned. While "Passions" was the highest rated original material run on DIRECTV, the goal was not to have longtime DIRECTV members watch the show; the reason was to enlarge the viewer base. The projected numbers were not met. DIRECTV purchased rights to the show for more than $30 million. NBC still plans to cash in on "Passions" by auctioning thousands of props used on the show in its nine-year run. Tabitha's magic fish bowl, dresses and pieces of the sets will be offered to the public.


In the good news department, Julie Pinson who was just released from her role as Billie on "Days of Our Lives," has already landed a new gig. Pinson is set to play Janet on "As The World Turns," starting May 8. ATWT is filmed in New York; Days of Our Lives is a West Coast-based soap. Her real-life husband, Billy Warlock, Ben on "Young and Restless," is considering a move to Manhattan.