European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 25, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                The Power of prime time soaps by Fred Rothenberg associated press r sports of the death of the prime time soap opera appear greatly exaggerated. Although the number Olsen driven serials has dipped slightly an next season won t bring any new ones the current crop appears sturdy. They re not dying they re just declining said John Sisk senior vice president of the j. Waller Thompson advertising Agency. They re still powerful to entertainment particularly Lor women 16-49, who Are the principal target Lor Many advertisers. For reaching that group the four soaps have 35 percent higher ratings than the average to  the our Marfal Hefti Are dynasty on Abc and Dallas. Knots Landing and Falcon Crest All on lbs. Except Tor knots Landing each has experienced ratings slippage. Dynasty which ranked no. 1 last season is seventh for 1985-86. A fes went from second to sixth. Falcon Crest which is bucking the Miami vice phenomenon Friday nights fell to 19th. While knots Landing remained steady at 14th. These losses prompted 8. Donald Grant president of lbs entertainment to say last month that the serial has peaked. It s on the Way  lbs does t have any serials in development nor do Abc or Abc and there has t been a successful one introduced since Falcon Crest Piggy backed onto Dallas on Friday nights in 1981. Abc s the Colby. This season s Only new soap entry is a dynasty clone. It is performing better than Abc s previous shows thursday but ranks 48lh out of 79 series this season. These shows always take Lime to build audiences said sask. We forget that Dallas struggled on saturday and sunday before it finally clicked on Friday  successful serials More than any other to form get intense viewer loyalty. According to sask in a typical four week period Only 8 percent of the viewers of a non serial will watch All four episodes while 25 percent will be faithful to their soap four weeks in a Row. Dave Poltrack lbs vice president for research said dynasty this season has lost 2 percent of its regular Core audience while Dallas which lost Patrick Duffy from the cast has gained regular aet Nim Joan Van Ark left and Michele Iff during a soapy Letof from knots Landing. Viewers but lost 7 percent of its irregular incidental viewers. But these numbers Are not indicative of any severe  Poltrack said. There s no indication of any precipitous decline. What i think Well see with these shows is a pattern similar to daytime serial dramas where changes in plot lines and key characters will cause  Brandon Stoddard president of Abc entertainment said recently that dynasty s Moldavia storyline was a mistake and the series will once again stress the conflict Between the Joan Collins and Linda Evans characters. It s just like when Luke and Laura left general Hospital a daytime serial and the ratings went Down said Poltrack. Now new characters have come in and the ratings have built Back  although he s confident about the existing prime time serials Poltrack is not optimistic about the chances of future soaps. Serials with their Large casts and lavish look Are expensive to mount. They do miserably in reruns prompting lbs to drop them in the summer. And As Dallas and dynasty Are discovering they Don t do particularly Well later in repeat syndication., another actor going against serials is that the increasingly competitive video marketplace mitigates against shows requiring weekly Lune in. Successful soaps already Are on wednesday. Thursday and Friday and some viewers May not want to commit to to on another night Poltrack noted. Sunday and monday would be difficult anyway because that s when the networks Stock up with splashy to movies and miniseries. Saturday when viewers Are More Likely to go out is the hardest night to establish habit viewing As Abc found out with its Berrenger s soap last season. That leaves Only tuesday night. Generally in to if something goes Down something else goes up. Clearly the up and coming form is comedies said Gerald Jaffe Abc s vice president for research projects. Two seasons ago no sitcom finished in the top 10 now the runaway no. 1 Cosby show has led its follow up Abc thursday comedies family ties cheers and night court into the top 10. In addition. Abc s Golden girls ranks ninth. Lbs kale & allele and Newhart Are 12th and 15th, respectively and Abc s who s the Boss is 13th. Not bad Lor a to form that supposedly was dead in 1984 . That s before Cosby. Aaron spelling to s most successful producer by Jerry Buck associated press a Aron spelling wreathed in pipe smokers he sits in his opulent office says that despite his reputation As television s mos successful producer his Long association with aug might be nearing an end. Some critics disparage spelling s Success As built on fluff and to Tillatson he gave the world Charlie s Angels and the love boat and a contract with Abc that guarantees his new series will go on the air. Spelling has been associated with Abc for 16 years but his exclusive contract comes up for renewal in two years. The new Abc owner Capitol cities corp., is sure to examine it very thoroughly before signing a new Deal. Spelling says he is not certain he wants to renew it. As for his critics he says if it s so easy everybody would do  spelling is a Short slim Gray haired Man who retains the Texas drawl of a Dallas boyhood rooted in poverty he says everybody thinks i have so much clout with Abc. If i did i d pick my own Lime slots. A serial at nine o clock dynasty and dynasty ii the Colby is Tough no serial has Ever made it at nine o clock before. The knocks by the critics bother you. But you have a Choice of proving yourself to 300 critics or 30 million fans. You have to make a Choice. I think you re also Page 14 the stars and stripes categorized by the critics. If you do something they almost Don t want to like it. The critics decimated my movie or. Morn be grossed $64 million one of the All time Loco grosses. They hear the concept and Label it i seeing it it bothers me most when they list my credits leave out family. That constantly amazes  spelling has our Merle on Abc dynasty i ii the Colby hotel and the love boat. A sex a miniseries. Crossings aired in february. Walling in wings is a detective series called fled White and of in the past he also produced Hart Tharl Fanti Island . Hooker Charlie s Angels Vega. The squad the rookies Starsky & he Chand Hatef critically acclaimed series. Family. In All. Moret i series. Last year s Hollywood wives was the plus i to movies including the much praised bests Pluf the  is preparing a sequel to Hollywood vows i three hour movie called Day one. The movie a i psychological examination of the agonizing Byl scientists who built the atomic bomb in world Wal spelling recently moved his operations to the of Hollywood studios. He works in a huge. Elegantly. Lumisher second floor office that has a fireplace t a Bubble like fish tank set into one Wall on the it before him is a huge Pyramid that is a Candy of tuesday f