Soap: The Complete Series

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Soap is an American sitcom television series that originally ran on ABC from September 13, 1977, until April 20, 1981. The show was created as a nighttime parody of daytime soap operas, presented as a weekly half-hour prime time comedy. Similar to a soap opera, the show's story was presented in a serial format, and featured melodramatic plotlines including alien abduction, demonic possession, extramarital affairs, murder, kidnapping, unknown diseases, amnesia, cults, organized crime warfare, a communist revolution and teacher-student relationships. In 2007, it was listed as one of Time magazine's "100 Best TV Shows of All- TIME", [2] and in 2010, the Tates and the Campbells ranked at number 17 in TV Guide 's list of "TV's Top Families". The Soap Memo" was leaked to the press before the show premiered and was printed in its entirety in the Los Angeles Times on June 27, 1977. Among the notes were: Hughes, Jason. "Gone Too Soon: 'Soap' ". Archived from the original on 27 October 2012 . Retrieved 11 October 2012.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (Katherine Helmond) – nominated: 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981 Jay Sandrich, Director; Susan Harris, Writer and Producer (1978). The Best of Soap: Who Killed Peter?. ASIN 630308219X. In June 1977, a Newsweek preview of the fall season written by Harry F. Waters panned the show while characterizing some of its basic plot elements incorrectly and offering exaggerated reports of its sexual content. Despite having not seen the pilot, Waters called the show a "sex farce" and claimed (erroneously) that the show included a scene of a Catholic priest being seduced in a confessional. [5] Waters also stated:The Roman Catholic Church, led by its Los Angeles Archdiocese, also condemned the show and asked all American families to boycott it, saying, "ABC should be told that American Catholics and all Americans are not going to sit by and watch the networks have open season on Catholicism and morality. [ Soap] is probably one of the most effective arguments for government censorship of TV that has yet come along." [9] In August, the Board of Rabbis of Southern California, representing the three branches of Judaism, joined the Catholic protest, saying that the show, yet to be aired, "reached a new low". a b Marsh, Earle (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946–Present. New York: Ballantine Books. pp.1266–1267. ISBN 978-0-3454-9773-4. A 1983 episode of Benson mentions Jessica's disappearance, noting that the Tate family is seeking to have her declared legally dead. In the episode, Jessica appears as an apparition who only Benson can see or hear and reveals to him that she is not dead, but in a coma somewhere in South America. No other incidents from the final episode of Soap are mentioned, and the opening bars of the theme song for Soap play as she leaves the room. On the more positive side, TV Guide gave the show a good review saying that there was "a heap of talent" in the cast and asking "Is it funny? Yes it is ... and I guess that constitutes redeeming social value". [22] At the beginning of each episode, off-camera announcer Rod Roddy gives a brief summary of the convoluted storyline and remarks, "Confused? You won't be, after this week's episode of ... Soap." At the end of each episode, he asks a series of life-or-death questions in a deliberately deadpan style—"Will Jessica discover Chester's affair? Will Benson discover Chester's affair? Will Benson care?" and concludes each episode with the trademark line, "These questions—and many others—will be answered in the next episode of ... Soap."

a b c Ayers, Dennis (October 12, 2007). "Billy Crystal's place in gay pop culture history". AfterElton.com. Much of Soap's controversy, among liberals and conservatives alike, ironically helped sell the series to the general public. Fueled by six months of pre-show protests (as well as a solid lead-in from the hit shows Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley and Three's Company), the first episode swept its time slot with a 25.6 rating and a 39% share of the national audience. Although ABC received hundreds of phone calls after the premiere, executives at the network described initial public reaction as "mild" with more calls in favor of the show than in protest. A University of Richmond poll found that 74% of viewers found Soap inoffensive, 26% found it offensive, and half of those who were offended said they planned to watch it the next week. [5] Father Flotsky's stand on liberalizing the Mass will have to be treated in a balanced, inoffensive manner. By way of example, the substitution of Oreos for the traditional wafer is unacceptable." Soap DVD news: Re-Release for Soap - The Complete Series - TVShowsOnDVD.com". Archived from the original on 21 May 2015 . Retrieved 29 May 2015. In 2007, Time, which initially panned the show, named it one of the "100 Best Shows of All- TIME". [2] The Museum of Broadcast Communications said that Soap is "arguably one of the most creative efforts by network television before or after". [5]

In a 1982 analysis in The Village Voice, published as the series was entering syndication, TV critic Tom Carson lauded the ensemble, saying that "the cast matches the best TV series rep troupes ever." Carson went on to note that Soap "patently started out intended as a lampoon of middle-class values, and ended up instead as a weirdly offbeat celebration of them". [24] a b c d e "Soap". The Museum of Broadcast Communications. Archived from the original on January 11, 2014 . Retrieved January 31, 2014.