As the Big 3’s World Turns

Fans of “All My Children,” the daytime television soap opera, were stunned last week when Erica Kane, played by Susan Lucci, was stabbed by the seemingly psychotic bride-to-be Annie.

In normal times, there would have been little doubt that Erica would make yet another miraculous recovery, as she has many times in her 38 years on the show. But these are not normal times in the soap opera industry. It seems daytime stalwarts with big salaries are being killed off — or otherwise disposed of — in unprecedented numbers.

“Days of Our Lives” stars Deidre Hall, who joined the show in 1976, and Drake Hogestyn, a 22-year veteran of the show, were unceremoniously given the ax last month; their exact fates won’t be known, however, until they are written out of the series in early 2009.

The villain in each case seems to be the same: the automobile industry. If General Motors thought people were ticked off to think they killed the electric car, wait until rabid soap opera fans start coming after them for the demise of their favorite stars.

According to Advertising Age, automobile advertising cutbacks — not just by G.M., but also by Ford, Chrysler and many local dealers — have pulled the plug on a major funding source for daytime television. Without auto ads, some soap operas — already hammered by falling ratings — may not generate the income that networks need to pay the staffs of writers, technicians and actors these shows entail.

To lower production costs, producers have apparently started targeting the big, budget-straining salaries that have been accrued by the oldest, most-established characters. Some stars seem to have been spared because they were willing to work for less; those who won’t have encountered an unforgiving “off with their heads” mentality.

Soap Opera Digest said last week that the fate of the entire production of “All My Children” had hung in the balance until recent weeks. And Ken Corday, the producer of “Days of Our Lives,” told the publication that a compromise had just been worked out with NBC to renew the show until at least September 2010, but that draconian budget cuts were the price of the renewal.

Ad Age reported that NBC was seeking cuts in the 40 percent range for all contract players. Some actors, such as Jay Kenneth Johnson, with nine years on the show, walked away rather than sign such a deal.

So, what about Erica Kane? She may have survived this brush with danger, but can she survive an auto industry meltdown? Though reports said Ms. Lucci did in fact accept the huge pay cut, viewers — as always — will have to stay tuned.