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In what can only be considered great news for the show, Days of our Lives has hired multi-time Emmy-winning head writer, Lorraine Broderick to join its writing team.
Editor’s Note – 4/9/12: On Friday, we reported that Lorraine Broderick has been hired as co-head writer. Due to the conflicting information we received from our sources, we reached out to Days of our Lives publicity for clarification. A rep tells us, “Days of our Lives announces new head writers Gary Tomlin and Christopher Whitesell, both of whom are Daytime Emmy award winners! The two writers join forces immediately, working together as a team to continue to pay tribute to the show’s roots both in storytelling and character development. Tomlin and Whitesell will be joined by Daytime Emmy award winning Lorraine Broderick as a member of the breakdown writing team.” It is the policy of TVSource to correct any misinformation issued to our readers. We have amended the below article to accurately reflect Ms. Broderick’s official position. We apologize for the error.
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Soap Opera Digest reported the exclusive news earlier this morning. Broderick will join the writing team a breakdown writer, and will work under recently hired (or re-hired) new head writers Gary Tomlin and Christopher Whitesell. “We are excited and look forward to stories or romance, suspense and intrigue this new dream team plans to tell,” said co-executive producer Greg Meng. Broderick returned to soap writing last year to wrap up the final months of All My Children. After AMC ended, she joined One Life to Live during its final months as a breakdown writer. She will
For those unfamiliar with Lorraine Broderick, know that Ms. Broderick possesses impeccable credentials and a reputation for developing character driven stories versus relying on plot points. Broderick spent 12 years as a writer on the staff of All My Children under the tutelage of creator Agnes Nixon, leaving in 1991 to become co-head writer of Guiding Light (and later Another World) during what many consider the “golden era” of the now cancelled soap opera.
In the spring of 1995 Broderick succeeded Megan McTavish as AMC’s head writer, and won critical acclaim along with an almost unprecedented three consecutive Daytime Emmy’s for Outstanding Writing Team, bringing her total to four such awards as a head-writer. As is frequently the case in the daytime industry, behind the scenes shuffles led to Broderick’s replacement as AMC’s head writer in 1997 when the decision was made to rehire Megan McTavish.
Broderick went to As The World Turns and later had a brief tenure at Days of our Live, ending due to “creative differences” with then co-executive producer Tom Langan. Broderick joined Port Charles as associate head writer, leaving in 2001 to become head writer at One Life to Live with Christopher Whitesell (during which Gary Tomlin was executive producer for a time). In 2003, the team of Michael Malone and Josh Griffith took over the helm at One Life to Live and Ms. Broderick was demoted to associate head writer, and before she left the show entirely in 2004, she declined an offer to return to AMC. Broderick left daytime, taking a position at Drexel University as a professor.
My Take: I’m very pleased with this news. My fears regarding the team of Tomlin and Whitesell have been assuaged now that Broderick is there. The three worked magic (in my opinion anyway) at One Life to Live when they worked together, so I’m hoping that magic can come through at DAYS. I hope they are given the freedom to tell the kind of stories that is respectful to history, respectful to the fans and appealing to those who may have tuned out. Fresh, modern writing with a mixture of classic soap storytelling is what DAYS needs. Good luck…
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