Jeez Louise, after All The Drama, Eric Braeden ‘Returns’ to Y&R
Eric Braeden has agreed to ‘return‘ to The Young and The Restless. I’m Dun, and can’t even be bothered to upload a picture (I lied, balloon boy welcomes you. Thanks Moni!), LOL. Oh well, Adrienne Frantz, there goes your extended screen time.
Eric Braeden and The Young & The Restless, After 30 Years It’s Over
Victor Newman is really leaving Genoa City, y’all! In an ‘exclusive’ to Entertainment Weekly, Eric Braeden tells them that it’s over:
“We reached an impasse in the negotiations,” Braeden told EW.com. “I have shown flexibility, they have shown none. It is over. I pulled the plug. That’s it. No more. If I show good will, I expect it to be reciprocated. If there is a rigid attitude on the other side, what is there to to negotiate? That’s a sign of utter disrespect. I will not negotiate with people who remain aloof and arrogant about the whole thing. Not after 30 years, I won’t do that. I’m saying this with a great amount of sadness because I’ve had nothing but respect for my fellow cast members, I have deep respect for the crew who has done an extraordinary job year in and year out, and I have enormous respect for (head writer) Maria Bell.”
Strangely, I feel genuinely sad.
Is Amber Moore As Essential To The Y&R Cast As Victor Newman?
Adrienne Frantz seems to think so. Okay, well, let me not put words in the woman’s mouth. On Air Soaps‘ Michael Fairman caught up with a few Y&R cast members at the 2009 World Magic Awards, and he asked them about Eric Braeden’s much publicized contract dispute. He chatted with Kristoff St. John, Daniel Goddard, Sharon Case, and Adrienne Frantz. But it was Adrienne’s words that caught my eye:
Eric Braeden has, for the moment, left Y&R during a contract dispute with SONY and the show. What are your thoughts on the hold-out and the stalemate between actor and the powers-that-be?
ADRIENNE:
They are cutting contracts all around. I mean everybody has to bite the bullet. It’s not like anyone gets special treatment. If you don’t want to play fair with everyone, then don’t play. If you want to step out…. everybody is dealing with the same stuff. So if anybody thinks they are better than anyone else, then they should leave if they want to. It’s a cast. We are all working together. We are all working our hardest to make it go, and if you don’t want to work with everyone than you are not helping.
To a certain extent I get what Adrienne is saying. But can anyone out there name one company for me where everyone gets paid the same salary, even when people are doing the exact same job? To say that all the actors are on the same playing field, and that no character is more important than another is a straight up lie. No matter how unfair or unsettling that may be. In any company, people are paid based on what they can bring to the company, how long they’ve been with the company, how valuable they are to the company, what kind of experience/education they have, etc. Say what you want about Eric Braeden and Victor Newman, but both have been with this show for nearly 30 years, and are very valuable to the brand that is The Young & The Restless. Victor Newman is nowhere near my favorite character on this show, but there’s a reason Eric Braeden/Victor Newman has been on so many soap magazine covers. He sells! And is probably one of the most recognizable faces in this genre, both in it, and out of it. It’s ludicrous to think that this character is on the same level as say, Daniel Romalotti.
Eric Braeden Gives His Most Candid Interview Yet to the NY Post
I know y’all are probably tired of hearing about Eric Braeden, and his showdown at the O.K. Corral with tiic at Y&R. But this shit is more entertaining than the show. In his latest ‘tell all,’ Braden gets his most candid yet with the NY Post.
Some colorful quotes from the article:
“If I signed a three-year f***ing deal, you honor it!”
“Let’s call a spade a spade. Management always gives the impression that all [soap] actors are the same, but it’s bulls**t to claim that. They aren’t.”
“You expect to be talked to in a sensitive way, not suddenly hit over the head by invoking a clause that was never invoked before and to say ‘What the f*** happened?’”
I can’t wait to see how this one ends.
Diva Tour ‘09 Is On, Eric Braeden Gets (More) Real with Entertainment Weekly
Eric Braeden is MAD y’all. He is not letting Victor Newman go down without a fight, and honestly, I can’t blame him. The 30-year Y&R veteran continues his ‘Candid Interview 09′ tour, this time speaking with Lynette Rice of Entertainment Weekly.
For those who think all this drama is just Braeden’s way of getting tiic to bend to his will, and that this is all a big bluff (even I can’t accept that Victor Newman is really gone) this is what he had to say about Sony’s current contract offer (warning, there are a lot of ‘dollar’ words in his answer, get out your dictionaries, LOL):
As of today, are you willing to take what Sony offered?
No. There is no appreciation of the fact that I’ve been an important part of the show for 27 years that has been no. 1 in the ratings. That’s extraordinary. So to be dealt with in a perfunctory matter as if you had just known these people for a few months is what is most offensive. This is a certain corporate culture now that is very deleterious.
I’ll say it again, HE MAD, lol. The Mustache makes his last on screen appearance November 2nd, and as for the way he’s written out, Braeden isn’t feeling that either:
You taped your last episode on Sept. 23. Was that the way you wanted Victor to go?
No. It was rushed. It was obviously meant to intimidate. It was obviously done with enormous forethought to coincide with the end of the 26-week cycle. Essentially that is what the business is doing now and has been doing for a while. And quite frankly, it’s outrageous. When I sign a three-year deal, I’m obligated to fulfill that deal. The producers, however, can come to me after a half-year and say, “We’ve changed our minds.” Where in the world of business does this kind of contract exist? Do I blame the people for wanting to squeeze as much out of us as they can? I do not. The question is, when do you squeeze too much?
Just like the mistake they made with killing off legacy character Colleen Carlton, tiic at Y&R are idiots if they believe Adam Wilson is the future of this show, and can replace Victor Newman.
The interview is a good read, but Braeden lost me with this one:
Can you see the genre still existing in 10 years?
Yes I can. How many reality shows can you watch? They’re so obviously phony [my personal note: Like Y&R isn't]. Our show deals with adult problems in a long continuous manner, and very much like the way things are dealt with in real life. In that sense I think there will always be a need for (soaps). They’re almost novelistic in their approach.
Two words: YOU LIE!
“Are we all friends? No. Are we family? No. That ‘family’ thing is bullshit.” Eric Braeden Tells It Like It Is to TV Guide.
That lovely title is a direct quote from Eric Braeden, given during a recent interview with TV Guide Magazine’s Michael Logan. The Mustache dishes on why as of now, he’s through with Y&R, how he feels the top brass disrespected him, and how he believes Victor’s entire story line as of late, has been a setup to write him out.
It’s an interesting read, but it was that top quote that caught my eye. There’s been a lot of behind the scenes drama recently, on whether Victoria Rowell should return to the show or not. On one side of the argument are those who say despite how ‘difficult’ she is, she’s fabulous, and the show needs her. On the other side are those who say there are too many people on set who don’t like VR to warrant her returning and shaking the boat. Well, according to Eric Braeden:
Are we all friends? No. Are we family? No. That “family” thing is bull—-. But do I respect t he actors I work with? You bet.
And that’s where I believe the issue lies. These actors don’t need to like each other. It’s a job. I sure as hell don’t like everyone I work with, but at the end of the day, we all get the job done.
This genre is on its last legs, and they don’t have the luxury to one, get rid of veterans like Braeden, and two, turn down fan favorites who are willing to return. The other soaps are pulling out all the stops these days, it’s time for Y&R to do the same.
p.s. Why is it, that when Eric Braeden speaks out, he’s dropping knowledge? But when Victoria Rowell does it, she’s being an ungrateful bitch? I’m just asking.
The Man Who Threw Up The Deuces And Said, “Bye, Bitches!” Eric Braeden Has Been Written out of Y&R.
Victor Newman is leaving Genoa City y’all! Nelson Branco is reporting that Victor is being written out of Y&R and Eric Braeden has taped his last scenes on the show. In other words, someone is in the middle of contract negotiations. I’m sure Victor is being ‘written out’ just like Nikki was ‘written out’ while Melody Thomas Scott was undergoing her own contract negotiations, but according to Nelson’s sources, on his last day of taping, Braeden said he may not be returning, and thanked everyone for their hard work.
Everyone and their mama knows that tiic at Y&R have been asking their actors to take pay cuts (we’re in a recession y’all!), and peeps have been eagerly waiting to see what would happen when it was The Great Victor Newman’s, err I mean, Eric Braeden’s turn on the chopping block. According to rumors though, Braeden doesn’t have a problem taking a pay cut, but he does have a problem taking one in the middle of his contract. Yeah, I’d be a little salty about that, too.
As much as I loathe and despise Victor Newman these days, I can’t imagine Y&R without him or Eric Braeden. We’ll see how this all plays out though. I find it highly suspect that more news leaks about the backstage happenings at Y&R than the actual show plots. Things that make you go hmmm…
Y&R Town Meeting Eric Braeden a No Show
According to Sara Bibel, Last Friday Sony Pictures Television President Steve Mosko called a town hall meeting to discuss the sad economic state of the union with the cast, crew and employees of Y&R, and boost morale before contract renewals where more paycuts will be required.
Despite being on set that day, Eric “I ain’t taking no stinking paycut” Braeden was a no show.
Get the full report on http://www.fancast.com/blogs/tv-news/deep-soap-power-plays/
