| The Bold and the Beautiful | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| Also known as | B&B |
| Genre | Soap opera |
| Created by | William J. Bell Lee Phillip Bell |
| Written by | Various (currentlyBradley Bell andMichael Minnis) |
| Directed by | Michael Stich Deveney Kelly Cynthia J. Popp David Shaughnessy Jennifer Howard |
| Starring | |
| Theme music composer | Jack Allocco David Kurtz John Nordstrom |
| Opening theme | "High Upon This Love" by Allocco and Kurtz |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 9,000[1] |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Various (currently Casey Kasprzyk) |
| Producers | Cynthia J. Popp Mark Pinciotti |
| Production locations | Sunset Las Palmas Studios Hollywood, California |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time |
|
| Production company | Bell-Phillip Television Productions Inc. |
| Original release | |
| Network | CBS |
| Release | March 23, 1987 (1987-03-23) – present |
| Related | |
The Bold and the Beautiful (often referred to asB&B) is an American televisionsoap opera created byWilliam J. Bell andLee Phillip Bell forCBS. It premiered on March 23, 1987, as asister show to the Bells' other soap operaThe Young and the Restless; several characters from each of the two shows havecrossed over to the other since the early 1990s. Set inLos Angeles, California, the show centers upon theForrester family and theirhaute couture business.
The program features anensemble cast, headed by its longest-serving actorsJohn McCook asEric Forrester andKatherine Kelly Lang asBrooke Logan. Since its premiere, the show has become the most-watched soap in the world, with an audience of an estimated 26.2 million viewers.[2] As of 2010, it continued to hold on to the second-place position in weeklyNielsen Ratings for daytime dramas.The Bold and the Beautiful has also won 77Daytime Emmy Awards, including threeDaytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Drama Series, in 2009, 2010 and 2011.
On September 7, 2011, the series switched tohigh-definition television, making it the second-to-last American soap to make the switch, at the time.[3]B&B was the last American soap opera to make the transition due to the cancellation of ABC'sOne Life to Live before it returned along withAll My Children on April 29, 2013. The series celebrated its thirtieth anniversary on March 23, 2017.[4] The serial aired its 9,000th episode on April 18, 2023.[1] Currently, the serial has been renewed by CBS to run through the 2027–2028 television season.
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The Bold and the Beautiful debuted on March 23, 1987. Set inLos Angeles, it centers around theForrester family and their fashion house business, Forrester Creations. Like many soap operas,B&B looks into the lives of wealthy families and how love affairs, scandals, and betrayals affect each of the family members and their relationships with each other.
Following the original premise of sister showThe Young and the Restless (Y&R) with the wealthy Brooks and the working-class Foster families,B&B also introduced the middle-classLogan family as a source of conflict with the Forresters. Like the Fosters ofY&R, the Logans were also initially headed by a single mother. The rivalry between Forrester matriarchStephanie Forrester and the Logan's eldest daughterBrooke Logan plays a key role in the drama ofB&B, like theKatherine Chancellor–Jill Abbott rivalry inY&R. Another enduringB&B storyline is thestar-crossed love of Brooke and the Forresters' eldest sonRidge.
The back story was thatStephanie Douglas, the strong-willed daughter of wealthyChicago businessman John Douglas, met her husband-to-beEric Forrester, who aspired to become a fashion designer, while they both studied atNorthwestern University in 1959. The young lovers rushed to get married after Stephanie became pregnant, forcing Eric to break up with his college sweetheartElizabeth "Beth" Henderson in the process.
Eric and Stephanie then moved to Los Angeles where they established Forrester Creations, designing and producing upscale men's and women's fashion, based on a combination of a loan from Stephanie's father, Eric's designing talent and Stephanie's business acumen and connections. While winning international recognition, fame, and wealth with their work, the couple managed to raise four children: elder and favorite sonRidge, brotherThorne and younger sistersKristen andFelicia. Meanwhile, Beth married their classmateStephen Logan on the rebound, raising their own family in theSan Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. The Logans had four children of their own: eldest sonStephen "Storm" Jr., and daughtersBrooke,Donna andKatie. Unable to achieve success like Eric, Stephen walked out on the family, leaving Beth as a single working-class mother.
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The pilot episode of the show focuses on the preparations for the wedding of the Forresters' eldest son, Ridge, toCaroline Spencer, the daughter of the media mogulBill Spencer. At this time Ridge has already become a fashion designer and vice president of Forrester Creations. Many media outlets throughout the world, from the big television networks to the most honorable newspapers, to the last gossip newspapers publicize their wedding, declaring it "the wedding of the year in the fashion world." Thousands of women see the pictures of Ridge and speculate on the identity of the woman who has won the heart of the man who has, until recently, been a playboy, and who has refused to settle for one woman.
One of the curious is Brooke, whose life soon becomes a key element in the series. Her love affair with Ridge sets up much of the storyline, beginning in the first year after the aforementioned "wedding of the year in the fashion world" was called off when Ridge was caught cheating on Caroline with an old flame. Every so often, Ridge and Brooke reunite only to break up due to various circumstances, and Ridge invariably finds comfort (in most cases, this would lead to marriage) with another love of his life,Taylor Hayes. Following one of her breakups with Ridge, Brooke marries his father, Eric, who divorces Stephanie to do so. Brooke gives birth to two children with Eric. The couple eventually divorce and Eric reconciles with Stephanie. Likewise, Brooke and Ridge resume their pattern of an on-again-off-again relationship, between Brooke's relationships with other men and Forrester family members, and Ridge's multiple reunions with Taylor. Eric eventually marries Brooke's sister, Donna Logan, and legally adopts her son Marcus. They later divorce due to their family's bitter history.
The rivalry between Stephanie and Brooke also becomes a key storyline in the series. The strong-willed Stephanie originally has a cordial relationship with the Logans after hiring their catering company. But she soon disapproves of Brooke becoming part of the Forresters' lives, believing she is an "opportunist from the valley" who swooped in after the "wedding of the year in the fashion world" was called off. Stephanie also does not initially recognize that Beth is the same woman who was Eric's former college girlfriend. Having marital problems since the start of series, Eric soon seeks the comfort of Beth. Once Stephanie learns of the affair, she secretly hires a private investigator to track down Steven Logan and then sends an anonymous letter to the Logan household as to his whereabouts. After Donna finally convinces their father to return home, Stephanie arranges with Bill Spencer to give Stephen a job in Paris. Only Brooke figures out that Stephanie was the one working behind the scenes. When confronted, Stephanie justifies her actions to Brooke saying that she is trying to save both of their families, and threatens Brooke that otherwise she will ruin her relationship with Ridge. After her parents reunite and move to Paris, and realizing to what extremes Stephanie would go to get what she wants, Brooke swears revenge.
Felicia and Kristen Forrester eventually choose to follow their own paths, leaving the family company to be run by Ridge, Thorne, Rick, Marcus, and their families. A key element of the show in the late 1990s was Brooke and Eric's son Rick's relationship with singer turned fashion designerAmber Moore.
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TheSpencer family and their media conglomerateSpencer Publications were first introduced in the pilot episode. PatriarchBill Spencer was a widower and originally claimed thatCaroline was his only daughter. A love triangle develops between Caroline, Ridge and Thorne, leading to a point in 1988 where a drunk Thorne shoots his older brother in the back (which Stephanie covers up to protect both of her sons by lying to authorities that she had fired the gun, thinking it was a burglar). After Caroline dies from leukemia in 1990, her twin sisterKaren Spencer, who was abducted from the Spencers when she was a baby, resurfaces. In 2009, Bill dies from a terminal illness, dividing Spencer Publications between Karen and his previously unknown illegitimate son,Bill Spencer Jr. The Spencers have been expanded in recent years to include Karen's daughterCaroline Spencer and Bill Jr.'s sonsWyatt Spencer,Liam Spencer, andWill Spencer.
For many years, Spectra Fashions was Forrester's main rival, headed bySally Spectra. Sally, a larger-than-life character with outrageous clothes and a sizablered hair, is a key element in both comedic and dramatic storylines, with the help of long-time confidante Saul Feinberg, ditzy receptionistDarla Forrester, and fashion designerClarke Garrison, who in 1991 fatheredC. Garrison Fathman, Sally's son. Originally, Sally and Stephanie Forrester are bitter enemies; Spectra is only referred to in 1987 when Stephanie hires Clarke away from her rival. Sally and Spectra Fashions finally appear on-screen in 1989 when Clarke goes back to his former boss. In later years, Sally and Stephanie develop a friendship; Sally even ends up working at Forrester Creations in 2006 after she finally makes the decision to shut down her own company.
Sally's daughter,Macy Alexander, a singer, undergoes many traumas, most notably alcoholism. She and Thorne Forrester are involved in an on-again-off-again marriage. After she eventually loses Thorne to Brooke, Macy goes abroad and into hiding with her father,Adam in 2000. After being discovered in Italy in 2002, Macy returns to Los Angeles where she reunites withThorne Forrester before developing an interest in fellow recovering alcoholic,Deacon Sharpe, whom she marries in 2003. Weeks later, Macy is gravely injured at a nightclub where she is headlining as a singer. She enters a coma and it is implied that her family pulls the plug off-camera.
The Spectra family and friends are gradually supplanted after the 2001 introduction ofMassimo Marone and his entourage. Marone, a billionaire shipping magnate, was a childhood friend of Stephanie and dated her in college. They slept together once just before Stephanie began datingEric Forrester, and after forty-something years, a medical crisis reveals that Massimo is actually Ridge's biological father. In 2003,Jackie Payne, a former lover of Massimo, arrives on the scene and announces that her son,Dominick "Nick" Payne, a captain at Marone Industries, was also fathered by Massimo. Unlike Ridge, Nick was not a businessman and took the surname Marone.
In 1986, CBS was on the hunt to replaceCapitol, and contacted several writers and producers for proposals.Paul Rauch createdGrosse Pointe as a replacement. During her absence fromRyan's Hope, Michael Brockman, former President ofCBS Daytime, askedClaire Labine to develop a new serial in 1986. Her proposal was entitledCelebration, but never made it to the air. Had it been greenlit, Jane Greenstein would have been Assistant to the Head Writer like she was onGeneral Hospital.William J. Bell createdThe Bold and the Beautiful, which was originally titledRags.[citation needed] On June 20, 2017, CBS announced its decision to renew the serial through the2017–18 television season.[5][6] On April 20, 2020, CBS announced plans to begin airing a week of vintage episodes, following the soap's shutdown, due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in the United States.[7] On May 20, 2020, it was announced that CBS had renewed the soap through 2022.[8] On June 15, 2020,TVLine reported the series would be the first to resume production on June 17 as the first scripted series on American soil to get back up and running following Hollywood's three-month, coronavirus-imposed shutdown with a representative telling the website: "The health and safety of our cast and crew are of foremost importance to us, We will be following all protocols set forth by the State, City, Television City, and the various guilds."[9]
On March 2, 2022, it was announced that CBS had renewed the soap through 2024;[10] an optional third year was included in the renewal,[11] with the option picked up in February 2024.[12] In April 2025, it was announced the serial had been renewed for three additional seasons, through the 2027–2028 television season.[13] That October, Casey Kasprzyk was named co-executive producer of the serial.[14] His appointment makes him the first non-Bell family member in the serial's history to hold the position.[15]
Since its inception, production has been shot at Stage 31 atTelevision City inLos Angeles for its entire run so far.[16] The show typically uses the traditional soap opera look, featuring constructed sets such as the Forrester Mansion, theShady Marlin and the Forrester Creations offices. Like other soap operas,B&B is usually taped three to four weeks in advance. In recent times, the show has increased shooting on location, in the way fellow CBS soapGuiding Light did in its final two network years. Many of the characters have taken trips to the fictional "Bikini Beach", which is actually a nearby California beach, and there have been scenes around the Forrester Creations building which appear to be shot somewhere on the lot or inside of CBS Television City. On June 5, 2025, it was announced production would leave Stage 31 at Television City, following a multi-year expansion and renovation plan for the studio spaces. Production relocated toSunset Las Palmas Studios inHollywood, California, when production resumed on August 19, following the serial's annual summer break.[17] Subsequent reports claimed the move came at the conclusion of their current lease at Television City.[18]
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"High Upon This Love", thetheme song ofThe Bold and the Beautiful, was written byDavid Kurtz and Jack Allocco and features a prominentsaxophone sample played byEric Marienthal. From November 1998 to July 1999 in the United States, a vocal version of the theme song performed byDionne Warwick was played during the end credits.
Some international versions, most notably in Italy and France, have different opening and ending credits. In Italy, the opening and closing theme was composed by Roberto Colombo. The opening theme (Tutti Beautiful) was used since his Italian premiere until 2011, while the closing theme (Beautiful Caroline) was used until 2017.
For the 30th anniversary season in 2017, the show rolled out a title sequence based on the original used in one form or another from 1987 to 2004. At the same time, it also introduced an instrumentation of "High Upon This Love" based on the original.
John McCook (Eric Forrester) andKatherine Kelly Lang (Brooke Logan) are the only two cast members who have remained on the show since it first aired on March 23, 1987. During the show's first 25 years, McCook and Lang were part of the "core four" original cast members, the other two beingSusan Flannery (Stephanie Forrester) andRonn Moss (Ridge Forrester).[19] When Moss announced that he was leaving the show in August 2012, the role of Ridge was eventually recast more than a year later. When Flannery also announced her departure later that year, it was decided to have Stephanie's character die after losing her battle with cancer. Two other original characters currently appear on the show,Donna Logan andKatie Logan, but both have been recast since the show's premiere.
| Name | Years |
|---|---|
| William J. Bell | March 23, 1987 – June 6, 1988 |
| William J. Bell andLee Phillip Bell | June 7, 1988 – February 14, 1996 |
| Bradley Bell | February 15, 1996 – November 13, 2025 |
| Casey Kasprzyk | since November 14, 2025 |
| Name | Duration |
|---|---|
| William J. Bell | March 27, 1987 – May 4, 1993 |
| Bradley Bell | May 5, 1993 – January 28, 2008 |
| Co-head writerJohn F. Smith | May 5 – 19, 1993 |
| No head writer listed | January 29, 2008 – February 4, 2008 |
| Kay Alden (WGA strike) | February 5, 2008 – April 15, 2008 |
| Bradley Bell | April 16, 2008 – July 3, 2023 |
| Co-head writer Kay Alden | January 2, 2009 – October 2, 2013 |
| Co-head writerMichael Minnis | January 2, 2009 – July 3, 2023 |
| Michael Minnis (WGA strike) | July 5, 2023 – November 7, 2023 |
| Bradley Bell and Michael Minnis | November 8, 2023 – present |
Nominated for over two hundred prizes and accolades since its debut, the series has won several awards over the years, including theDaytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series, in 2009, 2010 and 2011.[20] The Writing team also won theDaytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series Writing Team in 2010 and 2013.[20] Susan Flannery has personally won aDaytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series on three separate occasions.[20]
Upon its debut as the replacement of former soap operaCapitol in theCBS Daytime lineup,The Bold and the Beautiful ended eighth in the final year ratings. Initially CBS's lowest-rated soap, its numbers were still respectable and began to climb. By 1992, after a successful crossover involving villainSheila Carter fromThe Young and the Restless, it had climbed to third. By the mid-to-late 1990s, following yet another crossover, it moved up to second and has consistently remained there since.[21] Throughout the 2000s,The Bold and the Beautiful and all the other remaining network daytime dramas witnessed a steady erosion of viewers, mainly due to vastly altered viewing habits induced by cable networks and alternative genres such as reality, court shows, and talk shows on minor network affiliates, along with consistentbreaking news pre-emptions that often unexpectedly broke viewing momentum.[22]
Since the cancellation ofPort Charles, it is currently the only American soap opera with a running time of 30 minutes (including commercials) and was the last remaining American soap broadcasting in thefullscreenstandard-definition television picture format, until the show upgraded to16:9 aspect ratiohigh-definition television in September 2011. Episodes airing in the United States air for approximately 19 minutes, while international broadcasts air to a runtime of approximately 21 minutes.[23]
The series has aired inItaly since 1990 under the dub titleBeautiful. The series first aired onRai Due from June 4, 1990 to April 3, 1994, airing up until episode 1502, which on Rai were reassembled as 902 episodes of varying length. From April 5, 1994, episode 1503 aired onCanale 5, with reruns of recent seasons airing on sister channels over time. Since June 2024,Mediaset Extra airs repeats of episodes starting from season 23.[24]
The Flemish broadcast started in 1990 onTV1; at its peak, the ratings surpassed one million viewers. The rights were handed over to VTM in 1999 and then toVijf TV in 2006 - each time the rights moved to another network, the ratings declined. In May 2015, VIJF ceased airing the series due to declining ratings.[25]
In 1995,Canal 1 inPortugal broadcast the series asMalha de Intrigas. Only a package of 240 episodes aired.[26]
South African channelSABC 3 aired the soap between September 1997 and March 4, 2019, when it was removed from the schedule due to cost issues.[27] The series returned to African television on the now-defunct pan-African channel Eva onDStv, with the English and Portuguese feeds airing episodes from 2019 starting in May 2020.[28][29]
InLatvia, the series aired onLTV1 from January 4, 1995[30][31] to July 20, 2010.[32][33] showedLatvijas Televīzija.[34] Initially a package of 200 episodes was scheduled to air (starting from episode 170), but this has since increased to more than 6000 episodes broadcast at the time LTV ended the series. The voice-over translation was provided by Harijs Spanovskis, who made his last recording of the series on July 8. Interest in the series decreased over time; by the mid-2000s, the series had left circulation inEstonia andLithuania; LTV1 stopped airing the series due to declining ratings.[31]
InPoland, the series is known asModa na sukces. Its first airing was onTVP1 in 1994, with the broadcaster ending the broadcast on December 9, 2014 due to high costs from the distributor. Ratings in September 2014 averaged 359,000 viewers, a far cry from when the series scored millions of viewers in the 2000s, with the series being open for a new buyer either on television or on streaming.[35] The series returned to TVN's Player.pl VOD service on April 1, 2015.[36]
In theUnited Arab Emirates, the series aired onDubai 33 until its closure in 2004. Due to complaints from viewers, the series returned onDubai One.[37]
The earliest DVD releases ofThe Bold and the Beautiful came in 2008 and 2009, when "Fan Favourites Collection" and "Best of Weddings" were released in Europe and Australia.[38][39][40][41] These DVD sets contained a random selection of 21 and 25 episodes, respectively, from 1987 up until that point in time. These sets sold well and from 2010 to 2011, Beyond Home Entertainment in Australia released another 3 sets containing a random selection of 25 episodes each.[42][43][44] These sets, however, only contained episodes from 2003 onwards, frustrating some long-term fans, as a large proportion of the show was left out.[45] One of these sets, entitled "Most Shocking Moments", was also released in the US on July 23, 2012, on theAmazon Video service, but only contained 15 episodes.[45]
The series was released from the very beginning in Germany (April 29, 2011),[46] Sweden (November 23, 2011), the United States (November 6, 2012)[47] and Australia (December 3, 2012).[48] All DVD sets contain 25 episodes, with the exception of the US release only containing 16. The German releases have sold well, with distributor Fernsehjuwelen having released box 2 later in 2011 and boxes 3-7 throughout 2012. Boxes 8, 9 and 10 are set for release in late 2014 through 2015.[49]
| DVD title | Number of episodes | Release date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Region 2 (EU) | Region 4 (AU) | Region 1 (US) | ||
| Fan Favorites Collection | 21 | September 3, 2008[50] | November 19, 2008[40] | — |
| Best of Weddings | 25 | March 11, 2009[51] | April 1, 2009[41] | — |
| Most Shocking Moments | 25 (AU) / 15 (US) | — | October 6, 2010[52] | July 23, 2012[45] |
| Catfights and Brawls | 25 | — | December 1, 2010[53] | — |
| Best of Brooke, Ridge & Taylor | 25 | — | March 2, 2011[54] | — |
| How It All Began [Box 1] | 25 / 16 (US) | April 29, 2011[46] | December 3, 2012[55] | November 6, 2012[47] |
| How It All Began [Box 2] | 25 | October 14, 2011[56] | May 1, 2013[57] | TBA |
| How It All Began [Box 3] | 25 | February 17, 2012[56] | May 1, 2015[58] | TBA |
| How It All Began [Box 4] | 25 | April 27, 2012[56] | September 1, 2015[59] | TBA |
| How It All Began [Box 5] | 25 | August 3, 2012[56] | TBA | TBA |
| How It All Began [Box 6] | 25 | November 23, 2012[56] | TBA | TBA |
| How It All Began [Box 7] | 25 | November 23, 2012[56] | TBA | TBA |
| How It All Began [Box 8] | 25 | November 28, 2014[56] | TBA | TBA |
| How It All Began [Box 9] | 25 | November 28, 2014[56] | TBA | TBA |
| How It All Began [Box 10] | 25 | April 2, 2015[56] | TBA | TBA |
There have been several crossovers among other CBS Daytime shows.
Numerous formerBig Brother houseguests have guest starred, occasionally making references to their time in the house.[62][63][64][65][66]
..."Malha de Intrigas", que tinha 240 e era uma "soap opera" como só os norte-americanos sabem fazer.
