| Santa Barbara | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Soap opera |
| Created by | Bridget and Jerome Dobson |
| Starring | Series cast |
| Theme music composer | Joe Harnell |
| Country of origin | United States of America |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 9 |
| No. of episodes | 2,137[1] |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Seehere |
| Production locations | NBC Studios Burbank, California |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Production companies | Dobson Productions New World Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | July 30, 1984 (1984-07-30) – January 15, 1993 (1993-01-15) |
Santa Barbara is an American televisionsoap opera that aired onNBC from July 30, 1984, to January 15, 1993.[2] The show revolves around the eventful lives of the wealthy Capwell family ofSanta Barbara, California. Other prominent families featured on the soap were the rival Lockridge family, and the more modest Andrade and Perkins families.
The serial was produced byDobson Productions andNew World Television, which also served as distributor for the show in international markets.Santa Barbara was the first series for New World Television.[3]
Santa Barbara aired in the United States at 3:00 p.m. Eastern (2:00 p.m. Central) on NBC in the same time slot asGeneral Hospital onABC andGuiding Light onCBS and right afterAnother World.[4]Santa Barbara aired in over 40 countries around the world.[5] It became the longest-running television series in Russia, airing there from 1992 to 2002.[6]Santa Barbara won 24Daytime Emmy Awards and was nominated 30 times for the same award. The show also won 18Soap Opera Digest Awards and various other awards.[7]
The original plotline surrounded conflicts between the wealthy Capwell and Lockridge families. Stage legend and Oscar nomineeDame Judith Anderson received a great deal of publicity for headlining the cast as Lockridge matriarch Minx.[8] John Cory ofThe New York Times wrote "a good soap opera has plot, plot and more plot" describing the myriad of "dramatic possibilities", "ideological/societal warfare" and predicting "bitterness along the blue collar versus country club divide."[8]
A central plot around which many of the others revolve: the murder of Channing Capwell Jr.[9] which takes place five years before the series begins.Joe Perkins has been jailed for the murder, paroled and returns to Santa Barbara determined to prove his innocence and renew his relationship with Kelly Capwell, sister of the victim.[10]
One controversial storyline involved Eden being brutally raped, and later discovering that her assailant was her gynecologist Zack Kelton, who had examined her after her rape.[11] Zack's portrayer, formerDallas cast memberLeigh McCloskey, stated that he was uncomfortable with the storyline as he felt that women had enough concerns about visiting gynecologists.
In 1988 Libby Slate wrote for theLos Angeles Times, "Clearly, this is a show that is not afraid to take chances: Roles for deaf performers are a television rarity day or night"[12] This was a reference to the character Sister Sarah, played by deaf actressPhyllis Frelich for 31 episodes.
Over the course of the soap, almost every major character would be accused of the murder of Channing Capwell Jr. or find his or her life involved in the incident in one way or another: from his illegitimate son to his mysterious, presumed-dead mother.
The series was launched on NBC with high promotion on July 30, 1984, while the1984 Summer Olympics was airing on rival networkABC.[13] However, creators and executive producersBridget and Jerome Dobson tightened the show's cast among a handful of popular characters and proceeded to kill off or write out weaker links and supporting characters via a natural disaster and the "Carnation Killer" serial killer storyline. When the Lockridges staged a comeback in the early 1990s, the much younger Broadway and movie veteranJanis Paige assumed the part of Minx. The soap showed promise with an early Alexis Carrington-style villainess, Augusta Lockridge (Louise Sorel), but even though critics praised her performance, her storyline was suddenly dropped and Sorel left the show.[14] She would return later on a recurring basis and signed a contract when the Lockridges were written back in as regular characters.
When a majorearthquake hit Santa Barbara,[15] core characterDanny Andrade slept through the whole thing.Minx Lockridge was unfazed, saying that the 1984 Santa Barbara earthquake was nothing like the one in1925. She was later locked in an emptysarcophagus. Luckily, her grandchildren were around to let her out and she escaped with merely a bruised ego.
We think of having succeeded since we are today the only soap whose ratings increase unceasingly. The others stagnate or lose televiewers. We just have now to gain the head of the group. We have to reach this objective in seven years. However, our first purpose remains to tell attractive stories with rich characters to give pleasure to our public. The only way to get it: to still work harder by saving this marvellous team spirit which already saved us.
Under new executive producer Jill Farren Phelps' tenure, most of the show revolved aroundEden Capwell and Cruz Castillo. By concentrating on such popular characters as Cruz and Eden,C.C. Capwell and his wifeSophia, Mason Capwell and Julia Wainwright Capwell, Gina Blake, and Augusta and Lionel Lockridge, the program achieved critical acclaim as well as slowly but surely rising ratings.[3] The show was famous for its comedic style and offbeat writing.[17] For example, in the July 14, 1986, episode, formernun Mary Duvall McCormick (Harley Jane Kozak) was killed by a giant neon letter "C" (for "Capwell") atop the Capwell Hotel toppling on her while she was standing on the hotel roof during an argument[18] (this was later referenced in theAmerican Dad! episode "Homeland Insecurity"[19]). Despite an irate letter-writing campaign by the show's fans (and an offer from the soap to come back), Kozak was reported as saying that she had "no desire to return to SB", or in fact, any other daytime soap. Another example from 1989 involved Greg Hughes (Paul Johansson) having a dream while unconscious about Mason and Julia being aliens and being taken to "The Capwell Zone". Also in 1988, Julia backs out of her wedding to Mason while at the altar giving their wedding vows, revealing to Father Michael she is in love with him and they make love.[20][21][22][23]
In October 1987, the Dobsons were locked out ofNBC studios after repeated attempts to fire the head writer,Anne Howard Bailey. Bridget Dobson said, "It was impossible for Anne Howard Bailey to get inside my head, and I could not get in her head. She has a darker view of life than I do; I think she thinks of me as Pollyanna, and I think of her as Darth Vader." The Dobsons sued, and were eventually allowed to return to the program in 1991, but ratings never recovered, even as the show won three Daytime Emmys in a row for Outstanding Drama Series.[12][24]
Following common daytime drama practice, over the years the producers ofSanta Barbara recast original characters multiple times. By the end of the series, almost every original character had been recast, excluding onlyEden Capwell and Cruz Castillo,Lionel, andAugusta. Out of those four, not one stayed with the show through the entire run. The characters ofKelly,C.C., andSantana had the highest number of recasts, four each. Some recasts proved successful, most notablyJed Allan (C.C. Capwell #4),Judith McConnell (Sophia Capwell #2) andRobin Mattson (Gina Blake DeMott #2), but many were upsetting to fans.[3]
The first notable departure wasRobin Wright, to focus on her film career following the success ofThe Princess Bride the previous year, ending her four-year run as the original Kelly Capwell, in 1988.[25][26] Following Wright were the departures ofJustin Deas in 1988, andTodd McKee as the originalTed Capwell,Lane Davies as Mason Capwell andMarcy Walker as Eden Capwell in 1991.[27]
By 1992, most of the original characters had either been recast a few times or written out, and new characters arrived on the scene. Roscoe Born was cast in the dual roles of twin brothers Robert Barr and Quinn Armitage from 1989 to 1991.[28][29][30] In 1990,Leonardo DiCaprio received a Best Young Actor in a Daytime Series Nomination at the12th Youth in Film Awards for his appearance as a young Mason Capwell. After Zack Kelton's death, McCloskey returned as a new character,district attorney Ethan Asher. Steven Nichols joined the cast as psychologist Skyler Gates in September 1992.[31][32]
Louise Sorel was written out[14] in 1991 because she did not want to have a romance with Dash Nichols, the man who had raped Augusta's sister Julia. Eden, Cruz, and most of the Lockridges had been written out while new characters played by stars from other shows such asKim Zimmer,[31]Jack Wagner, andSydney Penny took up most of the airtime.Nicolas Coster had returned after a 2½-year absence but his character disappeared soon after as Coster could not come to terms over the lack of storyline he had gotten after such promise when he came back. By the time Coster had resolved the issues and returned permanently, Louise Sorel was on her way out,[14] and Lionel was paired in a romance with C.C.'s former wife, Gina.
The final episode aired in January 1993. The only remaining original actor from the pilot wasMargarita Cordova as the faithful Capwell housekeeperRosa Andrade, although many of the original characters remained, including C.C., Sophia, Kelly, Mason, Ted,Warren Lockridge, Lionel, Gina, andMinx. In the finale, Sophia and C.C. Capwell moved towards a reconciliation, Kelly found love with Connor McCabe, and at Warren and BJ's wedding, unbalanced Andie Klein aimed a gun at the crowd; however, she was quickly disarmed and carried away by Connor. This was followed by a roll-call list of the cast and crew. The final shot consisted of executive producer Paul Rauch standing in front of the camera, smashing a cigar under his shoe, and walking away.
During the first three years of the show, the main crew ofSanta Barbara stayed the same, with theDobsons taking on a double duty as bothhead writer andexecutive producer.Jeffrey Hayden served as co-executive producer during the first year, andMary-Ellis Bunim took over after him. In 1987, after the Dobsons were abruptly fired, associate head writerCharles Pratt Jr. received head writing status and Anne Howard Bailey joined him as co-head writer until 1989, whenSheri Anderson took over that duty.
Jill Farren Phelps was hired from the beginning of the production as the Music Director.[33][34] In 1987, she took over as executive producer until 1990[27] when she was replaced by John Conboy,[35] although there was a five-month transition period where both were credited. In 1990, Pratt was replaced by another associate writer,Maralyn Thoma, but her tenure was cut short when the Dobsons finally settled in court and returned to the series. Shortly before the Dobsons returned, Conboy was let go and Paul Rauch was brought on as executive producer.[31] The Dobsons left their head writing duties in 1992, whenPam Long was hired as the show's final head writer.
| Name(s) | Duration |
|---|---|
| Bridget and Jerome Dobson andJeffrey Hayden | 8407July 30 to September 1984 |
| Bridget and Jerome Dobson and Charles Pratt, Sr. | 8410October to November 1984 |
| Bridget and Jerome Dobson andMary-Ellis Bunim | 8411November 1984 to November 1986 |
| Bridget and Jerome Dobson | 8612December 1986 to October 1987 |
| Jill Farren Phelps | 8712December 1987 to March 1990 |
| Jill Farren Phelps andJohn Conboy | 9003March to August 1990 |
| John Conboy | 9008August 1990 to June 1991 |
| Paul Rauch and Bridget and Jerome Dobson | 9106June 1991 to January 15, 1993 |
| Name(s) | Duration |
|---|---|
| Bridget and Jerome Dobson | 8407July 30, 1984, to December 1986 |
| Anne Howard Bailey andCharles Pratt Jr. | 8612December 1986 to January 1989 |
| Charles Pratt Jr. | 8901January 1989 to May 1990 |
| Sheri Anderson andMaralyn Thoma | 9005May to June 1990 |
| Sheri Anderson,Samuel D. Ratcliffe, and Maralyn Thoma | 9006June to July 1990 |
| Samuel D. Ratcliffe and Maralyn Thoma | 9007July 1990 to February 1991 |
| Bridget and Jerome Dobson | 9102February 1991 to February 1992 |
| Pamela K. Long | 9202February 1992 to January 15, 1993 |
NBC usually pittedSanta Barbara againstGeneral Hospital onABC andGuiding Light onCBS, both of which enjoyed high ratings at the time in the same time slot across all markets. When NBC canceled the long-running soapSearch for Tomorrow in 1986, it launched its "NBC Daytime... It Will Excite You" campaign, which promoted their three-hour block of serials starting withDays of Our Lives, followed byAnother World, and ending withSanta Barbara in most markets across the U.S. However, some markets chose to airSanta Barbara in a mid-morning timeslot, taking it out of competition with other soaps.
AlthoughSanta Barbara enjoyed considerable worldwide popularity, it never achieved the same heights in the United States. In its debut (1984–1985) season, it finished in 11th place and 3.4, and edged up to 10th and 4.2 the next year. By 1987, however, it did begin to generate respectable numbers: it was still in 10th place, but achieved a 4.9 rating, the highest in the history of the show. (Incidentally, the 1987–1988 television season also proved to be the best ratings performance of the 1980s for NBC's daytime soap lineup, which had been in ratings trouble since the late 1970s.)
As quickly as the ratings rose forSanta Barbara, they fell just as quickly. After recording a 4.8 rating in the 1988–1989 season, the serial dropped a full ratings point the next season. Many of the stations airing the show began looking elsewhere for programming and began preemptingSanta Barbara in favor of other shows. Some dropped the program altogether while others moved it to either an earlier time slot, such as the open 10:00 a.m. hour that NBC gave back to the affiliates in 1991 while some stations even moved the program to late night. In September 1992, with ratings barely hovering above a 3.0, NBC decided to rework its daytime schedule. The network announced thatSanta Barbara would be cancelled at the midway point of the 1992–93 season, with the final episode airing January 15, 1993. NBC would then give the 3:00 p.m. hour back to its affiliates, and in exchange for it they would take back the 12:00 p.m. hour, which they had not programmed sinceGenerations (which aired in the 12:30 p.m. timeslot) was cancelled; NBC had already given back the 12:00 p.m. timeslot to its affiliates whenSuper Password ended its run in 1989.Santa Barbara saw its place on the schedule taken by twoReg Grundy Organisation-produced game shows, a revival of the company's earlier hitScrabble and a new program based on the board gameScattergories. Shortly before the program ended, New World Television tried to shopSanta Barbara to other broadcast and cable networks, but failed to find one that would air the show.
The series enjoyed great success in France during the first seasons. It was broadcast at primetime at 7:00 p.m., attracting between 8 and 10 million viewers each evening.[39]
New York Times television critic and cultural news reporter John Corry[40] enthusiastically describesSanta Barbara as "good trashy fun" recapping characters, plot twists and social themes, while surmising "the dramatic possibilities here are endless." He calls it "pretty good stuff" speculating "one wonders how Dame Judith, flicking her riding crop, is going to involve herself in what comes next" writing "It is probable that any number of viewers will tune in tomorrow to find out."[41]
Tom Shales ofThe Washington Post wrote "As for whetherSanta Barbara really is worse than the soaps that are doing well in the ratings, that's a tough call. On the surface, it doesn't appear to be inferior to all those other daytime offerings designed for people with too much time to kill."[42]
In its first year, a reviewer forPeople Weekly wrote that theSanta Barbara TV series "could be the worst show on TV—ever".[43]
Mark Dawidziak claimed in August 1984 thatSanta Barbara was "a serial full of hammy acting, predictable story lines and atrocious dialogue".[44]
| Category | Recipient | Role(s) | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outstanding Drama Series | 1988,[45] 1989,[46] 1990[47] | ||
| Lead Actor | A Martinez | Cruz Castillo | 1990[47] |
| Lead Actress | Marcy Walker | Eden Capwell | 1989[46] |
| Supporting Actor | Justin Deas Henry Darrow | Keith Timmons Rafael Castillo | 1988,[45] 1989[46] 1990[47] |
| Supporting Actress | Nancy Lee Grahn | Julia Wainwright Capwell | 1989[46] |
| Younger Actor | Justin Gocke | Brandon Capwell | 1989[46] |
| Guest Performer | John Wesley Shipp | Martin Ellis | 1987[48] |
Joe Harnell composed the theme music for the show.[49][50] Shortly afterwards,Dominic Messinger took on the position of composer and Music Director of the show.[51][52] Music on the show was contemporary in style, with popular music themes composed and memorable original pop songs written specifically for each character and romantic couple, rather than the usual practice of soap operas of matching recorded cues to a scene.[12][53][54]
Starting from the first episode, the show featured "If Ever You're in My Arms Again" byPeabo Bryson as a love theme for Joe Perkins and Kelly Capwell.[54][13]
As of July 1988,Soap Opera Digest reported the most-requested love themes:
