Actor Eric Braeden never says a word about anything at “The Young and the Restless.” He’s been one of the two or three main stars on the CBS soap since 1981. So when he speaks up, you know there’s trouble.
In the face of sinking ratings and a rash of actor dismissals and departures, Braeden broke silence from his vacation yesterday on Twitter. He wrote: “I normally don’t express my opinions reg the casting on Y&R! That’s the privilege of those who produce the show! However, this is a time when I have to make an exception! I’m still on vacation, hence my comment comes a little late: to let DOUGIE DAVIDSON GO is an egregious mistake…My plea to management: we have lost some all time fan favorites! D DAVIDSON has been with the show for, i think, 39 years, and people have loved him! Same for CHRISTIAN Le BLANC, GREG RIKART, Eileen DAVIDSON ( who left on her own volition)!”
My plea to management: we have lost some all time fan favorites! D DAVIDSON has been with the show for, i think, 39 years, and people have loved him! Same for CHRISTIAN Le BLANC, GREG RIKART, Eileen DAVIDSON ( who left on her own volition)!”
Braeden himself is not immune to fighting with Sony TV and CBS. Over the last couple of decades he’s had skirmishes with them over salary and appearances. But for him to make a “plea” to management indicates that the trouble with the show is worse than any thought. As I wrote earlier this week, the last week of metered ratings available– the last week of August– showed a dramatic decline in the numbers. Fans are furious about actors leaving, and what seems like the diminution of the show’s central African American family.
PS I like Eric Braeden now– he’s put a photo of himself and the late Aretha Franklin on his Twitter page. She was a big fan of the show.
