Cooking, entertainment and lifestyle show “The Chew” premieres on September 26 on ABC, just as “All My Children” ends a 41-year run, but the talk show’s producer, Gordon Elliott, hopes soap fans will give his show a chance.
“I understand completely how those viewers feel and I enjoyed those soaps for years too. We got them in Australia when I was a kid, but I don’t control the process that made that change,” he told reporters on Sunday at ABC’s portion of the Television Critics Association Summer Session in Beverly Hills. “Whilst I’m sympathetic — I was greatly relieved to hear that [the soaps were] moving to online — so whilst it’s not going to be on their television, it’s actually going to be more convenient for them and I hope they give us a break. And if they just sit down for five minutes, they’re gonna really enjoy [hosts] Carla (Hall) and Clinton (Kelly)… the company of Daphne (Oz) and if they don’t like it, I can’t control that.”
“I’d just like to go on the record saying that I love Susan Lucci so much,” Kelly, still the co-host of “What Not To Wear,” chimed in. “I think she’s fabulous.”
In response to a question from a reporter about whether “The Chew” had thought about incorporating exiting day time stars into the new program, Elliott said they hadn’t, but he plans to look into it now.
“Wouldn’t that be fun,” he said, referring to Lucci in particular. “She’s Italian. She could bring on lasagna.”
Kelly said he thinks “The Chew,” which focuses on food, entertaining and lifestyle, will be a suitable replacement for soap fans when their beloved daytime dramas exit the television airwaves.
“I also think a lot of people tune into soaps because they feel as though the casts of soaps are their friends, and I think what we can offer is a group of people who are friends,” he said. “We’re just getting to know each other, but we’re getting along incredibly well… And so we’re sort of welcoming people to come be a part of this group of friends and just have a good time with us and hang out in the kitchen.
“We can’t be soap operas to you, but we can be a group of people that you might want to hang out with,” he added.
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