«...Real, wild, escapism and romanticism !»
By Richard Spencer, Soap Opera Update, 1990	Home   Cette page en Français

John Conboy, Santa Barbara's new executive producer, is no stranger to the world of soap opera. He is an Emmy Award-winning producer who has had successful stints with The Young and the Restless, Capitol and Love Is a Many Splendored Thing. Now he brings his experience to Santa Barbara, the critically acclaimed NBC soap in search of better ratings, and Soap Opera Update spoke with him recently about the changes fans can expect in the year ahead.

What were your first observation about Santa Barbara and how it needed to change ?

It needed to tell continuing story rather than episodic story. It needed to tell stories based on character rather than an incident.

Santa Barbara has often been criticized about losing too many talented actors. Are you aware of this ?

No, I am not.

For example, performers like Roscoe Born. Viewers want to know why the show lost him ?

He was gone before I got to the show. I think it is one of the traps of telling episodic story and not telling long-term story. I think one begins to feel that the direction is short-term in any given story. I think that may be one off the reasons. I was not really aware of that. I am beginning to look for fan mail and certainly they miss the character of Robert Barr, and they miss Roscoe Born. Hopefully when we begin to bringing in new people, or reinstate some of the character that have been on the air before that the audience seemed to like enormously, that will change. I think the original fabric of the show needs to be examined, and put back into place.

Are you happy with the progress you have made so far ? Is the show changing quickly enough for you ?

No, it never does change quickly enough. When you are telling continuing story, you cannot disregard what is already on the air. You have to begin to swing it so the audience doesn't believe that you have been lying to them.

What will viewers see in the future, that they are not seeing now in Santa Barbara ?

They are going to see story direction. The fans of the show have to be carefully taken care of, Santa Barbara has major, loyal fans who understand the fabric of the show as it is now. What you want to do is protect their viewing habits, plus introduce some new elements to them that hopefully they are going to like as much as they are watching now. So that's what I am trying to do. I am trying to preserve the fabric of the show, going back some, looking at what it was like - maybe not originally, but towards the middle of its run.

What aspects of the middle of its run ?

There needs to be more romance, with splashy, California coastline kinds of stories, with beautiful guys and beautiful girls. It has been down in the mines too much. It has been too dark. We are going to tell high adventure, and we are going to be on sailboats and beaches.

Is that Santa Barbara's theme ?

I think so. It should be high romance and high adventure. I think that glamour is not cursed word, but Santa Barbara is one of the most glamorous cities in the world. It's known for that, so I am going to restore that to the show. A lot of people when they talk about me, or my company, they wonder "what does he do ?" I guess that's what I do, and I am going to do it again.

How do you feel about the way the show was shifted to an earlier time period in the New York City market ?

I am ambivalent about it because the time period it was in was not startling, so we are just waiting to see how it behaves in that time period. It has gone up a little in the ratings, and there is nothing wrong with that. The good thing about Santa Barbara is that it is all in place. I am redesigning a little bit, but the audience will notice that slowly, but there are not going to be any huge, major, bone-crunching changes.

What do you think are the show's greatest strengths ?

The cast. It is a remarkable cast. One of the great things is that this is the first time that I have walked into an existing show and I didn't have to change the cast.

How do you handle the power of Eden and Cruz ? Is it almost dangerous if those two were ever to leave the show ?

I think that one of the strengths of the show is Cruz and Eden. I think that they are remarkable together, and that they are remarkable apart. I am going to introduce some major romantic stories on the show that will involve Cruz and Eden, but they will involve a lot of other people on the show. That is how I am going to handle it.

Are there any characters from the past that you would like to bring back ?

I am very interested in the character of Augusta. That is all I can mention right now.

What do you think viewers expect from Santa Barbara more so than any other show ?

Romance. And adventure. I know a lot has been said about comedy, but I think that humor comes out of character and not story. I want to make sure that we maintain that and it is not fortuitous, because then it is not very funny.

How would you describe what viewers will see in the next six months on Santa Barbara ?

Romance and adventure, because I really do feel that is what the show is about, or should be about. It hasn't been as romantic as it used to be, and I mean real, wild, escapism and romanticism, that guys as well as girls could say, "I want to be there. I want to do that." I want the feeling to be like a bumper sticker that says, "I'd rather be watching Santa Barbara."