Guiding Light Canceled

NEW YORK (AP) — The soap opera “Guiding Light” is switching off after a 72-year run that predates television.

CBS says the show will have its final episode in September. Like most daytime dramas, “Guiding Light” has suffered from declining ratings and CBS is looking for a lower-cost alternative to the hour of programming.

The Guinness Book of World Records has cited it as the longest-running television drama.

It began as a 15-minute serial on NBC Radio in January 1937 and debuted on CBS television in 1952, focusing on the Bauer family of Springfield.

I know this is just a sign of the times and all that, but when I was a kid, my mom watched GL.  She never sat and watched it, but she had it on while she ironed or dusted or whatever.  I remember it being on, and I determined from watching that show what sex was.  They always showed the man sitting up in bed with the blanket at his waist, and the woman next to him, lying down with the blanket up to her chest.  As a result, I thought that sex must be the most boring thing ever because all they did was sit there. 

I turned the show on yesterday to see if I recognized anyone, and sure enough, Phillip Spaulding was on.  He looked exactly the same as he did in the early 1980s, but now he’s 50, has kids, grandkids, and wears reading glasses.  Worse, yesterday he wore Reva’s reading glasses, which was just weird.  By the way, Reva, who also has kids, grandkids, and wears reading glasses, is apparently pregnant on the show.  And that sums up why I don’t watch soaps anymore.