'Variety' Trio of Articles Focuses on B&B Dynasties on AND off-screen

Variety writer Michael Maloney recently contributed three soap opera-themed pieces, centered primarily around THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL's 20th Anniversary earlier this month.

[1] In "Bell Family Into Soap-Opera Business (Daytime dramas offer domestic bliss for clan)" Maloney profiles the family of William J. and Lee Phillip Bell (co-creators of B&B and THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS), including children Lauralee Bell Martin (ex-"Christine Blair Williams" on Y&R), William Bell (president, Bell-Phillip Television, producers of Y&R and B&B), and Bradley Bell (executive producer and head writer of B&B):

William J. Bell brought to life the Newmans, Abbotts and Fosters
on [Y&R] and the Forrester, Logan and Spectra gangs on
[B&B], but the daytime guru's greatest family was always his own....the senior Bell passed away in April 2005, but his wife and children continue his legacy as driving forces in the daytime community....

Read the full article here.

[2] In "'[B&B] Foursome Thrive on Stability (Soap's cast consistency brings believability)," Maloney focuses on the soap's four remaining original cast members, Susan Flannery, John McCook, Katherine Kelly Lang, and Ronn Moss, and the impact their playing their core characters continuously (not counting temporary replacements for illnesss, etc.) for 20 years, has on the globally popular show.

Television audiences are acquainted with both Darrens on Bewitched and a pair of Beckys on Roseanne, but for 20 years (a rare fill-in or two aside), soap opera loyalists have known only singular versions of core
characters Stephanie, Eric, Brooke and Ridge on [B&B], thanks to the
commitments of their respective portrayers.

Read the full article here.

[3] And in "[B&B] Won't Eschew Issues (Soap mixes entertainment, education)," Maloney profiles Lee Phillip Bell's historical commitment, both as a journalist and soap opera creator/story consultant, to social issues, and how that legacy has continued on B&B, highlighting Stephanie Forrester (portrayed by Susan Flannery)'s homelessness storyline among others tackling alcoholism, rape, and child abuse.

Successfully combining entertainment with education isn't easy, but [B&B] sparked by co-creators Lee Phillip Bell and the late William J. Bell, has accomplished just that during its 20-year run.

Read the full article here.

Soap's Living Pioneer Lee Phillip Bell to Make History with Lifetime Achievement Emmy

YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS co-creator Lee Phillip Bell has been selected by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (or NATAS) to receive the organization's Lifetime Achievement Award at this year's Daytime Emmys ceremony, and will make new television history when she does.

Bell, mother of Y&R star Lauralee Bell ("Christine 'Cricket' Blair") and BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL executive producer/head writer Bradley Bell (pictured), partnered with her late husband William J. Bell to create two of CBS's most successful soaps, Y&R and B&B, and continued as a story consultant for both shows for many years.

In 1992, William Bell received the Lifetime Achievement Award from NATAS, making the which makes the two the only married couple to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award individually from NATAS in television history.

More on Bell (including her long-standing concern for the social issues of the day and award-winning work as a Chicago broadcaster) can be found here.