Abstract
'Just a few years ago, television viewers in many countries wanted only to know the answer to one question -- Who shot J.R?'
This quote from the March 1987 issue of Time magazine illustrates the powerful hold soap operas like Dallas have on the popular imagination. Yet, television and radio soap operas have more often been despised than studied. Their origins are in the continuous radio serials of the early days of US commercial radio, serials designed by conglomerates such as Procter and Gamble to convey their messages to large numbers of housewives. Indeed, the very term soap opera is derived from the fact that washing powder was one of Procter and Gamble's major products.
Today what do serials such as the Australian Flying Doctors, the British East Enders, the German Schwarzwald klinik, the Japanese Machigai-darake no Onna-migaki or the Indian Buniyaad - have in common that characterizes them as soap operas? Are their audiences similar? Are there themes, situations and plots common to all soap operas? What is the future for the soap opera now that serials like Dallas and Dynasty have passed their peak of popularity?
This and the following issue of Trends examine research on soap opera and their viewers which may help to provide a few answers to these and other questions.
Recommended Citation
Frey-Vor, Gerlinde
(1990)
"Soap Opera,"
Communication Research Trends: Vol. 10:
No.
1, Article 1.
Available at:
https://scholarcommons.scu.edu/crt/vol10/iss1/1