Lorraine Broderick

Lorraine Broderick (born 1948) is an American television soap opera writer who got her start on All My Children as a protégée of the show's creator, Agnes Nixon. She went on to serve four different stints as its Head Writer, ultimately earning her four Daytime Emmy awards in that capacity. Broderick's work on the show has often been met with critical acclaim, citing her as its finest head writer outside of Nixon.[1] She was the last head writer of All My Children's 40-year broadcast run on ABC, penning the show through its network finale on September 23, 2011.

Bio

Lorraine Broderick graduated from Andover (MA) High School in 1966 and Mt. Holyoke College in 1970. She joined All My Children as scriptwriter and breakdown writer in 1979, under the guidance of then-head writer Agnes Nixon. In 1982, Broderick would promote to an Associate Head Writer alongside fellow Nixon protégée Wisner Washam, who himself would be promoted to Head Writer the following year. In 1986, Broderick was appointed Co-Head Writer, sharing duties with Washam, who would exit the show himself in 1987 – leaving Broderick as the sole head writer. Broderick won her first Outstanding Writing Team Daytime Emmy award as head writer alongside Washam in 1988.[2] However, a network mandate for creative changes had Broderick demoted back to Associate Head Writer, when Margaret DePriest was appointed head writer of All My Children in early 1989. But DePriest would not last long in the position, as Agnes Nixon would resume head writing duties by the end of that year – once again with Broderick and a returned Wisner Washam as her Associate Head Writers.

After 12 years with All My Children's writing team, Broderick left in 1991 to become the co-head writer of Guiding Light. While Broderick wrote for Guiding Light, the show received much critical acclaim, and the early 1990s are widely considered to have been a golden era for the show. In the spring of 1995, when Megan McTavish was fired from her writing post at All My Children, Broderick left her post as Associate Head Writer of Another World to once again become AMC's head writer. Broderick would win three consecutive Daytime Emmy awards for Outstanding Writing Team from her work as head writer of the show, bringing her total to four Emmy honors as a daytime head writer. She left All My Children for the second time in December 1997 when ABC Daytime decided to bring back McTavish.

In early 1998, Broderick was hired at CBS Daytime's As the World Turns where her most notable story was the resurrection of evil David Stenbeck and the switch of Lily Snyder's baby with another baby.

In July 1999, a complete behind-the-scenes overhaul at the show led to Broderick's exit. Shortly after, she was hired by Days of Our Lives Executive Producer Ken Corday to helm his show's writing team. However, she was there for less than a month before she left over disagreements with Co-Executive Producer Tom Langan (who would assume the writing duties himself). Reportedly, Langan wanted to rapidly age the next generation of teens and immediately place them in front-burner storylines, while Broderick wanted to phase them in gradually; Broderick's character-driven storytelling style was also reportedly not favored by Langan, who preferred more outlandish plotting.

Broderick then joined Port Charles as an Associate Head Writer, before being appointed head writer of One Life to Live in January 2001. In 2003, she was demoted to associate head writer upon the return of famed One Life to Live writing team Michael Malone and Josh Griffith. At that time, ABC Daytime President Brian Frons offered Broderick a return to the head writing duties at All My Children, but she declined. Broderick left One Life to Live altogether in 2004, returning to Guiding Light for a short stint as Associate Head Writer, during the show's transition to a new head writing team.

She would eventually accept a position as a screenwriting and playwriting professor at Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This move reunited her with her former colleague, Felicia Minei Behr, former executive producer of All My Children and As the World Turns, who served at Drexel as a professor of film & TV production.

In November 2009, Broderick returned to All My Children at the request of her one-time mentor, Agnes Nixon – following the dismissal of outgoing head writer Charles Pratt Jr. – as part of ABC's concerted effort to increased ratings. However, Broderick once again passed on being head writer in a permanent capacity. On January 13, 2010, ABC announced David Kreizman and Donna Swajeski as the new head writers. Broderick would continue as the interim head writer until her successors were in place on March 15, 2010. She then assumed her duties as Associate Head Writer.

On April 2, 2011, amid rumors of All My Children's possible cancellation, Soaps in Depth broke the news via Twitter that Broderick was once again named the show's head writer, replacing Kreizman and Swajeski. The show's cancellation was announced just two weeks later, with Broderick writing the show through its conclusion on September 23, 2011. She then returned to One Life to Live as a breakdown writer until that show's finale on January 13, 2012.[3]

In April 2012, it was confirmed that Broderick would join the team of new Days of our Lives co-head writers Gary Tomlin and Christopher Whitesell as a breakdown writer.[4]

Writing positions

All My Children

Another World (hired by Peggy Sloane)

As the World Turns (hired by Mary Alice Dwyer-Dobbin)

Days of Our Lives (hired by Ken Corday)

Guiding Light

One Life to Live

Port Charles

Awards and nominations

Daytime Emmy Awards

WINS

NOMINATIONS

Writers Guild of America Award

WINS

NOMINATIONS

Head Writing Tenure

Preceded by
Wisner Washam		 Head writer of All My Children
(with Wisner Washam: 1986–1987)
1986 – March 1988 		Succeeded by
1988 WGA strike
Preceded by
1988 WGA strike		 Head writer of All My Children
(with Victor Miller: January–March 1989)
August 1988 – March 1989 		Succeeded by
Margaret DePriest
Preceded by
Stephen Demorest
James E. Reilly
Nancy Curlee		 Head writer of Guiding Light
(with Stephen Demorest and Nancy Curlee)
(with James E. Reilly: 1992)
1992 – 1993 		Succeeded by
Nancy Curlee
Stephen Demorest
Preceded by
Agnes Nixon		 Head writer of All My Children
(with Millee Taggart: December 1996 – June 1997)
June 1995 – December 1997 		Succeeded by
Megan McTavish
Preceded by
Addie Walsh		 Head writer of As the World Turns
(with Hal Corley and Addie Walsh)
January 1998 – June 1999 		Succeeded by
Leah Laiman
Carolyn Culliton
Preceded by
Sally Sussman Morina		 Head writer of Days of Our Lives
October 15 - November 10, 1999 		Succeeded by
Tom Langan
Preceded by
Megan McTavish		 Head writer of One Life to Live
(with Christopher Whitesell)
January 2001 — January 31, 2003 		Succeeded by
Josh Griffith
Preceded by
Charles Pratt, Jr.		 Interim Head writer of All My Children
(with Charles Pratt, Jr.: February 8–15, 2010)
February 8 — May 11, 2010 		Succeeded by
David Kreizman
Donna Swajeski
Preceded by
David Kreizman
Donna Swajeski		 Head writer of All My Children
June 27 – September 23, 2011 		Succeeded by
Marlene McPherson
Elizabeth Snyder

References

  1. ↑ Soap Opera Digest. Source Interlink. December 13, 2011. p. 74. Missing or empty |title= (help);
  2. ↑ "Donoughe, Winfrey win Emmys for talk shows". The Telegraph. AP. June 30, 1988. p. 47. Retrieved February 16, 2011.
  3. ↑ https://twitter.com/soapsindepthabc/status/54332677863645184
  4. ↑ "It's Official: DAYS Names New Writing Team". Soap Opera Digest. April 6, 2012. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
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