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50 February 17th, 2012 RATINGS: GH Hits New Lows in Total Viewers! But, Help is on the Way!

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Courtesy/ABC

The ratings are in for the week of February 6-10th for your favorite daytime soap operas and it was not a good week for the now lone ABC sudser, General Hospital! The series brought in its lowest amount of total viewers with 2, 193,000, numbers are of course based on Live & Same Day ratings. GH is not getting any help from its lead-in, The Revolution which again underperformed and is way off the mark from OLTL’s ratings a year ago at this time.

But, help is on the way this coming week for the long-running ABC dramatic series with Robin’s exit storyline set to play out, the returns of Tristan Rogers (Scorpio) and Emma Samms (Holly), along with Finola Hughes (Anna) who began airing again this week. In addition, in the next two weeks look for the debut of Kristen Alderson (Starr) and the Manning family of Kassie DePaiva (Blair) and Roger Howarth (Todd) to also hit the airwaves. New GH EP, Frank Valentini and head writer, Ron Carlivati’s first shows will also begin to air.

In other ratings news, the only soap to gain viewers for the rating period was Days of our Lives which picked up +82,000 eyeballs bringing it to 2,461,000 Salem fans. DAYS also looks to have a big week planned for the week of Feb 20th when many of the stories collide including Sami and EJ’s grief-sex outing, and Will kissing a guy for the first time!

Check out the full ratings courtesy of Soap Opera Network by clicking here! And then let us know if you feel hopeful for GH in the coming weeks?

Tags: Days of our Lives, General Hospital, ratings, The Bold and the Beautiful, The Young and the Restless

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Ann says:

February 17, 2012 at 10:14 am

Seriously what did they think was gonna happen when the took OLTL off the air?? Did they think that we would just support ABC regardless of what they do to us?? Really?

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Max replied February 17th, 2012 at 8:52 pm
used to watch GH but as part of my ABC boycott due to its ridiculous decision to cut One Life to Live and AMC, I no longer watch GH. Once ABC realizes that it’s shows like OLTL that have strong fan loyalty and fans that stand firm AND when ABC reverses it’s decision and pulls things together again, reviving OLTL, then I’ll take a look at the other daytime and nightime shows the network offers. Until then, no one in my household is watching anything on ABC, not even the local news!!

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heidi says:

February 17, 2012 at 10:30 am

Please watch GH!!! I don’t want to lose it!

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Mary H says:

February 17, 2012 at 10:57 am

I am watching GH daily and online to keep one one the shows on tv. I think Disney cancelled OLTL so GH would fail. OLTL had the highest ratings out of all three shows and I think that is why it got cancelled instead of GH. ABC wants out of the soap business so they hoped that GH ratings would go down the drain once OLTL was gone. Shame on them! Look out because once The Mannings and John get to GH the OLTL viewers that didn’t watch GH will be watching and up will go there ratings.

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vik replied February 17th, 2012 at 2:50 pm
EXACTLY! but no matter what, like you said, ABC is out of the soap business. I believe there is NO saving GH now.

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Heather replied February 17th, 2012 at 11:49 pm
I’m really getting tired of hearing OLTL fans whining all the time about how their show supposedly had better ratings than GH and how it should have been the last soap standing.

Here’s the facts. OLTL did NOT had the highest ratings of the three shows when it was cancelled in April 2011. OLTL only started to surpass GH in the ratings in May 2011, AFTER it had already been cancelled. And that was only in total viewership. GH would continue to be ahead of OLTL in the key demo until September 2011.

Please check the past Nielsen ratings folks.

Torrey replied February 20th, 2012 at 6:26 pm
Yes Heather, but the ratings sure are in the toilet now….and have been for quite a while.

Shelly replied February 21st, 2012 at 11:01 am
ABC is determined to get out of the soap business. They knew OLTL’s finish would hurt GH, as most soap viewers have a “keep the channel on, watch the next story” routine. Please please watch GH. Since cancellation is not yet definate, there is always hope.

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Susan M. says:

February 17, 2012 at 11:22 am

When is Michael Easton going to be on GH…. Isee the Mannings will be on in 2wks. Again what about Michael Easton(John McBain)…When will he exactely be appearing on GH!!!!!!!!!! ABC better not cancel GH if they know what’s good for them!!!!! Could someone e-mail about Michael Easton’n exact date he will be appearing on GENERAL HOSIPTAL !!!!!!!!!! I have to know!!!!!!!!!!! Looking forward to seeing him on GH!!!!!!!!!!!!

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cathy trinque replied February 17th, 2012 at 1:56 pm
I saw somewhere mid March.

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Jenna replied February 17th, 2012 at 2:44 pm
According to GHH’s Spoilers, ME shows up in early March. I figure he will be on by March 2nd or the following Monday since they said he started taping on Feb. 10th.

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Linda says:

February 17, 2012 at 11:32 am

I am not surprised. That is why it is imperative for NBC to pick up OLTL. They would then have two powerhouses in their daytime line up. As for GH I stopped watching it along with any abc/d programming. I dvr GH and watch it at my leisure.

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Skyla replied February 17th, 2012 at 5:53 pm
I actually heard NBC had made an offer for OLTL but ABC turned them down & went w/PP & we all see how that turned out. I hope NBC cane get OLTL so they could have two powerhouses but Disney/ABC may never give it up just out of spite.

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Torrey replied February 20th, 2012 at 6:35 pm
ABC absolutely sucks! It’s like they don’t want OLTL, but they don’t want anyone else to have them either. They just don’t want to admit they were wrong, and end up with an even bigger egg on their face…..funny thing is, we all already know what a big mistake they made by canceling OLTL. I know that supposedly PP had a year, after this deal with ABC to produce AMC & OLTL….but I’m hoping that someone will come along before that year expiration date and save OLTL….And what I don’t get is if PP bought the rights to AMC & OLTL why does any other network have to go through ABC to bring these shows back? Is it because ABC is the parent company of PP? Just scratching my head and wondering on that one…..
Susan says:

February 17, 2012 at 11:55 am

I had a funny feeling the low ratings and lead in of “The Revolution” would take GH down with it. We do need to watch GH to keep it on the air.

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Denise replied February 17th, 2012 at 3:29 pm
Doing my part for ratings. As I type this there are two televisions tuned to General Hospital in my home. Does anyone else think that there is a possibility that Franco and Jason are fraternal twins?

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auotb says:

February 17, 2012 at 11:57 am

they need to put GH on at 2 so they wont suffer from the revolution lead in

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Sassy says:

February 17, 2012 at 12:02 pm

I can’t wait to see Tristan Rogers and Emma Samms I know quite a few ex- GHers that would be tuning in to see them.

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Susan replied February 17th, 2012 at 4:32 pm
Tristan said in an interview once (don’t remember with whom, don’t think it was with Michael Fairman) that he (Tristan) didn’t want Robert to be Ethan’s father. If that the RC is going and Robert stays in PC longer than 6 episode then we can expect a Robert recast.

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rhda8386 replied February 18th, 2012 at 7:36 pm
Are you sure about this? On his website, before the Luke reveal, he said the story had possibilities …

Susan replied February 19th, 2012 at 9:42 am
Possitive, TR said that he wasn’t happy with Robert having another child and that Ethan needed to stay Luke’s son. TR said he didn’t want Robert to be considered yet another dead beat dad to yet another child. Once was enough.
barbara t says:

February 17, 2012 at 12:17 pm

In the next few weeks we will see if abc is canceling general hospital,maybe thats why frons was fired ,because he said abc was planning to keep g h,when they were going to get rid of it, who knows what those jerks were thinking , I for one ,want to know now ,Im sick of the waiting and head games abc wants to play with the soap fans.as far as the mannings go ,forget it ,there on one week ,kassie depava is already back home ,shes looking for work ,todd and blair are there to get star started in her new adventures in port charles.I cant wait to see what ron and frank will do to hopefully save general hospital,and hopefully bring the ratings up.

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Jenna replied February 17th, 2012 at 6:40 pm
Actually, it was Anne Sweeney who said that the show with the most eyeballs gets to stay. Frons just repeated it. We should hold her to it.

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david replied February 18th, 2012 at 3:42 am
Well if that’s true then they should cancel GH and bring back OLTL already, but you can’t hold slippery, slimy Sweeney to anything.

barbara t replied February 18th, 2012 at 3:30 pm
another piece of work at abc ,I always forget about her,because frons was the real mouthpiece ,david , I would love to see one life to live come back ,but it will be a whole new ball game if it does,abc dismantled everything that had to do with landview,and once again 1loveabcsoaps and heather will be mad at me ,but,I think the wrong soap was canceled ,however ,I would like to see all 3 of the soaps stay on for another 49 years,abc is thinking money over quality programing.I hope that scripted programing will not become a thing of the past of abc ,cbs ,nbc,and fox.
Karol says:

February 17, 2012 at 12:25 pm

I was extremely hopeful until I found out the GH returnees (Robert, Anna) are short term only and that the OLTL people are now longer term..GH has a robust history with talent that made it a quality show. However these ratings stunts are not going to save it. I am thankful we do get to see them and that would not have happened with the previous regime, but again if the goal is to save it, not sure this will do it.

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Jenna replied February 17th, 2012 at 2:39 pm
Karol,
According to an item in GHH’s Rumoville page, things may have changed for Kassie and Roger (Blair and Todd). They are hearing they may be getting a contract. I also read something on Kassie’s facebook page that hints of the same thing!

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Avelina replied February 18th, 2012 at 3:50 am
I agree with you guys. Thats not fair. Robert and Anna should be long term. Bringing on OLTL left overs will not increase ratings
cathy trinque says:

February 17, 2012 at 2:01 pm

I will be watching GH to see the folks from Llanview. But I really think that ABC wants GH to fail. Maybe it could be saved a little while if it moves to 2. My favorite time was 2 because I am too busy at 3 pm with kids and supper. ABC doesn’t care what we think. Disney is all about the almighty dollar.

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Jenna says:

February 17, 2012 at 2:35 pm

Not only should everyone watch GH live, they should also rewatch their TiVO’s and DVR recordings of the show, within 24 hours of each episode being aired. No FF of commercials! Cable companies can track TiVO and DVR watching, so even if you don’t have Nielsen box it counts! Ask everyone who loves you to do the same! Also, watch it online at the ABC website. Spread the word!

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Debi says:

February 17, 2012 at 2:46 pm

GH maybe down now, but its going up up up. Today was an example of what is to come.

Where was the food tray? I saw NO food. And I was looking. Million dollars contributions one would think would be reason for a sit down dinner! (I LOVE eating)

Can’t Jason just once say “I love you’ back to his mother?

My favorite girl Emma was on today!
I remember Robin calling Anna LOVE!

How beautiful did Liz look? Seems to me there is a new beautican on board as well. They use to wear their hair up and pretty like that. Then the Wolfie/Guza’s entered the building!! Well buh-bye losers!
Matt walks away. REAL man Matt! Fight for what you want, do you even know what you want??

Pt Chuckles brought out their finest today. But we don’t get ENOUGH of them! We had 1 scene, if even with Diane, Mac, Alexis, Papa, Tracey, etc. However, I must say, at least they were taken out of the closet and brushed off. I just want more.

Visibly absent was Lulu. They say she had a cold. I say she had a date with a few bottles of wine.

Next week is going to be MIND BLOWING. I can’t wait.

So Jason & Franco are fraternal twins? YIKES! Who saw that coming? Is Heather the one sending Jason the tapes??

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lily says:

February 17, 2012 at 2:54 pm

I’m not surprised. I’m still missing AMC and wish it were still on air more than anything.

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Jenna says:

February 17, 2012 at 3:20 pm

After a long absence, I began watching GH again the week before OLTL went dark. The low ratings is not good news. I hate to say it, but I think the writing is on the wall.

If ratings are so bad now, I don’t see how they are going to change dramatically with new writers, old favorites, or even moving its timeslot. I hate to say this, I really do. I am sure they will announce cancellation in a few months.

All of this has been done with Loving/The City and Port Charles (both used to be on ABC). It’s so sad. I boycott everything ABC except for GH. Their Good Christian Bitches (or Belles now) and anything else they are shoving down my throat won’t be getting my eyeballs, but I don’t have a Nielsen box so I mean squat to them anyway.

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Terri says:

February 17, 2012 at 6:13 pm

I blame the Revolution for GH’s bad ratings! They have no viewers so when they change to a different channel they don’t change back at 3 to watch GH. I can’t wait for our Llanview friends to show up in Port Charles. I miss AMC and OLTL so much!!! As I know there are millions of us who do! Bring back our soaps!! I don’t care who picks them up just as long as they do it! I read on one of my Facebook soap groups that a channel called LOGO was bringing back an oldie but goodie soap. Maybe they will bring all of them back and get the ratings over the ones who refused to pick them up.

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Jenna says:

February 17, 2012 at 6:36 pm

Just want to point out that there seem to be two Jenna’s here, LOL! One of us is optimistic, apparently the other one is not.

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Christine (formerly known as Jenna) replied February 17th, 2012 at 11:47 pm
Ha! Ha! That’s ME. I will go by my real name, though I have always liked the name Jenna!

I’m sorry I am not more optimistic. I’ve always been a glass-is-half-empty kind of gal. That way I can’t be disappointed. I wish the future for GH was better. I keep hearing insider talk that it is not.

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barbara t replied February 18th, 2012 at 11:15 am
dam, there were two of yous?now I have to get use to christine,well you keep the(formerly know as jenna ) so I dont get confused ,Im hearing that todd and blair maybe sticking around port charles ,thats good,the g h fans arent to happy about the newest oltl leftovers staying,I am because it cant hurt ,it can help, they move new families on soaps all the time ,so what if there from one life to live ,whats the problem?maybe robert and anna dont want to stay for any length of time there only there to say good bye to robin,Ive watched all 3 abc soaps for 49 years so who cares who pops up in port charles,as long as the ratings go up,if ron and frank have to ask barney the dinosaur to make a visit, im all for it if it gets people to watch,dont we want to see general hospital stay and not get canceled by the abc soap killers?I do.

Christine (formerly known as Jenna) replied February 19th, 2012 at 1:39 am
I’ll keep it, Barbara!

I hope Kassie and Roger do stick around too. They are electric together. General Hospital Happenings said that the scenes between Maurice Benard and Roger Howarth were supposedly very good, though I can’t see how they would have anything in common and be at odds UNLESS it was fighting about Starr and Michael.

And I admit I have been an off-and-on viewer of all the ABC soaps, but I am here to support GH until the end … whenever, IFever that may be!
Elhu says:

February 17, 2012 at 7:32 pm

I believe we should remain hopeful, and most importantly continue to watch and/or tape GH every day!!!!! I truly believe Frank Valentini and Ron C will turn this around and GH will once again be a top rated soap. Time will tell, but please just keep watching!!!!

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Debi says:

February 18, 2012 at 7:14 am

http://generalhospital.about.com/od/hotgeneralhospitalnews/a/HotStuff.htm

I hope I can post this, if not it won’t be published. I am just the messenger, and until Michael confirms this, I don’t believe half of it.

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Christine (formerly known as Jenna) replied February 19th, 2012 at 1:36 am
No, Debi, I have seen this TOO! There is some sort of insider blog or something and alleged “insiders” have said these same things. This also ends up on other spoiler sites. I am not sure where it originates or how much of it is being put out there by the new regime – because I heard they like to put false information out there.

That being said, it all sounds exciting, to me. I bet a lot of it IS true. I have also heard from the above-mentioned insider page that GH HAS been cancelled, but they just haven’t announced it yet.

There was also something (and I don’t know how the TV stations work), but basically there is a block of time that has not been given back to the affiliates. So if ABC wanted to keep GH and The Revolution continued to downward spiral, they would have a place for GH once Katie Couric’s show bows because said insider said that ABC is not developing a show to take The Revolution’s spot.

In any event, I would take everything we the fans read with a huge grain of salt.

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Debi replied February 19th, 2012 at 9:33 am
Hi Christine….The link to those spoilers I am friends with the women who runs it. She (in the past) has told me she will not print any rumors. Though there were some rumors on that link, I do believe some of them.
Kristine Wagner I don’t know. Now I am reading someone is inpersonating her on FB and she didn’t leave that message. As you & I know, there are alot of NUT CASES on fb & blogs, so we will have to wait for further confirmation about Kristine until Michael can confirm.

I personally, do NOT believe GH has been officially cancelled. I believe the next month will decide the future. However, imo if ratings boost enough, some other network may pick it up. So I am not counting GH over yet. Though the future writing stuff is definately ‘wrapping up’ storylines it seems.

The immediate future should tell alot. I too share your excitement! lol

Christine (formerly known as Jenna) replied February 20th, 2012 at 12:08 am
How exciting, Debi!

Oh and I know there are some real nut cases out there. It always amazes me how some people cannot separate the actors from the characters they play and that is just the beginning.

I really do hope they bring Kristina Wagner back. I think the last time I saw Felicia on GH was when she had the affair with Luke. I hated that storyline. I don’t know if she was back after that because I watch here and there. However, like I said before, I am here for the end of the line.
Debi says:

February 18, 2012 at 9:42 am

Check out Kristina Wagners website! Talk about Breaking News!

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Scott says:

February 18, 2012 at 11:12 pm

I am not surprised right now. I knew this would happen, I knew it would. And I wouldn’t be surprised if they continue dropping. While I love GH, I am hoping for the best with RC’s writing, while preparing for the worst. I still believe it to be ABC’s way of writing the soap off of the air.

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sheila says:

February 20, 2012 at 8:31 pm

abc’s going to hell in a handbasket provided by the chew foodies n the revolution ! well piss on you abc if it werent for g,h, abc would stand for all boring crap !

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david says:

February 21, 2012 at 12:39 am

I am still mourning the loss of OLTL. I hope GH will improve, but Robin dying is more sadness than I would like. I wish her character would have left some other way than this. GH seems like such a dark and depressing show.

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Shelly says:

February 21, 2012 at 11:14 am

They are bringing back all these vets (maybe, if story is correct) to temporarily pump the final ratings. Their hope is they can still “train” viewers to stay tuned at 3:00. There’s a lot riding on “replacement #3″. Looking at the big pic; replacement #1 is doing Ok, same or less #’s as AMC, but cheaper to produce so they consider it a success. Replacement #2 is a colossal failure and they can’t be doing a good job of explaining the sudden loss of 2 million daytime viewers. They paid top dollar for “her” last year, ASSUMING that the new lineup would be a complete hit. Now they realize the lead in numbers totally suck, soap fans are outraged and have no intention of watching replacement #3, which could fail as well.
I’m sorry if it sounds like I’m rambling; they know we as soap viewers want, and they’ll give it to us so we’ll tune in for the final months (hope I’m wrong about cancellation, but it’s not looking good).

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brenda wills says:

March 8, 2012 at 10:51 pm

i hope kassie stay on gh with roger things will not be the same without her i want them to be together they are my favorite couple i love them together forever if kassie leave i will not watch gh i dont want roger to romance no other woman but kassie i will be heart broken if she leave no todd and blair any more this suck. sign sad and depress.

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brenda wills says:

March 8, 2012 at 11:16 pm

i need a answer to my comment about kassie stay on gh with roger without her things will suck no todd and blair this will make me sad i love them they are the best couple on tv i will not gh any more no todd and blair this really suck i want roger and kassie together in real life back in the 90s they were hot and young and in love they are perfect couple on tv and off.i just hope they be together on gh so i will be happy i will be really sad without my todd and blair kassie and roger together forever aka todd and blair true love.

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