A History of CBS Soap Operas

Soap Operas for fifty years have mesmerized and entertained the television viewing world. We have experienced dramas, romance and attraction. The first television soap opera aired on CBS in 1956. The soap opera was the still popular Guiding Light. Guiding Light first began on the radio 1930s. It switched to television in 1956.

CBS has and continues to air many great soap operas. CBS currently airs The Young and the Restless, Bold and the Beautiful, As the World Turns and Guiding Light.

In 1973 The Young and the Restless premiered. It became quite successful pretty quickly and still pulls in millions of viewers today. The story line began with the Abbot and Newman families' battling it out in the boardroom of the business world. I can remember when it first aired. My Mother was very faithful to CBS soap operas. When Search for Tomorrow was taken off the air after 30 years she had a fit. Many viewers have watched The Young and the Restless from the very beginning. It has won more Emmy Awards the any other soap currently on television and has been #1 for 16 years. The longest running character on the show is Katherine Chancellor played by Jeanne Cooper. She celebrated 30 years on the show in January 2004.

The Bold and the Beautiful is a half hour soap that centers on the Forrester and Spectra Families. They are families that battle in the fashion world. It first aired on the fourteenth anniversary of The Young and the Restless premiere in 1987. The Young And The restless and The Bold and The Beautiful have entwined the story lines of both shows together at times. The Forrester's know the Beautiful Lauren Finmore who lives in Genoa City. Both shows have also had to deal with the psychotic fits of Sheila Carter.