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James Harmon Brown and Barbara Esensten

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James Harmon Brown and Barbara Esensten are American television writers, primarily working on soap operas. The duo have worked together for over 20 years, starting on the prime-time serial Dynasty. Together, they created the soap opera The City, a spinoff of Loving. On November 14, 2012, Esensten died at the age of 75.[1]

Controversy

Brown and Esensten are somewhat controversial; their writing has been criticized[by whom?] as often drifting into the absurd and sci-fi. When the two wrote for Guiding Light during the later part of the 1990s, the show's primary herione, Reva Shayne, was cloned, and when the duo would later write for Port Charles, vampires were introduced, along with other supernatural creatures. When the two took over as head writers at All My Children, the show plummeted to record lows in the ratings.[2] The show reached a record low of 2,144,000 viewers on November 2, 2007.[citation needed]

Because of the 2007-2008 Writers Guild of America strike, Brown and Esensten went financial core within the guild, allowing them to write for All My Children because of financial strains brought on by the strike. Megan McTavish, the writer they replaced at All My Children, was displeased. "These are not youngsters struggling to make mortgage payments or feed their children. Their sole intent now seems to be piling up more money for themselves," she said.[3]

Positions held

Dynasty

  • Co-Writers: 1987-1988
  • Executive Story Editors: 1988-1989

All My Children

  • Co-Head Writers: July 26, 2007 - January 14, 2008; January 30 - August 26, 2008
  • Script Writers: July 20, 2010 – September 23, 2011

Days of Our Lives

  • Script Editors: November 2006 - May 2007

One Life to Live

  • Script Editors: October 2004 - October 2005

Port Charles

Guiding Light

  • Co-Head Writers: 1997 - 2000

Loving

  • Co-Head Writers: 1994 - November 1995

The City

  • Creators
  • Co-Head Writers: November 1995 - March 1997

Awards and nominations

Daytime Emmy Awards

WINS

  • (1993; Best Writing; Guiding Light)
  • (2012; Best Writing; Days of Our Lives)

NOMINATIONS

  • (1999; Best Writing; Guiding Light)
  • (2006, 2009 & 2012; Best Writing; One Life to Live)

Writers Guild of America Award

NOMINATIONS

  • (1995, 1996, 1998 & 1999 seasons; Guiding Light)
  • (2006 season; One Life to Live)
  • (2008 season; All My Children)

References

  1. ^ "Barbara Esensten Dead at 75". We Love Soaps. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  2. ^ "AMC hits new record lows". Soap Opera Network. {{cite web}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help)
  3. ^ Steinberg, Jacques (January 21, 2008). "Soap-Operas Are the Hidden Drama of the Strike". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-01-21. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
Preceded by
Addie Walsh
Laurie McCarthy
 Head Writer of Loving
Early 1995–November 10, 1995 		Succeeded by
Show ended
Preceded by
none
 Head Writer of The City
November 13, 1995 – March 28, 1997 		Succeeded by
Show ended
Preceded by Head Writer of Guiding Light
April 1997 – August 2000 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Megan McTavish (no HW listed before they joined)
 Head Writer of All My Children
July 25, 2007 – January 14, 2008 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Head Writer of All My Children
January 31 - August 26, 2008 		Succeeded by


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