TVSquad

While a lot of ABC soap fans are flipping out about Thorsten Kaye's exit from All My Children, and others are giddy about James Franco bringing his movie star luster to General Hospital, there's more big news coming about those soaps. First, the original Lucky, Jonathan Jackson, is returning to General Hospital after 10 years off the show. And the original Greenlee, Rebecca Budig, is coming back to All My Children after leaving the show in March 2009.

Both these returns are exciting... and fraught with drama. While Jonathan is a three-time Emmy-winner and a superb Lucky -- he originated the role -- his choosing to resume the part means that Greg Vaughan has been dumped.

To be really, really honest, Greg was a great looking Lucky, but he never had a good grasp on the character of Lucky.

As a member of the media elite, I tend to run in some pretty impressive circles. Some days it's a Yankees game with Lorne Michaels, Fergie, and Jason Hervey. Others, it's World of Warcraft with Michael Keaton and Val Kilmer (hint for dealing with those two: do NOT wonder aloud who the best Batman of the '90s was).

Obviously, writing a bi-weekly column that has readership literally in the hundreds carries with it a lot of perks. But it's not all fun and games. My place as America's foremost pop culture commentator ("It's like Chuck Klosterman and Andy Warhol had a baby!" reads the blurb I'll ask my editor to put on my book should I ever write one) means that my inbox is constantly being spammed by other members of the media asking for advice.

Instead of answering those emails privately, like good manners and the explicit instructions of many of the emails demand, I figured I'd share both the emails and their answers with you, my loyal readers...

Don't get too worked up, they're not dumping all reruns. But TV Land announced that by the end of 2009 they are looking to have original programming fill up half of their prime-time lineup. Last year it was 4% and it's only 15% now. The Wall Street Journal article goes on and on about how the channel is aiming to skew younger, to generate more ad revenue. When it spun off solo in 1996, TV on DVD was still relatively new, so it was a lot of fun to have a place to go to get your nostalgia fix. But now, most folks can go to their DVD library if they want to see M*A*S*H again.

It goes on to say that the types of shows they're developing are romance and dating shows, like Cougar, which is basically The Bachelorette with an older woman scouting younger guys. The strides they've made so far have improved their ratings and median age, so I guess this will work, too but it's disappointing to me. Basic cable used to have channels where you knew what to expect when you went there and TV Land was one of them.

Many people think that the term "cougar," which is loosely defined as "older woman on the prowl for younger men to date" was introduced on last season's How I Met Your Mother episode that had Jane Seymour seduce Neil Patrick Harris' Barney. But like I said in my review back then, I had heard that term before that episode aired. But we can definitely say that HIMYM popularized the term.

Now it seems like TV Land, which is becoming the network for reality shows starring people over 35, has decided to pick up a Bachelorette-esque series where a number of young men will be competing for the affections of "sexy and accomplished mature woman." The show is being produced by Mike Fleiss, who was the executive producer for the network's version of High School Reunion.