Reilly's bible for the show, 'Hidden Passions' is a window to the past so that eager readers can make sense of some of the current mysteries.The book is the diary of Tabitha (played by Juliet Mills on the soap), a 200-year-old witch who's been living for centuries in the show's setting, a New England town called Harmony (even though life in Harmony is anything but harmonious). Part of this, I will admit, is because of the bizarre stories the show is telling, what with trips to hell, angel girls and living dolls and all.But at its heart, all this hype just reflects the fact that 'Passions' is using past history to enrich what's on screen right now, and fans are tuning in in droves.In the spring, NBC sought to cash in on the growing soap's mania and released a book, 'Hidden Passions: Secrets from the Diaries of Tabitha Lenox.' Written by romance novelist Alice Alfonsi and using 'Passions' creator/head writer James E. (The shining example of this is currently CBS' 'As the World Turns.')However, the soap that's really catching the eye of the entertainment industry right now is NBC's 'Passions.' Interesting that the show is doing everything I talked about above, when it only began to air in 1999.'Passions' has had a feature article in Entertainment Weekly magazine, and was on the cover of TV Guide in July, proof that it's taking off. (A primary example of this kind of storyline is ABC's lineup, which is a real mess right now.)And that's why it's exciting when a soap pauses to mine its heritage and tell storylines that will both draw in new viewership, and please people who've been tuning in since day one at the same time. Some of the stories currently showing on daytime dramas today got their start more than a decade ago, and viewers have seen every step along the way!That's why it's frustrating that the people currently in charge of most soap operas today don't have a clue as to what they're doing, and are using gimmicks to draw in viewers rather than utilizing their show's rich histories and coming up with character-based storylines. They, I feel, are one of the few storytelling channels where it is possible to show an event, and the fallout from said event, for years. Up on my soapbox again.Soap operas intrigue me as an industry.

Passions soap opera where are they now