Susan Lucci and most of the ‘All My Children’ cast to stick with the show when it moves west

Susan Lucci going west with ‘All My Children’

NEW YORK — When ABC’s “All My Children” makes its move from Manhattan to a new home in Los Angeles, Susan Lucci won’t stay behind.

The leading lady of this durable daytime drama says she’s decided to keep playing oft-wed diva Erica Kane, just as she has since “All My Children” premiered in 1970.

“I made my final decision just a couple of days ago,” Lucci said. But as an inveterate New Yorker, she added that she wouldn’t be uprooting herself and her family for a permanent move.

“My life is here,” she said during a chat between rehearsals Wednesday.

Meanwhile, most of the New York-based cast will be joining her at the new L.A. shooting site, where production begins in early January, ABC has announced.

The main exception is Ray MacDonnell, who, like Lucci, is an original cast member. He is retiring from his role as Dr. Joe Martin.

ABC’s list of continuing cast members also includes Brittany Allen, David Canary, Bobbie Eakes, Melissa Claire Egan, Stephanie Gatschet, Ricky Paull Goldin, Vincent Irizarry, Michael E. Knight, Jamie Luner, Adam Mayfield, JR Martinez, Cameron Mathison, Debbi Morgan, Cornelius Smith, Jr., Denise Vasi, Darnell Williams and Jacob Young.

Thorsten Kaye will not relocate to Los Angeles, and Alicia Minshew will be on maternity leave beginning in November, ABC said.

The cross-country move was first announced this summer, with Dec. 11 the final day for the show in its current New York facilities. It airs weekdays at 1 p.m. EDT.

Set in the fictional town of Pine Valley, “All My Children” is moving west both to save money and to enhance the show’s production values, according to ABC. The new facility is twice the size of the show’s New York home, with two sound stages, and the ability to tape the show in high-def.

The roomier, better-equipped provisions “will allow for more expansive writing and more flexible production,” Lucci said. “To move ‘All My Children’ to California is a large vote of confidence by ABC.”

Of the seven daytime dramas, just two — ABC’s “One Life to Live” and CBS’ “As the World Turns” — will still be in New York.

CBS’ New York-based “Guiding Light” ended its 57-year TV run in mid-September, the latest chilling hint that the soap opera genre is a dying institution.

But Lucci is a true believer, and she thinks her network is, too.

“ABC is making a huge commitment to continue our show,” she said.

ABC is owned by the Walt Disney Co.

On the Net:

www.abc.com