Kay Alden is an award-winning television writer, and former head writer for the most-watched American soap opera The Young and the Restless. During the WGA stike she went under financial core status [1] while working for The Bold and the Beautiful.

Alden started writing for The Young and the Restless as a script writer in 1974, was promoted to an associate head writer, then as co-head writer in 1997, and took over as head writer the following year when series co-creator William J. Bell stepped down from the position. With Alden as head writer, the show lost about 2 million viewers (most of the loss occurred in 2004 when Alden co-wrote the show with longtime Y&R scribe and producer John F. Smith), but all soap operas during this period experienced a similar scale of massive audience erosion.

She quit The Young and the Restless in late 2006, and was then hired by Brian Frons, president of ABC Daytime, to consult on its serials All My Children, General Hospital and One Life to Live. She left ABC Daytime after declining to be All My Children's head writer in spring 2007, and was hired by Bradley Bell in May 2007 to be an associate head writer for another CBS Daytime drama, The Bold and the Beautiful. On July 18, 2008 it was announced that Alden would be appointed co-head writer of The Bold and the Beautiful in the coming weeks. [2]

There is a scholarship in Alden's name from Emporia State University, in Emporia, Kansas.

[edit] Positions held

The Young And The Restless

• Script Writer: 1974 - 1980
• Breakdown Writer: 1980 - 1987
• Script Editor: 1983 - 1985, 1986 - 1987
• Associate Head Writer: 1987 - 1997
• Co-Head Writer: 1997 - 1998, February 16 - December 22, 2006
• Head Writer: 1998 - February 15, 2006

All My Children

• Story Consultant December 2006 - April 2007

One Life to Live

• Story Consultant: December 2006 - April 2007

General Hospital

• Story Consultant December 2006 - April 2007

The Bold and the Beautiful

• Associate Head Writer: August 2007 - January 21, 2008, April 16 - July 18, 2008
• Head Writer: February 5 - April 15, 2008
• Co-Head Writer: July 19, 2008 - present

Preceded by William J. Bell	Head Writer of The Young and the Restless (with John F. Smith: 2002 - 2006) (with Trent Jones: Co-HW~2002-2004) (with Lynn Marie Latham & Scott Hamner: 2006) 1998 - December 25, 2006	Succeeded by Lynn Marie Latham Scott Hamner (Co-HW)
Preceded by Bradley Bell	Head Writer of The Bold and the Beautiful February 5 - April 15, 2008	Succeeded by Bradley Bell

[edit] Awards and nominations

Daytime Emmy Award [3]

• Nominations, 2008, 2009, Best Writing The Bold and the Beautiful
• Nominations, 1976, 1979, 1986, 1987, 1990-1995, 1997-2001, 2003-2007, Best Writing, The Young and the Restless
• Wins, 1997, 2000, 2006, Best Writing, The Young and the Restless

Writers Guild of America Award

• Wins, 2002 & 2005, Best Writing, The Young and the Restless
• Nominations, 1999, 2001, 2006, Best Writing, The Young and the Restless

[edit] External links

• Kay Alden at the Internet Movie Database
• MIT Comparative Media Studies
• SunTimes