Newest Disney Toy: A Homicidal Rapist

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Roger Howarth as Todd the Rapist on "One Life to Live."

Published: January 1, 2008 at 03:34 AM GMT
Last Updated: November 19, 2008 at 03:34 AM GMT

By Ed Martin

Originally published May 7, 2002

In one of its most mystifying moves yet, Disney-owned ABC is now selling a rag doll modeled after a homicidal rapist.

The Todd Rag Doll – a cuddly rendition of a current character on the ABC soap opera "One Life to Live" – was recently added to a growing list of soap-related products ABC is peddling on the shopping pages of abc.com. Todd began his long run on "OLTL" as a rapist who with two other young men brutally gang-raped a troubled young woman. He went on to kill another person and terrorize a temporarily blind female attorney. Another person Todd attacked slashed his face, leaving him permanently scarred. The scar has been artfully recreated on the face of the Todd Rag Doll.

Todd is still on "OLTL" and has since been reformed and redeemed in the manner of many popular soap rapists. But he will always be known primarily as Todd the Rapist, which is as it should be, because the gang rape storyline, and the trial that followed, earned "OLTL" numerous Emmy Awards.

Given the history of this character, one would think that somebody at ABC parent Disney would have questioned the wisdom of adding a toy rapist to its sales catalogue. And make no mistake – the look of this doll suggests child's toy rather than pricey collectible intended for adult acquisition. Indeed, the Todd Rag Doll looks like it would be right at home on the shelf of any Disney store, positioned amid rag and bean bag renditions of beloved characters from Disney properties.

Certainly, much of the content on ABC's soaps – and every other soap – is not suitable for children. But it isn't likely that children are drawn to them in the first place. That may also hold true with the soap product sales area on abcshowstore.com overall, and for the Todd Rag Doll in particular, but that doesn't take away from the fact that Disney has seen fit to create and market a doll based on a murderous rapist that actually looks like a child's plaything.

The Todd doll is an anomaly: most of the products on the soap opera pages of abc.com are replicas of jewelry worn by the women of "OLTL," "All My Children" and "General Hospital" and hawked at the end of those programs. (Own Gia's earrings! Visit abc.com!) It's all part of ABC's efforts to call continued attention to its soap properties and, predictably, maximize revenue potential wherever it is to be found. In the long run, this is supposed to help build and maintain audiences for these shows. Historically, though, the only way to build and maintain audiences for soaps is to deliver compelling storylines, typically centered on sweeping romance, family and community.

Sadly, daytime drama today is all about hype and stunts. One of the most outsized daytime stunts ever will take place next week, when "OLTL" will air live for five consecutive days. Although it is clearly an event, does such live dramatic television truly excite viewers anymore? As recent prime time experiments have demonstrated, live dramatic television seems stage bound and irritating in this era of technical razzle-dazzle. The truth is, viewers watch to see if anybody will screw up. That isn't much of a compliment for all the hard work live dramatic television requires of cast and crew.

Two weeks ago, NBC Daytime sent reporters a package of Kleenex brand tissues with a note heralding the May 1 episode of its soap opera "Days of Our lives" as "The Daytime Event of May." ABC might take exception to that. But the emotionally charged episode itself, in which a young couple had to surrender their baby to its true father, lived up to NBC's limited hype – so much so that it might qualify as the soap event of the year, rather than just May. This was an hour of pure drama rooted in love, compassion, friendship and family, story elements that are currently all too rare on daytime. Today, soaps throb with depraved villainy, supernatural tomfoolery and vicious inhumanity. The current crop of soap scribes has largely forgotten that even in the grand old days, when Luke and Laura were racing to stop a madman from freezing their hometown on "GH," that their show, like so many others, had a sturdy foundation built around families and friends. Attention getting, over the top storylines on soaps were secondary to the appeal of simply spending time within their communities. "Days" brought that all back on May 1. Ultimately, that episode will do more for "Days" than controversial rag dolls and live telecasts will for "OLTL."

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