Luke Snyder and Noah Mayer
[1] When Noah Mayer arrived in Oakdale in June 2007 and entranced resident gay character Luke Snyder, CBS's As the World Turns "became the first soap to depict a fully realized romantic male couple as an integral part of the show".
[6] There had been other gay male characters on U.S. daytime television, before; for example, One Life to Live's Billy Douglas (portrayed by a young Ryan Phillippe), but Luke and Noah represented a change in the genre.
"[6] Hansis said that "it does throw you a bit, especially since this was [his] first big role on television" and "You go from waiting tables to doing interviews with national magazines and people saying that you changed their lives.
"[7] As the World Turns executive producer Chris Goutman stated in a WGN radio interview that Hansis and Silbermann are "both very modest actors".
Their new-found closeness is challenged when they meet a young Iraqi woman, Ameera Ali Aziz, who is in the United States on temporary visa and soon to be deported.
When Noah visits his father in prison, he crushes the Colonel's hopes by revealing that his marriage to Ameera is in name only and that he and Luke are still a couple.
To counter the homophobic attacks of Kevin's supporters, Luke winds up permitting Casey Hughes to stuff the ballot box to ensure that he will win.
Noah finds a specialist, neurosurgeon Reid Oliver, whom he believes he can cure his sight, and Luke tries to lure the arrogant doctor to Oakdale; when promises of money do not work, he successfully blackmails him.
[7] CBS's As the World Turns "made that breakthrough in 2007 when Luke Snyder (Van Hansis) fell hard for newcomer Noah Mayer (Jake Silbermann).
And viewers fell just as hard for the couple, quickly naming them Nuke as their growing popularity helped to push the show’s ratings up".
In countries where it may not be OK to be gay, people hungry to see themselves accurately portrayed onscreen can go to YouTube and follow the 'Nuke' storyline in sequence," stated David Alexander Nahmod of Bay Area Reporter.
CBS, however, is content in letting the Luke and Noah love story stay on the file sharing sites because it is good and free publicity for the show.
"Many gay viewers, for example, who are introduced to the Luke and Noah storyline on the internet may become interested in the whole show and start tuning into the CBS broadcasts.
"[10] In a different campaign, Jerome was responsible for the decision to have fans of the television series Jericho send thousands of nuts to network executives in order to get the once-canceled show back on the air, and advised Luke-Noah supporters to flood CBS Daytime Programs Senior Vice President Barbara Bloom with Hershey's Kisses.
"[12] Addressed was that fans of the romance, referred to as Luke-and-Noah champions by Boston Globe, pointed to two major near-misses since the couple's two onscreen kisses.
Once, during an episode of the soap opera near Christmas, Luke and Noah moved toward a kiss, and the camera quickly panned to a mistletoe, an event dubbed "Mistletoegate" by frustrated and disappointed fans.
[12] Boston Globe relayed that AfterElton.com created a running ticker of the time that had elapsed since Luke and Noah last kissed on the lips onscreen.
"[12] Boston Globe detailed that gay characters on television are common by now, "both on cable and on network shows such as ABC's hit drama Brothers and Sisters".
"This was one more programming frontier," said Andy Towle, who runs the popular gay-theme blog towleroad.com and keeps readers up to date on Luke and Noah developments.
[12] Luke's story of coming to terms with his sexuality began in late 2005, as the son of one of the show's longstanding couples, Holden Snyder and Lily Walsh.
Bloom, CBS's senior vice president for daytime television, said the show's executive producer and head writer laid out a tentative long-term plotline in advance, unfolding it slowly so that the audience would conclude that Luke was gay before he officially announced it.
[12] Though the Luke and Noah romance garnered positive reaction, Tharrington and CBS officials said they heard complaints from viewers opposed to the storyline.
With the Luke and Noah story, Sharp detailed that group leaders had a phone conference with Procter & Gamble officials and asked members to contact the company.
"The love affair between two young men on the venerable CBS soap opera As the World Turns has triggered a protest campaign by angry viewers," the report opened with.
[13] The group came to its conclusion based on the number of Procter & Gamble products advertised on primetime television shows with gay or lesbian characters.
They cited that a 14-year-old boy shot a man who was attacking his mother in 2008, and that "one character was so desperate for a baby that she slept with her ex-brother-in-law and was nearly caught having sex in an elevator.
[13] Producers are committed to telling the story of the romance, she added, stating that she hoped the audience would recognize what As the World Turns is showing, instead of just what it is not: "We feel like we're doing so much right here.
[20][21] Washington Blade stated: After 214 days and an e-mail campaign by angry fans that generated international coverage, the gay teen couple on CBS soap opera As The World Turns finally got to share their third on-screen kiss.
[24] TV Guide columnist Michael Logan said that the lack of promotion for the sex scene may have been a deliberate strategy to avoid giving protesters a chance to pressure the network from cutting the storyline.
"[24] Gay and Lesbian Times reported receiving 20 letters from fans complaining about Luke and Noah's lack of airtime as a couple.
